Here's a work in progress of a German Free Energy Device which will be part of an illustration for a book. In the past, I've used Lightwave and SketchUp among other 3D programs to create models-- some of which are up on C3D currently (including the recent Hay Bales). But, I have to say, my modeler of choice is Vue.

Now before anyone starts hootin' and hollerin' (Texas slang!), let me tell you why I like Vue so much for modelling these days. Primarily, the number one reason is...it's really very, very fast to make models like the one above. Much faster than if I had to do it in Silo or Modo or Lightwave or SketchUp and then texture and import. Now, this is not to say Vue can model anything you can think of, but there are plenty it CAN model.

In my mind there are 4 basic ways to model in Vue:

1. Boolean primitives
2. Metablobs and booleans
3. Terrains
4. The text editor and EPS files

This model is done using 1 and 3 from above.

This device is part of a rendering for a book. The time period is post WWII and some of the fantastic scientific German devices are being discovered.

This model, while looking complex, is ridiculously simple. That's the wonder with terrain modeling. In Vue 6, terrains can now be 16-bit grayscales. This means you can get great detail in them. One of the great things about terrains, is once you've built the terrain map in Photoshop, you now have a built in template for RGB, Bump, Luminosity and Specular maps as well. All you have to do is convert your map to RGB from 16-bit grayscale, and Photoshop away on it.

About this model:
First off, the device is symmetrical about the Y axis, so the only modeling which needs to be done is on the side you're viewing, then using VueTools, just mirror. BTW, I'm hoping there will be a VueTools for Esprit in Vue 7.

The device (half) is comprised of these parts:

The outer shell - a simple torus with bool subtracted cylinders: one for this side, one for the opposite side and one for the inside. Then there are a number of radially symmetrically placed cubes which are also subtracted from the opposite side.

The spindle - a simple cone with the end a bool subtract cylinder.

The spindle stand- a simple terrain built using altTerrainBuilder and Pshop

And the inside of the outer shell (plus some nurnies on the outside) is all a single terrain built in Photoshop. The originating map is 16-bit grayscale at 512x512. It is imported and auto-sized to a 1024x1024 terrain, and the Diffusive button pressed once. This give a very slight amount of radius to all parts-- a place where highlights will show.

Because the terrain is slightly larger than 'this side' of the outer shell, the nurnies show up outside the rim, and because the outer shell is a torus, they are dissolve back into the slope.

The floor is just a couple cubes with a 'hole' cube subtracted. That's it for now.