PDA

View Full Version : 3D Character Modelling - Poser versus Quidam

stevedupont
06-21-2009, 12:35 PM
Hi all,

I am (still) a newbie in regards to 3D modelling, but I am for a while already deeply interested in 3D character modelling.

I want to be able to model real human characters, using photos or the real model as a reference.

1)
Rather than starting from zero for each model, I think it's best to start with a generic model, and adapt it so that it would look like my reference (photo or real model).
Is that generally a good idea ?

As 3D Software specifically designed for 3D character design I found Poser and Quidam (Quidam: www.n-sided.com)

Poser seems to be rather old (back from 1989) and apparently is not being further developped.

Quidam is rather new, and does not have a large community yet, and still has some missing functions such as inverse kinematics.

2)
Do you know both Poser and Quidam, which one do you recommend for 3D character creation with a photo as a reference ?

3)
Is there anything else that you could tell me to help me getting started ?

Any help will be appreciated.

Thanks
Psyk0
06-21-2009, 05:23 PM
If you are really serious about character creation then you should learn anatomy principles before you use software generated meshes, thats just my opinion tho.
stevedupont
06-21-2009, 06:26 PM
If you are really serious about character creation then you should learn anatomy principles before you use software generated meshes, thats just my opinion tho.

thanks for your opinion. but that's not what I wanted to hear :-)
sorry for not being precise enough about this.

I am serious about this, but I still I don't want to start from scratch and I don't want to become a renowned artist: My goal is to save as much time as possible and get the job done, which is modelling a lot of faces in as little as possible timeframe.

anyone with a hint ?
Animasta
06-22-2009, 07:47 AM
You're going to have to start from scratch if you want to be a decent modeler. Nobody just jumps right in and becomes an ace modeler over night. That's just not how things work.
Laa-Yosh
06-22-2009, 09:22 AM
Poser is not a modeling program.

If you're not willing to start from scratch, then you're not serious.

IMHO.
unhurdof1
06-26-2009, 11:59 PM
Ah, the age old short cut question, to poser, or not to Poser...(or Quidam) :)

There are many factors to consider when one hears a question like this. Is the final result for professional or private use? If it’s professional, what field and how will the final result be used? For a short film? Storyboards? Still render? No matter what you do, do it with style. As a rule, when you use shortcuts your work should never reflect it. ;)

” but I am for a while already deeply interested in 3D character modelling.”


If you are at all as ambitious as that sounds, it may be best to avoid using any shortcuts for now. You run the risk of getting lost and never arriving at your destination. Take your time and enjoy the journey. :)


Oddly enough, here’s a link to a pretty in depth conversation we had about pretty much the same thing a while back: N-sided=interesting 3d software
(http://lounge.ego-farms.com/showthread.php?t=1589&highlight=quidam)
Hope this helps.
(http://lounge.ego-farms.com/showthread.php?t=1589&highlight=quidam)
eldee
06-27-2009, 02:55 AM
If you are really serious about character creation then you should learn anatomy principles before you use software generated meshes, thats just my opinion tho.
I'd just like to quote this for emphasis. I've seen some pure garbage come out of Poser and whatnot because people didn't know what they were doing. You can really jack up some proportions and believability, even if you start with a properly proportioned base if you don't at least grasp some of the basic concepts of anatomy.

I don't want to show any examples that might embarrass someone, but there are a few examples over on zbrushcentral where some people have taken a poser model into zbrush and just started lumping crap on it.. it's terrible. It's like buying a gun, learn how to use it properly, don't just start carrying it around for protection or you're more likely to hurt yourself than accomplish your purpose :)
JesseGraffam
06-29-2009, 06:52 AM
Poser is not a modeling program.

If you're not willing to start from scratch, then you're not serious.

IMHO.

BINGO! How will you learn how to model by using a premade.
j3st3r
06-29-2009, 07:34 AM
My educated colleague is just right. You may study poser models (not the best for learning IMHO) to get a grip on modeling, but for use them as your model? In that case you are not a character modeler. A character modeler has the knowledge of both anatomy, art history, style, and of course the technical part of being a character modeler. With Poser you will just adjust someone else work.
Bucket
06-29-2009, 11:17 PM
It is important to have a good grounding in the fundamentals. Anatomy and stuff. Don't just make it up. I have seen many people just create make believe anatomy that has no basis, and it usually looks really bad. Also, keep in mind, just because it looks good to you doesn't mean it's not full of flaws. The professionals will have no trouble looking at your work and be able to tell what you understand and what you don't understand in terms of anatomy, topology, design etc.

You might be thinking of Aaron Sims or some other well known artists who typically starts with a base mesh for certain organic characters, then modifies and reconstructs the base mesh. He makes it look easy. But I'm certain he has some knowledge in anatomy, topology and probably other disciplines. I'm sure he didn't become awesome in a week. I'm sure he didn't take shortcuts to get to the level he is at today. (Aaron if you are reading this, correct me if I'm wrong.)