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Create expressive cartoon characters

Freelance artist Rodrigo Gonçalves shares his cartoon sketches and the ZBrush process that brings them to life...

Freelance artist Rodrigo Gonçalves shares his cartoon sketches and the ZBrush process that brings them to life...

Creating sketches in 3D helps me improve my workflow and discovering new ones. It is a great way to learn, experiment with new ideas and styles, and try new techniques. At the same time, sketches are so much fun to create that I cant get enough of it I just enjoy the creation process! Here are some of the 3D sketches I have done so far.

This project was created to study games characters during a workshop with Gilberto Magno © Riiick (riiick.blog.me)

This project was created to study games characters during a workshop with Gilberto Magno © Riiick (riiick.blog.me)

Inspiration and ideas

I get inspired by the awesome artworks around me, both digital and traditional, and by movies, cartoons, games, and also things in life, things that make me laugh. When I see some awesome concept art that catches my eye, I immediately try to imagine that shape and style in 3D. That motivates me to try sketching that idea in 3D and learning from that too. I always try to apply my own style and explore new things. I like to mix stylized proportions with realistic shapes whenever possible, while still keeping the likeness of the concept art.

My tribute to Nossa Senhora de Fátima/Our Lady of Fátima as a project to study classic sculpture styles

My tribute to Nossa Senhora de Fátima/Our Lady of Fátima as a project to study classic sculpture styles

Materials

I use mainly ZBrush for 3D sketches and Photoshop for paintovers and 2D sketches. Normally I work entirely digitally, but sometimes I turn off the computer screen and work with pencil and paper to sketch some ideas. ZBrush is awesome for helping me get the first ideas alive in 3D pretty quickly, without worrying too much about technical stuff in the sketch phase. Photoshop is great to do paintovers and study new designs, ideas, and textures; its also useful to get fast feedback from other artists or co-workers when I work in teams or groups.

This is a cartoon man I did to explore character personalities and style © Tony Neto tonynetoart.tumblr.com)

This is a cartoon man I did to explore character personalities and style © Tony Neto tonynetoart.tumblr.com)

I created this cartoon man to study caricature and funny shapes © Tony Neto (tonynetoart.tumblr.com)

I created this cartoon man to study caricature and funny shapes © Tony Neto (tonynetoart.tumblr.com)

A random man I sketched to study male anatomy

A random man I sketched to study male anatomy

Sketching workflow

I start blocking out the main shapes in ZBrush, working on the silhouette using a very low subdivision level. Its easier to move a few polygons around rather than high subdivisions. At this point I try to feel the models personality, and study the anatomy if its a character, which helps me understand better what needs to be done. Once I have the proportions in the right direction, I start blocking out props such as clothes and armor. This way I can see if the props will fit properly on the model, and make quick changes later if needed.

This project was created to study cartoon likeness and poses © Renan Nuche (behance.net/renannuche)

This project was created to study cartoon likeness and poses © Renan Nuche (behance.net/renannuche)

Top tip: Sculpting with ZRemesher

When you have finished with sculpting the main shapes with DynaMesh, before modeling the details, apply ZRemesher in all the SubTools that are with DynaMesh. This is a faster way to get better, quick topology before continuing to sculpt.

I also apply ProjectAll to recover some details from the previous DynaMesh model, bringing them into the new one. Afterwards, I continue sculpting and polish the final details of this new mesh.

Sketching with DynaMesh and increasing subdivisions

Sketching with DynaMesh and increasing subdivisions

Top tip: Sketching with DynaMesh

When sketching with DynaMesh in ZBrush, its a good idea to start with sculpting the main shapes. Get the proportions and silhouettes first, working with a low subdivision so its easier to model and move polygons around. Afterwards, you can turn off DynaMesh and work with the SubTools subdivision levels instead. Just increase the subdivisions level as needed. Always make use of good references to support your creation process!

Sketching with DynaMesh and increasing subdivisions

Sketching with DynaMesh and increasing subdivisions

Related links

Head over to Rodrigo's website
Grab a copy of Sculpting from the Imagination in ZBrush

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