daz3d and confused

September 5, 2012 6:32 PM

I've downloaded daz3d! Ummm. Now what? Any tutorial articles, vids or whatevers in helping a rank n00b get a semi-animated storyboard off the ground would be of immense help.

Isn't there supposed to be a figure to pose in here somewhere? Do I have to buy it? I'm looking to storyboard stuff, maybe with costumes/clothes, maybe a small bit of animation. Photorealism is not required or desired, but natural poses and interaction with the environment (big stuff they run into, are caught in, hit with, etc.) to a certain degree is. I'm thrilled there's a free program, but the learning curve is more of a precipice...

posted by Slap*Happy to Computers & Internet (3 answers total)

All these sort of programs can seem intimidating at first. Most have getting started type tutorials you can use to get your feet wet. I don't have any experience with Daz3d, but here are some tutorials on their website:

http://www.daz3d.com/explore/explore-getting-started
posted by meta87 at 6:53 PM on September 5, 2012

I did a quick search in deviantArt's resources and stock category and there seem to be models as well as costume parts and textures. Not sure they are free or can be downloaded there, but many artists link back to their pages where download/purchase options are listed.
posted by MinusCelsius at 2:29 AM on September 6, 2012

I've been using DAZStudio and Poser for years, initially just to get my feet wet in 3D and now as a lighting reference tool for digital painting. DAZStudio 4 comes with a figure called the Unimesh which you can load from the content library. It first appears as an androgynous figure. On the right hand side of the screen, you then use dials to select basic male, basic female, etc. Other unimesh "shapes" may be purchased from the DAZ3D web site. There are also a number of other figures DAZ provides for free. I think basic Victoria and Mike 4 are still free, for instance.

DAZStudio isn't all that great for things like collision and physics. It can be simulated, but the toolset isn't particularly focused on it. Its primary focus is on rendering still figures.

If I were you, I'd seriously consider learning Blender. Not instead, exactly--you can import DAZ figures into Blender to rig them, and Blender has a much richer toolset for animating. I think if you export from DS4 using the collada format you might even get basic rigging, but I'm not 100% positive on that.

There are tutorials all over the place, but I think the best place to start would be to read the manual. It's not too bad and will familiarize you with the interface so that other tutorials will make more sense. Once you can do basic walk cycles and simulations in DAZStudio, then pick up Blender. The interface on Blender used to be pretty awful, but since 2.5 it's become a different and much more wonderful beast.
posted by xyzzy at 2:13 PM on September 6, 2012