3D Models – Lannix Design

Tilt Time-Lapse Fun!

Nick — Tue, 21 May 2024 21:30:57 +0000

My barely one-year-old camera came out second best in an altercation between it, my toddler and the coffee table. Over a period of a few months it eventually succumbed to its injuries and just didn’t want to work any more.

The quote to fix it was almost as much as buying a new camera, so I ended up buying a second hand Nikon with about the same specs so I could still use Nikon specific lenses and other hardware with it. The camera I bought came with four batteries, which aren’t cheap, a memory card and a tilt lens.

Check out the short tilt time-lapse video.

If you aren’t familiar with a tilt lens, or tilt-shift as most of them are, they are simply able to tilt away from being parallel to the camera sensor, which makes the plane of focus diagonal and creates out of focus areas along the top and bottom of the frame. I’d seen timelapses made with these types of lenses before and the miniature effect they achieve looks really interesting.

I’d been itching to give it a go and took the camera on a practice run around Brisbane river where I was able to get familiar with how to use it. The results were nothing to write home (or a blog) about but helped me to understand what would make a decent subject.

It all had to do with the vantage point. Being a 50mm lens, it’s quite zoomed in compared to what I was used to with the 16-50mm kit lens. So I knew I needed to be high up and reasonably far away from the subject of the time-lapse.

Conveniently, we decided to take a little trip up to Caloundra for a few nights away, and Jade had booked a hi-rise apartment for us to stay in. This meant that I could set the camera on the balcony and not worry about it while it did its time-interval thing, and luckily for me, the balcony overlooked the park across the street at the entrance to the beach, which allowed a few different scenes to choose from.

I’m reasonably happy with how it came out, but I still think there’s some room for improvement. It seems that having it look good in the viewfinder doesn’t necessarily guarantee great shots but it is a starting point for future tilt-lapses. So hopefully you’ll enjoy looking at the short one-minute video and if you’re into tilt-shift, let me know what I can do to improve my next attempts.

See ya later!

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Update: Fully CGI Shed Workshop Layout Design!

Nick — Tue, 26 Mar 2024 21:30:42 +0000

Since the relatively brand-new camera has succumbed to injuries sustained during an altercation with a coffee table, I had some time on my hands. I’d always had it in mind to make a 3D model of the shed and create a layout for the workshop in virtual space before laying down any cold hard cash for shelving, workbenches and/or materials to complete the job. So that’s what I’ve been working on the last few weeks.

As some of you may already know, I like to dabble in 3D animation using Blender and I’ve already used it to create the intro and transition sequences for my YouTube videos. This project has so far proved to be far more ambitious than I originally thought. The detailed shed model took about a week to recreate in virtual space and includes working roller doors and accurately represented colours using details from the manufacturer.

The shed model was just the start of it though. The opening sequence required houses, trees and other details around the yard to be modelled and, being a stickler for details, the materials needed to match their real-life counterparts as accurately as possible. Then, because I like to punish myself, the shed was animated to assemble itself while the camera was moving down the driveway and into the back yard.

A screenshot from the YouTube shorts preview I uploaded to my personal channel.

Click the image to see the video!

This entire sequence took around three weeks from the start of modelling until the twenty second clip was fully rendered. I’ve uploaded a low res preview version to my personal YouTube since I’m keen to get it out there. Click the image above to check it out.

The upside to having sunk all that time into creating accurate models is that they can be reused for subsequent clips, greatly reducing the time to set them up. The downside is that rendering clips in 4K resolution takes a long time. The opening sequence took three overnight sessions to render the 600 frames and it seems that subsequent sequences are taking even longer. I’ve taken measures to optimise the scenes for faster rendering times but I’ll need to get more serious about it if the video is going to be completed this year! It’s not surprising that companies like Pixar and Dreamworks have entire floors of buildings filled with computers dedicated to rendering animated clips.

Although I am happy with the quality of the rendered images, I realise there is room for improvement and I’m hoping to hone my craft for upcoming projects like the office under the house and my bar and games room layout. So subscribe to our main channel if you’re keen to see the end result of what I assume will be months of 3D modelling and rendering, you can see some progress pics in the gallery below.

Smell ya later!

Gallery - Fully CGI Shed Workshop Layout Design!

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If you need more shed related content, check out the video below where I lay down an epoxy coating on the concrete floor! The lining and insulation video will be up as soon as it’s done and there’ll be more to follow as I’m working on setting out all the workbenches and tools virtually to hopefully find the optimal layout for the shed before forking over any cash!

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5000 Downloads on Printables.com!

Nick — Tue, 12 Mar 2024 21:30:57 +0000

Just yesterday we ticked over 5000 downloads from our Printables.com profile! It feels nice that people are finding our designs so useful and we thank everyone who has left a five star review.

Take a look at our profile and see what people have said about our models. It’s always fun to see one of them 3D printed by someone half-way around the world.

Our most downloaded model is the extended caulking nozzle I produced out of need while renovating our bathroom. It was handy when I needed to put a bead of silicon behind the benchtop basin.

Thanks again to everyone for your support!

Our bio on Printables.com

Check out our most downloaded model on Printables.com

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Lannix Shop Is Now Open!

Nick — Tue, 23 Jan 2024 21:30:25 +0000

I’ve been working on our store website in the background for a long while now. It was to be a place to sell my 3D printed goods and any other items I came up with in the meantime.

Since moving house over a year ago, the 3D printers haven’t been set up for mass producing and they won’t be until the workshop under the house is finally finished.

You’ll know if you follow my blog that I’ve moved to creating content for YouTube as an outlet for my creative energy.

Consequently, the shop will offer fabrication drawings produced in the process of creating the video content for YouTube. You’ll find the drawings are of a high standard and the price is very low in the hopes of getting people interested in my products. I produced fabrication drawings for a living in my previous career as a mechanical engineer and I hope that the quality reflects that.

The site is powered by WooCommerce and has the proven security and reliability that they have built on for many years. So please, if you want to support me and my family, take a look at the online store and check back in the future as the shop is continually updated!

Thanks so much!

Subscribe to our channel to keep up with the shenanigans at Lannix Design!

Check out our first video of 2024! I’m working on continual improvement in my video production and I hope it shows. I’m particularly proud of this one.

Also, plans are available in our online store if you’d like to build a treasure chest like this for yourself or a loved one!

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Making Graphics For Our Website

Nick — Tue, 29 Aug 2023 21:30:17 +0000

Making graphics for a website seemed like a daunting task a couple of years ago when I jumped into the project. I had no idea what the deal is with using downloaded images and the like when you’re making a commercial website, and I actually wasn’t that keen to just use someone else’s artwork.

Since I’d designed the logo myself in Fusion 360, I came up with this plan to use renders with low lighting that would hopefully just fade into the background of the website and look like a nice subtle image. I was initially quite happy with this for our original website, lannix3d.com.au, but when it came time to build our new website I wanted something a little more artistic to grab people’s attention when they clicked on our home page.

Originally, the main page background was a brick wall with our logo as an illuminated sign hanging on it. I was happy with it at first but after looking at it closely I realised the brick texture wasn’t as high-res as I’d like and I felt it was looking a bit uninteresting. The light didn’t seem to stand out as much as I’d hoped so I went back and gave it some more attention.

Our home page graphic made in Fusion 360 and Blender.

The original background that I decided to evolve.

In the mean time I’d revamped our YouTube channel graphics with a teal & orange theme which I really loved. So I thought I’d incorporate those colours into the brick image somehow. I’d also been watching tutorials on how to light a scene for making videos so that gave me the idea of having the coloured lights illuminate the scene from either side. I thought opposite corners would look good and I’m happy with that part of it.

Our logo sign needed to glow and stand out more so I used some techniques I learned from Blender Guru on how to get a nice glow from your rendered emission textures.

Lastly, I wanted to add some more subtle detail to give a sense of realism so I modelled up an electrical conduit in real scale and stuck it in the top right corner. It’s barely noticeable but that’s exactly what I was going for.

Check out the screenshots of the Blender layout in the gallery below to get an idea of how the image was made.

Gallery - Making Graphics For Our Website

I’ve also included some screenshots of the Fusion 360 models I’ve used to create other graphics on our website. Hopefully some of you might find them interesting.

If you’re interested in learning Fusion 360’s modelling with text or rendering features, check out the video below. It’s a simple tutorial for beginners and we’ll go through the steps used to create the Lannix Design logo.

See how the Lannix Design logo was made on our YouTube channel

For those interested in learning animation in Blender, check out this video to learn the basics in a tutorial aimed at beginners.

Subscribe to our channel to keep up with the shenanigans at Lannix Design!

Until next week, Byeee!

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Make A Star Wars Inspired Animation In Blender!

Nick — Tue, 22 Aug 2023 21:30:50 +0000

The wildly anticipated follow-up to the logo design video is finally here! If you’re curious about how to make 3D animation videos like they do at Pixar, check out our latest YouTube video that shows the basics of 3D animation. It’s a tutorial aimed at beginners and is paced so that new animators can follow along.

Blender has a steep learning curve but for those who stick with it, it can be very rewarding when you produce a 3D animation that you can be proud of like the one in our video. Check it out if you’re curious about the process!

If you want to follow along with the tutorial, I’ve made a zip file availabel with the logo model

Subscribe to our channel to keep up with the shenanigans at Lannix Design!

Check out the link from our YouTube channel

If you haven’t yet, why not check out the precursor video where we make the logo in Fusion 360. Using the text feature in Fusion is often overlooked in parametric software but it is possible to get some cool results. Watch below!

This is the result of the Blender tutorial which you’ll be able to create for yourself in the video above.

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Designing Our Logo In Fusion 360

Nick — Tue, 01 Aug 2023 21:30:38 +0000

This week we’ve uploaded a video where you can learn how to use the text function and render a logo in Autodesk Fusion 360. You may find inspiration for your own logo and realize the versatility of using text in 3D modeling.

Stay tuned for the next installment where we export the 3D model to Blender to really amp up the rendering!

Subscribe to our channel to keep up with the shenanigans at Lannix Design!

Check out the link from our YouTube channel

A screenshot of the model after it was exported and tweaked in Blender

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Printables.com 3000 Downloads!

Nick — Tue, 04 Jul 2023 21:30:46 +0000

This week we’re proud to announce that we’ve had over 3000 downloads of our original 3D model designs on Printables.com.

For those unfamiliar with Printables, it is a website that allows users to upload their original creations for others to download and 3D print for themselves. The website is hosted by Prusa Research, the company that sells the ever reliable i3 MK3S that we use for our 3D printing jobs. Their 3D printers are well known among enthusiasts and professionals and are considered the workhorse that stands up to constant use.

Please check out our bio on the Printables site and try out some of our designs if you have your own 3D printer.

Click here to see our Printables bio.

Our bio on Printables.com

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Design For 3D Printing – CAD Tips

Nick — Tue, 02 May 2023 21:30:06 +0000

As 3D printing becomes more and more popular, it’s important to keep in mind some key design considerations that are specific to CAD when designing for 3D printing. In this blog post, we’ll go over some of the most important things to keep in mind when designing for 3D printing.

Wall Thickness and Material

When designing for 3D printing, it’s important to keep in mind the wall thickness and the material that you’ll be using. The wall thickness should be at least 0.8 mm in order for the object to be strong enough. The distance between walls must be between 0.4 mm and 0.8 mm, otherwise, the walls will collapse or the object will be brittle.

The filament spool storage tower was designed using the concepts described. Some out-of-the-box thinking was needed to pull it off.

Consider Orientation and Support Structures

When you design a 3D printing model, you need to think about the orientation of the model as well as the support structure for that model. The orientation or direction of printing allows for the right layer strength and adhesion. Support structures can be used to avoid issues that may arise in the printing process. This will help increase the strength and durability of the finished product, and will ensure that the print runs successfully without any issues. Well-spaced support structures can also help speed up the printing process, allowing you to create your 3D designs faster.

Use CAD Software that can Handle 3D Printing

When designing for 3D printing, it’s essential to use CAD software that can handle 3D printing. This software can help you create models that can quickly be printed with accuracy required for 3D printing. The best CAD software will allow you to create intricate designs with precision, and give you the ability to make adjustments and edits when necessary. I recommend Fusion 360 or Onshape for the hobbyist.

Choose the Right Printing Process

There are various types of 3D printing processes available, and you’ll want to choose one that is best suited to your needs. You can choose between Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), Stereo Lithography (SLA) and Digital Light Processing (DLP). Each process has its own advantages and disadvantages, and it’s important to choose the right one based on your specific design requirements.

The plastic parts in our end table design needed to be easily 3D printed and maintain the angle and position of the timber legs.

Consider the Printing Material

The type of material you select for 3D printing is an important consideration when designing for 3D printing. The material will impact the quality of the final product, and you should choose a material that is strong and durable enough for your needs. Some materials are also more resistant to wear and tear, and those could be a better fit for certain applications.

Final Thoughts

Designing for 3D printing requires a specific set of skills and knowledge. By keeping these considerations in mind, you can ensure that your CAD designs are optimized for 3D printing, and that your finished product is of high quality and meets the desired standards. With the right software, materials, and processes, you’ll be able to create stunning 3D models that meet all of your design needs.

Gallery - CAD For 3D Printing

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Learning Blender For Better Renders

Nick — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 21:30:19 +0000

Coming from a technical background I’ve mostly used parametric 3D modelling software such as Solidworks, Inventor, SolidEdge and Fusion 360. These software packages are great for producing technical drawings based on the 3D models you create from given or acquired parameters. In simpler terms, parametric models start from a two-dimensional sketch and are then extruded to become three dimensional.

Blender is a 3D modelling program that uses meshes that enable a more free form style of modelling. This let’s the user create natural objects such as people, animals and natural landscapes that can look very nice and this style of modelling is used by Disney and others to create movies such as Toy Story, Cars and Finding Nemo.

To round out my 3D modelling skills, I’ve been trying my hand at Blender to create some more visually interesting and artistic renders. Let me tell you, the learning curve is pretty steep when you first start out in Blender especially if your mind is used to parametric modelling. Like everything though, it can be learned and the best way to learn Blender is to do. Also, there’s the Blender Guru who has a great tutorial series that shows you how to model a donut. “A donut?”, I imagine you’re asking. Yes, this series is regarded as the best for Blender noobs and I have to agree that it covers the basic features of the software in enough detail to allow you to create a video that you can be proud of. Check out mine!

The result of the Blender Guru tutorial series.

I dabbled with Blender a few years ago and enjoyed it quite a bit but it became harder and harder to justify the time spent mucking around with it. Since starting Lannix Design I’ve come up with some ideas that require the use of Blender to create the kind of imagery I envisioned. Luckily the models created in Fusion 360 are able to be imported into Blender, combined with other 3D models and rendered using its superior rendering engine. The images in the gallery below have all been produced in Blender by myself.

Another video render. I don’t recall who made the tutorial sorry.

Take a look at the Blender Guru donut tutorial series if you’re keen to have a go yourself. Link here.

The gallery below shows a few of the renders I’ve produced with Blender both for Lannix Design and for fun or practice. Let me know what you think!

Bye

3D Models – Lannix Design

Tilt Time-Lapse Fun!

See more of our work

Update: Fully CGI Shed Workshop Layout Design!

Gallery - Fully CGI Shed Workshop Layout Design!

See more of our work

5000 Downloads on Printables.com!

See more of our work

Lannix Shop Is Now Open!

See more of our work

Making Graphics For Our Website

Gallery - Making Graphics For Our Website

See more of our work

Make A Star Wars Inspired Animation In Blender!

See more of our work

Designing Our Logo In Fusion 360

See more of our work

Printables.com 3000 Downloads!

See more of our work

Design For 3D Printing – CAD Tips

Wall Thickness and Material

Consider Orientation and Support Structures

Use CAD Software that can Handle 3D Printing

Choose the Right Printing Process

Consider the Printing Material

Final Thoughts

Gallery - CAD For 3D Printing

See more of our work

Learning Blender For Better Renders

Gallery - Blender Renders

See more of our work