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1. Cayhr (cayhr@varishangout.net)'s status on Wednesday, 13-Nov-2024 13:40:04 JST Cayhr

   in reply to

   @bronze I followed the tried and true mantra in the 3d modeling community: “Make your donut.” I started there just so that I could even figure out how to use Blender in the first place. There is a tutorial series by Blender Guru (https://invidious.varis.social/watch?v=B0J27sf9N1Y&list=PLjEaoINr3zgEPv5y–4MKpciLaoQYZB1Z) that all new 3d modelers can use as structured learning to jumpstart the journey.

   After that, I didn’t use anymore tutorial series, I just looked around for the odd video and forum post to solve certain problems I didn’t know the solutions to (usually Blender esoteric functions). Once the donut was done and I had graduated from the kiddie pool with enough muscle memory to navigate the program, my friend recommended I learn to sculpt first. However, I wanted to fast track my learning so I turned on hard mode.

   I embraced trial by fire and learned topology by modeling Yolanda vertex by vertex. After that, I learned enough to UV unwrap and apply her facial details and areola, how vertex and weight painting worked, how to rig the model (with all the advanced goodies such as inverse kinematics, shape keys, and notably drivers), and now I’m where I am now.

   Remember that my OC… demanded unique solutions. There was also a lot of trial and error. I version controlled my .blend file painstakingly and very carefully. Be patient and VERY cautious of large sweeping operations like mass deletions and joining and separating objects. I would best describe the realm of 3d as “deeply connected,” as it is very easy to inadvertently screw something else up. There are also a lot of concepts that are kind of “hard to see,” such as vertex groups, because if you were to unwrap a vertex group that you named “Body.Torso”, it would unroll into a gigantic list of hundreds of coordinate trios. That’s not something the human mind can really parse, if that makes sense. In fact, 3d modeling really reminds me of programming. It’s all about your foundation as you add features and functionality on top while you trust the computer voodoo does what you wanted it to.