Grass tutorial using Fur Tool and Google SketchUp

Here is an excellent tutorial from Ricco Andrew Calda Cabigas. In this tutorial Ricco used a script called Fur tool by takhata. Download this tool HERE. The images will tell you the process. Thanks to Ricco for this nifty tutorial.

Here is the Final Output











Fur Tools settings

Tutorial: Night Scene Render using Vray SketchUp

Here is a night scene rendering Tutorial from Jonathan Ignas.
Visit more of his tutorials and work in his blog HERE.

Tutorial: Modelling using Curviloft and SketchUp

This will be a series of curviloft tutorial from Karlheinz Hauser of Germany. In this tutorial he will show us how he uses Curviloft (Loft and Skinning) script developed by Fredo. Get the download link of this script HERE.

Note: Be sure to also download the lates LibFredo script which is a must to make Fredo's scripts work in SketchUp.

What is Curviloft?
Curviloft is still in its beta phase. It is a script created by Fredo and dedicated to Loft and Skinning;  generation of surfaces from contours. It has three main aspects:

• Loft by Spline - joins separate contours, open or closed, by smooth splines
• Loft along Path - joins contours, along a given rail curve.
• Skinning - create surfaces bounded by 4 or 3 contiguous contours

The image below shows the result of using loft by Spline, Long along Path and Skinning. 

Modeling Ring using Curviloft and SketchUp

We would like to thank Kalheinz Hauser for allowing us use his images and to post them here. I will be adding some further explanations to each image made by Kalheinz to elucidate the different steps.


Introduction:

I want to show some basic techniques with "Curviloft. So far I have not explored all the parameter changes. I used mainly the Twisting function. For the basic shape I used the tool "Perpendicular Faces". Basically, almost all Faceprofiles are possible. The selection of the faces should always happen in a consecutive way. Otherwise it is difficult due to unforeseeable results. The possibilities are almost no limits set. "Kalheinz Hauser"

Curviloft twisting behaviour 

Step 1: Create different faces along the Z axis.
Step 2: Select each faces one by one as shown



Step 3: Open curviloft toolbar and click "Create Loft Junction".  Then click the upper part. Properties of the Edited junction will pop-out.


Step 4 and 5

Select each loft face and change the increment value of 1. The face will be twisted 90 degrees. Then click the check icon to finish and generate geometry.




Unsoften the edges. Click window/soften edges to access "soften edges" move the slider to the left to  "0 degrees" to unsoften the surface.



For a much better looking model, you can add subdivision. Subdivide and Smooth script by Dale Martens can be used to add subdivision. I am using 1 iteration here. See the results.




Now from that we can make the model a bit complicated. From simple square, I am using the profile below.  You can also play by rotating the faces. This will give you different result.


The same profile, I am now arranging all the elements along the path of a quarter circle.




From the previous exercise, select all the the faces, and click "create loft junction".


Changing the increment value to 1.




I made four more copies using the copy rotate tool. I made a simple ring.

Featured Artist: Ricardo Cossoli

Our next featured artist is Ricardo Cossoli of Argentina. We knew Ricardo through his postings with Sketchucation.com, Asgvis and other foreign forums. He produced some of the impressive renders in the forums. Today, he is a partner of "Three Dimensions" doing lots of visualization projects in Argentina. We would like to thank Ricardo for allowing us to interview him in this site.

SVR: Please tell us a little about yourself.

RC: My name is Ricardo Cossoli (rcossoli for forums). I am an Argentinian and a student of architecture. I work in an architectural firm, and I like spending time on architectural visualization. In visualization I work with my partner (Mariano Fernandez) and both of us founded "Three Dimensions" in August 2008. We like 3D visualization because it offers us the opportunity to work with different types of projects. In general we do residential for different clients and individual requirements.

SVR: Tell us about Sketch Up. How did you get this software? Are you using other 3D software?

RC: I began with SketchUp5. Before that, I had only seen my current partner who was using SU version 4; and I did not understood what it was all about. When I started using  SketchUp5, it was only for the purpose of modeling. I had neither any idea of the world of rendering, nor about  architecture visualization. It was only after with the development of a free rendering engine called Kerkythea, that I began to know more about rendering. After a few times of working with it, and reaching different level of sophistication and complexity, we  decided to use another rendering engine- VRAY SU. This is what we use today which has given us the best results.

I used different 3D modeling program in the past; several times I tried 3DS Max and Rinhoceros. I must say that I never reached a level of attachment with them.  I am trusting that SketchUp will advance towards a more sophisticated version with high poly support in the future.

SVR: Who or what inspires you?

RC: My main inspiration is architecture and the different works that can be seen everywhere - this its the reason why I even started using 3D. In addition, I always look at different web pages, not for inspiration, but to find out what new sophistication are being achieved. No matter what software or technique is being used, everything are sources of new insights.

Personally, there are many artists who inspire me. I like some of them because of the way they work with specific type of material or media, other for the way they work with lighting, some with composition and viewpoints. I think that companies like Luxigon, Mir, Vionix have taken the visualization beyond photo-realism. Many other artists who also work with SketchUp as main modeling program are Pete Stoppel "solo", tranganhhp of Vietnam SketchUp forum, Jacques Cleghorn (I saw his work in Sketchup Artist), Teofilo Pardo (a Mexican who is very good with Vray), Scott Baumberger, nomer! (Who always helps a lot with his tutorials) and many other artists whose names do not come to my mind in this moment.

SVR: Can you talk briefly about SketchUp in your country? 

RC: SketchUp is widely used in Argentina. Unfortunately, there is no organized forum or community among Argentinians. In recent years we made great progress in the possibility to visualize space, massing and accurate details of the design even before the final rendering process. In our office, we used to have different software, more sophisticated ones; but now we only mostly use SketchUp because it offers the possibility to visualize the project intuitively, and architectural modeling is fast and easy.

An Argentinian SketchUp forum community where resources, information, tutorials, etc. can be shared would be very useful.  I believe this is possible in the near future.

SVR: Any advice for those who are new to the display.

RC: The first tip is to read, learn, study and practice. Everything we do to improve our work will never be in vain. Second, participate in forums in an active way; be sensitive with the resources you need to improve your work. The Internet is a valuable source of endless knowledge, a reason why we should always be looking beyond our borders. Third, be a risk taker; it is the most important thing to be a successful person. Finally, be persistent. Persevere in doing your passion until you are satisfied with your work.

Here are some more images courtesy of Ricardo.





To see more of Ricardo's work visit the following:

Web: www.threedimensionsweb.com

Blog: http://threedimensionsarg.blogspot.com/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/threedimensionsweb

Tutorial: Chair Modeling by Alvis

Alvis from Lithuania shared briefly his workflow how he modeled  his chairs. Alvis used SketchUp and a script called "Subdivide and Smooth" by Dale Martens.  He also use another scripts called "curviloft" by Fredo to create loft and "line to cylinder'' by D. Bur.

Note: If you want to use curviloft, be sure to download the latest LibFredo. All plugins can be downloaded at Ruby Library Depot.

Overall scenes shots showing the modeling of chairs and stools





Once the basic frame was done, then smooth tool of smooth and subdivide will be use with the basic frame. To have the thickness, the same model can be copied and rescaled. See image below. Then loft tool will be used. Subdivision and smooth will be used again.



To add the metal trimming, edges were copied and selected. Line to cylinder script was use to create the tubes.


Below is a rendered image using Twilight.

Tutorial: Creating 2d personalized people in SketchUp

Mon Samuel Benitez  aka. Vivisik of CgPinoy shared his entourage tutorial.

Step 1: Choose any picture that you want to create.

Step 2: Copy  and paste this file in Autocad for easy tracing. Although this can also be done is SketchUp. 

Step 3: Trace the file using polyline and once you are done with tracing you save the file (see image below)

Step 4. 

Open SketchUp. Import and open the drawing file in Sketchup.

Step 5. 

Retrace some of the lines until you see faces. Close some of the lines to create face.

Step 6. Once all the faces are done, apply colors and materials. Rotate it upward and resize it (by proportion). Here I used Bryce as my reference for the height.

Step 7. Then Select the whole thing, right click and make component; rename it and check always face camera.

Done...Save your component into a new file. Below are some of the components I did using the same technique.

Now you have personalized SketchUp 2d people. You can put all these components in one folder or submit them and share in Google 3d warehouse..

Cheers!