Retopo In Zbrush WTF?
Hey PolyCount, im making a character for a class i am in this quarter and i decided to learn a new pipeline. I started with my basic mesh in Maya and did the rest of my detailing in Zbrush intending to retopo the meshes and unwrap after my detail was done. So im at that point but nothing seems to work as i had hoped. here are my chief complaints/concerns.
1. Why the heck does my retopo shrink to such an abstract size when using the retopo tools in zbrush?
2. Why does zbrush give me so many more faces than i want. I put one face it smooths that into 2?(ive messed with some of the settings under Topology Drop down but cant seem to get it to give me a 1 to 1 placement I want complete control over my low poly mesh).
SO i atempted to rescale things the best i could but ended up not being very accurate so here is one of my failed Normal map attempts bleh...
1. Why the heck does my retopo shrink to such an abstract size when using the retopo tools in zbrush?
2. Why does zbrush give me so many more faces than i want. I put one face it smooths that into 2?(ive messed with some of the settings under Topology Drop down but cant seem to get it to give me a 1 to 1 placement I want complete control over my low poly mesh).
SO i atempted to rescale things the best i could but ended up not being very accurate so here is one of my failed Normal map attempts bleh...
Replies
Good luck!
However, in all cases, us GOZ, it SHOULD export the mesh size correctly IF you imported a model in ZBrush which then you used that imported model for the Retopo, so in theory, it should work.
For the SD problem, if you notice, your mesh is being divided. ZB does this just incase you don't have enough polies and to better follow the mesh, but don't worry, you should retain your 'original' retopo regardless of it. If not sure, retopo something quickly, and finalize the mesh and try going down a SD level, it should work. (I know, I know, this is an extremely stupid thing Pixo did because apparently too many casual artists weren't understanding why their model looked clunky).
Also, with what are you baking your normals?
EDIT: Almost forgot, for future reference, DON'T use ZBrush retopo tools. They also tend to flip normals if the mesh isn't connect to each other (EI: Gloves, shoulder plates, etc) and have a bajillion other headaches. Plus, they don't deform whenever you add loops to your model retopo, so that's really nice, having to delete sections of your model.
I've had all these issues hes showing up with in Zbrush, but they can all be fixed by watching what you do.
When you export your mesh from Zbrush, Double check your Export Tap, as lots of times it gets set to some wierd numbers, Just make sure your scale is set to 1 and all your offsets are set to 0
The reason your getting the subdivision is that your not changing the subdivision level in the Adaptive skin pallet.
After that, it will export and open directly the model in you Maya scene. Here is a video:
[ame]
At 4:00 it should interest you.
Also, for retopo, not idea. I'm a Max user, but I think Make Live from pior's post is a good start. Here is one of his videos even:
http://vimeo.com/4960185
That's a good question, and I said, I don't know since I'm not a Maya user (other then Make Live I would say) but honestly, the tools are simply too ineffective for them to even be considered...between Wrapit, Topogun, 3DC and even Blender, I would say ZBrushes retopo is more trouble that worth it.
Yes, I can watch what I'm doing, but does a person really need to bang their head on the desk a bajillion times because he forgot to make a correct cap at the end of the mesh, so now its flipping the normals?
The scale issue isn't even a retopo problem, Pixo knows this problems exists since v3.5 and didn't bother fixing it upto-date.
Just saying...I have enough problem to worry about when exporting mesh from package to package, I don't need the extra problem retopo.
(Just to be clear : if it works for someone, it sure is cool then - whatever works!)
i wont do that in z...
Bit harsh. I've been retopoing in ZBrush for years. I've never had many problems and I've never seen this scaling problem either. But there are some annoyances (as with most software)
I quite like Retopo in ZBrush tbh, Its quite therapeutic. Ok. Its not the slickest tool for it. But if I want a program to do all my work for me I might as well pay someone else to do it. Retopo in ZB makes me feel like I've worked for it.
Don't get me wrong though. I use plenty of other shortcuts and tools to make workflow simpler. If you don't like retopoing I suggest you try 3D coat or topogun.
About the scale bug and other related strange things Zbrush does, well, Zbrush is like an excentric artist. It's able to do wonderful things, but you have to used with it's excentricities...
Id say ZBrush retopo is the worst of all retopo tools Ive used, which is most of them. Like Pior said, Maya Live will be a good option for you.
Lots of edge extrudes, and being quick on the draw with your Make Poly/Append Poly tools and merge verts function (i.e. hotkeys
I would say zbrush has some decent retopo tools, but certainly other programs offer a better alternative (namely you can add more than one face at a time). Hopefully zbrush will see some improvements in this category in the future (I'm not expecting it for Z4R2, all they've shown so far is a focus on rendering), but until then you can make good use of GoZ, Decimation Master, and the Projection tools.
www.zbrushworkshops.com has a free demo workshop about retopologizing with zbrush and Maya. It might be up your alley.