PRIVATE GOLF
Since I've got very positive feedback on the rivers in this scene, and many of you are interested in the way I made them, here I would like to demonstrate my method - something unusual I haven't done before.
This is the original DEM (Digital Elevation Model) of Yosemite National Park, CA USA. I got the data from the USGS server long ago. Since this DEM is not so detailed if you get closer to it, I wanted to see what I could bring out of it if I add some more, detailed erosion to it in World Machine.
...and this is how I made it totally unrecognizable in World Machine. More complex, strong erosions (GeoGlyph was involved as well) and modifiers were applied on the terrain.
This is how it looks in Vue's Terrain Editor.
Zoomed in to see some more details in the Terrain Editor.
This is a piece of one of the erosion deposition maps of the terrain I saved from World Machine. This was used as a distribution map for the rivers in Vue. It is highly unusual to use deposition map for creating rivers, since they serve a different purpose, but when I saw the distribution of materials on the terrain, I thought I'd think outside the box and try something new. I modified the map, adjusted the width at some spots, erased the tiny details, but left some "backwaters" as well.
With some trials and errors, going back and forth in Vue and Photoshop, I finally got an acceptable river. The advantage of using a map exported from World Machine is that it's possible to make a river flow from the mountains, down to the valley, on an uneven surface. Since the particle system in Vue is not yet improved and stable enough to create such a river, using this distribution map was a good idea. You can - of course - draw a map from scratch in Photoshop, or paint the river material in the Terrain Editor, but using this map seemed faster and more convenient.
The materials are highlighted here to see the distribution.
The materials are highlighted here to see the distribution.
With another version of the same erosion deposition map, I created the riverside and the deposit flow/sediment on the terrain. It gave an interesting look.
The main materials - mountain, river, riverside, sediment and grass - are highlighted to see the distribution.
The final result with all elements in place. The river material consists of a very murky water layer and a foam layer, which is connected to Distance to Object Below input node, which stands behind the foam material appearing near objects, like the riverside or the rocks I distributed all over in the river and through the riverside..
