3D - 2

ZBrush or 3D Studio Max for creating people?

I am attempting to create and animate people but do not know which software to choose--ZBrush, or 3D Studio Max? From what I can tell, 3D Studio Max appears to be better for designing cars and vehicles, while ZBrush is better for skin textures, however, I'm not sure. Which software is better for humans and skin texture, 3D Studio Max, or ZBrush?

Public Comments

1. Both. Or at least, you have to understand the character creation/animation pipeline: generally, basic to semi-detailed character models are modeled in a 'traditional' 3d modeling package, such as 3dsMax, Blender, Lightwave, Maya, etc. Then the model is loaded in a sculpt app: Zbrush, 3dCoat, MudBox, Blender. The details are sculpted, and textures can be applied as well at this stage. After this is done, often a low-res or med-res version of the model is exported/created, and a normal map is generated in the sculpt app. That normal map is applied to a semi-detailed version of the model in a 3d package. Finally, the character is rigged with an armature of bones in one of the above mentioned 3d animation packages, and the animation process starts. Of course, the exact workflow depends a lot on the artist(s) - some people only use a sculpting app to create entire character models. Still, you would need a 3d animation app to actually rig and animate it. And a lot of artists make use of a dedicated 3d object painting package to paint textures (not sculpt) - think of BodyPaint3d, Photoshop, BlackSmith3D... So, you will need both (though there are lots of 3d artists that model high detail characters without a sculpting app as well)