Sunday, 2 December 2012

World Building Week 8: Dragon Zbrush

This weeks task is to design a dragon in 2D and then take it forward into a 3D concept using Mudbox / Zbrush or Sculptris. I've decided to tackle Zbrush as i have played around with it before and i prefer it to the other 2 packages. I'm  planning on using Dynamesh and Instert Mesh Tool to create my base and then sculpt  normally with subdivisions to create the details.

Here are my references, i want to make something that is a bit different but also classic, as i need the design process to go quick so that i can have plenty of time to create the 3D version which is the focal point of this task.


And here are some initial sketches:




Currently i think this is my favorite sketch and the route i would like to follow for the overall look. Though i need to explore and refine the anatomy in more detail before i start sculpting.



A friend of mine saw this sketch and thought it was a bit to generic so i decided to do some more sketches and after a few very crappy ones this happened. I messed up the wings on the first one (damn, pen.) so did another version for wing reference. I'm quite pleased with this one although the front legs are a bit dodgey, so i may either edit them in Photoshop or i'll just get sculpting and edit it there.


Here is the final drawing of the dragon, i am going to leave it rough for now as it gives me enough information to start sculpting the design.




A work in progress screenshot of my dragon, roughing out the rough shape of the dragon. At this stage i am using Dynamesh to allow me to stretch the shapes and polys to their extreme limits and then retopologise them so i can continue working, this also allows me to use the instert mesh tools to keep adding new shapes to my mesh. This is a quick way of producing the basic forms. I started with a sphere and everything else is done by just using the move tool to distort the shapes and move the polys around, i haven't sculpted anything yet.


Below is possibly the final base mesh, i think this is the furthest i can take the model without sculpting - i've still only been using the move brush and dynamesh, however it smooths things out too much that it becomes doughy. I'm not too pleased with the front legs from the side view at the moment, i'll need to sort out their posture but otherwise i think i'm ready to start adding in the wings.



Annd the first block in of the wings. I've had a bit of tearing for some reason, the dynamesh didn't do too good of a job clearing it up so i'll have to revisit them soon. Otherwise the base mesh is almost done.



Annnnd the final sculpt. I cut off the bottom of the wings from my base and recreated them without dynamesh to reduce the tearing. I began to sculpt on top using the claytubes brush to build up the forms and then i played around with some alpha maps on the brush to add some surface texture as i went along - i really hate the playdough look it has otherwise. Then just some quick renders to finish it off.

As this was my first time using zbrush properly i learned a lot but could have done a lot of things better and there is still much to learn. I'd definitely like to continue using zbrush for character and creature concepts. I just need to improve my speed and efficiency with it. Plus i MUST use this for a paintover soon so i can test out that workflow.


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