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WELCOME
Welcome to the ZBrush 4R2b Whats New documentation. While much of ZBrush 4R2b is very similar to version 4 and 4R2, there are quite a few new features to help make your ZBrushing even more productive and creative. We hope that the information you find here helps you understand the differences between this release and previous versions of ZBrush. This document only covers whats new in version 4R2b. To learn more about the features introduced in ZBrush 4 and 4R2, we invite you to read the ZBrush 4 /4R2Whats New Guides, located in the ZBrush 4R2/Documentation folder. Youre invited to visit our ZClassroom for a huge database of free high quality movies explaining all the main features of ZBrush. Here you will also find the Artists Spotlight, where famous 3D Artists explain how they use ZBrush, helping inspire you to create like the pros. Dont forget to subscribe for free to our ZBrushCentral community with over 300,000 members to discover tips, view artists creations, locate useful help for all things related to ZBrush or post your works-in-progress! We encourage you to regularly visit our ZBrush Blog where you will find all the news related to the ZBrush universe, from the most recent Interview to new plugins or gallery additions.
ZClassRoom Portal: http://www.pixologic.com/zclassroom/ Artist Spotlight: http://www.pixologic.com/zclassroom/artistspotlight/ ZBrushCentral: http://www.zbrushcentral.com/ ZBlog: http://www.pixologic.com/blog/ Pixologic.com: http://www.pixologic.com The Pixologic Team
2012 Pixologic, Inc. All rights reserved, Pixologic and the Pixologic logo, ZBrush, and the ZBrush logo are registered trademarks of Pixologic, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
ZBrush 4R2b Documentation - version 1.00 This documentation has been written by Thomas Roussel, Paul Gaboury, Matthew Yetter, Solomon Blair and Louie Tucci. For all documentation questions and inquiries, please contact us at thomas@pixologic.com
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I II ABOUT ZBRUSH 4R2B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 INSTALLATION, UPGRADE & ACTIVATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Minimum requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Activation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Re-activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Deactivation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Activation Troubleshooting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Upgrade Process to 4R2b . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 7.1 Upgrade process on Windows: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 7.2 Upgrade process on Mac OSX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 8. GoZ and ZBrush 4 and ZBrush 4R2/R2b . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 9. Un-installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 10. Support Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
III FIBERMESH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
IV
About the FiberMesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fiber Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fibers Sub-palette Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FiberMesh UVs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Additional Information About FiberMesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
18 19 21 27 28
MICRO MESH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
1. 2. 3.
V
1.
New Groom Brushes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 room Hairtoss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 Groomer Strong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Groom Blower . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 Groom Clumps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5 Groom Turbulence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
33 34 34 34 35 35
2. 3.
4. 5.
VI
1.6 Groom Fast Lengthen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7 Groom Root Colorize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.8 Groomer Magnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.9 Groomer Twist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.10 Groom Twist Slow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.11 Groom Hair Ball . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.12 Groom Hair Ball Strong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.13 Groom Spike . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.14 Groom Spin Knot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.15 Groom Spin Knot Strong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brush Fiber Mesh Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Brushes for General Sculpting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 Spiral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Fold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Layered Pattern . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4 Curve Multi Lathe and Multi Tube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brushes Twist Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Auto mask FiberMesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
35 36 36 36 37 37 37 37 37 38 38 39 39 39 39 39 40 40
TRANSPOSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
1. 2.
VII
1. 2. 3. 4.
VIII
Surface Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Seamless Slider. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Create from Noisemaker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alpha with TransPose to Create Masks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
44 44 44 45
MASKING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
IX
Mask by Surface Smoothness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fiber Mask. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shrink and Extend Mask . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Transpose Smart Masking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Masks Based on Polygroups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
46 47 48 48 49
1. 2.
3.
X
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
XI
Mixer: By Cavity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Global Shadow Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Global Ambient Occlusion Strength . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Global Ambient / Diffuse / Specular . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reuse Existing Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BPR Visibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cast BPR Shadows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
52 52 53 53 53 53 53
1. 2.
XII
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
XIII
Morph target . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Expert images and textures as JPG files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Export ScreenGrab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Visible Symmetry Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
57 57 57 58 58
IMPROVEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
XIV XV
Stored Ambient Occlusion and Shadows Information:. . . . . . Preview of Mesh Extract before validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Perspective improvement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MorphDist Slider. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coverage Group Visible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Render adjustments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wax Preview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Material in Project files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
59 59 59 60 60 60 60 60
ZBrush 4R2b not only implements various minor enhancements and polish to existing features, it also introduces major new features which can dramatically enhance your ability to create major models or illustrations fully in ZBrush. These new functions and workflow enhancements will help you push beyond the limits of your creativity. It will also help you be more of an artist and less of a technician by helping you focus only on the visual aspects of your art without worrying about complex iterations to achieve your desired results. ZBrush 4R2b is packed with new and exciting features, additions and changes designed to fit your needs and the way you work. FiberMesh to create fiber, fur and hair which may be sculpted in real-time. New set of dedicated FiberMesh Groom brushes and corresponding new Brush settings. MicroMesh support to replace Fibers or individual polygons with any selected 3D object during a Best Preview Render. New set of BPR Filters and operators to greatly improve your final ZBrush renders. BPR Global Shadow and Ambient Occlusion settings make render setup easier than ever. New Cavity Mixer which is able to define different materials based on the mesh surface. TransPose enhancement for improved creation of small details through precise Alpha and Mask with Alpha placement. Surface Smoothness detection accounts for surface curvature when creating Masks. New global deformation with TransPose Curve deformation and UnClip. Improved mask operations with Shrink and Extend. Topology editing additions with the new Group Mask and Edgeloop Mask Border. New JPEG Exporter with crop, preview and adjustment settings.
Numerous improvements such as storing shadow information based on the camera point of view, mesh Extraction preview, Auto Adjust mode for perspective and a lot more. We look forward to seeing your ZBrush 4R2b creations and comments on our users forum: ZBrushCentral.com! 7
II
This is the useful information that you will need to know when installing ZBrush on your computer. This chapter also describes the activation and de-activation process.
1. MiniMuM requireMents
Recommended: OS: Windows Vista, 7 or newer, 32 bits or 64 bits; Mac OS X 10.5 or newer. (ZBrush 4 is a 32-bit application, but can use up to 4 GB of system RAM) CPU: Pentium D or newer (or equivalent such as AMD Athlon 64 X2 or newer) with optional multithreading or hyperthreading capabilities. RAM: 2048MB recommended for working with multi-million-polys. Monitor: 1280x1024 monitor resolution set to Millions of Colors. Pen tablet: Wacom or Wacom compatible.
CPU: P4 or AMD Opteron or Athlon64 Processor. (Must have SSE2 -- Streaming SIMD Extensions 2. All CPUs from 2006 or later support SSE2.) RAM: 1024MB. (2048 MB recommended) Monitor: 1024x768 monitor resolution set to Millions of Colors.
2. installation
Installation process: 1. After purchasing ZBrush 4R2b through our web store (powered by Cleverbridge) or when receiving your upgrade to it a serial number and a download link will be provided to you. Save this information for your records! You will need your serial number any time you install ZBrush 4R2b. 2. Download the ZBrush installer file and double-click on it to run the Install Wizard. Follow the on-screen steps to be guided through the installation. You choose from a default installation with the most common options or a custom install that will allow you to specify the destination path and other options. 3. When the installation process is done, double-click on the ZBrush shortcut created on the desktop or launch it through the Program Files (x86) >> Pixologic >> ZBrush
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide 4 R2 >> ZBrush.exe on Windows. For Mac OS X it will be the application located in the Application >> ZBrush 4R2 OSX >> ZBrush folder. 4. For Windows Vista or 7: On first launch ZBrush will need to be run as an Administrator. Right-click on the desktop shortcut for ZBrush or on the ZBrush.exe file in the root ZBrush 4R2 folder and choose Run as Administrator. A Windows popup will then ask you to allow this.
Notes (should not be necessary, but are provided in case the installer fails to configure ZBrush correctly for your environment):
If ZBrush displays a Windows error on first launch, please install the vcredist_x86_VS2008_ sp1.exe located in the TroubleshootHelp folder. It may also be necessary to disable DEP as described in the text file found in the TroubleshootHelp folder. If you are a Mac user and receive a virtual memory error upon launching ZBrush, the permissions will need to be changed. Get Info on the ZBrush 4R2 folder and change permission for the Everyone group to Read & Write. Also click the gear icon underneath the permissions group and select the option to apply to enclosed items. Please check that a vmem folder is available on the root of ZBrush 4R2 folder, and also a TempFiles folder in the ZStartup folder. DO NOT ever attempt to run ZBrush in compatibility mode for an earlier version of Windows. Doing so will prevent activation or will break activation on a copy that was previously running.
3. activation
This step must be completed in order to launch ZBrush successfully. The single-user ZBrush license allows you to have ZBrush activated on two of your computers, provided that both copies are not actually used at the same time. For example it may be activated on a workstation and a laptop. Please keep in mind that only one copy of ZBrush should be run at any given time. Volume licenses allow only the number of activations for which seats have been purchased. Floating licenses do not use activation and can ignore this section.
Launch ZBrush. From the splash screen, select your desired activation method.
If your computer is connected to the internet (or can be temporarily connected), use Web Activation. This activation method is faster and more accurate. After ZBrush has displayed the End User License Agreement window, your web browser will be opened to a page that requests your serial number, the email address associated with your account, and a description that you can use to identify this computer should you ever need to see a list of your activations. Upon submitting this form you will be given an activation code. Click the button to select the code, then press Ctrl+C (Windows) or Cmd+C (Mac) to copy it. Switch back to ZBrush and click the button to Enter Activation Code. A new window will open with a red text line. Click in that line and press Ctrl+V (Windows) or Cmd+V (Mac) to paste the activation code. Now press Enter/Return to complete activation.
10
Or If your computer cannot be connected to the internet, use Phone Activation. PLEASE NOTE THAT DURING THE WEEK FOLLOWING THE RELEASE OF VERSION 4R2b, HIGH CALL VOLUME MAY MAKE IT VERY DIFFICULT TO REACH SUPPORT FOR PHONE ACTIVATION. After ZBrush has displayed the End User License Agreement window, a new screen will open with your request code and a phone number to call. Please have your serial number ready before calling! When you call you will be asked for your serial number, request code, email address and desired computer description. An activation code will be created and sent to the email address on record for your account. If you cannot conveniently check your email, the phone representative will be able to read the 32-letter activation code to you. To enter your activation code into ZBrush, click the option to Enter Activation Code. Click in the red text line within the window that will open, type your activation code and press Enter/Return to complete your activation. Instead of calling, you may follow the steps above but write down the request code that ZBrush gives you. You may then shut down ZBrush. From any computer that has internet access you can submit a Support ticket at https://support.pixologic.com. In your ticket, provide the following information: The request code from ZBrush, your serial number, your email address, and your desired computer description. You should receive a response to your Support ticket within one business day (often within one or two hours) containing your activation code. At that point, launch ZBrush and choose the option to Enter Activation Code. (Note: Do not start a new Phone Activation.) Click in the red text line within the window that will open, type your activation code and press Enter/Return to complete your activation. Once activated, ZBrush will start immediately.
4. re-activation
ZBrush 4R2b will count against your serial number as a new activation, even if you already have the previous version of ZBrush installed and activated on your computer. (This is different from the upgrade to version 4R2 which counted as the same activa11
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide tion as ZBrush 4.) For this reason, it is highly recommended to deactivate your existing ZBrush 4R2 before updating to ZBrush 4R2b. Please note that single-user licenses allow two activations per user. This is mainly to let you have ZBrush running on your workstation and as an example, on your laptop. However, this is for your personal use and it is a violation of the license to run both copies at the same time (such as you on one machine and your friend on another). Volume licenses only allow a number of concurrent activations equal to the number of seats that have been purchased. They allow several artists to use ZBrush simultaneously.
On entering the license information, the Activation process can offer you a license re-activation.
5. Deactivation
Launch ZBrush and go to the Zplugin >> Deactivation menu. There are two options: Web Deactivation and Manual Deactivation.
Deactivation process: If your computer has internet connection, use Web Deactivation. This will launch your browser to a page that asks for the email address associated with your account. Submit that form and then click the confirmation button to instantly complete your deactivation of ZBrush. or If your computer cannot be connected to the internet, you will need to use Manual Deactivation. In this case you will be given a deactivation code. You may either call the number on the screen to deactivate by phone (only available during normal business hours of 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Pacific Time, Monday through Friday) or you may submit a Support ticket at https://support.pixologic.com. Please note that by either method you will also be required to provide the email address that is associated with the account.
Note:
12
6. activation troubleshooting
Activation Failed after entering activation code: Make sure you are not trying to use your serial number as an activation code. Serial numbers are 16 characters in length, with both letters and numbers. Activation codes are longer and have all letters. You will never enter your serial number directly into ZBrush. It is always used via Web or Phone activation to create an activation code. Make sure you are not trying to use an outdated activation code. Any time you install ZBrush you must begin with a new Web or Phone activation to create a new activation code. Codes from previous activations cannot be reused. Make sure that your system clock is set to the correct date, including year. If the date is wrong, activation will fail. After correcting the date you will need to start the activation process over from the beginning. Make sure that you are logged into the computer as an administrator when installing and activating ZBrush. After it has been activated it may be run by any user on that computer, but the initial installation and activation must be done under an admin account. (Mac Users) If you launch ZBrush and immediately receive an error message (such as a virtual memory error) that must be resolved before activation can be done successfully. This error is typically caused by permissions. For most environments, simply get info on the ZBrush OSX 4R2b folder. Unlock permissions and then assign Read & Write permission to the Everyone user group. Next, click the gear icon underneath the users list and choose the option to Apply to Enclosed Items. When the process completes you should be able to launch ZBrush without an error message and may then proceed to activation. If the above troubleshooting items do not resolve your issue, please contact Pixologic Support for assistance. Make sure to state from the beginning that you have already tried activation and it failed. Phone activation uses the same system as Web activation, so if Web activation failed you will have the same problem with Phone. We need to resolve the issue rather than just trying under a different method.
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ZBrush 4R2b is provided as an updater for users who already have ZBrush 4R2 installed.
Note:
If you currently have ZBrush 4 or an earlier version you will need to upgrade to version 4R2 before you will be able to update to 4R2b. To do this, please submit a Support ticket at https://support.pixologic.com. Be sure to include your purchase and/or license information so that we may locate your account and upgrade you in a timely manner. After upgrading to 4R2 you will then be able to use the 4R2b updater.
ZBrush 4R2b also includes enhancements to the activation system. Because of this, it is highly recommended that you deactivate version 4R2 prior to installing the update. To do this, launch ZBrush and click the Zplugin >> Deactivation >> Web Deactivation button and then enter your accounts email address in the web page that will open.
Note:
Failure to deactivate 4R2 prior to updating to 4R2b will cause 4R2b to count as an additional activation against your serial number and may require you to contact Pixologic Support before you will be able to successfully activate 4R2b.
The upgrade process will automatically add and remove files within your existing installation of ZBrush in order to transform your ZBrush 4R2 to a fresh new ZBrush 4R2b. Original files created by you will not be affected, but if you modified a legacy file of ZBrush 4R2 (such as a default brush setting which has been saved to overwrite the original brush it was created from) the update to version 4R2b will revert that item to its original default settings. This applies to Brushes, MatCaps, Alphas, default Project files and of course your customer User Interface settings. Please BACKUP ALL OF YOUR CUSTOM ITEMS before updating. This may be done simply by making a copy of your ZBrush 4R2 folder.
7.1
If you are using ZBrush 4.0 (or earlier), you must upgrade it to 4R2 before updating to ZBrush 4R2b. Deactivate your copy of ZBrush 4R2 by launching it and clicking Zplugin >> Deactivation >> Web Deactivation. This will launch your web browser to a page that asks for the email address associated with your account. Submitting that information and then confirming the deactivation will remove this computer from your activation list so that the machine wont be counted twice after activating 4R2b. 14 Quit ZBrush 4R2 if it is already running. Make a backup copy of your ZBrush 4R2 folder.
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide Put the ZBrush 4R2 upgrader.exe file in the root folder of your ZBrush application. (If you installed 4R2 using the default settings, you will place the updater in the C:\ Program Files (x86)\Pixologic\ZBrush 4R2 folder.) Run the ZBrush 4R2 upgrader.exe application and follow the instructions. Be sure to read the information windows as they appear. When the process is done, you can delete the updater or save it for your archives. Run ZBrush and proceed with its activation. Please read the Re-Activation chapter below for more information regarding this process. As a precaution, the updater will create a Backup folder within the ZBrush 4R2b folder. This folder will contain a copy of all files which have been removed or replaced by the process. After running ZBrush 4R2b for a few days without issues you can safely delete this folder and its contents. But if you find that you need to revert any legacy files, you will find them here.
7.2
If you are using ZBrush 4.0 (or earlier), you must upgrade it to 4R2 before updating to ZBrush 4R2b. Deactivate your copy of ZBrush 4R2 by launching it and clicking Zplugin >> Deactivation >> Web Deactivation. This will launch your web browser to a page that asks for the email address associated with your account. Submitting that information and then confirming the deactivation will remove this computer from your activation list so that the machine wont be counted twice after activating 4R2b. Quit ZBrush 4R2 if it is already running. Make a backup copy of your ZBrush OSX 4R2 folder.
If the ZBrush OSX 4R2 folder has been moved to another location than the default Mac OSX Applications folder, please temporarily move it back to its default location. (Applications/ZBrush 4R2 OSX/) Execute the ZBrush 4R2b Upgrader.pkg file. Read the information windows as they appear and follow their instructions. When the process is done, you can delete the updater or save it for your archives. Run ZBrush and proceed with its activation. Please read the Re-Activation chapter below for more information regarding this process.
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide ZBrush 4 and ZBrush 4R2 at the same time. Its only possible to take files from ZBrush 4 into ZBrush 4R2; the opposite is not possible as ZBrush 4 cant open ZBrush 4R2 files. If you start a project with ZBrush 4R2/R2b or if you open a ZBrush 4 file in R2/R2b and then save it, you will not be able to open the file in ZBrush 4 by any method not even through GoZ.
9. un-installation
This process completely removes ZBrush from your computer. Un-installation process: 1. In the ZPlugin menu, choose Web Deactivation and proceed with the license deactivation as explained in a section above. If you do not deactivate prior to un-installation, the un-installed machine will continue to count against your serial number and potentially prevent you from reactivating! 2. On Windows, use the Windows Control Panel uninstall utility and follow the steps. On Mac OS X, simply move the ZBrush folder and the Users/Public/Pixologic folder to the Trash. 3. Check the location where ZBrush was installed for extra files which havent been deleted by the installer. You can delete those folders if you do not intend to use ZBrush on this computer again.
Note:
With the exception of GoZ, ZBrush doesnt write files outside its own folder.
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide 4. Fill in your system information. We need this info in order to respond to your support requests more efficiently. 5. Also provide your ZBrush 4 serial number and the Cleverbridge reference number for your copy of ZBrush 4R2/4R2b. This information identifies you as someone who has actually purchased a ZBrush license. 6. After you submit the form you will receive a confirmation email at the address you used to register. Follow the instructions in that email to complete your registration. If you have already registered on the Support site: 7. Go to https://support.pixologic.com. 1. In the box on the right, use your email address and password to log in. 2. The box on the right will now have a My Account button. Click this to manager your account. 3. Update your account to make sure that your system information is current. 4. Also update your account to have your new ZBrush 4/4R2/4R2b. Once your Support account is current with your ZBrush 4/4R2/4R2b license information you will be able to submit tickets to receive technical support. You will also be able to call for phone support. All phone support calls will create a support ticket, which you will then be able to follow up on via the Support system or by email.
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III
FIBERMESH
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide FiberMesh. Any 3D brush can be adjusted to edit fibers with new settings available in the Brush Palette. However, if you do something that changes the topology - like slicing the fibers or adding subdivision levels - ZBrush converts the FiberMesh into a classic PolyMesh3D. From that point forward, the sculpting brushes will behave exactly like they would for any normal mesh object
2. Fiber WorkFloW
Fibers must be generated on a mesh surface. They cannot simply be created out of empty space. Before generating your fibers, you must prepare the model that the fibers will be grown from. There are two main elements to this and of course, the Fibers settings: To color your fibers either use the Tip and Root color selection in the FiberMesh sub-palette or apply PolyPaint to the source model with the colors of your choice. When the fibers are generated, they will (depending on the Fibers settings) draw their coloration from that of the underlying surface. Even after fibers have been created you can continue to use PolyPaint to adjust your colors. With a combination of the new fiber masking options in the Tool >> Masking sub-palette you will have complete control to apply color anywhere on the fiber geometry. (See the New Masking section of this document.)
Note:
The fibers can only use PolyPaint information. They cannot use the color information from a texture. You would need to convert your texture to PolyPaint to use it for FiberMesh color information.
Draw a Mask to define where you wish to have your fibers grow from on the model. The intensity of the Mask will modulate the density and the length of the fibers. It is advised to change the Mask intensity by modifying the RGB Intensity of the Mask brush and/or by blurring your Mask after it has been drawn. Lower intensity will create a less dense area of fibers with a short length. At full Mask intensity the fibers will take on the full attributes defined in the Tool >> Fibers sub-palette.
Note:
When modifying a Mask brush setting, you must hold down the CTRL key while changing its setting. Otherwise, you will affect the current sculpting brush settings instead of the Mask brush. For better fibers distribution and overall best results, it is recommended to generate your models fibers in several passes. This will allow you have better control over the results rather then generating all your fibers at once.
Once the surfaces PolyPaint and Mask have been defined, modify the Fibers settings according to the style you are looking for. Now press the Preview button. Your fibers will appear as a non-editable preview. At this stage, if you move your point of view or orientation of the model, the fibers will disappear until you release your mouse cursor. While in Preview mode, changing any of the Fibers settings will instantaneously 19
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide update the fibers on your model without the need to cancel your operation and start from scratch. To evaluate your Fiber with complete shading, press the BPR button at the top right of the interface or use the Shift+R hotkey. This will render your FiberMesh so that you can be sure youre happy with the results before proceeding to the sculpting and styling phase. Picking the right Material is also a key factor in your FiberMesh render, we recommend starting with one of the new Hair Materials that is included in ZBrush4R2b. Once you are satisfied with your results, press the Accept button to generate your FiberMesh as a new SubTool. You may now repeat the above steps with a different Masked area or different settings. In this way, a single surface can have many different types of Fibers effects.
Note
3D brushes cannot be used on the preview fibers. You must click the Accept button, then select the new Fiber SubTool that is created in order to use any 3D brush with the FiberMesh feature. When Accept is pressed ZBrush will create a new FiberMesh SubTool that is ready for sculpting and detailing.
Once your fibers have been generated, select the resulting SubTool in the Tool >> SubTool sub-palette. You may now start using the different sculpting brushes to alter the fibers, including their colors. ZBrush 4R2b includes a wide variety of predefined Groom brushes dedicated to FiberMesh sculpting. These allow you to style the FiberMesh to the exact form and aspect that you wish. New settings have also been added to the Brush Palette for these brushes. (See the New Brushes section of this document.) In addition, all traditional sculpting brushes like Inflate, Pinch, Soft Concrete, Nudge (with the Picker set to Once Origin) and Move can be used to produce interesting results. Be aware that as these brushes were not designed specifically for use with Fibers, they can affect the shape of the fibers and the deformation can become extreme. In order to maintain fiber length when editing with none Groom brushes the new Preserve Length in the Brush>FiberMesh sub-palette must be turned up all the way. Learn more about the FiberMesh brush settings Brush FiberMesh Settings of this document. To restore your fibers to their default width or length (but not position) you can use the new Tool >> Morph Target >> Morph width slider and Tool >> Morph Target >> Morph length slider. Please refer to this documents Morph Target section for more information. As with a traditional PolyMesh 3D, you can use the Mask brushes to protect certain fibers. A unique feature when masking fibers is that when the mask is painted on any portion of a fiber, ZBrush will mask the entire fiber.
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Preview: By clicking on the Preview button, ZBrush will generate a temporary FiberMesh based on the current settings, explained below. While in this state you can change your Fibers settings and see the results updated in real-time. You may also 21
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide generate a render with BPR to evaluate your final result. While Preview is active, rotating or moving the model will temporarily hide the fibers until you release the mouse button. Changing your support models topology, Masking or PolyPainting information will disable the Preview. The fibers will disappear until you press Preview again. To completely turn off the fibers that are being displayed click on Preview again. Accept: Generates the FiberMesh as a SubTool to the support mesh. At this stage, the fibers will become a SubTool which may now be sculpted, styled and painted. Except for the BPR render options for fibers all other Fibers sub-palette settings will not affect a FiberMesh once it has been converted to a SubTool. These settings only work in Preview mode. Max Fibers: Defines the maximum number of fibers generated. ZBrush will populate your model based on the other settings below. Values are in thousands of fibers.
Note:
A human head typically has between 80,000 and 140,000 hairs, depending on hair color, thickness and baldness.
By Mask: Defines how strongly the Mask influences where fibers are to be created. The higher this slider, the more ZBrush will use the Mask as a guide to populate fibers. If there is a less intense Mask on your surface then ZBrush will populate fewer fibers with a shorter length. This sliders effect is also calculated with the By Area slider so that the two sliders complement each other. By Area: Defines the fibers based on the underlining mesh topology. Fibers on large polygons will be longer and thicker than fibers on smaller polygons. This feature is important because it also considers the shape of the FiberMesh support surface and produces more natural fibers on models with orientation variations and breaks in the shape. Imbed: Defines if the root of the fiber will be directly on the underlying surface, hovering right above the underlying surface or imbedded deeper into the surface. This latter result is useful if you create your fibers on a low resolution surface and later will be subdividing the support mesh (causing it to contract slightly). Imbedding the fibers will ensure that they remain attached to the surface rather than end up floating above it. Length: Defines the overall length of the fibers. The individual length of each fiber is then modulated by the Mask intensity and the By Area slider settings. Coverage: Increases or decreases the width of the Fibers. Flare: Locally increases or decreases the width of the each Fiber so that it has a wider tip or root. The position of the Flare is determined by Flare Center (below). Flare Center: Defines the location of the Flare on the individual fibers. A positive value will increase the size of the tip while a negative value increases the size of the fibers root. Flare Exponential: Defines how the Flare progresses along the segments making up the length of the Fiber. A low value will define a fast progression of the Flare 22
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide while a higher value will Flare progress more gradually along a greater portion of the fibers length. Scale Root and Scale Tip: Adjust the scale of the corresponding part of the fiber. These settings can be combined with the Flare settings above, giving you more control over the shape of the fibers. Slim: Defines the ratio between the width and height of the fiber section. Negative values flatten the fibers width while positive values flatten its depth. Twist: Applies a twist effect to each individual fiber.
Note:
The Twist setting gives a better specular look when combined with the Anisotropic settings. When using Fibers to create hair, its advised to use a little bit of Twist when possible to improve the visual appearance.
Gravity: Causes the ends of the fibers to droop. The direction of the gravity is controlled by position of the model relative to the canvas working plane. For example, if you loaded the DemoHead.ZTL facing down with the top of his toward the camera the fibers direction will be dropping toward the front of the face.
Note:
Its important to first set your models orientation before setting or updating the Gravity value.
Horizontal and Vertical Tangent: Alters the direction of the fiber by changing the Normal value of the support mesh in a vertical or horizontal direction. These settings are primarily used for generating fibers on top of a FiberMesh SubTool. Both settings can be helpful to create feather-like fibers by combining a fiber on the top of an existing FiberMesh. As this setting uses the polygon and the vertex order of the support mesh, it works better with FiberMesh objects than on normal meshes. Clumps: Attracts the tips of fibers together when grown from the same support polygon. Moving this slider to a negative value will separate the tips more such as with hair plugs. Base Color: Colors the base of the fibers using the color selected in the corresponding color patch to the sliders left. Tip Color: Colors the tip of the fibers using the color selected in the corresponding color patch to the sliders left. Morph Target Guided: Generates Fibers by comparing the current state of your tool to a previously stored morph target. 1. Select your Tool or SubTool. 2. Store the Morph Target by clicking on Tool >> Morph Target >> StoreMT. 3. Create sculptural change. 4. Click Tool >> Morph Target >> Switch. 23
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide 5. Activate the FiberMesh Preview using Tool >> FiberMesh >> Preview. 6. Click the Morph Target Guided button. ZBrush will generate Fibers by calculating the difference between your models current state and the Morph Target.
Profile: Defines the number of sides for each fiber. The default value is 1 which will create a strip of one sided flat polygon(s). Increasing the value to 3 or 4 will create a fiber that is capped off at the end. Increasing this value to higher numbers will create rounded fiber sections, but it will also drastically increase the FiberMesh polygon count. When the value is adjusted higher than 1, ZBrush will warn you that you can alternately use the BPR Sides setting located in the Fibers sub-palette to increase the number of sides at render time rather than having to work with a high number of polygons during sculpting. We recommend keeping this value at 1 and use the BPR Render options when creating fibers that are intended for hair, fur, fabrics for clothing, and etc. Only use Profile when youre going to be exporting your FiberMesh. Segments: Defines the number of segments along each fibers length. (Number of polygons per fiber per side.) A high value will create smoother angles but will also increase the total polygon count. Fast Preview: This allows you to modify and sculpt the fibers with more ease as ZBrush will only display the overall shape of the each fiber.
Note:
Some settings like Flaring are not visible when in Fast Preview mode. The Fast preview mode isnt restricted to the current Fiber preview, but to the selected FiberMesh SubTool after its creation.
Preview Fiber Visibility (PRE Vis): Defines the number in percentage of fibers to display when the Fast Preview mode is enabled. Root and Tip Anisotropic: The Anisotropic value affects the surface normal of the root of the fiber or its tip. Increasing the values will producing a more natural looking fibers. When these values are raised the normals of the fiber will follow the path which allows the normals to lay flat on top of each other.
Note:
Some settings like Flaring are not visible when in Fast Preview mode. Unlike other Fibers settings, Fast Preview mode isnt restricted to the current Fiber preview. It
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Preview Fiber Visibility (PRE Vis): Defines the percentage of fibers to display when the Fast Preview mode is enabled. This can be used to speed up performance while working with your FiberMesh. Fibers that are invisible due to the Pre Vis value will still be affected by sculpting and painting. Root and Tip Anisotropic: The Anisotropic value affects the surface normal of the root of the fiber or of its tip. Increasing these values will produce more naturallooking fibers. When these values are increased, the normals of the fiber will follow a path that allows them to lay flat on top of each other.
Note:
These settings are different than the material Anisotropic settings as they affect the geometry surface aspect itself. As a result, you dont need to change this setting in the Material settings. It is important to consider this point as some materials like MatCaps dont have Anisotropic settings.
Subdivision: Defines the number of times each fiber should be subdivided at render time. This operation subdivides the fiber in the same manner as traditional subdivision smoothing and makes the fibers look more natural. Sides: Defines the number of sides that each fiber will have when rendered. This setting is only available when the Profile slider value was set to 1 at the time the fibers were created. Radius: Increases the radius of the fibers when they are rendered, giving them volume without needing to increase the amount of actual geometry.
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Some examples of a FiberMesh created with the default settings and then sculpted using different Groom Brushes.
4. FiberMesh uvs
Once your Fibers have been generated as a FiberMesh it is possible to generate UVs. The same UV map will be assigned to each individual Fiber, allowing you applying a texture to all of them. This provides additional possibilities for the look and style of your Fibers, especially when using them to create complex plants. Due to the large amount of memory required for these UVs, this feature isnt automatic. Even though its the same map for all Fibers, these UVs must still be associated with the individual vertices. When you have hundreds of thousands of Fibers (usually with many polygons each), that can become an exponentially large amount of data!
On the left, the original fibers. In the middle, creating the Fibers UVs and selecting a texture. On the right, the final result.
Follow these steps to create UVs for your Fibers and apply a texture to them: 1. Create your Fibers. For the memory reasons explained above, try to use a low Max Fiber setting. 2. By default, ZBrush will advise you to use Preview mode. In order to preview textures, however, it is not recommended to use this mode. 3. Once your FiberMesh has been created, select its SubTool. 4. Go to the Tool >> UV Map sub-palette and click on FiberUV to generate the mapping. Your UVs will automatically be per Fiber which means that all Fibers will share the same UVs. This button is enabled only when a SubTool composed of Fibers is selected.
Note:
If the button is grayed out while having a SubTool composed of Fibers selected in the SubTool sub-palette, its because you have modified the Fibers topology and transformed them to a default
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5. In the Tool >> Texture Map sub-palette, select the texture of your choice.
Note:
You can use a texture with pure black color to define transparency. The Fibers will be rendered corresponding to this transparency information. Keep in mind, however, that the transparent portions of the Fibers will still cast shadows just as if they didnt have transparency.
The Mask brushes work on the full Fiber and propagate along it. Its helpful to protect groups of Fibers to shape them more accurately or even simply PolyPainting them. Each classic sculpting brush can become fiber aware by enabling the settings located in the Brush >> FiberMesh sub-palette. Please refer to the corresponding chapter for more information about these settings. For your most common needs when modifying Fibers, simply use the Groom series of brushes as they were designed specifically to work with Fibers.
Note:
The Groom brushes are mainly traditional brushes with Brush >> FiberMesh settings enabled.
When Fibers are created and accepted, ZBrush stores a Morph Target. This allows you to use the various Morph settings to alter or revert your fibers. It also allows you to use the Morph brush to selectively revert the sculpting on your Fiber shapes. When Solo mode is enabled ZBrush will only display the FiberMesh together with its underlying support surface. When a FiberMesh preview is accepted, the created SubTool will be inserted just below the supported mesh SubTool rather than at the bottom of the SubTool list.
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IV
MICRO MESH
MicroMesh is a BPR render feature which allows you to replace a FiberMesh objects fibers or the individual polygons of an object with another 3D model. In other words, a models Fibers or separate polygons are rendered as if they were actually instances of the selected 3D model. This solution is a great way to create rich renders with more details very quickly and easily. For example, you could put individual feathers on a bird or scales on a lizard.
1. about MicroMesh
MicroMesh replaces a predefined PolyMesh3D model at render time through the BPR render. The predefined PolyMesh3D will replace all single polygons with itself when a BPR render is executed. To do this you need to select a model to use as your MicroMesh by clicking Tool >> Display Properties >> Select MicroMesh.
The MicroMesh selector, located in the Tool >> Display Properties sub-palette.
As soon as the MicroMesh is selected, a preview will appear on each polygon of your current SubTool. This MicroMesh will replace all polygons at render time. The preview will allow you to have an idea of how your MicroMesh will render before doing your BPR render. The orientation of the MicroMesh is defined by the pivot point position and orientation defined for the inserted model in the Tool >> Preview sub-palette. The size and orientation relative to the support surface are then modulated by the support mesh polygon size and orientation. 1. Use the Tool palette to select the model that will be inserted as a MicroMesh. 2. Use the Tool >> Preview to set the models pivot point and orientation. 3. Use the Tool palette to select the model that will receive the MicroMesh. 4. Use Tool >> Display Properties >> Select MicroMesh to choose the model from step 1. 29
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide To get an understanding of how your MicroMesh will be viewed relative to a polygon we recommend temporarily appending the Plane3D to your defined MicroMesh in Step 1 above. Use this to evaluate if the MicroMesh will be clipped by any one polygon. You can then delete the Plane3D SubTool so that youre ready to move to step 2. The MicroMesh feature will replace every polygon of any standard mesh. However, when using MicroMesh with a FiberMesh object, the MicroMesh will be stretched along the individual fiber regardless of the number of segments that are in each fiber. To protect portions of your model from the MicroMesh you will need to split the object into separate SubTools. To instruct BPR to render your MicroMesh you must enable the Draw MicroMesh option, located in the Render >> Render Properties sub-palette.
Note:
MicroMesh cant be generated as real geometry. It is only visible at render time through BPR. This is because the total polygon count from converting a MicroMesh into actual geometry would very easily exceed what ZBrush or your computer is capable of handling.
3. MicroMesh WorkFloW
The first step before using the MicroMesh is to have two 3D objects: the MicroMesh itself, and the mesh which will be replaced by the MicroMesh. Both items must be PolyMesh 3D objects. (You cannot use parametric objects, DynaMesh, ZSpheres or other object generators as a MicroMesh, although you can convert such objects to PolyMesh 3D and then use them as a MicroMesh.)
Note:
ZBrush will automatically convert a Primitive 3D to a Polymesh3D when selected as the MicroMesh.
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ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide The MicroMesh support object can be a single model or one of its SubTools. Several SubTools can have a MicroMesh however, the MicroMesh itself cannot have multiple SubTools. If you wish to use a model with multiple SubTools as a MicroMesh you will need to first merge its SubTools. Select the support SubTool which will have its polygons replaced by a MicroMesh at render time. Go to Tool >> Display Properties and click on the Select MicroMesh button. A selection window will appear, allowing you to select the 3D object that will become the MicroMesh. ZBrush displays a preview of the MicroMesh on the selected SubTool. This allows you to evaluate if any changes need to be made to the MicroMesh (such as proportion or shape) so that it will fit the result you are looking for. Before rendering, you must enable the MicroMesh feature by activating the Render >> Render Properties >> Draw MicroMesh option. Do your BPR render by clicking the Render >> BPR Render button or using the Shift+R hotkey. When render computation is complete, your support mesh will be replaced by the FiberMesh model.
Note:
The MicroMesh model can be saved in the ZBrush Project (ZPR) or the ZTool (ZTL) file.
In the left image you can see that any polygon can be substituted with another mesh (MicroMesh). The image on the right shows how you can use FiberMesh with a MicroMesh and how the MicroMesh is then stretched along the individual fibers.
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On the left, the support mesh for the MicroMesh, where all polygons will be replaced by the selected model (shown in the middle). The figure on the right shows the resulting render with the duplicated model.
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To complement the new FiberMesh feature, ZBrush 4R2b introduces a series of Groom brushes. These brushes are dedicated to the sculpting of FiberMesh objects. These brushes are derived from traditional sculpting brushes and have their behavior optimized to avoid unexpected results when working with Fibers.
Below is a list of some new Groom brushes but ZBrush includes many more.
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1.1
rooM hairtoss
Most useful for moving long hair with a smooth sweeping. This brush is taking advantage of the new Brush>Modifiers>Strength Multiplier which is multiplying the brush strength by what is set in this slider.
1.2
grooMer strong
A standard groom brush with no forward or inverse propagation. This brush will influence most of the fiber to be implemented with only the root to be protected.
1.3
grooM bloWer
Simulates a hair dryer on the fibers by separating the fibers as if they were being blown around by wind.
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1.4
grooM cluMps
This brush will clump the tips of the fibers together or cause the tips to flare out, depending on the brush modifiers.
1.5
grooM turbulence
Deforms the fibers to have a slight turmoil. This is great to put a little of bit mess to hair.
1.6
Deforms and moves your fibers in the direction of your stroke. This brush also changes the length of your fibers without increasing the number of segments. Use this for quick and dirty shaping.
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1.7
This brush will only Polypaint the roots of the selected fibers.
1.8
grooMer Magnet
1.9
grooMer tWist
Rotates the fibers around the brush, exactly like twisting a lock of hair.
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Preserve Length: This setting preserves the length of your fibers during styling. A value of 100 fully preserves the fiber length while a lower value allows the fibers to become longer as theyre styled. Forward Propagation: Affects the fiber root and propagates any adjustment along the fiber without affecting the tip. Inverse Propagation: Affects the fiber tip and propagates any adjustment backwards along the fiber without affecting the root Stiffness: Tries to keep the fibers from breaking up in order to maintain straightness. Higher settings will be more resistant to fiber bending. Springiness: Subtly tries to bring the fiber back to its original position while maintaining stiffness. Only active when Stiffness is turned on. Front Collision Tolerance: Helps prevent fibers from breaking through the visible SubTools during sculpting. Imagine it as a force field that surrounds the visible 38
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide SubTools. The slider value defines how many screen pixels thick this force field will be. So a value of 10 would allow you to come quite close to the surface if zoomed in close to the model but will keep the fibers progressively farther away the more you zoom out. This setting is enabled by default with all the brushes. It is a global setting, which means that turning it off for one brush turns it off for all. Front Collision Variations: Will maintain a variation in the fibers when being edited to have less of an overlapping of the fibers. This will work in conjunction with the Front Collision Tolerance.
Note:
It is important to remember that this setting is FRONT collision detection, only. In other words, the fibers can only sense the portion of your surface that is visible to the camera. As a result, this feature does not support symmetry.
3.1
spiral
Creates a spinning stroke in a Fold style. Press the ALT key to reverse the direction of the spin.
3.2
FolD
Creates fold-like strokes over your model. Using a low Z intensity value combined with pen tablet pressure can create a smoothly folded result.
3.3
layereD pattern
3.4
These two Curves are similar to the Curve Lathe and Curve Tube brushes, except that you can create multiple lathes or tubes at the same time. You can keep editing each created object Curve to edit the shape, until such time as you use another brush or perform another action on your model. 39
Twist Rate: Affects how fast the twist will orbit around your brush when applying a stroke to the surface. Centrifugal: Determines how much of the surface will be pulled or pushed as the twisting is happening. Radius: Controls the falloff of the twist rate.
Bottom to top represents Mask intensity. Left to right is the span of the fiber from root (at left) to tip (at right). There is no end to the control you have by using this curve with Groom Brushes to work with your fibers. 40
Note:
Auto Masking does not actually paint a Mask on your model. Instead, it treats the mesh within your brush radius as if it has already been Masked based upon the Auto Masking settings.
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VI
TRANSPOSE
Quickly deform your models with the TransPose line. The deformation is controlled by the position of the TransPose line and its Curve settings.
The deformation is modulated by the Brush curve settings, located in the Brush palette.
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide key to unMask the existing Mask.
Smart Masking easily detects areas of the model by analyzing its surface.
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VII
ALPHAS
Alphas are grayscale image patterns which form the core of your Sculpting brushes. ZBrush 4R2b introduces several new additions which make the creation of fine details more powerful.
1. surFace MoDe
This new Alpha >> Alpha mode automatically defines the best middle grey value of your alpha. It allows you to add your details from the alpha without destroying details already on the surface.
2. seaMless sliDer
By changing the Alpha >> Seamless slider, ZBrush will transform the selected Alpha to a seamless pattern. A high value will make large changes to the alpha to make it seamless while a low value will create minor changes. Depending on the complexity of your alpha, you may need to increase or decrease this value. Most alphas require a unique setting for best results.
Note:
The Seamless operation fits perfectly with the usage of the Stroke >> Roll mode, combined with the Stroke >> Lazy Mouse settings.
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VIII
MASKING
At the top, the original mesh. At the bottom, the result of the Mask by Surface Smoothness operation, showing how easy it becomes to select chamfer-like areas.
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2. Fiber Mask
When a FiberMesh is created ZBrush will automatically assign Masking to the root of each fiber. This automatic Masking is controlled by the Brush >> Auto Masking >> Auto Mask FiberMesh button discussed earlier in the documentation. This new Tool >> Masking >> FiberMask will allow you to use the curve seen in the image below to Mask off any part of the fibers. With the curve representing the root to tip from left to right, you can create any combination of Masking on the fibers. Once the curve is set, click the FiberMask button for ZBrush to apply the Mask. The FiberUnmask button will unmask already masked fibers based on the curve. The benefit to this is allow you to mask out sections of fibers and then still apply a gradient mask based on the curve.
On the left, some fibers have been masked. On the right, they have then been locally UnMasked based on the Curve setting.
Note:
Remember that when you make a mask on fibers the entire fiber is masked out.
Below are examples of Masks you can generate based on the curve.
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Masking Curve allows you to control how the Fibers are masked. From left to right: Mask everything but the Fiber root, Mask only the middle of the Fiber, Mask only the tip of the Fiber.
The Tool >> Masking >> Shrink and Extend Mask functions are similar to the previous Blur and Sharpen Mask functions, except that : The Extend function will add a blurred Mask around the existing outline of the Mask, thus extending it. The part of the model that is already fully masked will remain fully masked. The Shrink function will soften the mask around the existing outline of the masked area without affecting the non-Masked portions of the model. The Blur function on the other affects masked and non-masked areas equally. It softens the edges of the Mask by averaging. As a result, portions of the mask become more softly masked while the area immediately next to it also becomes lightly masked. Simply put both of these new commands do not affect the existing mask (Extend) OR un-masked (Shrink) areas of the model. They only extend the corresponding masked or non-masked area. The CTRL+Click and CTRL+ALT+Click shortcuts are now assigned to the Extend and Shrink Mask functions rather than to the Blur and Sharpen Mask functions.
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IX
1. unclip
The UnClip action cancels the most recent Clip action that has been generated by a Clip Brush. However, it retains any sculpting details added to the surface after the Clip was made. It is very useful to add details or accurate strokes on a clean surface that was temporarily flattened by a Clip brush. Once these details have been added, using UnClip will restore the surface to its curved shape and move the new details to match. The UnClip feature can be found with all other Clip brush options the Brush>>Clip Brush Modifiers sub-palette. You can also access this sub-palette by pressing CTRL+Spacebar, which will pop up a floating menu.
The new unclip feature will allow a quick way to add detail along an irregular surface.
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ZBrush 4R2b provides several major enhancements to your final render through new BPR Filters settings, new enhancements to the material mixer and new global settings which will directly affect the overall render.
1. MiXer: by cavity
The Material >> Mixer now integrates a Cavity setting that will mix the selected material with the previous material(s) based on the models surface cavity. This is somewhat similar to the Cavity detection feature for MatCap materials but can work with any material. Like all Mixer operators, it can be combined with an Exponential setting.
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6. bpr visibility
This slider, located in the Tool >> Display Properties sub-palette lets you define the amount of transparency that will be displayed for the current SubTool when rendered using BPR. The Transparent setting in Render Properties must be active in order for this slider to have an effect on the mesh.
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XI
ZBrush 4R2b introduce new BPR Filters, located in the Render >> BPR Filters subpalette. These new settings bring new real-time effects to your rendering. They allow you to create high quality images by compositing more and more filters as a post-render effect. This means you do not need to perform render after render as you try new things. These filters work the same way youre already familiar with from ZBrush4R2.
Note:
For new ZBrush users it is recommended to first read the ZBrush 4R2 New Features PDF, found in your ZBrush 4R2b Documentation folder.
The BPR Filters now have 12 slots which can each host a single filter. This allows you to create thousands of advanced render effects simply by combining up to twelve individual filters. You can also put the same filter in multiple slots with different settings.
The BPR Filters sub-palette (located in the Render palette) is pictured on the left with its new operators. The picture on the right shows the list of Filter types.
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1. Filters
The list below details the new filters added in this ZBrush release: Negative: With the color patch set to mid-grey and a strength setting close to 1, this filter adjusts your render to look more like a film negative. Gamma: Applies an exponential of the color intensity. It lightens the overall image without washing out detail. Additive: Offsets all colors in the image to be brighter or darker by an equal amount. Paint: Applies the selected color from the patch over the BPR render. Combined with the Mask and Fresnel settings, it can produce non-photorealistic rendering (NPR). Contrast User Color: Allows you to modulate the contrast of the render using the Color information defined with the color patch available below the Strength slider. This color will be added with the colors from the final render. A darker color will create a much more contrasted render and lighter color will provide less contrast. For better results you can mix this contrast with the Mask modulator. Contrast Auto Color: Similar to the Contrast User Color, but ZBrush will find the best color from the final render. Contrast Auto Gray: Similar to the Contrast User Color, but the contrast will use a neutral grey. This results in a neutral colored contrast.
Note:
These slider values are easily set simply by clicking one and then dragging your cursor over your render to pick a point in the image that has the desired A or B depth value.
Depth Exponent: This controls falloff between Depth A and Depth B. The higher the value the more harsh the transition will be from Depth A to Depth B. Lower values 55
ZBrush 4R2b whats new guide will have a slow, soft transition. Cavity: Applies the current filter to the portions of the render detected as being surface cavities. This is similar to the way a MatCap can use cavities to display two different shaders. The Cavity filter can be modulated by the cavity radius detection and sensibility detection, which can drastically change the transition across the surfaces geometry.
The evolution of a BPR Filters render, from top left to bottom right: The original render, a paint-over modulated by a Fresnel setting, followed with Contrast by User Color, then Cavity detection and finally, a Sharpen Filter. Image courtesy of Ryan Kingslien.
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XII
OTHER ADDITIONS
1. Morph target
Tool >> Morph Target >> Morph Width and Height: Revert the width or the height of the current model, but not its length. The effect is dependent upon the value of the corresponding sliders. These settings have mainly been added to benefit the FiberMesh feature and FiberMesh objects automatically have a Morph target created when the FiberMesh is accepted
3. eXport screengrab
This new function, located in the Document palette exports a screenshot of your entire ZBrush interface -- including your document -- in the file format of your choice. The function makes it easy for you to quickly export your screen for all kinds of use, without the need to go through an external 2D software.
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5. preFerences
Automode has been added to the Preferences >> Performance sub-palette. This will automatically set the Multithread step value to provide the best setting as a wrong value can have a negative impact on your ZBrush performance.
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IMPROVEMENTS
3. perspective iMproveMent
If you disable Local mode and zoom into your model, ZBrush will keep the current perspective settings. This is different from the default perspective calculation in which ZBrush will visually adjust the camera to the model as you scale it. In simple terms: Under the old behavior, ZBrush will attempt to avoid camera clipping by adjusting the perspective on the fly. With the new setting, ZBrush will not adjust perspective as the model is scaled, which allows you to go inside the model if you zoom close to your object. Auto Adjust Distance: This setting allows the camera to adjust perspective in order to avoid clipping. Disable to make use of the new behavior.
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4. MorphDist sliDer
Improved the MorphDist slider to now work on PolyMesh3D (not only ZSpheres). This slider equlize the distance between vertices in the current mesh to the distances in the morph target mesh. This is useful for cloth surfaces to restore the original surface area of the mesh.
6. renDer aDJustMents
Movie playback will not account render adjustments.
7. WaX previeW
Max Depth Tolerance slider was added to Render >> Wax Preview sub-palette.
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You will find new models and images that have been shipped with ZBrush4R2b. We would like to take the time to thank a few artists that were kind enough to share their artwork with the community. Thank you for being so generous with our community and inspiring all. Nick Zuccarello Model Contribution: Nickz_humanMaleAverage.ZTL Website: http://nickzucc.blogspot.com Caroline Delen Model Contribution: Julie.ZTL Website: http://www.carolinedelen.com Ryan Kingslien Model Contribution: RyanKingslien_Female_Anatomy_Figure.ZTL Website: http://www.zbrushworkshops.com Arnaud Kotelnikof Model Contribution: Kotelnikoff Earthquake.ZPR Website: http://www.kotelnikoff.com Bob Groothuis Image Contribution: ZBrush 2_Pulchri_by_BobGroothuis_8k.jpg Website: http://www.pulchri.nl Image created by Dutch Skies 360 HDRI - http://www.bobgroothuis.com
Pixologic would like to thank everyone who has participated as a beta tester for ZBrush 4R2b. Happy ZBrushing, and thank you again!
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NOTES
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