3d Vector Tool For Clean Sculpting
I would be really cool if there was a 3d vector sculpting tool that one could use to clean up sculpt mesh.
First a user would build a 3d vector then apply it to modify or clean up sculpt surfaces and edges.
The 3d vector could be moved/snapped and positioned on a sculpting mesh and then stroke applied.
Vector options would include how individual surfaces and edges are manipulated such as roundness/sharpness of edges and flatness/concave or convex the surfaces.
9 Comments
Do you mean a displacement texture? A brush for displacement textures?
* @Josephbburg *
Sorry for not being clear enough. AFAIK, displacement texturing would be done on a finished base mesh, whereas I'm thinking of a tool for helping to finish the base mesh. This new tool would smooth selected areas of the base mesh with vector perfection. Presently the curve stroke method does part of what I mean: the stroke is based on a string of vector nodes, where as I'm thinking it could be helpful if a plane or 3d shape as a stroke method would be helpful vs just a string of nodes.
* @blenderartist18 * This almost sounds like weight painting for shape-keys, but as a sculpting brush. I don't know how that would work.
Anyhow, you should check out the relax brush that Pablo Dobarro is working on. It's not what you're suggesting, but it's good for smoothing a model.
* @Josephbburg *
There are many ways this idea could be applied. Maybe the basic idea could be better understood this way:
First you create a object in layout mode. This object then could be used as a new sculpting brush. Wherever the brush is applied this shape is either pushed into the mesh or pulled up from mesh. One exception with brush objects would be that vertices would also be nodes with handles, so the edges could all define curves.
* @blenderartist18 * Hmmm, now this sounds like the shrinkwrap modifier with vertex groups (project mode), and the target object has a corrective smooth modifier and a shape key.
I don't think it'll make sense unless you make a picture or a video.
* @Josephbburg * I appreciate you helping find a better way to describe it with words. Now I'll have to think how I can create a visual representation that would make it easy to grasp.
Maybe this can be my first animation project. I've been concentrating on sculpting mostly as a new blender user.
For this proposal to be really actionable, it needs to be a lot more specific and clear about what's being suggested. Not everyone here uses the same terms, so when you talk about a "3d Vector Tool", you need to be a lot more clear about what exactly that is, how it works, and how you would expect to use it in Blender's interface. Mock-ups that show it in action are a huge help.
* @Jason van Gumster *
Sorry for the confusion. I'll delete this post and re-post it if I can at the least get the idea actionable.
The goal of this idea is help clean up sculpting meshes with a perfect vector smoothness.
The Curve tool in Sculpt Method does a great job at perfect smoothness, but it's action is limited to a simple string of nodes where it would be nice if such an effect could be determined by a plane or geometric shape.
If the the curve tool features were extended to planes and 3d shapes it would describe my basic idea in a nutshell.
The Sculpt Method category which now has these options: curve, line, anchored, airbrush, space, drag dot, and dot
This idea would include a new option:
Addition of Sculpt Plane Method:
If you connect the end nodes of the present curve tool you would have a plane. This plane could be moved parallel to sculpting mesh. The user could then apply the plane brush stroke. The effect is that the target plane of the mesh will be morphed into the shape of the brush plane.
A brush plane should have an option concave/convex adjustment.
The lines of a brush plane should have an option of roundness that is separate from the concave/convex of the surface of the plane
The plane nodes should be extendable to create new connected planes to allow complex 3d shapes to be used for stroking methods.
So if I had spherical mesh in sculpting mode and I encapsulated it with a cubical shaped 3d vector and applied the brush stroke, the spherical mesh would morph to the shape of a cube.
* @blenderartist18 * For what it's worth, because in Blender you're fundamentally dealing with mesh data, I don't think you'll ever get "perfect vector smoothness". The closest you'll get is obscenely high-poly smoothness... and we already have a fair number of performance bottlenecks in the way of getting there.