Applications

Site created with Notion, Super & Cluster

Startup

Startup Projects

Comment out line regarding Home Page.

Navigate to Preferences > Lightbox > Open at Launch, and disable this option.

🔒 To store these updates, reference Save Editor Preferences.

Material: SkinShade4

Geo Visibility: Polyframe (SHIFT + F)

Navigate to Preferences > Enable RightClick Navigation, and disable this button. This to limit inadvertently displaying the popup menu when navigating.

🔒 To store these updates, reference Save Editor Preferences.

Navigate to Preferences > Config > Store Config, and click on this button to save preferences.

This prompts with a dialog box notifying that the updates to the editor preferences have been saved to the master configuration file. These preferences are now loaded into the editor with each subsequent ZBrush launch.

Navigate to Document > Width & Height.

Disable Pro, which is used to constrain proportions.

Set Width and Height to match screen size: 3000 x 1256.

Another option is to enable Document > WSize to Auto Fit Window Size.

🔒 To store these updates, reference Save Document Configuration.

Navigate to Document > Range, and set slider to 0.

🔒 To store these updates, reference Save Document Configuration.

Navigate to Color specify color in Current Color panel.

Navigate to Document > Back and click on this button to attribute the specified Current Color to the Document Background Color.

Adjacent options for Border and Border2 colors can be configured using the same steps as above with either the same Current Color as the background or other user-defined colors.

🔒 To store these updates, reference Save Document Configuration.

Navigate to Draw > Up-Down > Map1. Import unit grid image file to be used. This will align the imported image grid to the default ZBrush grid.

Navigate to Draw > Grid Size and Tiles to coordinate the size of the ZBrush grid to align with the imported image grid. Note that the Tile should be a multiple of the Grid Size to either match or be a tiled grid within each major grid line.

Navigate to Draw > Fill Mode and use slider to adjust visibility of imported image grid.

🔒 To store these updates, reference Save Document Configuration.

Navigate to Document > Save As Startup Doc, and click on this button.

This prompts with a dialog box notifying that the updates to the document configuration have been saved to the following file and location. This is confirmation that the document configuration updates will be loaded with each subsequent ZBrush launch.

Plugin Locations

This tool is a phenomenal support system for ZBrush and I highly recommend it to organize brushes, alphas, and models. When I first started using ZBrush, I quickly began collecting a large number of brushes and alphas, but it became tedious manually updating them and coordinating them through the default ZBrush Lightbox methodology. But through the XMD ToolBox, I'm able to access any of the brushes, alphas, and models in my collection with a click and they become active in the ZBrush session. It also has the option to categorize content with tags, folders, and naming conventions. Another part of this tool that I appreciate is that there can be multiple paths set up to different file and folder locations where the brushes, alphas, or models are being stored, so they don't all necessarily need to be located in a single, predefined location. Ultimately, it has really made my use of ZBrush so much more enjoyable by having it take on the management of these ZBrush elements and its user interface make them quick to apply to any active ZBrush project.

This is an effective tool and subtool management dashboard that can be used within ZBrush. The plugin has a clear UI and easy-to-use functionality, supplementing ZBrush very well. The plugin has a free and paid version available. Although ZBrush has this functionality the traditional ZBrush UI can be a bit cumbersome at times and particularly when accustomed to other layer-based tools. This plugin takes the same information of subtools in the project and outlines them with relevant information, such as visibility, polycount, Boolean state, UV mapping, texture, symmetry, and many others. Right-clicking within the plugin window expands to a lot of other functions, such as renaming, grouping, selecting, and several others. While first learning ZBrush, the traditional UI made it somewhat challenging to adjust, but I learned the underlying structure of how the tools and subtools worked within ZBrush. However, as soon as I integrated Z Scene Manager into my workflow, the subtool management was exponentially expedited and has allowed me to really focus more on the other functions within ZBrush and the modelling tasks. Below is a quick visual documentation and overview of the ZScene Manager plugin for ZBrush.

When using the tablet and stylus, verify that the brush settings either account for the pen pressure sensitivity to drive the brush size and/or z-intensity, or that it does not account for it.

Pen offsets to dual monitor config only for ZBrush. This arises from unresolved and unknown issue. The resolution is to shut down and start the computer again fresh; not just restart.

Initialize ZScene Manager automatically when ZBrush loads.

By default, the Local Transformations is enabled and rotates the object around a pivot point defined by the mouse cursor's current position on the geometry. Disabling this option rotates the geometry around its center pivot point.

The rotation axis options define the axis or axes to rotate around. By default, this is set to all 3 axes, but selecting one of the individual axes is available, though it can be a bit of an odd form of navigation, such as shown below when using the z-axis.

As applicable, utilize the sub-options available within the Polyframe (SHIFT + F) tool, including polygroup fill and line visibility.

To set single-sided polygons to double-sided visibility, navigate to Tool > Display Properties, and enable Double.

Process:

Source: https://youtu.be/DzkAU8l0Bp0?t=1826

Subdivide polygons without smoothing by using Tools > Geometry > Grid Divide. The adjacent GD Segments defines grid separation.

Close holes in topology by accessing Tools > Geometry > Close Holes. This closes holes with tris, but the option to merge tris into quads is available under Tools > Geometry > Merge Tris.

In Draw mode (Shortcut Q), click and drag to create new ZSpheres with mouse drag extent used to define radius of new ZSphere.

In Move mode (Shortcut W), select and drag ZSphere to move to new position.

In Draw mode (Shortcut Q), hold ALT and click on ZSphere to delete.

Tool > Adaptive Skin >

Tool > Make PolyMesh3D

Edges > Close > Convex Hole > Splines > Converge to Point > Polygroup Flat

LMB click & drag on edge to cap hole and define projection or flat close.

Use Insert over Append.

Using the ZModeler, apply Polygroups to polygons.

ALT + LMB click on polygon with polygroup color intended to propagate. At the same time, tap the SHIFT key, then release ALT & SHIFT keys but not the mouse. (Note that this will temporarily change polygroup for this polygon to another color; disregard that conversion.)

Drag mouse cursor to adjacent polygons to apply the intended polygroup.

Drop this to full negative to have a hard edge with alphas and stencils.

Double-click alphas from Lightbox to bring them to the Texture node.

Then in the Texture node/panel, use the option to convert it to an alpha.

It will then be available as an alpha for that particular project.

Live Boolean (Custom Shortcut ALT + R)

Zbrush

Substance Painter

On This Page