A real-life retired tenpin from my collection, used as reference.
My hand-modelled and procedurally-shaded digital replica. Notice the placement of the scuff marks accurately lining up with where the pin would most frequently be struck.
With each duplication of the model, a texture mapping node is set to randomly redistribute the more obvious scuffs and scratches, making each pin more unique in a hypothetical final scene.
This node tree in Blender's Shader editor is driving all the procedural texturing for the rendered bowling pin.
The original file is cinema size, designed at 27x40", 300dpi.
I employed a mix of 3D environment & prop modeling, 3D shading, 3D lighting, 3D kitbashing (covering a stock Mazda 3 model with custom-modelled cyberpunk props). Brianna and I were shot outdoors during separate shoots, placed over the rendered backdrop, relit by hand using digital painting techniques, exported as 2D planes, and positioned in 3D space for rerendering.
Fun fact: as is my wont when featuring license plates in my art, all the vanity plates are (a) inside jokes pertaining to me and Brianna, and (b) conform to the laws for vanity plates in Ontario, and are therefore theoretically possible to register on a real vehicle.
In my early 3D days,
my Blender veteran cousin reminded me...
