ZeroWolf wrote:I've decided that before I can really play around with things like these, I really need to get a new pc as blender is now going slower than an elderly snail that thinks paint dries far too fast these days. I miss my laptop
SillySpringer wrote:...but a truthful rant. I am still a newbie to Blender even after having it on my computer for like 6 months. I was already doing transformers designs easy peasy on Tinkercad after like 2 months.
...and I didn't even mention the cool designs I made with Tinkercad for the first 2 months. You pretty much have to give up sanity to learn Blender in that amount of time.
If you are only doing CAD for 3d printing and product design, Tinkercad is perfect for beginners. I am using Tinkercad actually to make that abomination pictured above in this same comment. XD
ZeroWolf wrote:I've decided that before I can really play around with things like these, I really need to get a new pc as blender is now going slower than an elderly snail that thinks paint dries far too fast these days. I miss my laptop
Insurgent wrote:@whoaskedmeaboutsketchupproblems:
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:
Nice job! I was in the midst of a (non TF) subdiv modeling project (just something to practice with, really), but caught a nasty case of shingles on my arm due to overworking (trust me, it ain't pretty). Had to stop everything for a few weeks to get some R&R.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:...but a truthful rant. I am still a newbie to Blender even after having it on my computer for like 6 months. I was already doing transformers designs easy peasy on Tinkercad after like 2 months.
...and I didn't even mention the cool designs I made with Tinkercad for the first 2 months. You pretty much have to give up sanity to learn Blender in that amount of time.
If you are only doing CAD for 3d printing and product design, Tinkercad is perfect for beginners. I am using Tinkercad actually to make that abomination pictured above in this same comment. XD
Exactly!
On a somewhat related note, modeling for 3D printing and CG art/models are 2 very different fields. 3D modeling focuses on creating "watertight" models and avoiding non-manifold edges. This makes it completely unforgiving of support edge loops commonly used in purely visual models (games, artwork, etc.), which give hard surface CG models a nice chamfered edge without beveling. On a 3D-printable model, that's not gonna fly.
CG modeling for game assets focus more on edge flow and topology that you can easily rig and/or animate with.
Models for 3D illustrations are probably the most forgiving, since it just has to look good.
Insurgent wrote:Gah! Forgot about this thread with the house move and whatnot.
I've not done any more work yet, but dang those are looking really swish Springer. Though I have been busy making more enclosure designs for work. Fancy stuff with domes, though I don't think I'm allowed to post pictures.
ZeroWolf wrote:That starscream is looking real good I would be interested in these tutorials when you get chance
SillySpringer wrote:Lol that is very understandable. Hope your arm heals up quickly!
SillySpringer wrote:Yes I know they are two completely different kinds of models. I heard that if you want to sculpt your CG models before uploading them into a program like Blender to animate it, Autodesk Meshmixer is perfect for that.
Mostly, animating your model is actually not that hard to do in Blender, it's the process getting there that makes you want to pull your hair out.
SillySpringer wrote:Anyhow my point was that, when you are trying to make a model to 3d print, Blender is the COMPLETELY wrong program to use unless you are a GENIUS with like 5 years of practice. Something like Tinkercad is actually meant for designing things to print, and I've been using it for a while, and have gotten the hang of it pretty fast.
SillySpringer wrote:Again, for CG models, I've heard that the best thing to do is to sculpt is in a program like Meshmixer or something similar and then uploading into a program like Blender, rather than trying to sculpt in blender.
SillySpringer wrote:Anyhow I'm planning on getting my Youtube channel up and running as soon as possible so I can record some Tinkercad tutorial videos for the absolute beginner, as well as the users who just want to learn some better techniques, tips, and tricks.
SillySpringer wrote:P.S. I made a bit more progress on my Armada Starscream design since posting that:
Image
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Lol that is very understandable. Hope your arm heals up quickly!
Thanks for the well wishes! It's getting better now.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Yes I know they are two completely different kinds of models. I heard that if you want to sculpt your CG models before uploading them into a program like Blender to animate it, Autodesk Meshmixer is perfect for that.
Mostly, animating your model is actually not that hard to do in Blender, it's the process getting there that makes you want to pull your hair out.
Thanks for mentioning Meshmixer! It looks pretty user-friendly, almost like a version of Sculptris for 3D printing. I've already got ZBrush for organic sculpting, but it never hurts to try out something else.
I haven't tried animating anything using Blender, since my generic laptop probably isn't up to the job.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Again, for CG models, I've heard that the best thing to do is to sculpt is in a program like Meshmixer or something similar and then uploading into a program like Blender, rather than trying to sculpt in blender.
True. I don't know about Meshmixer, but sculpting software usually adds more poly's as you sculpt (Sculptris does this a lot due to its auto-tessellation feature), although certain ones like ZBrush allow you to control the polycount. You'll still need Blender or something like Topogun to retopologize it into a low/medium poly mesh.
BTW, I didn't realize you could do retopology with Blender until I googled it. I rely on ZBrush for retopology jobs, since I sculpt using it anyway. Some people prefer Topogun or 3DS Max, but ZB's zpshere retopo method works fine for me. I guess it's more about what you do with your software of choice.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Anyhow I'm planning on getting my Youtube channel up and running as soon as possible so I can record some Tinkercad tutorial videos for the absolute beginner, as well as the users who just want to learn some better techniques, tips, and tricks.
Seriously looking forward to seeing your tutorials! You seem to be working miracles with TinkerCAD, making those beautiful models. I wanna know your secret!
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:P.S. I made a bit more progress on my Armada Starscream design since posting that:
Image
I don't know how you did it, but just keep doing it, because that's a thing of beauty.
SillySpringer wrote:No problem! Looking forward to seeing your models!
SillySpringer wrote:I may try different sculpting programs to find the best one for me to use for my games.
Also, the animating part itself in Blender is pretty much as simple as setting a part in a certain path, calculating how many frames you want it to take to complete that action (how fast), and then recording it. I have experimented with the animating by using a simple sphere shape. The part that really is a nightmare ready to happen is trying to attach a skeleton to the mesh you want to manipulate in the animation, AND make the skeleton move EXACTLY how you want it to without glitching. I have tried it multiple times and have not yet done it successfully, EVEN while watching a tutorial and following EXACTLY step by step what the person does. With Blender, pretty much every combination of settings does a different thing, and there are like hundreds of settings. Even when you have something set wrong, you sometimes don't see the effects right away, so when it finally does mess something up, you have no idea why it did that, and you have to start over.
I'll just end my rant here.
SillySpringer wrote:True, and plus you also have to make sure the surface is as smooth as possible or else it is pretty much impossible to paint on in Blender.
SillySpringer wrote:Haha thank you again! I also must remind you that this model will not only be fully articulated, but fully transformable too. I am hoping to POSSIBLY make some more Armada figures in the future, depending on how well this one does, and how much time I have in between personal life and making my game "What You Created".
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:No problem! Looking forward to seeing your models!
It won't be anything as impressive as a transformable, anime-accurate Armada Starscream modeled from simple shapes in TinkerCAD, though...
It's just going to be a G1 Arcee bust (with a modernized redesign and all greebled up) done in ZBrush, which I may or may not UV map and/or render. Honestly, it's just a practice piece for me to try out the stuff I learned, so don't expect anything along the lines of Joseph Drust or Ryan Kingslien.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:I may try different sculpting programs to find the best one for me to use for my games.
Also, the animating part itself in Blender is pretty much as simple as setting a part in a certain path, calculating how many frames you want it to take to complete that action (how fast), and then recording it. I have experimented with the animating by using a simple sphere shape. The part that really is a nightmare ready to happen is trying to attach a skeleton to the mesh you want to manipulate in the animation, AND make the skeleton move EXACTLY how you want it to without glitching. I have tried it multiple times and have not yet done it successfully, EVEN while watching a tutorial and following EXACTLY step by step what the person does. With Blender, pretty much every combination of settings does a different thing, and there are like hundreds of settings. Even when you have something set wrong, you sometimes don't see the effects right away, so when it finally does mess something up, you have no idea why it did that, and you have to start over.
I'll just end my rant here.
More like a horror story than a rant.
Seriously though, many thanks for sharing your experiences. That's the thing about Blender, it's got so many functions that you're practically swamped by them.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:True, and plus you also have to make sure the surface is as smooth as possible or else it is pretty much impossible to paint on in Blender.
You can actually polypaint right onto a mesh in Blender? I usually see people filling models with materials and colors in Cycles, or painting onto a UV map.
I didn't know they added so many new features. I seriously have to give the latest version another try.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Haha thank you again! I also must remind you that this model will not only be fully articulated, but fully transformable too. I am hoping to POSSIBLY make some more Armada figures in the future, depending on how well this one does, and how much time I have in between personal life and making my game "What You Created".
Ah, a social life...I've since forgotten what that's like after leaving college.
Speaking of your game, your drawing skills have improved by leaps and bounds these past few months. I'm not just buttering you up. I'd take a look at your avatar from a few months ago and I'd be like, "Meh, typical fan art." And then I look at your sig, and it's so much better. I really like your style with the heavy pen strokes, too.
SillySpringer wrote:Haha everyone starts somewhere! I am very interested to see your models anyhow!
SillySpringer wrote:Sometimes, with more features and options, comes more frustration and horror stories.
SillySpringer wrote:Thank you so much for your observations! I made that Springer picture when I first started using GIMP. I was using an iPad before for digital art, and was pretty good at it, but when I switched to a whole new program on a new device, it had me lost for a bit. I actually have a graphics tablet with a pen to draw with, which is why I can shade it the way I do. It is nearly impossible to draw shading with a mouse.
SillySpringer wrote:I am actually thinking of drawing myself a new profile pic to match my latest art.
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Sometimes, with more features and options, comes more frustration and horror stories.
I think we should start something about Blender, like #blenderkillsgreycells!
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:Thank you so much for your observations! I made that Springer picture when I first started using GIMP. I was using an iPad before for digital art, and was pretty good at it, but when I switched to a whole new program on a new device, it had me lost for a bit. I actually have a graphics tablet with a pen to draw with, which is why I can shade it the way I do. It is nearly impossible to draw shading with a mouse.
Oh definitely. It's really hard to draw with a mouse, and while I managed to draw some decent artwork when starting out with just that, the difference is palpable when you upgrade to a pen and tablet. This is also true of sculpting organic shapes in 3D software. The amount of control available to you allows you to create really intricate details and extreme shapes with extreme precision (with lazy mouse turn on, at least).
The only thing better than a pen and tablet would be a Cintiq. Which I would have been able to afford long ago if I didn't keep splurging on MP figs and Hot Toys collectibles (the Iron Man diecast line being my latest obsessio(n)).
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:I am actually thinking of drawing myself a new profile pic to match my latest art.
I might have to get around to doing that myself some day.
SillySpringer wrote:haha I've been the opposite, I've been having to get things I need, and not enough to get what I want! I have 0 MPs yet. (sad face)
SillySpringer wrote:Haha maybe you can stick a picture of a Skywarp figure on for your pic.
SillySpringer wrote:Blender is so diverse, and so complicated, that I'm sure you have not explored all of what it has to offer in the span of a year. You make it sound like some simple software you just tinker around with like it's no big deal! I am personally more for the creative side than the technical side, so Blender is a real challenge for me.
SillySpringer wrote:@SKYWARPED_128: I may try Zbrush soon, it sounds pretty interesting! I must ask though, is it possible to make AI characters in Blender for games? (e.g. enemies that you need to hide from, characters that help you a bit in battle like in the Fallout game, etc.) I am more asking this for curiosity rather than for me to actually use it, because right now I'm planning to use Unity or some other GAME platform for making games.
Also see you then if you don't some back till after the holidays! Have a great time!
Keep creative!
-James
SKYWARPED_128 wrote:SillySpringer wrote:@SKYWARPED_128: I may try Zbrush soon, it sounds pretty interesting! I must ask though, is it possible to make AI characters in Blender for games? (e.g. enemies that you need to hide from, characters that help you a bit in battle like in the Fallout game, etc.) I am more asking this for curiosity rather than for me to actually use it, because right now I'm planning to use Unity or some other GAME platform for making games.
Also see you then if you don't some back till after the holidays! Have a great time!
Keep creative!
-James
Time for one more post before the work begins.
I suggest you go for 3DS Max if you're into games. ZBrush is more for concepting and sculpting organic shapes. I mean, you CAN do gaming stuff in ZB, but since you'll be creating low-poly and subdiv mesh work for games, Max and/or Maya do a better job at these things. ZB constantly relies on other software like Max and Max for box-modeling work--there's actually a specialized plugin called GoZ so you can go back and forth between ZB and other software. The ZModeler brush doesn't really cut it if you're doing complex box modeling. Too many things that need workarounds for stuff that can be done easily in other specialized box modeling software.
So yeah, for game designing, IMO your money is better spent on 3DStudio Max or Maya, as expensive as they are.
Can't really comment on Blender since, you know, I don't use it.
Oh, and Merry Christmas in advance!
ZeroWolf wrote:I think a large put of the commercial version is the licence for the software, as for the other features you could ask on the forums, I can't see why you wouldn't be able to do it though but I've only tentatively looked at that engine. The last games I worked on were all using the xna framework
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