Workflow, Am I doing it all wrong?

Ryandec

Hi so basically am trying to make assets by creating base meshes in Maya and then using z brush to detail them, especially organic shaped models. I have been hitting the stage of wanting to create a low poly, either using mud-box, mesh-lab or using quad draw, but since I created the base mesh as separate objects and just combined them there is like empty space, so with quad draw I was concerned if I put polys over the spaces it would create weird normal maps and I can't use mud-box unless I retopo each object, and then each normal would need to be baked individually. So basically should I just start over but keep in mind to create a base mesh that is one object or continue and see if quad draw works or retpo individually in mud box?

Hope I made somewhat some sense :P

here is the base mesh and the z brush sculpt,

Moosebish

If you are happy with the sculpt, re-topologize it and bake. You shouldn't have to start all the way over.

You made some pretty large silhouette changes in the slumping/droopy cushions, that creating a new low-poly would be better than using what you started with.

My workflow is more like this:

1) Block out
2) High Poly
3) Low poly/Unwrap
4) Bake
5) Adjust as needed

SuperFranky

Do whatever you want with the mesh, then retopologize it to suit your needs. With a mesh like this, you probably don't need to have all the cushions as separate poly objects, so you can just retopologize the couch as one contiguous mesh. Baking it as one object should be a piece of cake.

Ryandec

Thanks for the replies, I think I was just concerned is there was like a perfect formula to work by, but I'm guessing its really just down to what makes best for you and the asset you are creating. Thanks I'll most likely work on the sculpt a bit more and finish this one up now !