3D World February 2023

3D World magazine is the world's biggest-selling monthly title for the 3D artist covering all aspects of the CG creation, inclduing animation, visual effects, vidoegames and architectural visualisation, and includes expert training in apps such as 3ds max, Maya, Cinema 4D, ZBrush, LightWave, Vue, Photoshop and After Effects. Every issue the magazine features an artist showcase, making of features and reviews of new products.

£5.76

in this issue

In This Issue

WELCOME

This month we've teamed up with the wonderfully talented folk behind Pop Paper City to talk all things 3D papercraft. They shared insights on their studio, as well as creating a full step-by-step tutorial, so you can learn how to make your own stylised animated projects. Epic's Unreal Engine has received a recent update, so we bring you a bootcamp to show you how to get the most from the new version, as well as a round-up of some of the very best plugins to extend your options in Unreal. We also have a feature on the latest in the world of digital humans, an area where much development has been made in recent years. I hope you enjoy the issue! rob.redman@futurenet.com POP PAPER CITY Learn about the studio and…

1 min

ARTIST SHOWCASE

The Gallery

GUNDAM SERIES “This series of Gumdam paintings is my homage to the nostalgic anime of my childhood years. Combining my adoration for anime and movies, I chose to light and render the iconic Mudrock character in a way that mimics my personal tastes in film cinematography. Projects like these are so important and fun for me because they help me to evolve as an artist. It allows me to keep my artistic blade sharp by testing new techniques and skills. Here, I used a blend of HDRI lighting and VDB-simulated particles to add depth and visual interest. I then used After Effects for the final composite and grading techniques to complete the feel of cinematic quality. Learn to use light like a paint brush. The more effectively you use light…

1 min

ARTIST SHOWCASE

TEMPLE OF LIGHT UE5 LUMEN

• The Gallery CG art to inspire ARTIST Alireza Heidari SOFTWARE Unreal Engine 5 “It was almost four years ago that I started the Temple of Light project with my friend Rafid Zufar, inspired by a concept from Eddie Mendoza. I hold this project dear to my heart as it was my first in Unreal Engine and shaped my future path. Four years and many projects later, I came back to see how I could improve this piece with all the experience I've gained. I started by reworking the lighting, playing with background composition, and remastering my previous water and foliage shader. UE5's Lumen technology was also a big help to get what I wanted with the mood. When I compare the new renders with the old ones, I can…

1 min

ARTIST SHOWCASE

THE LAST KINGSHIP

“I wanted to break out of the classic game-related processes within character art and learn something new with Arnold rendering. Initially a fun way to kill time, I pushed this piece further than I anticipated. Using various medieval designs related to armour alongside one of my biggest inspirations, the art of Karl Kopinski, I found the mixing of fantasy and character design a pleasure, especially within the blockout stage where ideas and passions are high. My biggest advice is to take your time blocking everything out before committing to anything further on. It's easy to skip but crucial overall.“ • artstation.com/jakewaddington ARTIST Jake Waddington SOFTWARE Arnold, Maya, ZBrush, Substance Painter, Marvelous Designer…

1 min

ARTIST SHOWCASE

CORRUPTED KNIGHT

• The Gallery CG art to inspire ARTIST Andres Rios SOFTWARE ZBrush, KeyShot, Photoshop “For my latest concepts, I've been trying to refine with ZBrush and KeyShot to a point where I don't need to do a heavy paintover with Photoshop. For the environment I use an HDRI that fits the piece, while for the effects like smoke, fire and embers, I applied textures to an object, in this case a plane. I apply the texture to the diffuse and opacity, and though this trick won't work for every angle as the texture is a plane, it's amazing for the final conceptual renders of a piece.” • artstation.com/andresrios…

1 min

ARTIST SHOWCASE

THE NUSKHAR

• The Gallery CG art to inspire ARTIST Mikel Rekondo SOFTWARE ZBrush, Maya, Substance Painter, Arnold, Mari, Photoshop “I designed this creature for the last ArtStation challenge; Dragon's Rise: The Forgotten Realms. I was attracted to the idea of making a dragon with golden armour in the style of the Persian Empire. The idea behind the creature is that it belongs to a race of beasts that have been bred for years by the Dashiat Empire, until they found the perfect weapon in the Nuskhar, a kind of mix between a dragon and a bull. For its creation in 3D I combined different techniques, starting with ZBrush, texturing with Substance and Mari, and creating the final renders in Arnold. I'm a big fan of video game cinematics and my idea…

1 min