also important to recognize that some 3d users
on the mac side are migrating/branching off of a
background in graphic design/motion graphics
As a fairly hardcore artist who draws way to many hours a day, I have some advice that might help WHEN you get ZBrush. If you have a Wacom tablet with the grip pen or a similar set up, you don’t have to press the pen down on the tablet, which is what is causing the stress to your arthritis. Use the button on the grip pen to mark and simply wave the pen an inch or so above the tablet instead of drawing strokes. Using the button will make you lose the pressure sensitivity, but this is no big deal in ZBrush, just lower the Zadd strength to make the strokes look smoother. This is great for digital painting and drawing as well, very free flowing and stress free on the joints. You typing here will cause 20 times more problems than drawing or ZBrushing this way with a tablet.
For others, this is a great way to prevent joint problems, and it’s fun. You just have to learn to adjust your menu sliders to accommodate for the loss of pressure sensitivity, which doesn’t affect the look of the art on well over half of the strokes. Mixing them up will give you more artistic endurance…
Huh?
What are you guys talking about with the whole Mac vs. PC users creating monsters vs. fine art thing? That sounds so silly! It hasn’t been THAT long since Mac users had ZBrush running natively, and I recall there being just as many monsters, ghouls, orks and zombies as ever. It’s not a question of Mac vs. PC when it comes to the types of models that appear here. There are lots of Mac users (myself included) here using ZBrush 3.1 via Bootcamp or Parallels.
Firing up ZBrush straight out of your dock, instead of booting into the dreaded Windows, doesn’t make you any different of an artist. A large portion of the ZBrush users here and on other forums just so happen to like creating creature models. It’s been that way since the beginning and I don’t see that changing any time in the future, no matter what operating system or computer you prefer.
Let’s see…If PC users are Monster makers and Mac users are supposedly the “Finer” artists, how can we pigeon hole Linux users?
That’s me. Mac user with a background in design/motion graphics. Starting using Maya recently, and now patiently waiting for ZBrush. I wanted to add 3D to my arsenal, as video is getting such a tight integration with web technology these days.
I’m using a Cintiq tablet and running Zbrush in parallels. Frankly it’s kind of a messy integration. I’d love to be able to just run everything in os x.
sigh…
I agree… let’s not get into that kind of debate. Artsy fartsy types of discussions are the worst kind.
I usually get severe muscle pain in my hand in the interosseous muscles between my index and middle knuckles. No Arthritis or Carpel Tunnel, but still hurts like a mother… So that doesn’t work for me as I’m still using my index finger grip to constantly sculpt something.
Using the Wacom more than the mouse for normal tasks really helps, though. I think the proper way is to get the large Wacom (so you can move your whole arm and not just your wrist and fingers - just like normal drawing). Keep your hand relaxed as you move the pen. I hardly never use the button on the pen as it’s just like clicking the mouse button. And the “control” button/pen tap launches my menus anyway. If I need to get the maximum pressure out of my tablet, I use the weight of my arm instead of pressing down only with my wrist and fingers. This seems to alleviate most of my pain.
When you wave the pen above the tablet surface about 3/4 of an inch, the tablet detects the pen and the cursor moves on screen. This is to show you where the cursor will be when you touch the pen to the tablet. Without touching it to the tablet, you can press the button on the Wacom grip pen (if you have the button assigned to “click” of course) to click as a mouse would.
If you press and hold the button during each individual stroke, it’s a really effortless way to draw, paint, or sculpt. My forearm is still resting on the tablet, and my wrist still glides across the surface. Without having to press down on the tablet, it’s easier on the joints because the hand stays completely relaxed (more noticeable during long sessions). Of course, you lose the pressure sensitivity, but it’s still ideal for a lot of strokes if you know how to set your menus. When you need the pressure sensitivity, just touch it to the tablet.
Ironically, I turn the pen upside down, holding the pen gently with my first, middle, and ring fingers, and press the button with my thumb. The button is placed far back enough to where this is more natural for me. Sounds silly, but it’s comfortable, and might help you in your situation.
I couldn’t agree more. When I was in college our art facility was divided by the “fine artists” and the “commercial artists.” The arguments people would get into were just ridiculous and really led nowhere since at that point, everyone fell in-between in some capacity. I suspect that is very much the case no matter where you’re at.
Rigor Mortis more like!
Oh, I’m a mac user and I love the monsters and creatures that get created here. I’m a big fan of the fantastique. It’s pretty much what I want to create. I also come from a design/typo/motion graphic background. So how does that work? What I love about 3D art is it’s ability to create what doesn’t already exist.
Sadly, I also get pain in that meat part of my thumb due to too much playing video games. That’s part of the reason for the pain in my hand as well. I doubt it will help, but I could give it a try.
As I’ve commented before, I think a lot of 2d natural media artists buy macs over pcs when they take the digital jump due to macs being “known” as the artists computer (which isn’t even the case at all). I’m one of them. Before my mac/ps/painter combo, I was an airbrush artist and painter. Then I got zbrush because it seemed so artistically inclined, like sculpting rather than 3d science.
So I do think there will be a lot of fine artists (as far as subject matter, not talent) that surface from the mac release because of this marketing of macs and zbrush, both advertised as the best traditional artist’s digital tool. I do think there will be a lot of monster sci fi artists as well.
However, I don’t think it matters at all. It’s just great that this tool can be used in so many diverse creative ways, across so many genres of art. It will definitely spread into digital fine art on all platforms, eventually, as it certainly has started to already. There’s a lot of “fine art” in the top row gallery…
Dear Pixoz Mac’s fanatics,
I’m just thinking, it will be the best joke ever made by a company, it will be nothing… no Zbrush 3 or 4 or 5, just a buggy version for Mac, and you will pay for this ? You Bet ?
If something happen just wake me up !
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Boblogzzzzz :mad: 
Nothing new, as allways… frankly i can´t be less interested in if we, MAC users, will do monsters or Mona Lisas… if we can do SOMETHING in our OS of choice. :evil:
Still waiting.
Cheers!
FelixCat
whAT IS THIS RIDICULOUS TOPIC OF monsters vs pc vs mac vs $#%^&@#. I will only be making monsters cause … aaaaaaa…thats what i get paid for.
and as far as i’m concerned it’s the pc whom is the monster. unless you want to die hungry, fine art is not for you, it is not cost effective in the industry i work in.
its about the product, its a shame but its fact.
faster better cheaper.
and anyway this mac vs pc, its not the tool but the artist’s preference. 
When I get my ZBrush I’m going to just pump out doilies, and more doilies.
ZBrushed doilies, or “zdoilies”, as they’ll come to be known, are a market that hasn’t been tapped yet. Go ahead and make your stupid, ugly monsters, and your busty, hot chicks. Me, I’ll be covering these forums with doilies.
Oh right, gotchya. I would imagine it could be difficult as it takes away the tactile feel you get when touching the surface. I can relate, as I have been an airbrush instructor at the college level for about 15 years, similar that you are making marks with out touching the surface. How ever this makes me remember something I tell my students, if you plan on working with your airbrush for more than 15 to 20 minutes, don’t white knuckle the thing to death. I feel as long as you hold the stylus in a comfortable manner and not squeezing it, then you should have no problems at all. This is coming form a guy who just had carpel tunnel surgery on both hands last summer, which by the way was the best thing I ever had done! LOL! The surgery was no big deal and you have no idea how bad you have had it until it is gone.
dammit!!! that was my idea. looks like i’d better boot into windows and get started! :lol:
Whooops! I let the cat out of the bag, now I’m screwed. You see, these are just the kinds of information leaks that would never be tolerated at Pixo.