ZBrushCentral

Noob question - What is topology for?

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

I have googled zbrush and topology and found some very long video tutorials on it. ( Jason Welsh, you sir are a godsend) but I have yet to get a full answer to my question. The tutorials just leave my with more questions…

Is this for finely tuning your mesh? or is it to close gaps and holes that are made in a mesh by mistake? Is it a tool for skinning and texturing? I am rather confused…

I am somehow missing the settle definition I think. :o

#2

Topology is just the name for the flow of geometry along a mesh’s surface. The way your mesh is constructed can affect sculpting performance at higher levels of subdivision, as well as the efficiency of that mesh in other applications. Depending on the end goal for a mesh, the ideal construction of the mesh’s topology may vary depending on it’s purpose. Meshes for use in outside applications, for game or film animation, generally have to be constructed in a much more efficient and deliberate manner.

Zbrush’s topology tools allow you to “re-draw” the poly flow for a mesh to allow for cleaner sculpting, or for different purposes in outside applications.

#3

I see, so in the instance of skinning and having light roll off of a model, its best to have a finely topo’ed mesh so it looks more natural? essentially anti aliasing by hand? Or am I missing the mark?
:o

(I wish I had the time and money for graphic design school)

#4

Well, not quite, although you can certainly lay out your geometry in a manner that makes it more intuitive to unwrap for UVs.

The problem is, this is a very broad subject. Mesh topology can have all sorts of positive and negative effects, depending on the purpose of a model. It is just a matter of knowing what works best, for the type of work you are doing. In general, good topology flow that follows the natural contours of the model, allows for better looking results and more accurate deformations with fewer polygons. It also lets you deliver more polygons to detail areas, and conserve them where they are not needed. For instance, Zbrush sculpts best on mesh's that are made up of predominantly square-shaped quads, with as few tris or poles (verts with 3 or 5 or more edge spikes extending from them) as possible. Try to smooth over poles in sculpting mode, and you'll get weird pinched artifacts (one of the reasons you'll almost always want to draw better topology over the unifed skin you get from Zsketching)...and if the quads are "stretched" into long rectangles your sculpting will be somewhat distorted. And yet, while this sort of mesh subdivides and sculpts well, it is not the most efficient mesh you can build in terms of polycount for applications where that is important, like with game models. And models that have more deliberately modeled topology tend to deform better in animation packages. Furthermore, all those subtools which are convenient for working in Zbrush may not be efficient for someone who needs a more unibody mesh. So it may often be beneficial to quickly block out out form with Zspheres into one rather haphazard mesh, draw cleaner geometry for better sculpting performance, and yet again create another end-purpose specific mesh to wear that sculpted detail via a normal or displacement map. Here is a pretty good tut on facial topology and the kinds of differences it can make: [http://www.phungdinhdung.org/Realistic_face_modeling_by_PhungDinhDzung.htm](http://www.phungdinhdung.org/Realistic_face_modeling_by_PhungDinhDzung.htm)
#5

It should also be mentioned, the topology functions in Zbrush are also a fairly effective modeling tool for intermediate users.

#6

thanks for all the info Bingo! Is that your site? That was an excellent Face topo/modeling tutorial?

I loved the animations from the root page! :cool:

#7

Not mine. Someone with much more energy than me.

#8

That’s an excellent resource for people wanting to know about topology thanks very much for putting that here!