Thank You Port Colborne

While playing with the new version of Blender 3D this evening I was monitoring and enjoying feedback from my post about the Robin Hood Mill in Port Colborne. Close to two hundred people and counting have so far shared it across various social media platforms. Between them and their legions of friends hitting the site all at the same time, I had to double the monthly bandwidth allowance on the server – twice in 48 hours. That’s a factor of 4. It’s a problem every site owner wants to have.

I run my own servers so I was able to manage easily. I’m happy. I’m also very happy this post was so popular. Thanks to all those that shared and enjoyed!

This of course made me wonder about a follow up. It seems I struck a vein with Robin Hood, so what, I thought, should I write about next? That’s where I’m hoping to get your help with suggestions, dear readers. What in Port Colborne would you like to read about? And who should I approach?

Your suggestion may become my next personal project. Or the next word added to the Port Colborne Cube, below. Either way, please, let me know.

The Port Colborne Cube

It was while noodling that I doodled with 3D, making a short list of some places of interest. That list swiftly became this design, the Port Colborne Cube. I can add or change everything, and probably will as I continue to play. The words I chose show only a fraction of the things this fine city has to offer.

Words, lighting, camera angles, colours. I may animate it. Everything is up for grabs. I did nothing for the last two hours but play with lighting setups. Being a photographer and having unlimited lighting options? Priceless. I’m like a kid in a candy store. This may take over my weekend. I kid you not. Really.

By the way, if you might like your own Cube, get in touch. This design can easily be customized to your brand, colour scheme, placement, backdrop. On a wall it would be a great way to present a wine list, menu, or a welcome board on an easel at a wedding. Even a billboard. Just a couple of thoughts. I am the Design Guy, after all. It’s what I do. Spoiler alert, there will be a fee. Hey, I have bills to pay too. 🙂

Geek Stuff

OK enough of that, let’s quickly get some tech stuff out of the way. Skip this section if you have no tech inclinations. The LTS 2.83.1 version of Blender 3D is available for download. This amazing software can now do even more, even faster, and for even less money. Well, that’s not strictly true: It’s always been free.

The interface and speed improvements alone make it worth the cost of the upgrade (free). I created all these images in one evening and found myself exploring some of the more arcane features simply because the time overhead between click and finished render has all but disappeared. I found myself throwing stuff around just for fun to see if I could crash it. Which I did. Bad idea. Bad Carl.

New features galore for me to explore (happiness rhymes). The Eevee rendering engine is such a delight. Creating and spinning models around in real time, seeing them draw instantly is, frankly, hypnotic. It gives the creative mind a chance to quickly try ideas that previously took hours of fine tuning. Click. Done. Happy dance! I’m going to continue refining this. These are effectively roughs and this Cube and I are both far from finished.

Suggestions Please

OK, geek stuff done, I once more wish to thank everyone for the response to the Robin Hood article.

As I say I hope to write similar items of just as much interest. Could be fun for us all. Please reply to this post, comment on social media, or email me through the contact form on the site. I’m open to ideas. All printable suggestions for topics will be considered and all will be greatly appreciated.

And remember, if you want a custom cube…