Low poly well
Watch the video or continue with the step by step tutorial.
Basic brick
Start with the cube.
Select the cube.
Go to Edit mode.
Select the Edge tool.
Select all the edges by pressing A.
Bevel the cube, press CTRL+B, or select the Bevel tool.
Move the mouse slightly, just to have some rounded edges. This gives a stone-like look.
Different types of bricks
Let’s create different types of bricks.
Go to the Front view. Press 1 on the numpad or select View -> Viewpoint -> Front.
Select the Face tool.
Select all faces by pressing A.
Duplicate the cube by pressing SHIFT+D and move the duplicated cube along the X-axis next to the original cube.
In Viewport Shading select the Wireframe mode.
Select the right outer face of the duplicated cube (make sure you stay in the Front view). You can use the Box select.
Press G and pull out the face. Make the cube 1.5 times bigger. You can use the columns of the grid for this.
Use the Loop cut tool to cut the duplicated cube in half.
Create another type of brick.
Select all the faces of the duplicated cube.
Duplicate by pressing SHIFT+D.
Move the duplicated cube next to the other cubes. Align along the X-axis.
Select the right outer face of the duplicated cube.
Press G and again pull out the face making this cube again 1.5 times bigger. You can use the grid for this.
Use the Loop cut tool to create another cut around ⅔ th of the cube. You can select the other loop cut using ALT+Left mouse and move it using G to position it on ⅓ th of the cube.
So now we have 3 types of bricks: 1 small brick, 1 large brick with 1 cut in the middle and 1 very large brick with 2 cuts. Reason for creating cuts in the bricks is so that we can easily bend the bricks when creating the well.
The well
Create a long line of bricks that will be bent.
Select all faces by pressing A.
Press SHIFT+D to duplicate the line of bricks. Align the duplicated cubes along the X - Axis, next to the other line of bricks.
Select all faces again.
Press SHIFT+D to duplicate again and put the duplicated line of bricks next to the other line of bricks.
Now we have a very long line of bricks.
Make sure the pivot point is with the first brick. When bending Blender will start from this point.
Go to Object mode.
Go to Solid mode.
Go to the Modifier tab.
Add a Simple Deform modifier.
With a Simple Deform modifier you can add simple deformation to an object like twists, bend or stretch.
The Simple Deform modifier by default adds a Twist. Change this to Bend.
By default Blender will bend along the X-axis but we need to bend on the Z -axis. In the modifier change the Axis to Z.
Change the Angle in the modifier to 360, we want a full circle.
If all looks good, apply the modifier.
We have a basic circle of bricks that we can duplicate and put on top of eachother. Before we can duplicate we need to set the pivot point first. If you scale the duplicated circle of bricks it will scale around the pivot point. The pivot point was at the first brick. So it will scale around the first brick. So we need to change the Origin.
Select the circle of bricks.
Select Object -> Set Origin -> Origin to Geometry.
The pivot point is now in the center. Let’s move the circle of bricks to the center.
Press N to bring forward the Properties Window.
Set the Location X, Y and Z all to zero.
Now we can duplicate the circle of bricks.
Select the circle of bricks.
Duplicate and put it on top.
Scale it down a bit, and place it again on top.
The bricks are a bit aligned so rotate along the Z axis.
Duplicate the circle of bricks again.
Move it on top.
Scale it up or down.
Rotate along the Z-axis.
Duplicate 1 or 2 times creating your well.
Organize your objects in Collections
Collections are used to organize your objects. In the Outliner you can see your Collections.
Let’s move the bricks to a new Collection:
Select the bricks.
In the viewport press M. A Move to Collection menu pops up.
Select New collection from the menu and type a name for the Collection for example Well.
Check the Outliner. You’ll see a new collection with the given name. In the Collection you’ll find the cubes for the well.
The well looks very rigid. To make it non uniform and give it more character we’ll use Proportional Editing:
Select all the bricks of the well.
Go to Edit mode.
In Blender you can Edit multiple objects at the same time. You just need to check one setting:
In Edit mode, go to the Edit menu and check “Lock Object Modes”.
Let’s continue with the well:
Select Vertex tool.
Select a vertex.
Select Proportional Editing from the top menu or use shortcut O.
Press G and you can make the circle of influence bigger or smaller.
Make the circle of influence small such that only the area around the vertex is influenced.
Pull the vertex in and out creating a non uniform structure.
Select another vertex and make it non uniform.
Continue above steps and give your well a bit more character.
You can use the Mat Cap mode to see how the Shading would look like.
Next to the Viewport Shading -> Rendered menu, you’ll find more Shading options.
Click on the icon, select MatCap.
Click on the ball and select a Studio light.
You can go to Object mode and see how it looks.
Continue improving the well, using Proportional Editing to make it a bit more rough and MatCaps to check the shading.
Challenge
Model a wooden frame that surrounds the well.
Tip: When using a cube to model the frame, make sure you Scale the cube in Edit mode.
The Roof tiles
Watch the video or continue with the step by step tutorial.
To create the roof tile we’ll start with a plane.
In Object mode, add a plane.
In Edit mode, select Vertex tool.
Create 2 Loop Cuts and cut the plane in 3 parts.
Select the 2 front vertices and pull them out using G.
In Object mode, duplicate the plane twice.
There are 3 planes to create 3 variations of tiles.
Select a tile.
Go to Edit mode.
To create a little notch we’ll add a Loop Cut.
Make a Loop cut across the previous 2 loop cuts.
Move the cut a bit to the front.
Use the Knife tool, by pressing K, and draw a line near an edge where you want the notch to be and press Enter.
Remove the face for the notch.
You can move some vertices to make the notch nicer.
For the 2nd and 3rd tile you can create your own style:
Select another tile.
Go to Edit mode.
Add Loop cuts.
Change the vertices to match a roof tile shape.
Add a notch if you’d like.
There are 2 ways to make the roof tiles solid.
Using a Solidify modifier
In Object mode, select a tile.
Go to the Modifier tab.
Add a Solidify modifier.
Change the Thickness.
Do the above steps for the other 2 tiles.
By modeling
Select all 3 tiles.
Go to Edit Mode.
Select the Face tool.
Select all faces by pressing A (or AA to deselect and then A).
Press E and extrude the faces along the Z-axis.
Once you have modeled your tiles you can put them together.
In Object mode, align the tiles next to each other.
Rotate the tiles a bit so they can sit on top of each other.
Create a row of 9 tiles.
Select the 3 tiles.
Duplicate the tiles using SHIFT+D.
Place the duplicated tiles next to the other tiles.
Duplicate once again.
Create more rows.
Select the row of tiles.
Duplicate the row of tiles.
Move the duplicate tiles to the front.
Create a tilt.
Select a row of tiles.
Go to the Side View (Left or Right view).
Rotate the row in the Z - axis and create a tilt.
Select the other row of tiles.
Rotate the row to create a tilt.
The rows of tiles look a bit uniform. Let’s move some tiles.
Select the front row of tiles.
Move the row a bit to the right.
Select the tile at the right end and move it to the left.
You can move as many tiles as you’d like to the right or left.
Create another row of tiles.
Select a row of tiles.
Duplicate the row of tiles and bring it forward.
Move some tiles to the left or right to make it look less uniform.
Let’s create a more realistic look. We’ll use sculpting for this.
Select the 3 rows of tiles
Join them together with CTRL+J.
Go to Edit mode.
Select Sculpting from the top menu.
In Sculpting you can use a brush to edit your object. Blender has many types of brushes.
In Sculpting, the default brush is the Draw brush.
Move the mouse over the tiles and you can see the tiles come up a bit.
Select the Grab brush. With this brush you can grab vertices and pull them around.
Select a vertex and move it around.
Select other vertices and move them around creating a nice look for the roof tiles.
You can make the brush smaller by pressing F.
Continue making your roof tiles look nice.
Let’s rescale some tiles. Make some tiles larger and some smaller. To do this we need to unjoin the rows of tiles.
Select Layout from the top menu.
Make sure the rows of tiles are selected.
Go to Edit mode.
Press P. This brings up the Seperate menu.
Select By Loose Parts.
Go to Object mode.
We have separated the tiles, but the pivot point is at the tile that was selected last. We need to give each tile it’s pivot point.
In Object mode, select all tiles.
Select Object -> Set Origin -> Origin to Geometry.
All tiles have their own pivot point. Now we can resize the tiles.
Select a random tile.
Scale this tile to make it smaller or larger.
Repeat above steps creating a mix of smaller and larger tiles.
Let’s join the tiles again so that we can easily move it to our wooden frame.
Select a tile.
Then select all tiles.
Press CTRL+J to join them into 1 object.
The pivot point is set to the last selected tile. We need to move the pivot point to the center.
Select Object -> Set Origin -> Origin to Geometry.
Add the roof tiles to a new Collection.
Select the roof tiles.
Press M. This brings up the Move To Collection menu.
Select New Collection from the menu.
And give your collection a name, for example roof tiles.
Create the roof for your wooden frame.
Move the roof tiles to your wooden frame.
Rotate or scale the tiles to create a roof.
Create a slope just like medieval buildings. To do this we need to add a lattice.
Select the roof tiles.
Press SHIFT+A and select Lattice.
Scale the lattice to surround the roof tiles. Make sure the roof tiles are fully surrounded by the lattice.
Rotate the lattice such that it uses the same angle as your roof tiles.
If necessary, scale the lattice again or move the lattice to encompass the roof tiles.
Scale the lattice in the Z-axis to match the height of the roof tiles.
- Go to the Object Data Properties on the right menu. Here you can configure the lattice.
Change the resolution to for example 5 and this creates 5 segments across. This makes it possible to create more bendings.
Also change the V to 3 creating an additional horizontal segment.
- Parent the lattice to the roof tiles.
Select the roof tiles.
Select the lattice. Make sure the lattice is selected last.
Press CTRL+P to bring up the Parent menu.
Select Lattice Deform .
Select the lattice.
Go to Edit mode.
Enable Proportional Editing.
Select the right outer vertices and move these a bit upwards.
Do the same for the left outer vertices.
Do the same for the other vertices, bringing them a bit down or upward creating your slope.
Add the lattice to the roof tile collection.
In Object mode.
Select the lattice.
Press M and add the lattice to the roof tile collection.
The wooden frame might not yet adapt nicely to the roof tiles.
Select the wooden frame and change it to adapt to the roof tiles.
Duplicate the roof tiles to the other side.
Select the roof tiles and the lattice.
Press SHIFT+D to duplicate.
Rotate the duplicated tiles 180 degrees in the Z-axis, R+Z+180.
Position the duplicated tiles onto the other side of the wooden frame.
Adjust the wooden frame and the lattice.
Challenge
Model the rope.
Add a base.
Add some stones.
Rope and Basic texturing
Watch the video or continue with the step by step tutorial.
The Rope
To model the rope you can follow the following steps.
Add a cylinder.
Change the number of vertices to for example 8 to keep the low poly look.
Rotate your cylinder along the Y or X axis such that it’s horizontal.
Scale your cylinder in the Y or X axis making it a bit larger.
Add some Loop Cuts.
Bevel the cuts including the faces at both ends.
Select the Face tool.
Select all the faces between the cuts, you can use SHIFT+ALT+Left click to select a loop of faces.
Set the Pivot Point to Individual Origins in the top Pivot menu.
Extrude the faces.
Scale them in the horizontal direction.
Select the faces from the bevel.
And scale these in horizontal direction.
Select the faces at the end and scale them up as well.
You can make the rope less plain.
Select Vertex tool.
Enable Proportional Editing.
Move some vertices to make the rope look less plain.
Move the rope to the wooden frame and position it.
If necessary, scale the rope up or down.
Put the rope into its own collection.
Texturing
Let’s add an HDRI to our background. An HDRI is a 360 degree image for lighting and background purposes. First we need to find an HDRI that we’ll use for our lighting.
Select a fairly light gray colored HDRI. An image with not to much color in it.
Download this HDRI.
In Blender
Go to Shading. You can find Shading in the Top menu.
In the Viewport Shading select Material Preview.
When you’re in shading you will find a ball with an image on it in the lower right corner. The ball represents a HDRI. That’s a big image in the background that is shedding light on the well. The light is very realistic and shows how your object would look like with this type of light. You can also change the HDRI.
In the Viewport Shading click on the down icon. This brings up the Viewport shading menu.
Click on the ball and you can select different HDRI and different lights and looks.
Texturing the background - Basic light
When texturing the background it is handy to start with a fairly light gray coloured HDRI. Let’s add the downloaded HDRI to the scene.
You are in Shading.
Select Viewport Shading -> Rendered View.
In the Node tree (lower part of the window) select World as Shader Type as we want to add the HDRI as a background image. The shader type is a dropdown menu in the upper left corner.
In the Node tree you will see 2 connected nodes: Background and World Output.
Add an Environment Texture, select Add -> Texture -> Environment Texture.
Put the node to the left of the Background node.
In the Environment Texture Node press Open and select the downloaded HDRI.
Connect the Environment Texture Node to the Background node.
As we are only interested in the light and not the rest of the image we can make it transparent.
Go to the Render Properties tab on the right menu.
Go to Film
Check Transparent.
Coloring the wooden frame using the Material Node tree
In Shading, select the wooden frame or a part of it.
Select Object as Shader Type.
There are 2 other nodes in the Node tree, the Principled BSDF node and the Material Output node.
In the Principled BSDF node you will see a Base Color.
Select a nice brownish color.
You might want to increase the roughness a bit.
If you want to give parts of the woorden frame a different color, you can select that part and change its color in the Principled BSDF.
You can also use the Material Properties. Here you can find the same settings as in the Principled BSDF node.
In the Material Properties tab.
Select a base color for your object.
If you want to give another object the same material you can select the material from the Material Properties tab. Or you can select the material from the top menu of the Node Tree.
Challenge
Give your roof tiles a color. Give the tiles some varieties in color.
Color your well. Give the bricks some varieties in color.
Color the stones and the base.
Color the rope.
Lighting
In this scene we’ll use sunlight.
Add 3 sun lights to your scene.
Position the lights around your scene and have them point towards the scene. You can check this from the Top View.
Change the color of the light to create a bit more ambiance.
Play around with the colors of the light and the strength. You might also want to change the strength of the light of the World HDRI. Or you can even use a different HDRI.
To improve the shading you can add some Ambient Occlusion.
In the Render Properties tab, check Ambient Occlusion.
Play with the Distance until you have a nice shading.
Add some Soft Shadows.
In the Render Properties tab, go to Shadows.
Enable Soft Shadows.
Camera
If you’re happy with the lighting, position the camera and render your image.