Why THIS is my Favorite Modeling Technique
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- čas přidán 13. 06. 2024
- There's a bunch of methods when it comes to 3D modeling. Now I don't know which is the best, but I do know which is my favorite. And that is SubD modeling. So in this video I'll show you what it is and how to use it for your projects.
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:14 What is Subdivision Modeling?
00:43 Modeling a Die (Dice)
04:07 Modeling a Complex shape
11:17 Technique Overview
12:23 Outro
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Hey, great video, I subdiv think it fell off in popularity a bit a while ago, so it's really nice to see more content on it. There are some things I wanted to mention regarding the subdiv workflow, so I hope I don't come off as rude:
1. One of the biggest pitfalls I had when getting into subdiv modelling was trying to make the base mesh too low poly. This can really hinder modelling later, as you may not want to apply yet, but need more geometry. Having a base mesh that reasonably closely resembles the subdivided result is better most of the time, ideally with even topology. Although, for creating smooth forms initially, a low poly base is much easier to work with. When working with higher poly models, it's helpful to know how to manipulate denser geometry. Tools that work well for this include proportional editing, loop tools modifier (relax, flatten, space, Gstretch), shrinkwrap modifier, and careful selections.
1a. Using booleans to generate the base mesh, then doing some cleaning to make it work is a very good workflow and applicable to all kinds of hard surface forms. It makes generating complex forms a lot faster and easier. To facilitate this, a higher poly count for the booleaned mesh is better because it makes cleaning easier, this also extends to the cutting object. Finding the right balance of density is the tricky part, but I think if the average edge length on both objects is the same it's more likely to work. Of course, it's likely there will still be ngons in most cases.
2. NGons are not as bad as you might think, in fact, they can actually be quite helpful - triangles too. The general case where both are acceptable is on flat surfaces, which are already supported by edge loops. On those surface, you can basically do whatever you want if it's not going to deform, whether it's 30 sides ngons, triangles all over, there will be no shading or smoothing problems. Another property ngons have is how they smooth, generally all the edges when subdivided form a concave shape, which can actually wrap around forms and function effectively as a support loop, see: www.artstation.com/artwork/0n93EV for examples. When subdivided, ngons are also converted into quads, same for triangles. Still use quads primarily, but don't discount ngons.
3. Maintaining edge flow is a must, but you should also know when to terminate them. Usually, edge loops are terminated on flat faces, which is why you see many ngons and triangles on flat faces with subdiv modelling. Terminating edges makes the mesh a lot tidier and easier to work on.
4. Creases are very useful, it can be helpful to fully crease any edges you don't want smoothed when applying subdiv to step up the poly count. Creasing can be useful in conjunction with support loops if an edge needs to be a little sharper, and you can't be bothered to move the edges, easier to select too. For the latter purpose, a value of 0.3 or less maintains some smoothness, anything higher generally ends up either too sharp or fully sharp.
5. FOR ANYONE ATTEMPTING SUBDIV IMPORTANT NOTE. DISABLE "LIMIT SURFACE IN THE MODIFIER". THIS OPTION COMES WITH A MASSIVE PERFORMANCE COST AND BARELY DOES ANYTHING. It calculates the position of subdivided points at infinite subdivision levels, which makes the mesh very, very, very slightly smoother (it's almost unnoticeable to the naked eye).
Anyway, these are just some things I wanted to point out, I hope it's helpful.
Commenting to pin this reply, thank you for the tips
These are amazing additions! Thanks a lot for the in-depth comment. I’ve pinned it so everyone can see these great extra tips and insights!
@@KaizenTutorials Thank you, I'm glad they're useful. I know when I was learning it, these were some of the best tips I picked up.
came here to say the crease thing; supporting loops are unnecessary most of the time if you're using edge creases (and vertex creases introduced recently)
@@Glant418 Hi, just wanted to say about using creases. I'm not saying use both all the time, just suggesting it if you need a little more sharpness, but it's too difficult to move the support loops for whatever reason. You can use creases on the desired edge as well to sharpen it a bit more, is the gist of what I mean to say.
Also, creases have problems with uneven geometry, particularly low density geometry. It's fine if you use full sharpness values (1.0), but lower values (
Hi, I'm a designer who designed the UVC sterilizer. I'm so glad my work is used as an example of modeling! I hope you all the best :)
Hi! Thanks a lot for your work. It's a very clean and stylish design. I hope you don't mind me using it as an example! All the best to you too :-)
Fantastic work Mint!
Thank you for your generosity. This seems to be rare these days. Appreciated!
Quick tip when modeling a die, numbers on opposite faces sum up to 7 (6+1, 3+4, 5+2). Great work ! Thanks :)
I was about to say that because part of my brain started screaming when he did 5 opposite 3.
@therealquade so I'm not the only one 🤣
I did not realize that! Thanks for pointing that out! You learn something new every day!
At least he called it "a die" and not "a dice".
Oopsie 💩
Don't wanna be that guy, but the pips on opposite sides should add up to 7, and you have a 3-5 pair and a 2-4 pair...
Lol oops! But uhm… this is a very special die for special types of games 🥸🤪
@@KaizenTutorials By the way… It’s a dice 😉
@@blenderpete No. Die is singular, dice is plural. I realize most people these days don't really bother with that anymore and just use dice in general, but die is absolutely correct usage of English. Give it another 100 years and maybe nobody will understand die anymore (and be really confused by the Caesar quote), but right now it's still perfectly valid.
Thank you
@@blenderpete die or dice, they’re both the same-ish, but dice is just more commonly used now
I have watched a lot of people who do tutorials and you are by far one of the clearest when explaining your process and the reasons you chose to do it they way that you did. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!
Wow, thank you! That's a lot of praise. Glad you think my style of teaching is clear!
Contradictory advice: Use as much geometry as necessary and don't rely too much on the "effect" of subdivision. It's meant for polishing good work, not doing the work for you.
Polygons with more than 4 sides are sometimes essential to allow you to have polygons with only 4 sides in the most important areas.
If the surface is completely flat you can have as many n-gons as you want, nobody will notice.
Sometimes a 5-sided face gives the exact curvature you want.
Good advice! It’s not all set in stone. I feel like the info in the vid is aimed towards beginners mostly and there’s tons more you can do with the techniques once you become more used to it.
About ngons, it realy depend on the type of production your are working on. If your element will be distorted by animators or fx artists, ngons are too unpredictable, and you never know how far they will deform your mesh, so you better be safe and never use ngons. Also, blender is very good with ngons, but if you use another software for rendering, things might not be as nice
Depends. If you primarily make game assets like I do you'll want to be conscious of your poly count and avoid unnecessary polygons where possible. If you are making objects for renders then go wild.
You can always apply a subdiv. Then, it is just a help to get to a similar stopping point.
Bottom line: if you know what you are doing, NGons are perfectly fine.
Some common first-time issues/errors new modellers make, is using too many polygons and edge loops in places where they aren't required, which ends up overcomplicating the model and making adjustments later on borderline impossible without compromising the surface quality. This is why pre planning gets increasingly important even on relatively simple objects, and once you get experience with it you find out you can often save a lot of time and complexity and still achieve the same (or sometimes better) results.
As someone who started out exclusively with SubD and then dabbled with Low Poly, I now use a fair blend of both as this enables a lot of time saving and improves general quality where it matters, while making complex objects/scenes less demanding at the same time. If we are talking about object/industrial design for example, usually the best results are achieved by creating a very accurate high-quality hard-poly model that you then subdivide and use SubD's powers for details and final touchup - but to achieve this workflow it's important to know the strengths and weaknesses of both modelling techniques and have experience with how they play together.
That's why I will never say I have a favorite modelling technique, because in my experience the best "technique" is a hybrid of multiple methods that can lean more in one direction or the other depending on the task at hand. For good UV material mapping it might be a benefit to go more heavily into hard-poly modelling first before using SubD, but can also demand more time and precision - so it's about figuring out your end goal and what tradeoffs enable the best quality and the most efficient workflow. Both of which are a never ending journey of improvement :)
Thanks for the in depth comment! Good tips in here and I can agree on a hybrid being best for most scenarios. 🤗
@@KaizenTutorials I'm glad I could add some tips to your great video, it's nice to see this topic being shared more :) Cheers
1:26 We can't just ignore the fact that Kaizen drew an incredible circle right here.
With a mouse nonetheless, haha! Thanks for noticing ;-)
Love your energy in all your vids. Thanks for the helpful vids you make, keep doing what you're doing 👏
I appreciate that! Thanks :-D
Great video! You explained the process of subD very well and it was a big help in understanding the ins and outs of the process!
Thanks, appreciate it!
8:46 A faster way to get rid of NGon Faces is to just inset it and after that selecting all Edges around the hole and search for Grid Fill. Sometimes you need to use the offset slider here to make it right but its way faster then the knife ;)
That's a good tip! Thing is it's ususally not as clean in my opinion and that bothers my very mild OCD when it comes to these things lol
and use j shortcut between two vertices instead of knife
i was wondering the same thing! for inset
anyways nice tutorial @kaizen
Your video editing is immaculate! good work
Thank you! 😊
Awesome! I used this modifier to make buses, it helped me a lot! Drawing the base mesh and later applying the subsurf and making cuts. So it gets very close to the real models.
Great to hear! Yeah I agree, the subdiv makes for great modeling results.
This is EXACTLY what I was looking for! Thank you!
That’s awesome, thanks!
Nice tut, I keep learning things and tricks all the time.
Great to hear, thanks!
Nice bro! super satisfying to see you working!
Thank you!
Man, I watch this video alot times, and I learn with this! For me this is the most important tutorial ever on CZcams for Blender!!! We can make everything with this!!! GREAT SKILLS!!! THX ALOT!
Wow, thanks a lot!
You can use edge creases to avoid adding more loops to strenghten angles
Yeah exactly! I mention it at the end! But I do think it’s not an easy tool and it can be a lot of trial and error. I prefer bevel modifier and giving edges bevel weight!
Creases don't work quite like edge loops. Loops cuts can extend a straight line closer to a corner before it starts to curve. With creases, the line will begin to curve from the last edge loop, even if by just a little.
When avoiding ngons, I like using x to bring up delete options, and selecting collapse edges at certain parts of asymmetry. Also helps you see possible edgegflows/ loop cuts to make.
Good tip, thanks!
Great tips fam.
Surprised I wasn't already subscribed to the channel. Been watching your tutorials for a long time😂
Keep up the good work👍🚀
Thank you! Appreciate the sub and you watching the vids. 💪
I like how this guy is responding to comments talking about the method and as a beginner at blender this method is very easy to understand
Thank you, I appreciate that!
So glad this is out!
Thanks 🙌🏻
i knew when i started learning blender that sub surf. modelling is helpful in many ways but this video will clear the basics of sub surf 🖤🖤 & ur tips is good 👍
Great to hear, thanks!
Great video, thanks a lot!
Thank you!
Thanks for the tutorial!
No problem!
Nice Video again. I really like your clips. Another tip for connecting vertices on ngons to create new faces without the knife tool is to select 2 vertices and just press "j" (join) (or ctr+j. When things get into my musclememory i forget what im actually doing). This will create an edge between those vertices and split the face in two faces. If there are edges inbetween it will also create new vertices on that edges.
Thank you and thanks for the great tip, cool!
amazing tutorial i learned a lot :D
Glad to hear it, thanks!
Very useful tips. Thanks!
Glad it was helpful!
Modeling habit is nice. Subscribed.
Thank you!
Great video! And good tip about avoiding *any* n-gons especially with subdivision modifier. I've previously assumed that using n-gons on perfectly flat areas would be okay but I guess that can cause artefacts, too.
No you're actually right. I over exaggerated the NGON thing a little lol. NGONS on flat surfaces are in fact not an issue! Especiually if you ad a Weighted Normals modifier.
really nice tutorial thank you very much! :)
You're very welcome!
you are my motivation thank you bro
Wow, thank you!
pure and clean
Nice i have been starting with blender a months ago and today i learnt a lot with this video.
Happy to hear it! It’s not all set in stone but this is a good starting point I think :-)
Adding triangles in your pips will result in a better rounded shape. You can do this by insetting the faces needed to make the pip, join both corners to make a vertice in the middle then bring individually scale the middle vertice normals. In some cases, triangles are better to use than quads.
Awesome, good to know!
I'm always baffled how many CZcams tutors don't use Alt+E to extrude along face normals when creating things like those thin crevices. At least you then use Alt+S to shrink it, where others just scale down with S and manually adjust to get it somehow done...
Tbh I didn’t know that, so thanks haha. I did know about the extrude along normals tool in the tool menu. But I can’t be bothered selecting it. So this is a neat solution to that problem!
That's horrifying
what is?
The method he explained, It was a joke that's all 😅
Ooh haha cool!
Just to add, we can control which edges get smooth and how smooth by giving different crease values or marking as sharp.
Also, we can tell each face's normals if they are gonna be flat or smooth, and if smooth, tell'em to smooth from a corner, from the center, from an arbitrary point, or even inverse, or even smooth out based on adjacent faces or individualy.
Adding edge loops works great, but it's extra geometry. Messing with vertex, edge and face values can lead to a very light model with lots of depth and minimal tri count
Yeah you’re right. I actually like to use a bevel modifier with weight limit and then give edges bevel weight. This does add geometry but it works great!
I tried to model using subdiv for three years but damn, booleans are much more of my vibe. My subdiv models just ended up looking like clay clumps barely resembling the actual object.
Hey, whatever works for you! I think finding a method which feels intuitive and smooth to you is more important than doing what people say you should do. The right workflow is the one you enjoy as it makes you the most productive and happy!
great video!
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks!
Huh, neat. It seems that I basically discovered this method from the base principles. I've never seen anybody use it in any of the guides and vids I see around but I ended up using it myself. Honestly kinda fascinating.
Same! I started doing it myself aswell. It feels natural right?!
Hey! I developed this technique/style on my own a few years ago, and I finally started enjoying modelling. I feel very validated in using it. You had some nice pointers, so this video enhanced my technique. One thing I want to add; if vert/face count matter, you can use the decimate modifier on planar mode! It's usually a little finnicky, and it'll sometimes screw up your uvs, but when it works well you can end up cutting the model size in half without sacrificing any detail, because subd usually makes a lot of redundant planar faces.
Thanks and good tip!
Thats some good shit!!
Thx😌
Thank you!
10:03 dude, I had no idea english wasn't your first language! Incredible work
Hahah thanks, appreciate that! Glad to hear it's not that bad lol, but no I'm from the Netherlands, so Dutch is my first language.
I usually don't do subd because it ends up adding in detail where you don't need it. Selective bevelling is much more surgical in adding detail where it's needed, and you can work with n-gons.
Selective bevelling is definitely a good way to add detail without adding too much geo! 💪🏻
I really like watching nutty tutorials by people who are more knowledgeable than me.
thank you
No problem!
As a senior CGI artist, SubD model is reasonably useful for animations, but other than that it's just way timeconsuming, that's why game artists have switched to Zbrush sculpt to create their high polys, or in other fields they will use Fusion 360 or other CAD applications since it will result in a much faster iteration without worrying about pinching and perfect topology.
I can relate, it might not be the optimal workflow anymore. But I do feel that doing what you like/works best for you is more sensible as it will increase your output anyways.
But yeah I agree there might be more specialized alternatives out there!
But you still have to convert your ZBrush sculpt to a proper mesh for use in the final result, and then all the problems come back, don’t they?
@@lawrencedoliveiro9104 Not entirely, if you are just looking to render a still image, a Zbrush sculpt would take slightly more but as long as you can shade it correctly, it should be fine. Many concept designers bring their sculpt in Keyshot for the final render.
This is my favourite modelling technique as well. As soon as I went through Anvil tutorials by Blender Guru, I never went back to any other modelling. I can not stand messed up mesh with all possible polygon types.
Facts!
I've subdiv modelled for years in 3ds Max, I guess I was modelling before boolean modelling was as popular as it is now. I relish good topology that unwraps well, subdivides well etc. I think it makes a good artist who can make air tight geometry that's quite flexible with all the foresight needed to make great models.
I agree!
Thank you sir😊
You are most welcome! :-)
Thanks
Welcome!
The biggest challenge with this technique, is having sharp concave corners in smooth round surfaces (pinching galore). It requires you to model in stages, low, then mid, then high, once you are in high and you commit to that curvature, your only option is to go back to your mid level or low poly copy of your model and start from there if you were to make any major changes to your mesh
Very true! It’s not easy perse, haha
maybe i'm not understanding what you mean, but why arent you just using Edge Crease? the stronger the value the sharper the edge? there are limitations but it offers quite a bit of control.
@@merlindraws3616 don’t think you quite get it. I’m not sure how that conflicts with what I said. I use edge creasing all the time. Also use bevel modifier with profile of 1 for a better more accurate edge. What I’m saying is when you use any sharp concave edges in smooth rounded surfaces, you still need quite a lot of resolution/poly count for you not to get pinching or shading artifacts
great video sir
Thanks!
On the second model, I was stuck in the bevel step because I was getting vertices with large gaps. The problem was I didn't "apply the transforms" after the scaling of the plane. Use ctrl+A and select apply all transforms if you run into this problem. Hope it helps.
Apply scale is the fix to most of modeling issues in Blender, lol! Glad you got it solved.
@@KaizenTutorials Yeah. It took me an hour and a nap to figure this out 😅
Zooming out and doing something else can really help in problem solving. 💪🏻
@@KaizenTutorials so true 😂
thanks a lot!
I've been modelling wrong this whole time lol god damn, I learned this shit at uni and never had it explained as well as this, great work mann and thanksss
Haha thanks, appreciate it
thanks a lot
You are most welcome
you videos are yum yum and good
Haha thank you! 🙏🏻
Here's a tip to speed up knife cutting select 2 vertices that are across from each other and press J it will cut directly through any other edges on the same plane and connect the selected vertices as well
Cool! Thanks for the tip.
I don't know if anyone has said it before, but when you make a dice it's easy to figure out which sides have to face each other because the opposite sides always have to be 7, so 2 compared to 5, 1 compared to 6 and 3 compared to 4
So I've learned haha
THIS MAN REALLY DESERVES BIIG SUPPORT FOR THIS AMAZING TUTO.
Haha thank you, appreciate that!
@@KaizenTutorials
yes man have more than 6 years in 2d graphic design, but i want to learn more 3d , and i watch almost all CZcams tutos. but your way to deliver information is the best 👌❤️🙏
Really nice video, I model products for manufacture. While I wouldn't use blender to model anything precisely for my work. I do have a tip for modelling in blender for a realistic and accurate result. Imagine how you would make the product in a workshop. Most manufacturing processes are reductive processes (material is removed from a larger piece to form the shape you want). So use this principle as much as possible. that way you can get a more realistic looking object and it will force you to model more precisely, giving those smooth surfaces and line that come manufacturing methods :)
Nice one, thanks for sharing your tips!
10:56 you can also do "Alt+E" and select "extrude along normals" in one step.
True! I forgot to do that here.
I use ngons all the time when subdiv modelling. The idea is to not have them around surfaces that change rapidly (curved surfaces, edges, etc) because the result of the subdivision will not be clean. You can get away and you will have to get away with ngons on flat surfaces if you plan on modelling anything complex.
Very true! Just hard to grasp as a beginner, so i decided to advise not to use them!
When I think of smooth object modeling, I think of NURBS (None Uniform Rational B-Splines). It is basically splines (curves) with 3D features. It's a older system, but I wonder if it is still used. Blender still has them as object types.
Yeah I've never really understood Nurbs. They are indeed still in Blender... but can't find much about them, nor any tutorials.
Gosh blender is such a trip, this is kind of the regular way you’d model in maya, but always trying to keep the topology even throughout the model.
I think most modeling techniques will be similar in most 3D softwares
About 5:34 I could never get the bevel to work the way I want it on any project I have ever done. It's like driving a car with bad wheel alignment. It's easier for me to manually plot the vertices, unless there's something I am missing there with that bevel. Also Inset is a mess for me too at 6:28, I have to manually adjust the top and bottom curves to make it even looking.
Sorry to hear that! The issues you’re facing sound like they might be scaling issues. have you applied the scale of your object? Ctrl+a and apply scale fixes most issues in blender.
Just an FYI for the more you know, opposite sides of die always add up to 7. You've got one that adds to 7 but the other two add to 8 and 6 respectively =D
Haha yep, I learned that after posting this vid as a lot of people told me that in the comments. Whoops!
Very cool!!❤❤❤💪💪💪👍👍👍👍❤❤❤
Thank you!
"add in a cube" adds in a plane and turns it into a cube.
😎
1:37 I've seen others say it's okay to create ngons, as long as they're handled right or are somewhere you won't notice them
Youre right! I was wrong and now learned that ngons are fine in certain situations
@@KaizenTutorials Nice good to know
at 11:00 you could also select the faces and press alt + E to extrude along normals.
Good tip, thanks!
I expect more like this please ❤
Noted! 💪🏻🙏🏻
you can't get perfect circle with only 4 vertices. minimum is 6, but the most better option by my opinion is 8 verts. you have just simply subdivide it from W menu. it will keep your corners sharp, only mesh will be densed with one iteration. after you have every poligon divided so you can select every four polygons and inset them with equal inset by some initial value. after with loop tools make them circle. in the circle command checkbox -> radius and adjust radius, then extrude every selected rounded polygons by normal Alt + E (extrude faces along normal). After extrude you have selected faces and you have to assign to them material, after invert selection and assign another material. Apply bevel modifier with 2 loop cuts by angle 60deg. To Make cube borders smother select this edges and from Ctrl + V smooth vertcies with 2 iterations. P.S. Was an addon called Perfect Shape and with this you would not have to do insent, extrude. it remembers your operations. you have to watch it on youtube videos how it works.
Yeah they're not perfect by any means, but I feel like the actual pips on a Die aren'either haha. Still good to know you need atleast 6 verts. Thanks for sharing your experience!
well done :)
Thank you
Thanks I learned a lot here, I knew few things about this technique, but now I upgraded a lot. BTW I don't like the loud music on the end of the video :)
Noted on the music and thanks glad you found the video useful.
i use a lot of engons in sub D modeling, you can use them in planar faces whit the support loops
True, i kinda went overboard with the ngon fear train here haha
@@KaizenTutorials ajajaj what i love to do is to take my low poly mesh, disolve all the edges that dont affect the form, then i just inset all the planar faces, add the bevel (weight or angle) and then the subd and some creases or support loops, then you can add the remesh modifier whit the smooth option, and after that you can add the corrective smooth whit only smooth selected
Hey, I’m here to give an advice who want to make low poly models with subd modifiers:
If you feel like your model looks mid/high poly, just delete some edges that are necessary and don’t affect the model that much.
Good tip
Reminds me of gradient mesh in illustrator.
Subdivision surface reminds you of that?
@@KaizenTutorials Yes, especially how you were subdividing the different areas to better determine what happened inside. And how you made the thin lines for the detailing reminded me of the detailing on the Coca-Cola can project in design school.
should i sharp edges by adding loop cuts or by increaseing the crease value?
You can do either or both. Creases don't add additional geo, so if you want to keep the mesh lower poly for as long as possible creases are the way to go. Adding loop cuts is more intuitive to me and gives more flexibility I think. I generally model things without caring about polycount anyway!
Very nice video. Found one mistake in the dice. The sum of the opposite sides of the dice in must equal 7. Everything else is just great.
Haha yeah oops 🤓 thanks though, appreciate it!
some like sculpting, some like hand craft, but In the end a good modeler is the one that make model that have a good optimized topology
Yeah I think that's true
love the editing style ... feels like smeaf's
Thank you! Yeah me and smeaf talk a lot. I try to keep it my own but adding in some fun elements and such makes the overall video a bit more enjoyable i think. And they say; make videos you would wanna watch haha
@@KaizenTutorials I love the sound design. what do you type in the search bar, when looking for those SFX? Also, it would be amazing if artlist or epidemic sound would allow people to create playlists of their editing style and provide the ability to share those playlists with the rest the world. 😍😍😗
I use some weird hybrid that does not use any method 100%. I generally use simple shapes and their parts combined together alongside hand bevel and bevel modifiers. That being said, I started learning around 4-5 years ago so I can predict how everything will look way before I even start. I honestly stopped using concept art a long time ago and prefer to do everything straight in Blender. Outside of that, I just check the geometry in Unreal to see if everything works properly (I am a level designer...) and if it does then I just make a finished asset and replace the test one. I was told that it is a bit weird method but it works perfectly and the geometry is good whilst having generally low to mid poly count and rarely requiring re-topology after everything is done. I am happy with it but will try out this method just to see what I can incorporate into what I already know. I probably do the things the way I do since I never had a structured way of learning so it is possible that I am missing a lot of basics, so I am spending my time going over a bunch of that kid of stuff to see what I am missing and how to improve. This was an awesome video, I learned a lot of things from your "How to make EEVEE look better in 10 MINUTES!" video since I generally make assets and do not bother with actual renders, only baking. Anyways, thanks for taking the time to go over everything, this is an awesome community and I love it because of the people like you! Have a good one
I think Hybrid is the best either way. I just like subd the most. Like you said when you;ve gotten enough experience most of it plays out in your head anyways. Thanks for the kind words and happy Blending! 🙌
@@KaizenTutorials And to you too and thanks for your hard work! Really like your stuff!
Thank you!
Not true about n-gons. N-gons on flat surfaces are never a problem. N-gons are also not a problem in many other situations, depending on what you're aiming for. Sometimes n-gon joint doesn't look bad after subd and guess what - it means it just doesn't look bad and you can leave it as is.
If you can isolate n-gons from the subdivided geometry and it's flat surface then yeah, not only is it not an issue but it can actually save you a crap load of memory. Yeah, a mesh with neat topology looks cool but it ain't the most optimised thing, so to speak. The only issue is it can potentially affect shading, like how the reflections stretch and stuff so you need to keep it in mind and correct it where possible.
Yeah that’s true. It’s just that when done incorrectly it gives a bunch of issues, so my general advice is; stand clear from them! 😅
lol @ 0:53 "a die already resembles a cube, so it makes sense to start off with that."
Then proceeds to add a plane and extrude it up into a cube.
🎲😂
Inset is something that shouldn't be used in subdivision modeling. Instead you need to create supporting edges. Difference is that inset will leave you with 1 square in the middle, surrounded by 4 trapezoids. Instead you want 1 square in the middle, 4 rectangles surrounding it, and 4 squares on the corners, which is the proper skeleton mesh for a dice. The closest tool in most software to achieve a better supportive mesh (apart from manually slicing) would be the chamfer tool, not the inset tool.
Hmm ok! Good to know. 👍🏻
can SDM be deformed with rigging, or displacement maps? how big of an impact on render time is SDM? are there situations where SDM a bad idea?
Yes it can be deformed just fine, as long as your geometry is clean the subdiv workflow is actually perfect for it I think.
SDM impacts rendertime as it adds geometry. Taking the subdiv up to level 10 will get you millions of poly’s and slow down your renders or even crash Blender. But if done correctly it shouldn’t pose too much of an issue for engines such as EEVEE and Cycles.
I don’t think there’s any situations where it’s bad, but for some things it’s just not ‘the way to go’. Characters are usually done using box modeling and sculpting e.g. subdiv is an option. But not optimal I think!
I think this can be made with a lot less geometry. And it needs to be kept in mind that with more geometry, more storage is used, more RAM and VRAM is used, and overall, the simpler your model, the better... even if it ends up being a really dense mesh.
However, overall this is quite a good tutorial! Topology can be quite a complex thing to master, but I think this is a good starting point for newbies!
Yea you could make this thing in half the time with 3x fewer polygons at least - but it works fine for a tutorial that can be put to use on many objects. People will learn with experience what is needed, usually it comes down to pre planning and having an idea of how you want to construct your object, before you start working on it. Usually less experienced people will not be well versed in pre planning yet
Thank you! It's not perfect by any means. To be honest I've redone the design again and never applied the modifier, but instead I used a bevel modifier with weigth as the setup and gave edges a bevel weight, which really reduced the overall mesh denisty and polycount. But as you also correctly stated this is more or less an introduction, with some examples and especially aimed towars beginners! :-)
Exactly! This is a simple showcase. I think when you start doing the same object a bunch of times, you'll find better and new ways of getting a result EVERY time. It's just a lot of trial and error with this method! But that's honestly part of why I like it. There's lots to learn and get better at!
Dense meshes seem to be quite common these days. Robert Rioux, over on his “Blender Bob” channel, has one video where he is messing about with a 100-million-polygon mesh in Blender, and it is still responding in real time.
He also said that GPU rendering just can’t cope with that kind of thing. That’s why they stick with CPU rendering.
Yeah and new features such as Nanite don’t really care about the millions either, not even with GPU
1:35 that was scary😂 btw can we take a moment to appreciate the fact that being a CZcamsr with more than 100k subs this guy still manages to respond to each comment?
Eeeyoooo! I try my very best to do that haha, sorry for the scare 🤗
i like sud div modeling the only problem i have with it is when your model starts to get complex and have a bunch of modeled in detail, the model gets very messy and in makes it harder to adjust parts of the model later. im currently modeling a robot head that has a bunt of modeled in detail like panel lines, vents and other fun robot stuff but the model is soooooo cluttered in spots especially near edges that i wanted to have sharper corners. i like subdiv modeling but it can get really messy.
Yeah, that's why it's something that really takes some practice. Getting the right density and levels of subdiv to get a good result without making your PC and renders slow can be a bit of trial and error.
06:50 & 07:15 In this case it's probably easier to just select two vertices and press "j" to join them by an edge instead of using the knife tool ;)
I learned that a short while ago haha, nice! Thanks
Could you do a video on character creation using this method?
I have very little experience in character creation, but I'll not it down for future reference :-)
Great video. Takes me back to when I was a beginner & everything was subD'd to the max, shade smoothed & rendered out at 500 samples & then wondering why it took a week to render !
Oh how we learn 😆
Have a great day 👍🏼🦘
Hahaha in my early days I crashed Blender a lot cranking up those subdiv levels 💪🏻🤪
Thanks again Nigel!
@@KaizenTutorials Me too, I think we all did trying to achieve that perfect smooth render. 😆 O' how we learn by our mistakes 👍🏼🦘
@@nigellill3222 I don't want to learn by my mistakes, I want to learn to avoid mistakes by watching other people make mistakes! 🤣 Hm, video idea maybe 🤔 🤓
Nice vid. As a game dev, sub-d modeling is sadly just such a hassel. I try to do as much as possible without it. Sub-d is both resource expensive, and makes cad equivalent models annoying to make.
Though you must use sub-d on a lot of things. The annoying part of a polygon based program is that you need polys to do stuff. And a lot of things require a ton of polys. Which always is a hassel to go in and optimize after the model is done.
Yeah that’s true! It’s better suited for non-game style product stuff where optimization is not crucial at all.
Although UE 5’s nanite system might make short work of that statement. It loves high poly stuff haha
@@KaizenTutorials I use nanite. It helps a lot with the optimization process. I just wish more projects used it. A lot of the time most projects are not done in unreal. As well as having pretty restrictive resource and time limits.
Blender still suffers from a lack of parallax occlusion mapping resources. Which yet again makes the job a hassel. I overall prefer blender to any cad or 3d software. Its overall a near 1 stop shop for me.
Hopefully one day it'll be the 1 stop shop for everyone in 3D. It has the potential I think!
Great video! Subdivision surface is really useful, but do you have a video how subdivision surfaced models could be rendered and prepaired to be useful in game, or animation? I'm not an expert in Blender, but i would like to know how you solve these topology problems on mashes like these in this video. I know that there is so much solutions, but i like how you explaining stuff, so i would be happy to see your video about that subject. :)
Thanks! I have a video on how to create game assets in Blender. This isn't exactly what you're looking for, but it goes over taking a high-poly mesh (like the subd model) and creating a lowpoly mesh and making that game-ready. Check it out here; czcams.com/video/vMQROGrJiF4/video.htmlsi=ZkiRB9HV_AI7OZD2
@@KaizenTutorials Thank you! ♥️
Opposite sides of a die always equal 7, so 3 goes across from 4, 6 goes across from 1, etc.
So I've learned since posting this video 😂
Very cool technique and I'm looking forward to experimenten with it. However, when you look at dice, notice that when adding the numbers on each opposing side, they will always add to 7. So, opposite from 4 is 3, 5 is 2 and 6 is 1. 🤓
Haha yeahm thanks! That's something I kinda knew but forgot when modeling this thing.
@@KaizenTutorials Don't worry about it! Just remember it when you're modelling fuzzy dice hanging on a rearview mirror!
At 5:12 I can't get my bevels to look like his. I'm using only 2 segments, but my vertices are staying more towards the middle almost making a diamond shape. How can I make them stay towards the end like his and make the shape more rounded?
That's probably a scaling issue. Leave Edit Mode, select the mesh, hit CTRL + A and apply the Scale. That should fix the issue!
Which software do you use for thumbnails?
Good 'ol Photoshop.
...and there was me thinking ngons were ok on subdivided models because it converts it to quads. I do generally try to avoid using them, but sometimes I just cant find any way to do it without.
another problem for me is I model for games, so Im always conscious of the poly count which makes me not want to add more geometry that I might actually need, which also bugs me when I want to flatten an edge, it feels daft that it makes it higher poly when you want it flatter instead of smoother
Yeah! There’s definitely always a challenge in deciding what’s best. I think NGONs have a place, but for beginners they’re bad haha