I set myself the target of 3 models in one day. It felt both realistic and ambitious. It got to late afternoon and I thought that I could make a decent start on a second model as I had finished the first model. Instead, I thought it'd be a good idea to experiment Normal Mapping. I had two options for UV mapping either I could do it in Maya or in Zbrush. Either way I felt comfortable as I could always refer to Digital Tutors if I had problems.
So at the end of the day I have finished one model. And I have spent the last 2-4 hours working on Normal Mapping. I have been having a lot of problems with these process as I expected as this always happens with me. I referred to Digital Tutors for help, but a lot of their tutorials were not relevant for me as I need a normal map process that does not involve z-mapper (a tool only for PC version of Zbrush). So I will now use Maya from now on for Normal Mapping, and even then, I have found Maya to be quite temperamental due to the amount of Polys I am using.
UV Mapping Screen-shot.
Another problem is that my UV map has distorted slightly due to a triangle around the bottom area- to resolve this problem I made it in to a four sided polygon with a lower res mesh, I worried that this would undo all my work from today. What I later found out is that you can then re-import the model it in to Zbrush, an option box will come up, if you click on "keep smooth" (paraphrased) it will then re-apply your sculpting work, thereby saving you all the hard-work.
I then tried doing the normal map procedure in Maya but it still wasn't making a difference. It then occurred to me that I hadn't changed the envelope and search envelope. After I had changed these options to what digital tutors had recommended it worked.
Evaluation of myself.
I think 3 models in one day was ambitious, but because I focused only on the necessary details for this sculpture I got this done in enough time for me to start on a second sculpture. The fact that I was thinking ahead is something positive, and so focusing on Normal Mapping as apposed to doing a second sculpt has benefited me in the long run for being time efficient. Another positive aspect of my performance has been I was persistent, and eventually it paid off.
Improvements.
Don't go too fast, I have a habit of when it comes to the final stage, I really want to get things done, which means I rush, especially for stages that I believe to be small stepping stones. One way I can improve is by slowing myself down and taking a thorough look at the options with a collected and calm mood.
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