As artists, we have the fantastic ability to create everything that we can imagine from thin air. Thanks to modern tools such as ZBrush, it’s even more fun to sculpt bizarre monsters and creatures. Bringing our artworks to life with stunning textures and photoreal lighting is the cherry on top of the creepy cake. During this tutorial, I’ll show you a simple but effective workflow to jump-start your own sinister sculpting.
01 CONCEPTUAL PHASE
Every sculpture starts with an idea. That can be achieved by making a few scribbles, 3D models, kitbashing, or concept artwork. My piece is based on German folklore, so I did my research on the creature and created an initial concept.
02 BLOCKOUT THE BASE SHAPES
Get going with simple shapes like cylinders, spheres and so on to create the base proportions as quickly as possible. That will help you keep the big picture in mind without losing yourself in the details. If you have a clear idea of your sculpt, always double-check your proportions against your main references.
03 REFINE THE PROPORTIONS
When you’re satisfied that the base sculpt has enough details to describe the silhouette, you can begin working on refinements by adding extra pieces such as horns, deformations, and any other eye-catching touches.
04 ADD EXTRA PIECES
For more visual interest and to stand as a counterpoint to the organic shapes, add extra non-organic pieces like drapery to your sculpture to make it feel believable in the world.
05 BLEND AND DETAIL YOUR MODEL
For a believable sculpt, start out by adding details to blend everything together. That will describe the volumes and help you to create a readable flow within your sculpture. Gather any additional references as needed and take a look at other materials to find inspiration for the shapes and volumes.
This story is from the September 2024 edition of 3D World UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the September 2024 edition of 3D World UK.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
CGI creatures
Leading film creatives pick the VFX animals that have inspired them
Creating photorealistic visuals for Shōgun
The digital matte painting team at Goodbye Kansas Studios embrace a collaborative approach for the environments in Disney's miniseries
FaceBuilder
PRICE £18/$23 monthly / £180/$230 annual COMPANY Keen Tools WEBSITE keentools.io
Mars 4 Ultra
Elegoo has created quite the name for itself within the 3D printing community, with a loyal band of users singing the praises of its machines from the Mars range to the Saturn series, and also the quality of its resins.
Revodok Max 213
Although a new computer or the latest GPU are the obvious contenders for your cash, there are things that will offer big benefits even if they don’t have the same initial appeal, and a good dock is one of these.
DESIGN CHARACTERS INSPIRED BY HISTORY
Marco Teixeira explores a personal piece that resonates with Brazilian culture and influences to create an appealing portrait
HOW DO I MASTER MATERIALS IN KEYSHOT?
One of the best things about KeyShot is its ability to create and render realistic materials. When paired with beautiful lighting, product visualisations take on a whole new level of believability. When it comes to materials, KeyShot isn’t quite as advanced as some other rendering packages, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t still able to create some killer materials.
HOW DO I MAKE A REALISTIC JELLY MATERIAL IN BLENDER?
This issue’s Q&A is a real sweet treat, as I’m going to show you how to prepare a realistic jelly material in Blender – you’ll have to provide the strawberries and cream yourself though! This is a relatively straightforward procedural recipe and can be done in three quick minutes.
CRAFT UNIQUE MARIO FAN ART WITH A TEAM
Pejman Rajabi explains how his crew of expert artists put their own twist on a classic video game character
BLEND BUILDINGS AND NATURE IN A PEACEFUL SCENE
Find out how Navid Ahmadi combines a selection of assets from BlenderKit to create an awe-inspiring forest setting