Okay so I’m trying to learn this but it’s not going very well. I don’t really understand how to add shape to an object properly. I just use the standard, inflate, and move brushes but I can’t get things to look right.
I start off with a squirkle I guess it’s called? From a tutorial I found on veoh. Was one of the few video tutorials I found on how to start sculpting without having to have a base mesh. Anyway this is what I get.
The main question I should ask you, is if you have modeled anything before? If you are new to modeling in general, than starting with a head may be more advanced. Try modeling other objects and get a hang of modeling before jumping into organic sculpting. That’s more long term.
Are you using a tablet or mouse? If no tablet, I highly recommend it. Don’t get discouraged, all of us didn’t learn Zbrush overnight. I’ve been using it now for 3 years, I have seen my work get better and better. It’ll happen just keep practicing.
Yeah I’ve done modeling in Max for 9 months and took classes on it and now I’m at VFS and using Maya and I guess I just can’t get the hang of 3D in general. Most of my models come from just following a video tutorial because I get stuck and have no way of knowing what to do next.
I’ve tried every tutorial out there pretty much 3D Buzz, Digital Tutors, some Gnomonlogy and I just can’t get it. Figured I’d give ZBrush a try and I’ve been messing around in it but it just doens’t feel very easy to navigate through.
Hi Phagocytosis!
I think we are in the same situation. I started to learn ZBrush few months ago (unfortunately not much time to learn). You can find a lot of useful material here in ZBrushcentral, especially in the tutorials forum, and I recommend you to read the reference manual as well (You could find it here: Download center). It’s also useful to watch the videos on the Zclassroom site.
Starting with a head is good for starting. Use the move and standard brushes to make the main shapes. Stay as low in subdivision as possible. Just subdivide after you have nothing to do on a certain subdiv level. It was the most challenging part for me, because this is a great temptation to increase the numer of polygons, but if you want nice surfaces, you must stay the on lowest possible subdiv level. Try the effect of the brushes, and try to figure out which is the best for you.
So, these are my advices, I hope it will help you.
Try loading in front and side elevation images onto poly plane subtools. These coiuld help guide your modelling.
With the Standard Brush, try adjusting the Brush/Edit Curve to look like a ‘J’, turning on Brush/AccuCurve and ramping up the Stroke/Mouse Avg. This should give you a more useful sculpting tool.
Good luck,
R
What Bukoba said is good advice.
However, I think you need to understand how the sculpting process works to begin with. Basically, what you need to do is figure out the main forms of your subject, and how they flow into each other.
In that respect, modeling a human head is good practice, if challenging.
For example, you can’t simply scoop out two circular holes and call them eyes, or slap a knob in between and call it a nose – both of those features will spring into existence organically if you follow the bone structure of the skull.
The usual advice applies: try to sketch the main lines on paper beforehand, to see if you understand how the face is put together. Practice, practice and practice some more! The head you posted probably didn’t see a lot of work – it’s an ok start (well, except for the eyes, you’d need to smooth those out and reshape drastically), but you can still tell it was just a sphere with the chin sorta pulled out.
A common mistake to avoid is slapping facial features onto a flattened plane. The face is actually not flat at all! Just look at your mouth from a low angle - it’s barrel-shaped, wrapping around the teeth. One neat trick you might try is to look at drawings of superheroes, which usually have clean, strong lines that nicely describe the facial structure - it’s no accident that X-Men Gambit’s mask follows the lines that it does.
Interestingly enough, having some experience in traditional 3D modeling can be helpful, although it’s a whole different ballgame. There it’s all about following the edge flow, which can train you to recognize the main forms in a model and how they interact.
As for the actual nitty-gritty of using Zbrush, here’s my two cents, adding to what Bukoba said:
In the end, you simply gotta perservere. There’s no substitute for hard work, unfortunately.
Hope this helps, and good luck! 