Hi Guys,

Here is the first early look at City Block Thirteen. I intend to do a couple more of these once it is done so you can have some suburbs in your city. This was just started today, so keep in mind things can change as it goes along.

Will be somewhere in the range of about 16 or so homes in this set.

Along with all the usual detail that I go crazy for. :-)

Plan to have it done in a few weeks.

Hope you like it.

Tom

Lookin' VERY good.

cheers,
dr geep
;=]

Remember ... "With Poser, all things are possible, and poseable!"

cheers,

dr geep ... :o]

edited 10/5/2019

Just wonderful stuff there!  Looking forward to the updates.

Tom,

I really like the looks of this one. Just keep us updated on how it's going.

Thanks

Glad you like it so far. I love positive comments.

I shall try to remember to post an image here and there.

It is the remembering part that I have trouble with. :-)

Geez syndrome.  :-(

Tom

I've got the majority of your blocks, and this one looks like another winner. You have created the town, now we head out to the residential district, eh? :) WONDERFUL!

Actually I am having a lot of fun modeling these little homes. There are so many possibilities!

Like a kid in a candy store with this set.

Hope I feel that way in a few weeks when I am up til 7 in the morning with just one more change, then just one more test render. :-)

I have had test renders of upwards of 985 for one city block set before.

I am talking 1920 x 1080 test renders to make sure the materials look good.

It can make you a little crazy after a while. :-)

Tom

Also needs to be said.

I am not planning on stopping these city block sets any time soon.

I will throw the occasional car in here and there, or maybe some more Sci Fi

stuff but I built the 81 city block set so I could keep on going.

Architecture is my forte!

I just have to take a break from them once in a while, for my sanity's sake!

:-)

Looks great, I think I'm going to need a street hockey net now.

Game On!

very  nice. looking forward to seeing it finished.  great job!

MY ONLINE COMIC IS NOW LIVE

I aim to update it about once a month.  Oh, and it's free!

Looks awesome, Tom!

I just picked up the 81 City Blocks set, so I've got lots of room!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Got up late. Then had to go to a friends funeral, so only got a couple hours of work in this afternoon, but as promised here is another image. Mainly working on fleshing out the 14 homes and getting them into the rough shapes I want.

The home in the foreground is pretty well there, but will  most likely add more details, corner trim, stair railing, stink pipe, gutters and downspouts, flowers, etc.. Then the same treatment to 13 others. Now you start to see why these city blocks take so long. :-)

Thanks for nice comments so far.

My test renders are done in 3D Studio Max Design 2013

Tom

That corner house is looking GREAT! When can I move in? :thumbupboth:    

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Cool beans, looks fanastic...81-13=68 sets more to go...Yikes

Well at least the people in town and the park (in the other sets), etc, now have a place to go home to and sleep and eat at night. I was beginging to think they all might end up homeless. Not any more. :thumbupboth:

Gary

"Those who lose themselves in a passion lose less than those who lose their passion"

Hi Guys and Gals,

I worked a few more hours today, and the next door neighbor's house is very close to finished. Sure would hate to be the roofer on that house. :-)

Now for my beauty sleep. See you in about 20 hours.

By the way, these homes are exterior only. No insides, as that would be way too many polygons. As it is, it is going to take everything I have, to keep this block under 100,000 polygons.

Hope you like it.

Tom

Looking fantastic Tom :)

You say no insides... and that's fair enough, for poly count... for these sets.

But... maybe an optional interior or two as an add-on (smart prop? conformer?) would be a nice touch? Just a suggestion...

But, y'know... especially as I need somewhere to put all this darn furniture you keep tempting me to buy ;)

I can't just leave it out in the yard. The squirrels will abuse it...

Still pounding on Ted o finish the room for the furniture. The model has been done for a while now. Just waiting for him to finish the materials. :-)

Man those squirrels are going to be mad once it is released. :-)

I will not be doing any add ons. Sorry.

Tom

No worries... I will continue to look forward to that room though ;)

Will the elephant feature in the promo for that? I think he probably should...

Not sure who to use in that one. I have a ton of animals. :-)

Quote - By the way, these homes are exterior only. No insides, as that would be way too many polygons. As it is, it is going to take everything I have, to keep this block under 100,000 polygons.

Would just TARDIS the interior anyway to make it look how I want - exact floor plans / measurements are not required (by me) but might prove useful if someone else wanted to model (and release?) interiors on their own.

Had you thought to / would you want to / is it possible to / release a "Block 13 Foundations" product with just that in it so we can match the footprints with the exterior windows and design our own interiors "built to suit?"

Just wondering, as I will get this sooner or later once it gets released. :)

Dang - The full size looks fantastic! Incredible work - I can't even imagine the amount of work you've put into these sets.. Whoever lives in the corner house must be an amateur radio operator - I see the base of a nice tower.. :-)

Our old house had a roof almost that steep - not quite, but I still wouldn't want to re-roof it!

When you get this done, can I hire you to put siding on my house? LOL!

Awesome work, Tom!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Hi Gremalkyn,

Sorry but it is not in the plan, no pun intended. :-)

Hi RodS,

That is a tv antenna tower, like the one we had when I was a kid back in olden times.

Born in 1953 to give you an idea. Yep I have taken the trip around the sun 60 times.:-)

These city block sets take sometimes up to a month to finish. lot's and lot's of test renders.

Should go a little faster now that I built a new system. pretty quick indeed. Renders that used to take about ten minutes to finish are done in about a minute and 20 secs.

Should speed things up a lot.

To all I have not responded to, thanks for the kind words.

Oh, and here is another look. The track home side of the block.

Still need more work but getting close on that side. Eack of these homes has a one car garage in the back of the house.

Hope you like it.

Tom

These look really good. I really like all of your block sets and have most of them. What I like about this block is that you have the curbs angled at the ends of the driveways.

With your 81 city blocks set one thing I would have liked to have seen was the ability to morph the curb so that a driveway entrance could be added. This would allow me to use other models such as a house with an interior to your sets so that a complete environment could be built arond the fully modeled house.

I will most definately be watching for this to appear in your store and can't wait for the remaining 68 blocks as well!

nabob21

This just keeps getting better! These update renders are gorgeous works of art by themselves..

Really takes me back - 64 for me... I remember those pre-cable days well; an antenna on every roof, and (count 'em) three TV stations that actually broadcast programming worth watching. Now you get 200 channels of drivel mostly.

Yeah, this set is definitely on my Gotta Get It list! Magnificent work, Tom!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Hi Nabob21,

Good idea for the curbs but it is just plain not very probable. Just way too many possibilities. Sorry.

Hi RodS,

So I am just a kid compared to you. :-)

Glad you like the images.

Here is another one for you. Shows where I am going with a lot of the garages. Similar to the ones I remember, like my grand father's house. Set away from the house. Adds a nice feeling for the era.

Tom

Absolutely fantastic!! Wow!

I can almost smell the apple pie in the oven..... :-D Hehe - I'm just an older kid LOL!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Just about done with a couple more of these homes.

Here is antother look.

By the way, all these test renders are done in 3D Studio Max Design 2014

Tom

Oh, this is gorgeous! I wanna move into that brick house!

This is just amazing, Tom!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Getting close...

Maybe another week or so...

Tom

Gasp!

Falls out of chair

OK - now THAT'S my house....

I bow humbly at your altar, Tom! This is beyond words...

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

LOL

Good one.

Glad you like my stuff. :-)

Here is another test render.

Still having fun on this set even though it is a ton of work.

Tom

WOW

It's evident you're having a blast modeling these houses - it comes through clearly in these renders. The amount of detail is just off the map! I spent the last 10 minutes just looking at this (and drooling) - mind blowing! One could easily believe this is a photo. It really makes me want to live here.

I think you said you render these in 3DS - is that what you use to model also? Whatever you're using, you have it down to a science. Brilliant!

I've definitely been giving your Fisher's Warehouse a workout in my T.N.A. story! :-D

 

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

I am getting very close to done with this set. Much faster than I thought. I think it is due to the fact that my new computer is blazing fast. Test renders in about a minute instead of about 10 or 15. :-)

Tommy Like!

Any way here is another test.

Tom

Here is my first Poser test render. Very beginning of the process.

Hope you like it.

Tom

Incredible - I would have thought it was done in Vue.... This is an awesome set, Tom! :-D

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

I usd to do Vue stuff but gave up after there were so little sales.

Tom

Very nice - Poser render looks even better :)

Yup - whilst I have Vue, I don't buy a lot of content for it... well, plants and environmental stuff to an extent... but not so much buildings or vehicles.

Generally, the lock-in, with a lot of Vue content that's available to buy, puts me off, to be honest.

Anything I buy for Poser can easily enough be exported / imported into Vue, if I have the need.

Ditto with what monkycloud said.

I'm really looking forward to this set!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

And another one...

I am getting close on this set...

That looks amazing! Those last two houses in the last shot have a lot of windows though, are they meant to be small apartments of some kind?

Hi John,

Happy you like the look.

In the fifties homes were built with a lot of windows, so you could stay cool in the summer.

Which windows would you remove, if you were building these homes?

Tom

It just keeps getting better!

 

I like those 50's style houses, and lots of windows. Awesome work, Tom!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Here is what happens when the yard drain backs up....

Toys from City Block Eleven.

The water level can go down the drain you can't see in this image.

Now see, back in those days, I would have been out there in my bare feet splashing like a maniac...

 

This is really looking incredible!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Very close to done. Hope to have this set in my store by the end of next week.

One more render done in Poser.

Tom

P.S. City Block fourteen was started today while waiting for renders. :-)

Click for a much larger view.

 

Working on the final textures and decided to try out one of Ted's wonderful candy paint shaders. Wow!

Wonderful work Ted!

Tom

Sweet, indeed! Dang - I have his car paint shaders... These must be new, or I've just missed them somewhere. I'll have to go have a look 'round his site..

This is looking beyond amazing, Tom!

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Ithink only a couple people have them as it is going to be a merchant resource when he gets the time to finish the set.

You might have the car shaders from our vehicles.

Tom

Candy paints are not going to be a merchant resource if I ever get them in the store. Candy paints are very difficult to build and nothing else looks like them. Not a merchant resource.

BBGlossy will be.

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Renderosity forum reply notifications are wonky. If I read a follow-up in a thread, but I don't myself reply, then notifications no longer happen AT ALL on that thread. So if I seem to be ignoring a question, that's why. (Updated September 23, 2019)

Woops my bad. :-)

Sorry Ted...

Tom

That would be the same BBGlossy already on the forums or a new one?

BBGlossy2, right BB?

I'm lucky enough to have a preview of that shader set. It is simply awesome... a major step up from the BBGlossy shader published in a thread here... and would be a fantastic merchant resource and / or product to see hit the marketplace, as and when BB decides it is ready / has time to finalise it :)

There are variants in the set that can be easily applied to existing texture maps, and also lots of handy presets... and a faux metallic (metallic paint etc) as opposed to actual metal, parameter, in the preview version I got to play about with.

I simply don't make a render without it, in some form, now!

Those Candy Paint shaders are something else though. Totally off the scale :)

You said it Monkey Cloud, Ted is the man on materials!

Well I had this set uploaded for testing yesterday but put it on hold as I decided to add more material options today. Now it is uploaded for testing. :-)

Hope to have it in the store maybe this weekend.

Depends on if my tester is working this weekend.

Tom

Great stuff... will look out for it hitting your store Tom :)

In my store now.

Whew!

Now on to Block Fourteen. :-)

Tom

Nabbed it!! :-D

"I reject your reality and substitute my own" - Adam Savage

Thanks to you all who are getting this one. :-)

Set Fourteen is another residential block.

Tom

Awesome set Tom :)

Grabbed it as soon as I got the new product ebot.

Now... I need a 1950s-ish commercial passenger airplane, for the scene I have planned for this.

Anyone know of any?? :)

Look forward to seeing Block Fourteen...

Maybe Vanishing Point ( John Hogland ) maybe he has one as he bought an old model set fron years ago and has been selling those off for a couple years now.

Thanks for the purchase. :-)

Fourteen was started today...

Tom

Thanks Tom

I just found a Constellation airliner over at CP.

Digimation_Modelbank... so yes, I think that's VP's stock eh? I'll take a look around VP site too perhaps.

That Constellation looks about the ticket though.

 

John used to have a free bee section on his site years ago but I don't ever look for free bees so I would not know if it is still there.

Tom

By the way, what is your name?

The constellation is just the ticket, I reckon.

I am going to have a go at making a texture for it... PAN AM or TWA branding I think, maybe... with the more bare metal look, and some BBGlossy2 of course... e.g...

...and my christian name's Chris, Tom... ;)

Hi Chris,

I love that plane!

So from my era. :-)

Tom

It's a fantastic plane indeed. The VP model is really nice too... only spotted it was available at Rendo too after I bought it at CP.

It didn't get returned on the "airplane" etc search terms by Rendo's search... and I only thought afterward to trawl though VP's listings here.

Are you thinking of making any planes or trains, down the line?

Also, how about lo poly suburbs?