5 common pitfalls that beginner 3D modelers should be aware

If you are new to modeling, the prospect of giving shape to your ideas on the digital canvas would appear exciting. However, technical challenges that you may not be proficient enough to handle effectively can prove to be spoilsports.

As a beginner, you can become victim to a number of pitfalls. It is always advantageous to learn about them before you venture out to so as to optimize on your time and efforts. This post would take you through the traps that beginning 3D modelers often confront in initial days.

1) Not keeping your ambitions within limits of realism

As soon as a beginner lay his/ her hands on a sophisticated software package, s/he aspires to produce a visual masterpiece that would stun the world. In reality, this is a wishful thinking. Being ambitious is good as it inspires one to stretch the limits of innate talent. But nurturing thoughts of emulating ace designers in the first stint can be frustrating and disappointing.

Slowly but gradually, you have to build your technical skill repertoire to be able to execute phenomenal renders flawlessly. You must learn to appreciate the inherent complexities and technical difficulties characteristic of any new venture.

You must chalk out a realistic plan to vault over technical hurdles before you embark on the project. Proper topology, handling non-manifold sides and subdivisions of extraneous nature, using global immunization, executing rendering passes, painting hair, managing fluid designs and other technical challenges baffled even experienced professionals. So, it is advisable to start with modest shapes and gradually learn the technical sophistication without being overambitious.

2) Overlooking edge flow and topology

If you are 3D modeling your character for animating it, you cannot afford to overlook edge flow and topology. Edge play has a lesser role to play for meshes meant for static games and environmental models. This doesn’t imply that edge play is neglected.

Models that you intend to export to other 3D organic modeling and sculpting platforms like Zbrush should be essentially designed in 4 sided polygons or quads unless you have other plans. During sculpting, subdivisions can be accomplished with ease through quads; and while triangulating for gaming engines, quads offer a smooth experience.

Topology is comprehensive in nature and must be learned in its entirety for effective use. Even as a greenhorn, you need to understand the fundamentals to enjoy a smooth ride. Some of the popular 3d modeling tips related to topology are shared below for your reference.

• Always work with quads and steer clear of five or higher sided polygons, N-gons
• Restrict the use of triangles to absolute essential
• All subdivisions must be spaced uniformly
• Shun faces that are elongated
• It may not be possible to accomplish perfectly squarish polygons every time, but try to keep the dimensions closer to that of the square as much as possible
• For all places, where you expect deformations such as lips, knees, elbows; try inserting additional edge loops if you plan to animate the mesh
• If you are using the bevel tool in Maya, the topology artifacts must be cleaned up after use else you run the risk of inadvertent creation of N-gons and triangles infrequently
• While smoothing out the model, if you observe kinks or uneven surfaces, you have to get the edges re-routed to ensure that meshes get smoothened more easily
• Top priority must be placed on correcting non-manifold geometry, if visible

3) Trying to get the mesh subdivided pretty early

If you are influenced by the idea of introducing subdivisions in the mesh way too early during character modeling, you would have to do a lot of hard work later on. The model would be chunky, blocky with lots of irregularities. Resist the temptation of adding resolutions unless the shape of the model has been perfected and polygon silhouetting has been done elegantly.

In Maya, you come across a useful ‘Lattice’ tool under the animation menu. This tool extricates you from the situation wherein the model’s shape needs to be changed but subdivisions have been applied and there is no way to revoke the modifications. The lumps on the model’s surface can be evened out with the help of ‘relax’ brush. Apply it at the very first instance when irregularities on the model’s body become apparent to you.

4) Attempting to accomplish a single seamless mesh in the first attempt

Modelers who are new to the art often are under the illusion that the finished model is characterized by a seamless, all-inclusive mesh. This is a fallacy. If you are influenced by this thought and are trying to get models that are a single mesh, you would run into a number of problems.

In order to figure out if the finished model needs to be a flowing mesh or constructed out of discrete geometrical shapes, you need to visualize the model from a real life perspective. Try to imagine how the model would behave in real time and then get your acts together to build it on the same line for photorealistic renders.

The function for which the model is being constructed should be given precedence over design considerations. The design should be a natural outcome of the function. However, a continuous, seamless mesh may be essential for 3D printing as well as for designing gaming art models. It is to be remembered that the model meant for deploying in the game is generally a high-resolution mesh whose topology has been re-worked.

5) Forgetting to use the image planes

Novice modelers are often under the impression that they would master the tricks of designing and composition as they go about building the models in Autodesk Maya or 3DS Max. In the process, they fail to scrutinize important design considerations.

To improve upon your designing skills, it is important that you carry along grid paper pad on which orthographic views of the modeled assets can be sketched out for better clarity. Always retain the sketches that appealed to you and maintain them in the workspace so that the same can be referred to when the need arises. The orthographic sketch on the pad can be scanned and imported to Maya to be used as an image plane.

Image planes improve your productivity as a modeler and empower you to model in a highly accurate manner. Photorealistic renders would be a cushy job if you refine the art of image planes.

Conclusion

By now, you have gotten a fair idea of the apparent pitfalls you must avoid while modeling in high-end software. It is better to intern at 3d modeling companies than jump-starting your stint as a modeler if you are ambitious of making your presence felt in this domain.