2026 Collab: Week 04 “Like a mirage - so near and yet so far”

FedPete · January 17, 2026, 9:11am

This is the Blender Collaboration 2026, week 4 challenge. Don’t be afraid to join, a lot of us are beginners. This is all to practice, have fun, learn, and get together.

This week’s subject is “Like a mirage - so near and yet so far”.

“Like a mirage - so near and yet so far” - Create a natural wonder that enchants the horizon.
Subject selected by the previous Week 02, 2026 “ An unexpected turn " winner Crisus

The rules are simple. 1 subject, 1 entry, 1 week.
You create whatever object or scene or whatever you can think of that has something to do with the subject. It can be as simple or complicated as you want, all entries are welcome!
Post your picture here in this thread. At the end of the week, we start to vote. And if you are the winner, you may choose the next subject and win a unique badge.

Deadline: 2026-01-24T22:55:00Z

Last week’s collab: Week 03 “A triptych about a productive disaster”
Next week: 05 - Wine yards
See all previous challenges in Hall of Fame 2026
Other halls of fame 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020

If you want to stay informed of the @ BlenderCollab?
Subscribe or unsubscribe to this “BlenderCollab” group.

RayMobula · January 18, 2026, 12:20am

Good one. Can we use Grease Pencil? I need a reason to start Grantt’s course

Crisus · January 18, 2026, 6:36am

Why not - everything is allowed…

FedPete · January 18, 2026, 9:15am

It’s not about being the best at the collab challenge, but about learning and stepping outside your comfort zone.

So combine 2D and 3D, reuse elements, and apply your newly acquired knowledge.

RayMobula · January 18, 2026, 6:06pm

haha - I do these for fun, and learn while failing forward

Crisus · January 23, 2026, 5:33pm

I couldn't think of anything better, but at least I practiced geometry nodes.

RayMobula · January 23, 2026, 10:33pm

haha. I have an idea, but time …

Srl1 · January 23, 2026, 10:48pm

After not using Blender for almost two months, I began to feel uncomfortable, as if I was forgetting how it works. So jumped into this week’s challenge and opened the app to refresh my memory of those hotkeys. Made a somewhat modern take of the mirage. Drifted a little bit around the idea, but still tried to respect it as much as possible. Hope it fits.

Edit: made the guidance a bit clearer and separated the ship more from the background. I’m not a big fan of using an image for the background sky, but it saved a lot of time.

RayMobula · January 24, 2026, 9:37am

WIP

Lighting has such an impact. This time I tried the blender compositor vs Davinci Resolve.

Update and final

FedPete · January 25, 2026, 9:27am

We @BlenderCollab have a few days to vote. You can vote fast but also think slowly about design, colors, technique, difficulty, subject, realism, etc. Choose consciously and not on your entry.
The new subject week 05 “Wine Yards” has already started. The winner of this week’s “Like a mirage - so near and yet so far” challenge may select a subject for next week 06 and win a badge.

Like a mirage - so near and yet so far

0 voters