3D Character Modelling Rigging & Animation Blender to Unreal

The instructor discussed various ways to download and install a free copy of Blender, a popular 3D software. He highlighted that Blender.org is the primary source for downloading the latest stable release, which is updated yearly and supported for two years, ensuring bug fixes and hardware compatibility updates.

Blender is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux, and can also be managed through Steam, Snap, or the Microsoft Store. The instructor demonstrated how to download Blender from the Microsoft Store, which simplifies managing updates.

He mentioned that all previous releases of Blender are available for download, in case a specific feature or version is needed. The instructor then walked through the process of downloading and installing Blender on a Windows desktop, including choosing a location for the software.

Upon opening Blender for the first time, the splash screen presents initial settings such as language, shortcuts, selection preferences, and themes. The instructor emphasized that these settings can be updated at any time in user preferences. After clicking next, the default splash screen appears, offering options to access the manual, Blender website, credits, release notes, and to support Blender's development. To begin working, users simply click into the scene.

The instructor demonstrated how to customize Blender settings by accessing the user preferences in the Edit menu. He explained that the Interface tab allows users to adjust the resolution scale, tooltips, and language settings. The Themes tab lets users choose from preset themes or manually modify the interface colors. The Input tab offers options for emulating a three-button mouse and customizing navigation settings.

He also discussed the Keymap tab, which allows users to change or add shortcuts for various commands. In the System tab, he suggested increasing the number of undo steps and adjusting the number of recent files displayed. The Save & Load tab offers options to customize file paths for different file types, link applications, and set up paths to external asset libraries.

The instructor emphasized that Blender automatically saves changes made in preferences when the "Save Preferences" checkbox is enabled. He also recommended frequently saving files and using Blender's incremental save feature to avoid losing work due to file corruption or other issues. Finally, he suggested creating a project folder to keep all course-related files organized in one location.

The instructor guided users through the process of enabling add-ons in Blender, which are python scripts that extend the software's functionality. He demonstrated how to access preferences through the file context menu and navigate to the Add-ons tab to view available add-ons. He specifically enabled the Loop Tools add-on, which aids in mesh editing.

He explained that add-ons can be enabled or disabled by checking or unchecking the corresponding box, and additional information can be found through the documentation link. The instructor showed how to locate the add-on in the Edit menu of the sidebar and create a custom tab for it by renaming the tab in preferences. He mentioned that if more add-ons are needed during the course, they can be enabled as necessary.

The instructor explained the importance of saving files regularly and introduced two features in Blender that can help recover work if the software crashes or closes unexpectedly. The first feature allows users to recover the last closed file immediately by going to the File menu and selecting Recover Last Session. The second feature is the autosave option, which automatically saves blend files in a temp folder every two minutes by default.

He demonstrated how to access the autosave files and showed how to control the autosave duration and set the temp folder location in preferences. The instructor advised leaving the default settings for the autosave feature and temp folder location, but emphasized the importance of being aware of these options in case Blender crashes or closes unexpectedly.

The instructor discussed the importance of using shortcut keys to improve efficiency while working in Blender. He mentioned that shortcuts become an essential part of one's workflow, although remembering key combinations can be challenging. To help with this, he created a shortcut guide that can be found on the asset page of his website, blenderzen.com. The guide is a PDF file with a list of keyboard shortcuts, short descriptions, and the mode in which each shortcut is available. The instructor recommended downloading or printing the guide and spending some time practicing each command to become familiar with the shortcuts quickly.

The instructor demonstrated various ways to navigate and control the view in Blender's 3D viewport. He showed how to orbit around selected objects, zoom smoothly, pan, and switch views using both the mouse buttons and keyboard shortcuts. He also introduced the view gizmo, which provides shortcuts for changing views and camera settings, and the apostrophe key, which opens a view pie menu for quick access to different views and options. Additionally, he explained how to lock the camera to the view, adjust the camera's focal length, and frame selected objects or the entire scene. The navigation commands and shortcuts can be found in the view menu and viewpoint menu.

The instructor discussed the 3D view in Blender, explaining that it is an editor used to interact with and modify 3D objects. He demonstrated how to open and close the tool shelf and sidebar using arrow buttons, as well as their respective shortcuts, the T key and N key. He mentioned that different object types have specific modes available, and that Blender's mode menu can be accessed using Ctrl + Tab. The View menu, which houses options for tool settings and operations, can also help users navigate 3D space more efficiently. The instructor also covered local view, a feature that allows users to isolate and edit objects more easily, as well as playblast rendering, walk and fly commands, and related settings in the navigation tab in preferences.

In the lecture, the instructor covered various aspects of Blender, including selection methods, the add menu, transformation options, and the object menu. He discussed the Select menu and its various options, such as select all, invert selection, and box, circle, and lasso select. The Add menu contains primitive mesh objects that serve as the basis for modeling.

The instructor then moved on to the object menu and explained various transformation commands (move, rotate, scale), mirror menu, apply transforms, and snap menu. He demonstrated copying and pasting values within Blender and touched upon the parent menu, collections menu, and convert menu.

The quick favorites menu was introduced for accessing frequently used tools without shortcuts. The instructor also discussed orientation options, including global and local orientations, and demonstrated how to switch between them using shortcuts. The lecture concluded by mentioning that more details on these topics would be covered later in the course.

In the lecture, the instructor discussed various pivot settings, snapping options, and Blender's interface features. He started with pivot settings, explaining their behavior in object and edit modes, and how the medium point considers the geometry selected. He then covered the snapping menu, detailing how to use different snap types and their respective options.

The instructor demonstrated proportional editing, explaining its usefulness in manipulating organic shapes, and how to adjust the area of influence. He also addressed object type visibility and selection, gizmo controls, and overlay options.

Finally, he went through different shading types, including wireframe, solid shading, look dev, and render mode, and showed how to access additional viewport shading options. These various shading types are useful for different tasks in Blender, such as sculpting or modeling, and can provide valuable visual feedback.

In the lecture, the instructor discussed the Blender tool shelf, selection types, and transformation tools in both object and edit modes. He began by demonstrating various selection types, including tweak, select box, circle select, and lasso select. He emphasized that tool states don't transfer between modes and explained how to switch selection types using shortcuts or the toolbar menu.

The instructor then covered the 3D cursor tool, detailing how to place it accurately in the scene. He moved on to the move, rotation, and scale manipulators, demonstrating how to use them to manipulate objects along specific axes. He also mentioned the option to enable all three manipulators simultaneously.

The instructor explained that while these tools are useful for beginners, as users become more familiar with Blender, they will likely rely more on shortcut keys for faster, more efficient workflow.

In the lecture, the instructor discussed the annotate tool, measure tool, and interactive cube tool in Blender. He demonstrated how to use the annotate tool to draw freely on the screen and customize various properties such as color, thickness, and opacity. He also explained the placement settings for annotations, including 3D cursor, view, and surface.

Next, the instructor showed how to use the measure tool to quickly determine distances and angles between points in the scene by snapping to vertices. He explained how to delete or modify measurements as needed.

Lastly, the instructor introduced the interactive cube tool for creating rectangles and cubes in the scene or on other objects. He demonstrated how to maintain aspect ratios while drawing shapes and how to access other primitives in the tool menu. This tool is particularly useful for quickly blocking in objects of different sizes.

In the lecture, the instructor focused on the tool shelf in edit mode. He began by demonstrating how to use the extrude tool to create new sections of mesh, explaining various extrusion options such as extrude manifold, extrude along normals, extrude individual, and extrude to cursor. He then showcased the inset tool for creating insets on selected faces.

Next, the instructor moved on to the bevel tool, explaining how to bevel edges, faces, and vertices using various shortcuts and commands. After that, he demonstrated the loop cut tool, which places edge loops on the mesh, and the offset edge loop cut tool for creating two new edges on either side of a selected edge.

Throughout the lecture, the instructor highlighted the shortcuts and commands for each tool, emphasizing the importance of mastering them for efficient workflow in Blender.

In the lecture, the instructor demonstrated the use of various tools for mesh editing in Blender. He began with the knife tool, explaining how to cut new edges into the mesh manually and use the cut-through command to cut through the entire mesh. Then, he introduced the bisect tool, showing how to cut right through an object.

Next, the instructor discussed the poly build tool, which is useful for retopology - the process of creating a low-poly version of a model. He showed how to create new edges, triangles, and delete faces using the poly build tool. He mentioned that this tool works well with the shrink wrap modifier and face snap enabled, greatly speeding up the retopology process.

In the lecture, the instructor demonstrated the use of various mesh editing tools in Blender. He started with the spin tool, explaining how to create a sweep and a profile using the 3D cursor as the pivot point. He also showed how to adjust the center, angle, and diameter of the sweep.

Next, the instructor covered the smooth vertices tool, which averages the angles of the selected vertices, and the edge slide tool, which repositions selected edges while maintaining the original shape of the mesh. He discussed the shrink fatten tool for resizing edges and the shear tool for shearing edges or faces along specific axes.

Lastly, the instructor introduced the rip region tool, which allows users to rip apart selected edge loops. He provided shortcuts for each tool, enabling efficient use of these tools in Blender.

In the lecture, the instructor demonstrated how to create and customize workspaces in Blender. He explained that workspaces are custom layouts consisting of various editors arranged together for specific tasks like modeling, shading, and scripting.

He showed two methods for creating workspaces: clicking the new tab button and choosing a preset, or right-clicking on an existing workspace and duplicating it. The instructor then demonstrated how to split, join, and swap areas within the workspace, as well as how to create and join editors using the corner plus icon.

The instructor emphasized that practice is essential for mastering workspace customization in Blender. He also highlighted the benefits of having a double viewport, which can be very useful for various tasks. Lastly, he demonstrated how to change editor types and rearrange or delete workspaces as needed.

In the lecture, the instructor introduced collections in Blender, which are used to organize objects in a scene. Collections provide control over visibility, lighting, rendering, and appending from other scenes. He explained how to create, rename, and reorder collections, as well as how to add objects to them.

The instructor also demonstrated how to control object properties within collections, such as visibility, selectability, viewport disabling, and exclusion from rendering. Additionally, he showed how to move objects between collections using the "M" key and dragging and dropping in the Outliner.

Lastly, the instructor highlighted the use of Numpad minus and plus keys to expand and collapse collections and how icons indicate the type and quantity of objects within a collection.

In the lecture, the instructor discussed the functions and uses of the 3D cursor in Blender. He demonstrated how to accurately position the 3D cursor, align objects to its rotation, and snap individual vertices to it. The instructor also explained how to align objects to the cursor's location and use it as a rotation point or insertion point.

The 3D cursor, a versatile multi-purpose tool in Blender, can be used for tasks like moving objects, setting origins, and rotating objects around specific points. By mastering the use of the 3D cursor, users can greatly improve their efficiency and precision when working in Blender.

In the lecture, the instructor focused on the snapping feature in Blender, explaining how to accurately position or align objects or parts of objects. He demonstrated how to use incremental snapping at different zoom levels, as well as relative and absolute snapping. He also showed how to use vertex snapping in object and edit mode, and how to align objects to a target using the align rotation feature.

Mastering snapping in Blender allows users to efficiently position and align objects with precision, making it an essential tool for those working with 3D modeling.

In the lecture, the instructor discussed the importance of face direction in 3D applications and how Blender calculates face orientation to optimize rendering. He introduced the face orientation overlay, which shows front and back faces in blue and red, respectively, and explained how to add it to the quick favorites menu. He then demonstrated how to flip and recalculate normals for selected faces using the mesh menu and normals options.

Additionally, the instructor highlighted the display normals feature in the overlays tab, showing how to visualize normal direction. Lastly, he explained the back face culling feature in the shading settings menu, which can help visualize which faces will render in Blender. Understanding these tools and regularly checking face orientation is essential when working with 3D models in Blender.

In the lecture, the instructor explained Blender's use of the right-angled Cartesian coordinate system with the Z-axis pointing upwards, the X-axis running left to right, and the Y-axis front to back. He demonstrated how to create a cube from a single vertex using extrusion and the coordinates system.

Starting with a single vertex, he extruded an edge along the X-axis, then another edge along the Z-axis, creating a face. He switched between vertex, edge, and face selection to highlight the interconnected nature of the polygon's components. Lastly, he extruded along the Y-axis to complete the cube, noting that face orientation issues can occur during extrusion. To fix this, he selected all faces and recalculated their orientation using Shift + N.

In the lecture, the instructor demonstrated how to use Blender's Asset Browser to manage and access assets in different blend files. He first created an Asset Browser workspace and explained how to mark objects as assets. Next, he downloaded an example asset file and set up an asset library in Blender.

The instructor showed how to append assets into a scene and explained the differences between appending with reused data, appending without linking object data, and linking assets directly from the original file. These options allow for more efficient collaboration and editing of assets across different files and users.

He then added an example asset library from Blender.org to the asset library and demonstrated how to drag and drop assets from the Asset Browser into the scene. Lastly, he mentioned that there are many other sources of assets online to create material, HDRI, and asset model libraries.

In this video tutorial we delve into some of the most frequent issues faced by students and users of Blender—ranging from modelling intricacies to key frame snags. By walking you through real-time examples, the lecture aims to equip you with practical solutions to these common stumbling blocks, making your Blender experience smoother and more efficient.

Doubled-Up Vertices

Problem: Presence of redundant vertices causing shading, texturing, and other issues.

Example: Extruding a face but then deciding to inset, leading to overlapping vertices.

Solution: Utilizing the 'Merge by Distance' function to eliminate extra vertices.

Loop Cut Issues

Problem: Loop cuts not behaving as expected.

Example: Loop cut refuses to wrap around the mesh, usually stops at an N-gon.

Solution: Using the Knife tool to manually cut through the N-gon.

Things Disappear

Problem: Work disappearing when pressing the "1" key.

Example: Toggling collections on and off inadvertently.

Solution: Using the 'Control' key to unhide all collections.

Extruding a Vertex

Problem: Difficulty extruding a single vertex.

Example: Single vertex becoming invisible in Edge mode.

Solution: Switching to Vertex selection mode to extrude properly.

Limited Zoom

Problem: Restricted zooming in User Perspective mode.

Example: Difficulty zooming into third monkey head object.

Solution: Switching to Orthographic mode or using Fly Mode to bypass restrictions.

Keyframes

Problem: Unintended object movements due to Auto-Keying.

Example: Objects moving or disappearing when the space bar is hit.

Solution: Checking the status of the Auto-Keying button and toggling it off if needed.

Key Takeaways:

Learn the importance of the 'Merge by Distance' function to eliminate doubled-up vertices.

Gain insights into how to perform loop cuts on N-gons using the Knife tool.

Discover the functionalities of Blender's different modes to avoid unintended actions like disappearing collections or failed extrusions.

Grasp how to manage zoom limitations through the use of different view modes.

Understand the implications of the Auto-Keying feature and how to manage it effectively.