Digital Character Modelling — an introduction

Character modelling is everywhere in our lives. From a friend sketching a figure to demonstrate their story to a picture book to a high-tech 3D video game or animated film, it all falls under character modelling. In this series I plan to give some quick tips, techniques and steps to allow you to begin making your own characters and I will also provide an example as I create my own fantasy adventurer. This first installment runs you through software, planning and design work so that you can get a solid foundation for your work. Let’s get started.

Step 1 — Why are you character modelling?

This might seem unimportant but it is actually crucial. Before you can start you need to decide what you are after and your decision here will shape the whole process. Here is a list of questions to ask yourself before you start:

• What am I using this for?
• How much time do I have?
• What detail do I need?
• What am I willing to pay?
• What type of character is it?

These questions can combine to tell you what sort of work you are doing and what software you need. If you are making some quick character portraits to show a friend you might as well use some sort of 2D online program. On the other hand if you are looking for video game quality animation you might want to buy professional software.

How I answered the questions:

• What am I using this for? — To pin down my ideas of what my characters look like, to learn to 3D model and to make basic animations for friends.
• How much time do have? — I don’t have a fixed time-limit but I do have other things to do. I would probably say I want to learn to use the programmes to a basic level within a week.
• What detail do I need? — I would like the general shape to look human but I’m not bothered about perfect facial details or wrinkle lines.
• What am I willing to pay? — Nothing, for now.
• What type of character is it? — Humans for now but I would like the freedom to make other humanoids and to make slightly non-human characters.

Step 2 — What tools should you use?

So, you’ve answered the questions and you know what you need. Now what software to go for. This boils down into two main categories, 2D and 3D. Once you know that the next most important point is cost. If it is a hobby and you are a beginner I definitely wouldn’t pay anything. Particularly not if you are going 2D. If you are working professionally for video games or the like then you might want to pay money, but if you are at that level you don’t need to read this. Here are a few software examples but please look at others and decide for yourself.

• Hero Machine 3 — This is a free, online program that allows you to select from a range of head shapes, eyes, legs etc and combine and colour them. It has a range of different body parts including a decent number of fantasy and sci-fi ones. It is quick and easy to learn and make characters in. It does only make 2D, cartoon type models and its range is not unlimited so it might not have what you want. I use it to make a reference point for 3D characters or to make portraits for cards, character sheets and the like. (You need Flash Player to use it).
• MakeHuman — This is free, open source software which allows you to easily make realistic, 3D people. Its controls are fairly quick to pick up and the figures are easy to customise to your liking. The characters can be easily uploaded to other software such as Blender for animating. Those with programming experience can also make their own plugins using python to change MakeHuman to the way they want it. The downside is that MakeHuman is only really aimed at making modern humans so it isn’t very suitable for a fantasy or sci-fi setting. I use it to make standard humans quickly.
• Blender — A free, open source, 3D model making and animation tool. Able to create some very good, realistic and professional designs. There are many free tutorials particularly for human creation. The controls take a while to master but it is a versatile tool. I use this for any 3D model I am making.

Step 3 — Design

You can skip this step but I wouldn’t advise it. This is the point where you get your first draft down. It can be a drawing or you can use something like HeroMachine. You could use a written description but that tends to make it more difficult later on. However you chose to do it, this step creates your reference. Some people may make a hugely detailed artwork and stick rigidly to it. To others it is a very rough guide. I personally like to make a detailed reference but make small stylistic changes as I make the 3D version. I would advise you to try various methods and chose what suits you. The key point to remember is that a reference is a guide. No matter how good something in your reference looks if it doesn’t work in 3D you should scrap it.

My reference

Here is the reference I made in HeroMachine. It took me about an hour to make as I scrapped it a few times. I have tried to make the reference fairly detailed so I have something to work to. Adding detail like this also allows me to use the reference as a portrait for character cards or to send to anyone else who is working with me.

The reference I will use in this series

That rounds up this first post. I hope it was helpful and will help you plan your own characters. Hopefully by following the 3 steps above you should have a strong foundation so you don’t end up with problems later on in your project. If you need any help, advise or just a talk about 3D modelling you can comment here or talk to me in Worldbuilding.se’s chat-room The Factory Floor.