I like the black. Looking forward to seeing how the renders turn out once you take it past the paint-over stage.
The black ring totally changes the character. I think it's too harsh a color change. Maybe more of just a different tone of grey for the ring?
It does change the character somewhat, makes her seem more aggressive, but that was the intent. I will say that the darkness of the ring is still subject to possible change, though the level of contrast is likely to remain pretty high.
Ooh. Now THAT is different. I feel like I've seen this ship for so long that I never really anticipated such a drastic change this late in the game. I dig it, but I'm also kind of sad.
I have to agree with sojourner; a blue or grey would work better, IMO (I won't harp on about my feelings regarding the increasingly dark colouring of starships post-Sovereign - I'm sure I bored you enough last time. ) Luckily the overall shape of her is still gorgeous.
Glad I'm not the only one. This angle really makes me wonder what it would look like with more blueish Excelsior-like hull plating.
I'm going to go against the consensus and say I really like the dark color Vektor. It really sets this ship apart and makes it look like it means business.
I'm not against the black, I have the above as my current wallpaper. But you guys have me wondering what it would look like with blue replacing the dark gray. Though it might be too much blue with the nacelles and deflector dishes also using blue.
I like the black accents in the paint scheme. It immediately visually differentiates the Grandeur as a different class of starship. There are current-day parallels that I can see in this two-tone setup--there's something very Air Force One-ish to the look.
This is one of my favorite ship designs of all. I really wish this design could find its way into Star Trek Online, the same way your Enteprise F concept did. Both of them grab my imagination, and make me want to directly interact with them. Fly them in STO, or hold them as a model and turn them end over end to examine the minute details. Ever think of putting either design up as a shapeways item? I'd definitely buy them.
There are plans for a physical model of the Grandeur. I've also been doing a lot of clean-up and fine-tuning on the 3D model to try to make it suitable for 3D printing, so Shapeways is a definite possibility down the road.
That'd be absolutely awesome to see. I'd also love to see the Enterprise F concept as well. What did they end up calling it? Chimera class? I would pay all the money for a model of that baby. I honestly thing she's one of the most refreshing Trek designs I've seen in years. The Grandeur is a fantastic muscle car. Beautiful, sleek lines and deadly curves. The Chimera, futuristic state of the art experimental design. They both want to live on my desk and hang out with my new Eaglemoss models.
Off topic, are you able to give us any hints as to the big project you are working on that has been taking up so much of your time Vektor?