Dear ZB Newsgroup:
I just got back from a one-week intensive ZBrush Class taught at the Gnomon School of Visual Effects in Los Angeles, CA. I thought I would take a few minutes to relay my impressions to the newsgroup regarding my experience.
My motivation for taking the class was primarily to gain a better understanding of the interface and how ZBrush can help me produce the highly decorative products I design. I am a product designer who works mostly in the decorative art objects and furniture categories. ZBrush allows me to produce the more organic and decorative ornaments and effects that I create. My point is that I now have a tool in ZBrush that allows me to create real-world objects. My other primary modeler is Rhino. The other students were from the gaming and entertainment industries. From what we were told, this was the first time ZBrush was taught anywere.
The Gnomon School is: Gnomon specializes in high-end computer graphics training for the entertainment industries. We offer education solutions for individuals who want a career, working professionals, and companies looking to make their staff more competitive. Our training choices include extension courses, a certificate program, the Maya Fast Track, online tutorials and training DVDs. (The description is from their Website: www.gnomon3d.com)
The class ran from Monday through Friday afternoon from 9:00AM to 4:00 PM. The computer labs were filled with some nice equipment for the 8 total students taking the course. The labs were open later as well for students to use at their leisure.
The instructor was Meats Meier (See “Wirehead” Thread on this forum.) who is an “artist-in-residence” at Gnomon. Meats was very approachable and of course knew the program well. He handed out an outline for the week’s instruction and off we went.
The outline basically went through each of the tool palettes in ZB and explained most of the sliders, buttons, and selections available for each tool. A description was given (at least) for each tool and examples of their different effects were demonstrated for most of them. After each teaching section the students were set free to explore that specific section of the teaching.
I have owned ZBrush since version 1.23B and still learned a lot about the interface and its application. Questions were always welcomed by Meats during the instruction and breaks were given at times when they were needed. For those who never have used the software, the class would be a valuable introduction to using the software professionally.
For myself, I really wanted to see someone who knew the program well use it in order to make it a more productive tool. That goal was accomplished. I also gained confidence in the fact that a lot of the tutorials and information from the “Help” section of the program and this website are very good tools to learn the software. Here is my advice…If you really want to get good at ZBrush…systematically set aside time to go through the Practical Guide and any other tutorials you can find. To often, I rush through the guides and do not get a full understanding of the concept behind the tool being described as well as the specific steps to achieve the effects. ZBrush is such a creative piece of software that discovering what it can do for you can take many months to unwrap.
The class cost around $1600 (US). I found a cheap hotel nearby and rental car to get around for about $400 for the week - bringing the total to around $2000 for the week of instruction with lodging. It may seem like a lot for a 3d hobbyist, but from a professional standpoint, the skills gained will certainly pay for themselves in the short term.
In summary, the class was worth taking a week off work, gaining some new skills, and meeting some talented people. I would recommend it.
Best Regards,
Steevo
The image provided is a piece of decorative hardware designed and rendered in ZB during the class.
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