Zbrush 2.5d texture issues

monkeymintaka

Hi guys,
I have been trying unsuccessfully for three days to make a 2.5d tile floor. I followed a couple of tutorials and it seemed like it should be a piece of cake, but I had a lot of problems as I haven't used zbrush a whole lot. I finally think I have the process figured out, but I am having a problem moving objects in the zdepth.

Hopefully this explain the problem:



This was happening with my own ztools and the stock tools in zbrush.
I wasn't even sure what to search for on google to find a solution so I am hoping some pros on PC have the answer I'm guessing it's something to do with the pivot point? Or the grid placement?

Thanks for looking!

cryrid

There's very little point in placing an object onto the document before entering edit mode. 2.5d = pixels, so you wont be able to really sculpt on it once you drop something to the document.

Do your editing and sculpting first, and then start placing it.

monkeymintaka

Thanks for your quick reply cryrid, I already have all my stones sculpted, I was just using the cylinder as an example. But its happening the the stones I have made as well, so I wasn't sure if there was an option box or something I need to change to keep the object at the same depth when i enter edit mode.

cryrid

Stones, cylinders, rocketships... anything you want. There's still no solid reason to try and reenter 3d edit mode after manually positioning a tool on the 2d document.

The document is made out of pixels/pixols and is different than polygon models which just float around in their own special plane of existence on top. You're meant to be in the final stages of converting the model to pixols when you're manipulating a model without Edit mode on. That doesn't just mean you should be finished detailing it, either. It means when you leave edit mode you're no longer dealing with a model, you're telling zbrush where you want the tool's final resting place to be on the image you're one click away from creating. Reentering edit mode after 2d-placing a model is a giant "No wait come back! I decided I'm not done afterall" message to zbrush.

I see you have a grid, I'm guessing it is for placement and your real problem is the clipping? If so I'd suggest a different approach: either attach it to an image plane, float it on top of everything with Spotlight, or have it open behind zbrush and lower zbrush's opacity. Otherwise when you import and image into the document, it's going to fill the entire layer. When that happens, you'll want to create a new document layer to draw your tool on instead of trying to have it occupy the same layer as the image. The filled image layer can be z-displaced and sent backwards as needed to prevent clipping.

monkeymintaka

Okay, thanks for the explanation. I got sidetracked and was following a tutorial on creating rubble, where the guy placed and drew the object, placed where he wanted it, then set it to edit mode, exited edit mode to draw the next object.
That was what I was trying to do, but I think I was getting ahead of myself as I am still only learning zbrush's basic tools. I will try your suggestions, as the clipping part was my main issue.