The Sci Fi Imagery of Russ Colwell (Helix3d)

I'm Helix3d. I've uploaded my artwork into numerous internet galleries. I've closed most of these galleries (except Innertraveler and SciFiMeshes). I've worked in computer graphics for over 10 years now. My primary applications are Bryce, Cinema 4D and Photoshop. All the images displayed here are my original copyrighted work. You may download them for non commercial uses. Due to a new business venture I no longer have time to produce such images as much as I'd like, so I wanted to provide my own gallery of sorts.
Please note that the full size of these images
TO VIEW THESE IMAGES FULL SIZE YOU MUST CLICK ON THEM. I highly recommend viewing them full size as they are highly detailed.
At the bottom of the page be sure to click on the "older posts" link. There's alot more stuff on the next page.

Kinetic Kill Satelitte.

Modeled In Cinema 4D. Multiple layers of varying opacity used to create planet features.

JIMO

Jupiter Icy Moons Orbitor. Modeled in C4D. This was an actual proposed NASA project. It was to be the first practical application of the Promethius Project. A nuclear reactor would create heat which would be converted to electricity which would power the ion engines.

Funding was cut.

Hydra Deep Space Probe

I used parts cannibalized from my JIMO model to create this one.

Pratt & Whitney RL60 Upper Stage Rocket Engine .

Three detailed views of a model created in Cinema 4D

This model is available for purchase at Turbosquid.com.

Interstellar Exploration Vehicle

This is the most complex model I've ever constructed. It has over 100,000 individually crafted digital objects.

Nebulae II

Docking Port Detail (Work In Progress Image)

Docking Port

In the shadow of the artificial gravity toruses the four lander / ascent vehicles are docked. The smaller pods docked fore of the landers are maintenance pods which detach and manuver about the ship performing routine maintenance and repairs.

Fiery Ascent

Nebulae

AMG2 Publishing bought the rights to use this image on a book cover for one of Jean Marc Rivets sci fi novels, but to this day I still cannot find the book. I don't believe they ever used it.

Oh well, it's their money.

This is a Beam Core vessel with 4 auxilliary ion drives.

Modeled in Bryce with post in PS CS and Glitteratto.

Lander 5 Ascent

This is the lander / ascent vehicle used in both the ARAE Explorer and my other Beam Core ship from the Nebulae graphic. Modeled in Bryce. The rocket blast effects were created by applying volumetric textures to inverted cone primitives and toruses. The ultra high resolution used on the terrains made this the image with the highest polygon count I'd ever rendered. 8 million I think. 36 hour render.

Mu ARAE

Mu Arae is a potentially inhabitable planetary system about 50 light years away. It is a likely candidate for the NASA planet finder progam. The orbit of an Earth-like planet (with liquid water) around Mu Arae may be centered around 1.3 AU -- between the orbital distances of Earth and Mars in the Solar System -- with an orbital period around 1.31 years (478 days). The interstellar space craft shown in the 2 images below was modeled in Bryce 5.0 and was intended to emphasize the gargantuan fuel needs of an interstellar craft with a propulsion system even as efficient as an anti-matter system. This craft was modeled after the Beam Core Matter / Anti-matter Annihiliation concept. A system that, if it existed, would produce vast amounts of deadly radiation, and therefore would not be too practical for a prolonged manned flight.

ARAE. Beam Core Interstellar Explorer.

I'm big on dual, counter rotating artificial gravity toruses. There are 4 landing / ascent vehicles docked aft of the tori. These are the same landers shown in my "Lander 5 Ascent" image.
I wasn't overly fond of this model. These are the only 2 renders of this ship.

ARAE Explorer

AINPP Approaching

Anti-Matter Initiated Nuclear Pulse Propulsion .

Compressed deuterium & helium-3 pellets are fired into the combustion chamber where they are bombarded by electron beams, thus initiating a thermonuclear detonation. This occurs at a rate of 250 detonations per second. This propulsion system is based on the Project Daedalus concept.

36,000 kilometers per second (or about 80 million MPH)

Modeled in Bryce 5.0 . Postwork in Photoshop CS. & Flaming Pear's Glitterato

AINPP Craft

AINPP With Shock Dampening Assembly