This article is from Nicolò Granese, a junior character artist
This concept is a real photo of USMC soldiers taken by Louie Palu
reference
I started to collect photos of soldiers, equipment, clothes and different faces. The main goal of the project is not to create a similarity, but to make the theme as realistic as possible. So I started putting everything together.
Carved head
Starting with a sphere in ZBrush, I sculpted the nose, mouth, eyes, and ears. The most difficult part is the oral sculpting. It is crucial to look at the model from all angles and not just focus on one view.
By doing this, a more complete model view will be obtained, and the shape and volume will be more accurate. Even on the eyes, I spent a lot of time shaping the correct shape. Finally, I performed retinology inside Maya, and then placed a good regenerated head on the right side.
Simulated tactical vest
Start with the basic shape of Maya, model different basic meshes, and then use it in ZBrush to add details.
Most objects are basic cubes modified as needed, such as pockets. Model them based on the shape of the photo and always try to keep the shape as simple as possible.
After completing the low polygon modeling, the basic mesh was modified through soft selection to adapt to the shape of the main character.
UV
UV is done in Maya: Maya's tools are very fast and effective, especially because the UV Toolkit is very easy to use.
For this role, I separated the UVs in UDIM to obtain higher texture resolution. [ Poke me into the learning circle ]
Texture
I imported the model into Mari and started projecting the textures I bought on Texturing.xyz (diffuse and displacement). After finishing the projection, I started to modify the diffuse map, adding details such as veins, dirt and several tones to different parts of the skin.
To complete the diffuse map, I projected a displacement on the model, carefully projecting the correct part to the correct skin point.
Once the two main passes have been completed, start sculpting the details in ZBrush. For example, dark spots, skin blemishes, etc.
light
The lighting is not complicated: I used 3 lights for the last shot; one for filling the upper right corner, another for the key light for the upper left corner, and a small top light for illuminating the helmet. For other renderings, I only used one light and tried to reproduce the portrait style.
Face
For eyebrows and eyelids, use XGen. Separate some areas, such as the fringe ring around the eyes, and start trimming the area. Many density maps and length maps are used to create a more realistic look.
Shader
As a rendering engine, V-Ray is used. The output is high resolution (2,500px) and I lowered the noise threshold to 0.020. By doing this, the rendering will be clearer.
Connecting all the textures together requires less power in Maya's oversized shadows, mainly for the head with two different displacements applied and all other textures such as diffuse reflection, specular reflection, etc. [ Poke me into the learning circle ]
Final rendering
