ZBrush Masterclass- PART I

So- i've been undertaking a Zbrush masterclass and my sculpting has improved vastly in only 3 weeks, only 7 more weeks to go! Below is a selection of the stuff i've been making under the expert tutelage of Ryan Kingslien on ZBrushWorkshops.com. I'll add more updates on the Masterclass as the weeks go by.

An, as yet, unfinished human skull.

Zbrush sketch of Toad commuter

African girl from '3d.sk' reference images

My friend Lydia- front on

Lydia- three quarters

Old Man- from 3d.sk reference images

3d graphics, shock!

Eventually getting some 3d up here i do it all day everyday, so it really should be represented.

During my day job i mainly work in Maxon's  'cinema 4d', an under-appreciated little 3d program that is very easy to pick up and learn.

I am a 3d Generalist/Technical director, which means i have to do a little bit of everything from modeling right through to rigging and animation. If you can think of an object i have probably made one of them at some point.

But this stuff, this stuff is actually from a fairly new love in my life ZBRUSH. And it IS the best 3D program i have ever used, ok so the interface is frankly bonkers and it can be crazy temperamental at times, but what comes out the other side is something better than 3d graphics, it's real art, pure and simple. Perhaps even more important than what comes out though is the physical act of producing work on it puts a big old smile on my face, it's a joy, a real zen experience.

All of the images in this post were created before i started a masterclass in Sculpting in Zbrush (which i am currently in the middle of so busy, busy, busy).

hope you like em.

ugly wee dug

old chinese fellow

cheeky chimp

Frank Quietly's Inaba.

Now in dazzling technicolor!

OK! Time for some colour- I warn you now what you are about to see might not be pretty, colour is where i fail every time. I need a LOT more practice, both seeing and picking colours, I'm going to hunt out some books on colour-theory and using colour in painting, because at this point I need all the help I can get.

Barbarosemo: Photoshop, 10 mins.

Angry Being: 5 mins, Photoshop

Toon car photo-shopped.

Susan, drab colours, needs much work.

SuperColourFrog-Gel-lipstick : 25, mins. Photoshop.

From the dusty corners of my mind.

The following pictures are all quick sketches from my little backpocket pad, they are usually ideas that suddenly come to me and as such demand to be drawn. The idea behind all of my drawing practice is to benefit these drawings- when you understand what real-life looks like you can conjure up far more convincing images from your mind. However this is where i fall down majorly my drawings from the mind are generally undisciplined and somewhat shoddy: I need to practice more.

A tiny soldier, part of a much larger animation idea.

An intrepid explorer, most likely a one line joke.

a cartoon fish.

a very skinny pug.

Starfish-octopus-wild-west-sheriff...deal with it.

a silly cartoon car, fun to draw though.

Quick sketches from reality- pencil on paper, approx 1 minute each.

Toad-like train passenger

Vampiric looking train passenger

Real-life Disneys Hercules- seen on TV

Egyptian minister from TV;
Superb moustache required documenting.

Bookworm train passenger

Toon style reimagining of Maybelline model.

Human thumb as seen on a TV programme

Bully: angry that he has to wear specs, drove past him in Glasgow

My wife is tiny (this may be little exaggeration)

Susan's hair cut free.

I'm kinda new to this game.

Give a guy some leeway- i have no idea what I'm doing with this.

So those first two pictures deserve a little bit of explanation:

The little notepad lives in my back-pocket, a lot of the little sketchy chicken feet scribbles you are goin to see here are scanned from that dog-eared little tome. And i caught the love of little pencils from my Dad who in his retirement (and presumably before) would rarely be seen in or around our house without one of these little beauties tucked behind his ear, his were always sharpened using a small maroon red Swiss-army style penknife and each of their drawing points was a tiny beautiful work of art.

So whenever i get the opportunity i will use a knife to sharpen my dinky little pencils, they are then each and everyone unique, both a pleasure to sculpt and to use. It also gives me an excuse to think of my old man, and that in itself would be reason enough.

I started carrying around little books much like this one, after i had an epiphany of sorts. (This one is actually one of a pair donated, very kindly, by a friend who is both an illustrator and animator- cheers Jana!)

This day i was scribbling away with pencil on paper (at the time it was an increasingly rare thing for me to be doing) and upon making a little mistake my brain automatically, and extremely quickly, flagged up the response 'UNDO'.

I had been working on computers so long my brain had for that split-second forgotten that you need to physically rub out mistakes made with a real pencil. I'll pretend here for the sake of arguement that i was hugely galvanised by this momentary lapse and rushed out immediately to buy one of these pads, that may not have been the case, but it was certainly the catalyst.

Now i carry a tiny little pencil and pad with me everywhere i go, and scribble little things on it as often as i can. As it stands this is often the more 'interesting' patrons of the local train-line. I also took up some life drawing (which i sadly haven't been to in quite sometime- sorry Sandy!) Life Drawing is the best exercise anyone wanting to draw can take up, Full Stop, just gotta get over your embarrassment.

Drawing is good for the soul, and i would recommend it to everyone, and i mean everyone.  The very act of stopping and looking, really looking, at the world we live in makes us appreciate it just a little bit more and that is a very important thing to do.

The Wacom tablet.

The other picture is of my Wacom tablet.
I suppose some people might not have seen one of these before, and not really know what they are looking at (my wonkily-rotated image won't help that either). Wacom is a brand name like Nike, only i hope, with slightly more scruples than Nike (i remember when she was just a goddess: strength, speed and victory for anyone without goog-skills, or inclination) but they make simply the best pen tablets on the market, this one is a 'bamboo one' the previous iteration of their popular bamboo series and the cheapest they ever made, it cost me about £30. You could get one just like it on ebay for about £15 if you are prepared to hunt. They have now replaced it with a newer version which is much more expensive but without very good reason. I also carry this around with me wherever i take my laptop and rucksack, i tuck it into the little laptop sleeve i have, probably not a good idea, but then it only cost £30. i would show you the one i currently use in work, but you'd keel over at the size and cost of it.

If you are going to make Art on computer buy yourself a pen tablet, it will be the best decision you make. Trying to use a mouse to paint or sculpt on computer is like trying to draw with a bar of soap, it's not easy and it's probably more than a little foolish.

One last thing, i talk too much, and i use too many words, i love words almost as much as i love drawing, but talking is so much easier that i reckon i definitely do it much more.

i'll go post some stuff i made.

i have no idea what order i am gonna do this in so:    'bear with'  :)

Tools of the trade.

My backpocket's constant companions.

You can't paint with a brick...buy a wacom.