[Tutorial] Modelling LEGO models the right way

[Psistorm]

its been a while since it got requested, but now I decided to go ahead and write a LEGO tutorial :)

it will feature the following topics:

- correct units setup in max
- block measurement
- modelling unusual pieces
- general modelling hints
- material setup
- how to setup the render for realism
- small project: modelling a small model step by step

I will model a small model for this tut, I just have to get it down from the attic :D
ill start modelling today, and ill make the necessary renders, so Ill announce when I will start.

gimme some comments whether you´d like to have such a tutorial :)

[nookie]

i'd like!!!!

[bunglo]

I would love to have this tutorial!:cool:

[TheOne]

wow! great idea!
i cant wait to read your tut. :D :)

[JQuacker]

Need you ask? It would certainly be read by at least me :)

[Psistorm]

wohoo, thanks for that positive feedback! :D

im currently doing some renderings for the tutorial, not sure how I will write it (forum, doc, pdf, whatever, ill think about it :))

[Fusion]

Not sure you know but there is a free plugin for creating LEGO pieces.....But keep going with your tutorial....im sure it will be useful.

I'll try posting the plugin this evening.....just incase you were curious:)

[bunglo]

That plug in's probably cool, but I would rather learn how to make them on my own.

[Fusion]

It turns out that I can only find v.4 of the plugin and all of you probably have v5 or v6.....so theres no point in posting.

Im sure we'd all like to see his tut on Lego modeling I was just stating that there was a plugin that has these shapes as a Standard Primative and can be snaped like a Lego piece accordingly.

Note: If you do have max 4 then let me know and I'll send you a copy.

[Psistorm]

sry, using max6 right now.
Ive tried LCAD some time, its quite nice to play with, but doesnt feature some of the extended parts.

anyways, the tutorial will have to wait a lil, im just finishing off a scene Im working on (environment for my car :))
sry to keep you waiting, but I got like 40% of the renders done already :)

[Psistorm]

oookay, here we go now!
Im done with rendering the files and will now start the tutorial. plz dont post anything until I announce it, so the tutorial wont get cut up :)



Tutorial guide to modelling LEGO models the right way

Introduction

so, you want to model some of them old LEGO models up at your attic? A fun thing to do, really. the real problem is realism though.
If you want to model LEGO to scale and make it look real, you will come across a few issues, which we are going to solve in this tutorial.

The whole tutorial will be divided into the following parts:

- correct units setup in max
- block measurement
- modelling unusual pieces
- general modelling hints
- material setup
- how to setup the render for realism
- small project: modelling a small model step by step

Read on to learn more :)

[Psistorm]

Chapter 1: Unit setup in MAX

first of all, please keep in mind this tutorial is NOT program-specific, so you can follow it with whatever package you have. I will explain things off max screenshots some time later, but I will also list the values themselves seperately.

now for the unit setup:
I have done some measuring on LEGO blocks while trying to figure out a good grid setup for 3dsm. After some reflecting, I came to the conclusion to use "9" as grid unit.
why?

well, the smallest possible LEGO block would then be 9x9x4 units, so a "normal" 1x1 block would be 9x9x12. This way I can work on a grid for the xy plane AND have straight numbers for height settings.

to setup the grid units in 3dsm, go to Customize -> Grid and Snap settings and hit the Home Grid tab.
Set the "Grid Spacing" value to 9 and youre done!

look at the following screenshot for reference:

[Psistorm]

Chapter 2: Block Measurements

with the grid units all set up, its time to look at the block dimensions (which were explained a bit in chapter 1).

There isnt much to say, just check the picture below, which features the most common block sizes and also includes the measurements for the so called "blips".

[Psistorm]

Chapter 2 part 2: More LEGO measurements

here are some rules for building those bricks:
- Put the "blip" in the center of the grid square (obviously)
- dont waste any height segments on the blips, no height segments are perfectly sufficient.
- between every 4 blips, there is a connector on the underside, check on your own bricks if you have some available, otherwise look at the attached picture. These are tubes with the following measurements:

radius 1: 3 units
radius 2: 3,5 units
height: block height - 1 unit
sides: 18

note that a 1x1 block is just hollow inside, and a 2x1 block has a non-hollow cylinder inside. its radius is 2 units.

- to make hollow undersides blocks (likely to be used only where they can be seen), convert the box to an editable mesh, select the bottom face and bevel with height 0 and amount -1,0. then extrude inwards with the value "block height - 1 unit".
(so if you have a block with height 12, extrude 11 units inwards - easy, innit?)

the following picture shows the underside of a 2x3 block, along with the aforesaid tubes in the underside.

[Psistorm]

Chapter 3: Modelling unusual pieces

well, so far for the easy blocks, but you will probably come along some more difficult parts quite soon.

There is no allround solution for modelling "non-brick" parts, just be creative :) Think of solutions that might work out for you and try to model the piece accordingly.

in the following picture, you will see a few example parts along with a short explanation how I did them.

[Psistorm]

Chapter 4: General modelling hints

Next up are some general hints on modelling LEGO in general.

- save details: only use blips and hollow bricks where you will actually see them! this saves a lot of work and keeps the wireframe tidy.
- add blips and suchlike at the very end of your modelling, to keep things clean. this way you can easier determine where you need to place blips.
- dont model too accurate. use the correct brick sizes, BUT try and leave little spaces between the bricks (moving them by hand is the easiest way to get that effect), so they really do look like assembled bricks in the render.
- model the model like your original is set up. like, start out with the big baseplate, then add other parts on top of it, for example.
- its best to actually have the reference model right on your desk, rather than modelling off photos. this also gets you something to play with while rendering :)
- when modelling "unusual" parts: try and hold them against stacked bricks, to get an idea of how the dimesions have to be (remember, you have a grid where you can build on)
- make a parts library. if you make several models, its good to just re-use any complicated bits on your new model, this might save you quite some work



Chapter 5: Materials Setup

the next step is rather easy. I will list my material settings here, they usually get a good result.

for the bricks:
Color: depends on brick color.
Reflectivity: 10-20%, fresnel with IOR of 1.2
highlight: specular level: 50, glossiness 60

for transparent pieces:
Color: based on brick color, use light tones only.
reflect/refract: IOR 1,2, fresnel. as color, use the base color (just copy into the reflect/refract slots)
highlight: same as above.

obtaining textures:
if you have any textured objects, a scanner is the perfect piece to obtain textures. if not, a digicam can work too.
note that applying textures (like decals etc) can greatly improve the looks of your model)

[Psistorm]

Chapter 6: Setting up the renderer

Now that you´re done with your model, you might want to give it a good render, with some cool realistic looks.
Compositing into a photo can be interesting, but I prefer a combination of HDRI and DoF sampling.
Radiosity / GI sampling will enhance your image greatly, so make use of it.

I can only give those general hints here, since again, there is no allround-rule for rendering. I hope my above hints can help you getting started on the render setup.

[Psistorm]

Chapter 7: Project overview

here is the final chapter of this tutorial, which is to show you the way I work on those models.
It features several WiP images + 1 Final shot to give you an overview of such a project (albeit in this case, a smaller one)


First image:

nothing much, really, just the baseplate.

[Psistorm]

2nd image:
here I started on the front, note that I already added 2 Blips, since they definitely will be seen in this place.

[Psistorm]

3rd image:

more detailing on the front, and I started out on the rear.
These stubs on the back will be wing holders later on.

[Psistorm]

4th image:

added the canopy (I had one from an other model, so I just used it - thats the big advantage about LEGO, you get more and more pieces pre-made for your new projects) and did some more on the back.

[Psistorm]

5th image:

added the cargo box and finished the joints for the wings.

[Psistorm]

6th image:

detail shot of the rear, with the wings added, complete with deco and blips. note that the blips are too high, this will be fixed in the next step.

[Psistorm]

7th image:

modelling almost done, just needs some detail improvements (the blips on the wings are still too high)

[Psistorm]

Final Image:

modelling completed, materials applied and textures scanned and put on the model.
its done!

[Psistorm]

THE END!

whew, now thats done :)

I hope you enjoyed reading this tutorial and also that it was of some help to you. Feel free to give me feedback here, I´m looking forward to any comments and critics :)

oh, and you can post again now ;)

[The_Observer]

A very nice tutorial, I waited some time for this one. It surely will help me. But can you please put a wire up from the final model? This would be very helpfull too. :)

[Psistorm]

no problem, check back in a few hours time, maybe earlier.
the prob right now is that I have to help my parents in the house (what with getting new furniture n stuff), so Ill be busy the rest of the day probably.
ill add a wire render asap tho :)

[coolcat83]

just wondering wouldn't it be easier to use nurbs? also it's really awsome the peices look great! one comment on a peice, the hinge peice for the canopy the part of the hinge that clicks inthe bottom peice looks too small, the cut out should be untill about halfway down the peice and the diameter larger.

[Psistorm]

I see the error with the joint, actually it IS a little too small. I nicked that piece off an earlier model anyways, but Im gonna fix it up I think :)

as for NURMS: afaik nurms are better for doing smooth organic shapes, rather than the sharp edges of the lego blocks ( they are hardly chamfered at all, really sharp edges mostly), so I rather dont see why to use nurbs?

[coolcat83]

i guess u misunderstood i didn't mean NURMS which is different than NURBS (nonuniform rational b-splines). just asked why because you could make curves for all the default features (bumps, rib underneath) then just put them iun position and extrude them, boolean union anbd you have a peice.

[Psistorm]

this would be a way, but since Im more a mesh/poly edit person, I went about like this:
I just placed a tube with the right settings where I needed it, copied it to the other places and used attach :)

and I half forgot about that wire render, I will do that today, sry for keeping you guys waiting :)

[The_Observer]

I finally gave the Lego also a try, here are they, I also included a wire, so we have one thing less to wait for. ;)
Psistom: No problem for the waiting on the wire eh, I understand, I hope that you don't mind that I posted some stuff from me here? And ofcourse, thanks again, without your tutorial it wouldn't have been possible. :)

http://users.pandora.be/alien007/3D-Stuff/Speedbootje.jpg

http://users.pandora.be/alien007/3D-Stuff/Politie%20Heli.jpg

http://users.pandora.be/alien007/3D-Stuff/Heli%20Wire.jpg

[Pinchy]

hi, nice tutorial, but i am having trouble with the texturing, what does fresnel mean, whats IOR 1,2 i got no idea how to do the transparent materials, if someone could post step by step instructions that would be nice, thank you :D

[JHarford]

ior = index of refraction , in the options for transparency have a look for it .
search ior on google for a list of the correct rates.

fresnel = correct falloff for reflection .
see google or max help file

[Pinchy]

Thank you :D

[Pinchy]

:(, nothings working, could the tutorial maker please help me out, i cant find half the options

[Psistorm]

what options are you looking for? I will try and get a screencap for you :)
(if it takes a while, Im extremely busy at the moment, since I got some VERY important work to do. after Im done with it, Ill finally have time to look in here more often :))

[vDm]

Wow Psistorm - great tutorial, makes me want to play lego again...
hey people do you know where can i find lego textures....

[Pavel]

Woow great tutorial ! Awesome job ... thanks for taking the time to make it :)

[dravenfr]

Cool !!! I'm not alone with my legos :D

Here is one of my pics ( but I never creat hidden part of lego briks :p )

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/chezliam/Images/jeeplego5.jpg

[The_Observer]

Looks nice, Lego's just great. :p

[warlord]

Hi I am new here and I found this tutorial very helpfull. Thanks for creating such a clear to understand tutorial :)

[warlord]

With your tutorial I am working on a script for 3dsmax6 to create lego bricks. So far I have it create all sizes of normal bricks and 1 special piece. I would like to thank you again for this helpfull tutorial.

[PoP|Jelmer]

you forgot something, the ''lego'' letters on top of the blips, you could use a bump map for this, in photoshop, use text to get the letters, then gaussian blur it a bit and put it on the blips as a bump map. (I haven't tried it but i think it's possible)

[klschuff]

Very cool!!

I've been modeling my legos for a little while now, and it's nice to see others are as nerdy as me.

http://picasaweb.google.com/klschuff/LegoRenders

I've currently got a LOT of pieces modeled, I used decimal inches for scale and measured a lot of my pieces. Lots of pieces that I didn't have on hand to measure were imported from LDRAW parts. Unfortunately that process takes almost as much time as modeling them straight, lots of bowties = lots of rebuilding. Plus the meshes are often less than optimal.

Also wrote a script in java that imports a grayscale image as a height map, creates a list of pieces in a text file, and then a maxscript reads that in and builds a terrain using that piece list. It works pretty good, however the amount of resources consumed by this process and the final output makes it's usefulness very limited.