BODYPAINT 3D v2

Just Start Painting

 

Preparing bitmap textures for your Cinema4D models couldn't be any easier than with Maxon's own BodyPaint 3D. If you're like me, you hate reading the manual, and even though Maxon provides excellent tutorial movies on the CD - can't sit still for those , don't worry - the basics are simple. BodyPaint is not just for Cinema4D users, it is integrated into the workflow of several different 3D applications. There are really only 3 steps to get you on your way.

BodyPaint 3D R2 uses projection painting to paint directly onto the polygons of your object without distortion. It's available as a standalone application with direct support for Cinema4D, Lightwave, MAX and Maya.


While beginning a mushroom texture for Anark Studio, I opened Body Paint, which I shamefully use for mesh extraction only. It was so easy - and enjoyable, I started painting all sorts of things. I was able to paint the mushroom in about 30 minutes (with distractions).

 

 

Here are the steps for BodyPaint (The manual or tutorials may tell you differently, but this is the lazy way about it).

1. Open your model in BP. (From Cinema4D, just switch layouts to BodyPaint (BP 3D Paint);

2. Click on the Paint Setup Wizard, click "Next" until it closes out the window;
3. Choose brushes and paint away, either on the texture (view mesh) or on the model itself.

Piece of cake. Don't forget to check out the wide variety of brushes that come standard in BodyPaint. From BP you can save out the image to texture your .amx file in Anark. Anark prefers .png files, but I like to work with .psd documents which are Cinema4D friendly. (Roll mouse over image)

Anark Texture Swap

Once you've gotten your texture saved from BodyPaint (or you've baked the texture elements), you'll need to save out your scene as a .AMX model for Anark Studio. Once your .AMX is in your Anark library, import your BodyPaint .psd as well and drag it onto the texture fork of the model. The UVs should snap together properly.

 

Free Downloads

Everyone has demo versions which will allow you to try out the features of the software. You can get both Cinema4D and BodyPaint 2 demos at Maxon Computer. If you want to check out Anark, here's my suggestion; download the web player first Anark Downloads. Then, check out the galleries and read some of the forum posts. When you have 3 days in a row to play with the software, download it then. You only have 15 days to use the unlocked version, but you'll be able to see a lot of the software if you dedicate your time to it. Maya's PLE (Personal Learning Edition) is still free. Yep, free - for non-commercial use only (110MB download, or $20 CD). You can get your PLE of Maya by clicking here.

Ko Maruyama is a freelance animator in Los Angeles, currently looking into the feasibility of replacing PowerPoint 3D animations with Anark Studio's interactive authoring software; A complete Anark newbie. Any suggestions, rants or other comments are welcome in the Cinema 4D Forum. I can be found talkin' about stuff in the After Effects forum