I have another tech update for you with some interesting information that I hadn't quite seen coming. It's nice to share all this behind the scenes stuff with you, it currently takes up a considerable amount of my time, much more than I had expected.
I'm still enjoying it, don't get me wrong - it's just that these things can be a tad unpredictable at times, pushing other more pressing matters to the wayside. Being open to such side quests is the key, as is living in the moment and...
2021-06-12 01:04:27 +0000 UTC
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Good news everyone: I was able bring my recording PC back to life, using a magical Windows Restore Point that I didn't even know I had 😍 I've immediately given those helpful things a bit more storage space in case it happens again, and found out a corrupt file that has been tidied up in the process. Result!
I went back to work instantly and recorded that tip I hinted at yesterday: how to deform furniture items with your sitting characters, using the magic of Smoothing Modifiers. This...
2021-06-10 18:04:32 +0000 UTC
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I have a bit of a tech update for y'all, something that's rather crept up on me unexpectedly. I've been meaning to write about bits of this sooner, but you know what life is like sometimes. Grab yourself a beverage and a comfy seat, this is a longer than usual post.
DAZ x WP Guru
First of all, thanks to everyone who dropped by the recent live stream on the official DAZ Y...
2021-06-10 05:04:53 +0000 UTC
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I'm sure you've seen the additional newsletter yesterday, but just in case you haven't, I'm doing a live stream tomorrow on the official DAZ YouTube channel and Facebook page!
This is going to be a public event, available to view for everyone. I'll use the Fred Rise to Fame bundle and build an inte...
2021-06-04 17:09:08 +0000 UTC
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I've always wanted to do a camera animation through HowieFarkes Secret Lake for Carrara. Trouble is that one frame takes extremely long to render that an animation through the environment is cumbersome. I've recently bought a new Z840 workstation and upgraded it with two Xeon E5-2670 v3 CPUs and thought this would be a nice project to stress test it. This is the result.
I've rendered a total of 1500 frames, at around 6-8 minutes render time per frame. Using all 4 nodes I have available ...
2021-06-03 16:27:58 +0000 UTC
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After so much testing with Cycles X, I wanted to give you an impression of the live viewport performance with both my RTX and GTX cards. It's something that's difficult to convey in words. It's almost difficult to see, but if you "feel" both versions side by side while moving the viewport, Cycles X gives seriously quick results for lighting previews.
I've added this video to yesterday's article. Enjoy!
2021-05-14 19:13:39 +0000 UTC
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I've been doing some render tests for the last two days, checking out the new Cycles X. The results are quite interesting!
I’ve spent two days across three computers doing these tests, and it’s been quite an eye opener for me. Using my own real life scenes and systems shows mixed results that do not quite compare to the Blender tests. Like one of my supporters said, we don’t all own a high-end GPU from 2018 (i.e. the Qudro RTX 6000 for $4000… althou...
2021-05-14 03:31:46 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how you can select multiple keyframes on the timeline and move them at the same time. I'll also give you a quick overview of the graph editor while I'm at it. The toughest part is knowing where to find the actual keyframes, the rest will fall in place from there.
For Pinkish. Hope this helps!
2021-05-10 18:15:52 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how to get your hands on previous versions of WordPress Plugins from the official repository. I'll explain a bit about how they save files, how to browse plugin code, and where you need to navigate to download a ZIP copy.
I've just finished editing another DAZ video for you that should be along shortly.
2021-05-10 18:11:31 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you two ways of launching multiple instances of DAZ Studio at the same time. You could render in one while working on the next scene, or have multiple versions open and compare parameters. Be the master of your workflow and maximise your efficiency!
Please note that neither option is official supported, so please try this at your own risk.
In this episode I'll show you how to load a pose preset without applying the location/translation data that may be saved in it. Some poses were made to move the character into position for a set, but on occasion you may want for the figure not to move, instead posing it in the current position. This little trick will do just that.
Enjoy!
2021-05-06 19:59:32 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how to turn a regular object into a Smart Prop. This technique is used so that static items like jewellery and other accessories snap into place on a figure and move with it as you pose your character. Smart Props from one generation may not be compatible with another due to changes in the node/rigging setup, but you can manually tweak such items and save them out - I'll show you how.
For Paul.
2021-04-27 14:55:29 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how you can convert any Genesis 8 character into a Genesis 8.1 version. This can be helpful if you need a feature that's only available on Genesis 8.1, or if you've bought an accessory that is not backwards compatible with the 8.0 generation. It's fairly straightforward, and I'll give you some pointers along the way that lets us save a new character with clothing to the library. I'm using JoeQuick's beautiful Snowman as an exam...
2021-04-22 23:08:43 +0000 UTC
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My old iPhone 5s was still in good shape, but it no longer held a charge. The Apple Store said it's too old for them to replace the battery, so I ordered a Repair Kit from iFixit.com for $30. It took almost 2 hours and a lot of patience, but I've been able to fix it without issues! Here's a time-lapse montage of my success. I'm no expert, but I followed t...
2021-04-19 21:48:37 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how to bring MIxamo Animations into DAZ Studio and use them on Genesis 3 and 8. Mixamo have recently changed their settings, and I've received many requests for an updated DAZ focussed version of this workflow - and here it is.
I'll also explain my approach to find new settings when things inevitably stop working.
I had recorded another version of this video that's much shorter last week, which did assume a successful import into Mixamo. Since i...
2021-04-09 13:48:19 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you a quick hack to turn an object into a mirrored version of its own self. It'll work great to add variety to background objects, but may cause issues when you look too closely. I was discussing this principle with a viewer recently (Lamont), tried it out and thought this is a tip worth sharing with y'all.
I'm using a building from Stonemason's Urban Sprawl 3 set, turn it inside out and upside down, then tweak a texture map to fix the writing. Technicall...
2021-03-31 15:30:24 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll talk about how to use point lights in Iray, and how to turn them into a variety of light sources. I'll also explain why a HDRI does not reach an interior set and why it might be less useful, and I'll describe how to turn existing geometry in your scene into light sources.
For Angelee - I hope it's useful 😄
2021-03-30 17:55:13 +0000 UTC
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I’ve had a go at making a logo for my comic project Tales from Trundlewood. This was made with the HollyWords product (available from the DAZ Store), while listening to a virtual Miami Beach townhall meeting debating an 8pm curfew for visitors (thankfully not us residents).
My original vision was something like a sign you’d find at the entrance of a town, mentioning the population and a welcome message, mounted next to a large tree. Then I found this and thought it’ll do just fine...
2021-03-24 03:23:06 +0000 UTC
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Here's the thumbnail I've made for the expressions video I've uploaded recently. It's taken me a while to get back into the mood of spending time on thumbnails. This week that mood struck, and I came up with the little compilation above, and a few others I might share with you. This one features Jeff, my custom Genesis 3 character from Trundlewood.
I've rendered the four images in 1000x1000 and compiled them in Photoshop on a simple gradient backgr...
2021-03-17 12:57:51 +0000 UTC
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Here's a quick concept test I did yesterday: I brought a Mixamo animation into DAZ Studio and use it with Genesis 8 Female, exported it into Marvelous Designer, made a simple skirt, then exported both object and animation into Blender for rendering.
There are a LOT of steps to this process, but in principle it works. I'm following the same steps I've outlined in this article, with added Blender goodne...
2021-03-17 12:00:00 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll take a closer look at the aniHead plugin by dobit. It promises to capture head movements with a regular web cam for $40. I bought this recently while it was on sale and thought I'd share how it performs on my system, how to set it up, and I'll elaborate on its potential (un-)usefulness.
Enjoy!
2021-03-16 13:24:24 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll take a closer look at the Pose Architect product by 3D Universe. It's a thing that adds morph dials to pose your characters into positions that would be difficult to achieve with manual joint bends. It also has a magic formula that promises to make your figure maintain balance while it moves, which is extremely important to make poses look natural.
It's been on my wish-list for a while. I thought I'd try out the Genesis 3 Female version and share my first impr...
2021-03-15 15:40:26 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll take a closer look at Pugsley the Stylized Pug by 3D Universe. It's a stand-alone figure with plenty of morphs and expressions. I'm imagining him has a pet for one of the characters in my comic project.
You can buy this cute little fellow here.
Also, speaking of new DAZ things, I've recently been approved as an affiliate for their content. Anything you buy via this lin...
2021-03-13 22:02:09 +0000 UTC
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Howdy friends! I've been thinking of making "closer look" type videos about 3D content for a while, sharing what a product is actually like once you've bought it. I've picked up very both positive surprises as well as serious lemons over the years, and had there been in-depth looks at such products, it would have probably saved me quite some time and cash. Here's the first one in what could possibly become a segment on my channel.
This is a quick walk-though of the 2021-03-11 19:40:05 +0000 UTC
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I thought you might get a kick out of this: I've tried using GPU simulation for an animation, and the clothing ripped apart. It looked so funny I thought I'd share it with you. It simulated very fast for a medium complex garment, but sadly even on the higher settings the same thing happens. Guess this outfit won't work for what I'm trying to do.
Look at those socks flee the scene!
2021-03-11 19:19:31 +0000 UTC
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Ever since I've discovered DAZ Studio about 15 years ago, I thought "wouldn't it be cool to make a comic with this?". I was never serious about the idea, and other things always came up, but the principle has stayed with me for all these years.
Over the last few weeks that idea kept popping back up, and a vague idea has formed in my head that became more and more interesting with each passing day. I'd like to follow this story and see where it takes me. Since Monday I've been work...
2021-03-07 00:43:40 +0000 UTC
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I've just realised how behind I am with posting these videos on YouTube, simply because I'm currently not in the mood to make thumbnails 😁 I usually spend way too much time on those, trying to convey what's being said in a video in a single image. That's a tough job sometimes, especially if the subject matter is grey sliders and drop down menus! I'm sure I'll get inspired eventually. Until then, you're the only ones to see these recent releases.
Anyway, in this episode I'll exp...
2021-02-26 13:00:03 +0000 UTC
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Hot off the cutting room floor: In this episode I'll show you everything I know about making good expressions with Genesis 3 and 8 in DAZ Studio. I'll talk about where to find them, how they work, how you can mix them with visemes and how to save your own.
I'll cover how to use the Puppeteer and Power Pose tools in more detail in another video.
For Phil.
2021-02-24 16:20:03 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how to tweak the skeleton of a figure to match a custom character you've made. This applies only when you create a character outside of DAZ Studio via morphing, or combining various existing sliders into one. If you've ever had characters look like aliens when you pose them, this solution will help.
Written instructions here: 2021-02-23 19:28:15 +0000 UTC
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In this episode I'll show you how to use the "world's greatest pose converter" by AgentUnawares to use Genesis 3 poses on Genesis 8 characters. It's a simple pose with control slider that's installed in your library. Download the tool for free from his DevantArt page:
