After a considerable time away, I’ve finally had the opportunity to delve into a personal project focused on environmental modeling and the creation of procedural materials within Blender. This scene is entirely crafted in Blender 3.2, relying solely on Blender’s native tools without any plugins or third-party assets. The materials are all procedural, with the exception of two 2K resolution textures from textures.com used for subtle surface detailing.
Close-up render of the casbah rock environment showcasing intricate procedural texturing
The canyon rocks, the defining feature of this “casbah rock” inspired environment, are completely procedural, utilizing microdisplacements for detailed surfaces. The node setup developed for these rocks is designed to be highly adaptable. By simply adjusting a range of parameters, I could generate diverse material variations suitable for everything from small stones and boulders to imposing cliffs and expansive canyon walls. This versatility was key to creating a cohesive yet varied landscape.
Demonstration of the procedural canyon rock material showcasing its adaptability and detail
To complement the natural rock formations, all of the buildings within the scene are low-poly models, purpose-built from a custom kit designed specifically for this project. This approach allowed for efficient creation of the architectural elements without sacrificing visual complexity when viewed within the larger environment.
Breakdown of the low poly building kit used to construct the casbah structures
The final scene comprises approximately 4.5 million triangles (2.5 million vertices). Below is a viewport wireframe view of the model, providing a glimpse into the scene’s geometry and construction.
Wireframe view from the Blender viewport showing the scene's topology and density
Rendering was performed using Cycles. Final compositing was achieved in Krita, where I integrated distance fog and refined the image with standard adjustments to saturation and contrast. Crucially, no paint-overs or photobashing techniques were employed in the creation of this image, ensuring it remains a purely 3D rendered artwork.
Final render of the casbah rock scene highlighting the overall composition and atmosphere
Another perspective of the rendered casbah scene showcasing different lighting and angles
As always, comments and critiques are highly appreciated.
P.S. Given the abundance of excellent tutorials already available on these topics, I haven’t gone into extensive detail regarding the workflow. However, if you are interested in specific aspects or details of the process, please feel free to ask. I’m happy to share my limited experience and knowledge.
