ZSphere-based modelling and rigging with the new Zbrush3 Topology-Featureby Ralf Klostermann (Rastaman), (www.rk-art.de)

This is a first look to one of the new features in ZBrush3 that is almost not documented in the Wiki.

It seems to me that this feature is not already finished because some major things as shown in the preview-video are missing (or I didn't discover them so far) and so Pixologic decided not to support it officially now in this first Release.

This tutorial does not cover or answer all questions and some bugs are still obvious, but it should give you a short step-in and so you are prepared when Pixologic releases it later in the fixed version. However, the sense of this is a feature as shown in the former ZBrush3-sneak-preview-video (from Nov.2004) that you have a skeleton of ZSpheres that you can easily wrap with a topology-mesh and use the ZSphere-Skeleton as a rigg.

Although you can use Zsphere-Modeling in the traditional way via transforming it simply into an Adaptive-Skin mesh, this very cool new feature provides much more flexibility and takes less Zspheres than in the old way to produce a good Base-Mesh for further sculpting and the sweetest goodie of all, you have directly a rigg to pose and deform your new mesh.

So, all in all one of the coolest new features for me in Zbrush 3 and it makes Zsphere-modeling a lot more attractive than before and maybe my favorite way in the future.

So, lets start with the Basics ;)

1) Create a model or better skeleton of ZSpheres just like the ones you use in former Zsphere-Modelling.

In this case, a very simple elephant-head (I know it's quite verrrry simple).

Here is the 'normal' Adaptive-Skin-preview by hitting Hotkey 'a':

If you want to use it as a rigg for the later mesh, you should save it now as a

separate file before you add any topology. You will need it later. ;)

Now, let's do some magic.

First, do this:

2) Under Tools -> Topology -> klick on 'Edit Topology'.

Now your Zsphere-Skeleton becomes a little darker what indicates that Zbrush changed into the topology-modus.

Note: you can later deactivate the 'Edit Topology' at any time to add some more ZSpheres to enhance your Skeleton and then reactivate it to add topology or correct it (see below).

3) in menue 'Transform' activate the Buttons: >X< (for symmetrical models), and the key to it all : Local-Zsphere-Symetry (Local Radial Count-Value determines how many lines will be drawn around the Zsphere-Skeleton).

4) Activate 'Draw'-modus

5) Set your starting-point with Ctrl + klick on the desired start-point on your Zsphere-structure. This step might not be necessary for the first start, but later you will need it if you need to continue from a new point (mostly on complex models), otherwise the topology will produce wired results. (see FAULTS)

6) Klick, release, move a little bit and klick again, and WHOW, a topology around the ZSphere-Skeleton appear.If you need to continue from a different point, repeat Step 5).

The small lines and dots are the topology created from Micro-ZSpheres.

7) Preview the mesh with 'a'

Hint:If you start outside the ZSphere-Skeleton with trying to produce a single Point, the topology will produce later a relatively closed mesh on that point.I will also try to play with some symmetry-settings in the Transform-Menue, mabe it's possible to start with a really closed topology.

On angles always perform Step 5) to start the topology at a new point:

Then the mesh-preview ('a') will look like this:

Also always watch the direction (see the slight variations in the two pictures above) of the connection-lines of the topolgy-mesh, otherwise your resulting mesh might be later distorted.The angle of the connection-lines varies depending on how you position your mouse over the skeleton. Sometimes using the good old mouse instead of the pen is more suitable and leads to better results.

Control often the resulting mesh with the preview-option (Key 'a')

A first result:

For connecting the gaps, turn off all symmetry-Buttons in the Transform-menue and make the rest of the mesh by freehand.Therefore Ctrl + LMB-click a Micro-Sphere of the topology and then the other Microsphere you ike to connect with.

Sometimes it's a little bit difficult to see where a micro-zsphere is, Pixologic should therefore add a highlighting option or so.I tried several materials but it's nearly all the same. In the former sneak-prev.-video the micro-zspheres and connection-lines are clearly to see, so maybe I oversee something in the settings.

The general commands for these freehand-actions are: (Taken from Plakkie's Thread: 'Topology & Flow Lab', you find it under:http://206.145.80.239/zbc/showthread.php?t=44876&page=1&pp=15)

• To add a point: LMB-click on desired spot. • To delete a point: ALT-click on point. • To set a new starting point: CTRL-click on point. • To select a point: LMB-click on the point. • To deselect a point: LMB-click outside your model. • To move points: go from Draw mode to Move mode. • To move more points together: increase the drawsize. • To scale points: go to Scale mode. (works best with larger draw size) • To delete a connection-line without deleting the connected points: insert a new point in the

middle of the line and delete that point.

Extra Info: sometimes certain points won't move at all. Chances are you have accidently masked them. (you can't see this) Unmasking the points makes them move again. (Thomas Mahler)

Unfortunately the hiding-options do not work in this mode so closing the topology on complex and small parts is sometimes a little bit difficult. Here a first look to the semicomplete Mesh after some handwork:

If you like to see the groups Zbrush created automatically, activate 'Frame'

and you will see this:

Some bugs are kicking me right here out of completing the mesh properly.For instance I tried creating a complete mesh-fusion directly in the topology-creating-process at the ear-region, but it left an unconnected upper ear-part that I wanted to close by hand, but somehow ZBrush has lost parts of the topology although it is still there when you preview the mesh.But because these parts are whether visible nor accessible, the work must be left unfinished.No big problem, the intention of this tutorial is only to show the fundamental workflow. So lets handle this model as finished so far and look what ZBrush can do now with it. ;)

Further tipps: - Using the mouse or the touchpad instead of a tablet-pen gives much more stability against distorsions when creating the topology-mesh. Unfortunately, the lazy-mouse does not function in topology-modus.Running into distorsions while creating the mesh easily occurs and is later difficult to repair, so always control where the guide-line (the only connection-line you see between the circular rings) appears. It should best appear as one continous line between the rings.- In case you have to save your work during an unfinished topology-creation and you load it later again and try to continue, you will find that you cannot see any of the newly added topology. To fix this, first clone your model after load and work with the clone. Then all works fine.

8) To use the ZSphere-skeleton as a rig to pose your new mesh, deactivate the button 'Edit Topology' and you can deform (Move, Skale etc.) the Skeleton again. The created topology will follow the Skeleton which akts now as a rigg.

9) After you have finished your topology-mesh, you transfer it via klick on 'Tool -> Adaptive Skin -> Make Adaptive Skin ' into a mesh.

Note that 'Edit Topology' must be deactivated for that.

Now clear the screen and load the former saved ZSphere-Skeleton (that one you saved before applying the topology, you did so ?) as the active tool and scale the ZSpheres somewhat smaller so they fit all inside the new mesh.

Now press 'Tool -> Rigging -> Select' and select your new created mesh (Skin), klick 'Bind' et voilà, your mesh has a cool rigg.

After selecting the Mesh (Skin):

After binding it to the rigg:

You can via deactivation and activation of the Bind-Button (Rigging-Section of Tool-Menue) release the rigg from the mesh, reorient it and reconnect to pose the model.

But this is not the end, you can do so much more after that ..........

Here I released the binding and added and scaled & moved some more ZSpheres to the base-rigg.Bind again. pose and you have this:

Some Faults:

This happens, when you forget to do Step 5) on a place where you must skip some area (like Angles etc.)Here I only continued to klick without performing Step 5)The result looks like this in the mesh-preview ('a'):

First Conclusion

Compared with the extremly cool functions shown in the 2004-sneak-preview-video, this feature seams not to be already fully implemented in this first release of ZBrush3.So I didn't found a way yet to alter the shape of the topology by simply modifying the underlaying Zspheres in the topology-creation-phase. You can do so by deactivating the 'Edit Topology'-function as I wrote in Step 8) , but when you reactivate it, all modifications are gone. So my intentions to shape the ears in this way failed so far.The first activation of 'Edit Topology' seems to freeze in the ZSphere-Skeleton.Also some other functions are missing or I have to explore them in the next time.

So, this tutorial will be updated if something new is found.

Happy ZBrushing,

Ralf

Appendix

Unfortunately the micro-zspheres and their vonnecting lines are very hard to identify with the standard-material and light-settings.

This Picture gives you an idea of what I mean:

So I added a few special material- and light-settings for working with topologys under the thread:

http://206.145.80.239/zbc/showthread.php?t=44876&page=13&pp=15

I currently prefer my Light No.3 in combination with material No.3.

ZBrush didn't save the color-settings within the modified materials (bug ??) . so you have to readjust the color settings to your choice.

Play with the color-sliders (left side, below material).

Good results are: outer slider to blue, inner-slider to left lower part (a grey-tone). That results in a good contrast between a darker Model and allmost white topology-spheres and -lines

Because some shaders only varied in the color-settings, you can delete the double-ones.

Sorry for that.

Ralf

You find this and my other tutorials under:

http://206.145.80.239/zbc/showthread.php?t=46117