This is a dump for some WIP and process images and movies for my summer 2014 ZbrushWorkshops course. I used Zbrush for design, polypainting, and some posing, Maya for retopo, UV, and some posing, and Photoshop for some concept work and texture touch ups .
Here is what the final piece looked like in realtime, in Maya, viewport 2.0:
Here is a block-in of the initial proportions in Zbrush:
Here is what the costume in zbrush looked like before retopo:
Here is what the retopoed costume looked like in Maya:
Here are a couple of illustration videos I did in the middle retopo and UV layout just to break up the monotony of those tasks:
Here are some thumbnails I did to help generate some ideas about the final pose:
Here is a quick tutorial on the Dynamesh > Zremesher workflow I used:
Here is a test of the retopoed mesh in Maya in realtime:
Here is how I created the etherial flame on the sword: in Maya
Here are some assorted images showing some WIP progress as well:
Textures as polypaint, and unwrapped/applied to UV shells.
Retopoed meshes and UVs for final model.
I had fun making this project and using it as a teaching tool. Thanks for checking this stuff out.