Sculptie Newb

Okay, I've downloaded Blender, and the tutorials are acting more like trials and making less sense then a Jerry Springer episode having Dr. Phil as the Guest speaker. I admit my learning skills tend more to hands on then reading how to, even tho I truly love to read. I learned to make my own templates for shirts and tatts before I found out there were templates already made. But now I'm dealing with Sculpties, or trying to, and I need suggestions and advice. I need to know of a sculptie prog that allows for the hands on approach to learning, hopefully that might have built in sample maps that I can twist, stretch, and otherwise just play with and see what happens when I hit THIS button, or even have an assortment of built in templates as somewhere to start then edit to reach the desired results. I'd prefer something that does not require yet another program to convert the map to SL compliant.

I've spent quite a bit so far on sculptie maps made by others, and they are quite good, but I can never seem to get everything I want and need and often lack the words needed to describe what I see behind my eyelids (not to mention lacking the patience to wait till someone else gets around to attempting to make what I've described). So it seems I'm going to have to learn to make my own.

Must admit I'm kinda in the same boat as you.

I downloaded a few free Sculptie programs:

Rokuro
Tokoroten
Sculpty Paint
Blender

And that Wings one.

The problem it seems is that there's no REAL ACTUAL sculptie kinda program as such, it just feels like there are bits and pieces that people use and combine to create their items.

Like you, I'm not a great reader and would like something that makes it easy and I can fiddle with, and get something made, and I can tweak and learn from there.

Well, I am an avid reader, and will happily read almost anything in print. And with better then average comprehension (sp?) and retention of what I read. It's just that what I read doesn't seem to translate for me into actions, and doing a step by step, back and forth between the instructions and the program may be all well and good, but I don't happen to NEED an Apple, Dolphin, or Snowman shape. And that's all I'd end up with. I also downloaded Rokuru, but if it even HAS help files I haven't found them yet.

I have found that Sculpt Studio is an excellent in-world tool for people like myself who have had little or no previous experience of sculpting. SS uses the familiar SL building tools and a system of notecards to save and store the work, which leaves beginners plenty of 'space' to focus on getting to grips with the basic concepts and pitfalls of sculpting for SL (creating a sharp sculpt mesh, taking LOD into account, texturing). There are plenty of free examples included with the tools.

Ghanie Lane provides an excellent five-part tutorial on using SS:

http://ghanielane.livejournal.com/1860.html

I would recommend taking a couple of hours and following her tutorial to begin with. There is also a very lively and helpful support group: Sweet Sculpties, which is maintained by TheBlack Box, the creator of Sculpt Studio.

You will eventually need to get to grips with a more professional application as your skills develop but this makes a pretty good starting point.

Re Sculpt Studio:

What does this review mean?


"If there was a professional version available that let me create the sculpted prim, with ME as creator, I'd buy it"


Does this mean that even after paying out L$5000 that you are not the creator of the Sculptie and it shows someone else as the creator?

If that's the case then I'm not interested

there are some good tutorials here for blender..

http://blog.machinimatrix.org/video-tutorials/

it seems tuff at first but once you get the hang of blender it's really a great program..
just get the scripts you need for it to import and export sculpties and also get the nurbs to sculptie script they have on the their site..

the tutorials are pretty much in order from the instulation on up ..and they cover a lot of area..

Can you provide pointers to some examples ? And why you think, they are useless ? That might help to improve our own tutorials ...

Useless, for ME. because running those tutorials ends with me having a cute little Apple, which I don't need or want, a nice Snowman and Winter Scene, again which I neither need nor want, or a very nice Dolphin. Yet again being not what I need nor what I wish to make. And the way my own brain operates, for whatever reason, those items are all I'd learn to make.

As I stated earlier, I created my own body templates for making shirts and tattoos for SL before I found out there even WERE templates for such. And attempts at using those ready made templates leave me with seams that don't match or a tattoo that's anywhere other then where I was trying to place it. For reasons I can't explain, the 'Industry Standard' training system simply doesn't work with me. I end up learning nothing beyond how to create the items in the various tutorials, with no knowledge or info on how to re-create those shapes into what I do need and want.

And yes, I did consider one of the sculpt map systems that use effective 'Brushes' to shape some basic starter piece into what I needed, but what I can see in my mind and what I can draw on paper or screen are seldom related.

I can only tell you about blender.

- If your concern is that you have to "install" domino's scripts after you have installed blender, then i can't help.

- If you can manage to download these scripts and tell blender where to find them, you allready got everything you ask for.

- If you need assistance how to install the domino scripts, you can watch our installation movie. (google for "machinimatrix blog"

- If you need assistance how to work with blender, you can watch our blender-primer video.

- If you need assistance how to make your first sculptie, watch more videos ...

- If you want a sculptie by 2 clicks... google for nurbs2sculptie

- If blender is still not your thing, just forget my post here. I am sure, you will find your convenient tool sooner or later...

Good luck for any way you choose

Where does that quote come from, Piggie? Sculpt Studio does not compromise your rights as creator in any way.

It was from XStreetSl.

A comment a user? made about Scult Studio.

I didn't like the idea (if it was true) that you could spend evenings working on a something in Sculpt Studio, and although you had full rights, it did not have you down as the Sculpt Creator.

That's not true then is it?

This was the impression this person gave and stopped me buying it till I found out for myself.

So, just to clarify. if I make a sculptie in Sculpt Studio then I am the full creator of the item and have full rights etc etc etc..... ?
And no aspect of the Sculpty links back to Sculpt Studio in any way?

If you are looking for a hands on, free for all thing then take a look at zBrush. It's a mouse driven sculpting program which is used by many real world sculptors to create digital designs. I'm not sure what kind of support it offers for SL but I'm sure exporting shouldn't be too difficult.

I will second, third, and fourth the recommendation for Sculpt Studio. I've been using it for maybe a month now and my ability to make sculpties has just accelerated from the moment I got it. It is very hands on, not hard to understand. It takes a little bit of playing to learn how the tool actually works, but it has documentation and a nice "starting out" walkthrough to get you started and a fantastic support community behind it.

I can explain the above quote... whoever made that quote was very misinformed, though I know how they came to their conclusion. The sculpt studio has a prim stored inside of it and you can have the tool rez this prim and apply your map to it, already scaled appropriately ready to go for a quick look at what you have just created. If you don't modify the studio replacing that prim with one of your own, it will show that prim as being created by TheBlack Box (the creator of sculpt studio). However, all you have to do is apply the map you created to a prim that you rezzed yourself and it shows you as the creator and even the "sculpt prim" that the tool rezzes is very easy to replace with your own prim so that even that shows as being created by you. So Sculpt Studio in no way compromises your rights as the creator of a sculptie. It is an excellent tool, powerful and fun to use. It's worth much more than the L$5000 price tag.

Thanks for clearing this up, with this in mind I'm going to buy this product as I've been somewhat underwhelmed with some other utils so far.

Just to update. Bit the bullet and bought it, and made my 2nd Scupltie (only just about know what I'm doing so far) But Looks very good and I'm impressed

i recommend sculpt studio . i have it and it is amazing tool . u can be the creator of your work . it is a fun tool also and u can make anything out if it and if i can figure it out any one can cause i am just about pc illiterate as u get . it is by far the best money i have spent in sl so far. u can save your work if u get tired and reload it when ever u want . its just amazing tool . get it if u do sculptys u wont regret it and there are free classes given and one is in voice so u can actually hear them explaining stuff to u and u can ask questions.

Since I first opened this thread I've also purchased Sculpt Studio and been both surprised and impressed with the ease of use and the results possible. And Piggy? From your quote about Creator and Creator Rights concerning SS. The answer is quite simple. Everything you create with SS really is YOURS and you are the Creator of it. what that person was seeing and getting hung up on was in using the built in Sculpt Prim to try out a new map on. That prim, being included in the package, of course shows the creator of SS as it's creator regardless of whatever shape it's current owner has applied via a sculpt map. Apply your maps to prims that YOU create, and they will of course show you as creator. They are your maps after all, and you can apply them to any prim you have the needed perms on. if the prim you apply them to was not created by you.......

and if u want to use theblackbox prim u can change the creator as u in the contents tab of the sculpt studio. there is info on this somewhere i cant recall but it tells u exactly how to change it . then u dont have to create your own prim . u can use the one in the ss matt and it will say u as the creator . but the simplest way is just create your own prim

Wow blast from the past here.

Yes, I understood the ownership issue and confusion long long ago.

Thanks for the confirmation and following it up though.

Just to note: I've made more in Wings3D in one evening than I did in sculpt studio since buying it, though to be honest, sculpt studio just looked a dam hard way of making something, but I know this is not true as I have just not spent the time on it.

I need to get back to it.

Just been doing so many other things.

And I like the way in something like Wings, I can just pick a point and stretch surfaces.

I found SculptStudio very time consuming to learn, and yes there are plenty of tutorials for it and the people who run the inworld ones are very nice. However, I find it difficult to listen to what is being said (at a class) without me actually seeing on my own model what is being done. "Nice" doesn't always equal productivity. And the program itself is rather expensive. I would suggest that you join the group (no charge to join-called "Sweet Sculpties" listen in on the chatter and maybe go to an in world class before you decide to buy it. This way you know whether its for you or not before you shell out your Ls.

I've had pretty good success using "Tatara" which combines all the functions of Rokuro and Tokorotten and a few more as well. For someone like me who is a "visual" learner I found it fairly easy to figure out without having to read pages of tutorials and take any in world classes. AC3D is another good one, inexpensive and easy to learn, and Wings3D.