Cineversity

Hi everyone.

I am new to C4D and am really enjoying it and trying to learn all I can. I am also really seeking to embrace it as well as identify its particular strengths as I accrue experience.

With that said, I will treading carefully and respectfully with what I am about to say.

I just built a Mr. Coffee maker. It seems from my short experience with the software, that C4d has some really cool ways of handling geometry (e.g. deformers, type, effectors among others) that other programs just can’t really do. It also has well as some great features for accomplishing added detail in ones model. I can’t help but wonder, however, if C4D strengths may lie elsewhere beyond topology development and perhaps as a whole package that plays nicely with other programs and does everything pretty well? Also, I should mention the stability of this program is insanely great. But, I had an experience today where there were details in this coffee maker surface I was developing where there was added detail in the form of a surface break. It seemed like an excessive amount of clicks and a few tries to figure out how C4D wanted to handle it. For those more experienced than I, do you create pie menu’s or customize the interface to improve efficiency?

As a former Modo user, In retrospect, I think that program handles modelling as a workflow every well. Perhaps thats the best feature about it. That said, I’m moving to C4D and away from Modo for some very good reasons and will not return to it. It raises questions in my mind of how to do things like hiding inactive meshes simply with one button as opposed to creating a null comprised of many objects and turning that off? Perhaps this already exists in C4D? If so, I’d gladly welcome any suggestions to this issue or videos discussing workflow efficiencies regarding specifically modelling and topology development.

Anyhow, I hope this message finds everyone well.

Cheers,

Fauntail

Hi Fauntail,

Having used quite a few 3D packages since the early ‘90s, I do know the feeling while entering something new, and find so myself missing [ALL!] stuff. A claustrophobic feeling, at least for the first few weeks,  while “re-imprinting” my muscle memory.

(Is it perhaps “Items and Groups” on one side and “Object Manager and Layers” on the other? Kind of?)

There are at least two main managing options you should be aware of. One handles current active objects:

https://help.maxon.net/us/#52991
or
https://help.maxon.net/us/#5651
… and similar.

The other one is much more powerful and is all based on the Layers:
https://help.maxon.net/us/#11074

Please have also a look into the CV-Tools.
CV-Layer Comps Manager 1.10
https://www.cineversity.com/vidplaytut/cv-layers_comps_overview
or/and
CV Object Manager Tools 1.0
https://www.cineversity.com/vidplaytut/cv-object_manager_tools

Perhaps, this series might help:
https://www.cineversity.com/vidplaylist/a_cinema_4d_primer_for_maya_artists/

(I exclude here the Take system, as it is more for variations than what the tools above can do.)

If all of that doesn’t lead to anything useful for you, please voice your wishes here:
https://www.maxon.net/en-us/support/suggestions/

Besides that, if you can share a specific problem, perhaps I have another idea.

Enjoy exploring the package!

Cheers