Overview
This lecture covers essential mesh editing operations in Blender, focusing on subdividing, merging, filling, and splitting geometry, along with related edit mode hotkeys and practical modeling tips.
Subdividing Geometry
- Subdividing splits selected edges/faces into smaller segments, adding new vertices, edges, and faces.
- Access subdivide via the Edge menu or with Ctrl+E; options include number of cuts and "create ngons."
- Subdividing a face inserts new edge loops and can result in tris (triangles) or quads depending on settings.
- Subdividing on a shape with more or fewer than four sides (ngon or triangle) affects how edges or faces appear.
Filling Geometry
- The F key creates an edge between two vertices or fills a face between multiple selected vertices or edges.
- Filling can merge multiple selected faces into a single ngon for easier manipulation.
Merging Geometry
- The M key opens the merge menu in edit mode with options like at center, at cursor, or collapse.
- "Merge by distance" combines vertices within a set radius, useful for cleaning up duplicate or close geometry.
- Automerge (toggleable option) merges vertices on the fly when they overlap during transformations.
Splitting Geometry
- The Y key splits selected vertices, edges, or faces, creating detached duplicates or separating geometry.
- Alt+M opens a split menu, providing options to split faces by edges or edges/faces by vertices.
Practical Tips & Workflow
- Use overlay statistics to monitor counts of vertices, edges, and faces.
- Combining selection and merge/fill operations streamlines mesh modeling.
- Undo (Ctrl+Z) is useful for experimenting with different subdivision and merge behaviors.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Subdivision — Splitting geometry into smaller segments by adding new vertices/edges.
- Ngon — A face with more than four edges.
- Tri — A triangle face; the simplest polygon in 3D modeling.
- Merge — Combining multiple vertices, edges, or faces into a single element.
- Fill — Creating geometry (edges/faces) between selected elements.
- Automerge — Automatic merging of overlapping vertices during transformations.
- Split — Separating selected elements from the rest of the mesh.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Practice subdividing, filling, merging, and splitting on basic Blender meshes.
- Review and try the recommended advanced course: "Press Start by Jonathan Lumpel" (free, gaming console project).
- Prepare for the next lesson on modifiers.