3DVIA.com is a place where all of those creators and their 3D models can come together to show their results, explore other parts of the 3D model creation world and to learn from each other. Imagination and fun drive the users, which makes 3DVIA.com a place to enjoy yourself!

SolidWorks is an excellent tool for creating 3D models. Those models are used throughout the conceptualization, development, manufacturing, marketing and sales of many of products that we use every day. It is also a creative tool that is used for lots of fun projects. Many SolidWorks models have been uploaded to 3DVIA.com already (you can find them all at one time using this link).

One thing you may notice about some of the uploaded SolidWorks models, is that the models aren’t oriented in a natural way. They’re often lying on their side or on their back. This post is meant to help you avoid that when you upload your SolidWorks models.

The first image shows a model (by “anonymous”) as oriented in SolidWorks after I downloaded it from 3D Content Central. After I created a 3DXML file in SolidWorks (by using the drop-down list in either SolidWorks 2007 or 2008 to “Save as type:” 3DXML), I uploaded it to my free 3DVIA.com account. The second and third images show the results when I displayed it in first the 3D XML Player and then the 3DVIA Player.

What happened? It all comes down to where your axes are in your SolidWorks model. SolidWorks uses the Reference Triad to indicate this. The following is from SolidWorks Help (with my highlight of the triad).

If you don’t see a triad at all in your models, use the simple 1-2 steps shown in the image above to turn the triad back on.

The image below shows the DEFAULT SolidWorks triad on the left, and the way we want it to be oriented on the right.

Depending on your default part and assembly template files, your triad may be in a totally different orientation. Whatever spatial orientation your files are in, you can download and use the appropriate SolidWorks assembly file template below to easily get good upload results without changing your own templates.

sw_2007_3dvia_upload.ASMDOT  or  sw_2008_3dvia_upload.ASMDOT

Just be sure to put them where you can find them and use “Tools>Options>System Options>File Locations>Default Templates” to make their location easily accessible within SolidWorks.

Each template’s default opening screen has the triad placed correctly and a standard view added (just hit the space bar to see the list), so that you can easily go back to the “3DVIA Upload” view.

Whether you have a SolidWorks part or assembly, the fastest way to get it oriented correctly is to open a new assembly using the new downloaded template. If your model is already open and shows as a choice to insert into your new assembly, then select it and click the green check. This will put the model at the origin in your new assembly.

Or, you can split your viewing screen (”Window>Tile Horizontally”), so that you can see your model and the new assembly. Click on your model’s title in the Feature Manager Design Tree and drag and drop it onto the origin in the Feature Manager Design Tree of the new file. Don’t worry about orientation, just get it in there.

Save it with some appropriate name so that you won’t forget that it has been re-oriented.

Now, go into the Feature Manager Design Tree of the new file and right click on the name of the item that you brought in and then click on “Float” in the resulting list of choices.

A

All of the mates you carefully set up in the parent model will stay locked as you spin the model to the orientation that you want it to show up on 3DVIA.com using “Rotate Component” or “Move with triad”. You are only trying to get it in the ballpark, not exactly where you want it.

 I use “Rotate Component” because I can whip it around in all three axes, rather than one at a time. While you do this, your reference triad should not move. Do not use “Rotate View” or you’ll have to go back to the pre-set view to correct your triad position.

Next, you’ll need to mate the planes to match your new view. This will ensure that your model sits on the floor, rather than being at an odd angle. Depending on your naming conventions, you may have “Front, Top, and Right”; “1,2, and 3″; or goodness only knows what else. Just match up the closest plane in the model to the closest plane in the assembly. Create coincident mates one by one until your model is locked in .

Now, after a ctrl Q and a save, you’ll be ready to save it as a 3DXML file. Please note that the shadows still won’t show correctly until the file is saved, closed, and reopened.

When your 3DXML file is uploaded to your model selection at 3DVIA.com, it will display correctly in the thumbnail and in both 3D players.

There are always many ways to do anything in SolidWorks, so feel free to follow your own path, based on your own experience. This is just one reliable way to get good results.

Please be aware that 3DVIA.com has an upload file size limit of 10MB, so be sure to check the size of your file before you try to upload it. The upload process will assume that the file is within the limit, so it chugs merrily along (while you wait and wait) and then, at the end, if it’s too big it gives you an error.

If your file is too big you can zip it and (as long as the resulting zip file is now less than 10MB) you should be OK to upload.

Now you can quickly modify and upload your SolidWorks models to 3DVIA.com and know that other folks will see them the way you intended. Have fun exploring all of the other models - there’s a lot to see.

P.S. Feel free to contact me directly if you have questions or suggestions.

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Most of us realize that 3D is an abbreviation for three-dimensional— a concept we apply to everyday life and understand. We live in a 3D world where we can walk around objects, pick them up and see them from all sides. But how does this relate to computers, movies, brochures and all the media we see everyday claiming to use 3D? Perhaps the best way to understand 3D is to start with 2D.  

Below we see a 2D image of a bowl of water with floating tea lights. In this image, the artist has given the illusion of depth through shading techniques. It looks as though the bowl is three dimensional, but it in fact is not. The bowl and its surrounding environment are flat, and for eternity will only be viewed from the perspective they were painted (unless the artist sketches from another angle).

Here we see several images of a house created using 3D software. Next to the house is the 2D image described above. As we move around the house we can see that it has depth, whereas the 2D image is flat. Unlike 2D, 3D objects can be viewed from infinite angles, as well as moved from place to place, just like objects in the real world. The images we see below are merely “photographs” (known as renders in the 3D industry) where a 3D artist has navigated around the house on the computer and taken snapshots from interesting angles.

Hopefully, the above example better defines what 3D is, but perhaps you’re now wondering why even bother. Why spend the time to build a 3D object and render it when you can take two seconds to snap a photo of its real-world counterpart and get the same result? The reason is control. It’s true, 3D can produce the same photorealistic effects a digital camera can; however, with 3D every variable can be controlled and manipulated. Imagine a photographer who could control the weather, add more branches to a tree, change the color of the sky, etc., and you would have a 3D artist. In addition to realistic objects, 3D software has the ability to create believable, non-realistic objects as we see often in movies (e.g., the fantasy characters in The Lord of the Ring movies, the cities in the latest Star Wars movies, etc.).  

When trying to understand 3D, it is best to think about it in the context of real life. While 3D objects and their 3D environments may not exist outside of computer confines, they behave in the same way real-world objects do, and for all intents and purposes, can be thought of as such.  

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Next, we need to be sure that we really know what we’re seeing. If you are drawing an object on a piece of paper, you always know where your lines are - on the paper. You’ll never be surprised that one of the lines you just drew is actually on the back side of the paper, or on its edge, or has just plain disappeared. In 3D space there are all kinds of such surprises.

That’s why being able to confidently move around in 3D space is so important. If I draw a simple rectangle, a line from corner to corner, and then a vertical line without changing my viewpoint - I can end up not knowing where it went. The first image below demonstrates this confusing state of affairs. I can change my model color, as I’ve done in the second image, but that takes time. If I simply change my viewpoint, as in the third image, it’s easy to see where the line is and that it went where I wanted it to go.

If I have a more complicated model, it is even more important to be able to zoom around and in and out to check up on what I’m really creating. In the first image, I think that I’m drawing a line across the gray face of the model. Once I move my viewpoint, I see that my line is heading somewhere else entirely. If I had continued to model without checking, I would have been really surprised later.

The value of knowing where you are is even more apparent when you see the whole crazy asteroid that this is part of:

“What?”; you say, “Of course it’s hard to see - where did all the lines go?” That brings up the importance of knowing about the “Environment” button (or just use F4 and be done with it) to be able to see all of the edges to help guide your modeling.

“Enough already! You’ve convinced me. Now, how do I do all of this amazing rotating and zooming and everything?” I’m glad you asked.  Depending on which part of your brain you like to use, we have multiple tools to help you.

For those who love video presentations with avatars; there are video tutorials created using TVnima.com. (The “Navigation” tutorial is, oddly, at the end of the list, rather than at the beginning.)

If you prefer more traditional tutorials, we’ve got a bunch of those too. (The “Viewing in 3D” section is the first item under the “Using 3DVIA Shape Tools” heading.)

And we have a quick synopsis right here from an excellent and more complete blog post on the subject done by Rodd back in November.

By now, I hope you are ready to find your way around your model in 3D space and avoid some of the more likely surprises. Then again, there is always my favorite button on the screen:

Undo!

P.S. If you have specific questions about this blog post or previous ones, you can ask me directly, now that we have Messaging!

Go to Episode 2!

Go to Episode 1!

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As in any endeavor, he had to start at the beginning and learn how to exploit the strengths and work around the foibles of Shape. The available online video tutorials are a start and also a good place to return when you’re frustrated/confused or if you just want to know more about a particular tool. The online documentation is another good place to look.

One very valuable source of help for the Shape modeler is that the program itself is eager to help you as you work. Shape is constantly providing you with onscreen choices to help you quickly get your ideas down. Most things that we want to make as humans have square corners and flat or vertical surfaces. We want our walls to stand up straight and our rooms to have flat floors and doors that work. Shape knows this and tries to help.

The most basic thing we can create in Shape is a line. Seems simple enough, right? Well, sort of…because one simple thing can take away the help that Shape is so eager to give.

In the earliest version of Shape, a line was drawn by selecting the line tool and then left-clicking where you wanted the line to start and then holding the button down while you dragged the line to where you wanted it to end. Then you released the button and you had your line. Shape helped you make sure that your line was flat and square to other parts of your model by providing feedback. The line would change color and show angles as you moved the mouse.

Unfortunately, usability studies showed that that is not the way that most people intuitively used their mouse to draw a line. So, it was changed.

The black line was drawn using the old method and looks parallel with the grid and good to build off, but when you draw your next line, you’ll find that you’re off by 1 degree, which will cause no end of problems throughout the rest of your model.

Now, the method is to select the line tool, then left-click at the start of the line AND THEN RELEASE THE MOUSE BUTTON before you drag your line to where you want it to end - then left-click again to finish the line.

As you move your mouse, you will see the clues that Shape provides. The line turns yellow when it is parallel or perpendicular to surfaces and other parts of your model as well as giving angular measurements and showing you which plane you’re drawing on. If you hold the left button down while dragging, you’ll lose all of those helpful clues.

If you use the new method, Shape will help you by showing the line in yellow when it really is parallel with the grid. So, when you put your next line in it will be a true 90 degree angle and you can continue modelling with confidence that everything will be square.

So, remember to click and release to start and end a line and you’ll be square (in a good way, I mean).

Go to Episode 1!

Go to Episode 3!

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 Often once you build a vehicle, you want it to do everything well, to handle any obstacle and take on entire countries by itself!  What started out as a troop transport, is now an amphibious Monster Truck with 8 gun turrets, 18 missiles, 40 rocket launchers and 2 miles per gallon that has the seating capacity of a small stadium!  We get carried away in our excitement and lose focus on what the vehicle’s role is.  In this blog we’ll look at some of the things we usually forget when creating a new vehicle, and talk about the design.

Whats Missing?

 Each vehicle is designed and created to play a particular role or fulfill a tactical need: Recon/Scout, Anti Personnel, Anti Armor, Troop Transport, Main Tank, Long range support, Infantry Support, Bombers, Assault.  Keep in mind that your vehicle is not all of these at the same time, but it can be a hybrid of two.  For example a Fighter-Bomber or an Assault-Tank.

Another thing we usually forget are the things that our vehicle needs:  Engines, weapon power sources, ammo drums or compartments, crew space, emergency escapes, armor panels.  Sometimes we stack so many things in a vehicle and then realize we only left space for a AA battery or 2 sleeping quarters in a space ship with a crew of 30.

You may think I’m crazy but all of these details matter.   These are things you may not notice, but you feel something is missing on the model.   Models that are functional, are more exciting than models that make you guess at how many chickens are powering the 2 square foot engine.

Design

Who’s driving the vehicle?  What environment is the vehicle most likely to be in? Whats the daily routine of the vehicle?   The more you know and figure out about your vehicle the more detailed and alive it becomes.  For example, a large cammoflauged tractor with a mini gun might do great against that alien bovine invasion but do nothing for the wheat field the farmer is supposed to be using it in.  Change it to a bright red tractor with an air conditioned cab, a cooler in the back, a shotgun in a golf bag and a large radio antennae on the top and its the farmers dream vehicle.   

Combat vehicles follow the same line of thinking.  You figure out its combat role and give it 2-3 weapon systems that will help it fulfill its role.  Don’t add things “just in case” you run into an aircraft carrier!  If its a troop transport, its main role is to carry infantry safely to  where they can be best used.  Its main armament is actually armor, second would be a machine gun to provide cover fire,  and third maybe smoke launchers to protect itself and its passengers as they disembark.   Another great addition would be to allow the infantry to shoot through gun ports adding to the fire power of the transport.   Its definitely vulnerable to heavy weapons but it has the tools to fulfill its role.

 Look back over some of the vehicle’s you’ve created so far, and see if there is anything you can add to make it more life like and functional.  Use them as a stepping stone and make the next vehicles you make that much better.   In my next blog, we’ll talk about creating units for a game, faction influence and game balancing.

-Juan

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Without trying, he has exemplified what 3DVIA is all about - trying to help 3D become an enjoyable part of people’s lives - in the way that they want it to be.

He has employed his substantial creativity and imagination to use Shape in ways that few users have. In particular, his use of curves as a central part of his models is very sophisticated.

BBD Class Star Fighter                                         TD Class Star Fighter

 And it’s not just a couple of starships…it’s a whole slew of them!

Now we get to the humble pie part. I tried to recreate just one of his models in order to encourage more curvy modeling in a post - and I couldn’t figure it out. Wah! So, rather than crying in the corner, I flat-out asked him how he did it and he most generously provided over 100 pages of how-to tutorials (with lots of pictures for slow learners like me).

This whole series of blog posts will be based on that mega-doc from m2morgan64, with his permission and consultation as needed. I’ll also be adding in some other basic tips that I find from experience, learn from other users (feel free to send additions, corrections, and improvements) and from re-visiting the available online tutorials. We’ll also follow his game development process as it evolves.

m2morgan64 realizes that his game is quite an endeavor for one person, so he’s hoping others will check out his blog about his plans and contribute models if you want to. There’s a group discussion thread where he outlines what he’s looking for.

So, fasten your zero-gravity belts and stay tuned as we head for piracy in the heavens!

Go to Episode 2!

Go to Episode 3!

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I recently posted a 3D Model on 3DVIA that asked you to spot the fake crate from the “real” crate.  I am going to go through the process of how I made it in this blog.

Modeling the full detail Crate

This was fun to make! A nice simple crate that everyone can make at home.  I started with a cube in Maya.  Made a few cuts around the sides and pushed the faces in.  I then did a similar step to the top and bottom by selecting the face, extruding, shrinking it a little and pushing it in.

Next I made a long cube . Make it just the same length as the pushed in sides.  I then used the bevel tool to smooth the corners of the this cube along with the corners of the crate. I then duplicated the long cube and scaled it so that it became thinner, and used it as the wood paneling on the sides, top and bottom.  Crate Complete.

 Texturing
This is where all the work happens.  In order to make the simple box look like the real box, I used an occlusion and a normal map.  I’ve spoken about occlusion before.  Its a process by which you create realistic shading based on distance to other object, giving everything a real weight. 
A Normal map, is a process that records the surface normals of an object as a texture, so when light passes over a bumpy object, it changes accordingly. Now because this object is the same on each of its sides we can either render the occlusion and normal maps to a texture (this process is called “baking”) or we can do an occlusion and normal render of one side of the crate and repeat the texture on each side by stacking the uv shells.  I chose to stack my uv shells for this demo.

Layer the occlusion with the wood texture in Photoshop and then apply to both the simple crate and the real crate.  They should look pretty much the same now except for one thing.  You can still tell the box is flat compared to the real crate.  This is where the normal map makes its magic. After I apply it to the box, the light will react to the flat surface as if it had all the groves and bumps of the real crate, making them really difficult to distinguish.

These techniques are the foundations of great game modeling, able to keep the quality of a high polygon model with the speed of the low polygon version.  Go ahead, try to Spot the Fake!

http://www.3dvia.com/jdelrio/media/9159758799ABBD8F

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UV’s

UV’s are 2D representations of vertices on your 3D Mesh.  It’s best to think of your 3D model as wearing a skin tight wrap, and in order to put a flat texture on a 3D wrap, you are going to have to make some cuts and flatten it out evenly. After you apply the texture to the 3D model, any wrinkles or overlaps on your UV’s will show up as distortions on your texture. Luckily you have some tools to help you in this process.  In the image above you can see the UV’s on the cylinder on the left, and the UV’s in the editor on the right.  3D in a 2D space.   Notice also how I’ve moved some of the UV’s and it hasn’t affected the shape of the cylinder. UV’s only affect the texture space on the model.  Great UV’s mean great textures.

UV Editor/Unwrap UV Modifier

The UV Editor is your first tool for sorting out the unique problem presented by a 3D object in a 2D space. Your first step to a great texture is to apply a checked material to the model as you fix the UV’s.  This way you can get rid of the big distortions and make sure each shell (sections of uv meshes) is relative in size to the rest of the model. Next up you want to make sure there are no overlapping UV’s.  In the image above you can see the top set of UV’s has overlapping, and the checkered texture comes out garbled and stretched.  The lower set of UV’s removed the overlap by setting the top and bottom caps separately, and by having the vertical faces all laid out flat and uniform. UV’s are normally a longer process than actually creating your 3D Model so make sure you give yourself the time to do it correctly.

Pelting

Like the hunters of old, pelting is a process by which you can take your mesh and flatten it out almost automatically, by selecting seams along your UV mesh.   If you had a 3D model of a bear, and you used a pelting tool, your UV’s  would looks like a bear rug after the process.  Seams are UV shell borders.  Pelting works by taking the seams you marked and unfolding the UV’s through a mathematical process. This images are from the pelting tool from Hydralab.  There are other pelting/UV unwrap programs out there to make your job easier.  Another great one is the Headus UV Layout.

 After all this, the good news is you get to paint canvas like a traditional artist and wrap it on a 3D Model, like the modern artist that you are.

-Juan

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Default settings for primitives

One of easiest methods of keeping under the polygon limit is by not using the default settings for primitives like a sphere or a torus.   Normally they are created with 20 subdivisions or more making each one a 400 polygon object!  When your budget for the model is 5000, even a small chandelier ceiling chain will put you over the limit!  Upon creating the torus or sphere, immediately reduce the subdivisions by half, if not more, and smooth the edge normals. In 3DMax put the object in a smoothing group.  You will retain the shape you need and stay under the polygon limit. 

 Removing unseen geometry

Lets face it, we like to put things together quickly and sometimes we don’t pay attention to what we left underneath. Now engineers and designers need to have every part of the model fleshed out, but game artists are paid to make things look good, at a budget.  Review your model for unseen geometry and delete it, or if its part of another piece, remove only what you don’t see. The usual culprits are spheres.  Align them so the center line is flushed with your surface and delete the half of the sphere you don’t see.  Just doing that will dramatically decrease your polygon count.

 Remove Edges that don’t affect geometry

As simple as that.   Usually we get a lot of extra edges when we add geometry to modify only one side of an object.  Essentially anything that doesn’t change the silhouette is extra and not needed.  Keep in mind that you still want to keep a clean look, don’t just grab every edge and delete them.  Find ways to keep the flow of the polygon and remove excess edges.  Here I gave myself 100 polygon limit to make a small space ship.  I noticed some edges that were not needed, and after cleaning up, I freed up almost half of my allotted polygon count!  I can go back now and add an engine, and air intakes or missiles!  

 Yeah missiles…

-Juan

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D is for Dimension.

You may notice after you start creating in your favorite 3D Application, that you start encountering odd behavior or pinching when you smooth, bevel, or even while still modeling! This is due to the way the vertice’s and edges are arranged to create the model. The following images show a pair of letter D’s.  One is created automatically by Maya and the other is a duplicate of the first, but I’ve redone the Polygonal Flow.

You can see how the interior edges on the right D follow along the curve of the geometry in a natural motion.  The left D, has the same shape when rendered but as you continue editing, you will find that its poly flow will cause a lot of problems.  Also notice how the top left corner is held up by one edge on the right D, this will be come important in the next image, the Bevel.

Beveling.

It is said that in nature there are no hard edges, when looked closely enough even a sharp pin’s tip looks like a ball point pen.  You don’t go around life constantly worrying if you are going to cut yourself on that ridiculously sharp counter edge.  When reproducing real objects in 3D, it becomes necessary to bevel the edges to create a realistic feel and reflection of light.  The Bevel Function takes the selected edges and replaces them with  number of edges in a 90 degree arc, creating a smooth edge look.

Here we start seeing the benefits of a good poly flow.  You notice the pinching and bad corners on the left D,  while the right D looks nice and smooth.  The pinching is created by multiple edges converging on the same point, or multiple vertices too close together.  The bad corners are created when the corner vertex is not “anchored” by an edge. The benefits become more pronounced on the next step: Poly Smooth.

Smoothing.

Smoothing is something we 3D guys love to do, no matter how many polygons it creates.  Its a function by which the 3D application exponentially increases the polygon count, interpolating the distances between vertices and edges.   It usually takes a low poly object and makes it look really refined and smoothed if you have good poly flow.

Ach!  It looks like someone hit the left D with an ugly stick!  The uneven poly flow becomes difficult to smooth because of the uneven distances of the vertices.  This creates bunching, flat surfaces and pinching.  The right D smoothed nicely into a cylinder shape.  Notice how evenly the edges are on the right D.   Its sooo pretty!  You can find some nicely done models through our model search on 3DVIA.

Keep this in mind when you model, or create something from an image and extrude.  Take a few minutes to go back and fix the poly flow of your models;  make sure there aren’t multiple edges coming into one point. Remove any edges that don’t affect the shape of the model and you’ll end up with professional and efficient models.

-Juan

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Baking Textures

One way to do it is to fake it, by “baking” the high poly information into a texture and then using that texture on the material of the model. Baking is the process by which render information is transferred to an image file like a jpeg or targa format. To achieve the quality of models you see today in games like Gears of War, Crysis, and Unreal Tournament III each character model has a high polygon and a low polygon version. The high polygon version is used to bake all the detailed information into images, used in the textures of the low polygon version or game model. A combination of renders, including: Normal, Occlusion, Specularity, Diffuse, Bump, Displacement, Glow, and Reflection maps are created from renderings of the high poly model. When used on the game model, they reproducing all that super detail at a fraction of the processing cost to the game engine.

This is done for every object, from a massive space monster to the toilet in the dungeon. The end result is one really beautiful game, with really simple, low poly models, pretending to be super high detailed models. Many of the house models on 3DVIA follow this example, texture over geometry.

Level Of Detail Models

One other way to achieve a smooth 30 frames per second is to use Level Of Detail Models. Have you ever seen objects in a game that look fuzzy from far away but as you get closer they look better and better. This is done by swapping models at certain distances. For example, you have a dwarf that is 2000 polygons, up close and up to 5 ft away he looks great! 10ft away he’s now 1000 polygons and he’s looking ok. 20ft away and he looks like a bop up inflatable punching bag at 500 or less polygons. The texture sizes also decrease per model so that the furthest away the model is, the less resources it uses to be displayed. This is used most often in Massively Multiplayer Online Games. In order to give the player a rich experience they give the area around him all the attention, and anything further away from the player gets less resources.

I’ve had to make a few LOD models in the past and its painful to take a beautiful 2500 model down to a 100 or less LOD model. But in game you really don’t get to see the 500 polygon model as its always the size of a peanut on screen, and as you get closer to inspect the bop up doll, it magically turns into this awesome crazy dwarf!!

-Juan

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We have a wide variety of content on the site now, and I wanted to go through and detail what these models that we are all making could be used for. This is so in the near future we can start sections dedicated to each discipline. 3D Models are used in 3 main mediums; Real time render, Offline render/Batch rendering, and still images.

Real Time Rendering

In real time rendering, the computer has to render everything on the screen 30 times per second, including all AI computations, special effects and in-game cinematic. For this medium, efficiency and loading speed is the key for these 3D Models. Conservative polygon use and smaller texture sizes all contribute to a smooth running application, be it a game or Virtual Earth. As an example, a GI-Joe Skyhawk, a game model I made under 2000 triangles. Thanks to increasing technology, today’s game models range in the 2,000-10,000 polygon neighborhood. Another good example of a game ready model is this Boat. For more game ready models in this polygon range visit this 3DVIA page.

Game Model of a GI-Joe Skyhawk, occlusion render.

Off-Line Rendering

Offline rendering is the opposite, this is used in commercials, movies or animations. All the rendering is done beforehand and then compiled into a compressed movie format. For this medium, the sky’s the limit on polygon count and textures, the main rule it to make it look GREAT. This is the movie version of the same Skyhawk seen above. Its 25 times more complex than the game model, at 55,000 triangles. Any computer would have a hard time rendering this vehicle, 30 times per second, but it would look fantastic in a movie. Another good model like this would be this Spaceship. For more movie models in the 100,000 range visit this 3DVIA page.

Movie Model of the GI-Joe Skyhawk, occlusion render.

Digital Art
Lastly there are still images. These are models you start in a 3d application and complete in sculpting or image editing programs to create a final image. For example, you can start a simple horse in 3Dmax, add all the vein and hair details in Zbrush or Mudbox, add the eyes, nose and other details in Photoshop, then paint in the grass and composite all the different layers to create a beautiful piece of digital art.

So when modeling for a particular use, a game, a 3d world or a movie, keep in mind their medium, and find out any polygon and texture limits beforehand. Then as you make the model you can optimize it for any medium. Not only will this save you work later on, but it will be easier for others to work with you and your models and create fantastic worlds and movies.

-Juan

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Just a few detail shots (while Remixing in Shape) give a better idea of how far he went to create the details. Since I was already in Shape, I could use his model to see new possibilities and start modifying his model and learning from that as well. He put a LOT of work into this tractor trailer (articulated lorry)(camion).

The first thing I did was to replace the detailed textures with something that was visually easier to work with. I then selectively deleted bits and pieces, big and small, so that I had just the cab and just the trailer to work with. As I worked I incrementally published the results so that I could always go back and head in a new direction if needed.

Then I took the cab by itself and started playing with that to make a shorter wheelbase cab that I can use with lots of different trailers. (Rguyen already has a new log hauling trailer that he put up today!). Here I’ve removed the sleeper/living quarters section and then shortened the side tanks and reduced the number of lights.

Then the hardest part was ‘box selecting’ the rear axles, tires and other goodies so that I could shorten the whole wheelbase. Not everything moved the way I expected, but with a little fussing I got it to look pretty good.

Then I started to make some changes to simplify and just make it into a 3DVIA cab. Less dressy and more like a fleet vehicle (although the six headlights are pretty odd). Adding some different textures to the grille, stacks and air cleaners made it different very quickly. Shortening the bumper and adding some holes and, of course, dishing the wheels and adding some interesting (although certainly not traditional) wheel textures also helped change the overall look.

From start to finish I had a great time. I started with the best I could find, learned a lot from Rguyen’s modeling techniques and now I have a few different models to start with the next time I want to use the power of Remixing.

Have fun! Make more cool stuff!

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We have tried very hard to ensure that 3DVIA Shape is a product that is simple enough for the average consumer to express their ideas in 3D.  However, as an experienced Solidworks modeler, I have to remind myself that even the longest journey sometimes starts with a single step.  In this case…it’s creating your first shape (no pun intended).  These simple steps will also show you how easy it is to get started in 3D. 

Creating the Main (or Your First) Shape

First open 3DVIA Shape on your desktop.  In this tutorial, we are going to draw the very simple shape of a house.

Let’s get started by using the application’s navigation features.  To rotate your point of view to look down at the ground, press and hold down the left mouse button over the Rotate area then drag the mouse around in the desired direction.  (For more information, see Change Viewpoints using the Pan, Rotate and Zoom Tool).

Select the vertical axis and drag up to create a triangular roof.

 

Enjoy!

 

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Marc is our resident expert on Microsoft Virtual Earth, online mapping applications and 3D modeling applications.

Visit:   mdigregorio Profile on 3DVIA   |   mdigregorio Website

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Technorati Tags: 3D,Free 3D Models,Free 3D Modeler,3DVIA

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A basic mistake we see many first time Shape users make, is trying to create a model, before they even know how to view that model. We call this mistake “Running before you can walk”. If you do this, you can still learn 3D modeling, but you are going to “fall down”, many (many!) times.

A better approach to 3D (and to learning any 3D application) is to “learn to walk” before trying out more complex functionality. In 3DVIA Shape, “learning to walk” is called “Changing Viewpoints”, and basic instructions can be found on this page.

Viewing objects in 3D is more complicated than 2D. If you have extensively used 3D (in games, or CAD applications), you will already know this. If you haven’t used 3D before, it will take some time to understand and master the basic concepts that allow you to “move around” in 3D space. I thought I would give you a quick overview of 3DVIA Shape object navigation, explaining 3D navigational concepts and providing tips on how and when to use them. This should get you going quickly.

There are 4 basic navigational functions in 3DVIA Shape:

1. Center (“center” the viewpoint on an object)
2. Pan (move an object up, down, left or right)
3. Rotate (rotate around an object)
4. Zoom (move viewpoint closer or further away)

3DVIA Shape has 2 ways of using the mouse to control the viewpoint navigation functions.

One way is to use the Pan, Rotate and Zoom Tool, which is located at the bottom of the window.

The other way is to the middle mouse button, which on most pointing devices is the scroll wheel. [Yes the scroll wheel can be clicked, and when clicked is called the “middle mouse button”.] This blog entry provides detailed instructions on how to use the middle mouse button to navigate Shape 3D models. While this technique is harder to learn, it is the best technique to learn if you want to learn how to build models.

Centering

Of these functions, the most important concept is “Centering.” Centering is hard to understand, because it doesn’t have an exact 2D equivalent. Centering allows the user to reset (and relocate) the exact of part of a model that they want to work with and look at more closely.

To learn to use Center, it’s a good idea to practice on an existing model. You can do this by going to a model page and using the Remix link to bring that model up into Shape for viewing and editing. I have setup a model for you to use here.

After you have logged in, click the “Remix” link right next to the model on that page.

To Center the view point, you point to an object and click and release the middle mouse button. Try this now, first on the Pyramid and then on the Cylinder.

Centering on the pyramid places the pyramid at the center of the window and centering on the cylinder places the cylinder at the center of the Shape window.

If this didn’t work as expected, you should try again. This time be careful to depress the middle mouse button without moving the position of the mouse on the desk. This should work now. If you press the middle mouse button, but move the mouse (even slightly), then the centering action doesn’t happen. This is because the combination of holding down MMB and moving the mouse causes viewpoint panning (horizontal or vertical displacement).

Pan

To pan means to move objects on the screen horizontally or vertically, following movements of the mouse. The easiest way to Pan in 3DVIA Shape is to click and hold down the middle mouse button and “drag”. This is identical to click and drag in 2D (like Google Maps) and should be easy to learn. One point to keep in mind is that Pan does not change the Center location, so you are moving the Center when you Pan the viewpoint. Please try panning the test model now. Move the viewpoint so that the Brick is near the center of the window.

Rotate

Rotation changes the angle from which the 3D model is being viewed. The viewing angle can be changed in either the horizontal plane, or the vertical plane (or both at the same time).

You rotate by holding down the middle and left mouse buttons at the same time. The order in which you depress the buttons is important. First click and hold the middle mouse button. Then click and hold the left mouse button. Now drag the mouse. Vertical rotation happens when you drag the mouse forward and backward. Horizontal rotation is controlled by dragging the mouse to the left and right.

Zoom

Zooming allows you change your distance from an object. Activate the Zoom function by clicking and holding down the middle mouse button, and then, clicking and releasing the left mouse button. Now when you drag the mouse forward and backward, you will get closer and further away from objects on the screen.

Zoom with Scroll Wheel

You can also access Zoom at any time, by rotating the scroll wheel. Zooming in using the scroll wheel works a little differently than zooming out. If you position the pointer at the top edge of the cube and scroll the wheel forward, the zoom in motion keeps the pointer location in the same place. Note how you end up with the edge of the cube at the center of the window.

I hope you find this overview of Shape Viewpoint Navigation helpful. If you have any questions please feel free to post comments in the blog.

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