RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD
Scientific Trading Card
Description
This piece is part of BMC SciCards, a scientific trading card project developed by Michie Wu and Shahryar Saharan. The goal of this piece was to create a trading card depicting an organism and their scientific abilities.
My specific card was on the ruby-throated hummingbird, an incredibly agile bird with the ability to beat their wings over 50 times per second. The front of the card features the organism, while the back details the science behind its special ability.
Type
Trading card, infographic
Tools
Procreate, ZBrush, Autodesk Maya, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Illustrator
Client
BMC SciCards
Audience
General audience
Date
September 2022
Process Work
3D Modelling
I chose to 3D model the hummingbird to practice my ZBrush skills. I started by using a sphere, sculpting with Dynamesh before retopologizing and subdividing my mesh. I coloured my model in ZBrush using polypaint and layers.
Rigging & Animation
To best visualize the special aerial ability of the hummingbird, I thought it was best to animate my model by showing the figure-8 pattern of the wings. In Autodesk Maya, I rigged the hummingbird body and wings using joints and IK handles. I then painted skin weights onto the model to better control the movement of the joints. Finally, I positioned the wings at different angles and set keyframes for my animation.
