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Cedric Seauts Character Modeling Chapter 01: Concept
Chapter 01 - Concept Fig 01

Software Used: ZBrush, 3ds Max, Silo, and
Photoshop
Introduction
There are several ways to come up with a
concept, the most obvious one being to draw a
quick shape in 2D to define the main volumes,
but you can also start from a very simple base
mesh and play with volumes in ZBrush. The
advantage of this technique is that you can
make one base mesh that you can then reuse
for many other concepts, and the second Fig 02
advantage is that you will have a solid 3D base

to then work from to polish the character.
Part 1a Simple Base

Mesh Creation
For this character Im using an old base mesh
that I have changed slightly for this tutorial, but I
will show you the way I would usually create one
from a simple primitive so you can start from
scratch.
1. Create a box primitive in 3ds Max with the Fig 03

parameters, as shown in Fig.01.
2. We are going to center this box at the center

of the 3ds Max scene. To do this, simply right-
click on the button in the top-left, as shown in
Fig.02; a pop-up will display just enter 0, 0, 0
for the X, Y, and Z values.
3. To be able to modify the object, convert it into

Editable Poly, just select the cube, right-click on
it, and select Convert to Editable Poly from the
list (Fig.03). Fig 04
4. To make the modeling easier, we are going

to remove the half right of the object and work
on the left side only. In your polygon selection,
select the right side and delete it (Fig.04).
www.3dtotal.com page 5 Chapter 01

Chapter 01: Concept Cedric Seaut s Character Modeling
5. Its time now to create an instance of the Fig 05
active part (the left one). Apply a Symmetry
Modifier dont forget to select Flip, otherwise
you wont see anything in the scene. Because
your object is in the middle of 3ds Max scene,
everything will work fine automatically (Fig.05).
6. To test if everything is setup well, go back to Fig 06

Editable Poly in the stack dont forget to click
on the white T-shaped icon (Fig.06), otherwise
you wont be able to see the right side and
will only be able to play around with the left. In
Vertex mode, select some and move them the
opposite side (right) will mirror what youre doing
exactly on the left, in real time.
7. Lets start with the head: We are going to

keep it very simple. The goal is to prepare a
base mesh as cleanly as possible to be used for
sculpting. This means:
Fig 07
As many quads as possible (triangles are

allowed, but avoid stars as ZBrush doesnt
work properly with polygons with more than
4-sides)
Keeping polygons as evenly spaced as
possible; youll have better results while
sculpting
In Fig.07 is a preview of the head. As you

can see, at the top of the head, some space
has been left to extrude a horn from it later on
Fig 08
(something I have in mind for the concept).
8. Select the polygon on the top and extrude it

by clicking on the Extrude button (Fig.08).

Fig 09 9. Here are some screenshots of the head with
the horns (Fig.09). The position of the horns
doesnt need to be perfect at this stage; keep in
mind you can do absolutely everything you want
inside ZBrush they just need to be there, we
can maneuver them later on.
Fig 10 10. Now were going to move onto the torso.

Simply select all the edges at the bottom, in
Edge mode, and by pressing Shift move them
downwards (Fig.10).
11. It is still best to keep things straight at the

Fig 11
moment, so flatten them by pressing the Z
button, as shown in Fig.11, to align them along
the Z-axis.
12. To be able to come up with a good shape,

Fig 12
we are now going to add some edge loops.
Select all the edges, as shown in Fig.12, and
click on the Connect button. This will create a
new edge loop in the middle of the previous
selection. Redo the operation several times to
get more edge loops.

13. Move some vertices now to get a more Fig 13
human-like shape, but once again, dont worry if
it doesnt look perfect because this is something
we can change very easily and quickly later on
in ZBrush. Dont forget to leave some space on
the side to prepare the shoulder and the arm !
(Fig.13)
14. We are going now to close a part of the Fig 14

object at the bottom, which will be the crotch
area, in-between the legs. Select the edge, as
shown in Fig.14, and extrude it by pressing
Shift.
15. Click on Target Weld, and one-by-one

Fig 15
select first the origin vertex, and then the target
(Fig.15).
16. In the same way as explained before (see

Fig 16
step 13), cut the new face with 3 edges (Fig.16).

Fig 17 17. Move some vertices to achieve something
that looks like what is shown in Fig.17.
Fig 18 18. Select the area which will be the beginning

of the thigh, in border mode (Fig.18).
19. As you previously did for the torso (see step

Fig 19
12), extrude the leg and create some edge loops
on the new extension (Fig.19).
20. Here are some screenshots of the legs.

Fig 20
Try to make it thinner at the bottom as this will
represent the beginning of the shoe (Fig.20).

21. Select the border at the bottom and extrude Fig 21
it by pressing Shift. You have now a foot
(Fig.21).
22. Once again, select the border and press Fig 22

Cap to close the object (Fig.22).
23. Create an edge loop at the middle of that

Fig 23
new extension (Fig.23).
24. Select the two faces on the front and extrude

Fig 24
them twice by pressing the Extrude button
(Fig.24).

Fig 25 25. Under the shoe, select both vertices, as
shown in Fig.25, and press Connect to create
an edge.
Fig 26 26. Press Cut, and then select the first vertex
and the second to create the second edge.
The edge at the middle of the vertices will
automatically be cut (Fig.26).
27. Here is a preview of the shoes (Fig.27).

Fig 27
28. Go back to the chest now, and select

Fig 28
the area you created before for the shoulder
(Fig.28).

29. Extrude it, just like youve already done for Fig 29
the legs and torso (Fig.29).
30. Make some cuts with the same technique Fig 30

we used previously for the legs (Fig.30).
31. Move some vertices to get a rough human

Fig 31
shape. Scale it down a little, as the last edge
loop will be the wrist (Fig.31).
32. Now we are going to work on possibly the

Fig 32
most difficult part the hands. This character
will have only 4 fingers, as this is what I have in
mind for my character. So select the faces at the
extremity and extrude them twice (Fig.32).

Fig 33 33. Select the face, as shown in Fig.33. Extrude
once, twice, and then the vertices a little to get
more of a thumb shape.
Fig 34 34. Use the same procedure for the second

finger (Fig.34).
35. For the other two fingers it will be a little bit

Fig 35
more complex, because we have to create two
fingers from only one face. So cut the face, as
shown in Fig.35, by pressing the Cut button
(see step 26).
36. Under the hand, select the edges and

Fig 36
remove them by right-clicking and selecting
Remove (Fig.36). Dont press Delete as that will
delete everything faces included!

37. We are going to change edge orientation Fig 37
now to be able to extrude some fingers. Select
the vertices and create an edge by pressing
Connect (Fig.37).
38. Now we can cut once more to prepare the Fig 38

bases of the finger. First of all, right-click on
the Snap button in the toolbar. A pop-up will
appears tick Edge/Segment. This option is
really important as it will help you to auto detect
edges and youll be able to better manage and
make good cuts. So now, make three cuts by
pressing the Cut button (Fig.38).
39. You are now ready to select two faces and

Fig 39
make two extrusions from both of them (Fig.39).
40. Move the vertices to achieve a hand-like

Fig 40
shape (Fig.40).

Fig 41 41. Delete the edge as shown, to keep only
quads (Fig.41).
Fig 42 42. Connect vertices, as shown in Fig.42, for the

same reason as before.
43. And once again for the last more-than-4-

Fig 43
sided polygon (Fig.43).
44. Here is a preview of the arm from several

Fig 44
angles (Fig.44).

45. Were now at the final stage of the base Fig 45
mesh creation in Max, where were going to
flesh out his arms. To keep things simple,
just select the two faces, as shown in Fig.45,
extrude them, and then move them slightly to be
more face-to-face.
46. Keep the two faces selected and then press Fig 46
the Bridge button. This will connect both sides
and close the object (Fig.46).
47. Well now add some more cuts to push the

Fig 47
new arm element a little further out (Fig.47).
48. As youve done several times now, push

Fig 48
the vertices a little to get a more rounded shape
(Fig.48).

Fig 49 49. And finally, our base mesh is done. Its now
time to take it into ZBrush for the sculpting part
of the concept creation (Fig.49).
Part 1b Basic Sculpting

In this second part of chapter one, we are going
to see how to come up with more interesting
shape and volumes in ZBrush.
Fig 50 50. First of all, import your base mesh into

ZBrush. There are two different ways to do
this: you can either use the import option when
launching ZBrush, as shown in Fig.50, or you
press Escape and then, under the Tool tab, click
Import.
Fig 51 51. Here is a preview of what you will see on

your ZBrush canvas when you import your base
mesh (Fig.51).
Fig 52 52. When you sculpt, its important to keep 3D

world camera constraints, in order to be sure
that you have the right proportions if you decide
to then import your final model into another 3D
package, like 3ds Max, to make some renders.
You have two options: you can go to the Draw
tab and press Persp, or just press just the P
hotkey (Fig.53).

53. On the left of the screen, you should see Fig 53
a red ball which represents the Material Editor
in ZBrush. Feel free to try some of them out to
get a better idea of how it works. I usually use
a very simple one, close to a standard blinn
material in 3ds Max (Fig.53).
54. In ZBrush, you are able to preview some Fig 54

real time shadows, like screen space Ambient
Occlusion. This can be pretty useful when its
time to make some renders, but for the brut
sculpting its nice to disable this option. You
will have more facilities to sculpt some difficult
areas, like under the shoulders. To disable
shadows go to the Render tab, and under
Preview Shadows slide the ObjShadow value to
0 (Fig.54).
55. Here is how our base mesh should currently

Fig 55
look on the ZBrush canvas (Fig.55).
56. In the Tool tab, under Geometry, press

Fig 56
Divide twice to add more subdivision to your
model (Fig.56).

Fig 57 57. We can activate the symmetry now to save
some time, so go to the Transform tab, press
Activate Symmetry, and choose the axis you
wish to use for the symmetry. You can just
choose X (Fig.57).
Fig 58 58. We are now going to create some selection

sets, with thanks to ZBrushs Transpose
function. This allows us to sculpt some difficult
areas with many facilities. First, press the Move
button, as shown in Fig.58, or simply press the
W hotkey.
59. Pressing Ctrl, drag the orange edge from

Fig 59
the middle of the shoulder to the beginning of
the arm, as shown in Fig.59, with your graphics
tablet (or mouse). When you have something
close to what is shown in Fig.59, release your
graphics tablet first, and then let go of the Ctrl
key. The body should now be masked.
60. In the Tool tab, open the Masking dropdown

Fig 60
menu and press HidePt. This will hide the part
of the mesh you havent masked. You have
now the full body available on the canvas only
(Fig.60).

61. Go back to subdivision level 0 now (Fig.61). Fig 61
62. Press the Frame Button on the right tab. Fig 62

This will display the wire of your object (Fig.62).
63. Open the Polygroups dropdown menu and

Fig 63
select Group Visible; this option will tint the
visible selection with a basic color (Fig.63).
Notice that the color will only be visible if the
Frame button is enabled.
64. Inverse the visible object part. To do this,

Fig 64
keep pressing Ctrl + Shift, and drag a green
square selection onto the canvas. Release Shift
(the square should then become red), release
the graphics tablet, and finally release Ctrl. You
can now see arms instead of the body (Fig.64).

Fig 65 65. Do the same as before now: select Group
Visible once again a different color is applied
to the arms (Fig.65).
Fig 66 66. You can now display the full character by

pressing Ctrl + Shift + clicking on the canvas
(not on the object) (Fig.66).
67. We are now going to select the last part of

Fig 67
the character. Check that you are still in Move
(W) mode. Uncheck the Frame button to hide
the colors (Fig.67).
68. In the exact same way as before (see step

Fig 68
59) create a mask, this time including the body
and arms, but not the extra arm element that we
added (Fig.68).

69. Press HidePt to hide the extra element on Fig 69
the arms (Fig.69).
70. Go back to the subdivision level 0, the Fig 70

polygonal display (Fig.70).
71. Enable the Frame button again to see the

Fig 71
selection sets. Now we are going to hide the
remaining polygons which dont belong to the
arms. Select the Lasso mode selection, just
under the Frame button. Keep pressing Ctrl
+ Shift, and drag a green circle around the
extra polygon. Then release Shift (the circle
becomes red), release your graphics tablet, and
finally release Ctrl. The polygons will disappear
(Fig.71).
72. Do the same for the other protruding

Fig 72
element that we want to hide (Fig.72).

Fig 73 73. Youll need to do the ones on the left arm,
too. Unfortunately you cant use the symmetry
function for this, which is why we must do both
sides one at a time (Fig.73).
Fig 74 74. Now invert the selection as explained before

(see step 64) to display only the extra arm
elements polygons (Fig.74).
75. Create the last selection set by pressing

Fig 75
Group Visible once again (Fig.75).
76. Unhide everything by pressing Ctrl + Shift

Fig 76
and clicking in the canvas. You can now see
three different colors, and therefore your three
different selection sets. Now, to isolate one of
the selection sets, you just have to press Ctrl +
Shift and click on one on the colored parts. This
will hide the ones you havent clicked on. Simply
Ctrl + Shift and click on the canvas (not on the
character) to display the entire mesh (Fig.76).

77. With the selection sets done now, its time Fig 77
now to start sculpting to come up with a better
shape for our character concept. On the left of
the screen, click on the Standard brush button.
A pop up will appears select the Move brush.
Before sculpting, we are going to move some
vertices like we can do in 3ds Max with the
soft selection (Fig.77).
78. To have a better preview of your shape, Fig 78

disable Frame to remove the colors (Fig.78).
79. Here is a brief introduction with the brush

Fig 79
parameters on the top. Select Draw mode when
you are ready to sculpt, you can then change
the size and the intensity of the brush by sliding
the value on the right. Notice that you can also
display these options by right-clicking on the
canvas; its pretty useful when you want to limit
pen tablet movements (Fig.79).
80. With move brush selected, move some

Fig 80
areas to get a stronger shape (Fig.80).

Fig 81 81. Dont forget to use the selection sets
to move vertices easily without moving
unconcerned parts, for example under the
shoulder (see step 76) (Fig.81).
Fig 82 82. With the main shape defined, we are going

to push the volumes a little more to add some
definition. Keep in mind that its up to you to
decide the number of subdivisions you just
to be comfortable with it. Try to keep the Active
Points number under a million polygons; we
are working roughly for now. For this example,
divide your model 6 times (Fig.82).
83. The following brushes will be the ones we

Fig 83
are going to use during the concept sculpting
process. The Inflat brush is used to push the
volumes, the Clay brush is used to define the
strong volumes, and Smooth to soften them
(Fig.83).
84. With your first attempt, try pushing the

Fig 84
volumes to get your first intentions down, mainly
using the Inflat and Smooth brushes to start
with. Take your time to experiment and feel the
volumes, its still very easy to go back (Fig.84).

85. Here is a preview from several angles Fig 85
(Fig.85).
86. Once again, dont forget to use your Fig 86

selection sets to simplify your sculpting process
(see step 76) (Fig.86).
87. In the second step, push the extreme

Fig 87
volumes using to Clay and Smooth brushes.
Keep in mind that youre not thinking about the
final yet this has to be rough, so just push out
your main volumes for now. The polishing will be
done later, just be satisfied with the silhouette
for now (Fig.87).
88. Once again, here are previews of several

Fig 88
angles (Fig.88).

Fig 89 89. Now in this last step of the concept, we
are going to use several brushes to add more
definition. You will notice a brush in this set
by Damien Canderle, which is a free brush
available at: http://www.pixolator.com/zbc/
showthread.php?t=57944&page=6&pp=15
(Fig.89). This is an amazing brush for
exaggerating cavities!
Fig 90 90. Here are some examples of these brushes

in use. For the roundness of the shoulder, just
use the Clay brush (with small pressure). The
Dam_Standard brush is useful to force the
cavities between the abs (Fig.90).
91. Again, here are some different angles. And

this is it with the concept! We just need a solid
base to be able to create and put accessories
on him (Fig.91). Feel free to play with volumes
to try different things nothing is static in
ZBrush, you have unlimited possibilities from
only one simple base mesh!
Part 1c - Accessories
Presentation and Final
Concept
92. Here are some accessories that I have in my
personal library (Fig.92). Sometimes, when you
have some free time, its good to make some
basic elements that you can possibly use on
some of your creatures or characters. They can
be very useful to help you come up with a 3D
concept quickly.


93. For the accessories that I dont have in my
library, I create a rough prototype from a picture.
I will explain the technique used for this process
in Chapter 5 of this series (Fig.93).
94. Here is the concept after placing in some

rough objects. Please dont hesitate to place
some simple boxes into your concept its just
the silhouette that is important at this stage. The
preview in Fig.94 has been done in 3ds Max
2010, with real time shadows in the viewport;
its a very nice function to properly pre-visualize
objects and volumes!
Thats all for Part 1, in the following chapters we

will see how to create and polish the different
elements presented in the concept design.

Cedric Seauts Character Modeling Chapter 02: Shoes - ZBrush Plastic Sculpting
Chapter 02 - Shoes Fig 01
(ZBrush Plastic
Sculpting)
Photoshop
Introduction
In the following chapter, you will see the step by
step progress used to create a shoe from the
concept shown in chapter I.
1. From the concept created in Zbrush in Fig 02
chapter 1. (Fig.01)
2. Some preliminary parameters to check before

starting anything. Enable Local: this function
will allow you to rotate around the last area you
sculpted on which is very useful if you want
to focus on a particular area. Enable Lasso:
to activate the lasso selection mode and then
change the subdivision value to the lowest level.
(Fig.02)
Fig 03
3. With Ctrl + Shift pressed, make a selection

around the right foot as shown below to isolate
what will become our shoe. (Fig.03)
4. Now we are going to keep only this part to Fig 04

make it easier to work on. So go back to the
highest level of subdivision and delete the
subdivision history by pressing Del Lower. Now
delete the hidden mesh and finally reconstruct
your foot in order to save memory while working.
(Fig.04)

Chapter 02: Shoes - ZBrush Plastic Sculpting Cedric Seaut s Character Modeling
5. Go back to the highest level. (Fig.05) Fig 05
6. Divide once more; its important because we Fig 06

are going to use the Polypaint function which
needs vertices to be able to apply color and see
an acceptable result. (Fig.06)
7. On the top menu select Draw mode and

Fig 07
disable Zadd or Zsub as we just need the color
painting function. In the Tool menu on the right
under Texture, press Colorize which will switch
on Polypaint. (Fig.07)
8. We are going to draw a topology on the mesh

Fig 08
so, right click and a pop up appears. Change the
draw size to get something thin enough to draw
lines. In the bottom left in the color box, slide
the white square to select a pure color, a purple
color in this example. (Fig.08)

Fig 09 9. Just draw on the mesh to get a clean wire.
(Fig.05)
Fig 10 10. Here is a screenshot of the result. Youll see

more lines at the bottom that will allow us to put
more details on the sole. (Fig.10)
11. More screenshots on different angles

Fig 11
(Fig.11)
12. We are now going to create the new

Fig 12
topology. Dont forget to remove the shadows
and to choose the most convenient matcap for
your purposes. (Fig.12)

13. Create a ZSphere in the canvas by clicking Fig 13

on the ZSphere button under the Tool tab.
(Fig.13)
14. Still in Tool, scroll down the menu to see Fig 14

rigging, open it and press Select Mesh and
a pop up appears. Select the shoe with the
painted wire. Now open the Topology menu and
press Edit Topology. The shoe now takes the
place of the ZSphere in the canvas. (Fig.14)
15. Before starting anything, be sure to enable

Fig 15
Local, as it is much easier to work with this
option on. (Fig.15)
16. Lets create the wire on the top of the

painted one. With Ctrl pressed, click on the
mesh which will mask your object and make it
become darker. It can be useful to improve the
Fig 16
wire display. Then, left click anywhere on the
mesh to start the new topology.
Some pointers about creating topology:
- If you want to create a line between two
vertices, select the first one with Ctrl pressed.
The node will be considered as the primary one
and then click on the second one.
- To remove a vertex, Press Alt and select one.
This will remove all connected lines.
- To create a new vertex on an existing line, just
left click on it.(Fig.16)

Fig 17 17. A very useful function is the ability to see
a preview of the result by just pressing the A
hotkey. (Fig.17)
Fig 18 18. As you can see above, the preview

doesnt look like the created topology, it looks
subdivided. In Tool, scroll down to Adaptive Skin
and change the density to 1, the preview is now
right. (Fig.18)
19. A picture with the final topology. We

Fig 19
Polypainted it first in order to avoid mistakes and
to create it faster and cleaner. (Fig.19)
20. From this new wire, we are going to create

Fig 20
and extract the corresponding mesh. Under
Adaptive Skin, be sure to set the density to 1
and press Make Adaptive Skin. This will create
a new tool of your mesh. (Fig.20)

21. Go back to your original tool with the Fig 21

Polypainted wire. (Fig.21)
22. With Subtool menu open, click on Append Fig 22

and in the pop up select the mesh youve just
created. We absolutely have to do that to avoid
the rescaling ZBrush bug. If you export the new
created mesh from its tool, the scale will be
different. (Fig.22)
23. Select the right Subtool with your new mesh

Fig 23
and export it. (Fig.23)
24. Import it in Max to change it a little bit.

Fig 24
(Fig.24)

Fig 25 25. First Center the object pivot as shown
below. (Fig.25)
Fig 26 26. Move the shoe at the center of the scene

by right clicking on the Move tool on the top bar
menu and by changing the coordinates. (Fig.26)
27. Convert it to an Editable poly to be able to

Fig 27
make some changes on the mesh. (Fig.276)
28. Select one edge at the middle of the mesh,

Fig 28
press loop to select the edge loop. (Fig.28)

29. Press Split to disconnect both sides. Fig 29

(Fig.29)
30. Select and remove the right side. (Fig.30) Fig 30
31. Under the Utility Tab press Reset Xform to

Fig 31
remove the object history and then collapse the
stack in the Modifier tab. (Fig.31)
32. Select the edge loop along the middle and

Fig 32
make it planar along the X axis and then move
it to the center of the scene by changing the X
coordinate. We now have a symmetrical axis.
(Fig.32)

Fig 33 33. A quick preview of the shoe. (Fig.33)
Fig 34 34. Select the 3 edges on the top and extrude

them by pressing Shift and moving them at the
same time. This will be the tongue of the shoe.
(Fig.34)
35. Move some vertices as shown below.

Fig 35
(Fig.35)
36. We are going to cut polygons but first

Fig 36
change some options to make it easier. Right
click on the Snap button and select Edge/
Segment only. This will auto detect edges.
(Fig.36)

37. Press Cut and create new lines as shown Fig 37

below. (Fig.37)
38. Connect some vertices to get a better wire. Fig 38

Select vertices one by one and press Connect.
(Fig.38)
39. Remove the edge at the middle (Fig.39)

Fig 39
40. Cut a new line to remove rectangles and to

Fig 40
keep only heavenly spaced quads. (Fig.40)

Fig 41 41. Apply a Symmetry modifier and check the
parameters as shown below. As you can see,
we created a symmetrical base mesh for the
shoe. This technique is very useful in order to
save time and to increase the quality. As soon
as the shoe is finished, we will just have to put
it back to the right position and to move some
vertices to get closer to a real asymmetrical
shoe. (Fig.41)
Fig 42 42. Collapse the stack modifier. (Fig.42)
43. In Border mode, select the top of the object

Fig 43
and press Cap. (Fig.43)
44. Select the big face and inset it once.

Fig 44
(Fig.44)

45. Make the face planar along the Z axis. Fig 45

(Fig.45)
46. Inset again. (Fig.46) Fig 46
47. Now collapse it and the mesh is now

Fig 47
properly closed. We dont particularly need to
keep perfect quads on the top because it will be
an hidden area. (Fig.47)
48. Here is a final preview of the shoe base

Fig 48
mesh. (Fig.48)

Fig 49 49. Go back to Zbrush and import the newly
created base mesh. (Fig.49)
Fig 50 50. Dont forget to check some parameters

before starting sculpting. Remove the real time
shadows, turn on the perspective view and
activate the X symmetry. (Fig.50)
51. The basic sculpt that we are going to do next

Fig 51
will be achieved in the main thanks to the Move
and Dam Standard brushes. (Fig.51)
52. Dont subdivide the shoe but rather make

Fig 52
the changes at the level 0 which will make it
easier to get a new shape by keeping something
clean and sharp. (Fig.52)

53. Now you are ready to add more Fig 53

subdivisions. (Fig.53)
54. With the Pinch brush selected, add more Fig 54

definition on the sole edge just to make it a little
bit sharper. (Fig.54)
55. With the Dam standard brush, go to Stroke

Fig 55
panel, enable LazyMouse and change the
LazyStep value to 0. This will allow you to make
some very clean lines. Bear in mind that you still
have to draw them slowly in order to get the best
results. (Fig.55)
56. Select Clay brush to have sharp painting

Fig 56
parameters. Then with Ctrl pressed paint a
mask on the shoe as shown below. (Fig.56)

Fig 57 57. When the mask is well defined, release Ctrl.
Then press Ctrl + click on the mesh to blur the
mask. (Fig.57)
Fig 58 58. Now with the move brush, pull out the
surface on each side of the tongue. (Fig.58)
59. Remove the mask. To remove it press Ctrl

Fig 59
+ drag a selection box out of the mesh in the
canvas then release Ctrl and finally release the
mouse. (Fig.59)
60. Now with Dam Standard and Standard

Fig 60
brush, add some folds at the back of shoe to
simulate some bending artifacts and add some
lines to create more pieces of leather. (Fig.60)

61. Divide the shoe once more. (Fig.61) Fig 61
62. With the same technique explained above Fig 62

(see 55), add more lines to the sole. (Fig.62)
63. Now we are going to add more thickness to

Fig 63
the different leather pieces. Select Slash 2 brush
under the Stroke panel, activate LazyMouse and
change the LazyStep to 0. These parameters
are very important if you want to get very
smooth lines. Right click to open the popup
menu and change the intensity to 16. Finally
add one more subdivision to increase the level
of quality. (Fig.63)
64. Now you just have to sculpt slowly on the

Fig 64
top of the lines you previously drew. Below are
some screenshots of what you can achieve.
(Fig.64)

Fig 65 65. More screenshots from different angles.
(Fig.65)
Fig 66 66. As we did for leather pieces, we are going

to prepare some stitches. Select Standard point
Brush applying the same Stroke changes as
above and change the intensity value to 19. Its
often good to keep a small value when you use
Lazymouse with LazyStep at 0. (Fig.66)
67. Now draw two lines for each piece, one

Fig 67
close to the extremity and the second one
alongside it. (Fig.67)
68. Select the Stitch simple brush created by my

Fig 68
friend David Giraud and draw the stitches along
the lines. (Fig.68)

69. A preview of what you can achieve at this Fig 69

stage. (Fig.69)
70. We are now going to create some Fig 70

accessories for the shoe. The next step will be
to create the eyelets in max. Go back to 3ds
max and create a simple cube in the scene with
the following parameters. (Fig.70)
71. As you have done many times throughout

Fig 71
this tutorial, put the pivot at the center of the
object and move the object to the center of the
scene. (Fig.71)
72. Convert it to an Editable poly to be able to

Fig 72
make some modifications. (Fig.72)

Fig 73 73. Select a horizontal edge and click on Ring to
select the corresponding edge ring. (Fig.73)
Fig 74 74. Press Connect to create an edge loop at the

middle. (Fig.74)
75. Select the right side and press delete.

Fig 75
(Fig.75)
76. Apply a Symmetry modifier but dont forget

Fig 76
to check Flip otherwise you wont see anything.
Now go back to Editable Poly in the stack and
press the White T to enable the Symmetry
modifier and see the instanced right side.
(Fig.76)

77. In the front view, click Slice Plane and a Fig 77

yellow edge appears that you are able to move.
That will allow us to make a new section in the
current mesh. (Fig.77)
78. Using the slice plane, make three different Fig 78

cuts as shown below. To do this, move the
plane and simply press Slice, resulting in a new
horizontal edge loop. (Fig.78)
79. Still in the front view to keep in track, move

Fig 79
some of the vertices. We define first the main
shape. (Fig.79)
80. Using the same Slice Plane technique, make

Fig 80
a new cut across the top of the object. (Fig.80)

Fig 81 81. Select the faces at the extreme left and
extrude them by pressing the Extrude button.
(Fig.81)
Fig 82 82. Use the Inset function to create and scale

the new faces allowing us to give thickness to
the object. (Fig.82)
83. With the new faces still selected, extrude

Fig 83
them to the inside to create a corridor and then
delete them. (Fig.83)
84. First disable the preview Symmetry modifier

Fig 84
to be able to see the inside and then move the
edges at the middle of the scene with the same
technique as explained above (see 26). (Fig.84)

85. Select an edge on the side, then press ring Fig 85

Loop and finally press Connect to create a new
edge loop. (Fig.85)
86. Here is a preview of the current stage. Fig 86

(Fig.86)
87. Select all the edges as shown below, even

Fig 87
at the rear of the object and press Chamfer to
duplicate them which will sharpen some of the
lines. (Fig.87)
88. Apply a Meshsmooth modifier or a

Fig 88
Turbosmooth modifier to see a more final
preview. (Fig.88)

Fig 89 89. Remove the Meshsmooth modifier first, then
activate the snap option and right click it. Be
sure that Edge/segment only is checked. Press
Cut and draw half a hexagon at the bottom of
the eyelet. (Fig.89)
Fig 90 90. Lets now rearrange some vertices to get

proper quads. Select the vertices shown below
and press Connect to create new edges.
(Fig.90)
91. Finally Press Target Weld, and snap /

Fig 91
collapse the first vertex with the second one.
(Fig.91)
92. We are now going to create a button. With

Fig 92
the faces shown below selected, extrude them
inside. (Fig.92)

93. Remove the selected faces, then reselect Fig 93

the half button and re-extrude them to the
outside. (Fig.93)
94. With the faces still selected, press Bevel. Fig 94

(Fig.94)
95. Remove the unwanted faces that will cause

Fig 95
trouble when you make it Symmetrical. (Fig.95)
96. Select edges at the extreme right and align

Fig 96
them along the symmetry axis by changing
the x value (see 26 to see the display pop up).
(Fig.96)

Fig 97 97. You can now apply a Symmetry modifier by
changing the Threshold value to weld similar
vertices along the middle. (Fig.97)
Fig 98 98. A smoothed preview of the eyelet. (Fig.98)
99. We are now going to create the half ring

Fig 99
attached to the eyelet. Create a simple Torus
primitive with the parameters shown below.
Then move it to be at the center of the scene.
(Fig.99)
100. Convert it to an Editable Poly. (Fig.100)

Fig 100

101. Select and remove three quarters of the Fig 101

object. We dont need the bottom part and
the right one will be created symmetrically.
(Fig.101)
102. On the remaining quarter, select the edge Fig102

loop at the bottom and extrude it using Shift +
Move. (Fig.102)
103. Rotate the edges and extrude them once

Fig103
more. (Fig.103)
104. Finally align them along the x axis.

Fig 104
(Fig.104)

Fig 105 105. Select ring loop at the bottom and press
Connect to add an edge loop. This new edge
loop will allow us make the corner more angular.
(Fig.105)
Fig 106 106. Create the symmetry but dont forget

to enable Flip to be able to see something.
(Fig.106)
107. Some screenshots from different angles.

Fig 107
(Fig.107)
108. Here is a Meshsmoothed final preview of

Fig 108
the first eyelet. (Fig.108)

109. We are now going to create the second Fig 109

one which is much simpler. Create a Torus with
the same parameters as below and center it in
the scene. (Fig.109)
110. This completes the eyelet accessories. Fig 110

Next step is to postion them correctly on the
shoe. (Fig.110)
111. Go back to ZBrush and reload the last

Fig 111
sculpting stage of the shoe. (Fig.111)
112. Under the Zplugin Tab, scroll down

to Decimation Master. You could get the
Fig 112
plugin here http://www.pixologic.com/zbrush/
downloadcenter/zplugins/. This plugin will allow
you to optimize your high subdivision mesh into
a mid resolution one. It will be much easier than
to import the new mesh into 3dsmax and will
save a lot of memory. So, open the Decimation
master menu, change the % of decimation to
2,5 and press Pre-process Current to compute
the analyzing treatment. Once done, press
Decimate Current to get a new light mesh. You
can now export it. (Fig.112)

Fig 113 113. Import it into 3dsmax and you may see
some minor artifacts but that wont cause any
trouble. We just need a reference object to place
accessories on. (Fig.113)
Fig 114 114. Merge the elements youve just created.

(Fig.114)
115. Duplicate and move them as shown below.

Fig 115
(Fig.115)
116. A closer preview. (Fig.116)

Fig 116

117. We are now going to create the symmetry. Fig 117

First press Group under the main Group menu
and apply a Mirror modifier. Click on the + on
the left of the Mirror modifier, highlight Mirror
center and then move it to the origin thanks to
the Move Transform pop up. We are now ready
to export the eyelets. Save your file as we will
use it later for more accessories. (Fig.117)
118. Open up Zbrush, under the Zplugin tab, Fig 118

click on Subtool master and a pop-up appears
with several functions. Select the first one
named Multi Append and select eyelets obj.
(Fig.118)
119. You could see now a new Subtool on the

Fig 119
list; your eyelets. (Fig.119)
120. To create the feeling that the eyelets are

Fig 120
embedded in the leather, use both the Clay and
Inflat brushes to push the volumes in and out.
And you can at the same time, fake holes at the
middle of the round ones. (Fig.120)

Fig 121 121. Here are some different views to show an
overall preview of the shoe. (Fig.121)
Fig 122 122. Re-open the 3dsmax scene with the

optimized shoe and eyelets as we are now
going to create the lace. (Fig.122)
123. Create a Spline as shown below, going

through the different eyelets and dont hesitate
to look at one of your own shoes as a reference
to be sure how they are laced. In vertex
mode, select them all, right click and press
Fig 123
Corner in order to remove any Bezier / curve
configuration. (Fig.123)
124. Now with the vertices still selected,

Fig 124
right click and press Smooth. You have now
something clean and uniform. (Fig.124)

125. To add more thickness and definition to Fig 125

your lace, go to your line parameters, enable
options and change the values as shown below.
You are free now to move some vertices to
avoid any overlapping or to remove any bad
tension especially around the eyelets. When you
are satisfied, export it. (Fig.125)
126. Bring it into Zbrush by using the same Fig 126

method as explained above (see 118) and
subdivide it twice to add more definition.
(Fig.126)
127. As we did for the eyelets, we are going to

Fig 127
make some changes to get something more
realistic. Use the Inflat brush to push out the
volumes between the lace and to push in
volumes where the lace is tight. (Fig.127)
128. We are now going to work on the outsole

Fig 128
by adding some grip. Because we will use
Zbrush projection features, be sure to unable
Persp under the Draw tab. Use Shift + move to
snap the bottom of the shoe in the front of the
camera. Then export the document. (Fig.128)

Fig 129 129. Open the document that you just saved
in Photoshop and using to the Lasso draw a
pattern. Once again dont hesitate to look at
some references of your own shoe. You can use
the Lasso in two different ways, you can either
draw normally to make your selection or you
can press Alt + click + draw to make a polygonal
selection. (Fig.129)
Fig 130 130. When the pattern is done, change the

canvas size to get a square which is really
important in order to make an alpha work
properly in ZBrush. (Fig.130)
131. Deselect the layer with the sole you

Fig 131
imported, and then flatten all the layers. Go
to layers, Flatten image. You should have the
same result as shown below. (Fig.131)
132. Now invert the color to get the grip in white.

Fig 132
Go to Image - Adjustments - Invert. The white
information is what Zbrush needs for an alpha.
(Fig.132)

133. Go back to ZBrush. (Fig.133) Fig 133
134. Mask the entire shoe except the sole in Fig 134
order to avoid any artifacts during the projection.
First go down to subdivision 6 and then select
Move instead of Draw on the top menu. Then
follow the same technique as we used for
chapter 1 by pressing Ctrl + drag the mouse
from the middle of the sole to the bottom to get
something similar to the following. (Fig.134)
135. Use Shift + move to lock the shoe to the

Fig 135
bottom and change the subdivision value to its
maximum. (Fig.135)
136. We are now ready to project. Press

Fig 136
Projection Master on the top left. Once a pop-
up appears change the parameters as shown
below. (Fig.136)

Fig 137 137. Change the Stroke and the alpha
parameters on the left with the alpha you
created in Photoshop, then right click in the
canvas and change the intensity value to a
lower one. (Fig.137)
Fig 138 138. Drag the alpha on your object first, and
then adjust it using the Move and Scale button
at the top of the interface. (Fig.138)
139. When you are satisfied, press the

Fig 139
Projection master button once again and without
changing anything press Pickup Now which will
execute the projection. You can see a preview
below. There will be some artifacts but we are
going to fix those shortly. (Fig.139)
140. Remove the mask (see 59) (Fig.140)

Fig 140

141. Re activate the perspective mode under Fig 141

the Draw Panel. (Fig.141)
142. Now use the Clay and Smooth brush to Fig 142
remove and polish the previously generated
artifacts. Dont worry about the bumpy
imperfections you may generate as this will add
more realism. (Fig.142)
143. A current preview of the shoe after this last

Fig 143
process. (Fig.143)
144. We are now going to prepare the mesh for

Fig 144
the last accessory. (see 112) (Fig.144)

Fig 145 145. Import it in 3dsmax. (Fig.145)
Fig 146 146. In the left view, create a line as shown

below. We are going to create a leather buckle
at the back. (Fig.146)
147. Switch to the back view and apply an

Fig 147
Extrude modifier. (Fig.147)
148. Convert it to an Editable poly. (Fig.148)

Fig 148

149. Select the horizontal edges and create an Fig 149

edge loop by pressing Connect. (Fig.149)
150. Center the object pivot as we have done Fig 150

many times previously. (Fig.150)
151. Move the object to the center to prepare

Fig 151
the Symmetry axis. (Fig.151)
152. Select and remove the right side. (Fig.152)

Fig 152

Fig 153 153. Apply a shell modifier to add some
thickness. (Fig.153)
Fig 154 154. Collapse the stack; right click on Shell

modifier and Collapse All. To be able to make
it symmetrical later remove the created faces in
the middle. (Fig.154)
155. Select all the edges except ones on the

Fig 155
symmetry axis and press the small button
beside the Chamfer button. This button will
allow you to select a numerical value to be more
accurate during the process. (Fig.155)
156. You are now ready to create the right part

Fig 156
with a Symmetry modifier by changing the mirror
axis and once again not forgetting to check the
Flip option. (Fig.156)

157. Here is a preview of the leather from Fig 157

different angles. (Fig.157)
158. Bring this new element in Zbrush (see118) Fig 158

(Fig.158)
159. Using the Clay brush push in the surface of

Fig 159
the shoe which intersects with the leather piece.
(Fig.159)
160. Select the new imported object and

Fig 160
subdivide it 3 times to add more definition and
to be able to sculpt some additional detail.
(Fig.160)

Fig 161 161. With the same techniques as you used for
all the leather pieces on the shoe, add some
details. (Fig.161)
Fig 162 162. Now we are going to do the last detail pass
on the shoe. Scroll down to Morph Target, open
it and press StoreMT which will store the current
stage of your object. (Fig.162)
163. Select the standard brush and change the

Fig 163
stroke and the alpha as shown below. Then
right click in the canvas and change the brush
intensity value to 11. (Fig.163)
164. Here is the alpha used above. (Fig.164)

Fig 164

165. Drag and drop the alpha several times into Fig 165
the highlighted area and trying to keep the same
alpha scale. Dont worry if you go over the area.
(Fig.165)
166. Now select the Morph brush and change Fig 166
the intensity value to maximum 100 and paint
on the unwanted area. You morph the selected
area by the old stored one. (Fig.166)
167. Do that for the small area on the side

Fig 167
too but below by using the same technique.
(Fig.167)
168. At this stage the shoe is done but

Fig 168
unfortunately, it is too symmetrical so lets
ammend that. Open Subtool Master and select
Merge which will merge all the visible SubTools
into a big one. (Fig.168)

Fig 169 169. Open up an old version of your shoe, the
one you used to re-create a good topology.
The position, rotation and scale of this one will
be used as a reference for the new finished
version. (Fig.169)
Fig 170 170. Disable colorize to get a better visibility.

(Fig.170)
171. Append the Merge shoe version with the

Fig 171
one above. (Fig.171)
172. Now the two versions are beside one

Fig 172
another on the canvas. (Fig.172)

173. We are going to use the Transpose Fig 173

function to transform and move the new shoe
to match the old one. Drag the three balls
as shown below but be sure to keep the line
straight by pressing shift each time you move
the balls. To move the balls, select the circle line
but do not press inside. (Fig.173)
174. By pressing and moving inside the ball Fig 174

situated in the middle, move the shoe to the left.
(Fig.174)
175. Change the balls position in the top view,

Fig 175
press rotate and by selecting and moving the
ball in the front of the shoe; rotate it to match the
one underneath. (Fig.175)
176. Do this several times to match the old

Fig 176
mesh as best as possible. (Fig.176)

Fig 177 177. With the move Brush, move some areas
to fit more with the reference underneath.
(Fig.177)
Fig 178 178. Here are the results from different angles.
(Fig.178)
179. And here is the final shoe. (Fig.179)

Fig 179
180. Lets finish with a beauty render inside

Fig 180
ZBrush. (Fig.180)

Cedric Seauts Character Modeling Chapter 03: Handgun - Hard-Edge Max/Silo
Chapter 03 - Gun Fig 01
(Hard-Edge Modeling)
Photoshop
Introduction
In the following chapter, we are going to see
the step by step progress used to create
a Handgun. The technique used is not
complicated, we just need to know how to use
a couple of functions in 3dsmax and have some
patience and good references.
Fig 02
1-2. The first step is to gather reference

material. Google is probably the best friend you
could have on the internet. For this character
I chose a Desert Eagle. Try to find references
from different angles and especially the side
view which will be very important in creating the
main shape. (Fig.01 02)
3. In the front viewport, create a plane with Fig 03

the same length and width as your reference
picture. (Fig.03)
4. Open the Material Editor by pressing M Fig 04

hotkey and select a slot in the new window.
Then click on the square button beside Diffuse
and a new pop-up appears. Select Bitmap and
choose your reference picture. (Fig.04)

Chapter 03: Handgun - Hard-Edge Max/Silo Cedric Seaut s Character Modeling
5. Once your reference picture is loaded, apply Fig 05

the material to your object (1) and display the
picture in the viewport (2). (Fig.05)
6. Create a line around the gun as you did in Fig 06

chapter 2 (see 146). (Fig.06)
7. Select all the vertices, right click to display

Fig 07
the pop-up menu and select Corner. Its really
important because we are going next to work
with an Editable Poly so do not need any Bezier
information. (Fig.07)
8. Convert to an Editable Poly and you have a

Fig 08
big polygon with n-gons. (Fig.08)

Fig 09 9. Add a Shell modifier to create some
thickness. (Fig.09)
Fig 10 10. Collapse the stack by right clicking on Shell -

Collapse All. (Fig.10)
11. Dont forget do remove the face at the

Fig 11
back where the Symmetry axis will be situated.
(Fig.11)
12. As we often did with the previous chapters,

Fig 12
select all the vertices at the back from within the
top view. Right click on the Move button and
change the Y value to align them correctly along
the symmetrical axis. (Fig.12)

13. Here is the result so far in the side view. Fig 13

(Fig.13)
14-15. Select the object and then press Alt+X Fig 14

and it will become transparent, allowing you
to use the reference picture as a guide. With
the Cut function, add some sections as shown
below. Just press Alt+X again if you want to
view your object as in the previous preview.
(Fig.14 15)
Fig 15
16. We are going now to detach the different

Fig 16
elements that we are going to work on
separately. Lets detail the procedure for just
one section as it will be the same for all. Detach
the chosen section as shown below. (Fig.16)

Fig 17 17. You now have a new object in the scene.
(Fig.17)
Fig 18 18. Select the open area along the bottom and
whilst pressing Shift, move them to the left in
order to extrude them. Then press Y to align the
new edges together. (Fig.18)
19. As we have often done during the last two

Fig 19
chapters, right click on the Move transformation
button to show the numerical parameters and
change the Y value to 0 to align the edges along
the symmetrical axis. (Fig.19)
20. Now select all the vertices and press the

Fig 20
square box beside Weld, changing the value
in the new window to 1. This will weld all the
vertices that occupy the same position. (Fig.20)

21. Do this for all the pieces you previously cut Fig 21
earlier; 5 altogether. (Fig.21)
We will then work on them one by one in order

to create a more accurate model.
22. We will begin with the barrel. (Fig.22) Fig 22
23. In the following, you will see that there

Fig 23
are not too many things to explain. The few
functions used during the modeling process are
mainly Cut, Extrude, Chamfer, Bevel, Connect...
and patience. The most important thing is
to always use the reference picture in the
background to help you understand the details
and volumes. (Fig.23)
24. Here is the step by step process, adding

Fig 24
some cuts to create the new lines. (Fig.24)

Fig 25 25. Delete the top piece as shown below to
be able to extrude important elements later.
(Fig.25)
Fig 26 26. Here is a different angle to show the barrel.

(Fig.26)
27. Do the same as above (see 18) to close the

Fig 27
top of the object. (Fig.27)
28. Add some cuts in order to extrude some

Fig 28
grips. (Fig.28)

29. Select faces on the top and extrude them Fig 29

as shown below but dont forget to slide them
to the inside a little to match with the reference.
(Fig.29)
30. Add a long horizontal cut. (Fig.30) Fig 30
31-32-33. Add some cuts in order to create a

Fig 31
hole. This hole will be important for connecting
the different pieces. Dont forget to align the
lines with the symmetrcal axis otherwise you will
have to fix this later. (Fig.31 33)
Fig 32

Fig 33
Fig 34 34. More cuts to keep in track with the

reference. Its good to add more polygons
sometimes to avoid rectangles. If you want to
sculpt some areas then its good to keep as
many squares as possible. (Fig.34)
35. Extrude a rectangle at the extremity to

Fig 35
prepare the target. (Fig.35)
36. Add more cuts in order to follow the above

Fig 36
advice (see 34). (Fig.36)

37. Here is the result from several angles. Fig 37

(Fig.37)
38. Add some cuts on the front to prepare the Fig 38

hole. (Fig.38)
39. Now extrude it. (Fig.39)

Fig 39
40-41. More cuts to reduce the rectangles.

Fig 40
(Fig.40 41)

Fig 41
Fig 42 42. Current preview. (Fig.42)
43. We are now going to chamfer edges

Fig 43
to increase the quality once the object is
smoothed. Chamfer is a very powerful function
when modeling mechanical objects. (Fig.43)
44-45. Some more angles to better see the

Fig 44
edges we are going to chamfer. (Fig.44 45)

Fig 45
46. Chamfer them as much as you want. Fig 46

(Fig.46)
47. The result - dont hesitate to add some final

Fig 47
touches to keep the mesh as quads. (Fig.47)
48. Some more angles. (Fig.48)

Fig 48

Fig 49 49. To smooth the model, just add a
Meshsmooth modifier. (Fig.49)
Fig 50 50. Now apply a Symmetry modifier and enjoy

the result for a few moments. (Fig.50)
51. The second piece. (Fig.51)

Fig 51
52. Some different angles to help you visualize

Fig 52
volumes. (Fig.52)

53. Cut a hole at the bottom to help insert an Fig 53

object later. (Fig.53)
54-55. Do the same on the front. (Fig.54 55) Fig 54
Fig 55
56-57. Cut some lines in order to remove the

Fig 56
faces. (Fig.56 57)

Fig 57
Fig 58 58-59-60. Remove the faces and extrude the

edges inwards to create a thickness. (Fig.58
60)
Fig 59
Fig 60

61. Add some cuts on the front view to match Fig 61

the original reference picture. (Fig.61)
62-63. Finally select the new faces and extrude Fig 62

them to add volume. (Fig.62 63)
Fig 63
64. The current preview from different angles.

Fig 64
(Fig.64)

Fig 65 65. Select the face as shown below and extrude
it inwards to create a cavity. (Fig.65)
Fig 66 66-67. Add more cuts to polish the object

(Fig.66 67)
Fig 67
68. Cut some edges inside to improve the

Fig 68
barrel connection. We are not going to create
a working weapon but its still good to keep the
main areas accurate. (Fig.68)

69-70. Extrude the faces and polish them to Fig 69

maintain smooth curves. Dont hesitate to
display the barrel to test the connection. (Fig.69
70)
Fig 70
71-72. In order to form a sharp edge, create a

Fig 71
cut as shown below. (Fig.71 72)
Fig 72

Fig 73 73. Polish the front of the object. (Fig.73)
Fig 74 74-75. Once again we are going to chamfer

edges to increase the quality. (Fig.74 75)
Fig 75
76. Chamfer and polish the final piece. (Fig.76)

Fig 76

77. Some more screenshots to help you target Fig 77

difficult areas. (Fig.77)
78. The final object after smoothing. (Fig.78) Fig 78
79. Add the barrel to see how they work

Fig 79
together. (Fig.79)
80. The pistol handle. (Fig.80)

Fig 80

Fig 81 81. The same kind of preliminary cut as we did
above to shape the main volume. (Fig.81)
Fig 82 82. Some more views. (Fig.82)
83-84-85. Try to keep quads as much as

Fig 83
possible. (Fig.83 85)
Fig 84

Fig 85
86. Current stage. (Fig.86) Fig 86
87-88. Prepare and remove an area to make

Fig 87
way for inserting an object later. (Fig.87 88)
Fig 88

Fig 89 89-90. Prepare and extrude a hole for the
trigger. (Fig.89 90)
Fig 90
91-92-93. Do the same for the magazine.

Fig 91
(Fig.91 93)
Fig 92

Fig 93
94. A current preview. (Fig.94) Fig 94
95. Now lets add some buttons on the piece

Fig 95
by cutting some hexagons in the front view.
(Fig.95)
96-97-98-99-100. Using the following steps,

Fig 96
create the buttons. (Fig.96 100)

Fig 97
Fig 98
Fig 99
Fig 100

101. Preview of the buttons after the faces are Fig 101
collapsed. (Fig.101)
102. Now its time now to select the edges to Fig102

chamfer. (Fig.102)
103. Here they are from several angles.

Fig103
(Fig.103)
Fig 104
104-105. Here is a preview of the chamfered
edges and final object. (Fig.104 105)

Fig 105
Fig 106 106. The final object. (Fig.106)
107-108. The final smoothed preview along with

Fig 107
the previously created pieces. (Fig.107 108)
Fig 108

109. The next piece to create is the grip. Fig 109

(Fig.109)
110. Add some subdivisions to prepare the Fig 110

different regions. (Fig.110)
111. Some further angles. (Fig.111)

Fig 111
112. Prepare and extrude the area shown below

Fig 112
to match the reference. (Fig.112)

Fig 113 113. Cut the area which will represent the
grip and clean up the object to create quads.
(Fig.113)
Fig 114 114. We are not going to reproduce the grip

exactly as seen in the reference in order that I
can introduce a different technique. Select the
area and extrude it. (Fig.114)
115-116. A current preview. (Fig.115 116)

Fig 115
Fig 116

117-118. Once again, select the edges we are Fig 117

going to chamfer. (Fig.117 118)
Fig 118
119. Now lets chamfer them. (Fig.119)

Fig 119
120-121. Here is the stage after a quick clean

Fig 120
up to maintain quads. (Fig.120 121)

Fig 121
Fig 122 122. We are now going to create the grip

texture. First create one element of what will
become a much larger pattern. You can try to
create your own but keep it simple because it
will be quite small in the end. Notice the small
quads on the left and bottom of the object; they
are there in order to duplicate it later without any
visible holes. (Fig.122)
123. Some different angles. (Fig.123)

Fig 123
124. By pressing Shift, first move the object to

Fig 124
the bottom right. (Fig.124)

125. Attach the new one to its parent, and Fig 125
then select all the vertices to weld the ones
occupying the same position. (Fig.125)
126. Do the same as previously done (see 124) Fig 126

but change Number of Copies to 20 to create
the initial row. (Fig.126)
127. Follow the same procedure as above but

Fig 127
this time vertically. (Fig.127)
128. You should now have a large square

Fig 128
pattern. (Fig.128)

Fig 129 129. Display the recent handgun piece and
move you square pattern to cover the grip area.
(Fig.129)
Fig 130 130- 131. Select the faces within the grip area
and delete them. (Fig.130 131)
Fig 131
132. Now apply an FFD (box) 4x4x4 modifier

Fig 132
to bend and move the grip pattern into its
corresponding area. (Fig.132)

133. Here is the final preview with both a Fig 133

Symmetry and Meshsmooth modifier applied.
(Fig.133)
134. Here is the current stage of the handgun Fig 134

along with the grip. (Fig.134)
135. Now for the last big piece. (Fig.135)

Fig 135
136-137. Add some cuts to create more

Fig 136
definition. (Fig.136 137)

Fig 137 138. To prepare a hole, cut the area as shown
below. At the same time fix any potential n-gons.
(Fig.138)
Fig 138 139. Extrude the area. (Fig.139)
Fig 139
140-141. Prepare another area for extrusion.

Fig 140
(Fig.140 141)

Fig 141
142. Extrude the area. (Fig.142) Fig 142
143-144. Do the same on the right to match the

Fig 143
reference. (Fig.143 144)
Fig 144

Fig 145 145- 146. As you did for the piece at the front,
cut in a hexagon in order to form a button. (See
95-100). (Fig.145 146)
Fig 146
147. Some more angles. (Fig.147)

Fig 147
148-149-150. Select the appropriate edges and

Fig 148
chamfer them. (Fig.148 150)

Fig 149
Fig 150
151- 152. A final preview. (Fig.151 152)

Fig 151
Fig 152

Fig 153 153. Apply the Symmetry and Meshsmooth
modifiers. (Fig.153)
Fig 154 154. Here is the current stage of the handgun

containing all the large pieces. (Fig.154)
155. Now we are presented with all the small

Fig 155
pieces that we are going to add to match the
reference.
Here are the sights at the front of the gun.

(Fig.155)
156. The hammer. (Fig.156)

Fig 156

157. The trigger. (Fig.157) Fig 157
158. The end of the magazine; we dont need to Fig 158

model everything as we dont need this gun to
work properly. (Fig.158)
159. Another piece below the barrel of the gun.

Fig 159
(Fig.159)
160. Another section under the barrel to connect

Fig 160
with the one above. (Fig.160)

Fig 161 161. The sights at the back of the gun. (Fig.161)
Fig 162 162. The muzzle. (Fig.162)
163-164-165- Side details. (Fig.163 165)

Fig 163
Fig 164

166-167. The final preview of the gun

incorporating all the pieces. (Fig.166 167)
168. Here is a real time preview with shadows in

3dsmax 2010. (Fig.168)


Cedric Seauts Character Modeling Chapter 04: Chest - ZBrush Mechanical Sculpting
Chapter 04 - Chest Fig 01
(ZBrush Mechanical
Sculpting)
Photoshop
Introduction
how to sculpt a mechanical object in ZBrush
from the basic concept we achieved in the first
chapter. We are then going to introduce several
accessories which we will integrate into the
chest. Fig 02
1. We will begin with the basic concept from

chapter 1. (Fig.01)
2. By using both the Clay and Smooth ZBrush

brushes, I tried to extract more volumes which
will allow for a more polished object. (Fig.02)
3. By using the same technique shown Fig 03

in chapter 2 (creating a shoe step 5), I
polypainted a better topology on the current
concept. You will notice there are two different
colors on the object which represent the two
different objects we will create; one being the
chest and the other the hands. We are going
to use this technique in order to save memory
and allow us to sculpt more smoothly. Usually
hands require more polygons and hence more
resources due to the fingers so its often good to
find a way to detach them into a unique piece.
(Fig.03) Fig 04
4- 5- 6. Dont hesitate to use the transpose

function in order to work on a specific area as
this will allow you to paint a cleaner and better
topology. The arm is a good example which
might be quite hard to paint without hiding the
rest of the object. (Fig.04 06)

Chapter 04: Chest - ZBrush Mechanical Sculpting Cedric Seaut s Character Modeling
Fig 05
Fig 06
7- 8. Once youre done with the polypainted

Fig 07
topology used the re-topology process
explained in chapter 2 - step 12 to recreate
brand new base meshes for the chest and hand.
Remember to do only one hand as later we will
use symmetry to duplicate it. (Fig.07 08)
Fig 08

Fig 09 9. Go back to your polypainted Ztool and turn
off colorize under the Texture Tab. We are now
going to append both previous objects with this
tool. (Fig.09)
Fig 10 10. Under the SubTool tab, press Append and

first choose the Chest and then the Hand as we
did in chapter 2 - step22. (Fig.10)
11. We have now three different SubTools; the

Fig 11
old concept and the new chest and hand. Select
the chest and subdivide it. (Fig.11)
12. Now press StoreMT under the Morph Target

Fig 12
Tab and display the old concept by pressing on
the eye icon beside it. (Fig.12)

13. On the left (1) is the last action we did above Fig 13
before pressing ProjectAll in order to project all
of the sculpted information from the concept
onto the new chest base mesh. (Fig.13)
14. Here are the results below. (Fig.14) Fig 14
15. Hide the old concept by pressing the eye

Fig 15
icon. We are now going to correct the minor
artifacts that the projection has created. (Fig.15)
16. Here on the back we can see an example of

Fig 16
some small artifacts. (Fig.16)

Fig 17 17. Use the Transpose function to select only
the arms. (Fig.17)
Fig 18 18. Now hide them by pressing HidePt under

the Masking Tab. You can now clearly see the
artifacts. (Fig.18)
19. We are now going to use the Morph data we

Fig 19
stored in step 12 to remove them. Choose the
Morph brush and set the intensity to 100. Now
all we need to do is just paint on the artifacts.
(Fig.19)
20. Using the Smooth brush, polish the area to

Fig 20
get a clean junction. (Fig.20)

21. Use the same techniques explained above Fig 21

to fix any other artifacts. Here is an image of the
final result. (Fig.21)
22. Use the same steps for the hand by first Fig 22
subdividing it and then storing the morph target.
(Fig.22)
Fig 23
23. Project the old concept onto the new hand.

(Fig.23)
24. Below you can see both new objects. We

Fig 24
are now going to clean the transition between
them. (Fig.24)

Fig 25 25. Select the chest and using the Clay brush,
push in the transition area to get a perfect
assembly. (Fig.25)
Fig 26 26- 27. Here is a preview from different angles.

This doesnt have to be perfect as we are going
to polish and sculpt both parts. (Fig.26 27)
Fig 27
28. We are now going to create a symmetrical

Fig 28
copy of the hand. First select the hand and
then press Del Lower to remove the objects
subdivision history. Then, press the SubTool
master button under the Zplugin menu. (Fig.28)

29. After a menu appears, click on Mirror and Fig 29

then OK using the parameters shown below.
(Fig.29)
Fig 30
30- 31. Here are several previews of the result.

(Fig.30 31)
Fig 31
32. Still with the hands selected, reconstruct the

Fig 32
subdivision which is proves important in saving
display memory. (Fig.32)

Fig 33 33. Here is a final preview. (Fig.33)
Fig 34 34. Its time now to add more detail to the chest.
The Dam standard brush is the main key to
achieve this and when used with the LazyMouse
it becomes the most powerful tool ever. After
selecting the Dam Standard brush, press L to
activate the LazyMouse and change the stroke
parameters to those shown below in order to
draw some perfect smooth lines. Lets now draw
some more details on the front. (Fig.34)
35. The back. (Fig.35)

Fig 35
36. We are now going to work on a small area

Fig 36
to explain the different steps in the process
and then apply these techniques to the entire
character. Using the Dam Standard brush draw
the lines slowly to avoid artifacts, and then use
the Flatten brush with the same LazyMouse/
stroke parameters to flatten the corresponding
line above the previous one. All the green lines
are done with Dam Standard brush but dont
hesitate to use Smooth sometimes to remove
bumpy effects. (Fig.36)

37. We are now going to explain how to create Fig 37

and sculpt these details. This technique is
probably the second main component in the
mechanical sculpting process. In reality, these
details begin as actual 3D objects so lets create
them in 3ds max first. (Fig.37)
38. Create a basic plane in 3dsmax using the Fig 38

parameters shown below. We will first create a
rectangle. (Fig.38)
39. Move it to the center of the scene and then

Fig 39
right click on the Move button to display the
pop up box below and change the X, Y and Z
values. (Fig.39
40. Convert it into an Editable Poly. (Fig.40)

Fig 40

Fig 41 41. Select the edges shown in green and press
the Connect button to create a new edge.
(Fig.41)
Fig 42 42. Select the newly created edge and chamfer

it as shown below. (Fig.42)
43. Repeat the process to create a new edge

Fig 43
between them. (Fig.43)
44. Chamfer it once again to get the result

Fig 44
shown below. (Fig.44)

45. Select the face and Bevel it as shown on the Fig 45

right. (Fig.45)
46. Here is a preview of the current stage. Fig 46

(Fig.46)
47. Select the edges as shown below. (Fig.47)

Fig 47
48. Now press Connect to create a new Edge

Fig 48
Loop. (Fig.48)

Fig 49 49. Move and scale the newly created Edge
Loop as shown below. (Fig.49)
Fig 50 50. Select the corner edges. (Fig.50)
51. Now chamfer them which will sharpen the

Fig 51
corners. (Fig.51)
52. We will now clean up the object. Press

Fig 52
Target Weld and then select vertex one followed
by vertex two to weld them together. (Fig.52)

53. Follow the same procedure with each Fig 53

corner, the result of which can be seen below.
(Fig.53)
54. To maintain the object as quads, Connect Fig 54

the vertices shown below. (Fig.54)
55. Now delete the edge in the middle to create

Fig 55
a quad. (Fig.55)
56. Do the same inside the shape to generate

Fig 56
quads. (Fig.56)

Fig 57 57. Here is a preview of the final result. (Fig.57)
Fig 58 58. Now select all the edges shown below.

(Fig.58)
59. Apply a Chamfer as shown below. (Fig.59)

Fig 59
60. Select all the horizontal edges and press

Fig 60
Connect to create a new Ring Loop. (Fig.60)

61. Now Chamfer the newly created edges. Fig 61

(Fig.61)
62. Follow the same procedure for the vertical Fig 62

edges. (Fig.62)
63. Here is a preview of the final object. (Fig.63)

Fig 63
64. Here is newly smoothed preview. (Fig.64)

Fig 64

Fig 65 65. We are now going to create an alpha from
this object. Go back into Zbrush and change the
document parameters as its important to get the
maximum quality. (Fig.65)
Fig 66 66. Use the zoom button on the right to see the
entire Canvas in the screen as its important to
use the entire space. (Fig.66)
67. Import the object created in 3dsmax.

Fig 67
(Fig.67)
68. Press Crease to limit the shrink effect at

Fig 68
the extremity and subdivide it until its perfectly
smoothed. Then Under the Display Property tab
press Flip to invert your object. (Fig.68)

69. Choose MRGBZGrabber in the list shown Fig 69

below. This function will allow us to grab the
depth of the object. (Fig.69)
70. Click on Switch when you see the following Fig 70

warning. (Fig.70)
71. Its now time to create the white square.

Fig 71
Turn off Auto Crop and draw the square at its
maximum size using the entire canvas. (Fig.71)
72. When you release the mouse, the data is

Fig 72
sent to the alpha position. You have now your
alpha. (Fig.72)

Fig 73 73. Here is a quick test which will be explained
in the following paragraphs. (Fig.73)
Fig 74 74. Its good to keep the original alpha

(2048*2048) but thanks to Photoshop we can
reduce it to 512*512 and save another iteration
that we will use on the model. (Fig.74)
75. Here are the different alphas I used for the

Fig 75
chest. I used the exact same method to create
them as explained above. (Fig.75)
76. Going back to the chest its now time now

Fig 76
to polish it a bit more in the different areas. Still
using the Dam Standard and Flatten brushes,
we can slowly clean the shape. (Fig.76)

77. To apply the rectangles to your shape, use Fig 77

the standard brush with the DragRect stroke and
select the rectangle alpha. Now right click on the
model to change the brush parameters, bearing
in mind that the Draw Size and Focal Shift have
to be close. This procedure is important if you
want to create a clean rectangle. You can now
place them on your object. (Fig.77)
78. Lets create another object in 3ds Max that Fig 78

we will put on the chest. (Fig.78)
79. Go back into Zbrush with your chest.

Fig 79
(Fig.79)
80. We are now going to decimate the chest

Fig 80
in order to bring it into 3ds Max and avoid any
memory crash. (Fig.80)

Fig 81 81. Once its done export the optimized chest.
(Fig.81)
Fig 82 82. Import it in into Max. (Fig.82)
83. Merge the newly created object and position

Fig 83
it to mimic what we see below. Dont move
vertices as we will match both objects in Zbrush.
Export the green object as an obj. (Fig.83)
84. Open up Zbrush and import the object into

Fig 84
the scene by way of SubTool Master. (Fig.84)

85. Use the Move brush to push the new object Fig 85
a little in order to match it perfectly with the
chest. (Fig.85)
86. Once again, use the SubTool Master to Fig 86

mirror the newly created object. (Fig.86)
87. Here is the final result. (Fig.87)

Fig 87
88. Use the same technique as explained in

Fig 88
step 77 to create these holes. The alpha in the
bottom left was used (see 75). (Fig.88)

Fig 89 89. I used the rectangular alpha to create these
small thick lines (in red), still using the Dam
Standard brush with the LazyMouse to polish
the lines below (in green). (Fig.89)
Fig 90 90. I used the same technique to create the

holes below (see 75-77) and used the Clay
brush with a very low value to slightly flatten the
areas shown below to simulate a button effect.
(Fig.90)
91. Create a new object in 3ds Max starting with

Fig 91
a simple cylinder. (Fig.91)
92- 93. Using the same technique explained in

Fig 92
step 79 duplicate and move the different objects
on the chest to get something similar to the
following. (Fig.92 93)

Fig 93
94. Once again bring these new elements into Fig 94

the scene by using the SubTool Master plugin.
(Fig.94)
95. Here is a current preview with some more

Fig 95
changes using the same methods involving
alphas and the Dam Standard brush. (Fig.95)
96. We use the same technique for the

Fig 96
shoulders and neck. More screenshots will be
shown later to focus on the different areas.
(Fig.96)

Fig 97 97. Here is a final preview. (Fig.97)
Fig 98 98. With the armor area done its now time to
polish the arm which is a more organic element.
Use the Inflat and the Smooth brush to gradually
bulge out the volumes. (Fig.98)
99. Here are some more angles to see the

Fig 99
volumes. (Fig.99)
100. When you are satisfied with the volumes,

Fig 100
add more small skin details courtesy of a
specific alpha (provided customized brush).
(Fig.100)

101. Once again use the Dam Standard brush Fig 101
to accentuate some holes in order to make it
appear more organic. (Fig.101)
102 to 111. Here are some screenshots to Fig 102

represent the key areas to help you visualize
the process. The same techniques were used
to reach this stage and mainly incorporated
customized alphas and the Dam standard / Flat
brush with the LazyMouse. Its up to you now to
create more specific alphas and to furnish your
own library with small and simple mechanical
objects. (Fig.102 111)
Fig 103
Fig 104

Fig 105
Fig 106
Fig 107
Fig 108

Fig 109
Fig 110
Fig 111
112 to 117. Here are a grenade and rifle which

Fig 112
were created in 3ds Max to add a bit more
interest to the character. (Fig.112 117)

Fig 113
Fig 114
Fig 115
Fig 116

Fig 117
118-119-120. I also added a simple military Fig 118

pouch to create some extra detail. Here are the
different sculpting steps. (Fig.118 120)
Fig 119
Fig 120

Cedric Seauts Character Modeling Chapter 05: Pants - ZBrush Fabric Sculpting
Chapter 05 - Pants Fig 01
(ZBrush Fabric
Sculpting)
Photoshop
Introduction
how to sculpt the pants from the basic concept
we achieved in the first chapter. We are then
going to introduce several accessories that we
will integrate into it.
Fig 02
1. So lets start from the basic concept we

achieved in Chapter 1 (Fig.01).
2. Basically we are going to follow the same

procedure as we did in the last chapter and
also for the shoe. The first stage involves
polypainting the concept to use as a guide later
on when reconstructing the topology (Fig.02).
3. Dont hesitate to re-read the previous chapter Fig 03a

and to follow the step by step progress.
Here you can see the new mesh. In the second

image you will notice that the top and the bottom
are capped. Its still good to close your mesh in
order to get a better texture (Fig.03a b).
Fig 03b

Chapter 05: Pants - ZBrush Fabric Sculpting Cedric Seaut s Character Modeling
4. Now go back to your concept mesh as we are Fig 04

going to re-project all the information from the
old version onto the new one. First of all turn off
Colorize to hide Polypaint (Fig.04).
5. Under your Subtools, press Append to display Fig 05

the new menu that will allow you to select the
new pants mesh. After selecting it you will see it
just under your main Subtool (Fig.05).
6. Subdivide it several times but be careful to

Fig 06
keep under 3 million polygons, otherwise you
will have a lack of memory which will encroach
on your workflow. You just need enough
resolution to get a nice projection. Go to the
bottom, open up the morph tab and press Store
in order to store this current state in the memory
(Fig.06).
7. Press Project All to transfer all the

Fig 07a
information from the old mesh onto the new
version. As you can see below, you may have
some artifacts. This phenomena comes from the
polygons you created to cap the mesh but there
is no need for concern as the morph will allow
you to fix these bugs (Fig.07a - b).

Fig 07b
Fig 08a 8. Thanks to the Morph and Smooth brushes,

you can correct the artifacts easily. Its important
to change the intensity of the morph brush in
order to remove the distortion quickly. In the
second picture, you can see a preview of the
result (Fig.08a b).
Fig 08b
9. We are now going to paint a first pass of folds

Fig 09
on the pants. To keep smooth unified volumes
and avoid any bumpy effects, we will use the
Standard brush with the LazyMouse as shown
below. It is then a case of slowly drawing in
some lines. Work in symmetry to save time as
the accessories will break this up later. Its good
to have some references when you work on
folds in the cloth so dont hesitate to take some
photos of yourself to help or alternatively use
the internet (Fig.09).

10. Before continuing with the folds we are Fig 10

going to create the base meshes for the
accessories. We are going to need an iteration
of the pants for that. Open the Zplugin menu
and change the Decimation parameters as
shown below. After the calculation, you will have
a lighter version that you can use in 3dsmax to
figure out the accessories (Fig.10).
11. Import the above created mesh into 3dsmax Fig 11

(Fig.11).
12. Create a simple plane and center it in the

Fig 12a
scene. Now move it to the middle of the thigh as
shown in the second picture (Fig.12a b).
Fig 12b

Fig 13 13. We are going to extrude edges to create
straps so first of all convert the plane to an
Editable Poly (Fig.13).
Fig 14 14. Move the edges slightly (Fig.14).
15. By pressing shift, duplicate and move the

Fig 15
edge to the left. Repeat this to add further faces
around the thigh and create a strap (Fig.15).
16. Do this several times as shown below

Fig 16a
(Fig.16a b).

Fig 16b
17. Finally weld the vertices as shown below in Fig 17

order to close the Strap (Fig.17).
18. In this chapter, we are going to use some

Fig 18
generic objects such as clips. They will be used
essentially for straps to add more detail and get
a better silhouette (Fig.18).
19. Like the Desert Eagle, another weapon has

Fig 19a
been made for the left thigh of the character.
We are going to place it into its correct position
in order to better create the straps. In the last
picture, we also moved and duplicated the clips
to attach the blade onto the pants (Fig.19a
b).

Fig 19b
Fig 20a 20. Create another strap below the first one by
using the same steps, adding more clips to get
the following preview (Fig.20a b).
Fig 20b
21. We are now going to create some thickness

Fig 21
to the straps. Under the Modifier tab, open the
roll out and select Shell (Fig.21).

22. Its up to you then to try and choose the Fig 22

best parameters in order to create realistic
proportions (Fig.22).
23. Once satisfied, convert both elements to an Fig 23

Editable Poly to collapse the modifier stack and
keep it simple (Fig.23).
24. We are now going to prepare the mesh

Fig 24
and so in order to do that hide everything except
the strap (Fig.24).
25. Select one edge (Fig.25).

Fig 25

Fig 26 26. Press on Ring to select the ring loop
(Fig.26).
Fig 27 27. Now click on Loop to select the

corresponding edge loops (Fig.27).
28. Now you can chamfer the edge loops in

Fig 28
order to get sharper angles when you have to
sculpt the strap within Zbrush where it will be
much easier to achieve a better result (Fig.28).
29. Apply this to the second one below. Here is

Fig 29
a current preview (Fig.29).

30. Here is another preview without the wire Fig 30

(Fig.30).
31. Its now the time to re-use the Desert Eagle Fig 31
you created previously as we are going to create
a holster for it (Fig.31).
32. As we did with the straps above, use the

Fig 32
same technique to create the holster, edge by
edge (Fig.32).
33. Extrude the edges as shown below (Fig.33a

Fig 33a
b).

Fig 33b
Fig 34 34. Dont hesitate to hide everything except

the current object in order to see what you
are doing. Continue to extrude the edges by
pressing shift (Fig.34).
35. Here is a current preview from several

Fig 35
angles (Fig.35).
36. Extrude the edges step by step (Fig.36).

Fig 36

37. In order to close the mesh, use the Target Fig 37

Weld Function to snap and weld corresponding
vertices (Fig.37).
38. Cap the bottom but dont forget its important Fig 38
to keep the mesh as quads as this will remove
any bugs and artifacts in ZBrush (Fig.38).
39. Follow the same procedure on the top.

Fig 39
Select all the edges by using the Border
selection mode (Fig.39).
40. Whilst pressing shift, extrude the border and

Fig 40
scale it down (Fig.40).

Fig 41 41. Once done close it properly with quads
(Fig.41).
Fig 42 42. As we did for the straps, we are going to

sharpen some edges to simplify the work in
Zbrush.
Select the edges as shown below (Fig.42).
43. Here are some other previews from several

Fig 43
angles (Fig.43).
44. Add a mini strap using the same technique

Fig 44
as shown below (Fig.44).

45. An a further one on the side (Fig.45). Fig 45
46. We are going to create more elements in Fig 46

order to add extra detail. Usually its better to
have one object with several sub objects rather
than a complete mesh entirely sculpted (Fig.46).
47. Use the same procedure as we have done

Fig 47
previously (Fig.47).
48. Here are some more views to show the main

Fig 48
shape and silhouette (Fig.48).

Fig 49a 49. Dont hesitate to look at references for the
details with Google often being your best friend.
Here is one more strap (Fig.49a b).
Fig 49b
50. Feel free to re-use the clips (Fig.50).

Fig 50
51. Here are a few more images to show the

Fig 51a
extra straps (Fig.51a c).

Fig 51b
Fig 51c
52. You have now your holster where you can

Fig 52
house your weapon (Fig.52).
53. Lets add some more accessories on the

Fig 53
thigh to accommodate the holster and also add
more definition (Fig.53).

Fig 54 54. Use the same procedure as before to add
thickness and prepare it for sculpting (Fig.54).
Fig 55 55. Add some more clips in order to house a

new strap which will support the holster (Fig.55).
56. You can now go on and create the strap

Fig 56a
from a simple plane. In the second picture you
can see a preview from the back (Fig.56a b).
Fig 56b

57. Here is a preview of all the current Fig 57a

accessories present on the right thigh (Fig.57a
b).
Fig 57b
58. Here are all the newly created accessories

Fig 58
(Fig.58).
59. With these components done its time now

Fig 59
to work on the belt area. First duplicate the
standard clip and position it at the top (Fig.59).

Fig 60a 60. Thanks to this clip, you can figure out
the placement of the main strap and add its
thickness (Fig.60a b).
Fig 60b
61. Now its time to create the small pieces

Fig 61a
of cloth to support the main strap as seen
commonly on a pair of jeans. Once again, apply
the thickness modifier and chamfer the edges
(Fig.61a b).
Fig 61b

62. To make the new objects symmetrical, apply Fig 62

the Mirror modifier as shown below (Fig.62).
63. Create another piece which will essentially Fig 63

protect the upper thigh area (Fig.63).
64. Place on some more accessories to prepare

Fig 64
for another strap (Fig.64).
65.Create this strap/belt and finish it correctly

Fig 65
(Fig.65).

Fig 66 66. You can find some references for these
kinds of pieces on American Marines (Fig.66).
Fig 67 67. Here are some other views of the current

model (Fig.67).
68. Here is another piece (Fig.68).

Fig 68a
Fig 68b

69. Create one more protective piece, duplicate Fig 69a

it to add more detail and then duplicate this
double piece and place them at the back
(Fig.69a d).
Fig 69b
Fig 69c
Fig 69d

Fig 70 70. Here is a current preview of the model
(Fig.70).
Fig 71a 71. Now lets add some more accessories to the
thigh (Fig.71a - c).
Fig 71b
Fig 71c

72. Its now time to work on the knee area by Fig 72

including a knee protector. We will use the same
technique as followed previously (Fig.72).
73. More clips will be added to accommodate Fig 73a

the accessories. In the second picture you can
see some more previews (Fig.73a b).
Fig 73b
74. Its time now to fix the knee protector in place

Fig 74
with a new strap. Extrude it around the knee and
join the ends (Fig.74).

Fig 75 75. Next add some thickness (Fig.75).
Fig 76 76. Create some small straps to link the knee

protector to the clips and once again add some
thickness (Fig.76).
77. Here is a current preview from different

Fig 77
angles (Fig.77).
78. Here is a final preview of all the accessories

Fig 78
(Fig.78).

79. Export only the newly created accessories Fig 79

as .obj files from 3ds max. We will import these
later into Zbrush to be sculpted (Fig.79).
80. Open up your Zbrush shoe file. We Fig 80

are going to use the main shoe object as a
reference in the pants Zbrush file to help sculpt
the pants and accessories (Fig.80).
81. Click on the Frame button on the right and

Fig 81
you will see several colors appear on the shoe
that correspond to the different objects. We
just need the biggest one without the laces and
everything else (Fig.81).
82. Now click on GrpSplit in the SubTool Tab

Fig 82
and you will see more Subtools appear in the
list. You can now delete everything one by
one except the first one which corresponds to
the main shoe object, as shown on the right
(Fig.82).

Fig 83 83. You now have only one Subtool in the list
and you will notice that this element has lost its
subdivision history. Subdivision history is really
important if you want to save memory and be
able to sculpt smoothly. To recover subdivisions
just press on Reconstruct Subdiv several times.
As long as we just need a reference of the
shoe you could also delete the higher level of
subdivision as shown in step 3 (Fig.83).
Fig 84 84. Here is a final preview of the shoe reference.

There is just enough to help you when working
on the rest of the pants (Fig.84).
85. Once again use the Plugin SubTool Master

Fig 85
to mirror the shoe (Fig.85).
86. Now go back to your simple pants you

Fig 86
created at the beginning of this chapter (Fig.86).

87. Append the shoes you just created above Fig 87

(Fig.87).
88. Finally, append the accessories that you Fig 88a

created in 3dsmax by using SubTool Master.
You should arrive at something close to the
second picture (Fig.88a b).
Fig 88b
89. In order to work properly on single elements

Fig 89
click on GrpSplit and you should then see many
more SubTools appear on the right. It would be
easier to work on them one at a time which will
also be much better for memory as you could
easily end up with over 10 million polygons
without any restrictions (Fig.89).

Fig 90 90. You can now add more subdivisions to the
objects in preparation for the sculpting (Fig.90).
Fig 91 91. Now lets work on the first element; the

pelvic protectors. Before starting do not hesitate
to add more subdivisions (Fig.91).
92. To be able to work properly without being

Fig 92
disturbed by any other objects you can hide
them by simply clicking on the eye button just to
the right of your current SubTool (Fig.92).
93. Dam Standard will be used once again to

Fig 93
draw the main lines but dont forget to turn the
symmetry on (Fig.93).

94. Use now the Flatten brush to flatten some Fig 94

areas as shown below and the Dam Standard
brush to polish and sharpen any holes and
details (Fig.94).
95. For the final scratch touches keep using the Fig 95
Dam Standard brush and draw some natural
lines to suggest that the object is actively used
(Fig.95).
96. Here is a final preview (Fig.96).

Fig 96
97. Follow the same procedure for the pelvic

Fig 97a
protector situated underneath (Fig.97a b).

Fig 97b
Fig 98 98. And likewise for the ones at the back

(Fig.98).
99. Now lets work now on another one as

Fig 99
shown below (Fig.99).
100. First of all subdivide it (Fig.100).

Fig 100

101. Dont forget to activate the symmetry Fig 101

something which has to be done for all the
SubTools as its not a general option (Fig.101).
102. A very nice Brush is the Slash2 and thanks Fig 102
to this you will be able to create extra pieces
of cloth apparent on jeans. Select the Slash2
Brush and activate LazyMouse making sure not
to forget to change the LazyStep value to 0 in
order to get a perfect line. Now right click and
move down the Z intensity value to reduce the
brush strength. You can now draw a line around
your object as shown below (Fig.102).
103. Thanks to a customized brush (created by

Fig 103
David Giraud), draw another line to simulate the
stitches (Fig.103).
104. Now you can use the standard Inflat Brush

Fig 104
to add some folds to make the object look a bit
more realistic (Fig.104)

Fig 105 105. Here is a final Preview (Fig.105).
Fig 106 106. Select the object as shown below and

subdivide it (Fig.106).
107. We are now going to create a mask so

Fig 107
select the Clay brush and right click, changing
its focal Shift value to make both circles closer.
This will make the mask sharper (Fig.107).
108. Now scroll down to the Deformation tab

Fig 108
and change the Inflat Value. You could get
exactly the same effect by using the Slash2
brush as above but I just wanted to introduce a
different way of doing it (Fig.108).

109. This time you can use the slash2 brush to Fig 109
create more cloth pieces. You can also use the
Standard brush with a low Z intensity to create
the folds (Fig.109).
110. Once again use the customized brush to Fig 110

make the stitches (Fig.110).
111. Use the Inflat brush for the smaller folds

Fig 111
(Fig.111).
Fig 112

Fig 113a 113. Select another object and use the same
procedure to complete it (Fig.113a - c).
Fig 113b
Fig 113c
114. Here is the same process applied to the

Fig 114
belt using the same technique (Fig.114).

115. Here are the belt elements (Fig.115). Fig 115
116. Here is the same for the second belt, for Fig 116
which we will use the same technique we used
in the Chest chapter to create customized
stitches using the alpha shown below (Fig.116).
117. We are now going to work on the straps

Fig 117
but before we do this select the Clay brush
and push in the pants to remove any artifacts
(Fig.117).
118. Here is a final preview of the straps,

Fig 118
still using the same technique to sculpt them
(Fig.118).

Fig 119 119. Lets work on the knee pads (Fig.119).
Fig 120 120. Modify the overall shape a little to get a

better shape and with the customized brush
draw a line around them to create the seam
(Fig.120).
121. Here is a preview (Fig.121).

Fig 121
122. In order to work properly on the object,

Fig 122
click on the eye on the right of the SubTool to
hide all the surrounding objects (Fig.122).

123. We are going to use the projection master Fig 123

to add a pattern across the knee pads. In order
to get better results, you will need to turn the
Perspective button off under the Draw tab
(Fig.123).
124. Click on the Projection Master button along Fig 124

the top menu and uncheck everything except
Deformation. Now press Drop now and you will
be in the projection master mode (Fig.124).
125. You are now in projection master mode. On

Fig 125
the right in the Tool Menu, select SimpleBrush.
On the left select Line Stroke and below the
Dam Standard alpha. Dont forget to change the
Spacing value to 2, which will allow you to get
some very clean lines. Finally press on Zsub
button (Fig.125).
126. You can now draw some lines on the knee

Fig 126
pad. (Fig.126)

Fig 127 127. Once you are satisfied with your
modifications, you can go back to the previous
ZBrush sculpting mode by pressing the
Projection Master button, keeping Deformation
on and finally clicking on Pickup Now (Fig.127).
Fig 128 128. Here is the result (Fig.128).
129. Dont hesitate to repeat this procedure if

Fig 129
you want to add more lines. You can then re-use
the alphas you created in the Chest chapter to
add more definition (Fig.129).
130. You can also use the mask technique

Fig 130
to define more volume as explained above
(Fig.130).

131. Ctrl click on that area if you want to smooth Fig 131
the selection and then change the Inflat value to
extrude the masked selection (Fig.131).
132. Here is a final preview (Fig.132). Fig 132
133. You can now unhide the elements and

Fig 134
use the Clay brush to push in the pants slightly
(Fig.133).
134. And finally, you can use the Slash brush to

Fig 135
add some scratches (Fig.134).

Fig 135 135. Now lets move onto the straps around the
knee (Fig.135).
Fig 136 136. An another customized brush was used to

add different details to the strap. A very simple
alpha was created by using the technique
explained in the previous chapter. With this
brush selected, right click and change the Focal
Shift value to make both circles closer. You now
just have now to paint on the strap (Fig.136).

Fig 137
138. Here is a final preview for the small straps

Fig 138
shown below (Fig.138).

139. Here are some previews of the other Fig 139a

objects using the same techniques (Fig.139a
b).
Fig 139b
Fig 140
140. A current preview (Fig.140).
141. We are now going to work on the pants.

Fig 141
In order to sculpt them properly without any
interference from the other objects you may
wish to activate transparency (3).
To start sculpting folds, use the Standard brush

with LazyMouse which I strongly recommend
if you want smooth and clean folds. Its also
good to paint these slowly as you will get better
results (Fig.141).

Fig 142a 142. Here are the pants step by step (Fig.142a
2).
Fig 142b
143. Now lets move onto the seams using the

Fig 143
Slash2 brush as explained above (Fig.143).
144. Dont hesitate to hide everything except

Fig 144
the left or the right piece of the pants in order to
sculpt the seams inside the legs (Fig.144).

145. Draw more lines with the customized Fig 145

stitches brush (Fig.145).
146. And once again using the Inflat brush, Fig 146
sculpt the small folds on each side of the seams
to finish the details (Fig.146).
147. Lets now replace the shoes with the

Fig 147
real ones so first of all delete the existing one
(Fig.147).
148. Open up your Zbrush file with your final

Fig 148
shoes inside (Fig.148).

Fig 149 149. Go back to your pants Tool and be sure to
delete the old shoes (Fig.149).
Fig 150 150. Append the real ones (Fig.150).
151. Here is a final preview, with the completed

Fig 151
pants (Fig.151).

Cedric Seaut
For more from this artist visit
http://www.khalys.net/
or contact
cedric.seaut@voila.fr
3DTOTAL.COM
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The series is split into 6 chapters and will endeavour to give you an insight into how a fully realised 3D scene
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Cedric Seauts Character Modeling Chapter 01: Concept

Chapter 01 - Concept Fig 01

advantage is that you will have a solid 3D base

Part 1a Simple Base

1. Create a box primitive in 3ds Max with the Fig 03

2. We are going to center this box at the center

3. To be able to modify the object, convert it into

4. To make the modeling easier, we are going

www.3dtotal.com page 5 Chapter 01

6. To test if everything is setup well, go back to Fig 06

7. Lets start with the head: We are going to

As many quads as possible (triangles are

In Fig.07 is a preview of the head. As you

8. Select the polygon on the top and extrude it

www.3dtotal.com page 6 Chapter 01

Fig 10 10. Now were going to move onto the torso.

11. It is still best to keep things straight at the

12. To be able to come up with a good shape,

www.3dtotal.com page 7 Chapter 01

14. We are going now to close a part of the Fig 14

15. Click on Target Weld, and one-by-one

16. In the same way as explained before (see

www.3dtotal.com page 8 Chapter 01

Fig 18 18. Select the area which will be the beginning

19. As you previously did for the torso (see step

20. Here are some screenshots of the legs.

www.3dtotal.com page 9 Chapter 01

22. Once again, select the border and press Fig 22

23. Create an edge loop at the middle of that

24. Select the two faces on the front and extrude

www.3dtotal.com page 10 Chapter 01

27. Here is a preview of the shoes (Fig.27).

28. Go back to the chest now, and select

www.3dtotal.com page 11 Chapter 01

30. Make some cuts with the same technique Fig 30

31. Move some vertices to get a rough human

32. Now we are going to work on possibly the

www.3dtotal.com page 12 Chapter 01

Fig 34 34. Use the same procedure for the second

35. For the other two fingers it will be a little bit

36. Under the hand, select the edges and

www.3dtotal.com page 13 Chapter 01

38. Now we can cut once more to prepare the Fig 38

39. You are now ready to select two faces and

40. Move the vertices to achieve a hand-like

www.3dtotal.com page 14 Chapter 01

Fig 42 42. Connect vertices, as shown in Fig.42, for the

43. And once again for the last more-than-4-

44. Here is a preview of the arm from several

www.3dtotal.com page 15 Chapter 01

47. Well now add some more cuts to push the

48. As youve done several times now, push

www.3dtotal.com page 16 Chapter 01

Part 1b Basic Sculpting

Fig 50 50. First of all, import your base mesh into

Fig 51 51. Here is a preview of what you will see on

Fig 52 52. When you sculpt, its important to keep 3D

www.3dtotal.com page 17 Chapter 01

54. In ZBrush, you are able to preview some Fig 54

55. Here is how our base mesh should currently

56. In the Tool tab, under Geometry, press

www.3dtotal.com page 18 Chapter 01

Fig 58 58. We are now going to create some selection