ZBrush Character Creation - Advanced Digital Sculpting 2nd Edition

50 chapter 2 ■ Sculpting in ZBrush

A Note on Anatomical Terminology

Although it is not necessary to know the names of all the bones, muscles, processes, fossa, and

epicondyles of the body to be a good sculptor, I fi nd that learning the names is helpful when

developing a knowledge of anatomy. Knowing the name of a part gives you a kind of mental box

to store the information in. Learning the names also helps you communicate specifi c information

about your fi gure.

I have found it expedites the process of retaining information about anatomy when you have the

names of the shapes you are tr ying to understand. For this reason, I am including some of this infor-

mation in this chapter (although this is by no means an in-depth look at the anatomy of the head

and neck). If you are interested in more tutorials focused on sculpting human fi gures, see ZBrush

Digital Sculpting Human AnatomyDigital Sculpting Human AnatomyDigital Sculpting Human Anatomy, where I present an approach to sculpting a heroic fi gure with a focus , where I present an approach to sculpting a heroic fi gure with a focus

on learning the shapes of the major muscle and skeleton forms as well as anatomical terminology.

A common mistake is to make the face too big on the head by neglecting the cranial

mass. We as humans are constantly focused on the faces of those around us, particularly

the eyes. Because of this, our natural inclination is to enlarge these parts. By paying special

attention to bony landmarks, proportions, angles, and measures between each part of the

head, we can ensure the shapes maintain their proper relation to each other.

In the following sections I’ll provide a few guidelines for you to follow. In Figure 2.23

notice that the skull can fi t in a box. The centerline of the y-axis of the skull passes through

the auditory meatus, also known as the ear hole (Figure 2.24). This is a key landmark when

sculpting the head because it represents an immobile point from which you can make all

your comparative measurements. The lateral midline of the skull passes through the eye

sockets and nasal bone (Figure 2.25). The measuring guides seen in this image are available

in ZTool form on the accompanying DVD. The head is divided into thirds with two smaller

lines between the nasal bone and chin.

•   The fi rst line from the top represents the hairline. This marks the start of the fi rst third

of the head.

•   The second line represents the brow line.

Figure 2.23 The skull in profi le. Notice that it is two

thirds as wide as it is deep.

Auditory Meatus

Figure 2.24 Auditory meatus

represents a landmark that sits just

behind the centerline of the skull in

the side view.

Sculpture by Scott Spencer. Image courtesy Anatomytools.com.