"Softwheel" Hard Surface/ZBrush Exercise

josh_lynch

This thread will focus on using standard modeling workflows and ZBrush's Dynamesh workflow to obtain clean hard surface results.

Earlier in the year there was an article on Wired talking about a new wheel called the "Softwheel" and thought it would be great to use as a learning asset.

Tools- Maya, ZBrush, Photoshop, Headus UV Layout, Marmoset 2, Keyshot.

Creation Plan:

1. Initial blockout in Maya.
2. Create all boolean pieces in Maya.
3. Import all assets to ZBrush abd Dynamesh with all pieces to get to final result.
4. Detail and polish using ZBrush.
5. Low poly and UV pass.
6. Bake and texture.
7. Render in Marmoset 2 and Keyshot.

Photo Ref



Initial blockout from Maya rendered in Marmoset 2.

josh_lynch

Getting used to the Maya to ZBrush Dynamesh workflow. All pieces made in Maya and brought into ZBrush for a addative/subtractive boolean workflow with Dynamesh. Love the workflow so far and am learning a lot.

Gonna focus on finishing out the outer wheel pieces next. As well as use a weld brush to sculpt some weld lines in.

McGergs

Looking good so far. Can't wait to see more!

Huntard

Awesome Josh! what are your resolution settings for the dynamesh and what does your wireframe look like from your source geo?

josh_lynch

@McGergs - Thanks glad you are liking it!

@Huntard - Cool! I can throw together an image on the source meshes and what they turn into. Overall I havent had to crank the resolution or defer to Dynamesh Master to get better results. The base wheel with the poles coming out is sitting at a Dynamesh res of 112 @ 1.3 Mill polys. The inner triangle piece has a resolution of 384 @ 2.4 million polys.

For this pass I added the details to the wheel rim. Small rivets/details and a boolean cutout, poles that connect to the outer portion.

josh_lynch

I had some requests to explain the workflow a little bit more.

Hope this helps!

heklis

Nice work and thank you for the tutorial, hopefully someone will be able to test.

BLACKMETAL

Yeah tutorial is great, thanks for it!

But i've got question: what comes after that operations, how do you optimize that pretty heavy hipoly for export in 3d max? After i do decimation master i get too rugh surfaces for perfect bake. Or am i just doing something wrong?

Neox

just import it as is, and let max never show it in viewport. the renderer can handle a lot more polies than the viewport can.

set your display mode to bounding box

import your mesh

go into the object properties and set it to bounding box

now switch back to normal view.


tho i think just for flexibility i would just model those clean pieces, its pretty simple geo and design changes are so much easier with a proper simple basemesh.

BLACKMETAL

Neox wrote: »

just import it as is, and let max never show it in viewport. the renderer can handle a lot more polies than the viewport can.

set your display mode to bounding box

import your mesh

go into the object properties and set it to bounding box

now switch back to normal view.


tho i think just for flexibility i would just model those clean pieces, its pretty simple geo and design changes are so much easier with a proper simple basemesh.

Thats pretty much easiest method, but what about making lowpoly in max for this, it's hard to do lowpoly for hipoly that you dont see. I get your idea, just thinking maybe is there another method for that.
So the key to this techniqe is no optimisation, just bald export?

Yeah the model is simple just for quick testing.

Neox

well to retopo, you can always just get in your crunched down mesh or use a lower subdiv level, retopo is about the shapes, not the detail. baking mesh can be an entirely different model from what you use for retopo.

BLACKMETAL

Neox wrote: »

well to retopo, you can always just get in your crunched down mesh or use a lower subdiv level, retopo is about the shapes, not the detail. baking mesh can be an entirely different model from what you use for retopo.

I see, then it's just a piece of cake, thanks for answer

josh_lynch

With making all of the pieces in Maya/Max/Modo first you are essentially blocking out your low poly. You will be able to have something tangible to work from quickly if need be and a quick proxy to send to engine.

1. Decimate the meshes, export from ZBrush, import to 3D package.

2. You dont need to retopo. With the pieces that were sent to ZBrush in the first place a low poly can quickly be created from these same mesh's. Bevel the edges in the low poly to get the light to catch etc.

Hope this helps :-)

josh_lynch

Added weld seems to the struts and details to the small rivets.

Thanks to "dudealan2001" for the weld brush, super helpful!

josh_lynch

First pass with Keyshot. Simple materials applied.

josh_lynch

Another pass with Keyshot. Updated materials and decals applied.

killnpc

very clean work, very impressive.

Greg DAlessandro

how did you achieve the welding?

skodone

josh_lynch wrote: »

Added weld seems to the struts and details to the small rivets.

Thanks to "dudealan2001" for the weld brush, super helpful!

maybve this helps you

LaurentiuN

awesome work here :>

josh_lynch

Thank you for the kind words!

Pushed materials further and new HDR. Trying for more separation and contrast while still maintaining as much from photo ref.