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A Big Reason I Use Carrara

Steve KSteve K Posts: 3,234
in Carrara Discussion

I started out using Bryce and Poser, then switched to Carrara when I learned that it handled Poser content (Figures, Props, etc.) better than Poser.  And it loads that content directly from its browser ("Add Runtime").   There is a vast selection of such content available, and there contiuens to be new content on a daily basis.  I still do use Poser when necessary, e.g. ERC models whose coordinated element movements do not translate to Carrara.  But that's fairly rare, 95+% of the time I work in Carrara.  FWIW, here is a history of Poser back to its first version in 1995:

https://www.renderosity.com/a-brief-history-of-poser-with-larry-weinberg-cms-21600

Comments

  • MistaraMistara Posts: 38,675

    i came from poser also. poser and wings 3d

    dynamic hair and cloth in carrara is less aggravating.  one of the reasons i stuck with carrara thru the learning curve.

    and so easy to adjust a mesh.

     

  • Steve KSteve K Posts: 3,234
    Mystarra said:

    and so easy to adjust a mesh.

    I am not a modeler, but even I get into the Model room to alter a purchased model.  An example is a flag on a sailing ship, standing straight out.  For an animation, this is not desirable.  So I go to the model room and select a poly, then keep expanding the selection until the whole flag is selected, and delete it.  this works for a lot of similar situations.  I don't think Poser can do that.

     

  • SileneUKSileneUK Posts: 1,975
    Steve K said:
    Mystarra said:

    and so easy to adjust a mesh.

    I am not a modeler, but even I get into the Model room to alter a purchased model.  An example is a flag on a sailing ship, standing straight out.  For an animation, this is not desirable.  So I go to the model room and select a poly, then keep expanding the selection until the whole flag is selected, and delete it.  this works for a lot of similar situations.  I don't think Poser can do that.

     

    Carrara allows a lot of kit-bashing, too.  Am knee-deep in bits and pieces all scoured from products to put together scenes or customised kit for my project which owns all my time now. Gives me a whole new library. Haven't bought a texture in years... make all my own now, too.

    OK, head down... no distractions!

     yes  Silene

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,200
    edited July 2019

    I am moving in on that Spline room like a thirsty hoe

    making a champagne bottle with a big punt on the bottom even

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  • evilproducerevilproducer Posts: 9,050

    Keep at it Wendy! If you want advice, just ask and I will answer if I know how to do it.

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,200
    edited July 2019
    evilproducer said:

    Keep at it Wendy! If you want advice, just ask and I will answer if I know how to do it.

    I just started with a few of the examples and figured out moving, adding and removing points for the profiles can create all sorts of phallic dildoish things devil and bottles and containers!

    Early days still don’t know enough to ask questions but figured out the basic concept of lathing a shape by moving points, know if you intersect them you get a multiple point warning  dialogue pop up so have to pull the little angled line on it to remove the overlapping lines.

    the only thing I am wondering is if the base profile shape it’s extruded along can be anything other than a oblong or an ellipse.

    I want to do stars or other non uniform shapes but it does not seem to let me.

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • evilproducerevilproducer Posts: 9,050

    You can draw any shape you want to extrude. It can also take Illustrator files to use. To draw a shape, use the pen tool on the drawing plane to draw your shape. You can then use the curve tool on the points in the shape to curve the lines.

    You can also curve the shape of the extrusion path.

     

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  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,200
    edited July 2019
    evilproducer said:

    You can draw any shape you want to extrude. It can also take Illustrator files to use. To draw a shape, use the pen tool on the drawing plane to draw your shape. You can then use the curve tool on the points in the shape to curve the lines.

    You can also curve the shape of the extrusion path.

     

    TY, I did not try from scratch 

    using the pen tool on existing mesh was messed up

    will play with it more yes

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • evilproducerevilproducer Posts: 9,050

    To get the hole, you would combine shapes as compounds. I may start a thread with a basic tutorial tomorrow or this weekend.

     

  • SileneUKSileneUK Posts: 1,975
    edited July 2019

    When I first joined Carrara, I took a teapot image and vectored it into Illustrator, then to the spline room here and then the person who wanted it applied the texture and it looked great. 

    I had forgotten how well that works.   I did my cliffs for my terrain by tracing the aerial surveyed contour of the actual location from a site diagram, then imported them into Illustrator to vector them, then into Carrara and extruded them to a certain height to use as a template (see brown template in first photo) for creating the ins and outs of the cliff faces to put into a height map (which I made based on the survey data of cliff height).  Once I got the general contours, then it became a vertex object. I then dropped the template back in to create  the bumps and lumps with dispilacement and moving vertices around staying within the surveyed conttours.... then textured. 

    I am still working on the terrain and adding more surrounding terrains and features which have to be guessed at. I did travel to the location to take photos of the hills and such, but after 30,000 years it probably has changed LOL!  

    Note:  I did try to do some of this in Zbrush, but actually?  Carrara modelling room did a good job for me. Going from a heightmap terrain to a vertex model without having to change programmes is really useful. 

    cheeky  Silene

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  • DesertDudeDesertDude Posts: 1,235
    SileneUK_Carrara said:

    When I first joined Carrara, I took a teapot image and vectored it into Illustrator, then to the spline room here and then the person who wanted it applied the texture and it looked great. 

    I had forgotten how well that works.   I did my cliffs for my terrain by tracing the aerial surveyed contour of the actual location from a site diagram, then imported them into Illustrator to vector them, then into Carrara and extruded them to a certain height to use as a template (see brown template in first photo) for creating the ins and outs of the cliff faces to put into a height map (which I made based on the survey data of cliff height).  Once I got the general contours, then it became a vertex object. I then dropped the template back in to create  the bumps and lumps with dispilacement and moving vertices around staying within the surveyed conttours.... then textured. 

    I am still working on the terrain and adding more surrounding terrains and features which have to be guessed at. I did travel to the location to take photos of the hills and such, but after 30,000 years it probably has changed LOL!  

    Note:  I did try to do some of this in Zbrush, but actually?  Carrara modelling room did a good job for me. Going from a heightmap terrain to a vertex model without having to change programmes is really useful. 

    cheeky  Silene

    SileneUK, Very clever use of various modeling tools in Carrra with beautiful results. Nice!

  • evilproducerevilproducer Posts: 9,050
    Very nice, Silene
  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 38,200
    edited July 2019

    is cool they can be animated too

    just a weird squiggle

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,165
    SileneUK_Carrara said:

    When I first joined Carrara, I took a teapot image and vectored it into Illustrator, then to the spline room here and then the person who wanted it applied the texture and it looked great. 

    I had forgotten how well that works.   I did my cliffs for my terrain by tracing the aerial surveyed contour of the actual location from a site diagram, then imported them into Illustrator to vector them, then into Carrara and extruded them to a certain height to use as a template (see brown template in first photo) for creating the ins and outs of the cliff faces to put into a height map (which I made based on the survey data of cliff height).  Once I got the general contours, then it became a vertex object. I then dropped the template back in to create  the bumps and lumps with dispilacement and moving vertices around staying within the surveyed conttours.... then textured. 

    I am still working on the terrain and adding more surrounding terrains and features which have to be guessed at. I did travel to the location to take photos of the hills and such, but after 30,000 years it probably has changed LOL!  

    Note:  I did try to do some of this in Zbrush, but actually?  Carrara modelling room did a good job for me. Going from a heightmap terrain to a vertex model without having to change programmes is really useful. 

    cheeky  Silene

     

     

    Thank you, SileneUK.  Some great tips, there.

     

  • DiomedeDiomede Posts: 15,165
    Wendy_Carrara said:

    is cool they can be animated too

    just a weird squiggle

    If UVMapping can be avoided with procedural shaders, along with the rectangle tool to place logos, then spline models can be super-xcellent-errific!

     

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