The Trap - Graffiti themed album cover (CLOSED) (CLOSED)

This project was originally an album cover for a musician friend of mine. When I heard about this contest I felt like it fits too well not to enter, since it already contained many graffitis and Hip Hop cultural references.

This earlier iteration of this shows the intended final look:



I was already in the process of reworking the entire project from the ground up, just before the contest started. This means that I am not yet finished but can show some of the progress along with some in-program captures. I also started learning Substance 3D Painter at the beginning of reworking the scene. I will try to add comprehensive credits for cc0 models that I used from Polyhaven or CGTrader, and list which models I made myself in their entirety.

The first Block-out after deciding to rework:


Some further block-out along with the first custom, textured models.


Blender capture after texturing the desk.


Finished texturing some models and blocked out a music production desk setup. Studio speakers, a vinyl crate, and a rectangle as block-out for a monitor atop a shelf. Underneath that the block-out cubes for an amplifier and a CD player.


Heightened the walls. Added base textures for the walls and the floor in preparation of the addition of graffitis later on. Decided on using UDIMs for the walls and floor. Textured the kitchen cabinets further. Also added a shoddy tile table.


Said UDIMs for the walls and floor.


Screenshot of the texturing process of the Marantz amplifier within Substance 3D Painter.


Added a bunch of graffitis, all of the ones on the walls, except for one, are from the MIT licensed Blauw Films "The Graffiti Scrapbook" graffiti decal pack. Some further grunge, grime and subtle paint splatters were added as well.


Latest previs render. Made a cheap office chair and fridge. Also noticed that a "RenderHub" graffiti tag was part of the requirements, so I made one by compositing some letters of the Blauw Films pack together. Placed it in the most visible (and legible) area available.


Still got lots to do so imma get back to it.

Atmospheric Scene has turned out good.

God the realism is phenomenal...

Added some more details since this one, but will have to do the final render at higher settings overnight it seems. Post processing, wireframe and clay render will have to be done tomorrow morning it seems.
Latest version:

The Vinyl Jackets are all textured with previous Album covers that I made over time

A closeup of them:

I think I'm done now. Added a lot more stuff like Assets from the Trash Kit by Martin Koehler, two building photo-scans by Anatolii Umanets, or some Polyhaven assets like some trees and lamps for practical lighting. I also dispersed some more of my own models like a Vinyl Jacket on the table a dubious cooking arrangement consisting of a jar and a pot on the stove, a book, an air vent, and some light switches and power outlets. Also decided against the underwater look from my first attempt, as I felt it took away from the detail of the various objects in the scene.
This is the resulting raw render with noise:

Sadly, due to my usage of the Lens Sim add-on by Håvard Dalen, I was unable to render a wireframe view using the original camera, due to it's distortion within the given timeframe. Because of this I opted to use a regular, undistorted camera for the wireframe, which should show roughly the same objects. Here is the wireframe of the entire scene:
A cropped wireframe look at the desk area:
A cropped wireframe look at the kitchen area:
Also a clay render, again using the alternate undistorted camera:
And lastly the final render. I had to re-render some minor areas like the bag to the right of the fridge (the asset had a problem with it's normal map), or the corners between the walls and floor because of light leakage. Lastly I graded the shot using Camera Raw, dialing in the warm, dreamlike appearance I was aiming for. This is going to be the last iteration, unless I notice some glaring issue that needs fixing.
As per the rules, no generative AI was used in the creation of this render.
So here is the final render and with that my entry into the contest:
I learned some workflow optimization and got to know Substance 3D Painter during this project which gave me much joy. Best of luck to everyone participating in this contest.
ITAT311

Thumbnail for contest gallery

Congratulations on taking THIRD PLACE in the contest! Great work.
Someone will be in contact with you soon regarding your prize.

Thanks for participating in the contest.

Congratulations

congrats!! You did such an awesome job so happy to see you on the list! 

Congratulations!!! Wonderful work!