ZBrushCentral

Character morphing

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

Hi all,

I have a project that requires some Zbrush knowledge that I do not yet have. Research led me to rather unsatisfying results so I hope that you can help me.

I would like to sculpt two busts or one bust and one abstract object which I can later morph one into the other in a seamless transition. Then I would like to render it out as an interactive file, so that a user can control the morphing process e.g. with a slider (which is probably not a Zbrush thing).

What I already managed to do is to sculpt a bust. But here my technical skills have come to an end. I know this requires much but maybe any of you can help me with the following questions:

(1) is there any possibility in Zbrush to create a seamless transition from one object to another (e.g. one person transforms to another or a head transforms to an abstract shape)?

(2) if so, what do I have to pay attention to in terms of polycount, mesh density etc?

(3) if so, is there any possibility to render out an interactive file (like quicktime VR in the old days, that allowed to rotate an object by dragging the mouse)?

I am happy about any help.

Thank you in advance,
avh

#2

Hello @avh
There are tools that can be useful towards your goal, though they will still require expertise with many areas of the program to pull off more advanced concepts like this.

Morphing one bust into another is going to be pretty straightforward. Morphing a head into a completely different object like a cube will be more challenging. Most of the morph-adjacent functions in ZBrush will want the objects to have the same topology.

  • You should investigate Morph Targets, and their associated features.

  • In addition, the 3d Layers feature is often used to create morphs.

Both of these features have a slider that will allow you to morph between one state and another.

I don’t believe ZBrush does this natively. There are third party options to create interactive presentations.

#3

Thank you so much, Spyndel. I will try this out.

Best
avh