My chess piece moves forwards/backwards and left/right like a rook, but it has wings because its special power is that it can fly over pieces that are in its way.
1. What did you learn?
I learned how to use Maya to sculpt three dimensional objects and designs. I also learned how to use Arnold and the Hypershade window to create custom, realistic finishes for designs in Maya.
2. What was easy?
I thought that using the Bezier tool to begin designs was pretty easy, especially since I have used similar tools in Photoshop and Illustrator. I didn’t have much difficulty with using the Hypershade window either; even when I was adjusting all of the minor settings on the Jade preset I used (like “metalness” or “sheen” or “subsurface weight”), it was pretty intuitive even when I did not know exactly what the names of the settings meant.
3. What was challenging?
I think the most challenging part was figuring out how to control the sculpting tools. They were all easy to use, but I found that it was pretty difficult to be very precise with them. I ended up using the “freeze” tool a lot, and that made it a lot easier to be sure I was only changing the parts I wanted to and to make sure that I was making precise adjustments with the sculpting tools.
4. How could your submission be improved?
Originally I wanted to add on a beak, like on a bird, but none of my attempts to make it look the way I wanted to seemed to pan out so I just ended up leaving it off; I think that with more practice in Maya I could make it work and look the way I imagined it, which might be an improvement. In addition, I think I got the wings to be pretty symmetrical but they still weren’t as perfect as they could have been.
5. How could the professor improve the assignment for the next class?
I liked having Lab 6 and Project 3 lead into one another, but I think that maybe creating a different small object in Lab 6 could make doing a chess piece in Lab 3 more fun/interesting. Overall, I still liked both assignments though.
6. How might you apply your knowledge in future assignments or work scenarios?
This could be helpful if I ever need to do any 3D animation in a future assignment. In addition, I am taking a sculpture class next semester so maybe I could use Maya to model projects as part of the sketching process.