TITLE: "Do Your Homework!"
NAME: Glenn McCarter
COUNTRY: USA
EMAIL: gmccarter@hotmail.com
WEBPAGE: -none- (anyone care to donate some space...?)
TOPIC: School
COPYRIGHT: I SUBMIT TO THE STANDARD RAYTRACING COMPETITION COPYRIGHT.
JPGFILE: 14doyour.jpg
ZIPFILE: 14doyour.zip
RENDERER USED: 
    POV-Ray for Windows v3.0

TOOLS USED: 

  Pencil & paper (to visualize a few complex CSG objects,
                  and the cubic_spline lathe of the car tire)
  Paint Shop Pro (to create image_maps; convert final image to JPEG)

RENDER TIME: 
    12h 16m

HARDWARE USED: 
    Pentium-90


IMAGE DESCRIPTION: 

It's late afternoon at a teenager's desk.
Today's homework assignment is to apply physics knowledge to a
real-world topic.  The student had been thinking about designing
a faster race car, and uses a model car for inspiration.
While the student researches slip angles and ground effects,
the model suddenly becomes real, wreaking havoc across the desk!


DESCRIPTION OF HOW THIS IMAGE WAS CREATED: 

All objects, textures, and lights were created entirely by me.
No modelers were used -- this is 100 0x80ac03cure POV-code.  Whew!
A few image_maps are used: the 8.5x11 sketch, the wall calendar,
the book cover illustration (itself a ray traced image about
ray tracing, and a small tribute to the POV-Team), and one other.
These are not included in the zip file.
My signature and a copyright notice have been incorporated into the
image. A few other tricks are used throughout the scene.

I believe that five elements are essential to every outstanding
ray-traced image:

MODELS
------
Objects in this scene are highly detailed.  Note:
 - the flipped-up corner on the pad of paper
 - the rivets on the nameplate of the lamp
 - the raised lettering on the car tires
 - the pencil shaft -- not a true hexagon, but a CSG of
   boxes and cylinders, forming a "rounded hexagon"

TEXTURES
--------
Carefully crafted textures enhance the realism of an image:
- The highlighter has very high ambient values, giving it
  a fluorescent finish.
- The desktop combines dark woodgrain with a shiny
  reflection to capture the artificial look of Formica.
- The book pages have a tightly compressed light-and-dark
  gradient y pigment pattern, suggesting groups of pages.
- A series of "filters" (invisible, refractive, textured boxes
  and cylinders) are used to create the simulated motion blur.

LIGHTING
--------
There are four light sources in the scene:
- An overhead room light, bathing everything in a cool glow.
- The high-intensity table lamp, focused on the fast car.
  A bright light_source simulates the direct filament light,
  while a second source casts soft light from the reflector.
- Sunlight streaming in through the venetian blinds. This is
  a very bright area_light which provides strong illumination
  while keeping the shadows soft.
- A blue light to simulate some illumination from the sky.

COMPOSITION
-----------
Position, lighting, and color of elements have been arranged
to make the car and the pad of paper the focus of the scene.
 ...clock is too dominant, tone it down...
 ...not enough of the book is showing, move it in...
 ...angle on lampshade is wrong, tilt it more...
Ok, you really don't want to hear how many times I modified
this scene.  This way is perfect.  'Nuff said.
Also, school colors (yellow/white/black) are repeated multiple
times throughout the scene, providing color harmony.

and finally, THEME
------------------
A scene is more than just a collection of objects.
It must tell a story; describe an idea; evoke an emotion.
Ponder this while viewing the image --
If you do your homework, will you become a success?
Should you do the assigned homework, or is it better
to explore other avenues and pursue your dreams?
Will doing your homework make you a great ray-tracer?

The following are left as exercises to the viewer:
At least seven images of a racecar are captured in the scene.
Can you find them all?
Bonus question: Where does this student go to school?
Seek and ye shall find.  Do YOUR homework!