Actually, when I tried to replace the original files it kind of broke Headshop. When I uploaded a photo, the dots were way off and the face it generated had a smile...even though the photo didn't smile at all! I even tried photos I used previously, like Dio, and this happened there.

The only fix was a full install.

However, the full install has a problem, too. By default the file location for the new install is in a forbidden location. So you must change the location to go where you want. But doing this it worked OK.

So I don't know if the upload corrupted something or what, but there are still some things to fix.

No need to reinstall your HeadShop 11 or OneClick2. Simply replace these two files and you are good to go.

These two files will fix the neck issues with HeadShop 11 and OneClick2. Please follow download link and download zip file twofiles.zip. Unzip file.

There are two files that you need to use to replace two samename files in your "HeadShop plugin" folder: "RH.Core.dll" and "RH.MeshUtils.dll".

The link to the zip folder is https://www.dropbox.com/s/ccpj5x9cza5edix/twofiles.zip?dl=0

Thanks for your patience!

These two files will fix the neck issues with HeadShop 11 and OneClick2. Please follow download link and download zip file twofiles.zip. Unzip file.

There are two files that you need to use to replace two samename files in your "HeadShop plugin" folder: "RH.Core.dll" and "RH.MeshUtils.dll".

The link to the zip folder is https://www.dropbox.com/s/ccpj5x9cza5edix/twofiles.zip?dl=0

Thanks for your patience!

These two files will fix the neck issues with HeadShop 11 and OneClick2. Please follow download link and download zip file twofiles.zip. Unzip file.

There are two files that you need to use to replace two samename files in your "HeadShop plugin" folder: "RH.Core.dll" and "RH.MeshUtils.dll".

The link to the zip folder is https://www.dropbox.com/s/ccpj5x9cza5edix/twofiles.zip?dl=0

Thanks for your patience!

To be far, the guy in that video clip looks nothing like the guy in the op's photo to me. The lighting is so harsh and his expression really throws one off. If you can find a good high quality photo maybe some kind person can make a Facegen/Headshop head for you.

It does give me an idea. People can share facegen and headshop creations. It would be pretty cool if there was a Facegen/Headshop swap request thread, where people post and share their various FG/HS creations and people can also request if someone could make one. There would be no guarantee of requests, nor the quality of any models made from them, it would all just be in good fun.

Thoughts?

My first advice would be to pick a figure and stick to it. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't create characters for other figures, but intially you should stick to one and get all the tools necessary for that figure before running around in all directions. For example, if you choose Genesis 8 Female, the suggestions made by Chezjuan are good ones to begin with, for so-called "dial-spun" characters (created with morph sliders within DAZ Studio). Using packaged morphs is a good place to start, with other options being something you might want to explore as you become more proficient*. The measure metrics utility isn't a prerequisite, IMO, although it would certainly be useful to have. It is a little pricey, however, and initially you are probably going to spend far more time and effort on getting acceptable results with the face as opposed to anything else. Additional morph packages available (using G8F as an example) that contain additional morphs that sometimes come in handy include:

https://www.daz3d.com/200-plus-head-and-face-morphs-for-genesis-8-female-s and

https://www.daz3d.com/rarestone-s-face-morphs-collection-for-genesis-8-female

There may be some duplication between packages, but usually there are enough differences to make them worthwhile if you plan on doing a lot of character creation. Most of those types of packages also have male counterparts available (G8M) if that is your preference.

No matter how you approach the task, once you have the tools the next step is to obtain appropriate reference materials to work with. Ideally you need, at a minimum, a good frontal head shot, preferably with a neutral expression, and a similar profile shot. Quarter profile shots are also useful. The photo references can be loaded right into DAZ Studio by creating appropriately-scaled plane primitives and plugging your reference images into the diffuse channels. When doing so, it is important to ensure that the relative dimensions of the images and the dimensions of your planes are identical, to avoid distortion. The planes can then be scaled up or down to match both your figure's face and each other.

You should focus on working with one element at a time - you can return to them to tweak later. For example, you may start with the eyes to get their size, shape and position correct, then move on to the nose, then the mouth/lips, etc. It will be an iterative approach, revisting each to tweak as you progress. You will develop your own methodolgy as time goes on.

All of this is referring entirely to the figure's mesh, of course. The texture that you apply will also have a significant effect on the appearance of your character as well, but that is a whole separate issue.

Of course, there are products available that offer shortcuts, such as these:

https://www.daz3d.com/facegen-artist-pro or

https://www.daz3d.com/headshop-11-win

Those products allow you to create characters based upon photographs and create both textures and head morphs for you, I have seen some credible results from those using them, but they tend to rely very heavily on the photos used and the resulting textures created than on the morphing of the actual mesh. In the later case they seem to focus on getting the relative size and position of the facial features approximately right, then using the resultant textures to complete the illusion. Since the textures created are based upon actual photographs of the individuals, it is not surprising that the results are recogniseable - you are looking at an actual photograph of the individual wrapped around the 3D mesh. So, naturally, yes, they look as much like the individual as the original photograph of the individual did. One big issue with this approach that tends to be tip-toed around, is the copyright of the original photos used to create the textures. This would be especially relevant to celebrities. Most such photos probably are copyrighted by the subject or the photographer, especially the better images.

*Lastly, for more advanced users, there are modelling applications (ZBrush is popular for this purpose) that may be used to create custom morphs for the figure. This is how most of the Published Artists or vendors here at DAZ3D and other sites create their morphed characters for sale (apart from creation of textures).

For my own part, I will often use reference images of celebrities to create dial-spun characters, but usually I am not obsessed with creating perfect reproductions of those persons. Rather, I usually reach the point where I have an interesting character in its own right and am content with that, for my own use. The reference photos can then be discarded.

It just so happens that a character clearly modeled after him has been recently released: https://www.daz3d.com/alascanus-merman-for-genesis-8-males-plus-mertail-and-fins

I am not seeing the resemblance at all.

To the OP, you could try using facegen or headshop to create a morph.

I have HeadShop 11.  It seems to have a lot of potential, but there are problems with the neck and around the eyes.  The mesh HeadShop creates does not match up with Genesis 8 mesh, so eyes can look recessed, eyebrows and eyelashes do not fit, and sometimes even hair doesn't fit quite right.  This is supposedly a problem with pictures that don't have an open mouth smile, although I have problems getting open mouth smile to CLOSE their mouth. There is supposed to be a fix for these problems, other than turning the mesh deformer down to the point it is of little use.  The fix was supposed to be out in December, I am still waiting.  Any idea when the fix will be available and HOW to get it?

As I suggested above, the safest way to have an open-smile model close their mouth is to use the Parameters function in Studio. And yes, we are fine-tuning a fix for the neck - I am sure you want something that is tested/working correctly.

Thanks for your responses. As a concept, Headshop looks great. Perhaps further work is needed. It certainly can't be an easy nut to crack. I guess I'll wait and see what happens.

I have HeadShop 11.  It seems to have a lot of potential, but there are problems with the neck and around the eyes.  The mesh HeadShop creates does not match up with Genesis 8 mesh, so eyes can look recessed, eyebrows and eyelashes do not fit, and sometimes even hair doesn't fit quite right.  This is supposedly a problem with pictures that don't have an open mouth smile, although I have problems getting open mouth smile to CLOSE their mouth. There is supposed to be a fix for these problems, other than turning the mesh deformer down to the point it is of little use.  The fix was supposed to be out in December, I am still waiting.  Any idea when the fix will be available and HOW to get it?

I purchased OneClick 2, because I don't need the extra features of Headshop 11 personally. I also have issues with eyelids and neck deformation, it makes sense, that part of OneClick 2 should be the same portion of the software as in Headshop 11.

I have a lot of crashes, I tried to get some help from the Creator, but he made it clear he only likes to help if you use skype, so if you want support, be ready to give up on your privacy.

This is the "Creator" - not the CREATOR, only the developer of HeadShop:-). I am not sure how Skype is effecting your privacy. I am sure that Skype and screen share helped me to solve close to 100% of people's issues (although mainly installation related). Bottom line: I am not interested in your "privacy", I just wanted to help you. 

BTW: In regard to the Age, Weight and Smile sliders in the Features tab: the manual suggest that you use ONLY ONE slider at a time as the cumulative use will give you unwanted results. Also from the manual: not all photos work the same - when moving the slider, use small movements and change gradually. We recognize that the optional use of Features is for expert users and does not always produces the desired effects.

Bottom line: try different photos, move sliders sparingly if at all and only one slider at a time. (You can also undo slider distortion by going to the Front tab and simply click on the button on the "Smooth" slider. (I might add that with the exception of the Age slider, you can use the equivalent of Weight and Smile sliders in DAZ Studio under Parameters, so there's an alternative).

I purchased OneClick 2, because I don't need the extra features of Headshop 11 personally. I also have issues with eyelids and neck deformation, it makes sense, that part of OneClick 2 should be the same portion of the software as in Headshop 11.

I have a lot of crashes, I tried to get some help from the Creator, but he made it clear he only likes to help if you use skype, so if you want support, be ready to give up on your privacy.

At first I could not get it to even start, now I managed to get it to start, and it works as long as I do not use the Features tab, as soon as I move a slider there, the whole thing crashes and the torso and head of my figure in daz have disappeared as well. Have not found a solution to that so far. But at least I can use the main feature of the software. The morphs that it creates usually horribly deform the head though. 

It's a bit of a mess at the moment, I would suggest you wait for the update and get some opinions again. I personally wait for the update and if it does not fix things so it at least works as advertised, I will ask for a refund.

I have an early version of Headshop but gave up on it due to technical issue. When I saw Headshop 11 I was intrgued and hopeful but decided to wait to see comments in the forum. It turned out that there were problems concerning the neck and eyes, but I see these have been (or soon will be) fixed.

Does the OneClick2 version suffer from these (or other) problems?

Can anyone give a comparison of the two versions? What features does Headshop 11 have that Headshop OneClick2 does not have? Any comments on the two versions are welcome.

I didn't mention that after I discovered this behavior the other day, I went to the Ready to Download tab and selected Hide Package for all of the OldReady items.

Today, I took a look at Ready to Download, and the list was empty. So, I clicked the Show Hidden checkbox. The OldReady packages no longer appear in my Ready to Download list; there were only two packages listed on Ready to Download in total, even with Show HIdden checked! (I expected the two I found: PD Howler 11.4 and Headshop OneClick (WIN))

So, maybe it's merely an intermittant DIM bug, or maybe I unintentionally changed something and now DIM is building the correct list.

Neck issue fix involves two small files that needs to be replaced inside the "HeadShop plugin" folder. No need to reinstall anything:-)

Give us a couple of days - still testing.

HeadShop or OneClick comes with its own installerQuestion: will DIM install this automatically or will it require the plugin to be manually installed?

HeadShop and OneClick both come with a non-DIM installer. Installation should be painless to standard (c:/Program Files) or non-standard (b:e:f;etrc/xxx) Studio installations, as long as you select the right destination folder (DAZ 3D). Pls. read README or watch install video: 

It states that the hair features are not present. One thing that gets overlooked about Headshop is that is has Hairshop included with it. It is no big loss, though. I'm not sure what other features would be different.

 

One thing that was different about the previous One Click was that you could not move any dots manually on the face, which you can in Headshop. It is quite literally "one click". In HS11 it will populate the shaping dots automatically like One Click, but you have the option of manually moving the dots yourself. However, I didn't have great results moving dots manually. I found it generally was best to just let HS11 do its thing. So in that respect, you may not even really want that manual feature anyway.

 

But there are other questions. Can you choose what texture maps to use? And a big one, is the weird deformation around the head fixed? This issue happens in HS11 when the photo model is not smiling. Oddly enough when model smiles the issue is not present. There is an update in the works that is supposed to fix this, so I want to know if that is coming, and if One Click contains the fix. I have been waiting for this fix to release before making any more HS11 projects.

Outrider, we found the bug that causes the weird neck wrinkle and it is fixed. Still fine-tuning the math to be perfect. It won't even require to reinstall OneClick or HeadShop, only to exchange a small file in the folder. Maybe a week?

Customer reached out to us, stating that he had other photos work OK. Here's the photo in question that did not work (see attached). We could not make it work, either.

The manual does have a few sentence about this in Troubleshooting: "In general, be prepared that NOT all photos will work equally well. Due to the sophisticated Autodots system in HeadShop which automatically finds features on a face, some variations on a photo can trick the system". 

OK, picture was too dark. All you have to do is lighten image and it works.

I think it's likely the brightened photo erased details that were confusing it at the original contrast.

Customer reached out to us, stating that he had other photos work OK. Here's the photo in question that did not work (see attached). We could not make it work, either.

The manual does have a few sentence about this in Troubleshooting: "In general, be prepared that NOT all photos will work equally well. Due to the sophisticated Autodots system in HeadShop which automatically finds features on a face, some variations on a photo can trick the system". 

OK, picture was too dark. All you have to do is lighten image and it works.