Using DEM data for fictional maps?

[jezelf]

Hi there. Thank you for your posts.

Redrobes : a lot of information there. Thanks for taking the time to put all that up! I'll explore those various options. I do like the rendered terragen cut away like that - I think Bryce can do the same thing?

Ascension: Yeah I had thought of that, but didn't try it because I didnt think I could get the intricate fractal like branch veins that are so distinctive on the DEM there. Do you have any examples? I'll like to see how it turned out for you.

SeerBlue: Yeah I found that site. I think I missed the registration bit. Probably why that when I explored the site it seemed to be showing fees no matter if I looked in country or not. I'll register and try again. That might be just what I'm looking for - thanks for the google tip too.

thanks for your help
Jez

[Redrobes]

I do like the rendered terragen cut away like that

That was my DragonsFlight3D - thats a free and quick way to get that image. Just take the images from your post, pad them up with black so that they are square, save as Color.bmp and Height.bmp and put in same directory as app and run it.

http://www.viewing.ltd.uk/cgi-bin/vi...dragons_flight

[Ghalev]

I've done a bit of experimenting using simpler cloud-fractal hoo-hah for overall arrangements but then using DEM overlays to bring realistic definition to the upper elevations. Not much to report so far (too many other projects distract me, and I have no actual use for it beyond fascination), but the mutant beasts which have resulted do show some glimmers of promise.

I guess the main difference between what I've attempted and what you're working on is that I don't cut-and-paste fragments ... I combine complete DEMs with complete random hoo-hah in an automated routine which forces the DEM data to dominate the upper elevations while fading in prominence as they approach the waterline (and all submarine data is left randomized without DEM additions).

[jezelf]

Redrobes: Oh sorry. pretty cool stuff.

Ghalev: That sounds interesting. got anything up on the web to see the result? it'l be good to see how that comes out.


Today in PS I've been playing with the bevel tool on a selection of the land mass ( using the bevel and you can give it fall off and soften under the chisel settings and lighting at 0 (from the top)) - it give a similar mountain range with some randomness. Then overlayering difference clouds and manually drawing in the troughs with soft black brush at 20% opacity.

Still exploring the technique and will include it in a tutorial as another step on the way to DEM influecned maps. It'll be cool if there was a plugin that worked similar to bevel, but in a more fractual, mountainous way to create a height map for fictional maps. I guess simliar to Bryce's fractual mountain heightmap creations but for PS so it could be places over a larger selection area.

thanks folks!

[su_liam]

I have to say I like the hypsometric gradient used in the tutorial okay, but I really like the gradient you used in the Difference Clouds image. Could you post that?

Erosion really is the key to this. With good erosion and deposition you can make beautifully realistic terrains out of the stupidest noises. There are some tutorials here by waldronate on the use of erosion in Wilbur that are really instructive, not to mention astonishing. Wilbur is actually fairly mid-grade as to erosion tools. World Machine has the best erosion I've ever seen. From what I understand Geocontrol is superior to that, but it can't run on the Cow Machine at work.

[RobA]

If you check the tutorial http://www.jezelf.co.uk/tutorials_map04.htm you can see it isn't a gradient. Splotches of colours were manually painted then blurred.

-Rob A>

[su_liam]

Nice tutorial. That whole climate variation thing is something I definitely need to work on. I'm a little disappointed though, 'cause that would have really been a nice gradient. Love those colors.