topology

Creating Clean and Evenly Distributed Topology with Diego Maia

01 An introduction to Topology - Page 04

02 Limbs and Accessories - Page 10

03 Cleaning up and Adjustments - Page 16

04 Hard Surfaces - Page 20

 01
an introduction to topology
Topology Chapter 01 | An Introduction to Topology

Chapter 01 - An
introduction to
Topology
Software used: 3ds Max

Introduction
Over four chapters we’ll be talking about
topology. This is a subject that causes problems
to many people and in most cases the problem
is purely in simple details that can be easily
avoided if we plan our modeling and try to get
clean topology.

There are a large number of issues that are

recurrent concerning topology, especially when
the models are made for animation. This will be
our focus: making good topology for animation.
Once you can do this you should be able to
cope with anything, even high poly models for
still images (Fig.01 – 02). We will also look at
how to achieve functional topology. We will talk
about the theory of edge loops .The tools we
use to do this will not be focused on, as what is
important is the principles. Once you understand
these they can be applied in any package.

To begin it is important to say that when it

comes to modeling there is no single correct
way to work. Every modeler should understand
the way that works best for him or her and
choose their own pipeline and method. In this
series I’ll be working with a pipeline that works
for me in most cases, especially for characters.
Nevertheless there is a short list of things that
are important to keep in mind. So let’s get
started.

I’ll be demonstrating these points using a

character from a personal project (Fig.03).
His name is Miranda. We won’t focus on the
modeling process so we will move straight onto
topology.

Most tutorials start by teaching the box-

modeling technique and it’s really important to
know how to use and understand these tools,

www.3dtotal.com page 5 Chapter 01

 Chapter 01 | An Introduction to Topology Topology

but today we have the retopology process. This

allows us to separate the art/sculpture process
from the technical one. We can focus on the
shapes, gesture and design without coming
across technical issues all the time (a spiral loop
or triangles for example). This means that you
can create the model in an artistic way and then
clean the topology afterwards.

To do this you would use tools like the Snap

tool, which allow us to work freely by changing
the direction of loops, and deleting and creating
polygons. It’s faster to do things this way
and means that the result is 100% clean and
functional topology. However, this does highlight
one of the problems with box modeling. It means
there are many loops and polygons that will
appear useless.

These days the process no longer needs to be

linear. We can come and go easily from one
program to another to make adjustments using
the Projection tool or the GoZ plugin. In addition,
all major 3D programs import .obj extensions.
For this tutorial I will use XSI for polygonal
modeling, ZBrush for sculpting and Silo for the
retopology.

I will be looking at a character that has organic

and inorganic forms. We will start the tutorial
with a rough base without worrying about the
loops as we just need something to work with
in ZBrush. Fortunately for us artists new tools
are appearing all the time that help us avoid the
base mesh process, such as ZSpheres.
So to start with you need a rough base mesh,
which in my case was made in XSI. Note that I
don’t even have loops for the eyes and mouth,
etc (Fig.04).
After you have created the base mesh, export
the .obj file into ZBrush (Fig.05). The next step
is to start the blocking process, which in my
opinion is the fun part. As it’s not the point of
this tutorial I won’t talk about the sculpting of
my image; you will have to create your own
character and then we will look at the topology
of it. To make my model I primarily used three
tools: the Standard, Clay and Move brushes.
until you have the shape and proportions you
are happy with. Don’t forget that things can
still be adjusted after you have handled the
topology, but we will come back to that later.
I worked with stylized characters proportions:
a big head, heavy hands and thin arms (Fig.08
– 9). You can see the legs before and after the
sculpting process in Fig.10 – 12.

Fig.06 – 07 show a few of the stages of my As I mentioned, the point of this process is not
modeling process. Work with your character to talk about the sculpting process, so let’s start

www.3dtotal.com page 6 Chapter 01

Topology Chapter 01 | An Introduction to Topology
working on our topology. I use Silo because I
really like the way the Snap tool works, but the
principles can be followed in other software
packages as well.

I usually start the process by making the high

poly model slightly transparent as I think it helps
with viewing the topology. If you are using Silo
you can turn on Ghost Shaded mode and hide
the wireframes (Fig.13 – 14).

Remember to turn on the Snap tool before

starting to retopologize. You can find this tool in
all the main software like Maya, 3ds Max, XSI
and modo etc. Even ZBrush has great tools to
do this (Fig.15).

It is very important to make the loops follow the

flow of the volumes/shapes and avoid triangles
and shapes with any other amount of sides
than four. You will come across problems if you
use shapes with more sides than four when
using blend shapes, rigging or even when
rendering. Some software doesn’t work correctly
when rendering displacement maps and using
geometry with triangles.

Start by creating a single polygon and extruding

the edges from it. In the beginning the most
important thing is to set the direction of the loops
(Fig.16 – 17). I usually work in separate areas
and then try to connect them. You can see this
at work in Fig.18 – 21.

Make the loops follow the general flow of the

muscle. Knowledge of anatomy helps at this
point. If you don’t feel confident doing this, find a
reference that will help you to make sure it flows

www.3dtotal.com page 7 Chapter 01

 Chapter 01 | An Introduction to Topology Topology

correctly. You will also find that the pieces join

together better if you follow this rule.

In Fig.22 you will see a higher density of edge

loops at the corner of the mouth. This is quite
important because if you were making it for an
animation you would need these to make the
face smile, speak or kiss. You can see how the
polygons flow around the face and around the
neck (Fig.23 – 25).

In Fig.26 you can see how the direction of the

loop follows the collarbone. At the tip of the
collarbone we will need to create a circular
shape that allows for the rise in the shape of the
shoulder.

Make the shoulder loop flow down the chest.

This will allow the geometry to behave in a
similar way to muscles after rigging (Fig.27 –
28). If you do this correctly you can get good
results using simple blend shapes matching the
bone’s rotation.

Continue to follow the flow of the muscles and

forms for the nose and eyebrows, as I have
done in Fig.29 – 30. You will be doing this
all over your model, matching the flow in the

www.3dtotal.com page 8 Chapter 01

Topology Chapter 01 | An Introduction to Topology
separate areas and then joining them together
when the different areas meet (Fig.31 – 34).

In Fig.35 – 36 you can see how to fix problem

areas in the topology. In Fig.35 you can see the
unwanted triangle and the adjustments made.
Each problem area you come across will require
a tailored solution. When you browse for shapes
that haven’t got four sides in your geometry
you will come across a few areas where there
are problems. Usually this can be solved quite
simply by connecting the problem shape with
the polygon next to it. This would usually create
a square. Another trick is to cut the geometry
and make it a quad.

Try to keep the same distance between the

loops as much as is possible. This will prevent
many problems when creating the UVs and
textures, and will avoid division problems when
rigging and animating Fig.37 - 38.

Fig.39 is a snapshot of the final head topology.

This topology provides enough loops to help the
animator to achieve the creases that would be
made when the face is expressing emotions.
In a professional environment it would be
necessary to speak to the rigging and animation
team to make sure that you cater for every sort
of animation that they would like to do.

When you have done this you can delete the

high poly base and finalize any of the remaining
details like the inside of the mouth and around
the eyes. In the next chapter we will be
looking at creating the rest of the body and the
accessories.

Diego Maia
For more from this artist visit:
http://maia3d.blogspot.com/
Or contact him at:
maia3d@gmail.com

www.3dtotal.com page 9 Chapter 01

 02
limbs and accessories
Topology Chapter 02 | Limbs and Accessories

Chapter 02 - Limbs and

Accessories
Software used: 3ds Max

In the first chapter we talked about the concept

of topology and how retopologizing can make
the process faster and help you get much better
results. We have already done the retopology
for the head and the torso, so now we are going
to talk about the arms, hands, feet, pants and
shoes (Fig.01 – 02).

As I mentioned in the previous chapter it is

important to choose the direction the loops

follow. So open the model that you left at the

end of the first chapter and we will start working
on the forearm and linking it to the shoulder.

At this point you can work with larger polygons

and add a subdivision later if you want as
this is a bit faster. Just be careful because it
can generate loops and polygons that are not
necessary (Fig.03).

You can see in Fig.04 – 05 how this way of

creating the topology allows you to create loops
that follow the contours of the anatomy.

We now have enough loops to create Blend

Shapes to inflate or reduce any muscle/volume
on our geometry. It is worth pointing out that
you need to try to make sure the polygons have

www.3dtotal.com page 11 Chapter 02


an average size and distance. Avoid having
tremendous differences between polygon sizes.
The next step is to define the direction of the
loops on the hand and fingers. Note that I didn’t
start from the edges that come from the wrist
(Fig.06 – 08).
Next we will move on to the pants. You need
to follow the same procedure as stated before.
Even though this is simulated cloth, it is worth
creating topology that fits the cloth’s folds. This
is so that these folds can be exaggerated if the
character is to be animated. If you are modeling
a character that has very detailed topology it is
probably not necessary to create these folds in
the cloth (Fig.09 – 10).
In Fig.11 you can see how you should detail the
pocket area by following the direction that the
pockets would flow in.
www.3dtotal.com
Chapter 02 | Limbs and Accessories Topology
When you move on to create the thigh area,
extrude a large polygon, then subdivide the
points and position them using the Snap tool
(Fig.12).
The loop then goes below the knee, which
means that we will have the shape of the knee
when the leg bends. This means we will avoid
the appearance of a bent cylinder. This can be
further improved with the use of a Blend Shape
to pull the knee out, or even in the folds from the
back of the leg. It is very important to talk to the
rigger or director about these technical details
before you start, because sometimes it can
be done in other ways (such as an animated
Displacement or a Normal map) or even
unnecessary (Fig.13 – 14).
For the feet we will do things in the same way
as we did the head. Create a polygon and
page 12 Chapter 02
Topology Chapter 02 | Limbs and Accessories

extrude its edges to cover the model to create

the topology (Fig.15 – 16).

Although we have two objects here (foot and

shoe), the blocking should be done as one
subtool. This kind of choice can speed up the
process as we can easily separate the objects
later (Fig.17 – 18).

A common mistake is to keep the amount of

polygons in the mesh quite low. This economy
of polygons, in most cases, is irrelevant. The
idea is to have geometry with sufficient polygons

www.3dtotal.com page 13 Chapter 02

 Chapter 02 | Limbs and Accessories Topology

to maintain the overall shape of the character

without subdivision, and to not have a big
difference between the polygon sizes. Keep the
polygons as close as possible to a square shape
as well. It’s exactly what we did for the head
(Fig.19 – 20).

In Fig.21 we can see the details from the bottom

of the pants. It’s also nice to give thickness to
our geometries. The amount of detail we show
here will depend on the purpose of the model.
If it is for a production that requires no detail on
the mesh they will probably prefer Displacement
or Normal maps or neither. However some
objects (especially for close-ups) need extreme
detailing. This kind of work without retopology
can become a nightmare and last for days,
weeks or months.

In Fig.22 you can see how I created the pocket.

Create an opening for the pocket as a Blend
Shape so the character’s hand or anything else
could be put in it.

Extract a loop of polygons from the pants to

create the belt. It is strongly recommended
when overlapping geometry because it allows
the upper model to follow the surface of the one
bellow. When box modeling it’s best to start with
a cube and the new parts should be extracted
from this topology (Fig.23).

www.3dtotal.com page 14 Chapter 02

Topology Chapter 02 | Limbs and Accessories
Create the belt fasteners as separate geometry.
In most cases this is not a problem, but if you
are doing this to be animated and you are
unsure, ask the rigger (Fig.24).
That’s our retopology complete. See how the
geometry keeps the shape and design even
with no subdivisions. Now it’s time for final
www.3dtotal.com
adjustments and re-projection in ZBrush. This
will be the subject of our next tutorial. I hope it’s
been helpful so far (Fig.25).
Diego Maia
For more from this artist visit:
http://maia3d.blogspot.com/
Or contact him at: maia3d@gmail.com
page 15 Chapter 02
 03
cleaning up and adjustments
Topology Chapter 03 | Cleaning Up and Adjustments

Chapter 03 – Cleaning
Up and Adjustments
Software used: 3ds Max

In the last two chapters we discussed the theory

of topology as well as how to retopologize the
head, body and accessories. Now it is time to
make some final adjustments to make it perfect
for the rigging process. Let’s start by making the
final adjustments on the head (Fig.01).

We need to build some geometry inside the

mouth to simulate an open throat inside the
character’s mouth. I usually pull the inside
edges of the lips and form a channel that
goes down the neck, but this can be done in a
number of different ways. Sometimes I like to
make it rounded inside the mouth. It’s up to you,
the rigger or director. I’m also used to extruding
the inner edges to the inside of the eyes. In
some cases we need the model without holes,
so it pays to close the back of the eyes, just like
the mouth.

Whenever possible I like making nails separate

objects to make the shading easier. This can be
done easily if we draw appropriate topology in
the retopology process (Fig.02).

Now it’s time to remove all the triangles and

n-gons from our model. I like to use XSI for that
because it points out where these are (Fig.03).

The same goes for the shoes and feet (Fig.04).

Note that some loops make a curve and meet

others. This is a great solution, otherwise you
would have a very large number of edges going
up the arm (Fig.05).

Now it’s time to re-project the ZBrush details

onto your new mesh. This is very easy and fast.
Just import our new geometry in exactly the
same position as the old geometry, split it with
the same number of subdivisions and click the
ProjectAll in the Subtool palette (Fig.06).

www.3dtotal.com page 17 Chapter 03

 Chapter 03 | Cleaning Up and Adjustments Topology

Sometimes this causes some problems at

small points, so I usually mask the edges and
regions too close to others such as the corner
of your mouth, between fingers and extremities.
This helps you avoid problems when we’re re-
projecting (Fig.07 – 10).

If you still have problems with this you can also

make the projection several times, starting in
the lower divisions and so on. Now you can
export your geometry in order to make the final
adjustments.

For the geometry of the eyes, it is very common

to see a model with one single object for the eye
ball, but it is also common to use two models to
get a more realistic result – one for the iris and
another for pupil. For the inner geometry make
two extrusions going inside. Use a simulated
sphere with the transparency and the volume
of the iris, breaking the silhouette a bit. The
reflections and shading look much more realistic
this way (Fig.11). After all the details are set I
recommend deleting one side of the model and
applying Symmetry, just to make sure that the
vertexes did not lose their position.

Now let’s take a look at our final model (Fig.12

– 13). On the face we have loops around the
eyes/mouth and enough at the folds and places
that demonstrate expression like the forehead,
nose and corners of his eyes.

Behind the head we have enough topology to

get skin folds when the character turns his head
up. This can be done with blendShapes. Such

www.3dtotal.com page 18 Chapter 03

Topology Chapter 03 | Cleaning Up and Adjustments
detail can also be worked in several different
ways. This will depend on the needs of the
model (Fig.14).

When you have a character that needs to have

its head separated from its body (which usually
occurs on the collar of a shirt or under some
other accessory) the loop should follow right
under the item (Fig.15 – 18).

It’s extremely important to keep in mind where

the UV seams will go. Sometimes as you open
the UVs you will realize that you would like to
cut the diagonal out of a polygon, but you don’t
have edge loops for this. It is important that no
hole in the mesh is visible from any view.

If you have an overall look at your model you

should see regular distribution of polygons. You
should also see that the polygons are a similar
size.

Fig.19 shows the final render of Miranda. Our

third chapter ends here, but there is a point I
would like to make before I finish. Try not to use
this tutorial as a guide for replicable loops; this
can make the process much harder. The best
way to perfect this is to understand the theory
and practice. You will see that after a few hours
the process will become faster and faster. The
important thing is to work the topology as a non-
linear process. You can delete and change the
direction of the loops at any time. With practice
you can begin to solve these problems faster
and figure out new ways of doing it.

In the next chapter I’ll be modeling a rifle and

talking about hard-edge topology.

Diego Maia
For more from this artist visit:
http://maia3d.blogspot.com/
Or contact him at:
maia3d@gmail.com

www.3dtotal.com page 19 Chapter 03

 04
hard surfaces
Topology Chapter 04 | Hard Surfaces

Chapter 04 – Hard
Surfaces
Software used: 3ds Max

This is the final chapter from our tutorial series

about topology and we’re going to be talking
about hard surfaces. As I explain the process
I’m going to model a high-tech rifle based on a
personal design (Fig.01).

In Fig.02 – 03 you can see a sketch and a 3D

render of the rifle I designed.

For simple forms and objects such as this, box

modeling is very effective in most cases. Usually
it is not necessary to use ZBrush, but if the
model has an organic design with detailed lines
or flat shapes ZBrush can be very helpful. In
this case I will work with box modeling, but will
describe the retopology process.

The strategy here is to draw the topology on a

flat model and when you have done this, correct
the loops so we can we extrude the volumes
and detail, in order to keep the shape even with
no subdivisions.

At this point we can work with one plane and

try not to take the vertexes of the axes to avoid
wrinkles (try to move in X, Y, Z as much as
possible). We’re also using symmetry, since the
weapon has symmetrical sides (Fig.04 – 05).

www.3dtotal.com page 21 Chapter 04

 Chapter 04 | Hard Surfaces Topology

In Fig.06 – 07 we can see that the shape of

the weapon has began to appear already, but
without any extrusion. I have simply just drawn
the outline of the general form and organized
my topology on the inner part. Now we have
everything in place we can extrude the volumes
of the different pieces and start adding cuts to
sustain the hard edges (Fig.08 – 10).

Avoid using the Chamfer tool too much (or the

Bevel tool for XSi users). Instead, try adding
edges as it allows you to fix details easily.

In Fig.11 – 12 we can see various screws and

small details on the weapon. Try to always make
the round forms with six or more sides. Avoid
circles with four sides. It’s too low when the
model’s not subdivided.

I use cylinders to get the geometry for the barrel

of the gun and tip (Fig.13). This method is much
more convenient than using retopology.

Note that even when doing inorganic modeling,

I try to keep an average size and distance
between the loops (Fig.13). Even if we don’t
have blend shapes we must have the topology
well-distributed in order to not have problems
with textures and UVs slipping. So as in
previous chapters, let’s try to keep an average
size and distance between polygons.

Use the same process for the weapon’s support

(Fig.14 – 15). Begin by drawing the topology on
the flat piece. Then extrude volumes after all the
topology is in place. After you have done this

www.3dtotal.com page 22 Chapter 04

Topology Chapter 04 | Hard Surfaces

you can add even more details if you want to.

I created the sight from separate geometry. In
this case, we do not need all the pieces in the
same mesh. It is important to not be able to see
where one set of geometry joins another.

Note that you can use several divisions to keep

the round shape, even without subdivisions. In
this case our circle would be very low poly even
with six sides (Fig.16 – 17).

Here are some close-ups of our final topology

(Fig.18 – 19).

You can see the final model rendered in Fig.20.

That’s the end of our series about topology. I

believe that practice improves your ability and
optimizes the process. I hope these tips help
and I hope you enjoyed the tutorials. Thank you
for reading this article.

Diego Maia
For more from this artist visit:
http://maia3d.blogspot.com/
Or contact him at:
maia3d@gmail.com

www.3dtotal.com page 23 Chapter 04

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