Trip

This is my final entry to the Virtual Photography contest. Since my last update, I reworked the lighting quite a lot, going for a warmer feel while also maintaining a colour-contrast to create some curiosity in the scene. I also added some architectural details off-screen which helped to add more compositional lines while also aiding in the realism of the space.

When I started working on my contest entry, I wanted to pick one of the starter assets from Stager and work around it like a product showcase. I decided on the bag and thought of a 'trip' theme, with the surroundings being that of a living area where the protagonist would perhaps be getting ready to leave or has just come back. Using the bag as the focal point, I created a rough layout with some windows in mind.

The screenshots above show how the layout developed from the original to the current layout. I knew that the lighting quality would be affected by the materials so once I had an acceptable frame I shaded all of the assets in the scene. Once I started lighting I realised that the opening/window that I was hoping to use as a light source was far too limiting, so I decided to open up the entire wall to let in more global light. I then also added a fill light to lift the shadows on the bag.

The next steps for my entry will be to add additional lights/blockers to separate the layers more, refine some shaders (the plant, ground/carpet) and set up some more cameras.