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Introductiontoblender-Final 1

Blender is an open-source 3D modeling and animation software that the author has used for 4 years. The document introduces some basic concepts for beginners including navigating the 3D viewport using zoom and pan, manipulating objects using translate, rotate, and scale tools, understanding the 3D cursor and coordinate axes, adding and selecting objects, using cameras and lighting, and producing final renders. It explains the differences between Blender's rendering engines and how materials are handled differently in the Blender Render versus Cycles Render engines.

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78 views11 pages

Introductiontoblender-Final 1

Blender is an open-source 3D modeling and animation software that the author has used for 4 years. The document introduces some basic concepts for beginners including navigating the 3D viewport using zoom and pan, manipulating objects using translate, rotate, and scale tools, understanding the 3D cursor and coordinate axes, adding and selecting objects, using cameras and lighting, and producing final renders. It explains the differences between Blender's rendering engines and how materials are handled differently in the Blender Render versus Cycles Render engines.

Uploaded by

api-340511095
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Introduction to Blender

By: Eric Trautsch

Blender is an open-source 3D modeling and animation suite that I have


been using for approximately four years. In that time, I have created many
projects and have enjoyed teaching Blender to others. To understand
Blender, there are a few concepts that are helpful when beginning. Blender
is primarily used to create images, animations, using the 3D software.
I will explain the theory behind of some of the basics of Blender that would
be helpful to a beginner. These basics are often used and understanding
the theory provides the fundamental know-how to apply to more complex
projects.
When Blender is first opened, it opens up to a default screen. The dark
grey space in the center of the screen is known as the 3D Viewport. There
are three objects in the scene by default, a cube, lamp, and camera.

Navigating within Blender requires the user to understand the methods that
alter the view of the scene in the 3-Dimensional Viewport. The first method
is zooming. Using the scroll wheel, in either direction, the view of the scene
will become closer or further away. The second method is to pan, which
rotates your view of the scene in the 3D Viewport. To pan, hold down the
middle mouse button, and move the mouse. If shift is held while panning,
the view will move, but not rotate, which can be very helpful when looking
at different objects within the scene.
The three axes in Blender are necessary to manipulate objects. They are
consistently color-coded in Blender. The X-Axis is red, the Y-Axis is shown
in green, and the Z-Axis is displayed as blue.
I recommend arranging the a
xes in this workflow. Use the Z-Axis as the
vertical dimension, the Y-Axis as front-to-back, and the X-Axis as
side-to-side. Getting used to this workflow can provide consistency while
working with various complex projects.
X-Axis

Y-Axis

Z-Axis

To manipulate an object, selecting it is key. Objects that


are selected have a slight orange border around the
edges. When moving, scaling and rotating objects, the
particular object you want to manipulate must be
selected. Selecting is achieved by clicking on an object
with the right mouse button.

Moving objects can be accomplished by pressing G


, while making sure the
cursor is within the 3D Viewport. Sliding the mouse in the desired direction
will allow the object to move around on all three axes at the same time. By
pressing X, Y, or Z the object will lock the movement to just that axis. Once
you have selected an axis, you can also type in a number, to move the
object that amount of Blender units. This is allows objects to stay consistent
within large scenes.
Rotating an object works very similar to moving an object. After ensuring
you have selected the object, press R
. Rotation can be done on all axes at
the same time, or with just one, similar to moving. Once the axis is chosen,
type in the number of degrees you would like the object to be rotated. For
example, if I were to flip an object upside down, I would press R
, then X,
and type 180.
Scaling changes the size of an object. By pressing S, it is possible to
change the size of an entire object any or all axes. To stay constant,
scaling can be done by typing in an exact value. The value 1 denotes the
current size of the object, this is equivalent to 100% of the object. This
value will increase the size if above 1, and decrease if the size is below 1.
For example, 0.5 will reduce the object in half, because it is 50% of the
object.

There are many default objects to choose from, in


addition to the cube within Blender. The 3D cursor is
depicted by a small red and white circle. When adding
objects into a scene, the placement of the 3D cursor
determines where they will appear in the 3D Viewport.
(Above: 3D cursor)

The 3D cursor can be moved by left clicking in the 3D Viewport. However,


when adding in new object, it is best to have it start in the center, the origin
point. By default, the 3D cursor at the origin point, however, it is very easy
to move it accidentally. To reset the location of the 3D cursor,
hold shift, and press C. That will cause the 3D cursor go back
to the origin point and reset zoom.
Once the 3D cursor is at the origin point, adding objects can
be achieved by holding shift, and pressing A. An add menu
will appear, showing a list of default Blender objects that can
be added. There are many objects here, including all of the
objects in the default Blender scene.
Pictured: Render of the Default Blender Scene)

The camera is the object that determines the view


of the final image in the 3D Viewport. In Blender,
the final image that results is called a render. The
camera determines where the render, or picture,
is taken from. A render can be thought of as a
image taken from a real camera. Cameras can be
moved to your perspective by holding Ctrl, Alt,
and pressing 0 on the Numberpad.

The lamp is used for lighting purposes. There are five types of lamps. The
default and most commonly used lamp is a point lamp, which emits light in
a sphere around its position. The other types of lamps emit light in various
ways. For example, the spot lamp is a cone-shaped light emitted in only
one direction.
Having good lighting can make an render look much better. Learning how
to correctly light up a scene can make all the difference in the final render.
Using multiple lighting sources at a variety of locations with different values
of light emission is key.
Obtaining shapes to be lit up in the scene can be achieved by using mesh
objects. They are 3D shapes made up of vertices. There are many mesh
objects choose from in the add menu, under the mesh tab. A cube is a
shape that has eight vertices which are the points of the cube where the
edges and faces meet. The image below is a cube without edges or faces.

(Note: I drew in edges to allow you to identify the vertices.)

By just seeing the vertices, the mesh object is hard to place, but in the final
object, these vertices are connected by edges. When the edges are added
into the picture, it becomes much easier to understand the object that is
present.

Currently, in the image above, the cube is made up of only vertices and
edges. This cube currently has no faces, and as a result it is only an
outline. Faces are polygonal figures that truly display the object. Below is

an example of a cube with vertices, edges, and faces.

All mesh objects are built in this way. It is simple to understand using a
cube, but mesh objects can become intricate and incredibly detailed. For
example, meshes can slope up and down, such as the one pictured below.

Understanding this concept may be difficult, but it can become a great start
to learning more advanced modeling concepts in Blender.
Producing a picture of your scene is possible by rendering. Rendering
produces the final image. To create this, Blender uses three main rendering
engines. To change which rendering engine Blender is using, there is a

drop down menu at the top of the screen which allows you to choose
between them.

There are three options, Blender Render, Blender Game, and Cycles
Render. The rendering engines affect the way that rendering is done in
Blender and the image it produces.
Blender Game is used for creating game simulations, and cannot be
compared with the other two rendering engines. Its purpose is entirely
different. These game simulations often involve objects that are controlled
using the logic editor.
Blender Render and Cycles are very similar. Blender Render was the
predecessor to Cycles Render. One noticeable difference between Blender
Render and Cycles Render are the shadows within the render.
Blender Render calculates shadows as a completely black area, where
Cycles Render calculates shadows as a shade of gray, depending on
where the light hits and bounces.
Blender Render

Cycles Render

A large between the rendering engines is the way materials


are added. Materials are what make objects have color,
reflection, and various other effects. In Blender Render,
materials are edited using the properties panel, which has
colors and values. The end result can easily be effected by
the values. However, there is a limit to what this can do,
which is where Cycles Render comes in.

In Cycles Render, Materials are edited


using the Node Editor. The node editor
allows for nodes to be added. Nodes are

blocks that serve a specific function. Blender has many nodes with varying
function. Nodes are connected by a line that goes from node to node, until
it goes into the output. In cycles render, shaders are commonly mixed, to
give a precise amount of reflection. The Node Editor is a very powerful tool,
with many methods to create incredibly realistic materials and Cycles
Render allows it to flourish.

(A few of my finished renders)

In conclusion, Blender is a very complex and powerful software. Learning


how to use it takes lots of time and effort, but is very rewarding overall.
These are simply a few of the basics, only a beginning to the many features
Blender has to offer. One of the best ways to learn more about blender is to
follow tutorials and to experiment.

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