Matt Tremblay, Chief Designer at RED Digital Cinema and founder of RogueDZN, has been a long time user of KeyShot, bringing incredibly detailed visuals of top-of-the-line Digital Film cameras and custom luxury jewelry to the eyes of people around the world. We caught up with Matt to ask him about how he uses KeyShot throughout the product design process to create a wide variety of amazing 3D renderings.
What software do you use for 3D modeling?
SolidWorks always ends up being the program that meshes best with my modeling style. It’s a little wild when compared to the norm as well. I’m ok with sketches being red all down the side, and so is SolidWorks. Solidworks is like a wild horse that once broken to your liking it does exactly what you want. It does like to whine a bit, but then I simply say relations: DELETE-ALL! Then, wouldn’t you know it, everyone is happy again. This method is definitely not recommended for everyone, but for me it works, because I only move forward and never back. If something is wrong, I’ll just cut it the hell out of there and remodel it. For me, it just saves time. I would rather remodel a part from scratch rather then spend hours modeling it parametrically. But that’s just me. The amount of angst this causes you is directly relative to the number of changes you make. (Every solidworks teacher on planet right now is probably cursing at that monitor right now!)
What brought you to the decision to use KeyShot?
I use whichever program limits me the least and gives me the best results in the shortest timeframe. That’s KeyShot. Especially with the new animation features emerging, KeyShot has a solid hold on the future of Industrial Design rendering. Luxion is in an amazing situation right now and they have the ability to take over the product design rendering and animation industry. I think they have done such an amazing job with the rendering portion. I would love to see them apply those same ideals to the animation side. Don’t get me wrong I love what they did. I simply think they could take the whole thing to next level by taking cues from some of the best in the business. I just don’t want there to be any limitations.
What do you create renderings/animations of? How has it helped?
I render whatever I am currently working on. Detailed raytracing and light characteristics show your model in ways that you can’t see within the SolidWorks screen, even with Real-view graphics toggled on – you can’t see the subtleties of the way way light reacts to your product. In the end, no matter what program you are using, it’s all about the light and how advanced the controlling algorithms are.
您可以在RogueDZN网站上直接看到渲染效果带来的优势。许多人可能不知道的是，RogueDZN 网站结构设计中的几乎所有元素（按钮、框架、360 度旋转视图）都是KeyShot 。除了单个产品页面上的 360 度旋转视图外，其余产品图片均为实拍照片。
那么这对我有何帮助呢？它帮助我打造了一个小世界，当你浏览网站时，可以在其中自由探索。这是一个3D世界。不过，除非你仔细观察，否则可能不会注意到它。而且，在另一位“网站神级高手”的协助下，我得以独自完成这一切——他负责实现所有功能，并确保整个系统正常运行。
What has been your favorite project?
For RED:
I would have to say The RED EPIC and creating the accessory line to go with it. In particular the Tactical components and the Gunner system. It’s just so versatile and modular that you can make anything with it. It’s like having a set of tactical legos for your camera. The camera system is specifically designed to be able to morph from one camera shooting style to another very quickly. Movie sets are unforgiving places where time is key, and being able to change a camera’s functional attributes is a major plus in the industry. On the flip side, for still shooters and guerilla shots, the same concept applies. The less time you spend messing with your equipment, the more time you have to make beautiful pictures, wether they are in motion or still.
For RogueDZN:
It would have to be the Armadillo: C6-DARKHORSE. That thing is just so insanely intricate, and custom, that it trumps anything else by a mile. At first it simply looks like a black verison of the Armadillo:161. Then you take a closer look and you see each of the carbon fiber layers winking at you like little diamonds as you turn the bracelet in the light. It’s simple material/mechanical/design insanity. It’s exactly what it’s meant to be – zero compromise at any level. There is a reason companies don’t make something like this. They go broke. I just had to see the real thing, so I didn’t really have a choice.
Are there any KeyShot tips you can pass along?
The only real tip I have is “Put in Miles.” It applies to really any program you start using. You need to put in time in front of any program you use. There is an idea out there that if you have a program, (say Photoshop), then you are a graphic designer. Not the case. For example, just because you have Michelangelo’s paint brushes doesn’t mean your going to be able to paint the Sistine Chapel. We all need to remember that computer programs are only tools that allow us to create.
投入的时间越多，你的水平就越高、速度就越快。仅仅拥有一个程序，并不意味着你就能用它做出精彩的作品。只有将这个程序融入你的生活，让它成为你生活的一部分，它才会成为你大脑的延伸。到了那个时候，一切皆有可能。
