IZation Labs

Copperpot Munitions, supplying high quality cartridges since who knows when.

The render to the left is the original output of the scene that I only recently finished. Up late watching viral videos and playing video games one night with some friends I don’t get to spend enough time with, one of them showed interest in seeing what Blender is capable of, as he hasn’t been actively following the newest (earth shattering) updates. So, being on a video game kick, I modeled him some nine millimeter cartridges at about three that morning.

Never one to leave a sleeping model lie, I came back to the file about a month later while cleaning up my main Blender project directory and felt like the scene could be so much more, could be more full bodied and realistic. This lead me to create the Copperpot Munitions LLC  box of 9mm cartridges. Then I duplicated a single 9mm round 100 times or so and used the physics engine to drop them into the box and scatter them about the scene.

I’m very happy with the final product, my only regret is that the cartridges could look just a bit grungier in my opinion. To see the texture used for the box art, head over to my portfolio.

On a side note, here’s a shameless plug, just in case anyone isn’t already using the software package “Dropbox”. It completely replaced my flash drive for school and projects, and it keeps my data backed up and updated to the newest revisions on all my computers.

Dropbox is a program that creates a normal folder on your computer, conveniently called a “Dropbox”, that automatically and in real time backs up to a safe place on the internet, so no matter what happens to your computer, your files are always safe and accessible online. Plus, if you have multiple computers, or a work and a home computer, you can install Dropbox on both, and it automatically syncs the files between computers! Save that document you were working on at work to your Dropbox, and there it is in the same place when you get home!

If you haven’t yet, check it out! You get two free gigabytes of free storage, and it can be expanded for up to ten or twelve gigs for free by doing things like uploading your first files, installing it on more than one computer, etc. Click the link below if you want to know more.

http://db.tt/wfMuToi

-Lace

As a result of procrastinating all day (for those of you still in school, don’t try procrastination at home, I’m a trained professional) instead of getting to work on assignments, I decided to start work on a nice little robot character I found in one of my sketchbooks from a year or two ago. It’s too late to continue on him now, but here is an image of the work in progress with some random rust textures affixed. He has no legs, feet, or manipulators on his arms, and there’s still plenty to do, but he is shaping up to be a good looking little rust bucket.

Note, the trapezoid on his chest will eventually have button-like rivets along the outer edge, much like aviator jackets of old. He is to be a steampunk robot (one of the best kinds there is).

-Lace

It’s been ages since my last update, and I apologize for that. Things have been rather busy at school, and it’s not about to slow down as exams move closer and closer.

However, I do have for your viewing pleasure a test/demo reel of Blender works that I’ve been doing for my upcoming animated short ‘r0B’, a story about a little robot who has to fix a broken down assembly line before the clock runs out. These shots were mainly all tests of some kind, the last one is my favorite, which shows the overall environment to date, as well as some test camera animations with random noise added to the movement for realism. This is an assignment for my SAG 245 class at Eastern Michigan University, which is due Tuesday, November 30th. I’ve got my work cut out for me.

-Lace

ReElect The Dead, a personal project of my cousin and myself with no direct connections to IZation Labs, is an upcoming political satirical zombie film from Brian Lynch and Lace Williamson. The film stars President Obama and George Bush as a one two punch against a small town spiraling out of control. Filming for the indie project took place towards the end of Summer 2009, and editing is now being done. The final release will be sometime at the beginning of this Summer.

Here’s the link for anyone interested. I’m always updating it with new screenshots or sneak peaks. It just sums up to a good laugh.

-Lace

If you like what you see, be sure to click Subscribe at the top of the page for email alerts on site updates!

Wed, Dec 16th, 4:03 PM

It’s been almost a month and a half now, and there isn’t much left in the way of an incision mark, just a patch of new pink skin and a bump where the needle broke the skin. I’m not having any problems with the implant. There’s no migration at all, and my body seems to have nestled it in place quite well. What I mean is that it used to kind of float in place, whereas now there must be an impression in the flesh beneath it that holds it steady. It is pain free, though I’m still careful with it. On the few occasions when I’ve strained my hands, be it lifting or catching my balance, things of that nature, it may have been little sore afterwards, but to such a small extent that I may just be imagining it.
Click here to read the rest of the article

Once again, I know, I’m a week behind, so here’s another double post, and if all goes well, some photos too, which you can click for a full size view.  If you are horribly squeamish and can’t stand the sight of a tiny bit of dried blood, ignore the pictures. If you’ve missed the other posts describing what’s going on, just click here, and don’t forget to subscribe to the posts using the link at the top of the page!

Nov 5th, 2009
10:57 AM

I find it very fitting that the implant was done the day after my birthday, and the day before the 5th of November. (Guy Fawkes night.) My birthday represented the start of my third decade of life, and Guy Fawkes night represents not just one man trying to make a difference in the world via the movie V for Vendetta, but standing up and wanting to make a difference in general. Plus, I love that movie.

Another thing this project has made me notice is that I’m a very impatient person. Not impulsive, I didn’t jump right into this project without thinking. I did tons of research before even considering the possibility. In fact, I first did research on RFID implants nearly 2 years ago. It wasn’t until I revisited the subject that I decided I should start asking questions of the people involved and collect as much data as possible so I could consider the pros and cons. Obviously the pros outweighed the cons.

Click here to read the rest of the article

Sorry everyone, I neglected my posting duties last week, so here’s a double post to make up for it. Here’s the next part of my journal, as well as the implant video. If you don’t feel like doing all of the reading, skip to the bottom of the full post to watch the video.

Nov 2nd, 2009
11:11 PM

I’m sitting here in my dorm room, eating one of my favorite snacks, a chocolate bar with crunchy peanut butter, my favorite movie running on the screen above my laptop, and listening to the mellow sounds of my roommate talking to his girlfriend on the phone. It’s all just background stuff compared to what’s going on in here, inside my head.

Two RFID glass tags have been ordered. One is the smaller 12 x 2mm tag, which can be swapped out and injected using a kit. The other is a 13 x 3mm tag, which cannot be injected with the kit, but has an extended read range by comparison. After exchanging information with Amal Graafstra, I’ve decided that when the range of the tag is already dropped by the flesh in the hand, every little bit of distance helps.

Read more »