Plan
In this first entry, we will look at Blender’s Boolean modifier. I touch on a lot of different subjects here, which will likely inspire future ideas. This can be a tad overwhelming though in case you’re unfamiliar with 3D terminology, but I hope to deliver some value to you guys either way.
All in all, I’m mostly writing this to organize my own thoughts—to build structure and discipline through consistent output, documenting process, ideas and evolution over time. This way, in September a Shopify is planned to host a selection of my best work.
Accompanying this little WordPress website and to practice my talking skills, some content might be posted on Youtube as well. I installed a microphone and am figuring things out as we speak. Basically, my attempt at remaining a real human being during the AI revolution.
To Boolean or Not to Boolean
Simply put, a boolean operation is a technique to cut out meshes with other meshes (that’s what I’m targeting at least). Never took the time for this one, albeit looking so cool. Now, buckle up, it’s finally time to Boolean!
As you can imagine, the possibilities are endless using this technique, so limits are necessary. As for meshes, human body meshes will be used, simply because I’ve been doing this for such a long time. You guessed it, they will be delivered by Daz. (Tip: be inspired and spend your cash in their shop.)
Earlier, my meshes were mostly manipulated by a special combination of skin, solidify, deform, displace and wireframe modifiers. By adding booleans to the sauce, it’s now possible to make holes.
The first renders were looking promising. The image above is the result of some basic tests on how to include the boolean modifier in my usual workflow. There were some issues with normals but I figured recalculating them makes artifacts disappear.
As a side note, the official Daz exporter didn’t really click with me, but ever since I discovered the Diffeomorphic plugin, materials really shine in Blender.
Padmé & Arcana
Of course, this all quickly evolves towards science fiction moods. Something that always stood out to me were the costumes of Padmé in Star Wars. Listening to Arcana (Sono la Salva is absolutely terrific) as I’m writing this, a lot of nostalgic feelings come up—I’m a nineties kid. (Tip #2: visit the official Star Wars databank.)
There’s so much interesting software besides Blender. Look at this: Dressing a Galaxy. This would be the best resource with something like Marvelous Designer.
Now, because I tend to live in a world of abstract, unmanifested ideas, just three outcomes will be targeted. Borders can truly serve inspiration in a way, when allowing enough room to play in the structure they create:
- Single body: specifically focusing on booleans applied to one head or one body
- Connecting bodies: using skin modifiers and booleans to connect multiple bodies
- Bodies in environments: adding volumetrics, colors, mountains, water, foliage, biomes
Single Body
I’ll sketch out my thoughts as I go. The first single body render will be a basic test setup. Perhaps one orderly and another one slightly distorted.
Sketching like this is unfamiliar to me. Proportions can be off, but this is all part of the me remaining a real human being thing and letting go of my inner perfectionist. Nothing against AI, I just like the challenge of executing on ideas—going from 2D to 3D scratches this itch.
The skin modifier is kinda made for a different purpose (to create bases for sculpting), but you can experiment with this stuff. I like to create tubes with it and then Skin Resize (Ctrl+A) on random selections.
In Daz, Mira was chosen, with shock expression and dForce Tuba Hair.
The image above is the Daz viewport. Nothing spectacular yet. Daz is mainly used to add the general body poses, clothes, hair meshes, expressions and such. I’m much more fond of using Blender to make things pretty. Daz is really strong at simulating clothes though, but more on that later.
There’s a slight pivot from the original sketch but the concept remains the same. As you can see, the boolean is in effect on the cheeks, out of which the objects starts repeating themselves.
In the very beginning, I didn’t even know it was possible to export hair from Daz to Blender. It was only later that the “Make Hair” button was discovered (thanks so much Diffeomorphic). If you pair this with the amazing Principled Hair BSDF in Blender, you’ve got something.
However much I love the hair setup, it can obstruct the science fiction look. Also, using human skin materials can have the same limiting effect. Less robot, less alien, less science fiction.
When playing with the modifier parameters and using different materials, the feeling shifts. The mirror modifier in particular is always a good addition. It allows a kind of controlled chaos. With a solid foundation in place, it’s time to scale up experimentation.
You can get a glimpse of my workflow right here.
The article is getting lengthy. Don’t want to overwhelm you. I’ll continue to refine my Single Body in the next one. Things change; the technique is evolving together with the concept. The plan is to create a more consistent image, worthy of print.
Stay tuned.