3D Modeling with Blender Course

Lesson 1 • Installing and Configuring Blender

Covers downloading, installing, and setting up Blender preferences for an optimised workflow. Establishes the technical baseline every subsequent chapter depends on.

Lesson 2 • Managing Files and Scenes

Covers saving, appending, linking, and organising Blender project files. Proper file hygiene prevents data loss and supports team collaboration.

Lesson 3 • Understanding the Blender Interface

Maps every major UI region: header, viewport, outliner, properties, and timeline. Students gain spatial awareness of where tools and data live.

Lesson 4 • Navigating the 3D Viewport

Teaches orbit, pan, zoom, and numpad shortcuts for precise viewport control. Fluent navigation is prerequisite to all modelling and editing tasks.

Lesson 1 • Editing Geometry in Edit Mode

Teaches switching to Edit Mode, selecting geometry components, and applying basic edits. These operations form the foundation of all mesh construction.

Lesson 2 • Mesh Cleanup and Optimisation

Covers merging doubles, recalculating normals, and dissolving unnecessary geometry. Clean meshes prevent shading errors and improve performance.

Lesson 3 • Modelling with Primitive Shapes

Demonstrates building complex forms by modifying primitive meshes like cubes, cylinders, and spheres. Students learn to see primitives as starting points.

Lesson 4 • Using Modifiers for Non-Destructive Editing

Introduces the modifier stack with Subdivision Surface, Mirror, and Solidify. Non-destructive workflows preserve flexibility throughout the modelling process.

Lesson 1 • Modelling from Reference Images

Demonstrates setting up image references and matching geometry to them accurately. Reference-based modelling is standard practice in professional pipelines.

Lesson 2 • Curve and Surface Modelling

Introduces Bézier curves, NURBS, and the Curve modifier for organic and path-based shapes. Curves complement polygon modelling for specific form types.

Lesson 3 • Sculpting Basics for Modelers

Covers Sculpt Mode brushes, dynamic topology, and remeshing for organic detail. Sculpting extends polygon modelling into freeform shape creation.

Lesson 4 • Retopology Workflows

Teaches drawing clean topology over high-poly sculpts using snapping and the Shrinkwrap modifier. Retopology produces game- and render-ready meshes.

Lesson 1 • Working in the UV Editor

Teaches selecting, moving, scaling, and rotating UV islands in the UV Editor. Precise island placement maximises texture resolution usage.

Lesson 2 • Unwrapping Meshes Effectively

Covers marking seams, applying Smart UV Project, and using Unwrap for clean layouts. Proper unwrapping is prerequisite to accurate texture application.

Lesson 3 • Understanding UV Coordinates

Explains how 2D UV space maps onto 3D surfaces and why distortion occurs. This conceptual foundation guides every unwrapping decision students make.

Lesson 4 • Importing and Applying Image Textures

Covers loading external textures, assigning them via the Shader Editor, and controlling tiling. Students integrate professional texture assets into their models.

Lesson 1 • Procedural Texturing with Nodes

Covers noise, wave, and Voronoi texture nodes to generate resolution-independent surface patterns. Procedural textures eliminate UV dependency for many materials.

Lesson 2 • Transparent, Emissive, and Subsurface Materials

Demonstrates glass, emission, and subsurface scattering shaders for specialised surface types. These materials handle light in ways the Principled BSDF alone cannot.

Lesson 3 • Introduction to the Shader Editor

Explains node-based shading, the Principled BSDF, and how data flows between nodes. Node literacy is the gateway to all material creation in Blender.

Lesson 4 • Creating PBR Materials

Teaches building physically based materials using albedo, roughness, metallic, and normal maps. PBR materials produce consistent results across lighting conditions.

Lesson 1 • Camera Setup and Composition

Covers focal length, depth of field, camera tracking, and rule-of-thirds composition. Camera decisions shape how viewers perceive and engage with the scene.

Lesson 2 • Configuring Render Settings

Explains resolution, sampling, denoising, and output format settings for both renderers. Correct render settings balance quality and production efficiency.

Lesson 3 • Post-Processing in the Compositor

Introduces Blender's node-based Compositor for colour grading, glare, and lens effects. Compositing elevates raw renders to final, deliverable-quality images.

Lesson 4 • Lighting Fundamentals in 3D

Covers light types, intensity, colour temperature, and three-point lighting principles. Strong lighting fundamentals determine the mood and readability of any render.

Lesson 1 • Keyframe Animation Basics

Covers inserting keyframes, editing in the Timeline and Dope Sheet, and interpolation types. Keyframing is the core mechanism behind all Blender animation.

Lesson 2 • Shape Keys and Facial Animation

Demonstrates creating shape keys for blend shapes, facial expressions, and corrective shapes. Shape keys complement bone rigs for deformations bones cannot achieve.

Lesson 3 • Inverse Kinematics and Constraints

Introduces IK chains, pole targets, and bone constraints for intuitive rig control. IK dramatically simplifies posing limbs compared to forward kinematics alone.

Lesson 4 • Introduction to Armatures and Bones

Covers adding armatures, creating bone chains, and understanding parent-child relationships. Armature structure determines how a rig deforms and controls a mesh.

Lesson 1 • Environment and Background Design

Teaches building ground planes, sky systems, and background elements that contextualise hero assets. Environments complete the narrative and visual context of a scene.

Lesson 2 • Building and Organising Complex Scenes

Covers collections, instancing, asset libraries, and scene management for large projects. Organised scenes reduce errors and accelerate iteration during production.

Lesson 3 • Particle Systems and Simulations

Introduces hair, emitter particles, and basic rigid body simulations for dynamic scene elements. Simulations add realism that manual animation cannot efficiently replicate.

Lesson 4 • Portfolio Presentation and Export

Teaches exporting models in FBX, OBJ, and GLTF formats and preparing portfolio renders. Proper export and presentation skills are essential for professional deployment.