Vikki Dawson

August 15, 2001

Digital painting will never be the same ever....

First things first....

Dear Santa,

I'm filling out my Christmas list early this year and it's a short one for the first time. The ONLY thing I want....my very own copy of ZBrush........

You just never know who reads these reviews.

I've reviewed a lot of software over the last three or so years and let's face it, you can't own everything, but the number of products that I have wanted to purchase for myself can be counted on one hand. ZBrush is one of those I have to have.

Giving ZBrush the Best of 2001 rating doesn't get close to expressing how I feel about this software. Best of Decade, Best All Time and Better Than The Best are all ratings I can verbalize that still can't express how great this software is.

If you aren't an artist and/or you don't possess any digital drawing skills then no software is going to save you. However, if you have just a little digital skill or artist in your blood ZBrush will enhance that a thousand fold. I'm no artist. I get by creating graphics for web pages. Nothing spectacular, a background, some buttons etc. Little did I know that with just my limited skills that I could create some of the things I've created with ZBrush. They may not be top notch by most standards or maybe any standards but the feeling I get when creating them is outstanding and the final products aren't so bad.

In reviewing ZBrush I had a machine with the following specs:

• PIII 450
• 256 MB RAM
• Windows 2000

The ZBrush team is extremely supportive as are all the ZBrush users both beginning level and advanced. No one is too short of time to help someone out at ZBrush  Central. You can post your questions, comments and art work there. It's a fun place to be and looking through all the creations is imagination inspiring. Posts are answered almost as soon as they are posted. The support that comes with ZBrush is amazing.

As well as the support there are experienced ZBrushers who create scripts, tools, props and more for you to download and use in your own creations.

There is not a shortage of tutorials and they cover just about everything you can think of that can be done with ZBrush right at ZBrush Central (linked below).

I'll try to control myself and get to the specifics of ZBrush (it's hard because all I want to do is open ZBrush and draw...it's downright addicting...)

What exactly is ZBrush?

Well, it's a 2D/3D painting tool that allows you the depth you need for your digital images to stand out as a cut above the rest. Oh sure, you can get depth painting in 2D programs, but I guarantee you won't do it as fast, as real or as easy as you'll do it with ZBrush.

But that's not all the power that ZBrush has. Are you working with a team of artists or need to train a new member of the team? ZBrush makes it easy. ZBrush can record everything you do so you can share your techniques across ZBrush users. Create your own ZMovies. Create tutorials that run in ZBrush to teach others your techniques.

And there's more...you can create ZScripts. You can create ZScripts that control the interface. By this I mean that you can create scripts that are plain text files to initialize settings and apply them to objects automatically. This is really cool and since the scripts are plain text files they are small in size and are easily distributable to other ZBrush users.

The pure power of ZBrush is not only in it's drawing capabilities but also in that fact that you can create your own textures, material and objects and save them for later use. This comes in real handy when you have objects you want to use again and again. Below is the Tool palette. As you can see I have a head tool that I have saved and loaded back in to ZBrush. All that's needed now is to draw it on the canvas and do whatever I need with it.

From the screenshot of the interface above you can see palettes on the left and right side of the main drawing canvas. You can leave them there or place them in the main palette shown below.

Below are the basic tools (objects and brushes) in ZBrush. Don't think that's all there is. With the tool palette and the Deformation option all kinds of things can be created and saved for later use.

See the default materials below. Of course you can create your own also.

ZBrush is such an awesome tool that there is no way for me to cover everything. It's mind boggling all the things that ZBrush and your imagination can do. It's limitless.

So in a very small nutshell ZBrush is a 2D/3D Painting tool that brings everything you draw to life. It is easy to use and learn and I found it most fun to just play around in the interface to learn how to use it.

Not only do you learn a new way of painting but you can't help but learn more about yourself and the environment around you. ZBrush makes your perception of how things really are more acute.

(click on image for larger view)

ZBrush is totally enjoyable environment to spend all your time in. It truly is addicting.

Some Features

• Quick and easy to learn

• Learning is cumulative

• Depth sensitive drawing and brushes

• Create your own seamless textures

• Add/modify lighting

• ZScripts

• ZMovies

• Export to .obj, .dxf, .bmp and .psd

• Import .obj, .dxf, .bmp and .psd

• Import and Export Poser figures

• Layers

• Create something immediately

• and more, more, more....so much more....

Import and export models to and from Poser. Below is a model imported into ZBrush from Poser. You can modify the model and then export it for import it back into Poser.

(Object on the left is a modified version of the object on the right)

The electronic manual is well written, quite complete and details all the ZBrush capabilities but, if you find yourself at a loss it won't be for long. It takes a quick visit to ZBrush Central, post your question and answers are just almost immediate.

The images below were done in the first seven days of having ZBrush and since I'm not an artist I know the best is yet to come. They are ordered by creation. As you can see a little practice can show a lot of improvement. I can't pick up a pencil and draw a thing but, I can open up ZBrush and within an hour be successful in creating something fun. The more I play, the more I learn and the more I love ZBrush.

    
(click on the images above for larger representation)

Since I'm currently lacking in the skill it takes to create something so spectacular it's beyond words with ZBrush, and I know it's possible, so I'll just point you to two of the many awesome things I've seen done with ZBrush. This is only two. You only have to read through the forum linked below to see what can be achieved using this magnificent tool.

A Salute to the Dutch Masters by Adman

CHEETOR by The Saint

ZBrushCentral Forum - Help galore

ZBrushCentral QuickLinks - Tutorials galore

You owe it to yourself to run over to Pixologic and pick up the demo version and try it out. You'll be missing something special if you don't.

Before I head back to playing in ZBrush I want to add my special thanks to all the ZBrushers at ZBrush Central for their friendly and open attitudes as well as the tips and pointers given freely in almost immediate response to posts there.

What we have here is a product that is spectacularly supported by it's manufacturer as well as it's users. Responses are fast, friendly and most of all extremely helpful. A product that is stable and quite a combination of 2D and 3D technologies to give you the best combination of both worlds in one application.

Copyright 2001, Vikki Dawson, All Rights Reserved