3D Creative September 2015

121
Issue 121 | September 2015
Ruben Alvarez shares an

insight into concept art for
the entertainment industry
+plus
Crafting vibrant cartoon characters

Abstract images with Houdini
Sci-fi creations in ZBrush
Real-time environment assets
Create realistic facial expressions
and much more!
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121
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Editors letter
Welcome to 3dcreative issue 121!

Thanks to everyone who checked out our free issue last
month! We hope you enjoyed it. If you missed it, you can find
the direct download on our shop page.
MARISA LEWIS
Junior Editor
This months issue is crammed with variety: from colorful

cartoons and ZBrush robots to Houdini abstracts and toothy
dinosaur-dragons, weve got something for everybody! We
interview Teodoru Badiu and Ruben Alvarez about their
inspiring careers, learn how to sculpt facial expressions with
Djordje Nagulov, create abstract Houdini artwork with Niels
Prayer, troubleshoot 3D printer problems with James W. Cain,
and much more.
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Contributors
TEODORU BADIU
Teodoru Badiu is an illustrator, character designer
and 3D artist based in Vienna, Austria. He works with
a wide variety of media to create his illustrations, from
photography to 3D.
MORTEN JGER
Morten Jger is a Danish CG artist who works as a
modeler in the heart of London. His images consist of
everything from realistic sculptures to stylized creatures
and characters.
RICHIE MASON
Richie J. Mason is a freelance character and asset artist
for videogames, movies and short films. Hes 30 years
old and lives in Cambridge, UK, and shares his ZBrush
sketchbook with us.
PIERRE ROGERS
Pierre Rogers is a freelance 3D character artist, designer
and instructor from Chicago, United States. He is driven
by his love for videogames, and an unhealthy amount of
energy drink.
JAMES W. CAIN
James W. Cain is a 3D artist and sculptor with a focus
on 3D printing, primarily using ZBrush and MODO. Hes
a freelance graphic designer by trade, and is based in
Maidstone in the south east UK.
RUBEN ALVAREZ
Ruben Alvarez Arias is a freelance concept artist
currently based in the Netherlands, working on some
unannounced projects for the entertainment industry,
and teaching at the University Camilo Jose Cela.
EMILIE STABELL
Emilie Stabell is a CG artist from Denmark, currently
working at Media Molecule in Guildford. She specializes
in modeling, sculpting and texturing. She prefers stylized
work over realism, and loves working with color.
MATTHEW TREVELYAN JOHNS

Matthew Trevelyan Johns has been passionate about
videogame content for a long time. From humble
beginnings making Call of Duty mods over 12 years ago,
hes now a senior environment and vehicle artist.
DJORDJE NAGULOV
Djordje Nagulov is a freelance artist currently residing
in Serbia. He is an experienced modeler who also does
some light rigging on the side for Loudworks. He shows
how to create realistic expressions.
NIELS PRAYER
Niels Prayer has worked as FX supervisor and creative
director at SUPAMONKS Studio since 2014, after working
at Illumination Mac Guff and Framestore in 2013. He lives
in Paris, France, and loves creating abstract pieces.
JOSHUA WU
Joshua Wu is a 21-year-old 3D character artist . He
studied at 3dsense Media School in 2014, and is now
working at Batavian Studio in Indonesia. In June 2015 he
won a Highly Commended Artist award from Autodesk.
Junior Editor
Marisa Lewis
marisa@3dtotal.com
Sub-editor
Adam Smith
Graphic Designers
Matthew Lewis
Aryan Pishneshin
Advertising Manager
George Lucas
george@3dtotal.com
Studio Manager
Simon Morse
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006
Contents Issue 121

006_ Art Gallery
10 of the most inspiring 3D images from the world of

CG, hand-picked just for you!
026_ Mastering concept design
Ruben Alvarez shares an insight into concept art for the

entertainment industry
036_ Crafting vibrant cartoon characters
Visit the colorful world of 3D illustrator Teodoru Badiu

and his exciting cartoons
046_ Having fun with character concepts

Discover Morten Jger and Emilie Stabells new
collaborative project
052_ Sci-fi creations in ZBrush
Richie Mason reveals his hard-surface ZBrush

sketchbook designs
062_ Troubleshooting for the Form 1+
James W. Cain offers help and advice for 3D SLA

printing on the Form 1+
070_ Real-time environment assets
Learn how to sculpt a rocky canyon in ZBrush with

Matthew Trevelyan Johns
082_ Sculpt a sci-fi cartoon character
Create colorful sci-fi sculpts in ZBrush with Pierre

Rogers guide
092_ Create realistic facial expressions
Learn how to model expressive faces with Djordje

Nagulovs tutorial
102_ Abstract images with Houdini
Discover how Niels Prayers creates abstract images

with Houdini and Mantra
108_ Reptilian creature concepts in ZBrush

Joshua Wu shares the ZBrush process behind his
Mutated Raptor image
116_ Digital Art Master: Lindford
Learn how Mathieu Aerni crafted his stunning 3D

masterpiece, Lindford
4 | 3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
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108
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3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Art Gallery
Each issue the 3dcreative team selects 10 of the best digital images from around the world. Enjoy!
Submit your images! Simply email: marisa@3dtotal.com
High Octane Rampage

Tomi Visnen
Year created: 2015
Software used:
3ds Max, ZBrush, Photoshop, Corona Renderer
Web: tomivaisanen.com
Warrior
Ahmad Samy Ismail
Year created: 2015 Software used: ZBrush, Photoshop
Web: artstation.com/artist/ahmad-samy
Credit: Based on concept art by Johannes Helgeson: helgesonart.tumblr.com
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Gettin Too Old for This

Antone Magdy
Year created: 2015
Software used:
Maya, ZBrush, V-Ray,
Photoshop, Yeti, TopoGun
Web: artstation.com/artist/antone_m
Time Mage
Frederic Daoust
Year created: 2015
Software used:
ZBrush, KeyShot, Photoshop
Web: artstation.com/artist/fredericdaoust23
11
Nautilus
Aram Hakze
Year created: 2015
Software used: ZBrush, KeyShot, Photoshop
Web: aramhakze.com
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
An Old Warriors Home

Gavin Whelan
Year created: 2015
Software used:
3ds Max, V-Ray, ZBrush,
Substance Designer
Web: gav3d.blogspot.com
15
Lost in the Forest

Romuald Chaigneau | Year created: 2015
Software used: 3ds Max, V-Ray, Photoshop
Web: behance.net/romualdchaigneau
17
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Curiosity the Robot

David Blaya
Year created: 2015
Software used:
Maya, Photoshop
Web: blayapapaya.es
19
Ring
Martins Zeme
Year created: 2015
Software used:
3ds Max, Corona Renderer,
Photoshop, After Effects
Web: zemeart.com
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
21
SCI-FI WW2 Allied Vehicle

Matthias Develtere
Year created: 2015
Software used: MODO
Web: develterematthias.wordpress.com
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
23
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The Artist
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Mastering concept design
Ruben Alvarez
Freelance concept artist

rubenalvarezdesigns.com
Interviewed by:
Marisa Lewis
Ruben Alvarez Arias is a
freelance concept artist
currently based in the
Netherlands, working
on some unannounced
projects for the
entertainment industry.
Mastering
concept design
Ruben Alvarez is a pro at merging 3D and 2D to bring concepts to life.

We learn more about his inspirations, workflow and education
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Kids like bubbles and Ruben likes sci-fi, so he mixed both ideas!
A scene made in MODO: making reparations before visiting some friends
Ruben Alvarez is a freelance concept artist

working for the entertainment industry. Hes
been freelancing in the Netherlands for the
past two years and is involved now in projects
for mobile games and the film industry.
3dcreative: Hello, Ruben! Please could you tell us
a little about yourself and what you do?
Ruben Alvarez: Hi, my name is Ruben Alvarez.
As a concept artist my job is to generate visual
ideas to help art directors and VFX supervisors
to visualize certain aspects of the creation of a

game, movie or entertainment product. This goes
from pre-production to production itself and
includes character and creature concept design,
environment or props design, and key frame
illustration among other things.
3dc: What inspired you to get into 3D, and what
inspires you today?
RA: In my opinion, 3D is nowadays one of the best
ways to quickly generate accurate and fast ideas
during the concept design pipeline; I think its a

key skill to learn in the entertainment industry.
Strong foundations are always important and 3D
helps you to add this extra quality to your work.
I am in love with what the 3D software companies
are developing. Its impossible not to fall in love
with ZBrush, MODO, KeyShot, SketchUp
Artists inspire me. The art community is full of
really talented artists and I feel small when I see
the quality of work that these people are able to
27
Artist history
Ruben Alvarezs career up to this point...
2008: Attended a summer term at Gnomon School of Visual
Effects after graduating in computer science in Spain.
2009: Moved to Australia, doing freelance graphic design while
improving his portfolio.
2010: First job! Became a concept artist for Sidhe in New Zealand,
working on Blood Drive for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
2011: Worked as a concept artist on several mobile platform
games for Gameloft in Barcelona.
2012: Art director for Arkalis Interactive, working on the Stargate
franchise in collaboration with MGM.
2013: Senior concept artist at Bee & Bird Animation Studios. Sadly
the project was canceled.
2014: Moved to the Netherlands to begin his adventure as a
freelance artist.
create. This makes me push myself to keep learning and designing original
content. Family, friends, movies, music you can always find inspiration in
the things and people that surround you.
3dc: Could you tell us about your education at Gnomon School of Visual
Effects, and what you learned in your time there?
RA: I wish I could have spent more time at Gnomon back in 2008. It was my
first time ever overseas! I was there for one term and I have to say that it was
the best summer I had in my life. Not because of the beach or the California
weather, which was amazing, but the time I spent in front of a computer
listening and learning from amazing and skilled teachers. At that time I
didnt know you could make concept art a professional career, and Gnomon
showed me the path. I attended six classes at the school in total, all of them
related to concept art: production design, environment design, imaginative
landscapes, and so on.
I remember feeling my jaw drop watching Jerad Marantz just making a
silhouette! This was the moment I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of
my life. Can five minutes change your life? The answer is YES! At the end of
the term I won the Best of Term contest, and most importantly I decided to
become a concept artist.
3dc: Tell us more about your specialisms and favorite subjects to create.
RA: I dont consider myself specialist on one certain concept art subject. I like
variety and Im curious about different process and techniques. I like using
ZBrush for creature concept art but I dont want to forget MODO or SketchUp
when I design environments, vehicles or props.
Keeping my mind active with a variety of subjects helps me to stay focused
and be creative. I think the specialty of a concept artist is to be creative, no
matter the subject, no matter the tool.
I really enjoy sci-fi, mainly because its a difficult matter. Nobody knows how
the future or unknown civilizations (buildings, creatures, transportation)
are going to be. This is pure joy for a concept artists brain!
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
A personal piece, trying to achieve a realistic werewolf
29
3dc: What software and tools do you use for your

artwork? Any useful tips, plug-ins or underrated
programs that youd recommend?
sketches; I also use it to add different effects

at the end of the project (color correction,
composition, and final presentation).
for me. Imagine if your art director asked you for

another pose of your character; 3D allows you to
quickly solve this kind of thing.
RA: The programs I use are Photoshop, ZBrush,

MODO and KeyShot. They offer me the main
range of tools that I need for each specific task. I
work with a Wacom Cintiq 21UX.
MODO and ZBrush are the programs I use for

fine-tuning the sketches. This is a very useful
way to communicate ideas to your art director
or supervisor. Maybe you spend a bit more time
sculpting a creature sketch or blocking a vehicle
in 3D, but at the end of the process this is a huge
advantage. Making changes in 3D is a lot faster
I have recently introduced KeyShot into my

pipeline, simply because this program is really
powerful for rendering difficult materials in 3D,
like glass, metal and gold. Saving time is one of
the most important things you learn when you are
a concept artist. Its difficult and time-consuming
to render chrome materials in Photoshop!
Photoshop is the program for the beginning

of every project, as it allows me to generate
A knight goes to meet his
destiny, just on the other side
Rubens wife is a research

scientist and expert in vehicle
batteries, so this was his own
vision of the electric vehicle
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
How chickens will look in the future
I would also recommend Marvelous Designer as a

complementary software to learn.
3dc: Could you describe your general 3D
workflow for us?
RA: First I begin with quick silhouettes and
sketches. I feel more comfortable working with
volumes and shapes rather than line drawings.
If the silhouette is recognizable you have a lot of
the design work done, and you just need to polish

the design. I usually add some grayscale interior
shapes and quick details to the silhouette and
then I jump into 3D.
I work progressively on details in 3D, adjusting the
design all the time, to the point when Im happy
with the balance and shape of it. Sometimes I
quickly render the 3D in grayscale and photobash or paint over it. At other times I will render in
KeyShot to add materials, and just add effects in

Photoshop afterwards.
3dc: For a 3D artist, what are the benefits of being
able to work on concepts in 2D?
RA: I think 2D is the route map for 3D. Having a
2D design before modeling saves you time and
helps you to avoid getting lost. Sometimes its
okay to go crazy and try new things directly in 3D,
31
Theres nothing better than a walk through the jungle
and there are programs out there that are really

good as sketch tools. There are clients that prefer
to push the sketch further with more detail, while
others ask to jump directly into 3D for a better
visualization. It really depends on your workflow
and style. A bit of pre-production is always
needed and I think 2D helps with that.
3dc: What do you think makes a successful
concept design?
RA: Difficult question I wish I knew the answer!
I think a successful design is the design that fits
the needs of the project and the client, and at the
same time is original, doable and lasts over time.
Today, a successful concept design is not a matter
of just concept artists. It needs the talent of a
lot of people: 3D artists, animators, supervisors,
technical directors, lighting artists, sculptors, previs guys all under the direction of experienced
art directors and VFX supervisors.
I would say that with all these elements together,
the design will be 20-percent successful. The
other 80-percent is what the audience think
about the design. We create to entertain the
people who will evaluate our work, going to the
cinema or buying games. Surprising people with
something new and fresh is really difficult and
thats also what makes a successful concept
design so difficult.
3dc: What is one key piece of advice that youd
pass on to other artists?
RA: After Gnomon I spent one year working on my
portfolio. At a certain point, I sent my work to an
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
This creature concept was Rubens first piece after learning ZBrush
Visiting new worlds alone
An alien concept, practicing hard-surface techniques
art director and his feedback was something like,

A four-year-old kid can draw better than you.
Some could say that the guy was rude or thats
not the answer you should give to an aspiring
concept artist (I wouldnt say that to anybody!). I
was very sad reading that, but instead of giving up
I deleted my whole portfolio and began again. A
few months later I got my first job in the industry,
so maybe I have to thank him for his words!
If you have a goal and you dream it, work hard,
never give up and be passionate about it. Make
the dream happen!
3dc: Finally, and most importantly: if you were
stranded on a desert island with only one of your
belongings, which item would it be?
RA: A pair of running shoes. Running helps me to
clear my mind. I am not sure if they would save
my life on an island, but if there were dangerous
animals around, they could certainly help!
3dc: Thank you very much for speaking to
3dcreative today!
The Artist
Ruben Alvarez
rubenalvarezdesigns.com
33
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The Artist
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Crafting vibrant cartoon characters
Teodoru Badiu
Creative media designer

theodoru.com
behance.net/Theodoru
Interviewed by:
Marisa Lewis
Teodoru Badiu is an
illustrator, character
designer and 3D artist
based in Vienna, Austria.
He works with a wide
variety of media to create
his illustrations.
Crafting vibrant
cartoon characters
We chat to Teodoru Badiu about his instantly recognizable creations,
his 3D process, and his abiding love for toys and cartoons
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Imaginary Friends: Bob and Roy A 3D illustration based on the theme of kids and their imaginary friends. Created with MODO
Teodoru Badiu is an illustrator, character designer and

3D artist currently based in Vienna, Austria. To bring his
ideas and visions to life, he works with different kinds
of media including 3D, photography, vector, traditional
drawing, collage or mixed media. His cartoon characters
are based on drawings or sketches that are converted
into 3D artworks. He loves to give his characters a
unique style, with a colorful and bright palette but
a slightly dark or mean personality twist. But even
if his cheerful, bizarre characters in their fantastic
environment seem to be a little menacing at times, they
are all friendly in the end
Pixy Wonderland In this image, based on some drawings, Teodoru aimed to

create a more stylized and illustrative 3D environment for his characters
3dcreative: How did you get into the world of 3D?

Teodoru Badiu: It all started in 1995 when I went to the
Peoples Art School in Vienna. My life as an illustrator and
character designer started with surreal photo-manipulation
work that I created using Photoshop and images that I shot
using my digital cameras. My website Apocryph.net and the
work displayed there was the actual beginning, around the
end of the 1990s.
Later, in 2005, I came in contact with CINEMA 4D during my
time at the SAE College and that changed everything. After
the setup of Theodoru.com in 2005, it took one or two years
until I was ready and able to translate my imaginary worlds
and characters to 3D. But I succeeded and have created
3D-based illustrations ever since.
37
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Tin Timber: Magic Blue Forest A MODO illustration from Teodorus Blue Magic Forest series, with AO, depth of field and minor color adjustments added with Photoshop
39
The Critters Illustration and character

designs created with MODO, based on
sketches around the theme of critters
3dc: Who or what are your biggest inspirations?

TB: One main source of inspiration is my big
collection of vintage rubber toys that grows with
each visit that I make to the flea markets in Vienna
and the cities that I visit. Another big source of
influence on my work are the classic cartoons,
from Disney, Max Fleischer, Ub Iwerks, Grim
Natwick and Hanna-Barbera. I also love the work
of Ron English, Gottfried Helnwein and many
other contemporary artists. But anything else
could be a trigger for an idea for a new character.
It could be music, a movie, books, games,
magazines or daily life.
3dc: Could you tell us more about the colorful
characters and settings that you create? What do
you aim to achieve with your work?
TB: My main motivation is simply my love
for creating worlds and characters that dont
necessarily exist in real life. I love to see how
something that I imagine and that exists only in
my mind comes to life and suddenly starts to exist
through my work. Its simply a lot of fun to get rid
of all rational conventions and to decide myself
what can be real or not. It may be surreal for
someone else and some people will simply say
that something like that cant exist, but for me it
becomes real in the moment I create it. One other
important goal for me is to work towards creating
and developing my own cartoon show based on
the characters and worlds that I create.
3dc: What software and tools do you use for your
artwork? Any useful tips, plug-ins or underrated
programs that youd recommend?
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Red Riding Hood Illustration and character designs created with

MODO, on the theme of weapons fanatics and the consequences
TB: My tools of choice at this time are MODO,

Photoshop and Illustrator. I made the switch from
CINEMA 4D to MODO four years ago and Ive never
regretted it. I love the options that I have with
that software and it fits my needs perfectly; I do
recommend that everyone who works in the 3D
field should try it out. The best part of MODO is
that all the important plug-ins that were added
to the softwares functionality over the last year
were integrated into the software during different
releases. Now I need no other plug-ins for my
daily work.
3dc: Could you describe your general 3D
workflow for us?
TB: Most of the time I start with a drawing or

quick Post-it sketch to catch the main idea of a
character. That sketch-based idea will be taken
afterwards into the 3D software to be modeled,
textured and rendered, first as standalone
characters. As soon as all the characters that
I need for an illustration are ready, I put them
together in a pose and create props. Eventually
I might create a particular setting around them
that could also be populated by some other
characters that would fit in that imaginary world.
3dc: Your style is perfectly suited for toys! Could
you tell us more about the process of designing
specifically for toys, and how you get them made?
Lucha Brothers An illustration

based on my Teodorus Lucha
Rabbits characters. Modeled,
textured and rendered with MODO
41
Robo Teens A 3D illustration created

with MODO, Illustrator and Photoshop
Shroomzee and Woody Mecha An illustration based

on Teodorus ShroomZee character, modeled,
textured and rendered with MODO
TB: Even if my characters are designed for illustrations in the first place, I
always consider the possibility to animate them or to turn them into toys
eventually. With that in mind, I always model my character as perfectly as
possible, considering topology, polygon count, quads and watertightness.
Nowadays most prototypes are made with

the help of a 3D printer. That prototype will
then be cleaned and sanded to bring it to a
perfect state, and it will be used for a mold
I had some toy design collaborations with different artists, and I also made
some for myself. The usual way is to create a character in the 3D software of
your choice that will be then used to make one prototype. Nowadays most
prototypes are made with the help of a 3D printer.
That prototype will then be cleaned and sanded to bring it to a perfect state,
and it will be used for a mold. The mold will be used for the production of
different toys, like resin toys or sofubi (a Japanese term for a style of soft
vinyl toy).
3dc: What valuable skills have you learned from looking after your own
freelance business?
TB: To be patient with the client is one of the most valuable lessons that I
have learned. It is often not easy to keep your calm when a character changes
with every review. At the end, after five, six or more reviews, you may have
something that no longer has anything to do with the initial request and brief
of the character, but then you do learn an important lesson and know what
patience is.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Zuppos Quest An illustration created with MODO, in

which Teodoru created a new style of environment,
using the same round shapes to fit with the characters
Owl City The image is based on some

character drawings and was modeled,
textured and rendered with MODO. Meet
Owlivia, Hootgar, Owly and Hootley!
43
Tin Legends A MODO illustration

around the theme of mechanical
tin toys, with AO and minor color
adjustments added with Photoshop
Pets and Monsters: Candy Dream Character designs and 3D illustration based on
Teodorus character sketches. Modeled, textured and rendered with MODO
3dc: What is one key piece of advice that you would pass on to
other artists?
TB: Everybody has to make his own mistakes and learn from that.
Thats the way. There is no way around despite all the dos and
donts. Jump in! Do your thing! Forget about what others think or
say about your work. Believe in yourself and in what you do and
never give up.
3dc: Finally, and most importantly: what do you like to do in your
spare time?
TB: Unfortunately theres no switch that can turn the creative
mode on or off. It is who I am. I have thoughts about what I could
do next or how I could achieve something all the time, but I cant
say that it drives me mad when I am not able to do it right away.
Thats why I choose to spend as much free time as possible
working. If Im not working, I hunt for vintage toys at the local flea
markets, go to see a movie, or go out in the city for a walk with my
dear wife.
The Artist
Teodoru Badiu
Creative media designer

theodoru.com
behance.net/Theodoru
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
IG
HT
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Having fun with character concepts
T
AR
S
ST
L
T
O
The Artists
Having fun with
character
concepts
We catch up with Morten Jger and Emilie Stabell

about character design tips and the importance of
collaborating with your fellow artists
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Morten Jger
Emilie Stabell
Software:
ZBrush, Maya
Software:
ZBrush, Maya
Morten Jger is a Danish

CG artist who works as a
modeler in the heart of
London. His work consists
of everything from realistic
sculptures to stylized
creatures and characters.
Emilie Stabell is a CG artist from

Denmark, currently working at
Media Molecule in Guildford. She
specializes in modeling, sculpting
and texturing. She prefers stylized
work over realism, and loves
working with color.
mortenjaeger.com
emiliestabell.com
Guam Bay Chamorra Village A personal project focusing on design and color Emilie Stabell
Skips Leg Day An alien bounty hunter and his sidekick that started as a drawing on a napkin Morten Jger
Discover Morten Jger

and Emilie Stabells new
collaborative project...
3dcreative: Thanks for speaking to 3dcreative,
Morten and Emilie! Could you tell us more about
yourselves: who you are, what you do, and what
youre currently up to?
Emilie: Im a student at The Animation Workshop
in Denmark and am currently taking my
internship at Media Molecule in the UK. Im part
of the Art Department working on the production
Dreams for PS4, where we do a lot of crazy and
colorful stuff just the way I like it! In my spare
time Im doing a stylized creature project where
Im experimenting with rendering fur using Yeti.
Morten: I currently work as a modeler at Cinesite

VFX in London where I work on Hollywood films.
Most of my time though is focused on my tutorial
website, FlippedNormals, that I started with
Henning Sanden. Im really passionate about
teaching, and being able to help others further
their careers or improve their art is something I
live for.
Emilie: Im inspired by anything quirky and

colorful. Floriane Marchix is one of my all-time
favorites due to her exceptional skills in color and
design. Kent Melton and Philippe Faraut are at the
top of my list when it comes to sculpting.
3dc: Who or what are your biggest creative

inspirations around?
Emilie and Morten: We primarily use Maya and

ZBrush. Combining the two has become a very
fluent and organic process, so were quickly able
to get our work done. As for texturing we differ a
bit. Emilies tool of choice is Photoshop because
its very precise and the range of custom brushes
makes it easy to achieve the look youre after.
Morten uses a mix of ZBrush and MARI. ZBrush
Morten: Ive studied a lot of classical sculpture,

so a lot of my inspiration stems from that, Bernini
in particular. I really enjoy a lot of contemporary
artist as well; two of my absolute favorites are
Philippe Faraut and Eric Michael Wilson.
3dc: What tools and software do you use for your

artwork in general?
47
is easy to use and fairly decent for stylized 3D

painting. MARI is just an amazing tool that really
makes it easy to create more photo-real textures.
difference. The last thing would be a focal point.

This both applies to color and detail. Dont clutter
your design.
3dc: Tell us about this joint project and how it

came about.
3dc: What can artists learn from taking part in

collaborative projects with their peers?
E & M: We have known each other for a long time,

and have contributed a lot to each others work
over the years. We felt that a natural progression
would be to do an actual project together. We
realized that we had a bunch of characters that
were fairly similar in style, and thought it would
be cool to do a movie-inspired image with all of
the characters.
E & M: You learn to work closely together and

compromise. It can be hard to merge your
respective workflows but its key to getting a great
result. You have to let go of your artistic pride a
little bit. Most likely youll have a lot to learn from
whomever you are working with, and more than
often you find that combining your strengths will
make your work better in the end.
Steve the Space Explorer
The look and feel of both Disneys Big Hero 6 and

Blizzards Overwatch was a big inspiration, and
theyve done such a great job at unifying all their
characters into some epic-looking scenes.
3dc: What do you think makes a successful
character design?
E & M: Appeal is key! People think appeal only has
to do with something you see in Pixar characters,
but it can apply to even the scariest of monsters.
Silhouette is another big one.
Its hard to make a model work from all the
angles, but achieving a good balance between
negative space and proportions makes a huge
Initial lineup Here we are trying to find the right composition

for the characters, we had a lot less in the beginning
Final lighting setup In order to achieve the look we had to add a lot of smaller complementary lights, totaling seven lights
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
More is more After testing the lighting we decided to add all of our best characters
Render elements A selection of the elements we used to create the final image
49
The Artists
Morten Jger
mortenjaeger.com
Emilie Stabell
emiliestabell.com
Nova A colorful female character inspired by the

Japanese Harajuku fashion Emilie Stabell
The finished piece
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Initially we went for something with harsher

shadows, but ultimately it was more pleasing
with a brighter environment
51
Sketchbook of Damir G Martin
The Artist
The sketchbook of
Richie Mason
This month we pay a visit to Richie Masons
wonderful world of battling robots, sci-fi suits
and alien mutants
ag.com
3DCreativem
Richie Mason
artstation.com/artist/richenks
Software used: ZBrush
Richie J. Mason is a freelance
character and asset artist for
videogames, movies and short
films. Hes 30 years old and lives
in Cambridge, UK.
Richie Mason shares some

hard-surface inspiration
An alien critter sculpted in ZBrush and rendered in KeyShot
When I started out, I used to sketch on paper

first. However I quickly realized it was a much
faster workflow to sketch in ZBrush, having
the ability to change your sculpt as your ideas
change (which they always do).
I dont usually have a idea in place when I
start, so its good to play with different forms.
If its going to be a suit design I sketch over
a base mesh that Ive already created. If its
a creature I just start with a sphere and see
what happens, although I find its always good
fun to have a play with the ZSketch tool its
great for organic subjects and building up the
muscle anatomy.
Once a sketch is at a stage Im happy with, Ill
send it to KeyShot and put some materials on
it, trying different combinations to see if its
ready for texturing. Occasionally Ill send it
back to ZBrush for touch-ups, but usually most
of my rough sketches will end up being my
finished model.
A quick sketch before bed that turned out to be really fun, so carried on to the next day. Id just watched Jurassic World that day!
53
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | The sketchbook of Richie Mason
Inspiration and ideas

I watch a lot of TV while I work, mainly sci-fi and
comic stuff. So things Im watching will inspire
me, and I will go over a sketch many times until I
think, Thats what I want! from a certain curve of
armor to a creature claw .
Other artists always inspire me too. I love looking
through ArtStation to see whats new there. It can
give you great ideas for things you might want to
try yourself.
Materials
I use mainly ZBrush for sketching and modeling
for art pieces, although I use Maya and CINEMA
4D for finished game and movie assets. There
isnt a better software available that gives you the
freedom to create what you imagine than ZBrush.
Although at first glance all the tools can seem
daunting to a beginner, once you get used to
them you quickly realize you only need to use
a handful to make a finished sculpture. With its
new integration with KeyShot (the best rendering
software available), it just keeps getting better.
This was a DynaMesh
sphere shaped out with Clay
Buildup, Clay Polish, Extract
and Panel Loops. I gave him
rough clothes to give him the
look of a lonely survivor
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The first in my short line of CNR models

(CNR stands for Connor, my son). It was
inspired by Spartans; I wanted a model
with light leather armor mixed with
heavy plates
This was originally inspired by

Halo and Destiny. I wanted a
soldier with a more combat feel
and also I wanted to add cloth as
its something I dont usually do
The Brute of
the CNRs, more
robotic than
man, but his
fabric clothing
gives him more
of a human feel
The NKS MK-X versus an alien a

bad outcome for the NKS!
This was one of the first suit designs I made, and my

first full armor suit. This was eventually textured and
colored completely in KeyShot
The final image of this is

one of the most popular
in my portfolio. It started
as ZSpheres, detailed
with my Slice Curve/Panel
Loop technique
Sketching workflow
When sketching something out I like to sometimes
use a mesh bomb technique for creatures. By using
a DynaMesh sphere and placing random inserts, then
DynaMeshing them into one and polishing it out, you
come out with some very unique creases and shapes.
When sketching hard-surface models, I use the Clay
Buildup brush to draw out the shapes and the MAHcut
brush for definition. Then I use Clay Polish to give a good
base for armor.
55
A heavy alien soldier created to stand toe-to-toe with the

human Vanguard. The Torkra is the biggest of the aliens,
standing three feet taller than the Vanguard soldier
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Round two the NKS MK-IX versus an alien
Two combatants sculpted in ZBrush

and rendered with KeyShot
57
This is the Brute of my armor sets,

the biggest of the humans. I wanted
something with a more human element
visible when compared to my more full
robotic suits
The Artist
Richie Mason
artstation.com/artist/richenks
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Would you like to see your sketches

featured in 3dcreative magazine?
Were always on the lookout for talented artists
and their artwork to adorn the pages of our
magazines. If you think you have what it takes,
please get in touch!
All you need to do is email
marisa@3dtotal.com with a link to your
portfolio and some information about you.
We look forward to hearing from you!
The popular Digital Painting Techniques series returns in its seventh

spectacular installment to once again showcase the latest digital
painting trends and techniques from talented experts, including Rene
Chio and Cris Delara.
In Digital Painting Techniques: Volume 7 you will discover a variety of artists methods
for creating perfect pin-ups, impressive vehicles, breathtaking environments,
magnificent mythological creatures, and much more! Plus you will learn how to craft
matte paintings using Cinema 4D and brush up on your speed painting techniques.
Browse for inspiration and to pick up top tips or follow project workflows in more
detail with the step-by-step tutorials either way, youll open up the book and
find something valuable to take away. Useful for intermediate digital artists and
professionals, this title is another must-have for any digital artists bookshelf!
ONLY 29.99 (APPROX 49.99) | 288 PAGES | ISBN: 978-1-9094142-0-4
3dtotal presents the new issue of 2dartist

magazine, a downloadable monthly
magazine for digital artists for only 2.99
(approx. $4.79/3.69).
Visit www.2dartistmag.com to see a full preview of the latest
issue, subscription offers, and to purchase back issues.
116
Issue 116 | August 2015
plus
10 of the best digital images

Epic game concepts
Create an infected character
and much more!
VIBRANT
SPEED PAINTINGS
Freelance artist Afanur Rashid shows us his stunning speed paintings
drawn from detailed sketches in 30 minutes or less
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Troubleshooting for the Form 1+
The Artist
James W. Cain
jameswcain.co.uk
Software Used:
ZBrush, Form 1+ 3D printer
James W. Cain is a 3D artist
and sculptor with a focus on
3D printing. Hes a freelance
graphic designer by trade,
based in the south east UK.
Troubleshooting
for the Form 1+
by James W. Cain
Having issues with print failures, lumpy resin or dusty

mirrors? James W. Cain shares some solutions to common
printing problems on the Form 1+
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Check out
issue 116 to see this
tutorial series from
the beginning!
Keep your printer in shape

with this helpful guide
A print failure can be the most frustrating
experience for users unfamiliar with the
Form 1+. Quite often, its not immediately
obvious what has caused the print to fail,
so if you dont know where to start when
troubleshooting, you can end up lost. In the
final chapter of this series, I will go through
the maintenance routine that is necessary
to keep the printer running trouble-free, as
well as troubleshooting some of the common
problems. (Fig.01)
An example of a
catastrophic print
failure caused by
lack of supports and
too much stress on
the printer
Maintaining the printer

Keeping the Form 1+ clean, dust-free and ready to
print can be a battle but its essential to minimize
potential failures. The following are the main
areas to consider and what you need to do to
maintain them:
1. The cover and outside
From day-to-day use, the outside of the printer
can get pretty dusty. I use a dust cover when
the printer is not in use to minimize this, and
clean the orange lid with general glasscleaning products. Its important NOT to use
anything alcohol-based here as it will crack the
acrylic lid. (Fig.02)
Its not glamorous but a simple dust cover can make all the difference in maintaining your printer
2. The build platform

The build platform should be cleaned directly
after printing so there is no resin remaining
on the surface. I simply wipe the surface with
a paper towel as soon as possible. The longer
its left, the more likely resin will cure onto it,
making it difficult to clean. I use the Formlabs
metal spatula in this case to firmly scrape
away the cured resin. The build platform is
pretty robust so dont worry about scratching
the surface; this wont affect printing.
Also worth attention is the top of the platform
where the lever attaches the platform to the
printer. Theres a small screw which adjusts
the tension of the grip. If this is too loose,
the platform could be slightly unstable
during printing and cause failure. Its always
worth checking to see if the platforms firmly
attached by wiggling it before printing. Tighten
the screw if it wiggles or releases from the arm
without releasing the lever. (Fig.03 04)
3. The resin tray
The primary focus of looking after the resin
tray is checking the silicone base to ensure its
clear. Over time the silicone layer will ghost
over and affect the laser when printing at
that point, its time to replace the tray. Its
Its not glamorous but a simple dust cover can make all the difference in maintaining your printer
63
My printing platform. Note how scratched it is, but it still prints perfectly
The silver screw must be tight enough to ensure wobble-free printing!
simple to check this using the spatula. Its also

good to clean the bottom of the tray with a
glass cleaner as it sometimes gets dusty. Be
aware that its the same material as the orange
lid, so do not use anything alcohol-based.
Something else to watch for are the four
ball bearings that keep the tray in place in
the printer. If resin gets in these and cures,
it can prevent the tray from sliding in or out.
Its always worth checking this by sliding the
tray in and out regularly if the printer is left
standing for a while. (Fig.05)
4. The mirrors
The mirrors are the most delicate part of the
printer and are extremely susceptible to dust.
Ive found using a dust cover really minimizes
this but does not prevent it entirely. To check
the mirrors I use my mobile phones LED
torch, which is really effective at showing the
dust when used at the right angle. I then use
a camera dust blower to remove any dust
that has built up. I would not recommend
using aerosol-based compressed air here, as
it sometimes has a liquid bitterant that can
splash onto the mirror.
A worst case scenario is resin or other liquids
on the mirror. In this case the first thing to do is
to contact Formlabs support, who will advise
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
This ball bearing in the tray rail got cured resin inside it and got stuck as a result
on the best way to go about cleaning and how

this affects your warranty. Ive only had to do
a full clean a few times. If you use a dust cover,
are careful and maintain the rest of the printer,
it should only really be necessary once or twice
a year, if that. (Fig.06 07)
5. Resin
Mostly the resin can just sit in the tray in the
printer when not in use. Ive found it necessary
to filter the resin after two or three prints,
however. This is because you get a build-up
of cured bits, hair, dust and other mystery
In normal lighting the mirror can look okay
Shining an LED light near the bottom can reveal any dust and liquids
65
substances mixing with the resin. If the

printers laser hits these instead of the resin, it
can cause structural damage to the print, even
failure. I use a gauze with a paint filter to pour
the resin from the tray into a paper cup, clean
the tray and then pour the resin back in. Doing
this after a set amount of prints has really
improved my success rate with the printer.
Examples of print failures
6. The laser assembly

It should go without saying that you must
speak to Formlabs support if you think there
is an issue with the printers laser. If it wasnt
in the printer it would normally be found
mounted on a shark in Dr. Evils lair, so please
be cautious around it!
Troubleshooting print failures
Here are some common issues while printing
with the Form 1+ and some advice on how to
solve them. First off, before printing you should
make sure that the resin tank is clean, has no
damage to the surface of the silicone and is free
from major ghosting. Make sure the resin is mixed
properly by both shaking the bottle thoroughly
and by agitating the resin in the tray with the
spatula. (Fig.08)
Fine-tuning the Form 1+ in PreForm
1. The print sticks to the resin tray, and

does not adhere to the platform
This is because theres not enough tension
between the platform and the tray, or simply
because the silicone bottom of the tray is
stickier than the platform. Exposing the
silicone in the resin tray to air is a good way to
An example of a blowout
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
decrease its stickiness and I have had good

results with this. You can do this by using the
spatula to gently scrape the resin back and
forth, exposing the bottom. I do this for about
2-3 minutes before printing. Increasing the
base thickness in the support settings can
also help, but what really makes a difference
for me is adjusting the height of the build
platform. You can do this under the PreForms
Fine Tuning options, which can be found in the
Help menu. (Fig.09)
2. Prints that fall off or break supports

Normally this is down to printing a large
or complicated model that hasnt been
supported sufficiently or correctly. Sometimes
the stresses of the peel process can be too
much for the support structure, in which case
it will start to break. Adjusting the frequency
and contact size of the supports and adding
manual supports can rectify this. It also might
be a better option to print the object in parts
if its too big. Another course of action is
An example of a print skipping or misplacing a layer, most evident here on the supports
lowering the resolution to 0.1mm as this will

print faster and in larger layers, which can be
easier for the printer to handle.
3. Holes and ragged bits
I get these when my resin hasnt been filtered
for a while. If smaller parts broke off in the
previous print (like ends of hair, etc.) they
remain in the tank and can either block the
lasers path or attach themselves to your new
print. If you are seeing a lot of holes, it could
also be that you have dust on your mirrors or
on the base of the resin tray thats distorting
the laser.
4. Blowouts
These can ruin a print quite dramatically!
Its necessary to print hollow objects on the
Form 1+, both to save resin and to reduce the
stress on the printer. However, its possible
to unwittingly create pockets of geometry
which do not allow the resin to drain correctly,
creating air bubbles. As the print proceeds,
the resin and air builds up and tries to escape,
causing a blowout. Use the layer viewer in
PreForm to identify these areas. Sometimes
simply re-orientating the model can solve
this, but it may be you have to go back to your
model to create drain holes that allow the
resin to escape. (Fig.10)
5. Lines on the print
Sometimes large lines are visible on the print.
Ive found these are usually because the
platform has not been tightened enough. Be
sure to tighten the screw near the lever on the
platform as mentioned above. This can also
happen if youve paused the printer while
printing for any reason. (Fig.11)
These are the most common issues Ive found
with the Form 1+. If youre having consistent
problems printing, your first call should
always be Formlabs excellent support system.
The Artist
James W. Cain
jameswcain.co.uk
The final Gibson Girl, printed and painted. (She now resides at 3dtotal HQ thanks James!)
67
3 D T O TA L S A N AT O M I C A L C O L L E C T I O N :
NEW FIGURES COMING SOON
Affordable anatomical reference figures for
traditional and digital artists, including male and
female planar models and the impressive biosuit
figure designed by Alessandro Baldasseroni!
ORIGINAL MALE
AND FEMALE
FIGURES STILL
AVA I L A B L E F R O M :
S H O P. 3 D T O TA L . C O M
Texture files
Scene files
Real-time environment
assets with ZBrush
by Matthew Johns
Using ZBrush to create assets suitable for real-time rendering used to be a

long and complicated task, but features like ZRemesher and UV Master make
the process painless! Matthew Trevelyan Johns shows us how to create a vivid
desert canyon scene with ZBrush and 3ds Max, and render it with CryEngine in
just a few short steps
The Artist

artstation.com/artist/trevelyan
Software Used:
ZBrush, 3ds Max
has been passionate about
videogame content for a long
time. From humble beginnings
making Call of Duty mods over
12 years ago, hes now a senior
environment and vehicle artist at
Cloud Imperium Games.
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Real-time environment assets with ZBrush
See Matthew Trevelyan Johns

take on Antelope Canyon
The use of ZBrush within the console and
PC gaming industry has become common
practice. In the past, ZBrush may have been
seen as a program with which an artist can
only create extremely high-detail models
that are simply too costly to render within a
real-time application but in fact, this is not
always the case.
In the following tutorial, you will discover
how ZBrush can be used to generate meshes
suitable for use in a real-time engine, using
varied sculpting methods and the employment
of custom brushes as well as the built-in
procedural optimization and UV unwrapping
features that are now a valuable addition to
the software.
You will also learn how to prepare this mesh
for the CryEngine using 3ds Max, as well as
how to create the advanced textures required
to drive CryEngines powerful shader effects.
Some choice examples of my collected reference images, courtesy of Dollar Photo Club
The basic block-out mesh in 3ds Max
Finally, this tutorial will cover CryEngines

brand new, experimental lighting feature
Voxel-Based Global Illumination, as well as
how to render a screenshot before applying
adjustments and filmic effects in Photoshop to
make sure the image is presented as nicely as
possible. So lets get started!
01
Gathering suitable and informative

reference: Gathering suitable reference
is one of the most important preliminary steps
when beginning any project. Im careful to ensure
that my reference images are all of relevant
subject matter and havent already been subject
to distracting post-process effects (like additional
contrast or hue changes) that might mislead me
when I come to sculpting the rocks in ZBrush.
I also look for images where the lighting is as
natural as possible, so that I have a clearer idea of
the material surfaces when I create my textures.
02
Blocking out in 3ds Max: The following

steps are applied to the canyon wall
mesh as an example, from modeling through to
texturing and shader setup. Once happy with the
processes involved, Ill apply all of these same
steps to the sandy floor in my canyon scene.
So now its time to create block-out versions of
the canyon wall and floor meshes. Before I do
this, I set my units to be in meters to ensure that
Im using an accurate scale. I do this by going to
Customize > Units Setup and setting the Metric
Scale drop-down box to meters.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Setting the angle of view in ZBrush
Next, Ill start with a simple cube primitive and

then divide the geometry evenly across the mesh.
Entering the vertex sub-object mode, I can then
use soft selection to push and pull the mesh into
a desirable rough shape.
03
Preparing to sculpt in ZBrush: Im

happy with my block mesh of the canyon
wall, so I export it as an .OBJ file ready to be
brought into ZBrush. Inside of ZBrush, using
the import function, I load my mesh and draw it
onto the canvas. Pressing P in ZBrush enables

perspective in the viewport, and the angle of
view can be increased or decreased using the
slider found in the Draw menu. I like to use
perspective when sculpting large organic objects;
in this instance it will help me visualize how the
final asset might look when we render it in the
CryEngine later.
04
DynaMesh can change the topology of your model at the click of a button
Sculpting with DynaMesh: At this

stage I still want to be very loose with
my sculpting. Using DynaMesh will help me to
sculpt the mesh and change its shape drastically
without worrying about my topology. With
my mesh drawn onto the canvas, I enter the
Geometry tab and expand the DynaMesh menu.
Leaving the resolution at 128 and pressing the
DynaMesh button, the topology on the model is
instantly updated while still retaining its original
shape. I can now continue to sculpt, and when I
wish to DynaMesh again, Ill simply hold Ctrl and
drag in an area of the canvas outside of the model
to update the topology.
05
Refining the sculpt: I find the most

useful brushes in the early stages of
sculpting are the Clay Tubes, Smooth, and Move
brushes. With the mesh still at a low DynaMesh
resolution, I use Clay Tubes to make large grooves
in the mesh while trying to establish some of
the major forms that are present in my reference
images. As I sculpt, I occasionally use DynaMesh
to ensure the topology remains even across the
model as described in the last step.
While still very low detail, the sculpt is starting to take shape
When Im happy with my initial shape, I turn off

DynaMesh by clicking again on the icon in the
Geometry tab. Now Im ready to divide and sculpt
some further detail into my mesh. Its worth
remembering at this stage that the sculpt will
be used to create a real-time mesh, so it doesnt
have to be super detailed; so long as the major
forms are there, it will work just fine.
06
With a little smoothing and varying intensities and sizes, the custom brush can do a lot of the work
Custom brushes for easier sculpting:

The rock formations that exist in
Antelope Canyon were carved by fast-moving,
debris-carrying flood waters that, over great
periods of time, created the flowing grooves
in the rock surface. With this in mind, I think a
brush with a few additional settings will help
me to sculpt the rock and simulate this effect
more easily. Ill create a custom brush by first
selecting the standard brush, freehand mode and
choosing BrushAlpha 48. Ill set the brushes focal
shift to -100, and in the Brush menu, under the
AutoMasking menu, Ill just tick on BackFaceMask.
With this done, I will be able to sculpt some
smooth flowing grooves with sharp edges in just
one sweep.
73
07
Using ZRemesher and Clay Polish:

Having used my custom brush to good
effect, Im now happy with the rocks and am
ready to create a low-polygon version with a
polygon count that is more suitable for a realtime application. Clicking the Geometry menu
and expanding the ZRemesher tab, Ill set my
Target Polygons Count to 80. This is the amount
in thousands, so a value of 80 will give us an
80,000-polygon mesh. That may seem high for a
real-time asset, but since this will be one of only
a few meshes in the scene, it is perfectly suitable.
If you wish, you can choose a far lower polygon
count; ZRemesher is very flexible in this respect.
After hitting the ZRemesher button, the result
appears a little soft at first, but using Clay Polish
with a Sharp value of 20 and an RSharp value of
2 will recreate the sharper creases that our sculpt
had previously.
The result of using ZRemesher and Clay Polish on the mesh
08
Unwrapping with UV Master: The

model now needs UVs before I can export
it and load it into the CryEngine. Ill use UV Master
for this, located in the Zplugin menu. Clicking
Work On Clone makes a clone of the mesh and
applies a white material to it for easy viewing.
Now Ill Enable Control Painting and press the
Protect button, which allows me to paint all areas
of the mesh that I want to avoid having UV seams
on. This is visualized with bright red coloring on
the mesh.
Next Ill click the Attract button and paint the rest
of the mesh, before finally pressing Unwrap. This
will take a few moments and, when complete, I
can check the UVs by clicking Flatten (UnFlatten
to return to the mesh). If the UVs are suitable and
The bright colors indicate areas that will remain seamless (red)
and those areas that will attract the mesh seams (blue)
Setting the material type to be a Crytek Shader is very important at this stage, as its the format that the engine understands
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
have no seams in places that I do not want them,

Ill export the mesh as an .OBJ ready to import in
to 3ds Max.
09
Exporting from 3ds Max into

CryEngine: Having imported my rock
wall into 3ds Max, Ill create a dummy node at
the world space co-ordinates 0, 0, 0. Ill then
parent the rock mesh to it using the Select and
Link button. Next Ill need to create a Multi/SubObject material with at least two slots: one for
the floor, which will be sand, and one for the rock
material. I can add more if I need them for other
materials that I may create for the scene later. Ill
now select each material and set the shader type
to be a Crytek Shader before saving the scene in
the CryEngine directory. My file path looks like
this, though you may need to create your own
objects folder: CRYENGINE\gamesdk\objects\
antelope_canyon.
Next, with the CryEngine running in the
background and my material selected in the 3ds
Max material manager, I press Create Material
in the CryENGINE3 exporter. Ill be prompted to
save my material inside the folder directory I just
created. Next, before I export my rock mesh, I
must assign the correct polygon ID to its faces. I
have the rock set as material ID 2, and so I select
all of the polygons on the rock mesh and assign
those to polygon ID 2 also. I can now add the
mesh node to the CryENGINE3 exporter and hit
Export Nodes. After a few moments, its now
possible for me to load my mesh, with the correct
shader applied (but no textures yet) from the
Brush tab in CryEngine.
10
Creating rocky texture maps: For the

rock to convey the type of surface detail
that Id like, Ill need to create a variety of texture
maps to drive the CryEngine material. Ill start
with the diffuse map, sometimes called an albedo
map. Using cgtextures.com I am able to source
a variety of images that will help the process. I
set my background layer as a mid-gray, then use
simple Photoshop layer modes like Overlay and
Multiply in conjunction with the opacity slider to
quickly create a subtle rock texture effect.
Finally I use a Hue/Saturation adjustment to
ensure the overall diffuse color matches my
reference as closely as possible. When Im happy
with my diffuse texture I save two versions: the
original and another with a subtle Hue/Saturation
adjustment. Eventually Ill set up the CryEngine
shader to blend between the two.
The next map is a specular map. This is the
easiest map to create: it should be a simple gray
tone with RGB values ranging from 53 to 61 to
Organizing your Photoshop files with groups makes saving individual textures much easier
CrazyBump allows the creation of various textures within minutes
represent the non-metal quality of stone/rock.

Then I create the gloss map to define how rough
or smooth the rock material appears. For this I
begin with another photo and remove the color
from it using the Desaturate function, found in
Image > Adjustments > Desaturate. Then, using
a Levels adjustment, found here in Image >
Adjustments > Levels, I increase the contrast
slightly to emphasize the light and dark tones
within the texture.
I like to keep all of my textures in a single .PSD file,
each grouped under their own folders, which will
help when we export the textures later.
11
Creating the height and normal

maps: For this step Ill be using a
program called CrazyBump. You can download a
free demo from the CrazyBump website, or there
are many great alternative free programs that
allow the procedural generation of these textures.
In order to feed the program a good base to start
with, I duplicate my diffuse texture, desaturate
and increase the contrast using the Levels

adjustment once again. In order to emphasize the
striations in the rock, I create a new layer and use
a low-opacity black brush to manually paint some
horizontal lines. CrazyBump will interpret the dark
and light values in this texture as varying levels in
height and will create normal maps and height
maps accordingly. I save this texture and load it in
to CrazyBump, where I can use the sliders to finetune the resulting normal and height maps. Once
Im happy with my results, Ill bring the textures
back into Photoshop and add them to their own
groups in the .PSD.
There are certain guidelines for saving textures
for use in the CryEngine, all of which are detailed
further in the official CryEngine documentation
online at docs.cryengine.com. The main ones to
remember are that the gloss map must be placed
in the alpha channel of your normal map and
saved with _ddna at the end of the filename;
your heightmap must also be placed in the alpha
channel of a blank texture and saved with _displ
at the end of the filename.
75
12
Setting up the CryEngine shader:

Switching to the CryEngine once more
and pressing M to bring up the Material Editor, Ill
first set the Diffuse and Specular Color values to
white and the Smoothness value to 100; this will
ensure that my textures are the only components
driving these values in the shader. Next Ill simply
plug each texture into the corresponding slot in
the shader.
Currently the CryEngine shader does not support
displacement mapping or the Blend Layer
function by default, so Ill need to tick these
features on in the Shader Generation Params tab.
Once this is done, Ill have access to more options
in the Shader Params tab. Im going to use the
same normal, specular and height maps as I have
already, but in the Second Diffuse Map slot, Ill
input the alternative version of my diffuse texture
that I created earlier. Finally Ill select a blending
map; for this Ill use the grayscale map that I
used to create my normal and height maps with
CrazyBump in the previous step.
The blend layer is controlled with three inputs:
the Blend Factor slider, the Blend Falloff slider,
and finally the alpha values stored in the vertices
of the mesh itself. Switching back to 3ds Max, I
apply a VertexPaint modifier to the rock mesh.
Under Channel, I select Vertex Alpha, and with
my brush set to black with a low opacity setting
and large brush size, I can now paint some areas
where I would like the blend layer to be visible.
Once happy Ill re-export the mesh and hopefully
will be able to see the effects of my blend layer
in action.
The CryEngine
shader dialogue box,
showing the texture
inputs in their
appropriate slots
13
Lighting in the CryEngine: The latest

version of the CryEngine comes complete
with an experimental lighting feature called
Voxel-Based Global Illumination. It will attempt to
accurately simulate the bounce light effect that
gives the canyons the soft lighting and shadows
present in the reference photos. First Ill enable
the advanced options for the feature in the Tools
menu > Experimental Features > Lighting I just
tick the checkbox by Total Illumination. With my
rock mesh loaded into the scene and the correct
material applied, Ill now make a few duplicates
and position them end to end to create the
feeling of a long, thin canyon environment.
Next Ill open the Environment tab in the Rollup
bar, scroll to the Total Illumination v2 tab and
make sure its active, before finally setting the
Integration mode to 2, which will enable full
Global Illumination. Finally I alter the Time of Day
and the sun direction sliders that can be found via
the Terrain menu > Lighting.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The Total Illumination settings, located at the bottom of the Environment tab
14
Using console commands to capture an image:

Once Im happy with my sunlight adjustments and the
shadows are playing nicely off the surface of the rocks, I think
I need to soften the edges of the shadows a little. I go to View
> Console and double-click in the gray bar of the window that
pops up to open the Console Variables menu. In here I type
r_ShadowJittering and raise the value from the default to
something more suitable. Next I remove the statistics that are
on by default in the top-right corner of the screen; again in the
console window I type r_DisplayInfo and set the value to 0.
Finally, I type capture frames in the console and change the
value from 0 to 1. After a few seconds I change this value back
to 1 again, and during that period of time all frames per second
will have been captured and placed in the captureoutput folder
located in my CryEngine directory.
15
The final touches: Finally I open my captured image

in Photoshop. I duplicate the base layer and apply Filter
> Other > High Pass to it at a low value, then change this layers
blending mode to Hard Light, which creates a nice sharpening
effect across the whole image that can be controlled with the
opacity slider. Next I add a vignette and two black letterboxing
bars to create a cool widescreen movie effect.
The console allows us access to a variety of settings and functions
The next step is to adjust the colors to better suit my reference

images. My render was a little yellow and lacked some contrast,
so I use Color Balance, Exposure, Brightness/Contrast, Hue/
Saturation and Curves adjustments, found in the Image >
Adjustments menu, playing with the sliders until I achieve the
look Im after. Finally, all thats left now is to sign the artwork and
the image is complete!
Using color correction and other subtle effects can really transform the image
77
The Artist

artstation.com/artist/trevelyan
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
TOP TIPS
Choose a higher screen resolution
When capturing an image at your usual
screen resolution in the CryEngine, it may
result in some small aliasing issues. These
can be reduced significantly by setting your
screen resolution in the top-right corner of the
CryEngine to be double, or even triple the size,
then capturing the image and reducing it in
Photoshop to remove the aliasing.
Adding in extra shadow effects with the
console commands
At such a high screen resolution, especially
while using jittering, the shadows in the scene
may seem a little low-resolution. Type e_
ShadowsMaxTexRes and raise the value here;
I use 4,096 for my render. I also increase the
jittering effect to around 60 to achieve really
high-resolution soft shadows.
Perseverance!
When sculpting your mesh, arranging the
scene, creating the textures, or even applying
the final adjustments to your image in
Photoshop, there is always the possibility that
the result will not look as youd hoped. I had
many tried and failed experiments with the
rock sculpt, as well as the correct choice for
my final lighting in the image, and at times
considered the image finished. At this point,
Ill stop work, have a break and a lovely cup
of tea, and return to my computer with fresh
eyes to have another go. Being willing to
always push yourself to better your work, and
maintaining a positive outlook is the secret to
progressing your skills and creating work that
you can be the most proud of!
79
121
Issue 121 | September 2015
Ruben Alvarez shares an

insight into concept art for
the entertainment industry
+plus
Crafting vibrant cartoon characters

Abstract images with Houdini
Sci-fi creations in ZBrush
Real-time environment assets
Create realistic facial expressions
and much more!
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3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Sculpt a sci-fi cartoon character
Scene files
The Artist
Pierre Rogers
sketchzombie.com
Software Used:
ZBrush
Pierre Rogers is a freelance
3D character artist, designer
and instructor from the
United States.
Sculpt a sci-fi
cartoon character
by Pierre Rogers
Character artist Pierre Rogers shares the process behind his

stylized sci-fi duo Foxer and Sidekat, using beginner-friendly
ZBrush tools and tricks
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Every armored sci-fi hero

needs a cat sidekick
Making a stick man with ZSpheres
In this tutorial we will cover how to create

a stylized character wearing a sci-fi suit of
armor, from beginning to end in ZBrush.
Well use basic ZBrush tools like ZSpheres,
DynaMesh, sculpting brushes, and Polypaint.
Well cover how to develop and edit hardsurface geometry, making good use of the
mesh generation tools and SubTool splitting
to manage multiple parts as if our character
was real.
01
Start with a stick man: We get things

started by selecting a ZSphere from the
Tool menu. Next we want to make sure we are
facing the front of our sphere by locating Front
View (Texture > Image Plane > Front).
Next turn on symmetry on the X axis, located in
the Transform > Activate Symmetry > X. Now that
we are set up, draw out ZSphere joints. Under
the Transform palette, use the Move tool to
manipulate ZSpheres and the Scale tool to size
the spheres up or down.
02
Blocking out: Now we want to convert

our ZSphere man into geometry that we
can sculpt on. Navigate to Tools > Adaptive Skin >
Make Adaptive Skin. Now our little guy is available
as a new low-res ZTool to begin our journey.
Subdivide the mesh a few times and we can begin
sculpting in some rough anatomy.
After we have established some basic forms,
navigate to Tool > Geometry > DynaMesh, and
click the DynaMesh button. Undo and increase

the resolution until your model has increased
in geometry. Use the Clay, Move, and Smooth
brushes to edit your model. Every brush is
essentially the Move brush, so try to get as much
as you can out of it before sculpting on large
forms. Take your time developing your base
mesh; even though our character will be covered
in armor, most of his armor will conform to his

base mesh and so will inherit any flaws from its
foundation base.
To create the eyes, append a sphere, being sure
that you mirror and weld across the X axis for
symmetry (Tool > Geometry > Modify Topology >
Mirror and Weld).
Sculpting the base mesh
83
Adding DynaMesh facial hair
03
Facial hair: To add some simple hair,

append another sphere, duplicate it
and place the spheres in appropriate locations
for editing. I utilize DynaMesh in order to sculpt
a beard and mohawk using Standard, Move and
Dam_Standard brushes.
Unfortunately I dont have

an actual cat to pose for me,
so I make good use of some
reference images to create a
convincing cat
04
Creating Sidekat: Now that we have

our main guy fleshed out, its time to
create his trusty sidekick, Sidekat. We use the
same steps that created our main character,
beginning with a ZSphere stick model and
converting it using Adaptive Skin.
After a few subdivisions or DynaMesh, we dive
into roughing out our stylized cat anatomy,
developing forms with the Clay, Move, and
Smooth brushes . Unfortunately I dont have an
actual cat to pose for me, so I make good use of
some reference images to create a convincing cat.
05
Slice and dice: Hopping back over

to our main guy, its time to put some
armor on him. To make things efficient we will
transform his current body into armor instead of
building armor over his body. Using Mask Pen (or
any other masking brush you prefer), section off
areas of the model that correspond with pieces
of armor, and go to Tool > Polygroups > Group
Masked. Next select Tool > SubTool > Split >
Groups Split, which will separate each Polygroup
into individual SubTools. Now DynaMesh each
new SubTool to create whole pieces of geometry.
06
Suiting up: Now mask off a portion of

the face, drawing the rough shape of
a chin strap. Then navigate to Tool > SubTool
> Extract, and click the Extract button with a
thickness of 0.03. You will see a temp preview of
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Rinse and repeat the previous steps for Sidekat
Cutting up the mesh for better management
Blocking out the sci-fi suit
the extraction. Extraction is one of many ways

to generate custom geometry. If you like it, click
Accept to generate it.
Use the Move brush to push and pull segmented
pieces to form intersecting parts of armor.
Continue to block out armor and accessories
using various tools like the Topology brush, as
well as simple primitives with the Insert Cylinder
and Cube brushes.
Time to add some details

to the back of our character,
starting with a mechanical
spine for his exoskeleton suit
07
Spine and refine: Time to add some

details to the back of our character,
starting with a mechanical spine for his
exoskeleton suit. To do so we create a small
section of the spine; you can use Mirror Symmetry
to create a perfectly symmetrical piece.
Next go to Brush > Create InsertMesh. Select
Stroke > Curve > Curve Mode. Now we have a
Curve Insert Mesh brush to use for our project
and future projects. Lets continue now to refine
our hard surfaces by increasing our subdivision
levels or our DynaMesh resolution, and using a
combination of the Polish, hPolish, PolishD, and
Trim Dynamic brushes.
85
Creating a brush for the spine and refining armor parts
Adding Sidekats whiskers and equipment
08
Cat gadgetry: Lets give our trusty

Sidekat some gear and whiskers now.
For the whiskers, you can use the custom Insert
brush Hair single, which is included in the
downloadable resources.
We will use simple Insert brushes to block out his
equipment. A combination of the Topology, Insert
Cylinder, Insert Sphere, and Insert Cube brushes
are used to create the base for his gear. Increase
the polygon count and use Polish brushes if
necessary for crisp edges.
09
Platform: Our dynamic duo could

use a stage to stand on. Lets start
with appending a cylinder. Scale and place it
appropriately and increase the resolution rather
than subdivision or DynaMesh. Duplicate the
cylinder and place it to make an extra level.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Put some effort into developing a stage, but dont overdo it or it will steal focus from our characters!
Mask and move
Next use Mask Pen to mask off a geometric area

and extract some raised detail. After some editing,
create a copy of the wedge detail by selecting
SubTool > Geometry > Modify Topology > Mirror
and Weld. Duplicate this SubTool and select
SubTool > Deformation > Rotate _90 on Y axis to
create and place a second copy, making a set of
four raised designs on our platform.
Now lets add some detail to the base cylinders by
selecting Transform > Activate Symmetry > Y axis
> R and setting Radial Count to 50. With Radial
Symmetry set up, we can now use Clay brushes to
sculpt into the platform geometry.
10
Simple posing: The team has come a

long way from simple ZSpheres, but it
looks a bit static, so lets pose them up! There
are multiple means of being able to pose your
character in ZBrush; however, the basics are
simply, Mask and move.
Start by grouping SubTools by appendages, such
as arms, legs, feet, torso and head. For solid
organic parts like his tie, utilize Mask Pen and
Ctrl+click on the model to soften/blur the mask
to allow smooth deformations. Then place the
Transpose line and rotate.
For multiple pieces, utilize Ctrl+Alt+Shift to hide
and unhide parts, mask off appropriate parts and
move as needed.
87
11
Color and material: Finally comes the

moment when we add color to our team.
Select Skin Shade and go to Draw > RGB. Select
your color and use masking tools to apply color to
each piece accordingly.
Next lets add a little spice with a simple paint job.
To create a simple airbrush, select the Standard
brush, navigate to Draw > RGB, set RGB between
Base colors and paint.
Use Flat Viewing mode in
Render settings to view your
textures without shading
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
10-20, and turn off Zadd. Now that we have our

airbrush, select darker color values for each part
and add some shading to recessed areas.
With some fine-tuning we can create a brush
to simulate hair. Select Alpha 23, then click the
Stroke button and select the Spray option. With
some trial and error, you can edit the placement
and flow values to your preference.
Next is the fun part: adding shaders. Using the

materials shown, fill each piece accordingly by
selecting Draw > M and Fill Object. For an added
outline to establish a more stylish look for each
material, navigate to Material > Mixer and set
Outline to 1 and Depth to 3.
12
Rendering: No character art is complete

without a bit of rendering. The default
You can render your characters in ZBrush for presentation
settings for your BPR (Best Preview Render) wont

flatter your work and will need a bit of tweaking
to get some nice results.
Note that trial and error is recommended when
editing the render settings depending on the
size of your model within ZBrush, you will get
different results.
Start by establishing a preferred angle to render
from, then navigate to Render > Render Properties
and turn on Shadows and AOcclusion. Next go to

Render > BPR Shadow tab, and set Angle to 246
and Blur to 2. Click the BPR button to render and
see the results.
Orton and click the circle in the corner to show

a open circle, denoting that the filter is on. Set
Orton to 50, Opacity to 100, Radius to 32, and
Mask to 0.2.
Next go to Light and double-click to turn on

additional lights. Position each light on demo
sphere (you can click on the sphere to place the
light behind it). Play with the lights intensity
while clicking BPR to see results. For some extra
flair, navigate to Render BPR Filters. Select F4/
Render to see your results and lastly select

Document > Export, to name and select the
format to export your render. You can also use
Photoshop to composite your renders and add
some extra flair for presentation and now we
are done!
89
The Artist
Pierre Rogers
sketchzombie.com
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
91
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Create realistic facial expressions
The Artist
Djordje Nagulov
nagulov.artstation.com
Software Used:
ZBrush, 3ds Max
Djordje Nagulov is a freelance
artist currently residing in
Serbia. He is an experienced
modeler who also does some
light rigging on the side.
Create realistic
facial expressions
by Djordje Nagulov
Talented sculptor Djordje Nagulov breaks down the features

of the male face and offers advice on modeling expressions
with realistic form and volume
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Improve your 3D faces with

Djordje Nagulovs guidance
Its a good idea to separate tricky-to-reach areas like the eyes

and bottom lip into separate polygroups for easy access
In this article well explore the features of the

neck and face. As well be sculpting several
extreme expressions in order to analyze how
the shapes of the face interact, retopologizing
your models head and neck will be necessary
to begin with. Here well briefly touch on good
working practices and the many benefits of
proper edge flow. Once this is done, we will
proceed to rotate the head in several different
directions, so that we can study how the neck
muscles, tendons and skin appear at the
extremes of rotation.
After the neck well take a look at the main
facial features. The mouth and eye areas in
particular will go through several different
expressions to showcase how mobile the
human face is. This will allow us to inspect
how the main masses on the face shift and in
which direction.
Wrinkle depth and density give a face character, but can also pile on the
years. Pay attention to their direction, especially around the eyes
01
Retopologizing first: Automatic

retopology tools like ZRemesher might
be adequate for a neutral expression, but if you
are going to sculpt several dynamic expressions,
manual retopologizing is necessary. This will
save a lot of time in the long run introducing
proper edge flow around the mouth and eyes
greatly facilitates shifting the shapes around,
as the underlying geometry wont stretch too
much or run diagonally to your strokes. Try to
put the stars (vertices where five or more edges
converge) in places where the deformations
arent too extreme, as they can cause pinching on
the surface.
02
The face at rest: I sculpted my initial

model in ZBrush, then carried out
my manual retopology process in 3ds Max
before importing the mesh back into ZBrush
and transferring over most of the detail from
the original sculpt. The wrinkles are rebuilt
on a separate layer (taking care to make them
asymmetrical), as this allows us to fine-tune their
visibility. The eyeballs are placed into the eye
sockets as separate objects, and the upper eyelid
folds slightly under the brow. Be sure to make the
eyelids fairly thick, so that the inside edge of the
lower eyelid catches the light enough to make a
pleasing arc.
As you turn your head, your eyes automatically tend to turn as

well one of the many ways our body parts work in tandem
03
Turning the head: Mask off the neck

with a soft falloff at a low subdivision
level. Try to find the best place for head rotation,
near the base of the skull, right under the
ears. No matter how precise you try to be, the
neck will likely end up looking like a twisted
93
candy wrapper. Make sure to regain proper

volumes by inflating the collapsed areas. The
sternocleidomastoid muscle is very prominent in
this pose, nearly vertical and popping out of the
neck. As the head turns, other muscles that run
under it reveal themselves. On the opposite side it
is invisible, hidden by multiple skin folds.
The portion of the trapezius attaching to the base of the skull

practically disappears behind bunched skin when we look up
The skin at the front of the

neck stretches fairly thin and
becomes almost vertical when
the head tilts to the extreme
04
Looking up: Since we know where

the main muscles in the neck attach
from previous articles, tilting the head up is a
relatively simple, connect-the-dots affair. As the
sternocleidomastoid muscles stretch, the other
main strand attaching to the clavicles becomes
faintly visible. The muscles themselves tend to
bulge out slightly when viewed from the front as
they compress softly against the trapezius. The
skin at the front of the neck stretches fairly thin
and becomes almost vertical when the head
tilts to the extreme. The laryngeal prominence
(or Adams apple) becomes more noticeable as
a result. When viewed from the back, only a few
folds of the skin will show between the skull and
the trapezius.
When we look down, the head tilts forward and our chin nearly touches the
clavicles. Pretty much all forms at the front disappear behind compressed skin
05
Looking down: Its a similar situation

when the head tilts in the opposite
direction, with the roles reversed. The trapezius
stretches between the shoulders and the skull,
becoming quite taut as it flattens against the
vertebrae. This pose also reveals the angle
change that happens at the base of the neck as
the bony landmark of the C7 vertebrae sticks
out. The columns of the sternocleidomastoid
muscles shorten considerably, and their bottom
halves hide in the folds of skin that form at the
front of the neck. All that extra skin under the
chin compresses into thick folds, in many cases
obscuring the jaw line.
06
Bone visibility: As noted previously, the

face doesnt have that many muscles
that describe forms. In fact, the whole upper
portion of the head is largely defined by the
shapes of the skull, even in corpulent people. In
a neutral expression, we can usually see most
of the ocular orbit and the outside parts of the
cheekbones. Once we start introducing other
expressions and the shapes shift, its important to
keep in mind where the bone is. Since a lot of soft
tissue on the face is rather thin, bone structure
will in most cases be fairly visible and more
importantly, immovable.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Lifting the edge of the eye socket along with the eyebrows
is a beginners mistake. Bones of the skull dont move!
The nasolabial fold gets more prominent with age, becoming a

permanent fixture of the face when we hit our thirties, even at rest
07
Muscle direction and skin folds:

The lower half of the face has many
thin, stringy muscles which radiate away from
the mouth and serve to move the lips. For
our purposes we dont need to know their
names, origins and insertions. From a sculpting
perspective, however, you need to keep in mind
the tension that results from these muscles
driving a lot of primary mouth shapes, whereas
the secondary, surface forms are actually formed
by the skin. These folds run perpendicular to the
muscles, forming concentric circles around the
mouth. The nasolabial fold is the most distinctive
of these, and visually separate the mouth from
the cheek.
08
Not lifting your eyebrows when looking up tends to produce a very deliberate
glowering expression. Mr. Right is getting real tired of Mr. Lefts paranoia
Rotating the eyes: The eyeballs are

only slightly larger than the eyelids.
Due to the bulge of the cornea the eyeball isnt
completely spherical. This influences the shape
of the eye as we look around. When rotating from
side to side, the cornea shifts the upper eyelid,
making the eye ever so slightly larger where the
pupil is, and tapering off at the opposite corner.
Its important to note that many movements on
the face involve the surrounding features as well.
When looking up, we tend to automatically lift
the eyebrows, which is why you often get some
wrinkling in the forehead.
09
Closing the eyes: The upper eyelid

does the lions share of the movement
when we close our eyes, as it slides down over
the eyeball to meet the lower eyelid (which
hardly moves at all). The skin under the brows
unpacks and the deep fold that exists there
disappears. Depending on how fleshy the upper
eyelid is, more or less of the eyeballs curvature
can be discerned under the skin. If we scrunch
up our eyes tightly, more muscles get involved
the eyelids push tightly against each other, the
cheeks rise and the eyebrows come together in a
frown. This results in wrinkles radiating away from
the eyes and down the nose.
Even the nose gets involved when the eyes close tight. The nostrils rise along with the cheeks, creating wrinkles down its length
95
10
Happy and smiling: When we smile,

most of the action happens at the
mouth. The corners move simultaneously up and
back, stretching the lips thin over the teeth. The
upper lip lifts a bit, revealing the upper teeth,
whereas the lower lip stays more or less where
it is. The nasolabial fold is very pronounced,
with secondary creases forming in the cheek.
The cheeks lift, obscuring the cheekbone under
fat and stretching the nostrils. The eyes tend to
scrunch up to a degree, so that the lower eyelids
thicken and deep wrinkles radiate away towards
the sides. These wrinkles can extend halfway to
the ear.
When sculpting a smile, check from below often to ensure the lips are
properly sliding over the teeth, and note that the ears also rise slightly
This is the sort of expression

that involves the whole face.
The nostrils lift while the
corners of the mouth move
down with the muscles
underneath tensed
11
Angry and disgusted: This is the sort of

expression that involves the whole face.
The nostrils lift while the corners of the mouth
move down with the muscles underneath tensed.
Notice that this motion actually engages the
tendons in the neck. We also tend to thrust the
jaw out a little while lowering the head, which
results in thick folds under the chin. The cheeks
dont shift much, but the eyes narrow, which can
create minute wrinkles at the corners. Theres
a lot of creasing between the eyes, with the
eyebrows bunching together and the skin down
the nose wrinkling because of the nostrils.
TOP TIP
The wonders of the Move
Topological brush
In ZBrush, using the regular
Move brush works fine for most
situations when areas or even
entire parts of the mesh need to
be shifted around. However, tricky
sections such as the eyelids or the
mouth, where two topologically
separate shapes touch, are
much easier to manage using
a special variant of the Move
brush called Move Topological.
In short, this brush calculates
whether the shapes under the
cursor are actually connected or
merely close to each other. In our
example, we can see on the right
how the Move Topological brush
understands that the upper and
lower lip are separate entities.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Since this brush does calculations to decide which vertices to move, it tends to
get sluggish when faced with dense meshes. Low subdivisions work best
TOP TIP
Polygrouping to victory!
ZBrush has a neat feature called polygrouping,
which allows the user to quickly create differently
colored selection sets. These groups let us easily
isolate or mask different parts of the mesh we
want to work on, but their true usefulness comes
to the fore when dealing with difficult-to-reach
areas such as the inside of the mouth or the folds
of the eyelids. Creating polygroups works best at
the lowest subdivision level since youre dealing
with the least amount of polygons. Extra tip:
use Ctrl+Shift+S and Ctrl+Shift+X to grow/shrink
polygon visibility, and Ctrl+W when youre happy
with the selection to make a polygroup.
Use ZBrushs polygrouping function to

make your model easier to work on
While the nostrils are fairly mobile, it turns out

that the tip of the nose hardly moves at all
97
12
Afraid and in pain: The opening jaw

stretches the cheeks and pulls the
nostrils down. As the corners of the lips tend
to draw down when were expressing negative
reactions, dont forget to bring out tendons in the
neck as well.
The mouth forms a round shape and the lower
lip curls outward. This pose reveals the thickness
of the lips, so inflate the corners accordingly. In
the upper region of the face, the center of the

eyebrows lifts, wrinkling the middle portion of the
forehead. The eyes scrunch up at the sides, with
the lower eyelids lifting. The main jaw muscles,
the masseter and temporalis, pop out as well.
13
Forced to kiss grandma: Goofy title

aside, this expression serves to showcase
the mobility of the mouth. The muscle encircling
the lips, called the orbicularis oris, can stretch
and contract in a manner similar to a sphincter.

When the mouth purses forward, it moves up
and out and pulls the cheeks along as well.
Sometimes even the jaw moves forward slightly.
When you smoosh the lips together, take care to
retain volume, which in this case means the lips
grow larger and puffier as all the tissue packs
together. The philtrum also becomes more
pronounced and can almost plug up the nostrils.
Take care to rotate the jaw correctly the pivot should be somewhere in front of the ear and under the zygomatic arch
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The Artist
Thanks to putting our expressions in layers, we can switch different

morphs on and off, which can make for interesting combinations
Djordje Nagulov
nagulov.artstation.com
99
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this invaluable book offers a comprehensive guide to character creation in
Autodesks very popular 3D software, Maya.
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Trainer, Jahirul Amin, gives an insightful breakdown of how to model from scratch using Maya
and Mudbox. Not only will you learn about the principles of rigging and animation, with a
step-by-step guide detailing how to link the joints and create constraints and controls for
animation, you will also learn how to correctly light and render your scene for porfolio-worthy
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on which to develop your 3D character skills, so that by the end of this book you will have
created your very own realistic walk cycle.
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and creature sculpts by world-class artists including Mariano
Steiner, Maarten Verhoeven, Caio Csar, and Kurt Papstein.
Topics covered by the panel of industry experts
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of speed-sculpting tutorials offers
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with this revolutionary sculpting
software. Aimed at aspiring and
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ZBrush Characters & Creatures
is a go-to resource for those
looking to learn tips, tricks,
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from the digital art masters,
taking you from concept to
completion across a variety
of imaginative projects.
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Abstract images with Houdini
The Artist
Niels Prayer
nielsprayer.com
Software Used:
Houdini
Niels Prayer has worked as
FX supervisor and creative
director at SUPAMONKS
Studio since 2014, after
working at Illumination Mac
Guff and Framestore in 2013.
Abstract images
with Houdini
See how Niels Prayer uses Houdini and Mantras FX-based
tools to create this atmospheric abstract piece, Storm
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Niels Prayer shares his Houdini

and Mantra techniques
Particle system generation to create an abstract and organic shape fitting the framing questions
Storm is an abstract piece created in Houdini

and rendered in Mantra. The power in using a
software like Houdini is that its an FX-oriented
package. You can really control every step
of the process and procedurally modify and
customize during the process of creation.
Its a really pleasant way to work, having the
freedom to make modifications at every step
without destroying anything youve built.
This image is a great example of the power
of this way of working. When I start a project
like this one, I have an idea, but I know it will
evolve thanks to the procedural approach of
this software. The FX-oriented aspect allows
you to easily generate really fun effects in
combination with others; for example, having
particles, curves, fluids and pyro effects in the
same scene. It doesnt matter if you dont have
any model or setup; you can go from scratch
to an abstract piece in few hours, from idea to
final render.
In this making-of, you will see how Ive
managed a particle system to create trails
and metallic curves in conjunction with
spheres to create an abstract flower shape.
Ive also played with effects such as smoke
and detailed particles to frame the image and
create the overall mood. Finally, well cover
the lighting and rendering steps and how Ive
put the final touches in compositing to finetune the atmosphere. Thanks for reading! I
hope you like it!
Creation of curves trails following the particle system
01
Particle SOP: For this particular scene,

I wanted to have a dark, cloudy mood
and play with the contrast of textures and shapes.
The opposition of materials, such as clouds and
metallic shaders for instance, is a great way to
create detailed depth in an image. Playing with
lighting, specular highlights, bouncing lights,
and creating eye-catching details will put your
image in another dimension. The viewer is really
sensitive to details in an abstract piece, so you
have to create catchy elements! Even if its a
poetic vision, in my opinion, you have to have a
notion of reality that the viewer can identify with.
First, we start with a particle system done
with a Particle SOP (Surface Operator). With
some custom forces made with metaballs and
turbulences (directly into the Particle SOP node),
Ive created this pattern to fit my composition. I
wanted to create a squared ratio image, with an
organic shape rising up, so I decided to generate
my particle system more on the Y and Z axis than
just the X axis. With a really tiny focal length, it
would be really effective after adding the depth of

field during comp.
02
Converting to curves: To create these

trails, I converted my particles into
curves. When I generated my points, I simulated
some main particles and, with a Solver SOP,
I merged the previous and next frames of the
simulation to create some nice trails of particles.

In my simulation, I added an id attribute on
my points so I could get the point numbers and
generate curves on each of the trails.
For that, I used an Add SOP in Polygons and id
for attribute group method. I now had nice curves
trails following my particle simulation.
103
03
Converting to polygons: I knew for this image I wanted some

rough metallic shapes for the curves. The problem was that my trails
were just some NURBS curves, so I wouldnt be able to apply the textures
for roughness or reflectivity later in Mantra. I needed to convert them to
polygons and create a basic UV system. So I used a Polywire SOP to convert
the curves into polygons, and generated basic UVs with a UV Texture SOP.
This meant I could add details to my trails material for the shading process
later on.
04
Converting to polygons: At the beginning of the trails, I wanted

to have a sphere to give a floral look to this abstract shape. When
I simulated the particles, I grouped the main ones with a Group SOP for
this step. With a Copy SOP and a couple of random expressions (for the
size, mostly) in the stamp attributes, I put some spheres randomly at the
beginning of my trails. This gave me the final flower-like appearance I wanted
for these trails.
05
Creating extra details: For this type of image, I like to play with
contrast of shape, textures and materials. I felt my composition was
a little simple at this stage, so decided to generate some particles around
Adding some spheres at the beginning of the trails
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Convert the curve trails into polygons to add more details at rendering time
Creating of levitating spheres to obtain a better framing for the image
Creation of the clouds using the Pyro FX tool
my main shape, using spheres added with a Copy SOP, to get better framing.
Later, to contrast with the solid aspect of the trail flower, I put a glass shader
on these spheres to add something light and fragile.
06
Using Pyro FX: Now the fun part! Smoke! Since the beginning, I
knew I wanted a dark, cloudy atmosphere for this image. To create
these cloud shapes, I used Houdinis Pyro FX, which is a really powerful tool.
With a little tuning, you can make something really cool with a lot of control
over your shape. I had two emitters (standard sphere) with a lot of turbulence
at emission. On my Pyro FX, I had a lot of swirl with a large amplitude to get
those nice rounded shapes. Of course, I put a heavy density in my smoke, to
get a really opaque aspect later in lighting.
07
Shading and lighting: For the lighting, I used two kinds of lights.
First I set my environment with an HDRI map using the environment
light tool. With that, I got an initial mood for the scene, ready to adjust
details. I added an area light to the top-left to reveal a lot of specular on my
trails and spheres, and to get really good shadows in my smoke clouds.
For the shading, I used Mantra surfaces for every shader. I created a metallic
one for the flower trail, with a little noise added in the Displacement and
105
Lighting and shading the scene, and choice of materials
Roughness to obtain a really interesting render. As I mentioned earlier, I used a glass shader
on the levitating spheres, and finally a Billowy Smoke shader for the clouds, with a colored
ramp in the density attribute.
08
Compositing and post-work: Final step, compositing! For the background, I used a
custom HDRI map, really blurred to give a cloudy sky feeling in the scene. I put a glow
on the really bright specular and desaturated the overall image a little bit. With the depth of
field, I got a lot of nice bokeh in the front. In combination with a little flare, I used God Rays on
the smoke to give a final stormy effect. Playing with the contrast and the size of the depth of
field, I adjusted the final mood of my scene to get this stormy abstract effect.
The Artist
Niels Prayer
nielsprayer.com
Compositing and final adjustments
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
NEXT MONTH
Informative new interviews
Design a stylized character
Sculpt the female face
Inspiring ZBrush sketches
10 of the best 3D images from
around the world
Plus much more!
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Reptilian creature concepts in ZBrush
Reptilian creature
concepts in ZBrush
Learn some time-saving ZBrush sculpting tricks from Joshua
Wu and his awesome mutant raptor design
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The Artist
Joshua Wu
artstation.com/artist/joshuawu
Software Used:
ZBrush
Joshua Wu is a 21-year-old
3D character artist working at
Batavian Studio, Indonesia.
109
Discover how Joshua Wu made

this creature concept
Having a strong idea before you start really
helps the whole process to be much faster
and refined. First of all, think about what kind
of creature you want to create. What kind of
habitat does this creature live in? What does
it eat? Is it huge or small? I had some idea of
the type of creature I wanted to make from the
start; I wanted to make a raptor! The question
was what kind of raptor? A prehistoric one, or
maybe a sci-fi one? Ask as many of these types
of questions as you can to get a really good
idea before you start.
01
In order to be fast, I chose to work only

with ZBrush and Photoshop. After Ive
got a strong idea of the creature Im making,
I instantly move to ZBrush to block out the
basic shape using DynaMesh. One of the most
important things to note is to stay on the lower
subdivision levels for as long as possible! You
dont want to make the mistake of going straight
into the detailing stage.
Sculpt to your hearts content
Having a strong silhouette allows the model to be

easily recognizable from a distance, whether its
in videogames or movies. A strong silhouette can
define the characteristics of a creature.
02
After I finished blocking out the base

shape and the design, I duplicated the
sculpt and used ZRemesher on it in order to
have better topology distribution for the second
detail pass. I transferred the detail from the
DynaMeshed mesh onto this new one by selecting
the new mesh with the DynaMeshed one, then
starting to subdivide, pressing the Project All
button every time I subdivided the model.
Duplicate your mesh and use ZRemesher on the DynaMeshed model
I subdivided my mesh until I was satisfied with the

density of the mesh, then did the next detail pass.
Now it was time for me to continue my sculpting.
03
I personally do not use a lot of alphas to

sculpt detail, so half of the scale detail
was done manually. However, sculpting the
scales one by one would have taken me forever
to finish, so I searched for scale alphas and photo
textures on Google. While using alphas, your
mesh subdivision level has to be very high to get
a good result. But even after that, it is better to do
some clean-up on the mesh. Sculpt on top of the
alphas to blend the scales nicely. Having a clean
mesh is always better to work with.
04
Texturing the creature was one of my

favorite stages. The result of texturing a
character always changes the overall aura of it.
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
Combining alphas and hand-sculpting
Example images courtesy of

Dollar Photo Club
Since this wasnt a realistic character I allowed

myself to go crazy with the texturing, but at the
time I had no idea how it was going to turn out,
so I started by collecting lots of references. I used
snakes, crocodiles, and Komodo dragons as my
main references. Again, gathering references is
very important.
Once I had chosen my main references, I started
to block out the base color for the creature. I
spent around an hour and a half on getting the
basic color.
05
While I was experimenting, I decided

to use complementary colors such as
green and red as my main color palette, and
from there I tried to introduce another color to
give more variation to the skin. The reason why
I used green and red is because they create the
strongest contrast which is dynamic and pleasing
to the eye.
For the patterns and second layer of details, I
used the photo texture references I found and
bashed them onto the mesh using Spotlight.
Spotlight can be found under the Texture tab
in ZBrush. Import the image you want, and you
can use the color and detail from the photo to
enhance your mesh drastically.
Color palette consistency is important
111
06
ZBrush is able to generate a quick

render called BPR (Best Preview Render).
Unfortunately, this method is not very well suited
Rendering the passes to experiment
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
for production. This rendering technique is fast

but very conceptual, focusing on the aesthetic
side. I saved a view using ZAppLink (Document
> ZAppLink Properties) to ensure that all the

passes would be rendered at the same angle. For
the final image, seven render passes were used:
Bringing it all together!
color pass (base render), ambient occlusion, key

light, specular (reflection), rim light, shadow and
cavity. I also applied a black background to all
the passes.
07
I started by opening the color pass

(the base render of the character) in
Photoshop and applying the key light using
the Screen layer blending mode. I then applied
the rim light, which was given a greenish-blue
tint in Photoshop using Hue/Saturation. I also

changed the intensity using Levels and Screen
layer options. I used a Multiply layer mode for the
shadow and AO pass; once again I gave a slight
bluish tint to get the feel I was aiming for.
The specular pass was then added in Color Dodge
mode. I erased some of the areas such as the
teeth, hair, and a little bit near the neck. Lastly, I
added the cavity pass in Soft Light mode.
08
It was a great process and I learned a lot

from this as well. However, I also realized
that there is always room for improvement. I
believe that everyone should get out of their
personal comfort zone in order to learn and
improve further.
There is no denying that practice makes perfect.
I hope you can learn something from this
breakdown. Goodbye and thank you for reading!
113
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The Artist
Joshua Wu
artstation.com/artist/joshuawu
115
3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Digital Art Master: Mathieu Aerni
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Discount code: damv920
DIGITAL ART MASTER:
Lindford
by Mathieu Aerni
Discover the processes behind a stunning 3D masterpiece with a sneak-peek
look inside the pages of Digital Art Masters: Volume 9. Learn how Mathieu Aerni
crafted his fantastic character in 3ds Max, ZBrush, MARI, Ornatrix and V-Ray
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The Artist
Mathieu Aerni
mataerni.com
Software Used:
3ds Max, ZBrush, MARI,
Ornatrix, V-Ray
I experimented with different horns options in

ZBrush, including smaller vertical goat-like horns
This image is my take on a mythical creature:

the satyr. It all started with the idea of doing
a realistic human portrait, but with some
imaginary elements added to his head. The
idea of a satyr quickly came to my mind.
The horns evolved into ram-like horns to look more impressive and realistic
The final topology was created in ZBrush using QRemesher
In Greek art, this creature was depicted as a

man with the tail and ears of a horse, but the
Romans gave him a goats horns and pointy
ears to emphasize his relationship to the
goat god Pan. That is the direction I decided
to go. It was very important for me to create
a character with an interesting personality,
and to achieve a certain level of realism and
believability in doing so.
Sculpting
I started this project in ZBrush for the
conceptualization of the character. At first I didnt
know exactly where I was going with the design of
the horns, so I tried a couple of different options
including smaller vertical goat-like horns. I ended
up going for ram-like horns, as they looked more
impressive and matched perfectly the type of
facial features that I had in mind (Fig.01 02).
For his face, I gathered some picture references
from the internet to make sure I would achieve
a good level of realism. Once I matched those
references, I started playing with the facial
features to give him a more interesting personality
and distinctive proportions. For example, I scaled
up the nose a lot and made it puffier; I also gave
him pointy ears and I worked on the expression
and proportions of the mouth.
In my sculpting, I pay a lot of attention to primary
forms, basic proportions and volumes. I used
the Move brush and the Clay Tubes brush to
establish the overall shape and then I increased
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
the subdivision to work on secondary forms,

using mostly the Clay Tubes brush. I finally went
up to the highest subdivision level to work on the
wrinkles, skin pores and all the high-frequency
details of the horns. I then created a new topology
using QRemesher before using ZBrushs UV
Master to create a first pass of UVs. Finally, I made
adjustments in 3ds Max to achieve the exact

result I wanted (Fig.03).
Texturing in MARI
Once I was finished with the modeling and
sculpting, I started texturing in MARI. This is an
extremely flexible way to paint and texture a
I textured this character in MARI, using several pass of detailing. Here you can see the texturing process on the horns
I used a V-Ray SSS2 material for the face and a V-Ray Standard
material for the horns, which were combined using V-Ray Blend
character while seeing the exact result in 3D. It is

very quick and intuitive. The horns were totally
hand-painted, using no photo-sourced textures.
Here are the steps of my painting process on one
of the horns (Fig.04).
1. First, I worked on the base colors and on the
transition between the horns and face using
MARIs default Organic Brushes set, plus the
SUPERsoft brush and the linear brush.
2. I created another layer and worked on a first
pass of details. MARI can easily load very highpoly meshes, so I loaded my ZBrush sculpt at
subdivision level 5 to see all the sculpted details.
This allowed me to paint more dirt in the cavity
of the sculpture and to make sure there would be
an interesting parity between the sculpted details
and color details.
3. I created another layer and painted another
pass of smaller high-frequency details. The
layer-based philosophy in MARI is very similar
to Photoshop and you can use very similar
blending modes, so I finished the horn texture by
creating new layers with bigger brushstrokes and
using them in different blending modes. Dodge
Highlights, Burn Highlights, Multiply, Overlay,
Screen and Sponge Desaturate were used to
create paler and darker regions on the horns
while keeping all the previously painted details.
Shading
It was important for me to make the shading
properties of the face very different from the
horns. To do so, I ended up using two completely
different materials for each of them. I used
a VRayFastSSS2 material for the face, and a
Standard material for the horns. I also wanted
to achieve a very natural transition between
the horn and the face, so I used a VRayBlendMtl
material, and I painted a black-and-white map
in MARI that I then used as a mask to mix them
together (Fig.05).
Hair
The hair was done in 3ds Max using Ornatrix. One
of the keys to making the hairstyle look and feel
natural is the balance between order and chaos.
Theres a natural direction to hair, but if each
surrounding hair followed that direction, the
result would look like a cheap wig.
I created five different

hair systems. Here you
can see my beard and
eyebrows setup
After carefully combing the beard, hairs, brows

and fur collar, I created a fuzz of crazy stray hairs
for each of them by duplicating the main hair
systems and setting them to grow by 15-percent.
Then I set the Ox Strand Frizz and the Ox Strand
Curling settings to higher than the rest of the hair
to increase the fuzz effect (Fig.06).
Lighting & rendering
The scene was rendered in 3ds Max using V-Ray.
I started by using a V-Ray Dome light driven
by a high dynamic range image. Image-based
lighting is always very good to set the character
in a realistic environment, but in this case, I felt it
wasnt enough. The image was lacking contrast,
so I used one additional Planar V-Ray light as a
key light placed above the head to create lighting
that was a little more dramatic. Everything was
rendered as one pass straight from 3ds Max. As
I always do, I did some fine tuning afterwards
in Photoshop, such as playing with curves and
colors (Fig.07).
Have fun
For this project, every step of the process was a
lot of fun. I hope you found something useful or
inspiring in this for your own projects!
Mathieu Aerni
3DCREATIVEMAG.COM
The lighting setup

combined imagebased lighting and
direct lighting, to
add contrast and
stronger shadows
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3D Creative September 2015

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3D Creative September 2015

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121

Issue 121 | September 2015

Ruben Alvarez shares an

Crafting vibrant cartoon characters

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

Welcome to 3dcreative issue 121!

This months issue is crammed with variety: from colorful

MATTHEW TREVELYAN JOHNS

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

Get the most out of it!

Top tips for viewing

Whenever you see this symbol, be sure to click it to

For lots more tutorials and exclusive articles, visit:

Special thanks to 3DHype,

Contents Issue 121

10 of the most inspiring 3D images from the world of

026_ Mastering concept design

Ruben Alvarez shares an insight into concept art for the

036_ Crafting vibrant cartoon characters

Visit the colorful world of 3D illustrator Teodoru Badiu

046_ Having fun with character concepts

052_ Sci-fi creations in ZBrush

Richie Mason reveals his hard-surface ZBrush

062_ Troubleshooting for the Form 1+

James W. Cain offers help and advice for 3D SLA

070_ Real-time environment assets

Learn how to sculpt a rocky canyon in ZBrush with

082_ Sculpt a sci-fi cartoon character

Create colorful sci-fi sculpts in ZBrush with Pierre

092_ Create realistic facial expressions

Learn how to model expressive faces with Djordje

102_ Abstract images with Houdini

Discover how Niels Prayers creates abstract images

108_ Reptilian creature concepts in ZBrush

116_ Digital Art Master: Lindford

Learn how Mathieu Aerni crafted his stunning 3D

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 113

Go to page 080 for details

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Art Gallery

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

Submit your images! Simply email: marisa@3dtotal.com

High Octane Rampage

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Art Gallery

Gettin Too Old for This

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Art Gallery

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

An Old Warriors Home

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Art Gallery

Lost in the Forest

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

Curiosity the Robot

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Art Gallery

SCI-FI WW2 Allied Vehicle

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | ISSUE 121

IMAGE LORENZO ZITTA

CREATE INCREDIBLE CHARACTERS

MICHAEL SAHIN DERUN

Discover the delightful

3DCREATIVE MAGAZINE | Mastering concept design

Freelance concept artist

Ruben Alvarez is a pro at merging 3D and 2D to bring concepts to life.