Autor Wątek: Pictures of Solaris  (Przeczytany 140881 razy)

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #15 dnia: Marca 16, 2007, 09:40:04 pm »
[justify]I watched recently a TV show called ALIEN PLANET, it is the story of an imaginary expedition on the planet Darwin 4 in the near futur to study creatures living on this world and which is carried out by by two probes-robots : Leo (for Leonardo da Vinci) and Ike (for Isaac Newton). One of the creatures of Darwin 4 is the Amoebic Sea , a vast area of dark gelatinous substance which evokes strongly the ocean of Solaris (however it does not cover all the planet, it have only the size of the of Switzerland). This show is based on the work of a very talented artist, Wayne Barlowe (an arbook called Expedition). It is obvious that Barlowe has read Solaris, the Amboebic Sea is a tribute to Lem's book. It is also said that the planet Darwin 4 orbit around two suns, like Solaris.[/justify]

Below, some pictures I extract from the DVD :

- picture 1 (http://signodom.club.fr/Solaris/Ressources/Alien%20Planet/Picture-1.JPG)
- picture 2 (http://signodom.club.fr/Solaris/Ressources/Alien%20Planet/Picture-2.JPG)

An overall view of the Amoebic Sea, from the prob Ike. Look very familiar. Even the sky have the good colour.

- picture 3 (http://signodom.club.fr/Solaris/Ressources/Alien%20Planet/Picture-3.JPG)
- picture 4 (http://signodom.club.fr/Solaris/Ressources/Alien%20Planet/Picture-4.JPG)

The Ameobic Sea spreads apendices to catch flying creatures, Ike must escape.

- picture 5 (http://signodom.club.fr/Solaris/Ressources/Alien%20Planet/Picture-5.JPG)
- picture 6 (http://signodom.club.fr/Solaris/Ressources/Alien%20Planet/Picture-6.JPG)

On the gelatinous surface of the Ameobic Sea lives huges creatures called the Emperor Sea Striders. They walk over the ameobic gel and feed on it through mouths on their feet.

[justify]I was astounded  when I viewed the show, it is very close of my own vision of the protoplasmic ocean of Solaris. It give a good look of that could be the ocean in a movie. Beside that, the show is very good, its creators have succeeded to give life to a foreign planet with a whole ecosystem, in a realistic and scientific way. I think that lem would have liked it. If you have the opportunity, buy the DVD, it deserve it widely.[/justify]

The official website of the show ALIEN PLANET, produced by Discovery Chanel :
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/alienplanet/alienplanet.html

The article in Wikipedia about Wayne Barlowe :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Barlowe

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #16 dnia: Maja 17, 2007, 12:26:03 pm »
I have just updated my website, I added some new pictures and also videos.

Deckard

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #17 dnia: Maja 18, 2007, 10:22:22 am »
Hi there our French Solarist!

It was quite interesting to watch your videos.I think you are the only one who's ever tried to visualize Solaris entities - and that's good for you!

I understand that all of the animiations you shared with us on your web page are just tests before something bigger, however a few things came to my mind when I was watching it:

a) Your ocean is static. There are a few examples of moving waves but they are not very explicite. I remember that Solaris ocean was not like a typical water, but more like a gel. So I think the movement should be more plastic. I also have one more suggestion: give it a try with transparency, so we could see some undersurface movements of that gel. This could be interesting. On the other hand I don't rememeber how transparent Solaris ocean was...

b) In your animations solarianas emerge from the ocean without disturbing nearby surface. Maybe you could emphasize some sort of surface tension (just like you did it in your stills "agilus" or "symetriade").

c) Try to include more natural movements in your videos. When you show the Solaris phenomenas show us also moving clouds in the sky, like you did it in one of the animations. Include moving surface as well. Try to use more light effects, because I didn't see any shadows (only reflections on the water).

d) You included red and blue day in your animations, so I see that you really pay attantion to details given in the novel. That's great! I like it!


You also updated your pictures of Solaris entities. There are also some with humans! You show hight difference this way - good job!

OK. These were my remarks. I understand your animations are only tests and nothing more so keep above remarks just as suggestions for your future works. I'm looking forward to your next updates.



CU
Deck
« Ostatnia zmiana: Maja 18, 2007, 10:23:16 am wysłana przez Deckert »

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #18 dnia: Maja 22, 2007, 07:39:43 pm »
Remarks are always welcome, thank you.

[justify]Indeed my ocean is static and I try to find a animated texture which can correspond to the substance whose the ocean is made. There is so much in my CGI software, it is necessary that I test them. I found one which resembles to tar and which gives an interesting result. I like the aspect of the ocean in Tarkovski's movie, it was certainly obtained by a simple process (a liquid filmed in slow motion).

Giving an effect of transparency to the matter is a good idea, this phenomenon appears in certain passages (in the testimony of Berton, buildings are visible under the surface of the ocean) but that poses a problem because the complexity of the animation is increased and thus the duration of calculation. The short sequences presented on my site taken each  between one and two hours of calculation (with my new computer, which is however more powerful than the old one).

In my animations, there is not interaction between the solarianas and the surfaces of the ocean and it's my big problem. Currently the surface of the ocean is jute a plane surface with a texture, I do not know yet how to create a surface tension in CGI animation (in my fixed still pictures, I correct the joint between ocean and solarianas with a photoshop-like software). I work to solve this problem.

Right, the videos including natural movements, as those of the clouds, give much better results indeed. I have still some difficulty to parameterize correctly my animation software, there are many functions. For the shades, that depends on the position of the sun, I should be able to obtain shades more visible by modifying its position.

For the moment, I concentrate on the mimoides (they are less complex than the symetriades and move less than the agilus). I would like to manage to make a beautiful sequence of replication of clouds and perhaps even of an helicopter, with a larger picture size and a better quality. Afterwards, I'll go ahead for things more complex.

I bought recently a book entitled Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials, by Wayne Barlowe, the artist who is at the origin of TV show Alien Planet, about which I spoke in a previous post. In this book, Barlowe illustrated 50 aliens from famous science fiction novels (including Solaris). But we see there only a general view of the planet and rudimentary drawings of a mimoide and two independent (see below). Wayne Barlowe is a very talented artist and I waited more from him. I was a little disappointed.[/justify]



Deckard

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #19 dnia: Maja 23, 2007, 10:36:04 am »
According software you use for your works. Have you tried Blender3D?
This software is free! Yet it has an incredible potential.

CU
Deck

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #20 dnia: Maja 23, 2007, 07:46:17 pm »
[justify]Yes, I know Blender, I have already read things about this software and I believe that I am going to try it. I also think of trying Brice, whose I possess a trial version. Regrettably, to learn to use all this software, it takes a lot of time, they are very complex.[/justify]

vitrifax

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #21 dnia: Listopada 07, 2007, 04:19:19 pm »
Hello everybody, Just a small congratulations note to begin : Dom, it is fantastic! what you have achieved with your drawings both in originality and quality. I've liked it very much,  specially the symetriads, I had not seen any good picture from Solaris tiil now.

Just a small suggestion, you did not include in most of the pictures the two suns around which orbitated Solaris, was it your intention? because and I think it should be great addendum to the pictures.

Also I agree with Deckard, some pictures needs shadows to increase the sense of reality.

Anyway, thanks a lot! it is a wondefull job.
JP

PD: have you try to draw the Birman's wood from "fiasco"?


 

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #22 dnia: Listopada 16, 2007, 07:47:03 pm »
Greetings Vitrifax and thank you for your comments.

The reason for which the suns of solaris did not appear on my pictures is rather simple : when I realize a picture I represent generally the scene enlightened by face or by the side, so the sun is behind the observer or on the side, outside the frame. Maybe I'll do some pictures with a back enlightement, to change a little.

I did not read "Fiasco", (not yet).

vitrifax

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #23 dnia: Listopada 17, 2007, 03:46:24 am »
Thanks for your reply Dom, as  Deckard  precisely put "our French Solarist". I've mentioned you the two sun because I keep having this recurrent dream, since I first read Solaris: I see the Ocean, dark with red tones and shadow, like at dawn with a Symetriad, And the two suns at the right.

Fiasco is in my humble opinion the second best Lem's Novel behind Solaris itself, it has some wonderrful description of this strange Birnan's wood I mentioned and it is related with the stories of Pirx the pilot, one of which, "Terminus" is by far the most wonderful short story ever written (I do'n't know if you have read it yet, if not, you should).

I'm huge Lem's fan, here from Argentina (South America), I've read any book, novel, essay or short story I could find in Buenos Aires. It is a pity this forum it is not really populated this days. Guys, everybody thas loves lem's work, please write to me.

Please let us know Dom if you make progress with your animations, pictures or whatever, I was really disappointed with the last "Solaris" movie (thas was a really "fiasco" to me), that just put aside the main characters the Ocean itself!!.

Cheers,

Vitrifax









Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #24 dnia: Listopada 27, 2007, 12:15:31 pm »
[justify]My animations advance gently, I have done some additional ones (and also still pictures) that I would put soon on line on my website.[/justify]

[justify]In fact, I prefer to work on still pictures, by using the graphic tablet rather than CGI software, which is for me only a means of saving time to carry out the background. I am not a CGI specialist, I lack of experience for a more pushed use of this software. To learn how to use them better takes time and I do not have too much to devote to this activity.[/justify]

[justify]Another problem is that translucent and reflective surfaces (like those used for the Ocean and its creations) and the use of animated background  increase the calculation time a lot. Some videos require several hours of calculate (in that case I make work my computer at night) and in case of crash of the software it is necessary to start all over again.[/justify]

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #25 dnia: Marca 13, 2008, 11:41:05 pm »
Hello,

I have just updated my website today.

Terminus

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #26 dnia: Listopada 03, 2008, 11:55:29 am »
Hey, how about a Polish version, would you like one? I can freely and with pleasure translate it in no time :)
I bet we all would love it here in Poland.

Dom

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #27 dnia: Grudnia 07, 2008, 05:11:42 pm »
Oh yes, a Polish version of my website would be an excellent idea, thank you very much to propose to you to make the translation. It would be necessary to determine how to proceed , I can take the structure of the website - without the texts - and integrate the Polish texts as you translate them.

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #28 dnia: Grudnia 12, 2008, 09:29:36 pm »
Okay, I will send this stuff to you after I'm finished.
I already started the tranlation.

regards

Q

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Re: Pictures of Solaris
« Odpowiedź #29 dnia: Września 09, 2009, 10:16:27 pm »
I already started the tranlation.

And?
"Wśród wydarzeń wszechświata nie ma ważnych i nieważnych, tylko my różnie je postrzegamy. Podział na ważne i nieważne odbywa się w naszych umysłach" - Marek Baraniecki