Controlling Edge Flow with Modifiers When modeling assets in Blender, controlling the flow and smoothness of edges is critical for achieving a clean, optimized, and intentional final render. Blender offers two powerful modifiers that allow polygonal modelers to refine sharp edges and smooth out meshes – the Bevel Modifier and the Subdivision Surface Modifier. Understanding…
What is Subdivision Surface Modeling? Subdivision surface modeling is a modeling technique used to create smooth surfaces and forms. It works by subdividing a base mesh into smaller faces, allowingdetails to be added while keeping the surface curvature smooth and controllable. In Blender, the Subdivision Surface modifier is used to achieve this effect. It subdivides…
Simulating Light Passing Through Glass The first step in faking realistic caustics through glass is setting up the glass material itself to accurately simulate the way light passes through it. This requires configuring the refraction node in the glass material to model the bending and distortion of light rays as they move from one medium…
Understanding Light Behavior in Glass Light rays behave uniquely when they encounter glass materials. As light strikes glass, some of it is reflected off the surface, some is transmitted through, and the rest is absorbed and scattered. The amount of light that is reflected, transmitted, and absorbed depends on variables like the glass’s index of…
The Problem of Darkness in Glass Glass materials often suffer from an excess of darkness in areas like the interior of a glass vase or glass bowl. This darkness occurs because glass allows light to pass straight through without diffusing internally. With inadequate surrounding light sources, the inside of glass objects can become almost pitch…
Identifying Occlusion and Shadow Problems Occlusion and shadow issues in Blender can manifest in various ways during renders. Common problems include objects partially or fully occluding themselves, surfaces having incorrect or missing shadows, and shadows displaying pixelated “triangle” artifacts. Self-occlusion occurs when an object blocks light from reaching parts of itself. This can cause unnatural…
Definition of Z-Fighting Z-fighting refers to the visual artifact that occurs when two or more surfaces in a 3D scene occupy essentially the same space, resulting in flickering as the faces rapidly swap which one is visible. It is caused by vertices sharing the same coordinate space, either exactly or within an imperceptibly small tolerance….
Realistic Glass Materials: Core Concepts Glass is a transparent amorphous solid material that is brittle, hard, noncrystalline, and often transparent. The optical properties of glass allow light to pass through while also reflecting and refracting light to varying degrees. To simulate realistic glass materials in 3D applications, certain considerations need to be made regarding environment…
Identifying The Issue When Blender renders an outdated version of a scene instead of the most recently saved one, it can be incredibly frustrating for artists and animators. To confirm that this is the underlying problem, check the render output closely to identify discrepancies between it and the current state of the scene in the…
When to Link vs Append vs Duplicate When modeling armor in Blender, you may need to reuse geometric assets across multiple scenes or blend files. There are three main methods for reusing geometry: linking, appending, and duplicating. Linking creates a reference to the data in the original file without making a full copy. This allows…