Want to know how to place joints correctly? Looking for an explanation for Maya’s skin weighting tools, like the new Geodesic Voxel bind method? Want a cheat sheet for bone placement? Keep reading! Continue reading how to rig in maya: joints & skinning
Reader request: character artist degrees versus portfolio?
From reader Ashan, a question about character artist degrees and portfolio work:
I was hoping you could provide some answers for questions I’ve been having – if I wanted to become a character artist, would a degree in digital art/art be more valuable than a solid portfolio?
So: are character artist degrees more important than a portfolio?
Continue reading Reader request: character artist degrees versus portfolio?
how to keep your artistic momentum going!
When inspiration strikes, getting to work is easy. The idea is fresh, you’re still excited, and you have all sorts of ideas on how exactly to proceed.
But 3D art takes a lot of time, and inspiration passes quickly. How can you make sure to keep your momentum when that eureka moment has passed? Continue reading how to keep your artistic momentum going!
Maya 2016 female head modeling tutorial
Have you noticed that modeling heads and faces is really hard? So have I! Here’s why: Continue reading Maya 2016 female head modeling tutorial
Joints or Blendshapes?
Reader Ric Williams emailed me a raft of questions about animation with blendshapes versus joints, mostly for facial animation. I thought I would post my answers here, as others might find them helpful!
Q1: When is it best to use joints or blendshapes?
Historically, it used to be that blendshapes meant pre-rendered, and joints were used for real-time stuff. Continue reading Joints or Blendshapes?
is a t-pose for characters a good idea?
The common thinking is that starting with a T-Pose for characters is the best way of building a model. However, after years of experience, I don’t use a T-Pose any more. In fact, I think modeling in a T-Pose is a terrible idea, and results in characters that don’t look right or deform correctly. Why?
Continue reading is a t-pose for characters a good idea?
Mudbox tips for beginners
New to Mudbox? Knowing Maya or Max gives you a head start, but like all software, Mudbox has its own quirks.
I’ve assembled this list of Mudbox tips for beginners, based on my experience using the program since version 1. It should help you use the program more effectively! Continue reading Mudbox tips for beginners
Maya 2016 EYES tutorial: EASY EYES!
Welcome to Maya 2016! I’m kicking things off with a tutorial on creating eyes in a really easy way. Get good eyes in like 10 minutes, seriously!
Continue reading Maya 2016 EYES tutorial: EASY EYES!
Mudbox Character Sculpting: bodybuilder
Continuing the bodybuilder series, my Mudbox character sculpting tutorial lays out the process of creating detailed anatomy for a muscular character, a pretty standard piece that should be in every character artist’s portfolio.
Continue reading Mudbox Character Sculpting: bodybuilder
Mudbox texturing tools make photorealism easy
People argue whether Mudbox or ZBrush is best for sculpting – but no one argues about which is the better texture painting package. Mudbox is the best, hands down – and we can use its tool set to create amazing, photoreal textures quickly and easily.
Continue reading Mudbox texturing tools make photorealism easy