rayalez Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Hi, guys! I just wanted to ask you a general question about modeling in Houdini. Does anybody do some serious 3D modeling? Like characters and other complicated things? It's just that I used to use Silo for that kind of thing, but I've switched to linux and it doesn't work very well here. So I'm wondering if it's possible to get used to modelling everything in hou. Maybe you can share some tips on how to make it more convenient? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mantragora Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 That was couple years ago, in H9 era. I still live https://vimeo.com/129997294 H15 will bring add couple nice things, so if could do it then, why you couldn't now? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrockstad Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Recent viewport enhancements have made the modeling experience in Houdini considerably more pleasant. You may want to have a look through this page to get up to speed. The modeling toolset itself is generally equivalent with other packages, with all the basic extrude, bevel, cut, and edge loop operations, among others. Houdini does lack a few niceties however, for example a proper polygon bridge tool. Something to consider is that your node networks can get really crazy really quick - you can easily end up with a massive node tree on even a moderately complex model, so it is very important to keep yourself organized. I like to group related operations in subnets, so for example once I've got all my edge loops in I pop them in a subnet. Use network boxes and color coding to your advantage as well. Keep in mind also that the procedural nature of Houdini is not always an advantage for this kind of work. Take the example of edge loops again - if you want to delete a loop, it's very tempting to think you can just delete the PolySplit, but this will almost certainly break your model given that the downstream loops are trying to reference locations on the geometry that no longer exist. There are of course also advantages to the procedural environment, but it's something to just be a bit cautious of. My verdict? Give modeling in Houdini a shot - it is certainly doable. If you find you don't get on with it, I would remind you that Modo indie subscriptions are a very good deal... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tar Posted September 9, 2015 Share Posted September 9, 2015 Houdini is probably good for general modelling currently and as H15 will bring in some of the most important enhancements, like tweak, bridge etc, The critics are saying there needs to be a touch more done to improve the toolset to really allow someone to be efficent to consider a full switch, i.e. Bevels, PolyKnit, Cookies (Booleans). We'll have to wait to H15 to release, next month, to know where we are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim c Posted September 12, 2015 Share Posted September 12, 2015 I've done some spaceship/sci-fi stuff with a number of years back. http://www.foundation3d.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8222&page=3 (Can't find the WIP link that used to be here) The Cookie sop could really use some love, it's pretty flaky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrockstad Posted September 12, 2015 Share Posted September 12, 2015 I've done some spaceship/sci-fi stuff with a number of years back. http://www.foundation3d.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8222&page=3 (Can't find the WIP link that used to be here) The Cookie sop could really use some love, it's pretty flaky. Yeah, I recall one of the Houdini devs mentioning here a while back that the code for the Cookie SOP hasn't been touched in years and that it should essentially be considered deprecated at this point. I imagine a new node will likely be taking its place sometime soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tar Posted September 12, 2015 Share Posted September 12, 2015 The premise of these types of questions always throw a spanner in the works. i.e. is anyone doing serious *insert modelling/animation/fx/rendering/lighting etc in Houdini. To get modelling beyond the current level, the tools need updating, selections need memory between points/polys etc, viewport interaction could be worked on i.e. the automatically aligned perspective workplace in Modo seems very handy. The line tool could have aligned bezier handles and have the ability to have linear, nurbs, bezier in a one geo etc. The H15 sneak peak did say sub-d lines though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gekkonier Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 If you are a keyboard centric guy blender for modeling is worth a view. I use it as companion in almost every project, because it's so fast for myself. I used MODO a lot the last 2 years, but its too clicky for me althought it has advanced tools compared to blender. I looked at the Houdini tools for modeling, but I don't think its something that I would want to use for fast pushing points. Personal opinions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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