Learning 3D Modeling: Week 2

This week was challenging for me. First, because learning a new program is basically about diving in and spending hours doing trial and error on the thing you’re trying to make. And second, I didn’t have as much time as I wanted to put into modeling because of other things getting in the way, i.e. day job, inktober, sitting in traffic…

Luckily, I managed to accomplish two significant tasks. I figured out how to effectively delete faces, edges & vertices (turns out you have to use “Delete edges/vertices” otherwise it could all go wrong!). Then I was able to connect the front and back cover shapes to the shell of a half-cylinder and “extrude” thickness to create one continuous shape.

Then, I learned how to insert “edge loops” to shape a hard edged polygon with smoothing. I practiced adding edge loops on the covers, spine, inside pages and lock & clasp to get a feel for how the book could look when smoothed.

My teacher led me to a book maker who makes these incredible handmade leather journals in the vein of what I’m trying to make. They are really cool to look at and be inspired by/driven insane. I’m thinking maybe I could end up adding an eyeball to the cover and animating it to look around as part of the final project.