Scott Choi: Week 13 - Laser Scanning

Scanned object

RapidWorks screenshots

Ghosted, no naked edges

Render 1

Render 2

Concept:
For this assignment, I decided to scan an alien head with headphones made out of clay. I made this back in middle school for art class, and my parents kept it. I liked it back in the day, and it seemed like a fun object to scan.

Scanning Process/Technique:

I used the NextEngine scanner to scan my object. The scanning process was pretty straightforward once I got a working scanner. I did a 360 scan and decided I didn't need a top and bottom scan since my object hardly had any surfaces there. I trimmed out any unwanted objects and sent my file into RapidWorks. Instead of fusing my model, I decided to manually fill all the holes because it yielded a cleaner result. I used the bridge and fill gulf tool a lot. Afterwards, I smoothed my model using the Sandpaper and Smooth All tools. Then, I used the Simplify tool to set the poly-face count to 200k for my hi-poly version and 1.5k for my low-poly version. To create my nurbs version, I used the Simplify - Auto Surfacing tool. I set it to create an Evenly Distributed Network surface on my object. I imported my file into Rhino to check for naked edges. To create the final render, I took my model into Keyshot. 

Rendering Process/Materials:

For my first render, the backdrop image I chose was the inside of the Bio-engineering Science Building. I thought having an interior shot with a floating alien head would be pretty funny. I set the backdrop image in Keyshot, and then matched up the perspective settings. After I placed my model where I wanted it, I applied a light blue Axalta material that gave it a glossy, metallic look. I played around with some of the environment and lighting settings to make sure my object blended into the backdrop nicely. The bounce light on the left/back side of my model matches the light from the left side, and the shadow and light on the top matches the light coming from the top. For the second render, I followed the same steps of matching the perspective and editing the lighting/shadow setup. However, I changed the environment light to 'Urban 4k' instead of using the 'Startup' lighting scene to better fit the outdoor location. I applied a metallic red paint material for this one, and it looks good. The reflective surface helps make it look more genuine, as the bounce lights make the model blend in. Another thing that helps is there is a ground and building reflection on the alien head, and the horizontal line on it matches with the horizontal line from the backdrop.