The Inspiration for My Geolocation Project

For project 1 in my Intro to 3D Modelling course, we have to model something, be it a real structure or a fictional object, in Google Sketchup (a tool that I thankfully have a lot of experience with), and export it as a file that can be used with Google Earth, so that I can geolocate it. After much deliberation, consideration, and careful thought about the infinite creative possibilities inherent in the premise, I decided the subject of my project would be:

...please don't leave, I can explain myself.

You see, dear reader, the start of my 3D modelling journey began with this obscure, little-known site called TARDISBuilders. It's a forum consisting of a small, dedicated community of prop-makers analysing and replicating the TARDIS interior and exterior props used in Doctor Who, as well as the other props (sci-fi guns, spaceship sets, sonic screwdrivers, and so on). I stumbled across this site when I was in the 9th grade and, sure enough, I became a part of the community myself. Soon after, I came across the "virtual builds" section, where people were replicating said sets and props in various 3D packages. The most commonly used one was, you guessed it, SketchUp, so I downloaded it myself and got to work quickly, with absolutely no idea what I was doing. The result of my endeavours?

Looks decent enough, but it was riddled with problems. I had no idea what 'components' were, nor how to get the hang of the measurement tools in SketchUp, so the dimensions of each panel were all over the place, the whole thing was one connected mesh (which is very inconvenient if you want to edit one specific thing), and the detailing was rudimentary at best. Still, it wasn't that bad for a first attempt, and my journey with 3D modelling had begun. All with a police box from 1960s Britain.

I got better and better with each model I made, eventually going back to the TARDIS and doing it again (properly, this time). I made a full replica of the Enterprise bridge from Star Trek: TOS, and a rendered version of the classic series TARDIS console rooms (which remains, to this day, the model I am most proud of).

I mean, look at this. Wouldn't you be proud?

Having said that, I always felt like I was missing out on a lot of tips and tricks in SketchUp (if the other virtual models on TARDISBuilders and the models on 3D Warehouse were any indication), and like I was being limited by the capabilities of the software. I decided to try out Maya, but I didn't get very far, which is why I took Intro to 3D Modelling as my elective: maybe I could see what modelling tools I'd missed out on and what tools like 3DS Max could offer.

"Okay", you might be thinking, "but what does all of this have to do with why you picked a blue box thing for your first project?"

I'm getting to it! Jeez...

Initially, my plan for the project was to plonk a giant scale model of the Enterprise in the sky over Marine Drive, purely because of the baffling visual of such a thing. But then I downloaded the plans and started actually *modelling* the thing, and, well... I didn't get very far.

The Enterprise (yes, even the more simplistic TOS-era design) is a ship with a lot of curves and subtle detail, something that I haven't figured out how to do very well in SketchUp. On top of that, it needs texturing to look good, and I couldn't find any decent textures that didn't need UV maps to apply (again, something which you can't do in SketchUp). So, obviously, the project was a no-go.

I was feeling completely lost for a while afterwards, until I remembered another tiny detail. You see, the TARDISBuilders community is not your average group of insanely-dedicated obsessive nerds. In addition to documenting the TARDIS props on the show, they also began documenting the real-life police boxes across London, aka the "Mackenzie-Trench" model. This expanded outwards, and there is now a workable database of police box reference images for Edinburgh boxes, aka the "Royal Mile" model (the blue box at the top, if you haven't made the connection yet).

Hell, they even made plans for the thing! (Full credit to user starcross on the forum.)

So, I thought to myself, "Hmm. Making an Edinburgh police box would be incredibly easy with all the resources I have available, and it'd be a fun tribute. Both to what got me started with 3D modelling, and to the city I'm going to be starting afresh in, and staying in for the next four years". As for the location, I thought I could make it giant and plonk it on top of Arthur's Seat (purely because I can), or I could put it on Merchiston Avenue (both because there's actually a police box there, and because the flat there was where my mother and I spent two weeks quarantining after we arrived in the UK; in a real sense, it was my first home in Edinburgh). I could even paste an image of the TARDIS interior inside the box, and keep the door slightly ajar to recreate the famous "bigger on the inside" effect.

Of course, I still haven't got around to actually modelling the thing yet, but it's nice to have a vague idea of what I'm doing for once.

That's all for now. Ciao!