There were a few layer to OBJ scripts available for modo but none that worked like I wanted or properly with modo 401. I needed this functionality badly right now to bring layers out as separate OBJ files and then take them into ZBrush as SubTools. I do this many, many times each day in my work so this script saves me some decent amount of time. Maybe GoZ will deprecate this script when it’s released for Windows. We’ll see, but until then it’s a nice companion for a modo <-> ZBrush workflow.

Get the modo script here »

I’ve been wanting to learn Python for some time now, and creating this script was a nice little introduction to Python for me. Many other applications I use can be scripted through Python, so definitely a good language to touch some base with in other words. Not to forget that the upcoming LightWave CORE will have a solid Python API.

FiberFX has done some progress in the effort of bringing hair styling tools into LightWave, but it’s still not as powerful as you can find in some other applications. And in the day and age of the common multi application pipeline you simply use the best tool for each job, if you have access to them. In my case I’ve have 3ds Max at my disposal, which has some pretty good hair styling tools. My problem was that I couldn’t find any decent solution to transfer the guides from 3ds Max into LightWave unless I shelled out another 2 grand. So I ended up writing this little LightWave modeler tool that imports hair guides (or splines really) via Autodesks ASCII Scene Export format, .ASE.

Check out my ASE Spline Import page for more details and to download the tool.

If you find this tool useful, I hope I’ll see some really nice hair renders surfacing in the LightWave community.

It’s a more elegant symmetry correction solution than my SymmXMirror tool as it’s non-destructive, but they both have their time and place when appropriate to use.

Fix Symmetry offers three different functions to help taking care of symmetry problems in objects while modeling. Symmetry Check, Quick Fix and the interactive Tolerance Fix.

Check out my Fix Symmetry page for more details and to download the tool.

Have fun and enjoy!

This section won’t be linked from the main menu of my site, but feel free to bookmark it or link to it from any other site, as the section will be there permanently.

I recently published the SymmXMirror tool that’s available there, and also the SaveIncBak modeler script the other day, which was born from a thread on the NewTek OB forum where Miguel Méndez Menéndez posted the idea for the tool. Also many thanks to Miguel for tracking down the differences between the Windows and Mac file system through LScript to get it working on the Mac platform as well.

I do have a few other modeler tools that are more or less working as they should which I’ll upload quite soon. I also have some scripts I’ve developed while working with my film projects for basic render pass management. As I’ve made them for me, the GUI is lacking big time, so I have to spend some time cleaning that up before I can release them in a state useful for others. So it might be while before I can spare the time for that.

Well, over and out for tonight.

I’ve been developing my workflow for my film project for some time. I want to have a rock solid pipeline setup so when I go full blast I can aim all my focus at the creative parts. So far I’ve concentrated mostly on the asset exchange, getting meshes and animations in and out of the different applications I am working with, as painlessly as possible. I am pretty happy with where I am at this point.

I’ve also put in much thought into the rendering pipeline, which of course also is really important to get right. So far I’ve mainly be working with animatics and test renders, so I haven’t had to set the rendering pipe in stone yet.

One thing I have decided on is to render everything to a floating point image format. Which has led me back into the dreadful lairs of color management. Again.

I did some lame attempts with color management a few years back, got myself a Spyder 2 calibrator to work with accurate colors. But after the calibration I couldn’t get my head around it with different profiles. Colors started to mismatch between applications and other mysterious things. I ended up uninstalling it and selling the device after a month. I’m pretty sure it was good hardware, but handled by a crappy operator.

Anyway, when doing my initial tests with a floating point rendering pipeline, I encountered the gamma differences between the screen and the rendered images, as FP formats work in a linear gamma, and the screen does not, which led me back into reading up a lot on the subject. The gamma difference is an easy fix, but the control freak in me was not happy that I did not understand completely what was going on, so I’ve studied color management a lot more this time around.

A happy coincidence was that Gerardo Estrada just wrote an interesting article on the subject in the HDRI 3D magazine issue #18 and #19, proposing different workflows with linear color management in LightWave 3D, and have also been very active on the NewTek forums lately talking about the subject.

And that Sebastian Goetsch has just released an excellent set of tools for LightWave 3D, enabling an easy workflow for color management and ICC profiles right within LightWave 3D. Wow!

Well, well, as I’ve spent quite some time understanding the subject this time, and done tons of tests the latest week, I think I’ve actually got the hang of Gamuts, Gammas, ICC Profiles and a color managed workflow through the entire pipeline this time. Will even get myself a Spyder again to get my screen accurate, as I believe I can handle it this time. In the end, which also my tests have shown, having a linear color corrected workflow do enhance both realism and quality of the renders and removes a lot of the obstacles associated with image manipulation. So it’s well worth the time to get it right.

As soon as I’ve implemented a decent, good quality, easy to maintain system/movie player to showcase animations and film clips on my website and blog, I’ll start posting some rendered sequences, and with that also write some more detailed text about my complete pipeline and workflow for my film project.

I’ll definitely also return to this subject and write a decent text or article in the blog about my color managed pipeline when I have had my film project in the rendering phase for some time.

I’m not posting any renders this time, but to not make this post lack images completely, I’ll just snap a photo of my latest McFarlane action figure I got the other week, standing happy on my work desk.

Latest addition to my McFarlane toy collection

Symmetry Plugin for LightWave 3D

Long time, no post. Things are cooking though. Busy busy.

Anyway, I thought I should post a little freebie I coded recently. I’ve acquired a few new computers (Workstation, rendering slaves) and have made the switch to Vista x64 as well as LightWave x64 for 64-bit Windows. Fortunately most of the plugins I rely on are available for x64 or will soon be as it seems. Fiber Factory, TrueHair and Pictrix are the plugins I miss most for x64 at the moment.

Then there is the situation with smaller free plugins that probably will never be updated to x64 versions. One of my most used ones is pmirror.p by Pixel Potential that automates a technique by William ‘Proton’ Vaughan to correct symmetry. Pmirror.p is unfortunately only compiled for Win32 and OSX.

I really missed it in my Win64 environment so I wrote my own version using LScript, so other than working with Win64 (and of course Win32 and OSX) it should also work with LightWave for Intel Macs.

Basically the plugin selects the -X side of the mesh, flattens it, deletes it, mirrors the +X side and merges the points, which is really useful to quickly restore symmetry in an object if it gets broken. I added an extra method that tries to intelligently find the center through the object if it or some points has moved away from the 0 position. (Which is pretty common for instance in situations where the object has been brought to ZBrush and back.)

Check out the SymmXMirror page

Enjoy and have fun modeling!

ZBrush 3 - Released Today!

The development phase has been going on for years and what originally was supposed to be ZBrush 2.5 now finally hit the streets as a more significant upgrade, and got the 3.0 extension instead. Pixologic has worked hard on this update and it has been well worth the wait! Woohoo!

I just got my upgrade link about an hour ago, so I have just started to check it out, but my first impression is Wow! I’ve had a ZBrush license for quite some time, but I never got around to learn it fully, but now I’ll definitely invest the time needed to learn and utilize this package in my coming projects. This will marriage nicely with my Wacom and I really want this to be an essential part of my pipeline from now on. ZBrush doodlings will come in the doodle category shortly! For Sure!

You don’t get closer to working with real clay, in a digital environment, than this.
This sculpt and painting package is truly awesome!

• Pixologic website
• ZBrush 3 Info

ZBrush 3 first impression music: Belle & Sebastian – The Boy with the Arab Strap

Cover of the Artstorm 2007 manual

The image above is the cover of my 2007 manual. For the curious, other than the cover it’s a 12 page manual containing everything I intend to accomplish this year together with how I should work and dedicate my time to actually realize those plans. It also contains some other goodies related to artwork, like my different pipelines and how I most efficient shall utilize them. Perhaps not much interest to others than myself, but if there’s interest I might share it down the road.

Other than writing a manual, which of course isn’t the only thing I’ve made so far this year I’ve been working on a few commercial projects and have set off a bigger project together with some other talented artists. And at a parallel path I’ve come a long way with my first one-man CG short. I’ve wanted to make a few CG shorts for a long time, with me doing everything from screenwriting and directing to the modeling, texturing and animation. It’s been difficult for me to find time for that, but now it seems like my first movie soon will leave my domain. More about this within the next weeks. The first movie is anyway completely developed in LightWave 3D.

Even though I haven’t blogged about it, I’ve expanded the gallery at the site with two new images this year as well. I have had a license for Luxology’s Modo for quite some time in my toolbox, but haven’t got around learning it deep enough to use it seriously until now. And I really love that software. It do bring back the fun in CG art. It feels good not to spend time fighting the software as it often happens in this business.

Dry Martini

This guy was started and finished tonight. I have been having a cosy evening drinking a few Dry Martinis myself so I thought why not make one in 3D as well, and I wanted to work a bit more with shaders in Modo, so this was a good opportunity, and as I had the reference to work from standing on the desk next to my workstation it was just a given.

Ball Chair

And this one I made last month. It was my first Modo project and I’m into 60’s retro at the moment, so this was a must do. It also fitted well to submit to CG Sphere, obviously.

Tonights Working Music: The Magic Numbers – Those The Brokes

I’m already in love. It’s so pleasant to work in front of. Now my upgrading frenzy will have to rest for a while so I actually get some time over to get some work done in the evenings.

The refurbished workspace in my apartment with the new baby

Luckily I got the rev A03 of the screen, which all of the problems that I’ve read about with earlier revisions of vertical banding and such are nowhere to be seen, the image quality is as close to perfect as it can be, according to me and my preferences.

Oh well, back to doing some artwork now… until next time…

Check it out at the Senosoft website!