Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Smartwatch model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I'll show you:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Smartwatch

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This displays all four views. From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Right view.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the finder and open it.

Step 5

Once the image is displayed in the background of the viewport, change the transparency of the image. This can sometimes make it easier to model from the reference image.

Change the position and size of the reference image from here using Offset X, Offset Y, Size X and Size Y.

2. How to Model the Watch Face

Step 1

To start modelling the face of the Smartwatch, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. This spawns a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the reference image of the Smartwatch in the Front View to help adjust the cube. 

Use the Scale Tool to make the shape of the cube match up with the shape of the Smartwatch in the image.

Ensure that you use the other views (front, left, right, perspective etc) to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 3

With the object still selected, use the mouse to click the Make Editable button to allow you to adjust the model further.

Clicking the Make Editable button disables the options for when you first spawn the object.

Because of this you must make sure that you are happy with the current shape of the cube before clicking this button.

Step 4

Select the Edge Selection Tool.

Step 5

Use the Edge Selection Tool to select all four corners of the object. The selected edges are highlighted in orange.

Step 6

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 7

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
  
• Offset: 50cm
  
• Subdivision: 10
  
• Depth: 100%
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance.

Step 8

In the images below you can see how the edges are effected once the values have been changed.

Use the reference image of the Smartwatch in the Front View to help whilst you adjust the corners. 

Step 9

Click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the Bend Tool in the top menu bar. Select Bevel from the list. This creates a Bevel tool in the list of objects on the right of the screen.

Step 10

Select the Bevel tool and drag it into the Cube object. This will apply the bevel features to the cube.

Step 11

Ensuring that the Bevel tool is selected in the object list, use the adjustments window to change the way that the bevel works. 

For this tutorial, the following are used:

• Use Angle: Tick
  
• Angle Threshold: 68 Degrees
  
• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Radial
  
• Offset: 20cm
  
• Subdivision: 6
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance.

Step 12

In the images below you can see how the cube is changed once the values have been changed. This makes the object appear smoother, which correctly matches the appearance of the Smartwatch which is being modelled.

Step 13

For a more stylised and graphical approach, reduce the Bevel Subdivisions to a value of 1.

Step 14

This gives the Smartwatch a sharper bevel for a more stylised look. However, if you're going for a more realistic look with a smoother bevel, increase the number of Bevel Subdivisions instead.

3. How to Create the Smartwatch Screen

Step 1

To start modelling the screen of the Smartwatch, duplicate the current object from the list view. Do this by holding CTRL on the keyboard to click and drag a duplicate object.

Step 2

Remove the Bevel Modifier from the duplicate object.

Step 3

Use the Scale Tool to adjust the thickness of the new object.

Ensure that you use the other views (front, left, right, perspective etc) to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 4

Once the shape and size of the cube has been adjusted correctly, use the Move Tool to move the screen into position.

4. How to Create the Smartwatch Buttons

Step 1

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This will spawn a Cylinder in the scene.

Step 2

Adjust the properties of the Cylinder so that it is facing the correct way, has the correct size and has the desired thickness for the button. 

Use the Move Tool to move the button into the correct place using the background image as the reference. 

The settings for the Cylinder are as follows:

• Radius: 25cm
• Height: 25cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 36
• Orientation: -X

Step 3

Ensure that the cylinder is selected and click on the Make Editable Button. 

Step 4

Duplicate the cylinder. This acts as the second button.

Step 5

Now that the object is editable, edit the points. Ensure the second cylinder object is selected and click on Points Button. 

Click on the Rectangle Selection Tool to select the points to edit. Select the points to then move them using the Move Tool.

Step 6

Use the Rectangle Selection Tool to select half of the cylinder. Then use the Move Tool to move the points down.

Step 7

To move the two buttons into position, when moving a whole object, select and use the Model button. If this is not selected, you may find that you'll be moving the points, edges or faces instead.

Step 8

Use the Move Tool to move the two buttons into position.

Step 9

Ensure that you use the other camera views to ensure that the button placement is correct and moved to the right area.

5. How to Create the Watch Strap

Step 1

To start modelling the wrist strap of the Smartwatch, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. 

This spawns a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Adjust the properties of the cube so that it resembles the appearance of a wrist strap. This is usually represented as a very long rectangular shape. 

The settings for the strap are as follows:

• Size X: 230 cm
• Size Y: 1000 cm
• Size Z: 45 cm

Step 3

In order for the shape to bend correctly, width segments must be added to the object. For a smoother bend more segments should be added (Y).

6. How to use the Bend Deformer 

Step 1

In order to create a suitable bend to the wrist strap you will need to use the Bend Deformer. Select the Bend button from the top menu bar. 

This spawns a bend deformer object in the list view.

Step 2

In the list view move the Bend Deformer into the watch strap object. This means that the deformer will affect and influence the watch strap object only.

Step 3

With the Bend Deformer selected make sure that Fit to Parent has been ticked. The ensures that the deformer affects the whole watch strap.

Step 4

With the Bend Deformer still selected, go to the parameters box and play around with the Strength. 

In this tutorial I used the following settings:

• Strength: 180
  
• Angle: 90

Step 5

In the list view, select the watch strap object again and use the Rotate and Move tools to move it to the correct position on the smart watch.

7. How to Complete the Watch Strap

Step 1

In order to edit the watch strap further click the Make Editable button on the top left corner of the screen.

Step 2

Choose the Polygon Tool and use the Move Tool to extend the tip of the watch strap. 

You'll also notice that by going into an edit mode like this disables the Bend Deformer temporarily. 

Step 3

Once you return to Model Mode by clicking on the model button, the strap appears as normal with the extended geometry.

Step 4

Choose the Edge Tool from the left menu.

Step 5

Use the Edge Tool and the Selection Tool to select the edges of the extended strap.

Step 6

With the edges still selected, use the Bevel Tool to curve the edges.

Step 7

In the edit window, change the settings to the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer 
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
• Offset: 72 cm
• Subdivision: 30
• Depth: 100%

Step 8

Return to Model Mode to see how the watch strap looks and finalise any further adjustments you'd like to make. 

Once you're happy with the way it looks, duplicate the watch strap. Do this by holding CTRL on the keyboard to click and drag a duplicate object.

Rotate the duplicate strap by 180 degrees and place it on the bottom of the watch.

Coming Next...

In the second part of the tutorial series, I'll show you:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Smartwatch

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Smartwatch model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I'll show you:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Smartwatch

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This displays all four views. From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Right view.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the finder and open it.

Step 5

Once the image is displayed in the background of the viewport, change the transparency of the image. This can sometimes make it easier to model from the reference image.

Change the position and size of the reference image from here using Offset X, Offset Y, Size X and Size Y.

2. How to Model the Watch Face

Step 1

To start modelling the face of the Smartwatch, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. This spawns a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the reference image of the Smartwatch in the Front View to help adjust the cube. 

Use the Scale Tool to make the shape of the cube match up with the shape of the Smartwatch in the image.

Ensure that you use the other views (front, left, right, perspective etc) to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 3

With the object still selected, use the mouse to click the Make Editable button to allow you to adjust the model further.

Clicking the Make Editable button disables the options for when you first spawn the object.

Because of this you must make sure that you are happy with the current shape of the cube before clicking this button.

Step 4

Select the Edge Selection Tool.

Step 5

Use the Edge Selection Tool to select all four corners of the object. The selected edges are highlighted in orange.

Step 6

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 7

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
  
• Offset: 50cm
  
• Subdivision: 10
  
• Depth: 100%
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance.

Step 8

In the images below you can see how the edges are effected once the values have been changed.

Use the reference image of the Smartwatch in the Front View to help whilst you adjust the corners. 

Step 9

Click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the Bend Tool in the top menu bar. Select Bevel from the list. This creates a Bevel tool in the list of objects on the right of the screen.

Step 10

Select the Bevel tool and drag it into the Cube object. This will apply the bevel features to the cube.

Step 11

Ensuring that the Bevel tool is selected in the object list, use the adjustments window to change the way that the bevel works. 

For this tutorial, the following are used:

• Use Angle: Tick
  
• Angle Threshold: 68 Degrees
  
• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Radial
  
• Offset: 20cm
  
• Subdivision: 6
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance.

Step 12

In the images below you can see how the cube is changed once the values have been changed. This makes the object appear smoother, which correctly matches the appearance of the Smartwatch which is being modelled.

Step 13

For a more stylised and graphical approach, reduce the Bevel Subdivisions to a value of 1.

Step 14

This gives the Smartwatch a sharper bevel for a more stylised look. However, if you're going for a more realistic look with a smoother bevel, increase the number of Bevel Subdivisions instead.

3. How to Create the Smartwatch Screen

Step 1

To start modelling the screen of the Smartwatch, duplicate the current object from the list view. Do this by holding CTRL on the keyboard to click and drag a duplicate object.

Step 2

Remove the Bevel Modifier from the duplicate object.

Step 3

Use the Scale Tool to adjust the thickness of the new object.

Ensure that you use the other views (front, left, right, perspective etc) to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 4

Once the shape and size of the cube has been adjusted correctly, use the Move Tool to move the screen into position.

4. How to Create the Smartwatch Buttons

Step 1

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This will spawn a Cylinder in the scene.

Step 2

Adjust the properties of the Cylinder so that it is facing the correct way, has the correct size and has the desired thickness for the button. 

Use the Move Tool to move the button into the correct place using the background image as the reference. 

The settings for the Cylinder are as follows:

• Radius: 25cm
• Height: 25cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 36
• Orientation: -X

Step 3

Ensure that the cylinder is selected and click on the Make Editable Button. 

Step 4

Duplicate the cylinder. This acts as the second button.

Step 5

Now that the object is editable, edit the points. Ensure the second cylinder object is selected and click on Points Button. 

Click on the Rectangle Selection Tool to select the points to edit. Select the points to then move them using the Move Tool.

Step 6

Use the Rectangle Selection Tool to select half of the cylinder. Then use the Move Tool to move the points down.

Step 7

To move the two buttons into position, when moving a whole object, select and use the Model button. If this is not selected, you may find that you'll be moving the points, edges or faces instead.

Step 8

Use the Move Tool to move the two buttons into position.

Step 9

Ensure that you use the other camera views to ensure that the button placement is correct and moved to the right area.

5. How to Create the Watch Strap

Step 1

To start modelling the wrist strap of the Smartwatch, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. 

This spawns a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Adjust the properties of the cube so that it resembles the appearance of a wrist strap. This is usually represented as a very long rectangular shape. 

The settings for the strap are as follows:

• Size X: 230 cm
• Size Y: 1000 cm
• Size Z: 45 cm

Step 3

In order for the shape to bend correctly, width segments must be added to the object. For a smoother bend more segments should be added (Y).

6. How to use the Bend Deformer 

Step 1

In order to create a suitable bend to the wrist strap you will need to use the Bend Deformer. Select the Bend button from the top menu bar. 

This spawns a bend deformer object in the list view.

Step 2

In the list view move the Bend Deformer into the watch strap object. This means that the deformer will affect and influence the watch strap object only.

Step 3

With the Bend Deformer selected make sure that Fit to Parent has been ticked. The ensures that the deformer affects the whole watch strap.

Step 4

With the Bend Deformer still selected, go to the parameters box and play around with the Strength. 

In this tutorial I used the following settings:

• Strength: 180
  
• Angle: 90

Step 5

In the list view, select the watch strap object again and use the Rotate and Move tools to move it to the correct position on the smart watch.

7. How to Complete the Watch Strap

Step 1

In order to edit the watch strap further click the Make Editable button on the top left corner of the screen.

Step 2

Choose the Polygon Tool and use the Move Tool to extend the tip of the watch strap. 

You'll also notice that by going into an edit mode like this disables the Bend Deformer temporarily. 

Step 3

Once you return to Model Mode by clicking on the model button, the strap appears as normal with the extended geometry.

Step 4

Choose the Edge Tool from the left menu.

Step 5

Use the Edge Tool and the Selection Tool to select the edges of the extended strap.

Step 6

With the edges still selected, use the Bevel Tool to curve the edges.

Step 7

In the edit window, change the settings to the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer 
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
• Offset: 72 cm
• Subdivision: 30
• Depth: 100%

Step 8

Return to Model Mode to see how the watch strap looks and finalise any further adjustments you'd like to make. 

Once you're happy with the way it looks, duplicate the watch strap. Do this by holding CTRL on the keyboard to click and drag a duplicate object.

Rotate the duplicate strap by 180 degrees and place it on the bottom of the watch.

Coming Next...

In the second part of the tutorial series, I'll show you:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Smartwatch

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Smartwatch model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Smartwatch

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Smartwatch

8. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there should be a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the various objects and parts of the Smartwatch.

Step 2

Double click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style you'll only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Colour and Reflectance. This will give us the cel shaded look for our final image of the Smartwatch.

Step 4

Colour the Smartwatch, starting with the body, by adding the material to the object. Simply drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. Drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

This process is repeated for the other parts of the Smartwatch. The base colour of the Smartwatch is as follows:

• R: 201
• G: 197
• B: 198

Step 5

Apply this material colour to the Smartwatch buttons as well

9. How to Adjust the Material Properties

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In the new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right.
2. Untick Camera.
3. Tick Lights.
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu.

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the colour option box . 

The Material Editor gives you many different options for choosing and picking the colour. These include RGB, HSV etc. Choose whichever option you're most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades also appears in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model is automatically adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Smartwatch model.

Step 5

Because you've already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Smartwatch is automatically adjusted to the new material colour.

10. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a  better idea of the shading and how our render will turn out as you work on it, click and hold on the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Smartwatch model. Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box (this increases the resolution). 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that the performance is decreasing.

Step 3

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

Add a light object to the scene if you are more comfortable working that way. 

Step 4

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you'd like the light source to come from on the sphere and it'll sync with the view port. Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This is adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

11. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Left Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Ensure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu appears on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene (according to the time of the day). Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You'll see how the lighting affects the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This will create a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here you can adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Colour.

12. How to Colour the Smartwatch Screen

Step 1

To create a new material we can duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there change the colour to the following:

• R: 56
• G: 47
• B: 66

Step 3

Apply the new material to the screen by clicking and dragging it directly onto the object.

13. How to Colour the Smartwatch Wrist Strap

Step 1

Create a new material. Duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there change the colour to the following:

• R: 70
• G: 69
• B: 65

Step 2

Apply the new material to both of the wrist straps by either clicking on the material and dragging it to the objects via the viewport or via the object list window.

14. How to Render the Smartwatch

Step 1

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Step 2

In the Render Settings menu, change the options to what you need. First you will need to tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through. This is useful if you wish to add a background to the image in Adobe Photoshop.

Step 3

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Step 4

To ensure that the Smartwatch render is nice and sharp, go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which can be found under Filter. 

Step 5

To create the final image of the Smartwatch, click on the Render button. Remember to make sure that you've selected the right view in your viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you're happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Step 6

For more control over how the final render looks, create a camera object to help. Find a suitable view using the viewport first and then click on the camera button. 

This creates a camera using the current view in the viewport. Check out the camera settings to see how they will affect the final render.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete, repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you've learnt how to:

• Import Reference Images
• Prepare for Modelling
• Model an Smartwatch
• Create Coloured Materials
• Add Lighting to the Scene
• Render the Smartwatch

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

Follow this step-by-step tutorial to create a 3D Nintendo Switch model that you can use in video games or graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene, and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I'll show you:

• how to import reference images
• how to prepare for modelling
• how to model the Switch

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

To use the reference image in this tutorial, you will need to switch your viewport to the Front View. 

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This will display all four views—by default this will be perspective, top, right, and front. From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Front View.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab, select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right], select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the finder and open it. In this tutorial I'll use the front view of a Nintendo Switch to help me.

Step 5

Once the image is displayed in the background of the viewport, you can change the transparency of the image to your liking. This sometimes makes it easier to model from the reference image.

You can also change the position and size of your reference image from here using Offset X, Offset Y, Size X, and Size Y.

Note that the reference image will only appear when selecting the front view from the viewport.

2. How to Create the Base Model

Step 1

To start modelling the main body of the Nintendo Switch, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. This will spawn a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the reference image of the Nintendo Switch in the Front View to help adjust the cube.

Use the Scale Tool to make the shape of the cube match up with the shape of the Nintendo Switch in the image.

Ensure that you use the other views—front, left, right, perspective, etc.—to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 3

The shape of the cube should roughly fit the shape of the Nintendo Switch background image at this stage. 

Select the Move Tool. To duplicate this shape, you'll need to hold the Control button on the keyboard and then click and drag one of the arrows using the mouse. In this case, I've used the red arrow to drag the new object along the x-axis.

Step 4

Use the Scale Tool to adjust the shape of the cube to match up with the shape of the blue Joy-Con in the reference image.

Step 5

Use the Perspective View to move around the objects and make sure that the base objects all have the correct overall thickness. In the example below, the objects are too thick, so the Scale Tool is used to reduce the thickness (click and drag along the z-axis).

3. How to Curve the Joy-Con Corners

Step 1

Ensure you have the object selected, and then click on the Make Editable button to make the object editable. Select the Edge Selection button.

Step 2

Select the two left corners of the Joy-Con using the selection tool. The selected edges will be highlighted in orange.

Step 3

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right-click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 4

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
  
• Offset: 50 cm
  
• Subdivision: 20
  
• Depth: 100%
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance. You can also use the Front View and adjust the corners to fit the reference image.

Step 5

To make visualising the Joy-Con in the viewport easier, switch off the screen object by clicking on the small, round, grey button (until it turns red). This is located to the right of the screen object in the object manager list view.

Click on the button until it turns green (or grey) to make the object reappear again.

Step 6

With the screen object hidden from view, it makes navigating around the Joy-Con a lot easier. Use the reference image in the front view to check the shape of the object.

Step 7

Select the final two corners of the Joy-Con using the Edge Selection tool.

Step 8

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right-click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it. Use the Bevel tool to curve the two remaining corners of the Joy-Con.

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
  
• Offset: 10 cm
  
• Subdivision: 10
  
• Depth: 100%

4. How to Curve the Screen

Step 1

Select the screen object and click on the Make Editable button followed by the Edge Selection button. 

Ensure that the screen object is no longer hidden by clicking on the small, round button in the object manager list view. 

Step 2

To make visualising the screen object in the viewport easier, switch off the Joy-Con object by clicking on the small, round, grey button (until it turns red). 

This is located to the right of the Joy-Con object in the object manager list view.

Step 3

Once you click on the small, round, grey button, the Joy-Con object should disappear from the viewport. 

Click on the button until it turns green (or grey) to make the object reappear again.

Step 4

Use the Edge Selection tool to select all four corners of the screen object.

Step 5

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right-click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 6

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
  
• Offset: 15 cm
  
• Subdivision: 10
  
• Depth: 100%
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance. 

You can also use the Front View and adjust the corners to fit the reference image.

5. How to Use the Boole Tool

Step 1

To create the top corners of the screen, use the Boole Tool. To get started with this, select the Cylinder object from the top menu bar. This will spawn a cylinder in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the Rotate Tool to rotate the cylinder 90 degrees on the z-axis.

Step 3

Use the Scale Tool to make the cylinder thinner.

Step 4

In the front view, duplicate the cylinder and use the reference image to position the cylinders in the top corners of the screen object.

Step 5

Both cylinder objects should completely cover the corners of the screen. Use the perspective view to move the cylinders into position.

Step 6

Once the cylinder objects are in position, select the Boole Tool from the top menu bar. 

Step 7

In the object manager list view, select both cylinder objects and group them (Alt-G). This will create a 'Null' group containing the selected objects.

Step 8

Move both the screen object and the Null object inside the Boole Tool. Make sure that the screen is positioned above the Null group.

Step 9

Once the objects have been placed within the Boole Tool, the cylinder object will be subtracted from the screen object. 

6. How to Create the Screen

Step 1

To duplicate the screen object, select it from the object list (found within the Boole Tool). Press the Control button on the keyboard and click and drag the object you want to duplicate. 

Make sure that the new screen object is outside the Boole Tool.

Step 2

Use the Scale Tool to make the new screen object smaller.

Step 3

In the front view, you can use the reference image to help adjust the size of the screen.

Step 4

Once you are satisfied with the size of the screen, use the Move Tool to move the object inside and just above the surface of the original screen object.

You can also use the Scale Tool to reduce the thickness of the shape so that it becomes thinner.

7. How to Create the Joy-Con Details

Step 1

Isolate the Joy-Con object to make working in the viewport easier. One way you can do this is by clicking on the small, grey button next to the objects you wish to hide (as shown previously).

Step 2

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This will spawn a cylinder in the scene.

Step 3

Rotate the new cylinder object on the x-axis using the Rotation Tool.

Step 4

Use the right view in the viewport to check the size of the cylinder. Then use the Scale Tool to reduce the size of the object so that it can easily fit within the width of the Joy-Con.

Step 5

You can also use the object properties to adjust the size of the cylinder and the number of segments it has.

• Radius: 14 cm
• Height: 200 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 36
• Orientation: +x

Step 6

With the new cylinder object selected, click on the Make Editable button.

Step 7

Use the Move Tool and combine it with the Points Selection Tool.

Step 8

In the options window, make sure that the box for 'Only Select Visible Elements' is not selected. This will ensure that you will select all the necessary points.

Step 9

Select the bottom half of the cylinder object.

Step 10

Use the Move Tool to move the selected points down, making the object longer.

Step 11

Use the Selection Tool to select the curved corners on the right of the cylinder shape.

Step 12

Use the Move Tool to move the selected points a little bit to the right to make the object slightly wider.

Step 13

Click on the Model Mode button on the left of the screen and move the shape to the center of the Joy-Con.

Step 14

In the perspective view, use the Move Tool and the Scale Tool to adjust the shape so that it appears slightly above the side surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 15

Create three more cylinder objects and move them into position using the Scale Tool and the Move Tool.

Step 16

Adjust the bottom cylinder using the Points Tool and the Selection Tool. Select the top half of cylinder and move the points up slightly.

Step 17

Return to Model Mode and adjust the shapes so that they resemble the image below.

Step 18

Use the perspective view to move the cylinder objects into position using the Move Tool. The cylinders should be placed within and just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

8. How to Duplicate the Joy-Con

Step 1

Select all the objects related to the Joy-Con and group them (Alt-G). This will create a new 'Null Group'.

Step 2

Select the Null group containing the Joy-Con and duplicate it (hold the Control button on the keyboard and use the Move Tool).

Step 3

Rotate the new Joy-Con object 180 degrees using the Rotation Tool.

Step 4

In the front view, use the reference image to move the new Joy-Con into position (above the red Joy-Con).

9. How to Create the Buttons

Step 1

Select the Cylinder from the top menu.

Step 2

This will spawn a new cylinder object in the viewport. Use the Scale Tool to reduce the size of the cylinder so that it is the same size as the buttons shown in the reference image.

Step 3

Use the reference image to move the cylinder object into position. Then duplicate the cylinder object to create the other three buttons.

Step 4

Use the perspective view to move the buttons into position. The cylinders should be placed within and just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 5

Group the buttons together (Alt-G) and duplicate the new Null object. Use the front view and use the reference image to move the new buttons into a new position above the red Joy-Con.

Step 6

Duplicate one of the cylinder buttons and place it into the Home Button position for the red Joy-Con. Once all the buttons have been placed correctly, unhide the red Joy-Con.

10. How to Create the Joystick

Step 1

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This spawns a cylinder in the scene.

Step 2

Use the Scale Tool to reduce the size of the cylinder so that it matches the size of the joystick.

Step 3

Use the Move Tool to move the cylinder into position (use the background reference image in the front view to help with this).

Step 4

In the perspective view, use the Scale Tool to reduce the thickness of the cylinder object (click and drag along the z-axis).

Step 5

Duplicate the cylinder object and use the Scale Tool to reduce the size. 

Step 6

Once you are happy with the reduced size of the cylinder, use the Scale Tool to increase the length of the cylinder on the z-axis.

Step 7

Move both cylinder objects into position above the surface of the Joy-Con. Once the joystick is in position, select the top cylinder and duplicate it.

Step 8

Move the new cylinder object into position just above the surface of the Joy-Con. This will act as the base of the joystick.

Step 9

Duplicate one of the cylinders again and use the Scale Tool to reduce its size. Place the smaller cylinder just above the top of the joystick.

Step 10

Use the Boolean Tool to create a cutaway using the two top cylinder objects. Ensure the smaller cylinder is placed below the larger cylinder when viewed in the object manager list view.

11. How to Create Extra Joy-Con Buttons

Step 1

In the top menu bar, select the Cube to spawn a cube into the scene.

Step 2

Use the Scale Tool to adjust the cube to the same size as the Capture Button (use the reference image in the front view to help with this). 

Then use the Move Tool to move the cube into position.

Step 3

Curve the corners of the cube using the Bevel Tool. 

Step 4

Use the Move Tool to place the cube object just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 5

Create a new cube object and curve the corners using the Bevel Tool. Click and drag using the mouse to adjust the size of the curve so that it almost resembles a circle.

Step 6

Use the Selection Tool to select half of the object and move it to the left to create the '- button'.

Step 7

In the perspective view, use the Move Tool to move the '- button' into position just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 8

With all the buttons and the joystick in place, the Joy-Con should resemble the image shown below.

12. How to Duplicate the Joystick

Step 1

Group the objects that make up the joystick by selecting them and pressing Alt-G on the keyboard. This will create a new 'Null Object'.

Then duplicate the new 'Null Object' by holding the Control button on the keyboard and dragging with the mouse using the Move Tool.

Step 2

Move the new joystick into position using the reference image in the front view.

13. How to Create the Plus Button

Step 1

Duplicate the '- button' and move it into position.

Step 2

Duplicate the button and use the Rotate Tool and the Move Tool to create a cross shape for the '+ button'.

Step 3

Unhide the screen object. With all the buttons and both joysticks in place, the Nintendo Switch should finally be taking shape. 

14. How to Create the Bottom Screen Details

Step 1

Duplicate the objects on the side of the Joy-Con and rotate it on the z-axis by 90 degrees.

Step 2

Move the group of objects to the bottom of the screen just above the surface. Once the 'Null Object' is in position, duplicate the group.

Step 3

Select the new group and rotate it 180 degrees. 

Step 4

Group both objects together and position them in the centre of the screen.

15. How to Pose the Nintendo Switch

Step 1

Select all the objects associated with each Joy-Con and create separate groups for them: one group for the left Joy-Con and one group for the right Joy-Con.

Use the Move Tool to move each Joy-Con away from the screen slightly, as shown in the image below.

Step 2

Move the right Joy-Con up the y-axis slightly to create an interesting composition. Try out different positions by using the move tool and moving the camera around. 

Coming Next...

In the second part of the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• create coloured materials
  
• colour in the Nintendo Switch model
• render the Nintendo Switch model

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Nintendo Switch model to use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part (How to Create a Switch in Cinema 4D: Part 1) of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Switch

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• Color in the Nintendo Switch Model
• Render the Nintendo Switch Model

16. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there is a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the the Nintendo Switch.

Step 2

Double-click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style you'll only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Colour and Reflectance. This will give the cel shaded look for the final image. 

Step 4

Colour the body of the Nintendo Switch by adding the material to the object. Drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. You can also drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

17. How to Adjust the Material Properties

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In this new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right.
2. Untick Camera.
3. Tick Lights.
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu.

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the colour option box . 

The Material Editor gives many different options for choosing and picking colours. These include RGB, HSV and so on. 

Choose whichever option you're most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades will also appear in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model will automatically be adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Nintendo Switch model. 

Choose the following colours for this tutorial:

• R: 84
• G: 100
• B: 153

Step 5

Because you've already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Switch is automatically adjusted to the new material colour.

18. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a  better idea of the shading and how our render will turn out as we work on it, click and hold the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Nintendo Switch model. Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box (this increases the resolution). 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that the performance is decreasing.

Step 3

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

You can also add a light object to the scene if you are more comfortable working that way.  

Step 4

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you'd like the light source to come from on the sphere and it will sync with the view port. Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This can be adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

19. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Primary-Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Make sure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu appears on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene (according to the time of the day). Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You'll see how the lighting affects the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This creates a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here you can adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Colour.

20. How to Colour the Switch Screen

Step 1

To create a new material we can duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 81
• G: 223
• B: 185

Step 3

Apply the new material to the screen by clicking and dragging it directly onto the object.

21. How to Colour the Joy-Cons

Step 1

Create a new material. Duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 61
• G: 182
• B: 255

Step 2

Duplicate another new material. Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 255
• G: 121
• B: 122

Step 3

Apply the materials to the relevant Joy-Con's by dragging and dropping the colours onto the objects in the viewport. 

Use the list of objects in the object manager on the right of the screen. 

22. How to Color the Switch Details

Part 1

To color the details of the Nintendo Switch (such as the joystick and the buttons etc.) we are going to use the dark blue material which was the first material created to colour in the screen.

• R: 84
• G: 100
• B: 153

Part 2

Apply the material to the rail of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the object.

Part 3

Apply the material to the four buttons of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the button objects one at a time.

Part 4

Apply the material to the joysick of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the objects.

Part 5

Apply the material to the "-" button and the "home" button of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the objects.

Part 6

For the remaining details, create a new material which should be a slightly darker colour than the first material that was created. 

Choose the following colours for this tutorial:

• R: 73
• G: 87
• B: 133

Part 7

Apply the new material onto the details highlighted in the image below.

Part 8

For the last part of the Joy-Con, use the main blue colour and apply it by dragging and dropping it onto the object.

Part 9

Repeat the same steps for the second Joy-Con and replace the blue material with the red material.

Part 10

For the final details of the Nintendo Switch apply the dark blue material as shown in the image below.

23. How to Render the Nintendo Switch

Part 1

Click on the camera button to return to the camera view. This should be the same composition used in the previous tutorial 'How to Create a Switch in Cinema 4D: Part 1'.

Part 2

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Part 3

In the render settings menu, you can change the options to what you need. First, tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through.

Part 4

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Part 5

To ensure that the render is nice and sharp go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which can be found under Filter. 

Part 6

To create the final image, click on the Render button. Remember to select the right view in the viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you're happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Part 7

To create the final image, click on the Render button. Remember to select the right view in the viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you're happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete you can repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you have successfully learnt how to:

• Import Reference Images
• Prepare for Modelling
• Model a Nintendo Switch
• Create Materials
• Colour the Model
• Render the Nintendo Switch

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Alarm Clock model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly and easily. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Alarm Clock

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• How to Create Colored Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Alarm Clock

9. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there should be a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the various objects and areas of the Alarm Clock. Such as the clock face, the hands and the bells.

Step 2

Double click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style I'm only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Color and Reflectance. This gives the cel shaded look for our final image of the Alarm Clock.

Step 4

Colour the Alarm Clock by adding the material to your object. Drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. 

You may drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

This process will be repeated for the other parts of the Alarm Clock. The base colour of the Alarm Clock are as follows:

• R: 248
• G: 62
• B: 81

Step 5

Apply this colour to the two bells and the ringer as well.

10. How to Use Sketch and Toon

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In this new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right
2. Un-tick Camera
3. Tick Lights
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the Color option box . 

The Material Editor gives many different options for choosing and picking a colour. These include RGB, HSV etc. 

Choose whichever option you're most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades will also appear in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model is automatically be adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Alarm Clock model.

Step 5

Because you've already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Alarm Clock will is adjusted to the new material colour. Click on the Render View button to preview the render.

11. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a better idea of the shading and how the render will turn out as you work on it, click and hold on the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Alarm Clock model. 

Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box. This increases the resolution. 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that performance is suffering.

Step 3

Right-click on the small arrow and select Alpha Mode. This removes the black background.

Step 4

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you would like the light source to come from on the sphere and it will sync with the view port. 

Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This can be adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

12. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Left Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Make sure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu will appear on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene, according to the time of the day. Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You will be able to see how the lighting will affect the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This will create a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here, adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Color.

13. How to Colour the Clock Face

Step 1

To create a new material, duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 247
• G: 244
• B: 225

Step 4

Use the selection tool to highlight the polygons on the face of the clock. This is the area that will be coloured using the new material.

Step 5

Apply the colour by click and dragging the new material directly on to the highlighted selection.

14. How to Color the Hands and Legs

Step 1

Create a new material. You can also duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 70
• G: 69
• B: 65

Step 2

Apply the new material to the legs, bell stands and the clock hands by either clicking on the material and dragging it to the objects via the viewport or via the object list window.

15. How to Render the Alarm Clock

Step 1

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Step 2

In the render settings menu, change the options to what you need. First you'll need to tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through. This could be useful if you wanted to add a background to the image in Adobe Photoshop.

Step 3

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Step 4

To ensure that the Alarm Clock render is nice and sharp, go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which is found under Filter. 

Step 5

To create the final image of the Alarm Clock, click on the Render button. Remember to ensure you've selected the correct view in the viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you're happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Step 6

If you want to have more control over how the final render looks, create a camera object to help. Find a suitable view using the viewport first and then click on the camera button. 

This creates a camera using the current view in the viewport. Check out the camera settings to see how they affect the final render.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete, repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you have successfully learnt:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Alarm Clock
• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Alarm Clock

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Alarm Clock model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly and easily. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I'll show you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Alarm Clock

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

To use the reference image in this tutorial, you will need to switch your viewport to the Front View. 

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This displays all four views (by default this will be perspective, top, right and front). From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Front View.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the Finder and open it. In this tutorial I'll use the front view of an Alarm Clock from Envato Elements to help me.

Step 5

Adjust the image size and transparency to your liking in the Properties window.

2. Adjust and Edit the Cylinder Shape

Step 1

In the top menu bar click and hold on the Cube Button (or click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the button). 

In the menu that appears select the Cylinder Button to spawn a cylinder into the scene.

Step 2

You may need to rotate the cylinder in order to get the right orientation. 

To do this click on the Rotate Tool button and use the tool to rotate the cylinder 90 degrees so that the circular face is pointing forward.

Step 3

Click on the Object tab in the Properties window. Adjust the size so that the shape of the cylinder fits the shape of the Alarm Clock background image. For this tutorial the following properties are used:

• Radius: 140 cm
• Height: 100 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 80
• Orientation: +Y

Step 4

Click on the Caps tab of the properties window. Make sure that Caps has been ticked and the Segments are set to a value of 2.

Step 5

By activating caps and setting the segments value to 2, you will see that an extra cap has been created on the face of the cylinder. The shape of the cylinder should roughly fit the shape of the Alarm Clock background image at this stage. 

Ensure that you check the shape using the other camera views as well (perspective, side and top etc).

Step 6

Ensure the cylinder is still selected and then click on the Make Editable button to make the shape editable. 

Next select the Polygon Selection button which will allow you to select the polygons of the object.

Step 7

Hover the mouse over the face of the cylinder and select all of it's faces (click and hold on the mouse button to select a large area).

Step 8

Once all the polygons have been selected, right click on the selected area and select the Bevel Tool.

Step 9

Click and drag over the selected area to create a beveled edge for the cylinder. Repeat the steps for the other side.

Step 10

Use the Selection Tool again and select all the polygons in the centre of the circle. Then use the Scale Tool to enlarge it (click and drag in the area outside the object to uniform scale).

Step 11

Right-click on the selection and click on the Extrude Tool.

Step 12

Click and drag over the selected area to move the polygons inside the cylinder.

Step 13

With the polygons still selected, use the Scale Tool to scale the selection down, making it slightly smaller.

Step 14

Delete the Phong Tag from the cylinder. This sharpens all the edges and faces of the model. This is further illustrated in step 15.

Step 15

In the image below you will see how the edges of the cylinder are very smooth at first before deleting the Phong Tag. 

Once the Phong Tag has been deleted, the edges sharpen.

3. How to Create a Hemisphere

Step 1

Clear the viewport to make modelling the hemisphere easier. 

To do this you must hide the cylinder model by clicking on the small little grey circle until it turns red. To make it appear in the viewport again, click on the grey circle until it becomes green or grey.

Step 2

Create a Sphere by clicking on Cube > Sphere.

Step 3

Use the Scale Tool to scale the reduce the size of the sphere so that it matches the size of the bells as closely as possible.

Step 4

In the properties window, select the Object Tab and set the properties to the following:

• Radius: 55 cm
• Segments: 50
• Type: Hemisphere

Step 5

By selecting the type to Hemisphere, the shape will be split in half as shown in the image below.

4. Add Thickness to an Object

Step 1

To add thickness to the hemisphere you will first need to make it into an editable object. Make sure that the object is selected and click on the Make Editable button.

Step 2

In the top menu bar, select Simulate > Cloth > Cloth Surface.

Step 3

In the List View, move the sphere object below the newly created Cloth Surface.  

Step 4

Ensure the Cloth Surface has been selected and select the Object tab in the properties window. Set the properties to the following:

• Subdivisions: 1
• Factor: 100%
• Thickness: 10 cm

Step 5

Adjusting the Thickness value in the properties window changes the thickness of the hemisphere.

5. Create the Alarm Clock Bell

Step 1

Rotate the hemisphere by 180 Degrees so that it starts to take on the appearance of the bell.

Step 2

In the Front View, use the reference image to ensure the size of the hemisphere is roughly the same size as the bells.

Step 3

Create a capsule by selecting the Capsule Button from the shapes menu.

Step 4

Ensure the capsule object is selected and change the properties to the following:

• Radius: 10 cm
• Height: 200 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Cap Segments: 8
• Rotation Segments: 36
• Orientation: +Y

Step 5

Use the Move Tool to move the capsule down so that only a little bit of the tip is sticking out from the top of the hemisphere.

Step 6

Select both the Capsule and the Cloth Surface by clicking and holding the Shift Key on the keyboard. Then group them by pressing Alt-G on the keyboard. You can then rename the Null by double clicking on it.

Step 7

Make sure that the new group is still selected, use a combination of the Move Tool and the Rotation Tool to position the bell correctly. You can use the reference image to guide you.

Step 8

Reveal the cylinder shape by clicking on the small red circle until it is grey (or green) again.

Step 9

You can then make any final adjustments to the bell's position by comparing it to the reference image and the cylinder.

6. How to use Symmetry in Cinema 4D

Step 1

In the top menu bar select Array > Symmetry.

Step 2

In the list window move the group containing the bell objects inside the Symmetry Modifier.

Step 3

Anything inside the Symmetry Modifier will create a symmetrical object.

7. Add Legs and Details to the Alarm Clock

Step 1

Use the Capsule Object to create legs for the alarm clock. Do this by creating a new capsule object and using the Move Tool and the Rotate Tool to position it into place.

Another way you can do this is by duplicating the capsule (hold the CTRL button on the keyboard whilst using the Move Tool) which was used to create the bell. 

Move the duplicated capsule into position using the Move Tool and the Rotate Tool.

Step 2

Duplicate the leg by using the Symmetry Modifier. 

Step 3

Adjust the size and radius of the legs by going to the Object tab in the Properties window.

Step 4

Create a new Capsule and place it in on top of the alarm clock.

Step 5

Create a new Sphere and scale it down using the Scale Tool. Place the small sphere on top of the capsule.

8. Create the Clock Hands

Step 1

Create a new Cylinder by clicking on Cube > Cylinder from the top menu bar.

Step 2

Adjust the size of the cylinder in the Properties window so that it matches the width of the clock hand. Use the reference image in the front view to help you with this. The settings for the hand used in this tutorial are as follows:

• Radius: 10 cm
• Height: 10 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 60
• Orientation: +Y

Step 3

Ensure the cylinder is selected and then click on the Make Editable button.

Step 4

To edit the shape further select the Points Tool and then select the Rectangle Selection Tool.

Step 5

Then go to the Properties window and un-tick Only Select Visible Elements. This allows you to select all the points within the rectangle selection.

Step 6

Use the Rectangle Selection Tool to select all the points in the bottom half of the cylinder. 

Select and use the Move Tool and move all the selected points down to create the clock hand.

Step 7

When moving a whole object, select and use the Model button. If this is not selected, you may find that you will be moving the points, edges or faces instead.

Step 8

Position the clock hand object by using the Move Tool.

Step 8

YUse the Scale Tool to adjust the scale of the object once it is in place.

Step 9

Duplicate the clock hand object by using the Move Tool and holding the CTRL button on the keyboard.

Step 10

Once you have the hands, position both on the clock face by using the Move Tool and the Rotation Tool. 

Use the Scale Tool to make one hand smaller if you wish.

Coming Next...

In the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Alarm Clock

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Computer Screen model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I'll show you:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Computer Screen

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This displays all four views. From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Right view.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the finder and open it.

Step 5

Once the image is displayed in the background of the viewport, change the transparency of the image. This can sometimes make it easier to model from the reference image.

Change the position and size of the reference image from here using Offset X, Offset Y, Size X and Size Y.

2. How to Model the Computer Screen

Step 1

To start modelling the face computer screen, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. This spawns a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the reference image of the computer screen in the Front View to help adjust the cube. 

Use the Scale Tool to make the shape of the cube match up with the shape of the computer screen in the image.

Ensure that you use the other views (front, left, right, perspective etc) to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 3

In the perspective view, use the Scale Tool to increase or reduce the thickness of the shape so that it is close to the thickness of a computer screen. 

The Move Tool widget also allows you to adjust the the cube along different axis (x, y and z). Simply click on the small orange dots that are found next to each arrow and drag along the respective axis to edit the object.

Step 4

Select the Edge Selection Tool. Use the Edge Selection Tool to select all four corners of the object. The selected edges will be highlighted in orange.

Step 5

Make sure to move around the object to select the opposite corners of the object.

Step 6

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 7

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
  
• Offset: 31cm
  
• Subdivision: 10
  
• Depth: 100%
  

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object's appearance.

Step 8

In the images below you can see how the edges are effected once the values have been changed. Increase the number of subdivisions to increase the smoothness of the corner.

Step 9

Use the reference image of the computer screen in your Front View to help adjust the cube. Use the Scale Tool to make the shape of the cube match up with the shape of the computer screen in the image.

3. How to Adjust the shape of the Monitor

Step 1

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to select the back of the object. Then use the Scale Tool and click and drag from anywhere within the preview window to decrease the size of the polygon. 

Step 2

Next to each object you create you will find the Phong Tag. This is responsible for adjusting the smoothness of an object. You can adjust the angle limit to increase or decrease the smoothness of an object. 

However since we are going for a low poly look we don't need this. So delete the Phong Tag to remove any smoothness in the model edges.

Step 3

Use the Edge Selection Tool to select the front edges of the computer monitor. The select the Bevel Tool (you can access this by right clicking on the edges).

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
  
• Offset Mode: Radial
  
• Offset: 8cm
  
• Subdivision: 0

4. Modify the Topology Using the Knife Tool

Step 1

Once you are happy with the overall shape of the computer monitor we need to convert it into an object. This will allow us to make further edits such as topology.

Make sure that the computer monitor is still selected and then go to Mesh > Conversion > Current State to Object.

Step 2

Right click on the object and select the Knife Tool from the menu.

Step 3

Use the Knife Tool to create an edge near the bottom. You can use the tool to connect one side of the screen to the other.

5. How to Create the Monitor Display

Step 1

In the top menu bar select the Cube to spawn a cube into the scene. Adjust the size of the cube so that it fits nicely within the previous monitor object. 

6. Use the Bend Deformer to Create the Neck

Step 1

In the top menu bar select the Cube to spawn another cube into the scene and adjust the shape so that it forms a thin neck shape. You can adjust the object properties as follows:

• Size X: 200
• Size Y: 340
• Size Z: 30

Step 2

In order to curve the neck we need to add some segments. In the adjustments window add enough segments to ensure that the curve will appear smooth (in this example I've used 50 Y segments).

Step 3

In order to create a suitable bend to the computer neck you will need to use the Bend Deformer. Select the Bend button from the top menu bar. 

This spawns a bend deformer object in the list view.

Step 4

In the list view move the Bend Deformer into the neck object. This means that the deformer will affect and influence the cube object only.

Step 5

With the Bend Deformer selected make sure that Fit to Parent has been ticked. The ensures that the deformer affects the whole neck.

Step 6

With the Bend Deformer still selected, go to the parameters box and play around with the Strength. 

In this tutorial I used the following settings:

• Strength: 150
  
• Angle: -90

Step 7

Use a combination of the Move Tool and the Rotation Tool to place the neck in the correct position underneath the computer monitor.

7. How to Model the Neck

Step 1

Once you are happy with the placement of the neck we need to convert it into an object. This will collapse the object properties and will allow us to make further edits.

Make sure that the neck is still selected and then go to Mesh > Conversion > Current State to Object.

Step 2

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to select the top of the neck. Then use the Move Tool to extend the neck. This will help connect the neck to the computer monitor.

8. Create the Base of the Computer Monitor

Step 1

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to select the bottom of the neck. Then use the Move Tool to extend it. This will help create the base of the monitor.

Step 2

Use the Move Tool to make sure that the neck is in the correct position underneath the computer monitor.

Step 3

Use the Edge Selection Tool to select the two front facing corners.

Step 4

Right-click on the corners and select the Bevel Tool. 

Step 5

Use the Bevel Tool to curve the corners of the base. In the edit window, you can change the settings to the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer 
  
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
• Offset: 72 cm
• Subdivision: 30
• Depth: 100%

Step 6

Click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the Bend Tool in the top menu bar. Then select Taper from the list. This creates a Taper tool in the list of objects on the right of the screen.

Step 7

Select the Taper tool and drag it into the Cube object. This will apply the Taper features to the cube which will enable some shape manipulation options.

Step 8

The Taper Tool only affects the area within the cage (this is visualised as a see through cube with purple lines as edges). Use the Rotate Tool to rotate the cage 90 degrees and move it down so that the base is within the cage area.

Step 9

Use the Scale Tool to reduce the cage size so that it only effects the base of the computer monitor. 

Step 10

With the Taper Tool selected, go to the adjustments menu and edit the settings to create a suitable base shape. If the shape is not deforming correctly, try flipping the cage or moving it to a different area. You can input the following:

• Mode: Limited
• Strength: -50%
• Curvature: 0%

Coming Next...

In the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Computer Monitor

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Computer Screen model to use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Computer Screen

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you how to:

• How to Create Colored Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Computer Monitor

9. How to Convert State to Object

Step 1

Select all the objects associated with the Boole modifier. This will include the two cube objects that make up the computer screen.

Step 2

With the Boole objects still selected, go to Mesh > Conversion > Current State to Object. 

Step 3

This creates a version of the computer screen objects with all the modifiers collapsed. This means that the new objects lose their modifiers, but retain their shapes so that we can colour them easily. 

You can delete the original boole objects as they won't be needed in the project anymore. 

Step 4

Feel free to rename the objects to something which is easily recognisable.  

Step 5

Select the neck object and go to Mesh > Conversion > Current State to Object. Once you've create the new object, you can delete the original one to avoid clutter and confusion.

Step 6

Select the Phong Tags and press the delete key on the keyboard to remove them. 

10. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there is a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the various objects and parts of the Computer Screen.

Step 2

Double click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor where you can adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style I'm only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Color and Reflectance. This gives the cel shaded look for the final image. 

Step 4

Colour the Computer Monitor by adding the material to the object. Drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. You can also drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

11. How to Adjust the Material Properties

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In this new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

• Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right
• Deselect Camera
• Select Lights
• Select Shadows 
• Select Multiply from the drop down menu

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the color option box . 

The Material Editor gives many different options for choosing and picking colours. These include RGB, HSV and so on. 

Choose whichever option you are most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades also appear in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model is automatically be adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Computer Screen model.

Step 5

Because I've already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Computer Monitor will automatically be adjusted to match the new material.  

12. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a better idea of the shading and how the render will turn out as you work on it, click and hold on the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the selection window so that it fits around the Computer Screen model. Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box (this increases the resolution). 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that the performance is decreasing.

Step 3

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

You can also add a light object to the scene if you are more comfortable working that way.  

Step 4

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you'd like the light source to come from on the sphere and it will sync with the view port. Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This can be adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

Step 5

Secondary-click on the arrow and select Alpha Mode in order to reveal the rest of the viewport. Some people may find working this way easier.

13. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Primary-Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Make sure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu will appear on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene (according to the time of the day). Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You'll see how the lighting affects the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This creates a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here you can adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Color.

14. How to Colour the Computer Monitor Screen

Step 1

Open up the Material Editor and change material color to the following:

• R: 194
• G: 222
• B: 236

This changes the basic colour of the computer that you can add to the other main objects (i.e. the neck).

Step 2

To create a new material we can duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 3

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 56
• G: 47
• B: 66

Step 4

Apply the new materials to the screen by clicking and dragging it directly onto the screen object.

15. How to Color the Monitor Bezel 

Step 1

Create a new material. You may also duplicate a previous material in order to keep the same settings as before.

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there you can change the colour to the following:

• R: 70
• G: 69
• B: 65

Step 2

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to select all the polygons that make up the bezel of the computer monitor.

Step 3

Apply the new material to the selected polygons by clicking and dragging it into the selection. 

Step 4

Now that all the materials and colours have been applied to the model, use the perspective view to look around the computer screen to ensure that the colours have been applied properly.

16. How to Create the Power Button 

Part 1

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This will spawn a Cylinder in the scene.

Part 2

Rotate the cylinder 90 degrees and then use the Scale Tool to scale it down to the appropriate size of a power button.

Part 3

Delete the Phong Tag from the newly created cylinder object.

Part 4

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to select the base polygons making up a circle. Press the delete key to remove the polygons from the cylinder object. 

Part 5

Use the Edge Selection Tool to select the edges of the open hole and then use the Scale Tool to make it larger. 

Part 6

Once you are happy with the size of your power button, use the mouse to secondary-click the selected edges. Select Close Polygon Hole from the menu.

17. How to use Boole

Step 1

Click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the Array Tool in the top menu bar. Then select Boole from the list. This creates a Boole tool in the list of objects on the right of the screen.

Step 2

Drag and drop both the screen and the new cylinder object into the boole. Ensure that the screen object is above the cylinder object. This will create the power button in the screen.

Step 3

With the boole objects still selected, go to Mesh > Conversion > Current State to Object. This will create a copy of the objects with the boole collapsed.

Step 4

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to select the power button. Then drag and drop the dark grey material colour into the selection.

Step 5

Check the camera and perspective view to make sure that the computer screen looks correct. Make any final adjustments to the materials to get the colour combination that you want.

The End Result

The computer screen model is now ready for use and to render. Now that the project is complete you can repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you have successfully learnt:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Computer Screen
• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Computer Monitor

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Guitar model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I'll show you:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the 3D Guitar

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This displays all four views. From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Front view.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Front] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the finder and open it.

Step 5

Once the image is displayed in the background of the viewport, change the transparency of the image. This can sometimes make it easier to model from the reference image.

Change the position and size of the reference image from here using Offset X, Offset Y, Size X and Size Y.

2. How to use Splines to Create the Guitar Body

Step 1

To start modelling the body of the guitar, select the Pen Tool from the top menu bar. This allows you to create a spline to outline the shape of the guitar body.

Step 2

Use the Pen Tool to draw out the outline of one side of the guitar body. Use the mouse to click and drag to create curves

Step 3

Close the spline by clicking on the first point. 

Step 4

Adjust the shape of the spline by selecting the Point Selection Tool and then using the Move Tool to move the points and handles. 

Step 5

Duplicate the spline once you're happy with the shape. This is done by clicking and dragging the spline in the list view, whilst holding the CTRL key on the keyboard.

Step 6

Select the Object Tool and then select the Rotate Tool. Select one of the splines that you want to rotate to create the other side of the guitar body.

Step 7

Rotate one of the splines by 180 degrees. This creates the other half of the guitar body. 

Ensure that the splines overlap in the middle 

Step 8

Go to the top menu bar and select Array > Spline Mask

Step 9

Select both of the splines that you have created and move them inside the Spline Mask. This will create one whole spline for the guitar body.

Step 10

Make the spline mask editable by clicking on the Make Editable button. You won't be able to make any changes to the previous splines after this, so ensure you're happy with the shape of the guitar body before committing to this step. 

Step 11

From the top menu select Subdivision Surface > Extrude. Then place the spline inside extrude.

Step 12 

This creates a 3D object out of the shape of the spline.

Step 13

Use the extrude object options to adjust the look of the guitar body. 

Change the thickness of the object so that it accurately matches the body of a guitar.

3. How to Create the Sound Hole 

Step 1

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This spawns a Cylinder in the scene.

Step 2

Adjust the properties of the Cylinder so that it is facing the correct way, has the correct size.

Step 3

Return to the front view to use the reference image as a guide to help with the placement and size of the cylinder object.

Step 4

Click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the Array Tool in the top menu bar. 

Select Boole from the list. This creates a Boole tool in the list of objects on the right of the screen.

Step 5

Select the extrude group and cylinder object from the list and place them inside the Boole Tool. 

Ensure that the cylinder object is positioned below the extrude group.

Step 6

This creates a cut out in the shape of the cylinder object. 

Adjust the position of the cylinder object using the Move Tool until you're happy with the appearance of the sound hole.

Step 7

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Tube from the list of options. This spawns a Tube object in the scene.

Step 8

Adjust so that inner radius is the same as the radius of the cylinder object (that was used to create the sound hole). 

You'll also want to adjust the outer radius to a suitable size.

Step 9

Return to the front view to use the reference image as a guide to help with the placement and size of the tube object. 

Carefully align the tube so that it fits directly on top of the sound hole.

Step 10

In the perspective view, use the Move Tool to push the tube further into the body until it's only just above the object surface. 

Ensure that you use the other views (front, left, right, perspective and so on) to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

4. Create the Guitar Neck

Step 1

To start modelling the neck of the Guitar, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. This spawns a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the front view to adjust the shape and size of the cube object so that it matches the reference image. 

Ensure you make the neck slightly longer than needed. This is so that you can make additional adjustments to the top and bottom of the object.

Step 3

Check that the neck thickness is appropriate in the perspective view and adjust accordingly using the object properties window or the Scale Tool. 

Step 4

In the object properties window, increase the number of Y segments for the fretboard. In this example the guitar neck has 14 Y segments.

Step 5

Duplicate the cylinder object that was used to create the sound hole (do this by holding CTRL on the keyboard to click and drag a duplicate object). 

Then place both the new cylinder object and the neck object inside a boole.

Step 6

This cuts out the curve for the sound hole for the neck.

5. How to Create the Headstock

Step 1

Create a cube object with two Y segments. Then adjust the size of the cube object so that it becomes a suitable size for the headstock.

Step 2

Make the cube object editable and then use the Edge Selection Tool to move the middle edge closer to the bottom.

Step 3

Use the Edge Selection Tool to select the two bottom corners of the object. 

Then use the Scale Tool to move the edges closer together or close to the neck.

Step 4

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Capsule from the list of options. This will spawn a capsule in the scene.

Step 5

Move the capsule so that half of it sits within the cube object. Then adjust the size of the capsule to something suitable.

Step 6

Duplicate the capsule and place them both side by side inside the cube object. Group both capsules by selecting them both and pressing Alt-G on the keyboard.

Step 7

Select Boole by clicking on the small arrow on the bottom right of the Array button at the top of the screen.

Step 8

Place the capsules and the cube object inside the boole, making sure that the capsules are at the bottom. This will create a cutout of the capsules on the headstock.

6. How to Create the Tuning Machines

Step 1

Create a new cylinder object and resize it down so that it matches the appropriate size for a tuner. 

Once you are happy with the size, use the Move Tool to move it into position in the headstock.

Step 2

Duplicate the cylinder object by holding CTRL button on the keyboard and then click and drag the cylinder using the Move Tool. Do this twice more so that you're left with three cylinders.

Step 3

Select all three cylinder objects and duplicate them to the other side of the headstock.

7. How to Create the Bridge and Endpin

Step 1

Create a new cube object and scale it down so that it resembles the size of a guitar bridge. 

Once you are happy with the size, use the Move Tool to move the new cube object inside the body of the guitar so that only the top part of the bridge object is above the surface of the body.

Step 2

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This spawns a Cylinder in the scene.

Step 3

Resize the cylinder object so that it is a suitable size for the endpin and then use the Move Tool to place it at the bottom of the guitar body. 

Step 4

Use the different camera angles to double check the Guitar model to make sure that it looks correct.

Coming Next...

In the second part of the tutorial series, I'll show you:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the final Guitar Model

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Guitar model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you'll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part of the two-part tutorial, I showed you:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the 3D Guitar

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I'll show you:

• How to Create Colored Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Guitar

8. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there should be a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the various objects and parts of the Guitar

Step 2

Double click on the new material icon, displayed as a sphere. This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style you'll only be interested in flat colour, or Luminance.

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Color and Reflectance. This gives us the cel shaded look for our final image of the Guitar.

Step 4

Colour the Guitar, starting with the body, by adding the material to the object. Drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. 

Drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

This process is repeated for the other parts of the Guitar. The base colour of the Guitar is as follows:

• R: 247
• G: 233
• B: 63

Step 5

Apply the material colour to the guitar body and the headstock by dragging and dropping the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen or the preview window.

9. How to Adjust the Material Properties

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In the new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right
2. Untick Camera
3. Tick Lights
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the colour option box . 

The Material Editor gives you many different options for choosing and picking the colour.

These include RGB, HSV etc. Choose whichever option you're most familiar with as a flat color. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades also appears in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model is automatically adjusted to the new material colour. 

This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Guitar model.

Step 5

Because you've already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Guitar is automatically adjusted to the new material colour.

10. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a better idea of the shading and how our render will turn out as you work on it, click and hold on the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Guitar model. Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box. This increases the resolution. 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that the performance is decreasing.

Step 3

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

Add a light object to the scene if you are more comfortable working that way. 

Step 4

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you'd like the light source to come from on the sphere and it'll sync with the view port. 

Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This is adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

11. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Left Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Ensure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu appears on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene according to the time of the day. Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You'll see how the lighting affects the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This creates a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here, adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Color.

12. How to Color the Guitar Neck

Step 1

To create a new material we can duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there change the colour to the following:

• R: 106
• G: 70
• B: 18

Step 3

Apply the new material to the neck by clicking and dragging it directly onto the object.

Step 4

Create a new material. Duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there change the colour to the following:

• R: 102
• G: 113
• B: 117

Step 5

Create another new material and change the colour to the following:

• R: 62
• G: 77
• B: 80

Step 6

Use the Polygon Selection Tool to highlight the rectangles of the fretboard, leaving a space in between each one. Then apply one of the two new materials to the selection.

Step 7

Highlight the remaining rectangles and apply the second new material to the selection.

13. Colour the Tuning Keys, Bridge and End Pin

Step 1

Create a new material and change the colour to the following:

• R: 209
• G: 213
• B: 224

Step 2

Select the bridge 3D object and apply the new material to it by dragging and dropping the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen or the preview window.

Step 3

Apply the same material to the tuning keys.

Step 4

Apply the same material to the end pin at the bottom of the guitar. 

14. How to Color the Sound Hole Border

Step 1

Create another new material for the sound hole border and change the colour to the following:

• R: 21
• G: 175
• B: 199

Step 2

Select the cylinder 3D object and apply the new material to it by dragging and dropping the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen or the preview window.

15. Render the Guitar Model

Step 1

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Step 2

In the Render Settings menu, change the options to what you need. First you will need to tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through. This is useful if you wish to add a background to the image in Adobe Photoshop.

Step 3

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Step 4

To ensure that the guitar render is nice and sharp, go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which can be found under Filter. 

Step 5

To create the final image of the guitar, click on the Render button. Remember to make sure that you've selected the right view in your viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you're happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Step 6

For more control over how the final render looks, create a camera object to help. Find a suitable view using the viewport first and then click on the camera button. 

This creates a camera using the current view in the viewport. Check out the camera settings to see how they will affect the final render.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete, repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you've learnt:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the 3D Guitar
• How to Create Colored Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Guitar

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

In part two of this series on creating an animated movie in Blender, we will discuss how to properly render your scene, add sound, and prepare your video for export.

Rendering Your Scene

Now that you have done the work, it's time to render your scene. As an animator or designer, you will find that rendering your scene takes time and practice. Blender has a wonderful community that can assist you, with great tips on many assorted topics. 

Rendering an animation involves saving still images of your scene. Here are some tips on rendering your scene fast and with fewer fireflies.

1. Make sure to set up a separate folder for your images.
2. Render all of your scenes as a PNG.
3. Uncheck Reflective & Refractive Caustics.
4. Lower the Bounces to Min 1-Max 10.
5. Use your GPU not CPU to render. (You can check which one you are using in User Settings > System).
6. Use Multiple Importance Sampling (you can find this under the world icon for your HDR, as well as your lamps).
7. Use Clamp Indirect.
8. The higher the Samples, the clearer the scene (be patient—masterpieces take work!).
9. Download the most recent Blender program. I hear Blender 2.79 has a Denoise option.
10. Trial and error—computer systems are different, and scenes are unique. You will need to play around with all of the above until you find the perfect method for you.