Simple program to learn meshes

[haakoo]

Or polish Gare

Hans

[Gare]

Or polish Gare

Hans

It's certainly worth considering Hans.

But how does being from Warsaw help with Ron's problems?

<Grin, duck, and run>

-g

[haakoo]

[theinonen]

Modelling is actually the easy part and at least for me the hard part comes after that. There are many ways to skin a cat and Ron just needs to find a way that suits him and learn by experimenting with the tools.


Here are couple ways as an example and in some software both can be used and mixed for best results.

Subdivision Surfaces (SDS):
Basically you start from a simple object like cube and then use the tools available to shape it into something else. Also known as box modelling and for example Wings3d works like this.

This simple cup is shaped from cylinder and handle was easily added with bridge tool. Object has OpenSubdiv patch applied to smooth things.


NURBS:
Draw curves and use tools available to create surfaces from them.

This simple cup is made from just 4 curves using roate and sweep tools. handle is joined to cup with fillet tool.


Holes are easily created using trimcurves. Trimcurves can also be inverted and instead of creating hole they cut away surroundings.

[Albacore]

Hi Ron. Are you going to use this mesh tool to continue your work in drawing vehicles mainly? If you are then I would say your down to 2 types of software, proper 3D modeling software like the free programme like Blender ( http://blender.software.informer.com/ ) and 2/3D CAD software like Google's free SketchUp ( http://google-sketchup.software.informer.com/ ). What I would do is try try both types of software doing your type of work and see what you like, thinking mainly about the output, not how long it took you to get the finished article. It has been my experience both in using vector type programmes and a 3D modelling programme that it still had to be taken in to a bitmap editor to get it dirty. What do I mean about the word "dirty" is that most of the output is so sharp and clean and this makes it look so artificial and this makes Photoshop so handy as it excepts 3D modelling files.

Now to get the good programmes in either of the two ways explained the amount of expenditure goes up exponentially. The Pro version of Sketchup is $695 and say you go with AutoCad LT that is in the UK £336 for a years sub. The subscription is just like Xara's 365, you have the programme for life it just means it won't be upgraded. All of these things just made me stick with Illy and Xara. I do use Autodesk Inventor quite a lot as I am still part time teaching in Scotland and I get a free copy to use.

[Mike Bailey]

Wow! It appears that we have quite a few folks supporting this topic. Is anyone up for a fun little challenge that will exercise your 3D chops? It may be a good learning experience as well. If your up for it we can start a new topic in the Challenge Forum or the 3D forum.

[Ron Duke]

Ok, so what my original interest was using a program that offers the mesh tool, but by what I've seen it's really just a kind of short cut to what can be accomplished in Xara.
I got everyone off on the wrong track by mentioning Blender in my opening inquiry which I apologize for. I some how got the wrong idea about what Blender was for, not realizing it was a 3D program, not a program that can be used to produce meshes. My BAD! My apologies to everyone!

3D is definitely something I'll look into a little further, though.

Regards,
ron

[Gare]

Hi Ron—

Man, you really know how to clear out a party, Ron! :)

Okay, your world is 2D drawing, and you want a program that offers a color mesh too for shading areas on your drawings in a way gradient presets in Xara cannot, right?

Illustrators' mesh tool is more mature and refined than CorelDRAW's. But have you ever tried using Blends that have transparency in Xara?

Now, I'm almost a complete idiot in illustrator, but I was able to fill a circle with a few different mesh colors so it looks a little sphere-like. Then I rendered the result, brought it into Xara,and tried blending, a little feathering, a Gausiian blur fx, and a few clips, and me, I don't see a whole heck of a lot of advantages in your work, Ron, if you "work around" an area that needs a non geometric fountain fill:



It's more work, for sure, to add to a recipe fractal fills, fractal transparencies, blends and all that, but I've yet to run into a design realization that I couldn't finish without a mesh color tool. Seriously. Either subscribe to Illustrator CC until you're done or fork over $300+ for CorelDRAW?



The above is not finished, and when it is, it will probably suck just as much as right now. But the point hee is that just with a good eye and knowledge of Xara's tools, and perhaps a stylus to help draw more naturally, you can accompkish glass effects or chrome or brass, with an advanced undserstanding of Xara's tools.

The grass is not necessarily greener on the other side, and I've often been disappointed by wishing so hard for something...that I received it.

Expectations aren't for softeware. They're for artists for themselves.

Opinionated,

Gary

[Gare]

Wow! It appears that we have quite a few folks supporting this topic. Is anyone up for a fun little challenge that will exercise your 3D chops? It may be a good learning experience as well. If your up for it we can start a new topic in the Challenge Forum or the 3D forum.

Mike, if you'd be so kind as to PM me later today, I'd love to discuss a competition, possibly moving this thread to where it belongs and editing it a little, and perhaps stirring up an unstirred pot in the 3D area this year?


:)

My Best,

Gary

[mwenz]

...I got everyone off on the wrong track by mentioning Blender in my opening inquiry which I apologize for. I some how got the wrong idea about what Blender was for, not realizing it was a 3D program, not a program that can be used to produce meshes...

Which is why I asked about mesh fills, Ron.

The least expensive application for mesh fills--unless InkScape has mesh fills (because it's free)--is DrawPlus.