In this Blender Video tutorial series we’re going to be looking at the techniques needed to model a human head. First we’ll set up the primary edge loops and then move on piece by piece from there. Upon completion you should come away with some good strategies to model your own heads.
We have the source files available for download for each lesson if you would like to follow along, or we will bundle when complete. Individual downloads contain a higher resolutions video(126mb) to take with you, and the blender file in the state of the lesson. Reference images are licensed from http://www.3d.sk
amazing!!especially in this film that makes my feel pleasure.
Not creepy at all bro
I can’t find the tutorial on setting background images.
You can find the tutorial here: http://www.blendercookie.com/2008/12/18/tip-adding-a-background-image/
How you align the pictures to fit the same proportion, because I have a few problems. When I select the front view and work with it I have diferent results in my side view, e.g; I make an eye using the pictures as refeference in front view, but in my side view I obtain an eye coming out of the forehead or somewhere else, you use GIMP or Photoshop to measure the pictures so they can be perfectly align or you use Blender?
Aligning the references can be a little tricky. Generally you can get them to align fairly well by adjusting the X and Y offset and the Size in the Background Image panel.
That’s not what was asked. He asked how do you get the two windows inside blender open at the same time.
To get two windows open, you can ‘grab’ the top right corner of your default window. You’ll notice a “+” sign and some racing stripes… Center your crosshairs on the stripes and click/drag over (more than likely to the left.) Your new window will appear, and grow as far as you wish to drag it. This can work for as many windows as you want to navigate. There’s also the “Toggle Quad View” inside your “VIEW” button.
Then again, the message I am responding two is months old. MAybe it’ll help someone else, too.
Cheers,
Gravy
How do you model symmetrically? For example, when you edit, it automatically selects the corresponding vertex on the opposite side of the X axis?
This is done by using the Mirror modifier. Adding a mirror modifier will cause the mesh to be duplicated and mirrored across the specified axis’ (by default it mirrors along the X axis), allowing you to model a symmetrical mesh.
You can find a short tip tutorial on the mirror modifier here: http://www.blendercookie.com/2008/12/19/tip-mirror-modifier/
Thanks, really helpful!
thanks for all the help, all ur tutorials are very helpful,
I have a not related question to this tutorial, How do you import a object from another file??
You can import objects from a another file by going File > Append/Link > “navigate to desired file” > Object > “select desired object from file” > Append
This is great! Before I saw this I couldn’t find a decent reference on where the edge loops should be. I have one suggestion. You might want to enter edit mode before you rotate the plane otherwise you’ll get unexpected results if you clear rotations on your head.
Hi Jonathan, Can you tell me what you pressed to make the mesh transparent?
You may toggle wireframe mode by pressing the Z key on your keyboard.
Hi Jonathan, Thanks for the quick response. In your video your mesh switches from completely opaque to translucent. Where I can see both the mesh and the background image. When I press ‘z’ it goes from opaque to completely transparent. Is this a difference in versions? I’m using 2.49. Thanks again.
Mike.
Hey, where did yo get the pictures? I can’t find any like them anywhere.
Reference images are licensed from http://www.3d.sk
Anything that you don’t have to pay for? C’mon they’re just pictures.
They are pictures that 3D.sk crew worked hard to produce and provide. You can get them from their site direct, or they did give us permission to include them in our source download for this tutorial as well available above for purchase download. Have to respect the original artist that did the grunt work, or even the dude that had to stand in his skivvies.
Hope that helps – w
I just settled for a watermarked one.
why you started with zy ? I start with yx … sorry for the bad english..
my blue axis always points toward me. in your tutorial goes on … how? congratulations for the tutorial!
Hey Jonathan,
I just want to say that you’re probably the best thing that ever happened to the blender community. Haha. You’ve really taught me a lot. Thanks for everything.
But I have a question for you:
Where is a good place to get human modeling reference photos? I’ve tried searching Google and Google Images 10 different ways and can’t seem to find any good pictures. I need some good close-ups of the front and side of the head and some good ones of the front and side of the body in a T-pose.
http://free-textures.got3d.com/natural/free-character-references/index.html
just click on a head and you’ll get twenty-odd references (of the head and the body)
Would be great if you guys redo all those amazing human head/body tutorials in 2.5 (for blender newbies who don’t want to spend time learning the obsolete 2.4 interface and techniques.. like me)
Hello Jonathan and Wes and thanks for your exiting Blender tutorials.
I have add multiple background images at 2.5 Alpha 2 from google image for making one head. I have one left and one front images and (one cube)
I dont understand how I can work with only one cub. Can you advise me if I need to use mirror or made 2 cubes.
Thanks in advance.
:)
[IMG]http://i1023.photobucket.com/albums/af353/Spender19/Skrmavbild2010-03-20kl234709.png[/IMG]
How did you get the images set up in two different windows in Blender?
For 2.5 that is
Hey, i have not myself pictures, (front and profils) could you give me any pictures who will be good to this tutorial?
how do you do thhe two boxes in version 2.5
you should make a gun tut
Hi i’m using 2.5 and the mirror modifier doesn’t seem to work (at least I can’t see it). Is the mirror modifier always visible if not how do i change that?
You can adjust what modes the modifier displays in via the icons along the top of the modifier.
-Jonathan
where is the little circle in 2.5?
The small circle button shows up after you enable “Show Modifier in Edit Mode.”
-Jonathan
I’m having problems right off the bat here in Blender 2.5. I understand everything I’m seeing and how this should work, even as a newbie, but when I extrude I get these green and pink lines running across my viewport and they’re guiding my extrusions off the ZY plane. Even though I am a newbie, I have worked with the mirror modifier, made several rough models and yet I’ve never seen these before and they’re messing with my modeling. Anyone know how to deactivate them?
Hello? Anyone know?
They appear when extruding an edge. They lock the extrusion to the X and Y axis.
They can be annoying, but just right-click after the extrusion and move the extruded vertices normally with the G-key.
I should probably point out that it follows the ‘Normal’ XY and not the ‘Global’ XY.
I am having the same problem, you can disable this by pressing MMB while extruding, but I don’t know of anyway to turn off how it comes up automatically every time, if anyone knows, please help, it’s very annoying!
sweet, thanks
pretty simple answer, I should have tried that 
haha
When you were making the final extrusion on the first loop you made,instead of rotating to make it straight, if you turn on Do Clipping, it will automatically straighten it out where the two edges meet. Is there a difference between rotating it, and just dragging it so the edges meet? Thanks, Dexter.
hey, i did this, and its all done. but when i smooth it there are like boarders around it. one continuous edge loop is darkened. it goes around the fore head down around the cheek to the chin. what did i do wrong? also a loop the connects the head to the ear, and a little square loop around the eye. i deleted all doubles. made sure i merged all the verts, faces, every thing i could do. i even deleted the loop and connected them every different way i know. i need this for a project.
Have you tried recalculating the normals? You can do this by selecting everything in Edit Mode and then pressing CTRL + N.
-Jonathan
OMG you saved my life, thank you. i was just about to redo the whole thing!!!
“I’m having problems right off the bat here in Blender 2.5. I understand everything I’m seeing and how this should work, even as a newbie, but when I extrude I get these green and pink lines running across my viewport and they’re guiding my extrusions off the ZY plane. Even though I am a newbie, I have worked with the mirror modifier, made several rough models and yet I’ve never seen these before and they’re messing with my modeling. Anyone know how to deactivate them?” any idea how to turn off this green and pink axis ? HELP
Hi there,
If you use ALT + E > Region you should get a free extrude. You can also just press E and then immediate ESC and G to cancel the extrude movement and reenter grab mode.
-Jonathan
When I do the extrusion right after the duplication and I’m making it meet in the middle, it looks like a straight plane going all across horizontally on my side view panel. When I try and fix this, it moves the center vertex straight through the middle of the face. How do i fix this?
Nevermind, turns out I just needed to play around with some vertices
I’m having almost the same problem as my last comment. I’m working on the edge loop that goes around the ear and to the side of the head, but when I make it, its just one huge long plane on my front view. No matter how much I try, I can’t get fix it. Any suggestions?
an handsome boy to digitizing
wow great tutorial, you make it sound easy! jonathan
what version of blender is it?
and how can I do if i dont have textures or if I want to do an new character?
I know its simple to get some textures on internet but, if i want make other
things like sintel or disney style movies, how can i do?
I always had this question jaja by a long time, cuz I was learning unity and watching some videos of the making movies.
Having an issue when I create the loop for the eyes and extrude inward it’s creating multiple faces. so when I move it’s turning it from a flat plane to a 3d object…help
Hi BlazeLeeDragon,
Can you provide a screenshot of the problem? Keep in mind that when you extrude it actually does two things, first it extrudes the selection and then it puts you into grab mode. If you choose to cancel by pressing the RMB or ESC during the grab mode it WILL NOT cancel the extrusion. If you need to cancel the extrusion at that point you need to press CTRL + Z for undo.
[IMG]http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d3/BlazeLeeDragon/Untitled-4.png[/IMG]
screenshot. What I do is I create a circle and remove the clipping setting on the mirror modifier. then I click E for extrude and then S for size then I move it inward to size it.
and I just realized when messing with it for more screens what you ment
THANKS. turns out I was extrudeing but it was moving in to one dot instead of to the center and when reclicked I guess I was extruding again 
thank you for explaining that I”m really enjoying your tutorials.
I am just running through using this tutorial and I have everything set-up correctly according to the tutorial, however when I go to add the circle for the eye it is not being affected by the mirror modifier at all and I can’t figure out what I have done wrong or if it is just on the programs end.
Anybody have any ideas to help me?
Oh never mind, I figured it out now.
Please explain how you fixed said problem. I’m witnessing the same thing on my end.
I’ve got the same problem also. How did you fix it?
can this type of modeling be used on games ?
hi john, i’ve tried this tutorial so many times and i’m just lost
i’ve even looked at books on anatomy too and i just can’t get the head right. it’s just…frustrating :’(
Hi Austin,
Is there a particular area you’re having trouble with?
Excellent tutorial, this technique for making faces/heads has made modeling much more fun and now I don’ have to pull the hairs out of my head figuring out where to put the edge loops and whatnot. Thank you!
I have followed this tutorial for two videos (just about to start the third) but I have just realised that I made a silly mistake. I didn’t change the circle vertices (around his eyes) to just 8. I instead left it as it came. Will this affect my modelling and will I therefore have to restart the eyes?
Thanks
Aperover
how do you select the number of vertices in the human eye. in the video you were creating the eyes and said something about 8 vertices. how exactly do your select the number of vertices. is there a shortcut key to it?
Can anyone help me with this
i can`t download sources.. i`m already citizen members.