[Bf-docboard] 3D Concepts and Fundamentals Chapter
Eric Oberlander
bf-docboard@blender.org
Thu, 05 Jun 2003 17:15:14 +0100
Hi Jason
Hope you find my comments embedded in your text useful.
Eric
on 4/6/03 3:48 pm, Jason Oppel at pato@myrealbox.com wrote:
>Comments and criticism are welcome!
>
> Thanks,
> -Jason <Pato>
>
> Introduction
> ============
> 3D applications have never been more accessible or indeed more powerful
> than they are today. Despite this fact most 3D modeling packages still
> cost thousands of dollars and are still well above means of most hobbyists
above the means
> and beginners to purchase. Blender has eliminated this barrier of entry so
> that anyone can now use a powerful professional level 3D modeling package
> as Blender is available for free. We the authors of this book and the
> Blender Foundation are thrilled to present you this Official Blender Manual
> which will undoubtably help you release the 3D artist lurking within you.
> By the end of reading this book you should have a firm understanding of 3D
> concepts and how to apply them using Blender. Along the way you're also
> bound to create a some images and 3D scenes you can be proud of!
>
> While Blender's interface is quite different from other 3D applications
> you'll find that as you use Blender more frequently (called "blending" by
> Blender users) that its interface will actually make you extremely
^^^^ delete the second 'that'
> productive and efficient. While at times Blender may seem daunting to
> learn (as are all 3d modeling applications) remember that it was designed
> with a professional workflow in mind and there is a pot of gold at the end
> of the rainbow. The reward from learning Blender is that you'll be able to
> fly around your 3D creations with astounding speed and produce impressive
> artwork at an astounding pace.
an astonishing pace. [avoids repetition]
> As you're reading through this book try not to forget that despite all the
> magical technology behind it Blender is really just a medium through which
> to create art. Through the hands of a skilled artist whether they're
> painting a picture, sculpting clay or modeling a complex scene in Blender
> the same artistic skills and talents of composition, proportion, color and
> light are being used and it's only the medium changes. We encourage any
the medium that changes.
> aspiring serious 3D artists to learn and practice traditional artforms such
> as sketching, modeling or painting. The skills you learn in other art
> forms will make you a far better artist and give you a larger base of
> creative experience from which to use as a launching pad for your 3D
> creations.
>
> We hope that you find 3D modeling a fun (and sometimes an addictive)
> pursuit as we do. Blender will help you develop the skills necesarry to
necessary
> develop your 3D artistry as far as your aspirations will carry you. Blend
> On!
>
> Getting Oriented
> =================
> You may recall during your geometry and algebra classes at school seeing a
> graph similar to Figure 1 [show graph with x, y and z axis with a point
> mapped out at (1,1,0)]. The graphing system as seen in Figure 1 is called
> a Cartesian Coordinate System. The Cartesian Coordinate System is the
> standard way that all 3D modeling applications use to define 3 dimensional
> objects (with a few minor variations). Using this system we can describe
> any point in 3D space. In this graph the horizontal axis (the x-axis) is
> used to describe the width of objects while the vertical axis (the y-axis)
> describes the height. Of course we still a way to describe the depth of
> objects and that's the z-axis as seen in Figure 1. Using the x, y and z-
> axis (commonly refered to as simply x, y and z respectively) we can use our
referred? or is this one of the differences between
US/UK English?
> new found knowledge to define any point or shape in 3D space. As we see in
> Figure 1 the point mapped out is one unit to the right, one unit up and
> zero units deep. To extend this concept to shapes we see that the cube in
> Fig. 2 [show cube with x, y and z mapped out on it] is one unit wide (x
> axis) one unit tall (y axis) and one unit deep (z axis). Similarly you can
> describe any object whether that object is a car, a plant or even a human
> in 3D space no matter how complex using x, y and z coordinates.
>
> Now that we have a way to plot locations and describe objects in all three
> dimensions let's take a look at how Blender handles 3D space. Start
> Blender and press NUM1 to change our view so we're looking at our scene
Could I suggest including a 'boxout' in the text at this point to explain
the convention used to describe key presses throughout the Blender manual?
This may sound stupid, but when working through the first tutorial I
searched the screen looking for a button marked 'GKEY' before it was
suggested to me to 'press the G key'. Seems obvious in hindsight, but I
thought I'd mention it :)
> head on as seen in Fig. 3 [show standard blender startup scene in NUM1 view
> with the axis indicator highlighted in yellow]. If you look at the lower
> left hand corner of the 3D viewport you'll notice that there is x and z
> axis indicator (highlighted yellow in Fig. 3) to keep you oriented. Now I
> hear you screaming from here that y and not z is supposed to denote height.
> Well, this is one of the "slight variations" I spoke of earlier. Blender
> (and many other 3D applications) uses what's called "left handed 3D
> coordinates." In left handed coordinates two of the axis (the y and z in
> this case) are flipped with one another. In Blender (and other "left
> handed" 3D applications) the z-axis defines height while the y-axis defines
> depth. Let's see if that's right. Press the NUM7 pad to change our view
> so that we're look overhead on our 3D scene. Sure enough the y-axis
> defines the depth of our default plane and the x-axis still defines width.