Hello Friends,
This is a quick tutorial on how to create the background for a Space Shot using the great Space Engine software.
Space Engine is a simulator of the ENTIRE UNIVERSE. Yes, 200 Billion Galaxies and trillions of comets, asteroids, planets etc... The objects we know about are simulated and the ones we think are there but have'nt been discovered are simulated. It is the greatest piece of software I have ever played with and it's free. Please make a small donation if you use it. The developer (one guy) deserves it.
Thie process goes as follows: go to Space Engine and place the camera where you want to create the Skycube, Create the Skycube. The you have to modify 2 sides of the Skycube, then you have to use software to convert the six images that are the sides of the Skycube into a single 360 panoramic picture, then you take this picture as an IBL image in Iclone 7 and you are done.
STEP 1
Get Space Engine from en.spaceengine.org Install it and learn to move the camera and do the basics. Search Youtube for "Space Engine tutorials"
STEP 2
In Space Engine, find the place where you want to create your Skybox size 2048 and PNG, it could be in space, on a Moon, Asteroid, etc.. I used for this demo Kepler 452 b Terra which you can access by going to Space Engine, Planetarrium, Keyboard shortcut "F6" select it from the list and hit "GO TO"
STEP 3
Create Skybox by hitting escape key "ESC", click on "EDITOR", click on "EXPORT SKYBOX"
STEP 4
STEP 3 created six files located in C:\SpaceEngine\export named:
sky_neg_z.png
sky_pos_z.png
sky_neg_x.png
sky_pos_x.png
sky_neg_y.png
sky_pos_y.png
STEP 5
Go to Youtube and search "
How to Convert a Cubemap To a 360° Image (Panorama) Tutorial"
There is a standalone utility called cubemap get there or here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/5luc6qvwg4ztx0l/CubemapTo360-64bit.exe?dl=0
Here is an image containing the input to Cubemap utility (look at the window where it says "360Tech":
In Space Engine the skybox is 2048, in Cubemap I also make it 2048
The input to Cubemap
Top=sky_pos_y (Rotate image 90 deg Clockwise)
Bottom=sky_neg_y (Rotate image 90 deg CounterClockwise)
Left =sky_pos_z
Right=sky_neg_z
Front=sky_pos_x
Back=sky_neg_x
Now, here is an important step. Two of these images have to be rotated 90 degrees Clockwise and Counterclockwise respectively.
I use a program called "Image Converter" from AVS..
Free version here..
https://www.avs4you.com/es/avs-image-converter.aspxThis program is a great tool for converting images from one to another. Remember, two of the images have to be rotated. The other ones were just converted from PNG to JPG
You have to provide the full path to the file on the input to Cubemap. in my case:
TOP C:\SpaceEngine\export\sky_pos_yMODGas.jpg
In my case I started with file C:\SpaceEngine\export\sky_pos_y.png , rotated the file 90 degrees CLOCKWISE and created file sky_pos_yMODGas.jpg
Once all sides files are filled in click on "Create 360 degree image"
Give it a name and Cubemap will create a bitmap file, in my case...360GasGiant.bmp
Gas Giant 360 degree Image
https://www.dropbox.com/s/pd3o8widgdegj9c/360GasGiant.bmp?dl=0
STEP 6
Go to Iclone 7, visual tab and drop the "360GasGiant.bmp" image in the IBL image slot.
I suggest making this skybox large from 70 to 9999
Then you could add spaceships, lighting etc... Once done add sound effects, music etc.. and use it in your movies, like this:
Space Engine can create not only images in Space but from the surface of planets and Moons. Some of these terrains are created using fractals so they can be very detailed and incredibly impressive.
Another use is to create moving video as you move through space. This movie can be used as the video for a PRIM in Iclone. This movie can be "played" on the windshield of a cockpit, etc...
That is all folks. Comment for questions, opinions...