[ENDED] BC1-1908 - August 2019 Class Homepage - Get Started Building Stuff with Blender 2.8

Announcement #5: This class has officially come to a close. Please check out the closing post and thank you for joining!

Announcement #4: Week 2 is officially complete! Thank you for submitting your homework on time. Let the grading commence.

Announcement #3: Week 1 is officially complete! I'll be grading 55 homework submissions by my count. Thank you for submitting on time. I'll be busy today :)

Announcement #2: First week's live stream recording is available and I've started filling out the homework roster. Feel free to keep an eye on the Report Card throughout the month if you'd like.

Announcement #1: Class is in session! We're all going to learn a lot and have fun the next 3 weeks. I wrote a kickoff post on page 3. See you tomorrow for the first stream!

Welcome to the CGCookie Class: Get Started Building Stuff with Blender 2.8! If you're interested in computer graphics, 3D modeling, and you're new to Blender or just new to 2.8, this class is where you need to be. Ushering in the modern era of Blender, we will familiarize ourselves with what's new as well as get up to speed with how to build STUFF in 3D.

This "Class" format invites all Citizen members to focus together on a particular topic/skill for a month. Participation looks like this:

• RSVP and attend the Live Events (they will be scheduled soon)
• Watch (or have already watched) the pre-recorded education outlined for each week
• Submit homework by creating a forum thread that contains all your work-in-progress and final homework for the month
• Generally be active in this Homepage thread: Ask questions and answer your peer's questions if you can.

WHEN? The class will take place from JULY 29th - AUGUST 20th.

SYLLABUS

This time the class curriculum is project-based. You will have the opportunity to choose between 3 assets to create throughout the month: A wooden sign, a barrel, a sword or a treasure chest. I chose these assets because they're fun to create but also conducive for teaching fundamental skills.

 ✅ WEEK 1: 3D Modeling (July 29-Aug 4)

The goal week 1 is to get familiar with Blender 2.8 and model your chosen asset. If you're brand new to Blender it's very important that you spend time each day of this week getting comfortable with Blender's interface. Once you're comfortable, you will have a more enjoyable experience learning and practicing modeling.

Courses to watch:

• Treasure Chest Course (Chapter 1)

Week 1 Live Event

Homework:

• Spend 1 hour with Blender per day (especially if you're brand new)
• Model a sign, barrel, sword, or treasure chest.

✅ WEEK 2: UVs & Texture Painting (August 5-11)

Plain gray models can be boring. So we paint them with colors! This is where "textures" work their magic. But before we can paint on our 3D models, we have to layout UVs. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, don't worry. After you watch the texturing course and the live event for this week, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. 

Course to watch: Treasure Chest Course (Chapter 2)

Week 2 Live Event

Homework: Layout UVs and paint textures for your sign, barrel, sword, or treasure chest.

✅ WEEK 3: Shading & Lighting(August 12-18)

Texturing introduces color to your models but materials make your model appear to be plastic, or wood, or metal, etc. If you're asking yourself "What's the difference", fear not! I will make sure you know the difference by the end of this week.

We will also be exploring the Eevee engine and how it works together with texturing and shading for a realtime workflow.

Pre-recorded courses to watch: Treasure Chest Course (Chapter 3)

Week 3 Live Event

Homework: Create materials and establish appealing lighting for your sign, barrel, sword, or treasure chest.

✅ Class Wrap Stream (August 20)

This thread is reserved for CG Cookie Citizens that are participating in the "Get Started Building Stuff with Blender 2.8" class. Its purpose is to serve as central communication for all participating Citizens (excluding Hobby plan Citizens) to ask me and fellow participants questions pertaining to the class. As the instructor of the class, I will be monitoring this thread on a daily basis (especially Mon-Thurs) throughout the month of August.

Free members are welcome to observe the thread but please respect that communication and participation is reserved for Citizens.