Pipeline 2 - Jet Pack Jones: Adding a Throat and Eyebrows

 Adding a Throat

  For the throat, we needed to see the inside of the head model. This meant removing half the model, but the inside is too dark to work on. By changing the Maya view port to legacy, we can now see the interior. As with the nose and brow, we will need to add curves as a modeling guide, placing them onto a layer with a different colour so they will show.

  Using the non-smooth mode, we select the inner edges of the mouth (but avoid the corners, these are too tight to work with at present). Using the selected edges, we extrude upward and forwards, this is to help capture the inner curve of the lips. We then used the extrude again, continuing to bring our curve around whilst working to the vertexes straight (We need to avoid twisting).

  Selecting the newly created edges nearest the mouth corners, we extrude leftwards towards the corner and merge the vertexes together. This helps to bring our corner back. To help build the throat, we are going to use a cylinder with the same amount of divisions.

  With the cylinder created, we remove the caps and add 24 divisions length ways, 3 in the circumference. Removing half the cylinder, we position it into the right place, angling, shaping and ready for point snapping the vertexes together. 

  We can work our way back wards though the cylinder, moving edges around and shaping the throat. The final sections should be more angled towards the back of throat and should be smaller. Once happy with the positioning, we need to make sure that the vertex are snapped to the center line.

  Now we need to jump back into the Maya view port and reverse the throat geometry, using the wired frame on shaded will help us see where our edges are. Point snapping our vertexes together, we select all the ones we need and merge them. The distance threshold is set at 0.010, meaning it will only merge vertexes that are on top of each other. 

  Now we can add more geometry. Using the edge-loop tool whilst holding shift will enable Maya to create a halfway point. We can finish this part by using the relax tool and removing any bumps from the geometry.  When I first made this part of the head, I created the lips to be much too big. So I had to do a little remodeling to thin them out and create a better internal environment.  

The Eyebrows

  To help in creating the eyebrows, we will be using the front view to help guide us in wrapping them  around the brow. Using a single polygon plane, we removed the geometry and place it in the right place according to our orthographies. To start us off, we add a edge though the middle and bringing it out to lay onto of the head's surface.

  Once happy with the placement, we add two more edges half way from the middle edge. As before, we carry on bringing out the vertexes to lay just on the head's surface. Doing the same again, we start placing edges on the vertical edge. staring with 1, we end up having edges that allow a better wrap around.

  Adding another two loops on the corners, these will hold the eyebrow shape. Using the smooth preview, moving vertex groups enables us to give the eyebrow it's curve. Once done, we select it and bring it away from the head, removing any transformations and history.

  Selecting the whole outside edge, the next stage is to extrude backwards until the edge is just below the surface of the head geometry. Using the bevel tool on the most forefront edge, we leave it at a segment of 1 and bring the offset up, whilst bringing the fraction to 1. This brings in a much softer appearnce to the eyebrow.

Using the back most edges again, we widen the scale to reduce the squareness. We have to keep clean up the shape as we continue modelling.  The polygon geometry needs to be square to hold their shape,  diamonds can be used carefully. Choosing the 4 outer edges, we bevel again to sharpen the eyebrows corners. Doing this does create some n-gons (shapes with more then 4 sides). Using the multi-cut tool, we cut though the middle on the n-gon's to bring back the square geometry. 

 With the orthographies acting as a guide, we improve that shape of the eyebrow as needed. The newly created diamonds was causing pinching in the corners of the eyebrows, so we drew in another square and removed the center line to allow it room.

  Sometimes diamond shapes can cause bumps. We can use the average vertices tool to help remove them. Once happy with our eyebrow, we duplicate it, place it in a group and scale in X - 1 to give us a twin eyebrow. We then need to remove it from its group and delete its transformations/history.