HA7 Task 4 - Mesh Construction

Primitive Modelling

Primitive modelling is a common method of creating meshes. It is done by creating primitive meshes offered by the 3D modelling software being used. These primitives are joined together to create a more complex shape.

The 3D primitive meshes are cubes, spheres, cylinders, torus, pyramids and 2D primitives, such as circles and squares.

http://www.3dm3.com/forum/articles.php?action=viewarticle&artid=182

This gun was created using primitive shapes. You can see the outline of each primitive. The gun is mostly made out of re-sized cubes and cylinders. Other parts of the model have been made using primitive shapes and then being edited, such as the chamber and the stock.

Box Modelling

This technique is done by starting with a primitive, such as a cube, and using a subdividing tool to add new vertices and edges to the cube. These new vertices and edges can be manipulated as normal, and even subdivided again to get more polygons. Then by extruding, the shape can be made bigger and more detailed.

http://ibshart.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/intro-to-blender-extruding-box-modeling.html

Above is a mesh which started as a primitive cube, and was slowly made more complicated by subdivision and extrusions until a human face was created. This example was built in blender, and the creator would use the mirror tool to create the other side of the head once the first side was finished, resulting in a perfectly symmetrical copy.

Extrusion Modelling

In extrusion modelling the developer would trace over an image of an object, creating more polygons to follow any detail in the reference image. This would create a 2D shape which matches the first image used. Once this is done a second image will be used, which shows the same object from a different angle. This image will be used to introduce the depth to the mesh, by extruding it across the depth axis until it matches the reference image.

https://www.packtpub.com/books/content/how-model-characters-head-blender-part-1

From the image above, you can see that on the left there is the 2D perspective of the reference image. This is using the X and Y coordinates in 3D space to create the front of the shape. On the right is the Z axis, or the depth axis. By moving the mesh through this axis the developer has created depth and is matching the mesh to the reference image's depth.