WHEN AND IF / ALDEN 669 — EXTERIOR STUDY 02

This scene develops the original interpretive reconstruction into an exterior
material and lighting study. The first model and viewer remain available.

DELIVERABLES
morning.png — full vessel on a gentle sea, rendered in Cycles.
deck.png — closer view of deck materials and fittings, from the same scene.
when-and-if-realism.blend — editable Blender 4.1 scene, both cameras included.
index.html — local gallery with the original studio image for comparison.
../model/realism.py — reproducible source; loads ../model/when-and-if.blend.

WHAT CHANGED
- Replacement sail surfaces with artist-set camber and twist.
- Double panel seams, bolt ropes, corner reinforcement and reefing ties.
- Procedural wood grain, per-plank variation, varnish and fine surface relief.
- Bronze color and roughness variation; fine canvas and painted surfaces.
- Staggered deck butt seams, timber bungs, rope coils and illustrative hardware.
- A gently rippled sea, atmospheric morning light and two perspective cameras.

The images are rendered from 3D geometry. No generated-image paintover or
external photographic textures are used. Procedural materials are stored
inside the Blender scene, so no texture downloads are needed to render it.

LIMITS OF THE STUDY
The base hull and arrangement retain the first reconstruction's provisional
geometry. These images do not establish historical accuracy, hydrostatic
performance, stability or construction suitability. The sail shapes are
artistic surface modeling, not a cloth or aerodynamic simulation.

Wood colors, sail fabric, hardware finishes, weathering and the sea
setting are artistic interpretations. The setting does not depict a
verified location or date. Glazing uses reflective dark surfaces over the
current cabin block-out; fully transparent windows require more interior
and joinery work. Some small fittings remain simplified.

The interactive GLB is the original study. Its materials are lighter for
browser display. The new Cycles materials are not baked into that GLB.

ARCHIVAL SOURCE
User-supplied screenshots of the 1937 Alden No. 669 plans.
John G. Alden Collection, Hart Nautical Collections, MIT Museum.
https://www.aldendesigns.com/99years/detail.php?ID=1084

RENDERING
Open when-and-if-realism.blend in Blender. Choose either
REALISM CAMERA / morning under sail or REALISM CAMERA / deck craftsmanship.
The scene uses Cycles, metre-scale coordinates and the AgX view transform.
The source script can rebuild the study with the original model alongside:
  blender --factory-startup --background --python ../model/realism.py
Add -- --detail for the deck render, or -- --preview for a faster draft.