ZBrush work

I don't know if any of ya'll know of Ken Brilliant but he is a ZBrush master.

Here is a link to his lastest work.
web page

"...watching a lot of the Discovery Channel"...i LOVe Ken's narrative and work.

Randy, I own an older copy of ZBrush. Does it include ZSpheres or not or do I need to upgrade or am I too unmotivated to go to pixelogic and find out for myself? [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]


My Best,

Gary

ZBrush is the programs name.

ZSphere is a new modelling tool that was introduced with the lastest version. (released little over a month ago)

You need to check it out. You basically build your model using spheres (think stick men) then you tell ZBrush to skin it.

Try to visualize drawing a rough character by using lines and circles. Then connecting the circles to flesh out the drawing. That is how ZSphere works.

Example1

Example2

This is a very quick way to flesh out some character models. You then can add detail right in ZBrush using it's clay like modelling tools, or export to add details in your favorite 3D App.
Exports to obj, 3DS and DXF

The thing that bothers me is this: this looks like a really great way to make models, yet you have to purchase the entire ZBrush to get it. It should be made available as a modelling app only to get it out into the mainstream. I find ZBrush's weird interface's learning curve just a bit steep, and the renders aren't all that impressive. If I could model in "Z Spheres" and export to Lightwave in .obj format, that would be a different story. The meshes it produces look really clean, too (or is that just the fact that the person making that demo scene really knows how to use these Z Spheres to their best effect?).

Anyway, where is the Z Spheres standalone app???

Just wishful thinking I guess...

Brett

I gotta say that ZBrush has a non-intuitive interface. I spent hours and hours in the program to nopurposeful avail, and for once it was not because I'm stubborn and refuse to read manuals! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img] A good example of a 3D creation tool UI is Universe or Blender. Up the rung lies Bryce and Poser, 'cause they have "artsy" interfaces, which I guess are meant to inspire us like Painter's UI always has (I'm half-joking here).

But ZBrush is a stumper.

My 2 cents,
Gary David Bouton

I'm in love with Lightwave's interface. No cryptic buttons, no weird symbols, just text on buttons, organized into tabs that make sense. My idea of a good UI, in fact it's the best I've found. ("Where is that obscure function that I hardly ever use but need right now? Ahhh, right there, marked 'Obs Function'!") Just kidding, but you get the idea.

Brett

Gare, I've gotta disagree with you in a big way. Zbrush was the first program I used to model objects in 3D and I found its interface EXTREMELY intuitive, but that might be because I have a background in real-world sculpting, and at the time, very little experience with other conventional 3D programs. At its core it's very similar to using clay and I picked it up RIGHT away.

The texturing capabilities in Zbrush are pretty incredible and the rendering engine is quite outstanding too, once you get to know it a bit. Zspheres are a groundbreaking development in modeling and can garner quite a variety of resultant polygonal skins, depending on your approach. The lack of a quad viewport layout does present some limitations, but you don't have one of those if you're holding a piece of clay in your hand, either.

As to any individual's perception of the intuitive nature of Zbrush's interface, it's really all in your point of view and to what you've become accustomed prior to exposure to Z. It definitely IS different.

I'm currently taking a 3DS Max class and believe Zbrush has helped me in no small way to figure out, among other things, how deformations can affect one another, though I wish Zbrush had a modifier stack like Max.

Brett, for sure, Lightwave is a great program, but some don't share your fondness for its interface. And you have to admit, the separation of modeling and layout programs or environments is a bit dated, if not a pain in the butt. I find Max's interface to be MUCH more intuitive, BUT it's the program I've been studying as of late. If I were focusing on Lightwave instead, I'm sure I would have a completely different opinion, one that would mirror your's. Many believe Maya to be the best, others believe in SoftImage XSI or Cinema 4DXL.

So many tools, so little money and time....... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif[/img]

Danny Huff
http://www.asherrocks.com
(I'm the guy who USED to have a lot of excess hair)

[This message was edited by Danny Huff on October 18, 2002 at 22:31.]

[This message was edited by Danny Huff on October 18, 2002 at 22:33.]

Brett, you mentioned IF you could model in Zspheres and export it as an OBJ file... I just tried it out and it works great. All you have to do is model it in Zspheres, skin it whichever way you like, and then export it as either an OBJ or a DXF. Anything modeled in Zbrush can be exported this way, not just Zspheres.

All in all, Zbrush is a pretty potent package for less than $400. It's not supposed to be the only tool in your graphics toolbox, just an important one that can compliment whatever your other software choices might be.

By the way, if you saw some of Ken Brilliant's work, as referred by Randy's opening post in this thread, then you would have seen examples of someone who uses Zbrush in conjunction with Lightwave. He's written some outstanding tutorials on just that process, and holds both programs near and dear to his creative heart. The man IS very talented, and recently published a book, Modeling Digital Dinosaurs. The book is written to be non-software-specific, although I believe he DID use Lightwave to do the modeling [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

Danny Huff
http://www.asherrocks.com
(I'm the guy who USED to have a lot of excess hair)

I find the interface different but neccessary hard. I find the lack of good written documentation and tutorials limiting to learning the software.

There are lots of zscripts that play and show you the progress of building different models, but I have trouble figuring out what exactly they are doing. Zbrush needs a pause and single step mode show my slow brain can follow along.

I have a vacation next week and I am planning to spend some time with ZBrush.

By the way, the interface was jazzed up in V1.5.

Folks, I truly admire the sensitivity with which you disagree on points here. It's a mark of civilization and totally refreshing as an escape from the RealWolrld. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

I think we simply disagree here on interface ease. Everyone has their own idea of interface intuitiveness. I find the structure of the ZBrush UI to be a climb, and I guess that's why I get so little out of it.

I DO think there are powerful tools in the program, however. That's why I sit and play with the thing so often.

I'm getting to be not so "results oriuented" in my middle age--it's just palin fun to experiment...and to get opinionated once in a while. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

My Best,
Gary David Bouton

Brett, are you really serious about Lightwave's interface?! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_confused.gif[/img]

Danny,
I did quite a bit of work in 3DS Max 4 before switching to Lightwave. It's interface is a bit daunting as well, with a lot of cryptic symbols that I always found myself resting my mouse over and waiting for the "tooltip" to tell me what the heck it does. That changes with time and familiarity, of course. After awhile, I knew what (just about) everything did, and I was comfortable. Then, I began using Lightwave. Everything is laid out as text...very different from Max. I know it's just my opinion, but I love it!

I am one who doesn't really agree that modeler and layout being separate is a bad thing. Modeler is like a separate place to create objects which you then use in your scene as you need. Not such a bad thing. When I used Max, I was always shuffling objects around and moving my viewport to find a place to model something that my scene needed. If I attempted to model it "in place", vertices and edges got all mixed up, making it difficult. Also, after using Modeler's layers, I really can't do without them.

I was just wishing that Z-Spheres was available as a standalone modelling app, instead of laying out $400 for a full app that I don't really need nor care to take the time to learn. It just looks like a really interesting way to model, but I don't want to get myself involved in learning it if I have to buy the whole ZBrush to get it.

Thanks for the info on the export, I was curious.

Brett

Brett, I agree with you about Lightwave. But I find also its plugins implementation is actually the best in 3D programs.
I like very much ZSpheres; it's a much better technique to grow organic shapes than metaballs because it creates a very logical polygons arrangment.
Why not a plugin?
But I think this is only the beginning of a new evolution in 3D modeling.

ivan

I agree, ZBrush is still in it's infancy stage and is worked on continually... and yea, it is a very fun app to play around with... as far as interfaces go, well... I for one am glad that there are so many choices of apps, different UI's and approaches out there to choose from... some people prefer apple juice, while others prefer orange juice etc... cool... besides it is the results that count right? Cool [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

The pushing and poking of "clay" is a very attractive and inmtuitive paradigm I'd like to see added to extruding, lathing, and so on.

To continue my line of thought with the other thread on plug-ins for 2d paint systems, check out what you can do with KPT X Gel, a stand-alone module for Photoshop and compatible programs. This works and feels like ZBrush's Jelly Bean mode. Also, amorphium, which is free when you buy Universe for $299, can do sculpting like ZBrush does and it export=s to DXF, OBJ, and other popular formats.


My Best,
Gare

Well, Alias/Wavefront's Maya has what's called the Artisan tool, which allows you to "sculpt", as it were. There is also a way to do it in Lightwave (it's a bit of a workaround) using weightmaps.

I think this is why the Zspheres modelling method caught my eye; it seems like a very intuitive way to model (much like sculpting) as opposed to pushing an pulling vertices all day.

Brett