Contest: ENTER August 2018 Art Challenge - A Trek on the Wild Side

[Cyfa]

For this month's art challenge, I thought we could take a walk on the wild side. Or a Trek, even!

I'd like to see your takes on anything wilderness-related in the Star Trek Universe: A landscape from Qo'noS, perhaps? Big game from Berengaria? A starship decked out in Greenpeace-equivalent livery rescuing a Gormagander? Or whatever those little creatures were that High Society Betazoid ladies used to imprison in their giant wigs!
As long as your piece of art showcases some sort of wildlife or its environs, it's in!

You've got until the end of Saturday 1st September to come up with a finished bit of art and post it here in this thread. If you're new to this, or have forgotten the ins-and-outs, the Monthly Art Challenge Guidelines, Rules & Requirements can be found here.
Have fun, and good luck! I can't wait to see what you come up with.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Interesting...

 

[Admiral2]

Shouldn't this be pinned by now, Oh Great Moderator On High?

 

[Cyfa]

Only two or three days left until the deadline (depending on whereabouts you are in the world)! If you need an extra day, let me know and I'll extend the deadline until the end of Sunday. I don't really want to go any later, though, as I don't want to cut in to September too much

In the meantime, Koromandis and th'Thanticar are in danger of getting lost in the woods as they search for a way into a different environment:

(this isn't my final entry)

 

[Cyfa]

Well, it's nearly the end of Saturday here in England, so here's my entry:

As no one has asked for an extension, I take it you're all working feverishly on finishing your own wild pieces of art which will be posted here while I sleep So, at some point tomorrow, I'll sort out the voting thread so we can start September's art challenge in a timely manner.
If, for some inexplicable reason, no one else has an entry, I shall declare myself Queen of Summer- Uh, I mean, King, and slap up the new challenge.
Happy creating, you Wild Things!

 

[Starscape]

I've been waiting for renders to finish, just not quite feverishly. I've not had much time this month and as they say, "When in doubt (and short on time) render a shuttlecraft" or perhaps that's just me.

Of course I had to complicate things by downloading the lastest version of Terragen and attempt to... well, maybe not master it, but at least get something presentable out of it.

Anyway, here's my entry, "Shuttle on Planet Generic":

 

[Cyfa]

I've been waiting for renders to finish

- Please forgive my ignorance (@Scribble did explain this to me at least once before, but my mind obviously can't retain such things), but how long does a render take? Is it like waiting for a cake to cook, or something? You know, you mix up all the ingredients (which is equivalent to making the model, is that right?), then the rendering is the baking time (when all the lighting and stuff is sorted out)?

"When in doubt (and short on time) render a shuttlecraft"

- and what a cute little shuttle it is!

I'll put up the voting thread as soon as I can, but my sister has just turned up early with my nephew (I'm babysitting), so it may not be for a few hours... (If anyone else has got an entry, now's the time to submit it!)

 

[Michael]

Unfortunately, inspiration didn‘t struck with me this month. I mulled about several ideas in my head all month long, but nothing ever materialized, I‘m sorry to report.

 

[Cyfa]

Not to worry, @Michael. Sometimes it just doesn't happen, or time escapes one. At least @Starscape pulled something dramatic together before I declared myself Lord High Ruler of the August Art Challenge and embarked on a trek of conquest

The voting thread is up here.

 

[Sibyl]

- Please forgive my ignorance (@Scribble did explain this to me at least once before, but my mind obviously can't retain such things), but how long does a render take? Is it like waiting for a cake to cook, or something? You know, you mix up all the ingredients (which is equivalent to making the model, is that right?), then the rendering is the baking time (when all the lighting and stuff is sorted out)?

Y'know, I don't think I've heard a better analogy for rendering to explain it to someone unfamiliar with the process!

"Baking" time, once you've created your models, set up your scene and lights and "camera", depends on the complexity of your scene (number of individual triangles that make up your models), the number and types of lights and other algorithms that create more realistic lighting effects, the sizes of your textures (bitmap images that you "map" to your models for their color, the way they reflect light, etc, and, of course, the power of your computer, itself.

Like for me, with my new computer, a scene that would've taken my old computer to "bake" the final image at least a half an hour or more took about 30 seconds at my latest attempt.

Thank you for that!

 

[Starscape]

I couldn't put it any better than, Scribble.

That render took between 60-90 minutes using the maximum resolution and detail setting the free version of Terragen would allow. A small, low resolution test render would just leave me waiting a few minutes.