Geometry Node Tutorial

Jul 28, 2024

Geometry Node Tutorial Notes

Introduction

  • Welcome to the channel.
  • Tutorial focus: Using curve tangent node in geometry nodes.

Steps to Create and Use Geometry Nodes

  1. Add a Bezier Curve

    • Press Shift + A, select Bezier Curve.

  2. Switch to Geometry Node Editor

    • Use the Timeline Editor and set to Geometry Node Editor.
    • Click on New to create a new geometry node modifier.

  3. Add Instance on Points Node

    • Press Shift + A, select Instance on Points node.
    • Place this node between the input and output nodes.

  4. Add Cube Object Node

    • Add a Cube object.
    • Connect the geometry to the instance node.
    • Note: Two cubes will appear since the curve has two control points.

  5. Set Dimensions

    • Set X Dimension to 0.5 and Y Dimension to 0.3.

  6. Viewport Shading

    • Go to the viewport shading menu, enable Cavity option and set type to Both.

Resampling the Curve

  • To increase the number of instances on the curve, add a Resample Curve node.

  • Drop it after the Group Input node.

  • Count Mode:

    • Set count value to 10 for 10 instances.
    • Change it to 4 for 4 instances.

  • Length Mode:

    • Set length value to 0.6.
    • Instances will be added automatically based on length.

Editing the Curve

  1. Switch to Edit Mode
    • Press Tab to enter edit mode.
  2. Select Last Control Point
    • Press Numpad 7 for top view.
    • Hit E to extrude the curve.
  • Adjusting the curve will automatically compute the instance number based on length.

Adding Join Geometry Node

  • Include a Join Geometry node to visualize the curve.

Aligning Instances to Curve Direction

  • Add Curve Tangent Node
    • This computes the curve's direction at every control point.
  • Use Line Euler to Vector Node
    • Plug the tangent node into the Vector node and the rotation to the rotation node.
  • Confirmed: Local x-axis of instances aligns to the curve direction.
  • Option to switch to Y-axis to align local y-axis accordingly.

Conclusion

  • Editing the curve is flexible, and instance direction aligns correctly.
  • Thanks for watching, see you in the next tutorial!