WIP DAY - Beach Babes (Patreon)

A bit of Lore first:

"Just a 10 minute walk from the homestead, a spectacular lake awaits, cradled within the majestic arms of sun-drenched mountains. These noble peaks, standing sentinel-like, watch over a kingdom of tall pine forests that cast a sense of serenity and grandeur upon the landscape.

The lake's waters, as crystalline as polished sapphire, are nourished by the pristine meltwaters of winter's mountain snow. Untouched, unspoiled, the lake is the very essence of purity, reflecting the ethereal beauty of the surrounding wilderness like a mirror.

In the heat of summer, the lake is a hidden oasis, an invitation to tranquility away from the rigors of daily farm work. It's here that Njorijanna seeks refuge, her soul soothed by the rhythmic lapping of water against the shores, her heart calmed by the tranquil song of the forest whispering in the breeze.

This isn't just a place, but a realm of solace where the worries of the world are left behind, replaced by a dance of nature’s symphony. It is a cherished retreat, a corner of the world frozen in time and a haven of unrivaled beauty."

(This will also be a place/scene of interest in the future)

Now the Hot WIP stuff!
Let me take you through how me and the team work for this wip.
We wanted to do a beach scene with some friends of Njori for this one, it was promised and was long overdue, my first intention was to make Njoris sisters, but due to the nature of the animation it felt wrong. Luckily, this was before I finished the faces.

The first picture after the poster you can see the talented Lustgard Artist Braatwatne working on the backdrop scenery we need.

Further I had to study beaches and sand behavior to get it right, after some coloring and tweaking it was looking good.
Then I tested 3 different top water shaders I had laying around, and made a decision based on the best result.
It was now time to import my photoscanning *close to mid range* scene props like slabs of mountains taken here in Norway, and importing the flora I had in my asset libraries.
I provided a REF photo of the landscape I wanted to create, it is a spot here in Norway along the coast I love, and wanted to capture. The red rocks combined with coniferous flora is to me just gorgeous, junipers, pines, pine bushes. Another little plant that came to mind was this strange succulent little flower, it is almost like grass to times and is called a "strand wart", since there was no assets online, I had to make it by hand too.
I had now replicated that paradise to the best of my abilites.

So time for the props, they have a minicooler with drinks, misc items and a parasol.
The parasol has a topology that is cloth simulation friendly, to quickly give it a natural and correct behavior when placing it around.

Then there is the 2 high quality viewports in rendered view, not full renders.
This is to check that they all play together nicely before the final render.
It is more lightweight in terms of forests, hair particles and subdivisions.
I quickly discovered I had not enough system ram to execute this, so some optimalization had to be done. After some days now I believe its closing in on a final render and animation.

Final part is the 2 friends of Njori (no not sisters)
I will not reveal their names just yet but redhead and goth will do for now.

This is the first time you see their faces, and I'm very curious as to how their received. I did my best over the course of these months to make them unique and interesting, but still have my artistic touch to them, making them fit the Lustgard theme. I'd also like to add, their bodies is changed to be different, but as we talked about in the team, not different enough.

Please let me know in the comments or in DM's what you like and do not like, and if they are too close to Njori still.

- Alluringsteed