Doc:Books/ActionBook/Tips

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Like I wrote in MemoBook (but with updated links :) Here is what I found to be the Golden Rule of Blender: "Keep one hand on your keyboard and one on your mouse." & another one: "Less is more, but optimal is the best!" Blender Manual. Blender Hotkeys Blender Tutorial Links List Google is your searching friend. Search for blender filetypes: scene filetype:blend

Tips!

Like I wrote in MemoBook (but with updated links :)

• Here is what I found to be the Golden Rule of Blender:

"Keep one hand on your keyboard and one on your mouse."

• & another one:

"Less is more, but optimal is the best!"

• Blender Manual.
• Blender Hotkeys
• Blender Tutorial Links List
• Google is your searching friend. Search for blender filetypes: scene filetype:blend

Power of Shift+SKEY Tools!

Peach team is most likely already familiar with this cool tools, but many new users are perhaps not... :)

SHIFT+SKEY in the combination with a Pivot Point are very useful tools for modeling and great help for building rigs too! With this tools you can move 3D cursor, vertices, objects, bones, empties,... in the exact 3D space positions.

OK, using this tools is quite simple, on example, select Median Pivot (different Pivot Points stands for different settings of 3D cursor), select some vertices or edges in edit mode and press SHIFT+SKEY -> Cursor --> Selection. Doing so you will set 3D cursor in exact middle space between selected vertices. I found this very useful for setting positions of bones in the exact 3D space inside the mesh.

Here is an example of setting leg bone in the exact position, which is very hard to achieve by hand, especially when working with the organic forms and exotic angles:

1a)

1b)

1c)

1d)

• 1a) Add Bone
• 1b) Select Median Pivot Point; Select Edges; SHIFT+SKEY -> Cursor --> Selection
• 1c) Select Tip of the Bone in Edit Mode
• 1d) SHIFT+SKEY -> Selection --> Cursor

Box Modeling Tips!

With a box modeling it's quite easy to get good organic results if you follow this simple rules:

• Between extrude areas must be at least one subdivision space, pictures (2a), (2b).

• Joints (knee, ankle, etc) must bend on the poles with 4 edges. Problem is when you extrude (leg on example) you get poles with 5 edges. You can solve this easy if you extrude in the same plane and scale it down, next extruding will be again with 4 edges, picture (2c).

• Picture (2d) is an example of bad extruding (no space between extruding areas), in such case you get poles with 6 edges. Use this option only if you can't avoid it (sometimes fingers, nose, ...).

2a)

2b)

2c)

2d)

With a box modeling you can build many organic forms, but it's probably impossible to make proper topology for the realistic human face expressions (at least not without additional retopology). Musculature of the face is very complex (shoulder too) and need exact topology flows for a good results...

--Igor Križanovskij 17:00, 30 July 2007 (CEST)

General Do's! & Don'ts!

Do!

Oh yes, size does matter! :)

Pay attention to how big the smallest detail of the mesh will be; details that are too small might not give satisfactory results. Especially if you will scale down your model later...

Do care about color harmony!

To balance colors of the scene, start with the same contrasts & emits of the base materials! Doing so it's easier to have control over all seven color contrasts on the scenes. You can read more about Itten's color contrasts in Johannes Itten's Garden or you can download node colors setup file from Nodes part of this book.

Do care about rendering times!

Longer test render times, less time you will have for other important things. There are almost always available solutions for reducing rendering times:

• optimal Topology
• multiply Low Res Textures
• lower Subsurf level
• using Buffer Shadows instead Ray-Traced Rendering
• switch on Threads: F10 > Output >> Threads: 2 (nr. of CPUs)
• buy a new computer, etc... :)

Don't!

• Don't start with object that are too small. (too big also isn't very useful)!

Smallest Blender Unit is 0.0001. So, don't start to build a big planet that is only 0.0002 units...

• Don't be afraid of tris (triangles)!

Users can usualy find in different tutorials & forums that you have to avoid tris (subsurf mesh corners with three edges) and use quads instead (corners with four edges). But the truth is that you actually can't avoid tris, well most of the time anyway... So, the main trick is how/where to set tris (the same is with corners with more than four edges) in the strategically right places on the object mesh! Follow this link to read more about current topology research.

• Don't start with the details!

True in general, but some experts can start model even with a hair. :)

Interface

• Probably you already know how to select between the vertex, edge or face modes, but it's good to know that you can also select more than one mode! Use SHIFT and select another mode. The same way you can also select more than one 3D Manipulator!

Hotkeys

• Remember that most hotkeys affect the window that has focus, so check that the mouse cursor is in the area you want to work in before your use the hotkeys!

Animation

• How to animate light energy, since the IPO curves doesn't show?!

You can animate light energy like other things with IPO, but you must insert an IPO curve by pressing IKEY over the buttons window, and the dropdown menu "Show IPO Type" must be set on "Lamp"! Also, don't forget to select a light first!

Render

• How to render in UV/Image Editor instead in separate window?

F10 > Output > Set Render Output Display

Nodes

• Don't forget to press these buttons when using nodes: Use Nodes, Do Composite & Render Layers!
• Do not use more than one Composite Node! You can use many Viewer nodes instead.