Point by point?

[elmo_tfc2]

Ive recently got into Lightwave and im in love.. Out of all the 3d modelers i have used, this seems to be the best. I always build my models point by point opposed to direct nurbs or box modeling, I was curious as to what others thought the most efficient method of modeling was. I have experimented with box modeling but i have found it to be a rather unpleasent experience, although some may disagree.

illimite Design

[elmo_tfc2]

Ive recently got into Lightwave and im in love.. Out of all the 3d modelers i have used, this seems to be the best. I always build my models point by point opposed to direct nurbs or box modeling, I was curious as to what others thought the most efficient method of modeling was. I have experimented with box modeling but i have found it to be a rather unpleasent experience, although some may disagree.

illimite Design

[bmh216]

Elmo,
Welcome to the forum. I use Lightwave, and I have to agree that point-by-point is nice, but only for organics or things that cannot be created with primitives.

There are a few free plugins that make life in Lightwave alot more pleasant. Mainly on the modelling side, but a few for Layout as well.

Here's a link to a forum that you should really check out:

CG Talk Community Lightwave Forum

Simply one of the best forums for the Lightwave user. Go back a few pages and find the "plugins" thread. There you'll find what you need to make things alot easier. Plus, there's always Flay which is an endless resource for Lightwave users.

Brett

[Earl]

Hey Elmo,

The way you choose to model should be based on what type of object you wish to create. I'm a hardcore LightWave user - been using it for 7 years now. For some objects, such as human's, creatures, etc, point by point is truly the best approach. For other objects, such as bottles, plastic shapes, etc, starting with primatives makes more since. Spline modeling is also very powerful when used correctly. There are so many different approaches, it's hard to go wrong. The trick is to determine what the model needs to do. If the model is intended for animation, then there are ways to optimize the model so it will behave exactly as you want it to (especially with joints, etc).

Do you have a specific model in mind? I would be more than happy to give my opinion on how to approach it...

[elmo_tfc2]

Thanks a bunch, Ill look into the forum, this really helps! I didn't have a perticuler model in mind, I mainly make character models and faces for the most part. Have you guys ever played around with Maya? i tried it for an hour and gave up.. too much of a learning curve to jump right into it. oh well, any fellow lightwave user have any luck with it?

illimite Design

[Earl]

Once you're a LightWave user...nothing else matters... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif[/img]

[s.winders]

I think learn to use as many methods as possible and then find the one you are more partial too [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]


I actually prefer box modelling so far for organic,but I am now making a Killer whale using point by point so I will see how it goes,and if I screw it up I can blame it on pont by point and not my skills...hahahaa [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]


Stu.