ZBrushCentral

Working with 3D scans

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

I’m trying to figure out if Zbrush is the right tool for us. We make miniature figurines - most start off traditionally sculpted in putty. We then scan them at 15 micron resolution to print masters for mold making.

My question is: how difficult would it be in Zbrush (for a knowledgeable/talented user) to take the mesh from the scan and make alternate poses/looks? I’m talking about slightly changing the position of the legs/arms or changing the face or swapping out weapons.

Is this a hugely time consuming/fiddly process or something that a good Zbrush sculptor could do easily?

Grazie,
Vict

#2

Zbrush would be perfect for this.

Learning Zbrush is easy, learning to sculpt is hard.
If you can already sculpt, it’s really just adding another tool and a slightly different medium.

#3

I was thinking more along the lines of hiring an accomplished sculptor to take the scanned files and do the work for us (with the permission of the original putty sculptor of course as I feel it’s important to make sure they understand their work will be modified and such)

Is there a marketplace here to look for freelance help for something like this?

What do you think the cost of a modification would look like roughly?

Grazie!
Vict

#4

I’m not aware of a marketplace here, but I know you can find people on Art Station and Polycount that can probably do what you’re needing.

Cost…that can range greatly.
Depends on extent of work, amount of cleanup from the scan, number of poses, cost per hour the artist is looking for, etc.

Could be $30 could be $3000. All depends on what you actually need.

#5

As Beta_Channel mentions, I doubt there’s ANY program better than ZBrush for the task mentioned.

I’ve taken my 3D scans, brought them into ZBrush where the noisy, dirty mesh gets cleaned up. If there are excessive holes in the 3D mesh, the good parts can be re-projected to another surface or can merely serve as landmarking reference.

Another acquisition method is to sculpt using photo reference. The two figures below were sculpted from 3-4 reference photos each and 3D printed on one of my SLA printers at 30 microns X-Y at 25 micron (Z) slices.

During sculpting, there’s a procedural process to retopologize and control subdivision levels. This will ensure relative ease in posing the models while maintaining detail. These figures were initially sculpted in a rigid T-pose.

FigureSculpts.jpg

ZBrush’s Subtools feature can be used to keep an array of wardrobes (and arsenal) on the figure and simply flick them on as wanted. Pose the custom-suited figure and export that specific final result to an STL mesh file that most current 3D printers ingest.

Carter

#6

Thanks that sounds promising