In Cinema 4D Materials Are More
More what? They are more of the message.
In Cinema 4D materials have their own life and I am sure there are shops with material specialists whose expertise is simply materials.
They can add just the right attributes, flirting with reality yet a hairsbreadth away preserving the magic.
When you define an object, you assign a material to it.
Many graphic applications have a library of textures and materials but nothing like the depth of definition you will find here.
While there is a rich library of predefined materials, C4D provides a material editor with a broad learning curve yet intuitive and easy to begin using right away.
Like all applications with lots of bells and whistles, using and experimenting with the tools is the way to climb.
Create a simple primitive shape to work with.
We like spheres.
They are, after all, round.
Now in the lower left section of your display, create a new material: File->New Material.
Under your attributes section you will see your new material with the default settings.
Under the material display where you began, you will see the thumbnail for the material you just created with the default name 'mat'.
If you double click this thumbnail, you will open the material editor.
Immediately you see a list of attributes that provide very different ways to describe and impart qualities to your material.
These are called channels.
The first channel is color with an RGB slider just like products you are familiar with such as Photoshop and Illustrator.
Using the same kind of 'primary color' blending, you create the color for your new material.
You will also see a texture option.
With the color channel highlighted, choose a color and you will immediately see it on your new material.
There is a texture option under the color option.
You can apply preset textures, create a new texture.
You can apply an image as a texture.
This could be a field of stars or even a face or cartoon.
Once you apply an image you have options to add, subtract, or multiply and adjust the mix strength.
There are many effects for your color texture such as noise and the familiar gradient.
Each of these has the same 'mix mode' options of add, subtract, or multiply and these mix settings further provide a 'mix strength' which lets you apply this effect gradually.
We'll look at more material channels and other special adjustments as we continue to explore materials in Cinema 4D.
In Cinema 4D materials have their own life and I am sure there are shops with material specialists whose expertise is simply materials.
They can add just the right attributes, flirting with reality yet a hairsbreadth away preserving the magic.
When you define an object, you assign a material to it.
Many graphic applications have a library of textures and materials but nothing like the depth of definition you will find here.
While there is a rich library of predefined materials, C4D provides a material editor with a broad learning curve yet intuitive and easy to begin using right away.
Like all applications with lots of bells and whistles, using and experimenting with the tools is the way to climb.
Create a simple primitive shape to work with.
We like spheres.
They are, after all, round.
Now in the lower left section of your display, create a new material: File->New Material.
Under your attributes section you will see your new material with the default settings.
Under the material display where you began, you will see the thumbnail for the material you just created with the default name 'mat'.
If you double click this thumbnail, you will open the material editor.
Immediately you see a list of attributes that provide very different ways to describe and impart qualities to your material.
These are called channels.
The first channel is color with an RGB slider just like products you are familiar with such as Photoshop and Illustrator.
Using the same kind of 'primary color' blending, you create the color for your new material.
You will also see a texture option.
With the color channel highlighted, choose a color and you will immediately see it on your new material.
There is a texture option under the color option.
You can apply preset textures, create a new texture.
You can apply an image as a texture.
This could be a field of stars or even a face or cartoon.
Once you apply an image you have options to add, subtract, or multiply and adjust the mix strength.
There are many effects for your color texture such as noise and the familiar gradient.
Each of these has the same 'mix mode' options of add, subtract, or multiply and these mix settings further provide a 'mix strength' which lets you apply this effect gradually.
We'll look at more material channels and other special adjustments as we continue to explore materials in Cinema 4D.
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