158 chapter 4 ■ ZBrush for Detailing
I try to lay out the patterns of the scales at this point: the directions of the flow, and
small-to-large relationships. You can do lots of erasing and reworking at this point. You are
now trying to design the scales and judge whether they are complementary to your charac-
ter. It’s not just outlining the scales. I think of them as flattened forms. The outlining can
strengthen the forms.I’ve done similar steps on the neck. I also use the Move tool to pull the directional spikes:I applied the same techniques on the arm, with some scales just outlined on the chest.
I roughed in some hand scales. In the following image, there’s a lot more small scale draw-
ing in the areas between the big scales. I used the DragRect stroke to pull Alphas 07 and 08
over the figure to give some high-frequency breakup. I also placed horns and teeth.
I like to paint as I sculpt. It’s a nice luxury you get in ZBrush. The next image is only
three colors:
• Yellow Ochre base
• Lighter Yellow Ochre for the underside of the body with cavities masked
• Black with some yellow for the scales on the top of the body, with cavity masking