Katzenfest

     As the Union Station renovation project comes to a close, my major objectives have been completed as planned. The schedule I had initially planned filled out just as it should have, with the modeling, entourage, and rendering all beginning when they should have and taking essentially just as long as I had predicted. The only downfall was that I didn't get to do quite as much post-processing with my renders as I would have liked. It would require a knowledge of photoshop that I simply didn't have an adequate amount of time to gain.      As stated, the list of deliverables nicely fit the timetable I had created. First was building the actual model of the train station, which was done in Sketchup utilizing the photo-match tool, as no blueprints of the building exist. This took approximately two weeks. Next was putting finishing touches on the model. For example, adding parking spaces, the interior design, and various entourage to enhance realism and fully demonstrate my idea. The final three weeks involved producing the renders, which initially were supposed to number four. However, due to time constraints, I only fully completed two. Tweaking the settings took roughly half the time, with the remaining half being taken up by the time I had to set aside to allow the computer to actually produce the rendered image, which usually took around 6 hours. My final deliverables are front and side elevations of the train station, as well as nighttime renderings of both the interior and exterior of the building.      For historical reference, I utilized the Indiana University Gary historic picture archives to get an idea of what the exterior used to look like. Otherwise, no external reference material was used. The project was completed using Sketchup, Shaderlight for rendering, and Photoshop for post-processing work.

           To date, the model of the train station itself has been completed on schedule. This was done entirely with Google Sketchup and the few test renderings done with Shaderlight. I’m nearing the end of phase 2, which involves populating the rest of the model with various entourage. Once completed, I will start doing test renders to tweak the settings and then initiating my finalized renders for my presentation. The resources used have been modest so far; pertaining to the building itself, there are essentially none, while I’ve utilized the book Rendering in Sketchup as a resource for the software I’m using, Sketchup and Shaderlight. I’ve completed two test renders so far to feel things out, with the expectation of completing 5-6 finalized renders at the end of the project. The biggest challenge so far is setting aside time to utilize the school computers, which have the licensed versions of the software I’m using. When it’s all said and done, several renders may have to be started and left overnight to finish the next day. Appropriating time into my schedule is turning out to be just as big of a challenge as the project material itself.

           The bulk of my project will be completed in two programs: Sketchup, and Shaderlight. I plan to utilize Photoshop to add finishing touches to my completed renders as well. Ideally, I’d like to explore animation rendering in Shaderlight so that I could produce video walkthroughs of my spaces. However, the computing power required and the time it would take would unfortunately push this project past its due date. The few resources I plan to use will mainly consist of HD texture websites and IU Gary’s historical photo archives.