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March 22nd, 2011

Maya: Crystal Abstract

No Comments, 3D, by shrakner.

This 3D animation got its start when I first used displacement mapping with my Morrowind in Maya project last year.  As a test, I mapped the texture I used for the underside of the Emperor Parasol mushrooms onto a glass sphere, and I was impressed with the results.  I finally took the time to experiment a bit more with it, ultimately creating this 1080p HD video:

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6pdYQtoq5w']

Besides the displacement mapping, I took the opportunity to explore lighting and camera motion. More

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March 9th, 2011

Carbon Fiber Wallpaper v1

No Comments, 2D Graphics, by shrakner.
Carbon Fiber Wallpaper v1

Carbon Fiber v1 (1080p)

Something that popped into my head that I thought would make a cool wallpaper. It’s based off an idea I have for updating my portfolio site’s graphics- I figured a wallpaper would be a fun way to play with the graphics a bit.

This is a first version, and it needs more work, but I think it’s headed in a good direction. This was created using Inkscape after studying some online photos of carbon fiber. Next I’d like to try this in actual 3D using Maya…

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February 22nd, 2011

Radia demo videos: 1.0.1 vs 1.1.3

No Comments, App Development, by shrakner.
Radia Demo Video 1- Whiteboard work

Radia Demo Video 1- Whiteboard work

When I released the 1.1.3 update to the Radia LED Clock, I made new screenshots and a new demo video for YouTube to show off the new features.  Like the initial release, I first sketched out the basics of the screenshots and drew quick storyboards for the video.

The first video was created to show off the visuals of the clock and how to read time on it:

startup -> time display -> features -> more time display

(watch on YouTube)

The second video took a more utilitarian approach: Show how you use the clock in your workspace (with resizing, float on top, Live Icon), and the visuals will be shown off in due course.  Various times were selected to show the clock in different states while demonstrating features.

More

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February 15th, 2011

New Gallery Icons

No Comments, 2D Graphics, by shrakner.
Shrakner.net- new gallery icons

New gallery icons

I recently restructured my portfolio website, shrakner.net, in order to create a separate “Web Design” gallery. (Previously, these entries were mixed into a catchall “Other” gallery.) An icon was needed for the new gallery, so I took the opportunity to both create the new icon and refresh two others.

The gallery select page employs monochrome, silhouette-like icons, and I decided to stick with that format for its simplicity and elegance.  I used pencil & ink for sketching out icon designs.  The first few drawings used an Extra Fine Sharpie for inking, but I switched to a 90% Cool Grey Prismacolor marker for smoother application.  Final icon creation was done using the open-source vector graphics program Inkscape. More

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February 4th, 2011

Radia LED Clock- 1.1.3 update

No Comments, App Development, by shrakner.
Radia Icon v (1.1.3)

Radia Icon v (1.1.3)

On Monday evening, update 1.1.3 of the Radia LED Clock was approved by Apple.  The first public update since 1.0.1, it adds two big features that reviewers were requesting: “Float on Top” and “Live Icon” options.

“Float on Top” does exactly what it says it does- it keeps the clock window floated above all other normal windows on your desktop (other floated windows, esp. help windows, can still float above the clock).  ”Live Icon” is a really exciting feature which I personally find to be quite cool- it allows the Dock icon to update and show the current time, down to the second!  Besides just being “nifty”, it’s very useful for those with limited screen space- as long as you can see the Dock, you can see the current time on the Radia LED Clock.  You can even close the main clock window and the icon will continue to update!

Finally, graphics and optimizations.   More

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November 19th, 2010

Recessed LED graphic

No Comments, App Development, by shrakner.

Recessed LED progress

Recessed LED progress

As part of an app I’m developing for the upcoming Mac App Store [the Radia LED Clock], I needed a graphic of a recessed LED that would shine outwards.  While I knew the basics of how I wanted the light setup to work physically, I wasn’t exactly sure of how to represent that adequately as a 2D graphic.  So I followed the teachings of my Industrial Design education and made a study model.
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November 8th, 2010

I’m not dead!

No Comments, Uncategorized, by shrakner.

Just wanted to let people know- the blog’s not dead.  Honestly. :)

A number of web programming projects have taken my time recently, as well as development of an app for the upcoming Mac App Store.  I will shortly resume posting my work, but there are some things that just need to be done and take priority.

If you’re reading this, thank you for visiting, and thank you for your patience. :)

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September 22nd, 2010

Dark Beacon- Software particles!

No Comments, 3D, by shrakner.

Behold the wonder of software rendered particles combined with motion blur post-processing! Unlike the hardware-rendered particles my earlier tests all used, software rendered particles actually take into account the light and shadow of the scene, and don’t require two images to be rendered separately and then composited!

Dark Beacon- Software rendered particles

Software rendered particles in Maya with post-processed motion blur.

(Previous version- hardware particles and video)

Further work on particle generation will probably still be done with hardware rendering simply due to its much greater speed, but final renders will be done with software rendering. I also found the wonder of this amazing Mac app by Tonio Loewald which will apply motion blur to an already-rendered movie: http://loewald.com/motionblur/.

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September 21st, 2010

Lasercut Acrylic Towers

1 Comment, Random Stuff, by shrakner.

My first lasercut parts since Tech, made through Ponoko.com.  As a test of using the service, I made a sheet with two different tower designs which fit on their smallest size stock, and had it cut out of 3 mm acrylic.  The first tower is a stylized version of Orthanc from The Lord of the Rings, which I had originally made at Tech using 2 mm acrylic and I merely scaled 50% larger.  The second one is more of a work-in-progress, the first time trying a new design incorporating translucent marbles to add color and extra visual interest.  While it somewhat works, it certainly needs a bit more development. More

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