Video Tutorials?

[willog]

I just wondered, as a very new user of ZBrush, if there are any plans to provide some video tutorilas similar to those on 3DBuzz. I know that there is a great system within ZBrush with the Zscripts to show tutorials, but they are not quite the same as watching peeps doing their thing.
I am quite new to 3d and have used Cinema 3D for a couple of months but trying to adapt to the ZBrush system is proving to be more complex than I thought.
So I just wondered if the Pix team was considering using video or even some of you really good modellers would consider doing a couple of videos as it seems that the source from 3Dbuzz has dried up somewhat

[willog]

I guess no answer says it all :-(

[Doohicky]

do you mean beyond the 1st set of four?
give it time...meanwhile, have you checked out the QuickLinks section? Look in the top right hand corner of your screen...%)

[willog]

Thanks Doohiky, I appreciate the advice. It's just that I am getting quite confused as to where to start on a scene. Most tutorials seem to concentrate on modeling eg. Heads Torsos etc etc.
I am getting problems in planning a workflow for a scene. I cannot seem to get past the initial modeling stage where I need to add other objects to the scene as I know that whatever I am modeling will become permanent and I can no longer edit it. So I supose its a matter of when I have a picture to compose where do I start and what methods to I employ to compose the picture with Zbrush.
I can easily do this with Cinema 4D but I am having problems with getting into Zbrush.

[Kircho]

hiya willog , when I first started ZB I was in the same position as your self. The key to getting over the hurdle is to realise that ZBrush is not a 3d package like the rest. I would say 80 percent 2d infact.
For me ZB has a two major usages...
As a compliment to your modelling and texturing package...As 2d/3d hybrid painting package.

Yes you can treat it as a 3d package, where you are manipulating 3d object in a 3d scene, but this is not only very arduas within abrush, but limited in its uses.

The best advice I can give you about ZB is figure out what you want to do with it, I can paint many things with a paintbrush, but if I have no idea what to paint , well I don't :)!!

all the best

Kircho

[Doohicky]

Also willog,
Why not compartmentalize your flow? ie..
Model a head...save it as a ZTool in succeeding stages...yknow," Hey I'll save at this point in modeling this thing and call it Head_1"...then, save it again later as Head_2 when its changed enough ...and so on...
Then you've built up a library of tools of heads, arms, hands etc and you can then work on how to marry 'em
Cool?

[dfaris]

Willog.

I had the same problem coming from a 3d background. What I had to do was work on each model/item and finish the modeling then save it as a tool. I would then have all the models I wanted to use in a project, at this point I would bring the models one at a time into my project and place them where I want them.

[willog]

Hey thanks guys, I am getting the picture now.
I model those parts that make up my vision and then use the resulting tools to compose the final picture. Wawa if it was only thate easy eh guys?

I will however start with modeling the parts I need and go from there.

Thanks guys, this forum is just incredible for the help I need

[aurick]

You've been given excellent advice.

There are serious advantages from an illustrator's standpoint to the way that ZBrush works. First off, in the traditional 3D world there is one hard and fast rule: If it doesn't have geometry, it doesn't exist. This means that if you want to add a detail of any kind to your scene, you must model and texture it, then add it into the scene along with all of its polygons. In fact, every detail must be kept track of by the computer on some level -- even details that are hidden from the camera. This is why traditional 3D apps don't render in real-time.

So the ZBrush approach gives you real-time rendering, along with the ability to add details without having to add geometry. You basically use your 3D models to "block out" your scene. When you convert your model from polygons to pixols by snapshotting it to the canvas, you then are able to continue editing it on a pixol-by-pixol level without regard for geometry. So it's very easy to add tremendous amounts of detail to a ZBrush image. At the same time, this approach also gives you access to some really cool 2.5D tools such as the Snake Hook and Fiber brushes. These tools would be next to impossible to implement in a pure 3D environment.

By the way, have you downloaded the Quick Reference Guide yet? If not, you'll find it in the New Users or the ZBrush 1.55b section of the QuickLinks.

[willog]

Thankyou Aurick, it is now all starting to fall into place for me. I do tend to get a bit impatient if things don't go right but I am gonna make this work for me I assure you.

BTW I have downloaded the guides and printed them out, they are excellent quality as is the manual.

I will hopefully start posting soon, but there are holidays that are gonna get in the way. Again a big thanks to all you guys for the help.

Bill