Recommended reading for Bryce 7.5?

WsCG · February 2013

Hi all,

So, I've started getting seriously into learning Bryce, but am finding it difficult to find resources that seem very helpful. I either find a lot of dead links, links to videos that are out-dated, or in another language.

I have found the videos by David Brinnen and, while his videos are a great showcase of what Bryce can do, for me, I find them very difficult to follow. He kinda jumps around, clicking this, clicking that, clicking this other thing, switching to this window, clicking a few things, closing that window... going back to this other window, clicking a bunch of stuff... and just generally bouncing around the interface a lot, all while describing what he's doing as quickly as he's clicking.

For me, it's very difficult to follow or understand all of what he's doing enough to understand or retain any of it. So, while it's very insightful and inspiring to watch his videos in terms of seeing what Bryce can do, I think I need something a bit slower-paced to learn the program with. Something a bit more "newbie-speed".

Sooo.. I'm looking for some good tutorials on Bryce online, something that perhaps works on a kind of project basis. I've found a few tutorials, but they seem to be very "task oriented", not so much "beginners tutorials". Bryce has a very deep material system, for example, and I've found tutorials that either scratch the absolute very basics of it, or dive way into the tools. I haven't found anything in -between.

So, that's kinda what I'm looking for. Tutorials, or videos, or maybe even a book that starts with the absolute basics, works into the more moderate elements, and then gets a bit into the deeper, more complicated things. This way I can follow a normal progression of learning, building on what I've already learned.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

bigh · February 2013

miketvogel said:
Hi all,
So, I've started getting seriously into learning Bryce, but am finding it difficult to find resources that seem very helpful. I either find a lot of dead links, links to videos that are out-dated, or in another language.

I have found the videos by David Brinnen and, while his videos are a great showcase of what Bryce can do, for me, I find them very difficult to follow. He kinda jumps around, clicking this, clicking that, clicking this other thing, switching to this window, clicking a few things, closing that window... going back to this other window, clicking a bunch of stuff... and just generally bouncing around the interface a lot, all while describing what he's doing as quickly as he's clicking.

For me, it's very difficult to follow or understand all of what he's doing enough to understand or retain any of it. So, while it's very insightful and inspiring to watch his videos in terms of seeing what Bryce can do, I think I need something a bit slower-paced to learn the program with. Something a bit more "newbie-speed".

Sooo.. I'm looking for some good tutorials on Bryce online, something that perhaps works on a kind of project basis. I've found a few tutorials, but they seem to be very "task oriented", not so much "beginners tutorials". Bryce has a very deep material system, for example, and I've found tutorials that either scratch the absolute very basics of it, or dive way into the tools. I haven't found anything in -between.

So, that's kinda what I'm looking for. Tutorials, or videos, or maybe even a book that starts with the absolute basics, works into the more moderate elements, and then gets a bit into the deeper, more complicated things. This way I can follow a normal progression of learning, building on what I've already learned.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

the best to me any way is here ( says Bryce 5 but every thing works in Bryce 7 ) -
http://www.robinwood.com/Catalog/Technical/BryceTuts/BrycePages/BryceWhy.html

David Brinnen · February 2013

miketvogel said:
Hi all,
So, I've started getting seriously into learning Bryce, but am finding it difficult to find resources that seem very helpful. I either find a lot of dead links, links to videos that are out-dated, or in another language.

I have found the videos by David Brinnen and, while his videos are a great showcase of what Bryce can do, for me, I find them very difficult to follow. He kinda jumps around, clicking this, clicking that, clicking this other thing, switching to this window, clicking a few things, closing that window... going back to this other window, clicking a bunch of stuff... and just generally bouncing around the interface a lot, all while describing what he's doing as quickly as he's clicking.

For me, it's very difficult to follow or understand all of what he's doing enough to understand or retain any of it. So, while it's very insightful and inspiring to watch his videos in terms of seeing what Bryce can do, I think I need something a bit slower-paced to learn the program with. Something a bit more "newbie-speed".

Sooo.. I'm looking for some good tutorials on Bryce online, something that perhaps works on a kind of project basis. I've found a few tutorials, but they seem to be very "task oriented", not so much "beginners tutorials". Bryce has a very deep material system, for example, and I've found tutorials that either scratch the absolute very basics of it, or dive way into the tools. I haven't found anything in -between.

So, that's kinda what I'm looking for. Tutorials, or videos, or maybe even a book that starts with the absolute basics, works into the more moderate elements, and then gets a bit into the deeper, more complicated things. This way I can follow a normal progression of learning, building on what I've already learned.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Yeah, I can see the problem, unfortunately my approach is scatter-shot, I just do a tutorial on what happens to interest me at the time - which is often quite a deep topic. I also find it difficult to slow down.

Chris has gathered all the Bryce tutorials he can find on his website (link below in my signature) and if you find any more you can always let him know and he will add them when he gets the chance. Bryce-Tutorials.info contact page

I've tried recently to turn my hand at a few beginners tutorials, so here's the links if you've not seen them.

Bryce 20 minute beginners project - simple landscape - a tutorial by David Brinnen
Bryce 20 minute beginners project - simple still life - a tutorial by David Brinnen

And this one people said is pretty useful for beginners too.

Bryce 25 minutes on landscape lighting basics - working with legacy skies - by David Brinnen

I'm sort of working backwards, the simpler the tutorial the harder it is to make it for someone very familiar with the software (well that's what I reckon) because it is easy to fall back on knowledge that would take a lot of explanation.

Feel free to make suggestions for tutorial topics, but I can't promise to be able to make them to suit your level of ability. I'll try, but I find it a difficult thing to do.

Chohole · February 2013

Hi and welcome to the Bryce forum

As bigh says the Robin Woods set of tutorials are a very good star as they cover all the basic stuff. It is only the newer features that are not included.

THere is also a list of tutorials here http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/2839/ Some of which you may find helpful

ANd I can assure you that there are poepl in this forum who are only to happy to answer any questions you may have.

We are also running an educational challenge, especially for new users, here http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/16063/

Horo · February 2013

There is still the Bryce documentation WIP at http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/artzone/pub/software/bryce/start and even if it's a WIP, most parts are complete and a recommended reference for everyone.

Dave Savage · February 2013

Never mind about the "recommended reading for Bryce 7.5"...

... Where can I get a copy of Bryce 7.5? :cheese:

WsCG · February 2013

David Brinnen said:

Yeah, I can see the problem, unfortunately my approach is scatter-shot, I just do a tutorial on what happens to interest me at the time - which is often quite a deep topic. I also find it difficult to slow down.

Chris has gathered all the Bryce tutorials he can find on his website (link below in my signature) and if you find any more you can always let him know and he will add them when he gets the chance. Bryce-Tutorials.info contact page

I've tried recently to turn my hand at a few beginners tutorials, so here's the links if you've not seen them.

Bryce 20 minute beginners project - simple landscape - a tutorial by David Brinnen
Bryce 20 minute beginners project - simple still life - a tutorial by David Brinnen

And this one people said is pretty useful for beginners too.

Bryce 25 minutes on landscape lighting basics - working with legacy skies - by David Brinnen

I'm sort of working backwards, the simpler the tutorial the harder it is to make it for someone very familiar with the software (well that's what I reckon) because it is easy to fall back on knowledge that would take a lot of explanation.

Feel free to make suggestions for tutorial topics, but I can't promise to be able to make them to suit your level of ability. I'll try, but I find it a difficult thing to do.

Hello there, David.

Thanks for your response! I hope my post didn't come across as being "harsh" at all lol. I really dig your videos, they just seem a bit beyond me as a new user still. I imagine when I'm more experienced with the software, I'll have less, or no trouble tracking them.

I did check out your new user tutorials, specifically the one about creating a simple scene. I've started on the Still Life one, but will need to finish that up later, since I need to get to work soon.

Thanks for taking the time to reply and provide those links! I'll definitely check them out and see what I can learn!

WsCG · February 2013

bigh said:
miketvogel said:
Hi all,
So, I've started getting seriously into learning Bryce, but am finding it difficult to find resources that seem very helpful. I either find a lot of dead links, links to videos that are out-dated, or in another language.

I have found the videos by David Brinnen and, while his videos are a great showcase of what Bryce can do, for me, I find them very difficult to follow. He kinda jumps around, clicking this, clicking that, clicking this other thing, switching to this window, clicking a few things, closing that window... going back to this other window, clicking a bunch of stuff... and just generally bouncing around the interface a lot, all while describing what he's doing as quickly as he's clicking.

For me, it's very difficult to follow or understand all of what he's doing enough to understand or retain any of it. So, while it's very insightful and inspiring to watch his videos in terms of seeing what Bryce can do, I think I need something a bit slower-paced to learn the program with. Something a bit more "newbie-speed".

Sooo.. I'm looking for some good tutorials on Bryce online, something that perhaps works on a kind of project basis. I've found a few tutorials, but they seem to be very "task oriented", not so much "beginners tutorials". Bryce has a very deep material system, for example, and I've found tutorials that either scratch the absolute very basics of it, or dive way into the tools. I haven't found anything in -between.

So, that's kinda what I'm looking for. Tutorials, or videos, or maybe even a book that starts with the absolute basics, works into the more moderate elements, and then gets a bit into the deeper, more complicated things. This way I can follow a normal progression of learning, building on what I've already learned.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

the best to me any way is here ( says Bryce 5 but every thing works in Bryce 7 ) -
http://www.robinwood.com/Catalog/Technical/BryceTuts/BrycePages/BryceWhy.html

Great! I hadn't seen that before. Will check it out later tonight, when I get home and can sit back and go through it.

Thanks!

WsCG · February 2013

Hi all.. Thanks so far for the replies! I don't have time to write a lengthier response (though I'd like to) as work beckons, but I wanted to at least drop in and post a few responses to y'all before I ran out the door.

Being the inquisitive/curious type I am, I'm sure I'll have more questions lol.

Thanks again!

David Brinnen · February 2013

miketvogel said:
David Brinnen said:

Yeah, I can see the problem, unfortunately my approach is scatter-shot, I just do a tutorial on what happens to interest me at the time - which is often quite a deep topic. I also find it difficult to slow down.

Chris has gathered all the Bryce tutorials he can find on his website (link below in my signature) and if you find any more you can always let him know and he will add them when he gets the chance. Bryce-Tutorials.info contact page

I've tried recently to turn my hand at a few beginners tutorials, so here's the links if you've not seen them.

Bryce 20 minute beginners project - simple landscape - a tutorial by David Brinnen
Bryce 20 minute beginners project - simple still life - a tutorial by David Brinnen

And this one people said is pretty useful for beginners too.

Bryce 25 minutes on landscape lighting basics - working with legacy skies - by David Brinnen

I'm sort of working backwards, the simpler the tutorial the harder it is to make it for someone very familiar with the software (well that's what I reckon) because it is easy to fall back on knowledge that would take a lot of explanation.

Feel free to make suggestions for tutorial topics, but I can't promise to be able to make them to suit your level of ability. I'll try, but I find it a difficult thing to do.

Hello there, David.

Thanks for your response! I hope my post didn't come across as being "harsh" at all lol. I really dig your videos, they just seem a bit beyond me as a new user still. I imagine when I'm more experienced with the software, I'll have less, or no trouble tracking them.

I did check out your new user tutorials, specifically the one about creating a simple scene. I've started on the Still Life one, but will need to finish that up later, since I need to get to work soon.

Thanks for taking the time to reply and provide those links! I'll definitely check them out and see what I can learn!

Hi Mike,

No problem, I've come to recognise the limitations of my videos but have yet to envision a way to overcome them. It is quite by accident that I have ended up providing so many tutorials, it was never my intention. Your criticisms are entirely valid, but as I have no training in the field of teaching, it is only via trial and error (and subsequent feedback) that I can progress towards something more suitable for folks to learn from. When someone says something works or does not work, then I try to remember and adjust me approach accordingly. Bryce rewards the imaginative and curious, it's not really a proscriptive piece of software, there is no wrong way to do things, as long as you get the results you want, that's the way it should be done - at least that is what I reckon.

Cheers,

David.

WsCG · February 2013

David Brinnen said:

Hi Mike,

No problem, I've come to recognise the limitations of my videos but have yet to envision a way to overcome them. It is quite by accident that I have ended up providing so many tutorials, it was never my intention. Your criticisms are entirely valid, but as I have no training in the field of teaching, it is only via trial and error (and subsequent feedback) that I can progress towards something more suitable for folks to learn from. When someone says something works or does not work, then I try to remember and adjust me approach accordingly. Bryce rewards the imaginative and curious, it's not really a proscriptive piece of software, there is no wrong way to do things, as long as you get the results you want, that's the way it should be done - at least that is what I reckon.

Cheers,

David.

That makes sense. It can be easy to forget that things which are second nature to you are completely alien to someone else. I run into that a lot in my job, when trying to explain things about graphics and such (such as the difference between vector and raster/bitmap art, etc). It all makes perfect sense to me, but tends to result in blank stares when I attempt to explain it lol. So, I understand where you're coming from completely.

I did pick up in your videos that it seems like Bryce has kinda moved on to a new/more "modern" way of handling lighting. I'm wondering if I should put a lot of effort into "mastering" the legacy lighting system, or should I just learn to work with the newer, more modern approach that you seem to go with in your videos.

My most immediate reason for wanting to learn Bryce is to help illustrate environments for a game world I'm creating, for use as concept work and to help with world building when it eventually gets to that point. I can sketch things out, but I am not quite so skilled in capturing the look/feel of what I'm after; a kind of disconnect between my brain and my hand. With something like Bryce, I can mock up those scenes and capture them much more closely. I can tweak it to get it "just right".. as well as show it in different lighting settings, etc. So it's just going to be a very powerful and useful tool toward that end, I think. At least in theory.

Perhaps I could create the basic height-maps for my game environments in Bryce. I'm not sure how well suited it is to that. I like that it can handle things like erosion and such. But i don't know how good it is for working on "local level detail" across a large area. I haven't really seen anything done like that with Bryce.

Beyond that, I wouldn't at all mind creating more elaborate imagery with it, perhaps integrating with DazStudio, etc. There's opportunity for that, too, I think.

So... that's what I"m working toward. Soon as I get the particulars down of the program, I think I'll be well on my way. I'm still trying to get some traction with the program. But, once I get that, I usually pick things up pretty intuitively/quickly.

Anyhoo... I'll definitely look at more of the tutorials recommended when I get home tonight and keep practicing/learning.

Thanks!

Eva1 · February 2013

miketvogel said:
Hi all,
So, I've started getting seriously into learning Bryce, but am finding it difficult to find resources that seem very helpful. I either find a lot of dead links, links to videos that are out-dated, or in another language.

I have found the videos by David Brinnen and, while his videos are a great showcase of what Bryce can do, for me, I find them very difficult to follow. He kinda jumps around, clicking this, clicking that, clicking this other thing, switching to this window, clicking a few things, closing that window... going back to this other window, clicking a bunch of stuff... and just generally bouncing around the interface a lot, all while describing what he's doing as quickly as he's clicking.

For me, it's very difficult to follow or understand all of what he's doing enough to understand or retain any of it. So, while it's very insightful and inspiring to watch his videos in terms of seeing what Bryce can do, I think I need something a bit slower-paced to learn the program with. Something a bit more "newbie-speed".

Sooo.. I'm looking for some good tutorials on Bryce online, something that perhaps works on a kind of project basis. I've found a few tutorials, but they seem to be very "task oriented", not so much "beginners tutorials". Bryce has a very deep material system, for example, and I've found tutorials that either scratch the absolute very basics of it, or dive way into the tools. I haven't found anything in -between.

So, that's kinda what I'm looking for. Tutorials, or videos, or maybe even a book that starts with the absolute basics, works into the more moderate elements, and then gets a bit into the deeper, more complicated things. This way I can follow a normal progression of learning, building on what I've already learned.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Hi Mike, you may like to check out these tutorials I've written for beginners in Bryce - I hope they help.

http://brycebasics.blogspot.co.uk/p/tutorials.html

Horo · February 2013

TheSavage64 said:
Never mind about the "recommended reading for Bryce 7.5"...

... Where can I get a copy of Bryce 7.5? :cheese:

Only insiders get it so we are always a step ahead of the others. :)

cris333 · February 2013

Important is how much do you know about 3D CG , are you only new to Bryce or to 3D too .
You can use this http://www.digitaltutors.com/training/free-tutorials with free tutors (no need subscription, also lots of paid tutors have first or second lesson free) if you need to know more about 3D ,modeling, shading, applying textures ,.. the basic rules applies to any 3D software , unfortunately there is no Bryce/Daz/Hexagon/Carara tutorials there but at least we have Horo and David masters and their website and lots of helpful Bryce users here on forum. The Bryce forum is very ACTIVE and very helpful, i've seen questions posted 6 months ago about 3D CG on Autodesk forums and still waiting for replies ...Tutorials are good but an active community worth more than 1000 tutorials ,same like a picture worth more than 1000 words.A community can help you with answers if you get a "Runtime error" or crashing bug on an application but a tutorial won't explain what to do.
Back to Bryce , see the bryce tutorials sticky page and dont forget to download
http://www.sharecg.com/v/63140/view/3/PDF-Tutorial/Bryce-Tutorial-1---Basic-and-Complex-Booleans Step-by-Step clicking tutorial even for someone who just opened Bryce for the first time, (has a popular irish song-edited by me in FL Studio and project files included - to bad i can't attach a coffee too lol ) if you need to know about boolean basics :coolsmile: , for more advanced booleans TheSavage64 and orbital have great models and i think they can help you further.

GussNemo · February 2013

Thanks for the boolean link, cris. It's something I've needed.

cris333 · February 2013

you're welcome Nemo and thank you for feedback , i'm glad you find it useful/helpful . I wanted to continue the boolean tutorial to release the volume 2 (advanced) but i got into Star Trek Online game some time ago and also helped a lot on improving or creating pages (content and graphical aspect+rearranging) on STO wiki http://www.stowiki.org/Special:Contributions/Cris333 where i got a nomination for admin in the wiki team ( i rejected). Now i took a break from STO and i'm back into 3D , Bryce and learning to model stuff.Not sure if or when the volume 2 will be released unfortunately and i don't like to make promises if i can't keep them :lol:

Edit: Bryce is lacking in boolean tutorials, tree lab tutorials, light lab tutorials well not completety but maybe not enough...i think

IceScribe · March 2013

I have the book "The Bryce 5 Handbook" which is a manual that filled in the gaps for me. By Shamms Mortimer 2002, ISBN 1-58450-217-7 looks like it's still available on Amazon. at about $20 which is less than half what I originally paid. I'm still referring to it for all kinds of Bryce operations in Bryce 7.

I don't think it would be a waste of time to learn the lighting. I don't understand the HDRI stuff at all, but if you're going to use that, I think David Brinnen and Horo here at the DAZ forum are the go-to gurus. I also like Robin Wood's tutorials and still go back to them. Again the lessons are for version 5, and even some from 4, but it's basic enough for me, so I find it useful and recommend them.

Wilmap · March 2013

I have the book Real World Bryce 4 by Susan A Kitchens and Victor Gavenda which I got from Amazon marketplace.

Yes it is rather old, but there is a lot of useful information in it, which you can sit and read in your own time.

I think David's videos are great and have learned a lot from them too.

David Brinnen · March 2013

wilmap said:
I have the book Real World Bryce 4 by Susan A Kitchens and Victor Gavenda which I got from Amazon marketplace.
Yes it is rather old, but there is a lot of useful information in it, which you can sit and read in your own time.

I think David's videos are great and have learned a lot from them too.

Thank you Wendy!

OK as you mentioned them... here's an up to date list of what's on my Channel at the moment.

Video tutorials for Bryce 7.1 Pro. "New" as of the 27th July 2012

*** find out if you are running the correct version of Bryce! ***

Bryce 7.1 Pro - Help, About Bryce - a short video by David Brinnen

And these from Horo on my channel. Please feel free to subscribe, it stops us feeling lonely and sad.

IBL-Advanced: Backdrop Sharpness, DOF and Saturation - by Horo Wernli
Projecting Light - by Horo Wernli
Tiling Objects - by Horo Wernli
Tiling Pictures (on a single object) - by Horo Wernli
Torus - by Horo Wernli

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Recommended reading for Bryce 7.5?

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