Project 1 : Solar System

Sarah Wang

2/17/2022

Project Identification: This project involves the completion of a tutorial for planet modeling and animation available in Chapter 2 of the Derakshani text. In addition, a second animation is required that is based on the first, but with modifications. Both animations should be created using playblast.

Part 1: Tutorial

Part 2: Adding Modifications

Modification 1: Adding staggered orbits based off of the planets' natural patterns

I modified the planet orbits by altering the "Rotate Y" attribute of each planet orbital group. This gave a more randomized look to the Sun, instead of orbiting the Sun in a uniform pattern.

This image shows the staggered planet orbits while they are rotating about the sun. These orbits resemble the true orbits that these planets take.

Modification 2: Adding textures to planets and Sun based off of their real colors

I modified the textures of the planets by downloading texture maps of the different planets online, and then using the Hypershade feature to attach these to the planets. This modification gives the animation a more detailed feel, contrary to the solid colors that I assigned to the planets in the tutorial.

This image depicts the added textures to each of the planets as well as the Sun. These textures resemble the true colors that they have.

Modification 3: Adding an animated camera that revolves around the Solar System

Finally, I used the camera feature, as well as the Curves feature to animate the camera around the Solar System, in an arc. This modification makes the animation feel a lot more dynamic, as the perspective is constantly changing.

The image to the right shows the animation's beginning frame, while the image on the bottom shows the middle of the animation, where the camera has rotated around 180 degrees to where it started.