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3DProbert Concept Bridge

Hi everyone, I'm Alan, a.k.a. nixonshead (I used the name way back in my days on the Subspace Comms Network and it's kind of stuck). As you may have seen on Rekkert's Star Trek Interiors thread, he had started work on a commission for me to build one of the TNG concept bridges from Andrew Probert's early designs for the show. Unfortunately, Rekkert was unable to complete the bridge, but was kind enough to pass me the WIP meshes and some helpful models for set dressing that will let me continue the project. It's likely to be slow going, as I'm only able to work on this between other things, but I thought I'd stop lurking and start posting updates for those interested.
So, here are the first few updates. The main differences so far are a remodelled outer shell for the room. Rekkert made an excellent clean mesh for this complex shape, but I wanted to tweak a couple of things, and ended up re-doing the whole thing. I'll probably do one more version of this, as I'm still not fully happy with the curve where the viewscreen meets the wall, and I need to add the alcoves at the rear. I've also updated the wall materials to match Probert's orange felt-tip. It's now a carpet style material (a bridge on the bridge, carpet on the walls - this is an odd design!). I've also added some conference room chairs that Rekkert provided.

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Next couple of images, I've re-done the curvy consoles (again, likely to be tweaked further or outright replaced), added some more details to the conference area, and updated some materials.

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  • RekkertRekkert4037 Buenos Aires, ArgentinaPosts: 2,302Member
    Ohh, nice seeing you posting this already! :)

    Cool updates from where I left off. It was smart redoing the outer shell, I had totally destroyed the shape of the viewscreen when doing the ceiling. :lol:
    Interesting that you're going for the carpet on the wall, clearly a much more faithful take to the original concept drawing, while I was going for a mix of that and what was eventually seen on screen. Looking forward for more!
    For all my finished Trek fan art, please visit my portfolio
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    edited February 2020 #3
    It's nice to see work continuing on this project. Those are some nice looking renders and I look forward to seeing how it progresses. :)
    Post edited by evil_genius_180 on
  • publiusrpubliusr550 Posts: 1,746Member
    I can see this set up on a liner--at the entrance to some kind of jump gate--or above a spacedock entry.
  • AresiusAresius359 Posts: 4,171Member
    niiiice. Looking forward to this.
    And welcome.
  • nixonsheadnixonshead57 Posts: 11Member
    Rekkert wrote: »
    Interesting that you're going for the carpet on the wall, clearly a much more faithful take to the original concept drawing, while I was going for a mix of that and what was eventually seen on screen.

    Yep, not sure yet if I'll keep the wall carpet or end up going for something closer to the final on-screen set. Figured I'd start with the Probert drawing then play around with things afterwards.
    It's nice to see work continuing on this project. Those are some nice looking renders and I look forward to seeing how it progresses. :)

    Thanks! It's slow going (not helped by a seasonal cold), but I'm finding it a nice relaxing project without the pressure of a client :)
    publiusr wrote: »
    I can see this set up on a liner--at the entrance to some kind of jump gate--or above a spacedock entry.

    I could totally see that, maybe with the upper level being like a VIP viewing platform!
    Aresius wrote: »
    niiiice. Looking forward to this.
    And welcome.

    Thanks!

    A couple of small updates. I've remodelled the curvy consoles a bit and given them ends so they don't just terminate in a flat cutoff. I made the cushioning a little thinner when doing that, so maybe the comfort level has dropped :( I may go back an inflate them again later.

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    I've also started modelling the forward "coffee table". This is supposed to have little displays that flip up out of the surface, but I've not yet added those.

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    Lastly a view from the conference area. You can see I added chairs into the curvy console, as they appear on the concept art. These are based on the chairs at the rear consoles of the screen Ent-D brisge, but with thinner back pieces to fit under the lower curvy console. I'm not fully happy with these currently, as a) they have flat backs, not following the curve, and b) in order to stop them poking out the front of the console, they can't be very deep, so any crew using them would have to perch quite uncomfortably on them. I'm thinking to replace these chairs with access panels and just have any crew using the consoles (apart from Conn and Ops) stand. Also, the captain's chair is still using antigravity suspension ;)

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    RekkertFreakashleytingerLizzy777evil_genius_180
  • FreakFreak1088 Posts: 4,361Member
    Really liking that coffee table in front of the captain chair.
  • BrandenbergBrandenberg1655 CaliforniaPosts: 1,937Member
    It's so big and roomy. I half expect you to add a Starbuck's :)
  • BlueNeumannBlueNeumann615 Posts: 1,275Member
    "Is there a John-Luck Pickard here?"
  • scifiericscifieric1122 Posts: 1,497Member
    Excellent work and I look forward to seeing more!
  • nixonsheadnixonshead57 Posts: 11Member
    A bit more progress. I went back to the overall shell of the room (twice, in fact!), and I think I've now got it how I want it. The viewscreen shape is now cleaner, and I'm happier with the curve of the ceiling (still need to add some ribbing). For lighting, the concept art appeared to show uplighting on the ceiling, but it wasn't clear where it came from, so I added a bit of 'coping' (is that the right word? I'm having a mental block) with lighting above. The front of the room was still looking a bit dark, so I also added downlighting. I'll have to experiment with changing the colours for red alert :)
    For the viewscreen, I wanted to give it a real holographic feel, especially if I end up doing an animated walk-through, so I basically just made it a transparent window and put a nebula outside. I like the way that illuminates the bridge, but it emphatically is NOT a window! No windows on my starship bridges! (My assumption is this is still Probert's original concept of having the bridge deep inside the saucer). Lastly, a few LCARS displays to spice things up.

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    evil_genius_180FreakashleytingerWarp Propulsion LaboratoryRekkertLizzy777
  • FreakFreak1088 Posts: 4,361Member
    Looking good.
    I agree, no F'ing Windows for view screens. I can let slide a "Skylight" window ala Ent-D, but it would need to have shutter on it, for when the ship goes into battle. Can't have that being a week spot. ;)
  • ashleytingerashleytinger1998 Central OhioPosts: 1,233Member
    After having seen one of the cruise ship bridges, yay for YouTube, this isn't far off from what we're doing now on more civilian vessels.
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    edited March 2020 #14
    That's looking really nice. I particularly like the viewscreen.
    Freak wrote: »
    I can let slide a "Skylight" window ala Ent-D, but it would need to have shutter on it, for when the ship goes into battle. Can't have that being a week spot. ;)

    It shouldn't have shattered like it did in Generations, because it should have been transparent duranium, or tritanium, or something like that. After all, if they had transparent aluminum, they likely had other transparent metals. It would only make sense to use them for durability over glass.
    Post edited by evil_genius_180 on
  • nixonsheadnixonshead57 Posts: 11Member
    It shouldn't have shattered like it did in Generations, because it should have been transparent duranium, or tritanium, or something like that. After all, if they had transparent aluminum, they likely had other transparent metals. It would only make sense to use them for durability over glass.

    Yep, transparent alumin(i)um. I hope in vain for an episode of Trek to one day show a window dented instead of shattered :)
  • RekkertRekkert4037 Buenos Aires, ArgentinaPosts: 2,302Member
    Ohh, I love what you did with the viewscreen and ceiling area!
    For all my finished Trek fan art, please visit my portfolio
  • nixonsheadnixonshead57 Posts: 11Member
    Been working on the rear consoles. These are basically the rear consoles we saw on the show, but without the slight curve. Given the large amount of space at the back wall, I've increased from 5 workstations to 8. I'm planning to keep the Emergenc Override and Propulsion stations and add the Mission Ops and Engineering stations, plus one more TBC (suggestions welcome! Or I might just go down to 7 consoles). For now, I've just used the same LCARS for all of them while I tweak the model. I suspect I'll end up going for a mostly-off season 1 look, as it looks a bit cluttered right now.

    And yes, that's a huge amount of room in front of the aft consoles! In keeping with the asthetic, I'm thinking of adding a couple of replicators and a coffee bar behind the conference area ;)

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    I've also modified the lighting for the upper deck. Still some tweaking to do, especially after I put the ready Room up there, but a bit more realistic now.

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    I do wonder how safe those steps would be if the Captain is called to the bridge during an attack, with everyone shaking from side to side...
    evil_genius_180ashleytingerLizzy777Freak
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    When you think about it, this really is a ludicrous design. But, it's still cool and your work on it has been fantastic. Those steps are definitely not where I'd want to be when the ship took a hit.
  • ashleytingerashleytinger1998 Central OhioPosts: 1,233Member
    I like it. On a purely exploratory vessel that's going to rarely if ever see combat, I could totally see that.
  • RekkertRekkert4037 Buenos Aires, ArgentinaPosts: 2,302Member
    Perhaps a fireman's pole is called for, so that the Captain can reach the bottom level faster in an emergency. ;)
    For all my finished Trek fan art, please visit my portfolio
  • BolianAdmiralBolianAdmiral1114 Torrance, CaliforniaPosts: 2,560Member
    My God, this is stunningly beautiful.
  • BlueNeumannBlueNeumann615 Posts: 1,275Member
    Actually, this would be great for a Starbase's Command Center.
  • nixonsheadnixonshead57 Posts: 11Member
    Hi all. Sorry for the long delay, my ancient PC finally joined the calcuators in Silicon Heaven, so I've been waiting for the new one. It's finally arrived, and I've managed to get Blender installed and retreived my file back-ups. As I'd been working on this bridge recently, I decided to use it as a render performance benchmark, and I'm delighted to say the new machine is more than 10x faster than the old. Still getting used to this German kezboard though...
    When you think about it, this really is a ludicrous design. But, it's still cool and your work on it has been fantastic. Those steps are definitely not where I'd want to be when the ship took a hit.
    I like it. On a purely exploratory vessel that's going to rarely if ever see combat, I could totally see that.

    I agree it is crazy, but I guess it kind of fits a lot of what they were trying to get across in the early episodes. With families on board, and an original design crew of ten thousand, the Enterprise-D was supposed to be more a small town than a naval vessel like Kirk's ship. Even if it did get into a fight, the civvies were supposed to be left safely with the (sublight?!) saucer, so the main bridge would very rarely have had to deal with combat stresses. That could have been an interesting show... but on balance, I'm glad we got the version we did.

    Rekkert wrote: »
    Perhaps a fireman's pole is called for, so that the Captain can reach the bottom level faster in an emergency. ;)

    I love that idea! Or maybe a big ball pool he can jump into. There's plenty of room for one!
    My God, this is stunningly beautiful.

    Thanks (mainly on Probert's behalf)!
    Actually, this would be great for a Starbase's Command Center.

    I could see that, though I think it's overall still too forward-facing for a starbase. Unless maybe the viewscreen was replaced by a bay window looking out onto the docking bays? (I'm fine with windows for starbases :p )

    What with the PC replacement, I've not had chance to do any more modelling, but I have been playing with some lighting schemes. Which Red Alert do you guys like best?

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    evil_genius_180McCLizzy777slybrarian
  • FreakFreak1088 Posts: 4,361Member
    I think the final version is the best for Red Alert.
    Though I also like the version where you have no light at the front to the bridge so it does not distract the Helms and Ops Officers.
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    Yeah, definitely the last one for red alert.
  • ashleytingerashleytinger1998 Central OhioPosts: 1,233Member
    I like the 2nd one and the last one
  • AresiusAresius359 Posts: 4,171Member
    I like the second and third.
  • BolianAdmiralBolianAdmiral1114 Torrance, CaliforniaPosts: 2,560Member
    I’d go with the TNG red alert. Keep the main lighting level normal. I always thought it was so ridiculous to instantly lower the light level when the ship went to red alert... in an emergency or combat situation, you want everyone alert and focused, without any distractions. The crew is already tense enough during a red alert scenario, without having the lights almost shut off on them, while alarms blare.
  • FreakFreak1088 Posts: 4,361Member
    edited April 2020 #29
    @BolianAdmiral the lowering of the lights come from War ships during the second world war.
    When the ship went to battle station at night, the lights would go off and red lights would come on (that where Red Alert come from.)
    This would make it harder to see the ship at night and with the red light you could still see / read what you are doing. The Red light spectrum is not as easy to see from a distance compared to white light.


    As I never served on a Submarine and the film show this happening on them even though they have no windows, I guess it has become a tradition.
    Post edited by Freak on
    evil_genius_180
  • evil_genius_180evil_genius_1804256 Posts: 11,034Member
    Red light also doesn't mess up your natural night vision, like other colors of light do. That and the visible distance are why we used red lenses on our flashlights when we went into the field when I was in the Army. For the Navy night vision would be necessary to spot targets through binoculars or a periscope at night.
  • nixonsheadnixonshead57 Posts: 11Member
    Hi. Had a long weekend, so decided to take a break from some other work and do a bit more of this. This time, I've focused on building out the "Security Gate" area - though in keeping with the general mood if the design, it's actually turning into more of a coffee foyer. I've left it pretty open-plan, using some TNG style corridors that people can just walk into the bridge from, kind of like Main Engineering in TNG. I assume forcefields can appear in the gates if needed, or maybe I'll add some big holodeck-style doors later to seal them in during an alert. But most of the time, it's just going to be a convenient spot to grab a hot Earl Gray and dicuss the latest holonovel with your colleagues. I also made sure to include a door to the Head, should you over-indulge in tea.
    I'm still playing with the colouring, and need to work more on the couch, add a small coffee table and probably a planter, but you get the idea. You might also note I've labelled the doors as being on Deck 10, in keeping with Probert's original concept of having the bridge protected in the heart of the saucer. Down the aft-pointing corridor is a door to a transporter room behind the bridge, another of Probert's early ideas (which would have cut out a lot of turbolift chat scenes if it had ever made it into the show!).
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    ashleytingerBolianAdmiralRekkertWarp Propulsion Laboratoryevil_genius_180FreakLizzy777BrandenbergZoidZillacommandersozo
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