STEP BY STEP SUBSTANCE 3D MODELER

01 THE SOFTWARE

Substance 3D Modeler is the direct descendant of Adobe Medium, which was originally owned by Facebook under the Oculus banner. Medium was the software that got voxel sculpting off the ground and what brought most people into VR sculpting. The team that made Medium moved to Adobe, and have been working under the new leadership to craft Modeler and absorb it into the Adobe Substance ecosystem. Modeler is available as part of the Adobe Substance 3D plan.

02 DESKTOP AND VR

One of the biggest changes in VR sculpting over the last few years is the rise of programs that can be used both in VR and also back on the desktop. With Modeler you simply take your headset off and the software reverts to a desktop view, and you can use a wide range of tools and features on the desk. To dive back in, just put the headset back on.

Most of the models that you’ll create will be heading for another package to be retopologised, UV unwrapped, textured, and possibly moved on to an animation package. Modeler gives you a wide range of common file formats that you can use when exporting, and also decimates the model to a lower polygon count if required. You can even generate the UV mapping right there inside Modeler from the Export panel.

04 VIEW RENDER

Although there’s little in the way of rendering capability in VR, there is a way to show your models in a better light, and with shadows too. When you take off your headset to review the finished model, you can use a View mode from the interface that gives you a basic rendered and lit view. It just helps to push the realism that little bit further.