Turn any object into a Sculpty

In this tutorial I show you how you can use zBrush 3.1 to convert an existing object to a sculpted prim. We’ll be using the Subtools feature which allows you to work on more than one object mesh at a time, and the zProject brush to transfer the 3D geometry from the original shape to our new sculpty-friendly shape. I’ll also be using the Material Baker script to bake the shadows and highlights into a texture to be applied to the sculpty in-world.

The zProject brush rocks! The more I play with zBrush, the more ways I find to combine the tools to create new effects. In my first zBrush tutorial I used zProject to texture an object with a photo/image reference - and now I’m using it to transfer actual 3D data. This technique is not limited to just copying objects, either. It could be used anytime you want to copy 3D info from one object to another object. There’s also now reason that you couldn’t use multiple sculpties to convert parts of a complicated object.

If you haven’t done so already, you might want to watch my first video where I demonstrate the entire process of creating and texturing a sculpted prim in zBrush. Besides the Material Baker script you’ll also need 2k Suisie’s SculptyMaker converter program.

Sorry about the scratchy audio in this one, dunno what happened. :) You can also download a higher resolution, Quicktime version of the video.

Gaia Clary and Hussayn Salomon have created two tutorial videos that show how you can use Blender to create and texture sculpted prims. These vids are a great introduction to the process, and can help you get up to speed quickly. Blender, along with Domino Marama’s scripts, is probably the most versatile and powerful way to create sculpties for free.

My name is Vlad Bjornson, and I’m an info addict. :) I’m a bit obsessive about keeping up with the latest SL news and I’m constantly checking the forums and SL related blogs for bits of  interesting news and helpful tips.

To make my second life easier, and hopefully yours as well, I have created a new website called ShinyMix. It’s a collection of all the RSS feeds from my favorite SL blogs - all wrapped up in a spiffy, easy to read package. The feeds are updated ever hour so you can find something new just about any time of the day or night.

ShinyMix contains the feeds from 25 of my favorite blogs, most of them dealing with news, art, and content creation. I’ll add more feeds as I stumble on new sites that match my interests and the Shiny Life theme.  I’d also love to hear your suggestions for blogs to add to the mix.

Shiny 3D Input

I heard about these SpaceNavigator thingies - a 3D input device that works with SL. The geek factor was way too high and I was forced to by one. :D Big shiny button! After using this thing to cam around for just a couple of days I can’t imagine using SL without it.

This is just a quick video that demonstrates how easy it is to use the FlyCam mode with the SpaceNavigtor to make smooth, effortless camera movements.

Easily create you own giant redwood forest!

I’ve just completed a big new product for my FloraPrims store. It’s a kit that allows you to create a realistic redwood forest by simply rezzing and positioning objects. There are dozens of original objects and textures that you can use to create a unique forest full of lush textures amd natural shapes.

The kit includes:

• 15 different redwood trees in 3 different sizes
• 5 stumps and logs
• 1 giant, sculpted prim stump
• 4 color changing flowers and 1 flexi flower from FloraPrims
• 13 clumps and patches of undergrowth
• 10 mushrooms and ferns from my FloraPrims collection
• 2 stone path shapes
• 20 original, seamless textures

Everything is MODIFY and COPY enabled, too!

If you can rez and position an object in SL, then you can use this kit to create you own unique redwood forest. Simple as that. :)

You can find this product. more information, and a small sample forest at my FloraPrims store in Turing Isle. You can also get it on SLexchange.