Category: Tutorials

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Alarm Clock model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly and easily. 

Some of the skills you’ll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I’ll show you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Alarm Clock

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

To use the reference image in this tutorial, you will need to switch your viewport to the Front View. 

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This displays all four views (by default this will be perspective, top, right and front). From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Front View.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the Finder and open it. In this tutorial I’ll use the front view of an Alarm Clock from Envato Elements to help me.

Step 5

Adjust the image size and transparency to your liking in the Properties window.

2. Adjust and Edit the Cylinder Shape

Step 1

In the top menu bar click and hold on the Cube Button (or click on the small black arrow in the bottom right corner of the button). 

In the menu that appears select the Cylinder Button to spawn a cylinder into the scene.

Step 2

You may need to rotate the cylinder in order to get the right orientation. 

To do this click on the Rotate Tool button and use the tool to rotate the cylinder 90 degrees so that the circular face is pointing forward.

Step 3

Click on the Object tab in the Properties window. Adjust the size so that the shape of the cylinder fits the shape of the Alarm Clock background image. For this tutorial the following properties are used:

• Radius: 140 cm
• Height: 100 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 80
• Orientation: +Y

Step 4

Click on the Caps tab of the properties window. Make sure that Caps has been ticked and the Segments are set to a value of 2.

Step 5

By activating caps and setting the segments value to 2, you will see that an extra cap has been created on the face of the cylinder. The shape of the cylinder should roughly fit the shape of the Alarm Clock background image at this stage. 

Ensure that you check the shape using the other camera views as well (perspective, side and top etc).

Step 6

Ensure the cylinder is still selected and then click on the Make Editable button to make the shape editable. 

Next select the Polygon Selection button which will allow you to select the polygons of the object.

Step 7

Hover the mouse over the face of the cylinder and select all of it’s faces (click and hold on the mouse button to select a large area).

Step 8

Once all the polygons have been selected, right click on the selected area and select the Bevel Tool.

Step 9

Click and drag over the selected area to create a beveled edge for the cylinder. Repeat the steps for the other side.

Step 10

Use the Selection Tool again and select all the polygons in the centre of the circle. Then use the Scale Tool to enlarge it (click and drag in the area outside the object to uniform scale).

Step 11

Right-click on the selection and click on the Extrude Tool.

Step 12

Click and drag over the selected area to move the polygons inside the cylinder.

Step 13

With the polygons still selected, use the Scale Tool to scale the selection down, making it slightly smaller.

Step 14

Delete the Phong Tag from the cylinder. This sharpens all the edges and faces of the model. This is further illustrated in step 15.

Step 15

In the image below you will see how the edges of the cylinder are very smooth at first before deleting the Phong Tag. 

Once the Phong Tag has been deleted, the edges sharpen.

3. How to Create a Hemisphere

Step 1

Clear the viewport to make modelling the hemisphere easier. 

To do this you must hide the cylinder model by clicking on the small little grey circle until it turns red. To make it appear in the viewport again, click on the grey circle until it becomes green or grey.

Step 2

Create a Sphere by clicking on Cube > Sphere.

Step 3

Use the Scale Tool to scale the reduce the size of the sphere so that it matches the size of the bells as closely as possible.

Step 4

In the properties window, select the Object Tab and set the properties to the following:

• Radius: 55 cm
• Segments: 50
• Type: Hemisphere

Step 5

By selecting the type to Hemisphere, the shape will be split in half as shown in the image below.

4. Add Thickness to an Object

Step 1

To add thickness to the hemisphere you will first need to make it into an editable object. Make sure that the object is selected and click on the Make Editable button.

Step 2

In the top menu bar, select Simulate > Cloth > Cloth Surface.

Step 3

In the List View, move the sphere object below the newly created Cloth Surface.  

Step 4

Ensure the Cloth Surface has been selected and select the Object tab in the properties window. Set the properties to the following:

• Subdivisions: 1
• Factor: 100%
• Thickness: 10 cm

Step 5

Adjusting the Thickness value in the properties window changes the thickness of the hemisphere.

5. Create the Alarm Clock Bell

Step 1

Rotate the hemisphere by 180 Degrees so that it starts to take on the appearance of the bell.

Step 2

In the Front View, use the reference image to ensure the size of the hemisphere is roughly the same size as the bells.

Step 3

Create a capsule by selecting the Capsule Button from the shapes menu.

Step 4

Ensure the capsule object is selected and change the properties to the following:

• Radius: 10 cm
• Height: 200 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Cap Segments: 8
• Rotation Segments: 36
• Orientation: +Y

Step 5

Use the Move Tool to move the capsule down so that only a little bit of the tip is sticking out from the top of the hemisphere.

Step 6

Select both the Capsule and the Cloth Surface by clicking and holding the Shift Key on the keyboard. Then group them by pressing Alt-G on the keyboard. You can then rename the Null by double clicking on it.

Step 7

Make sure that the new group is still selected, use a combination of the Move Tool and the Rotation Tool to position the bell correctly. You can use the reference image to guide you.

Step 8

Reveal the cylinder shape by clicking on the small red circle until it is grey (or green) again.

Step 9

You can then make any final adjustments to the bell’s position by comparing it to the reference image and the cylinder.

6. How to use Symmetry in Cinema 4D

Step 1

In the top menu bar select Array > Symmetry.

Step 2

In the list window move the group containing the bell objects inside the Symmetry Modifier.

Step 3

Anything inside the Symmetry Modifier will create a symmetrical object.

7. Add Legs and Details to the Alarm Clock

Step 1

Use the Capsule Object to create legs for the alarm clock. Do this by creating a new capsule object and using the Move Tool and the Rotate Tool to position it into place.

Another way you can do this is by duplicating the capsule (hold the CTRL button on the keyboard whilst using the Move Tool) which was used to create the bell. 

Move the duplicated capsule into position using the Move Tool and the Rotate Tool.

Step 2

Duplicate the leg by using the Symmetry Modifier. 

Step 3

Adjust the size and radius of the legs by going to the Object tab in the Properties window.

Step 4

Create a new Capsule and place it in on top of the alarm clock.

Step 5

Create a new Sphere and scale it down using the Scale Tool. Place the small sphere on top of the capsule.

8. Create the Clock Hands

Step 1

Create a new Cylinder by clicking on Cube > Cylinder from the top menu bar.

Step 2

Adjust the size of the cylinder in the Properties window so that it matches the width of the clock hand. Use the reference image in the front view to help you with this. The settings for the hand used in this tutorial are as follows:

• Radius: 10 cm
• Height: 10 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 60
• Orientation: +Y

Step 3

Ensure the cylinder is selected and then click on the Make Editable button.

Step 4

To edit the shape further select the Points Tool and then select the Rectangle Selection Tool.

Step 5

Then go to the Properties window and un-tick Only Select Visible Elements. This allows you to select all the points within the rectangle selection.

Step 6

Use the Rectangle Selection Tool to select all the points in the bottom half of the cylinder. 

Select and use the Move Tool and move all the selected points down to create the clock hand.

Step 7

When moving a whole object, select and use the Model button. If this is not selected, you may find that you will be moving the points, edges or faces instead.

Step 8

Position the clock hand object by using the Move Tool.

Step 8

YUse the Scale Tool to adjust the scale of the object once it is in place.

Step 9

Duplicate the clock hand object by using the Move Tool and holding the CTRL button on the keyboard.

Step 10

Once you have the hands, position both on the clock face by using the Move Tool and the Rotation Tool. 

Use the Scale Tool to make one hand smaller if you wish.

Coming Next…

In the second part of the the tutorial series, I’ll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Alarm Clock

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Alarm Clock model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly and easily. 

Some of the skills you’ll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Alarm Clock

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I’ll show you how to:

• How to Create Colored Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Alarm Clock

9. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there should be a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the various objects and areas of the Alarm Clock. Such as the clock face, the hands and the bells.

Step 2

Double click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style I’m only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Color and Reflectance. This gives the cel shaded look for our final image of the Alarm Clock.

Step 4

Colour the Alarm Clock by adding the material to your object. Drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. 

You may drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

This process will be repeated for the other parts of the Alarm Clock. The base colour of the Alarm Clock are as follows:

• R: 248
• G: 62
• B: 81

Step 5

Apply this colour to the two bells and the ringer as well.

10. How to Use Sketch and Toon

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In this new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right
2. Un-tick Camera
3. Tick Lights
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the Color option box . 

The Material Editor gives many different options for choosing and picking a colour. These include RGB, HSV etc. 

Choose whichever option you’re most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades will also appear in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model is automatically be adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Alarm Clock model.

Step 5

Because you’ve already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Alarm Clock will is adjusted to the new material colour. Click on the Render View button to preview the render.

11. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a better idea of the shading and how the render will turn out as you work on it, click and hold on the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Alarm Clock model. 

Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box. This increases the resolution. 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that performance is suffering.

Step 3

Right-click on the small arrow and select Alpha Mode. This removes the black background.

Step 4

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you would like the light source to come from on the sphere and it will sync with the view port. 

Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This can be adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

12. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Left Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Make sure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu will appear on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene, according to the time of the day. Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You will be able to see how the lighting will affect the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This will create a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here, adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Color.

13. How to Colour the Clock Face

Step 1

To create a new material, duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 247
• G: 244
• B: 225

Step 4

Use the selection tool to highlight the polygons on the face of the clock. This is the area that will be coloured using the new material.

Step 5

Apply the colour by click and dragging the new material directly on to the highlighted selection.

14. How to Color the Hands and Legs

Step 1

Create a new material. You can also duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 70
• G: 69
• B: 65

Step 2

Apply the new material to the legs, bell stands and the clock hands by either clicking on the material and dragging it to the objects via the viewport or via the object list window.

15. How to Render the Alarm Clock

Step 1

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Step 2

In the render settings menu, change the options to what you need. First you’ll need to tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through. This could be useful if you wanted to add a background to the image in Adobe Photoshop.

Step 3

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Step 4

To ensure that the Alarm Clock render is nice and sharp, go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which is found under Filter. 

Step 5

To create the final image of the Alarm Clock, click on the Render button. Remember to ensure you’ve selected the correct view in the viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you’re happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Step 6

If you want to have more control over how the final render looks, create a camera object to help. Find a suitable view using the viewport first and then click on the camera button. 

This creates a camera using the current view in the viewport. Check out the camera settings to see how they affect the final render.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete, repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you have successfully learnt:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Alarm Clock
• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Alarm Clock

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Nintendo Switch model to use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you’ll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part (How to Create a Switch in Cinema 4D: Part 1) of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Switch

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I’ll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• Color in the Nintendo Switch Model
• Render the Nintendo Switch Model

16. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there is a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the the Nintendo Switch.

Step 2

Double-click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style you’ll only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Colour and Reflectance. This will give the cel shaded look for the final image. 

Step 4

Colour the body of the Nintendo Switch by adding the material to the object. Drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. You can also drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

17. How to Adjust the Material Properties

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In this new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right.
2. Untick Camera.
3. Tick Lights.
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu.

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the colour option box . 

The Material Editor gives many different options for choosing and picking colours. These include RGB, HSV and so on. 

Choose whichever option you’re most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades will also appear in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model will automatically be adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Nintendo Switch model. 

Choose the following colours for this tutorial:

• R: 84
• G: 100
• B: 153

Step 5

Because you’ve already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Switch is automatically adjusted to the new material colour.

18. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a  better idea of the shading and how our render will turn out as we work on it, click and hold the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Nintendo Switch model. Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box (this increases the resolution). 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that the performance is decreasing.

Step 3

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

You can also add a light object to the scene if you are more comfortable working that way.  

Step 4

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you’d like the light source to come from on the sphere and it will sync with the view port. Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This can be adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

19. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Primary-Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Make sure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu appears on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene (according to the time of the day). Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You’ll see how the lighting affects the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This creates a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here you can adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Colour.

20. How to Colour the Switch Screen

Step 1

To create a new material we can duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 81
• G: 223
• B: 185

Step 3

Apply the new material to the screen by clicking and dragging it directly onto the object.

21. How to Colour the Joy-Cons

Step 1

Create a new material. Duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 61
• G: 182
• B: 255

Step 2

Duplicate another new material. Double-click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there we can change the colour to the following:

• R: 255
• G: 121
• B: 122

Step 3

Apply the materials to the relevant Joy-Con’s by dragging and dropping the colours onto the objects in the viewport. 

Use the list of objects in the object manager on the right of the screen. 

22. How to Color the Switch Details

Part 1

To color the details of the Nintendo Switch (such as the joystick and the buttons etc.) we are going to use the dark blue material which was the first material created to colour in the screen.

• R: 84
• G: 100
• B: 153

Part 2

Apply the material to the rail of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the object.

Part 3

Apply the material to the four buttons of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the button objects one at a time.

Part 4

Apply the material to the joysick of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the objects.

Part 5

Apply the material to the “-” button and the “home” button of the Joy-Con by dragging and dropping it onto the objects.

Part 6

For the remaining details, create a new material which should be a slightly darker colour than the first material that was created. 

Choose the following colours for this tutorial:

• R: 73
• G: 87
• B: 133

Part 7

Apply the new material onto the details highlighted in the image below.

Part 8

For the last part of the Joy-Con, use the main blue colour and apply it by dragging and dropping it onto the object.

Part 9

Repeat the same steps for the second Joy-Con and replace the blue material with the red material.

Part 10

For the final details of the Nintendo Switch apply the dark blue material as shown in the image below.

23. How to Render the Nintendo Switch

Part 1

Click on the camera button to return to the camera view. This should be the same composition used in the previous tutorial ‘How to Create a Switch in Cinema 4D: Part 1‘.

Part 2

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Part 3

In the render settings menu, you can change the options to what you need. First, tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through.

Part 4

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Part 5

To ensure that the render is nice and sharp go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which can be found under Filter. 

Part 6

To create the final image, click on the Render button. Remember to select the right view in the viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you’re happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Part 7

To create the final image, click on the Render button. Remember to select the right view in the viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you’re happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete you can repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you have successfully learnt how to:

• Import Reference Images
• Prepare for Modelling
• Model a Nintendo Switch
• Create Materials
• Colour the Model
• Render the Nintendo Switch

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Nintendo Switch model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you’ll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In this, the first part of the two-part tutorial, I’ll show you:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Switch

1. How to Import Reference Images

Step 1

To use the reference image in this tutorial, you will need to switch your viewport to the Front View. 

Use the middle mouse button to click anywhere on the viewport. This will display all four views—by default this will be perspective, top, right and front. From there, use the middle mouse button to select the Front View.

Step 2

In the Attributes tab select Mode > View Settings.

Step 3

In Viewport [Right] select the Back button and click on the button next to Image. 

Step 4

Select the reference image from the finder and open it. In this tutorial I’ll use the front view of a Nintendo Switch to help me.

Step 5

Once the image is displayed in the background of the viewport, you can change the transparency of the image to your liking. This sometimes makes it easier to model from the reference image.

You can also change the position and size of your reference image from here using Offset X, Offset Y, Size X and Size Y.

Note that the reference image will only appear when selecting front view from the viewport.

2. How to Create the Base Model

Step 1

To start modelling the main body of the Nintendo Switch, select the Cube object from the top menu bar. This will spawn a cube in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the reference image of the Nintendo Switch in the Front View to help adjust the cube.

Use the Scale Tool to make the shape of the cube match up with the shape of the Nintendo Switch in the image.

Ensure that you use the other views—front, left, right, perspective etc—to check that the shape looks correct from every angle.

Step 3

The shape of the cube should roughly fit the shape of the Nintendo Switch background image at this stage. 

Select the Move Tool. To duplicate this shape you’ll need to hold CTRL button on the keyboard and then click and drag one of the arrows using the mouse. In this case I’ve used the red arrow to drag the new object along the x-axis.

Step 4

Use the Scale Tool to adjust the shape of the cube to match up with the shape of the blue Joy-Con in the reference image.

Step 5

Use the Perspective View to move around the objects and make sure that the overall thickness of the base objects are correct. In the example below the objects are too thick, so the Scale Tool is used to reduce the thickness (click and drag along the z-axis).

3. How to Curve the Joy-Con Corners

Step 1

Ensure you have the object selected and then click on the Make Editable button to make the object editable. Select the Edge Selection button.

Step 2

Select the two left corners of the Joy-Con using the selection tool. The selected edges will be highlighted in orange.

Step 3

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 4

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
• Offset: 50 cm
• Subdivision: 20
• Depth: 100%

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object’s appearance. You can also use the Front View and adjust corners to fit the reference image.

Step 5

To make visualising the Joy-Con in the view port easier, switch off the screen object by clicking on the small round grey button (until it turns red). This is located to the right of the screen object in the object manager list view.

Click on the button until it turns green (or grey) to make the object reappear again.

Step 6

With the screen object hidden from view it makes navigating around the Joy-Con a lot easier. Use the reference image in the front view to check the shape of the object.

Step 7

Select the final two corners of the Joy-Con using the Edge Selection tool.

Step 8

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it. Use the Bevel too to curve the two remaining corners of the Joy-Con.

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
• Offset: 10cm
• Subdivision: 10
• Depth: 100%

4. How to Curve the Screen

Step 1

Select the screen object and click on the Make Editable button followed by the Edge Selection button. 

Ensure that the screen object is no longer hidden by clicking on the small round button in the object manager list view. 

Step 2

To make visualising the screen object in the viewport easier, switch off the Joy-Con object by clicking on the small round grey button (until it turns red). 

This is located to the right of the Joy-Con object in the object manager list view.

Step 3

Once you click on the small round grey button the Joy-Con object should disappear from the viewport. 

Click on the button until it turns green (or grey) to make the object reappear again.

Step 4

Use the Edge Selection tool to select all four corners of the screen object.

Step 5

Once the edges have been selected, use the mouse to right click on the selected edges. In the menu that appears, find Bevel and select it.

Step 6

In the adjustment window (usually located in the bottom right of the screen), play around with the following:

• Bevel Mode: Chamfer
• Offset Mode: Fixed Distance
• Offset: 15 cm
• Subdivision: 10
• Depth: 100%

Feel free to adjust the sliders and values until you are satisfied with the object’s appearance. 

You can also use the Front View and adjust corners to fit the reference image.

5. How to use Boole

Step 1

To create the top corners of the screen, use the Boole tool. To get started with this select the Cylinder object from the top menu bar. This will spawn a cylinder in the viewport.

Step 2

Use the Rotate Tool to rotate the cylinder 90 degrees in the z-axis.

Step 3

Use the Scale Tool to make the cylinder thinner.

Step 4

In the front view, duplicate the cylinder and use the reference image to position the cylinders to the top corners of the screen object.

Step 5

Both cylinder objects should completely cover the corners of the screen. Use the perspective view to move the cylinders into position.

Step 6

Once the cylinder objects are in position, select the Boole Tool from the top menu bar. 

Step 7

In the object manager list view, select both cylinder objects and group them (Alt-G). This will create a ‘Null’ group containing the selected objects.

Step 8

Move both the screen object and the Null object inside the Boole Tool. Make sure that the screen is positioned above the Null group.

Step 9

Once the objects have been placed within the Boole Tool, the cylinder object will be subtracted from the screen object. 

6. How to Create the Screen

Step 1

To duplicate the screen object, select the it from the object list (found within the Boole tool). Press the CTRL button on the keyboard and click and drag the object you want to duplicate. 

Make sure that the new screen object is outside the Boole tool.

Step 2

Use the Scale Tool to make the new screen object smaller.

Step 3

In the front view you can use the reference image to help adjust the size of the screen.

Step 4

Once you are satisfied with the size of the screen, use the Move Tool to move the object inside and just above the surface of the original screen object.

You can also use the Scale Tool to reduce the thickness of the shape so that it becomes thinner.

7. How to Create Joy-Con Details

Step 1

Isolate the Joy-Con object to make working in the viewport easier. One way you can do this, is by clicking on the small grey button next to the objects you wish to hide (as shown previously).

Step 2

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This will spawn a cylinder in the scene.

Step 3

Rotate the new cylinder object in the x-axis using the Rotation Tool.

Step 4

Use the right view in the viewport to check the size of the cylinder. Then use the Scale Tool to reduce the size of the object so that it can easily fit within the width of the Joy-Con.

Step 5

You can also use the object properties to adjust the size of the cylinder and also the amount of segments it has.

• Radius: 14 cm
• Height: 200 cm
• Height Segments: 1
• Rotation Segments: 36
• Orientation: +x

Step 6

With the new cylinder object selected, click on the Make Editable button.

Step 7

Use the Move Tool and combine it with the Points Selection Tool.

Step 8

In the options window, make sure that the box for ‘Only Select Visible Elements’ is not selected. This will ensure that you will select all the necessary points.

Step 9

Select the bottom half of the cylinder object.

Step 10

Use the Move Tool to move the selected points down and making the object longer.

Step 11

Use the Selection Tool to select the curved corners on the right of the cylinder shape.

Step 12

Use the Move Tool to move the selected points a little bit to the right to make the object slightly wider.

Step 13

Click on the Model Mode button on the left of the screen and move the shape to the center of the Joy-Con.

Step 14

In the perspective view, use the Move Tool and the Scale Tool to adjust the shape so that it appears slightly above the side surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 15

Create three more cylinder objects and move them into position using the Scale Tool and the Move Tool.

Step 16

Adjust the bottom cylinder using the Points Tool and the Selection Tool. Select the top half of cylinder and move the points up slightly.

Step 17

Return to Model Mode and adjust the shapes so that they resemble the image below.

Step 18

Use the perspective view to move the cylinder objects into position using the Move Tool. The cylinders should be placed within and just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

8. How to Duplicate Joy-Con

Step 1

Select all the objects related to the Joy-Con and group them (Alt-G). This will create a new ‘Null Group’.

Step 2

Select the Null group containing the Joy-Con and duplicate it (hold the CTRL button on the keyboard and use the Move Tool).

Step 3

Rotate the new Joy-Con object 180 degrees using the Rotation Tool.

Step 4

In the front view, use the reference image to move the new Joy-Con into position (above the red Joy-Con).

9. How to Create Buttons

Step 1

Select the Cylinder from the top menu.

Step 2

This will spawn a new cylinder object in the viewport. Use the Scale Tool to reduce the size of the cylinder so that it is the same size of the buttons shown in the reference image.

Step 3

Use the reference image to move the cylinder object into position. Then duplicate the cylinder object to create the other three buttons.

Step 4

Use the perspective view to move the buttons into position. The cylinders should be placed within and just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 5

Group the buttons together (Alt-G) and duplicate the new Null object. Use the front view and use the reference image to move the new buttons into a new position above the red Joy-Con.

Step 6

Duplicate one of the cylinder buttons and place it into the Home Button position for the red Joy-Con. Once all the buttons have been placed correctly, unhide the red Joy-Con.

10. How to Create Joystick

Step 1

Click on the small back arrow on the Cube button and select Cylinder from the list of options. This spawns a cylinder in the scene.

Step 2

Use the Scale Tool to reduce the size of the cylinder so that it matches the size of the joystick.

Step 3

Use the Move Tool to move the cylinder into position (use the background reference image in the front view to help with this).

Step 4

In the perspective view use the Scale Tool to reduce the thickness of the cylinder object (click and drag along the z-axis).

Step 5

Duplicate the cylinder object and use the Scale Tool to reduce the size. 

Step 6

Once you are happy with the reduced size of the cylinder, use the Scale Tool to increase the length of the cylinder in the z-axis.

Step 7

Move both cylinder objects into position above the surface of the Joy-Con. Once the joystick is in position, select the top cylinder and duplicate it.

Step 8

Move the new cylinder object into position just above the surface of the Joy-Con. This will act as the base of the joystick.

Step 9

Duplicate one of the cylinders again and use the Scale Tool to reduce its size. Place the smaller cylinder just above the top of the joystick.

Step 10

Use the Boolean Tool to create a cutaway using the two top cylinder objects. Ensure the smaller cylinder is placed below the larger cylinder when viewed in the object manager list view.

11. How to Create Extra Joy-Con Buttons

Step 1

In the top menu bar select the Cube to spawn a cube into the scene.

Step 2

Use the Scale Tool to adjust the cube to the same size as the Capture Button (use the reference image in the front view to help with this). 

Then use the Move Tool to move the cube into position.

Step 3

Curve the corners of the cube using the Bevel Tool. 

Step 4

Use the Move Tool to place the cube object just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 5

Create a new cube object and curve the corners using the Bevel Tool. Click and drag using the mouse to adjust the size of the curve so that it almost resembles a circle.

Step 6

Use the Selection Tool to select half of the object and move it to the left to create the ‘-button’.

Step 7

In the perspective view, use the Move Tool to move the ‘- button’ into position just above the surface of the Joy-Con.

Step 8

With all the buttons and the joystick in place, the Joy-Con should resemble the image shown below.

12. How to Duplicate Joystick

Step 1

Group the objects that make up the joystick by selecting them and pressing Alt-G on the keyboard. This will create a new ‘Null Object’.

Then duplicate the new ‘Null Object’ but holding the Ctrl button on the keyboard and click drag with the mouse using the Move Tool.

Step 2

Move the new joystick into position using the reference image in the front view.

13. How to Create + Button

Step 1

Duplicate the ‘- button’ and move it into position.

Step 2

Duplicate the button and use the Rotate Tool and the Move Tool to create a cross shape for the ‘+ button’.

Step 3

Unhide the screen object. With all the buttons and both joysticks in place, the Nintendo Switch should finally be taking shape. 

14. How to Create Bottom Screen Details

Step 1

Duplicate the objects on the side of the Joy-Con and rotate it in the z-axis by 90 degrees.

Step 2

Move the group of objects to the bottom of the screen just above the surface. Once the ‘Null Object’ is in position, duplicate the group.

Step 3

Select the new group and rotate it 180 degrees. 

Step 4

Group both objects together and position them in the centre of the screen.

15. How to Pose Nintendo Switch

Step 1

Select all the objects associated with each Joy-Con and create separate groups for them. One group for the left Joy-Con and one group for the right Joy-Con.

Use the Move Tool to move each Joy-Con away from the screen slightly as shown in the image below.

Step 2

Move the right Joy-Con up in the y-axis slightly to create an interesting composition. Try out different positions by using the move tool and moving the camera around. 

Coming Next…

In the second part of the the tutorial series, I’ll show you how to:

• Create Coloured Materials
• Colour in the Nintendo Switch Model
• Render the Nintendo Switch Model

Follow this tutorial step-by-step to create a 3D Smartwatch model that you can use in video games, graphic design and illustration projects whilst learning Cinema 4D quickly. 

Some of the skills you’ll learn in this tutorial include creating basic 3D modelling, importing reference images, adding lighting to the scene and basic rendering techniques.

In the first part of the two-part tutorial, I showed you how to:

• How to Import Reference Images
• How to Prepare for Modelling
• How to Model the Smartwatch

In this, the second part of the the tutorial series, I’ll show you how to:

• How to Create Coloured Materials
• How to Add Lighting to the Scene
• How to Render the Smartwatch

8. How to Create a New Material

Step 1

Located near the bottom of the screen there should be a material selection window. Click on Create > New Material to create a new material to use that you can edit. 

Materials are used to colour in the various objects and parts of the Smartwatch.

Step 2

Double click on the new material icon (displayed as a sphere). This brings up the Material Editor, where you adjust the various properties of the material such as the colour, transparency and reflectance. 

For this particular style you’ll only be interested in flat colour (Luminance).

Step 3

Tick the button for Luminance and untick the boxes for Colour and Reflectance. This will give us the cel shaded look for our final image of the Smartwatch.

Step 4

Colour the Smartwatch, starting with the body, by adding the material to the object. Simply drag and drop the material to the object using the mouse. Drag and drop the material onto the object listed on the right of the screen. 

This process is repeated for the other parts of the Smartwatch. The base colour of the Smartwatch is as follows:

• R: 201
• G: 197
• B: 198

Step 5

Apply this material colour to the Smartwatch buttons as well

9. How to Adjust the Material Properties

Step 1

In the Material Editor, click on the arrow button next to Texture and select Sketch and Toon > Cel from the menu.

Step 2

Click on the new Cel button that appears next to Texture to bring up a new menu.

Step 3

In the new menu, adjust the settings as follows:

1. Change the Diffuse to match the image at below. It should be grey scale with the colour getting light from left to right.
2. Untick Camera.
3. Tick Lights.
4. Tick Shadows 
5. Select Multiply from the drop down menu.

Step 4

Select a colour by double-clicking on the colour option box . 

The Material Editor gives you many different options for choosing and picking the colour. These include RGB, HSV etc. Choose whichever option you’re most familiar with as a flat colour. Because of the Multiply shading mode, the different colour shades also appears in the material.

If the material has already been applied to the model, the colour of the model is automatically adjusted to the new material colour. This is useful if you change your mind on a certain colour or a certain part of the Smartwatch model.

Step 5

Because you’ve already applied the material to the model, the colour of the Smartwatch is automatically adjusted to the new material colour.

10. How to Adjust the Shading

Step 1

To get a  better idea of the shading and how our render will turn out as you work on it, click and hold on the Render Button and select Interactive Render Region from the menu. 

Step 2

Use the mouse to adjust the window so that it fits around the Smartwatch model. Look for the very small arrow on the right hand side of the window and use the mouse to drag it to the top right corner of the box (this increases the resolution). 

Decrease the resolution by moving the arrow down if you find that the performance is decreasing.

Step 3

To change the way the light source is facing go to Options > Default Light.

Add a light object to the scene if you are more comfortable working that way. 

Step 4

Change the light source in the Default Light window. Click where you’d like the light source to come from on the sphere and it’ll sync with the view port. Experiment with different lighting positions to come up with a lighting situation that you like. 

This is adjusted at anytime so you can change the lighting again if you changed your mind.

11. Other Lighting Solutions

Step 1

To set up the basic lighting, go to the Floor button located in the top menu bar. Left Click-Hold and then select Physical Sky from the menu.

Step 2

Ensure that Physical Sky is selected in the menu on the right, a new menu appears on the bottom right of the screen. Select the Time and Location tab and choose a time using the left and right arrow keys. 

This changes the lighting of the scene (according to the time of the day). Choose a suitable time to light up the scene. You’ll see how the lighting affects the scene in the viewport.

Step 3

To add a light to the scene, select the Add Light button in the top menu bar at the top of the screen.

This will create a Light Object which you can move around the scene. Move the light object using the Move Tool to a suitable position.

Step 4

To customise the lighting further, experiment with the light object options in the bottom right of the screen. Here you can adjust the Intensity, Light Type and even Colour.

12. How to Colour the Smartwatch Screen

Step 1

To create a new material we can duplicate the material by holding CTRL on the keyboard and then using the mouse to click and drag the material to the side.

Step 2

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there change the colour to the following:

• R: 56
• G: 47
• B: 66

Step 3

Apply the new material to the screen by clicking and dragging it directly onto the object.

13. How to Colour the Smartwatch Wrist Strap

Step 1

Create a new material. Duplicate a previous material in order to keep the settings from before.

Double click on the new material to open up the Material Editor and select Luminance. From there change the colour to the following:

• R: 70
• G: 69
• B: 65

Step 2

Apply the new material to both of the wrist straps by either clicking on the material and dragging it to the objects via the viewport or via the object list window.

14. How to Render the Smartwatch

Step 1

On the top menu bar, click on the Render Settings button. This brings up the render settings window.

Step 2

In the Render Settings menu, change the options to what you need. First you will need to tick the Save Settings to select a file location, file format and alpha channel.

Select Alpha Channel if you wish to keep the background see through. This is useful if you wish to add a background to the image in Adobe Photoshop.

Step 3

In the Output Settings choose the resolution, height and width of the image. 

Step 4

To ensure that the Smartwatch render is nice and sharp, go to the Anti-Aliasing settings. Select Cubic (Still Image) which can be found under Filter. 

Step 5

To create the final image of the Smartwatch, click on the Render button. Remember to make sure that you’ve selected the right view in your viewport (front, right, left or perspective etc.) and that you’re happy with the camera angle. 

Choose a suitable angle in the viewport by navigating around the scene.

Step 6

For more control over how the final render looks, create a camera object to help. Find a suitable view using the viewport first and then click on the camera button. 

This creates a camera using the current view in the viewport. Check out the camera settings to see how they will affect the final render.

The End Result

Wait for the final render to finish. Once the render is complete, repeat the steps above and change the camera or the view port to create a new image from a different angle. 

Throughout the course of the project you’ve learnt how to:

• Import Reference Images
• Prepare for Modelling
• Model an Smartwatch
• Create Coloured Materials
• Add Lighting to the Scene
• Render the Smartwatch

Feel free to share your own creations below. You can also export your image into Adobe Photoshop to enhance it further or to use it as part of a larger image.