The more you can do, the more you will have the opportunity to do. Diversity of skills and flexibility are two traits that will serve you well in this industry. That’s why Danny Williams is not only going to teach you how to design a video game character, but he’s also going to show you how to create characters for film and visual effects! That’s two very different design processes from start to finish covered in a single course!
Sign up today at ZBrush Workshops!
![wacom[4]](http://pixologic.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/wacom4-670x376.jpg)
Act fast to take advantage of these two free ZBrush courses by Digital-Tutors! Until August 4th Digital Tutors will be offering a handful of free ZBrush courses as well as offering registrants the chance to win an Intuos5 medium and free Digital-Tutors subscriptions. Check out two of them below and sign up here to register.
Creating Game Assets in ZBrush
ZBrush is a fantastic tool for creating very detailed looking models, from characters, to props and environments. The powerful sculpting and painting tools allow artists the freedom to create whatever they can imagine.
Many times, however, the process of building game-resolution geometry and baking the appropriate maps to reproduce that detail falls to other applications in the pipeline. However, if you don’t have access to Maya, 3DS Max, or TopoGun to name a few, ZBrush has all the tools you need to create a low resolution game-type mesh with all the appropriate maps.
In this ZBrush tutorial we’ll go over techniques for sculpting our initial high-resolution asset, a ceremonial dagger. We’ll use DynaMesh, clipping brushes, masking, and a variety of other tools to get our final result. We’ll also paint the dagger appropriately. Once that mesh is done, we’ll talk about different options in ZBrush for creating a low-resolution mesh derived from the final asset. We’ll also create and edit a UV layout in ZBrush, project the detail through, and create our maps.
To finish we’ll bring everything into Marmoset Toolbag to see how it will look in real time. In the end, you’ll be able to go through the same process on your own meshes without ever leaving ZBrush.
Maximizing Your Wacom Device for ZBrush
If you’ve used ZBrush for any amount of time, it’s a good possibility that a Wacom tablet or pen display is a critical piece of hardware in your day to day work. The goal of this course will be to help you maximize the features of your hardware, whether Cintiq, Intuos, or Bamboo, in a way that is specific to ZBrush. Whether it is your Grip Pen, ExpressKeys, Touch Strip or Radial Menu, each is a powerful feature that, when properly used, will extend the functionality of your Wacom product so that it is much more than a simple surface for sculpting or painting.
We will learn how to set each one of these features up for ZBrush and then wrap up this course by learning how to backup and restore our customized tablet properties. After completing this course, you will be able to fully harness the power of your Wacom pen display or tablet when working in ZBrush.
If you are trying to find new ways to get twisted inside ZBrush, don’t miss this great tutorial covering everything you’ll need to know about generating realistic dreadlocks using FiberMesh. Coming in at a whopping 23 pages, this is no ordinary tutorial! ZBrushCentral member Pablo Munoz Gomez aka Pablander, locks it down with this over the top offering. Be sure to download the PDF file in all its glory to start generating your own Marley inspired dreads. If you want to take your understanding of the Fibermesh settings further, visit ZClassroom for an entire series of video tutorials dealing with creating hair.
Join Novedge and Pixologic’s own 3D Product Development Manager, Paul Gaboury, as he highlights the new features in ZBrush 4R6. Paul will extensively cover ZRemesher along with the new brushes, Trim and Crease. He will also be walking you through how using polygroups with DynaMesh can create a unique workflow for design. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to discover what ZBrush can do for you.
The webinar is free and will last about about 1 hour, including the Q & A session.
For more information, visit Novedge.com (for a direct link to sign up for the webinar, click here).
Digital-Tutors has released four fresh and exciting ZBrush courses. Check them out!
Creating a Stylized Cartoon Bird in ZBrush
Sculpting Human Torsos in ZBrush
Creating a Game-Ready Monster Insect in ZBrush and 3ds Max
For more courses and information visit our 3rd Party Training Page
Andrew Baker, Senior Designer at Weta Workshop Design Studios, in a world exclusive at Phoenix Atelier! Will be teaching a New Program, Breathing life and presence into “DIGITAL CREATURES”! Using current digital software like ZBrush. Andrew shows you his design process and philosophy of conceptualizing a realistic creature or character for digital FX on a feature film. Designing a hero and generic orc like he does for, The Hobbit.
From concept, sculpting, coloring, final pose/expression, final illustration and sculpture (Design Marquette and perhaps prototype). How to use real life references and people to come up with fresh approach to an orc and create a character capable of speech and having presence on screen.
Take a step towards a better tomorrow come and learn today at Phoenix Atelier.
Registration is open, with his program starting on Sept 16, 2013. Visit PhoenixAtelier.com to reserve your spot today.
Check out an interview the folks at Phoenix Atelier did with Andrew last month:
How do you create robots that look so real that they could be marching down the street outside your house right now? You’ll need an eye for robotic design, a solid understanding of hard surface sculpting, and the skills to composite your model in a believable environment. Find out how to do all of that and more with mech master, Furio Tedeschi’s, in ZBrushWorkshop’s new course, Make Robots In ZBrush!
For more information and to sign up for the course, visit ZBrushWorkshops.com
Our friends at Digital-Tutors have released two brand new courses. Don’t miss out!
Sculpting Human Arms in ZBrush
Designing a Surreal Female Character in ZBrush
For more courses and information check out our 3rd Party Training Page
Let Digital-Tutors inspire you to sculpt with their three new courses!
Sculpting Human Legs in ZBrush
Creating Digital Food in 3ds Max and ZBrush
Creating Game Weapons in Softimage and ZBrush
For more courses and information visit our 3rd Party Training Page
Make time this weekend to watch free introductory ZBrush training from Digital-Tutors as they open up two exclusive courses.
Digital-Tutors’ recently-released Quick Start to ZBrush takes a very methodical, step-by-step, approach to covering the tools and techniques that are most important in enabling you to get up and running in ZBrush quickly. Each volume of a Quick Start builds upon the previous volume, enabling us to progressively build up a complex project into a finished state.
In the free-this-weekend Volumes 1-2, you’ll cover the basics of getting started working in ZBrush. You’ll start in Volume 1 and learn about navigation and the interface, cover methods of working with primitive geometry and subdividing geometry and learn about working with multiple SubTools, strokes and alphas, and masking. At the end of each Volume, you’ll have a chance to practice the topics covered to start applying your new skills to your own work.
In Volume 2, you will learn about advanced primitive creation techniques, covering the important topic of Polygroups and look at methods for modifying geometry. You’ll also learn some character-specific sculpting techniques in addition to an automatic method for recreating a mesh’s topology. Other topics include using Panel Loops, working with stencils and modifying our strokes in different ways.
Make sure to take advantage of the free training and over three hours of powerful introductory content.
Visit the free training page and start learning ZBrush this weekend!
Check out these two new courses released by our friends at Digital-Tutors!
Creating an Armored Beast in ZBrush
Creating a Detailed Forest Creature in ZBrush
For more information check out our 3rd Party Training page
It’s Halloween time and the creatures are on the loose. Watch exclusive spooky free training all week long to help you learn hair-raising new skills.
Courses include:
Character Creation Pipeline in Maya and ZBrush
Illustrating a Vintage Horror Film Poster in Photoshop and ZBrush
Designing Scary Film Monsters in ZBrush
Alejandro Pereira is a highly talented freelance artist with more than 7 years experience in the world of film and animated series production. He decided to focus his knowledge by mixing two of his passions: 3D animation and traditional sculpture. Eventually, he narrowed that to just sculpture.
To date, Alejandro has worked with a large number of important licensors: Marvel, DC, Disney-Pixar and Universal Studios among them. Other credits include ARH Studios, Gentle Giant, McFarlane Toys, Pop Culture Shock, Funko and others.
His 3D printed statuettes are spectacularly detailed, with a great sense of form and movement. We hope that you enjoy this journey into the mind of a First-Class figure creator!
We are proud to announce Cezar Brandao’s program is back by popular demand! If you missed it the first time around, here’s your chance to jump in there and learn with one of the true masters of the female form.
The first 4 weeks will get you prepped as you go through the process of learning anatomy Bridgman style. This is truly a wonderful way to learn Artistic Anatomy as the simplification of forms is something anyone can master.
The last 4 weeks will be a tour de force of the female portrait. There simply is nothing more difficult to sculpt as it is often a matter of millimeters that can make or break your sculpt.
Program starts on November 18, Registration is open.
So come and learn Foundation of Beauty, The Art of Anatomy with Cezar Brandao.
For more information and to sign up for the class, visit PhoenixAtelier.com.
CG Workshops have released a new class: Advanced VideoGame Character Creation, with Katon Callaway. Join Sony Santa Monica’s Lead Character Artist as he takes you through his approach to building advanced characters for high-end console games. Learn the fundamentals that can be applied regardless of what piece of software you’re using.
Weekly live class sessions, videos, and assignments make up this 8 week course that starts February 3rd and goes through March 31st.
Earlybird Special! Enroll before December 5th, 2013 at the special price of $549 (usually $649)!
Visit CGWorkshops.org for more info or to enroll.
Katon Callaway walks you through his upcoming course:
CGWorkshops has a brand new workshop coming your way in February. Tyler Breon is running a male anatomy class, and they have early bird pricing until midnight on Thursday, December 5th – $499 instead of the usual $599!
Whether you work in games or film, are in school, or on the path to a full-time position, a solid understanding of the human figure and how to create it is one of the most important assets a Character Artist/Modeler can have. This course breaks down the human figure into a simple, easy to digest process, and gives artists the foundational knowledge needed to produce believable, anatomically correct and visually stunning CG characters.
Visit CGSociety.com to reserve your spot, and get the early bird special, today!
The Complete Figure Sculpting Bundle combines two of ZBrushWorkshops’ finest master classes to give you the best possible training in figure sculpting. With this bundle, you will have full access to both “Female Figure Sculpting In ZBrush with Cesar Zambelli” and “Male Figure Sculpting In ZBrush with Jose Pericles”.
Create elegant, convincing female characters, and capture the strength and versatility of the male figure with two top-level figure artists!
To find out more and to sign up, visit ZBrushWorkshops.com.
Start the year off right with a whopping six new courses from Digital-Tutors!
Creating a Photorealistic Female Character in ZBrush and 3ds Max
Techniques for Sculpting Like the Masters in ZBrush
Sculpting Female Torsos in ZBrush
Creating a Hard Surface Sci-Fi Ninja in ZBrush
High-Resolution Game Character Creation Pipeline in ZBrush and Maya
Check them out at Digital-Tutors.com!
For more ZBrush courses check out our 3rd Party Training Page.
Andrew Baker will be teaching a new program at Phoenix Atelier, Breathing life and presence into “DIGITAL CREATURES”! Using current digital software like ZBrush, Andrew shows you his design process and philosophy of conceptualizing a realistic creature or character for digital FX on a feature film. Designing a hero and generic orc like he does for The Hobbit from concept, sculpting, coloring, final pose/expression, final illustration and sculpture (Design Marquette and perhaps prototype). He’ll show how to use real life references and people to come up with fresh approach to an orc and create a character capable of speech and having presence on screen.
Take a step towards a better tomorrow and learn today at Phoenix Atelier.
Registration is open, with his program starting on January 27th, 2014. Sign up HERE.
Check out a demo that Andrew Baker did last year discussing his work philosophy and methodology a real insight to one of the most prolific creature designers working in the industry today.
In this Industry Spotlight, David Bentley walks you through his automotive design process. Watch, as David details the features and functions used to create this pavement pounding exotic. You’ll see features like Panel Loops, the Noise Maker plugin, Insert Meshes, Clipping brushes and a host of others used to bring this project to life.
“I put this series of videos together on design sketching in ZBrush because I’ve had a number of requests from friends and professionals who ask me where they can go for a design tutorial in ZBrush. They see sculpting in ZBrush as a huge conceptual design opportunity. I hope viewers will find these videos useful and learn from my own experiments.” – David Bentley
Watch the lesson at ZClassroom and check out more images on David’s thread at ZBrushCentral.
