Interface Overview - Blender 2.80 Fundamentals

Summary

This video script offers an insightful guide to navigating Blender's user interface (UI), emphasizing its flexibility and rich feature set. It highlights the informative display at the UI's bottom, which dynamically updates to reflect the function of mouse clicks and hotkey combinations. The script introduces various mouse icons and their functions, explains the customizable and scalable nature of UI panels, and demonstrates how to manipulate them. It also covers maximizing panels, default workspaces, and accessing different editors. The primary focus is on the layout workspace, detailing the viewport for 3D scene interaction, quick menus for tools and settings, the 3D cursor's utility, pie menus for efficient tool selection, and the timeline for animation control. The Properties Editor is explored, including tabs for tool options, scene properties, render settings, output configurations, view layers, and the world environment. The script concludes with an overview of object-specific properties, such as the Object tab for basic attributes and the Modifiers tab for object manipulation. It also touches on particle systems, physics simulations, constraints, mesh data, materials, and textures, providing a comprehensive foundation for beginners to intermediate users looking to master Blender.

Takeaways

• 📊 **Informative Display**: Blender's UI has a display at the bottom that shows what each click does based on the current context of the cursor.
• ⏩ **Hotkey Interactions**: Holding down certain hotkeys like Shift changes the function of mouse clicks, as indicated by the display.
• 🖱️ **Mouse Icons and Functions**: Different mouse actions have specific meanings in Blender, such as rotating the view with the middle mouse button.
• 📂 **Customizable Panels**: UI panels can be scaled, reorganized, split, or joined according to user preference for workflow efficiency.
• 🔄 **Maximizing Panels**: Use Ctrl-Space to maximize a panel for focused work and press it again to return to the previous layout.
• 🚀 **Default Workspaces**: Blender offers predefined workspaces tailored for different tasks, accessible via tabs and hotkeys.
• 🖥️ **Viewport Navigation**: The 3D scene is displayed in the viewport where users can interact with objects and use quick menus for tools.
• 🔴 **3D Cursor Utility**: The 3D cursor is a powerful tool for object spawning and pivoting, which can be placed and recentered with specific hotkeys.
• 🍽️ **Pie Menus**: Pie menus are context-sensitive circular menus that allow for quick tool selection and are navigated using mouse movements and hotkeys.
• ⏳ **Timeline Control**: The timeline is used for animation playback, with features for zooming, dragging, setting frames, and keyframe manipulation.
• 🎨 **Properties Editor**: This editor contains tabs for tool options, scene properties, render settings, and output configurations.
• 🏢 **Scene Management**: Users can manage multiple scenes within a single Blender file, each with its own properties and settings.
• 🌐 **World and Material Settings**: The World tab contains settings for the environment, while materials are adjusted in the Material tab to control object appearance.
• 🛠️ **Modifiers and Constraints**: The Modifiers tab allows for object manipulation, and the Constraints tab defines relationships between objects.
• 🔬 **Mesh Data**: The shape of an object is determined by its mesh data, which can be altered to change its form without affecting object properties.
• 📏 **Texture Tab**: Textures are separate entities that can be applied to various aspects like materials, and are found in a dedicated section of the UI.

Q & A

What is the purpose of the display at the bottom of the Blender interface?

The display at the bottom of the Blender interface provides information about what each click can do based on the current context of the cursor's position. It also changes when certain hotkeys are held down to reflect the altered function of clicks.

How can you change the function of the middle mouse button in Blender?

You can change the function of the middle mouse button by holding down the Shift key. Without Shift, it rotates the perspective, but with Shift, it pans the perspective.

What is the significance of the panels in Blender's UI?

The panels in Blender's UI are sections that are separated for different functionalities. They are scalable and customizable, allowing users to select different types of editors from a dropdown menu or create more panels by splitting the area.

How do you maximize a panel in Blender to focus on it?

To maximize a panel, you can mouse over the area and press the Ctrl-Space key combination. Pressing Ctrl-Space again will return the panel to its previous state.

What are the default workspaces in Blender?

Default workspaces in Blender are pre-configured setups for specific workflows that include appropriate editors. These can be accessed through tabs located above the 3D viewport.

How can you access the quick tools menu in the viewport?

You can access the quick tools menu in the viewport by pressing the 'T' key or by left-clicking the arrow in the viewport's header. This menu includes tools like Select Box, Move, Rotate, and Scale.

What is the 3D cursor in Blender and what is its primary function?

The 3D cursor in Blender is a red-and-white circle that serves as the default spawning point for new objects and can be used as a reference for pivoting. It can be placed anywhere in the scene by holding Shift and right-clicking.

How do pie menus in Blender work?

Pie menus are quick wheel menus that appear after pressing a hotkey. You can navigate them by right-clicking to cancel, holding and dragging the cursor to the desired choice, or releasing the hotkey and then clicking on the option with the cursor.

What is the role of the Timeline in Blender?

The Timeline in Blender controls the playback of animations. It allows users to zoom in and out, drag the timeline, set start and end frames for output, and create and manipulate keyframes.

How can you access the properties of the current tool or selected object in Blender?

You can access the properties of the current tool or selected object in Blender through the Properties Editor, which contains several tabs that display relevant settings and options.

What is the Modifiers tab in Blender used for?

The Modifiers tab in Blender is used for powerful manipulation of objects using predefined modifiers. Users can add, reorder, and apply modifiers to alter the shape and appearance of objects.

How do you select a different view layer in Blender to change its properties?

To select a different view layer in Blender, you go to the top of the screen where you can create and select existing view layers. The View Layer tab allows you to change properties specific to the currently active view layer.

Outlines

00:00

📐 Understanding Blender's Interface and Basic Navigation

This paragraph introduces the user to Blender's interface, emphasizing its flexibility and the informative display at the bottom of the UI that changes contextually with mouse actions and hotkeys. It explains the scalability and customization of panels, the use of Ctrl-Space for maximizing panels, and the availability of default workspaces. The primary focus is on the layout workspace and its editors, with a mention of future videos covering other workspaces. The viewport is described as the main area for 3D scene interaction, with quick menus for tools and settings, and the 3D cursor's role as a powerful tool for object spawning and pivoting. Pie menus are introduced as quick selection tools, and the Timeline is briefly mentioned for animation control.

05:04

🎨 Exploring the Properties and Tools in Blender

The second paragraph delves into the various tabs and properties within the Properties Editor. It discusses the tool-specific options, scene properties including render settings, output configurations, and view layers. The Outliner is introduced for specifying rendered object collections. The General Scene tab contains broader scene settings, and the World tab includes environmental properties. The Object tab details the object's transformation and relations, while the Modifiers tab allows for complex object manipulations. The Particles and Physics tabs are for creating particle systems and physics simulations, respectively. Constraints are for defining object relationships, and the Mesh Data tab is for geometry-specific settings. The Material tab is highlighted for controlling object shading during rendering.

10:05

🖼️ Additional Properties and Workspace Summary

The third paragraph focuses on the Texture tab, which is not object-specific and can be used for various elements including the World, materials, and brushes. The Lamp and Camera objects are selected to demonstrate their respective property tabs, allowing adjustments to light properties and camera settings. The paragraph concludes with a summary of the default layout workspace in Blender, promising more detailed explorations of other workspaces and editors in future videos.

Keywords

💡User Interface (UI)

The user interface (UI) in the context of the video refers to the visual layout and interactive elements of Blender's software that allow users to navigate and manipulate the 3D modeling environment. It is crucial for understanding how to work with Blender as it includes panels, menus, and tools that enable users to perform various tasks. The UI is designed to be flexible and informative, adapting to the user's workflow and providing real-time feedback on actions and hotkeys.

💡Hotkeys

Hotkeys are keyboard shortcuts that allow users to perform actions more quickly in Blender. They are an essential part of the workflow for power users, enabling efficient navigation and manipulation of the 3D scene. In the video, hotkeys are mentioned in conjunction with the display at the bottom of the UI, which changes based on the hotkeys being held down, such as holding Shift to alter the function of the middle mouse button.

💡Viewport

The viewport in Blender is the primary workspace where the 3D scene is displayed. It is where users interact with their models and objects, performing tasks such as rotating, scaling, and moving items. The viewport also includes quick menus and tools that can be accessed by pressing specific keys, like 'T' for tools or 'N' for additional settings, which are vital for efficient 3D scene manipulation.

💡Modifiers

Modifiers in Blender are tools that allow users to alter or deform objects using predefined algorithms. They are represented by a wrench icon and are a powerful feature for creating complex geometry without manually editing each vertex or edge. Modifiers such as Subdivision Surface and Bevel are mentioned in the video, demonstrating how they can be stacked and reordered to achieve the desired object manipulation.

💡Pie Menus

Pie menus in Blender are circular, context-sensitive menus that appear around the cursor when a specific hotkey is pressed. They provide quick access to a variety of tools and options, allowing users to select functions without having to navigate through layers of menus. The video explains three ways to navigate a pie menu, emphasizing their role in speeding up the workflow and providing access to multiple options with fewer keystrokes.

💡Timeline

The timeline in Blender is a tool used for controlling the playback of animations. It allows users to zoom in and out, scrub through the animation, set start and end frames, and manipulate keyframes. The timeline is essential for animation work, as it provides a visual representation of the sequence of frames and the timing of various actions within the 3D scene.

💡Properties Editor

The Properties Editor is a section of Blender's UI that contains various tabs for editing the properties of the current tool, selected object, and the scene itself. It is where users can adjust settings such as object transformations, render engine configurations, and output settings. The video highlights the importance of the Properties Editor for detailed scene and object management.

💡3D Cursor

The 3D cursor in Blender is a versatile tool represented by a red-and-white circle. It serves as a reference point for object positioning and rotation, acting as the default spawning point for new objects. The video mentions how the 3D cursor can be placed and recentered, emphasizing its utility in scene organization and as a pivot point for transformations.

💡Workspaces

Workspaces in Blender are predefined UI configurations that set up the appropriate editors for specific tasks or workflows. They can be accessed via tabs at the top of the UI and can be switched using hotkeys like Ctrl-PageUp or Ctrl-PageDown. The video focuses on the layout workspace but mentions that other workspaces will be covered in future videos, highlighting the adaptability of Blender to different user needs.

💡Collections

Collections in Blender are organizational tools that allow users to group related objects together. They are used for managing complex scenes and can be rendered out in specific view layers. The video discusses how collections can be checked or unchecked in the Outliner to control which objects appear in each view layer, which is crucial for scene management and rendering.

💡Materials and Textures

Materials and textures in Blender are used to define the appearance of objects in a scene. Materials determine how objects are shaded during rendering, affecting properties like shininess, color, and roughness. Textures, on the other hand, are separate entities that can be applied to materials, the World, or brushes. The video distinguishes between the two, noting that textures are not object-specific and can be used across different elements in a scene.

Highlights

Blender provides a lot of information with its interface and can be flexible enough to fit the workflow you need.

The bottom of the UI has an informative display that shows what each click can do in the current context.

Hotkeys can change the function of certain clicks - for example, holding Shift while using the middle mouse button pans the perspective.

Mouse icons have specific meanings - quick reference provided.

UI panels are scalable and customizable - can select different types of editors from the dropdown menu.

Can create more panels by right-clicking a boundary and splitting the area.

To delete a panel, right-click a boundary, join the area, and overwrite the panel.

Ctrl-Space maximizes a panel for focus and can be undone with Ctrl-Space again.

Blender provides default workspaces that set up appropriate editors for specific workflows.

Viewport is where the 3D scene is displayed - can perform various tasks to interact with the scene and objects.

Quick menus in the viewport provide tools like Select Box, Move, Rotate and Scale.

Pie menus are quick wheel menus that appear around the cursor after pressing a hotkey.

Timeline controls animation playback - can zoom, drag, change start/end frames, create/manipulate keyframes.

Properties Editor displays properties of the scene, current tool, and selected object.

Render tab allows changing render engines, sampling, engine-specific properties.

Output tab contains all output settings that can be tweaked before rendering.

View Layer tab is used to separate background and character passes for easy compositing.

Outliner specifies which collections of objects are rendered out in each view layer.

World tab includes properties for the sky and air of the scene like surface shader and volumetric lighting.

Object tab contains basic info like location, rotation, scale and allows specifying parent-child relationships.

Modifiers tab allows powerful manipulation of objects using predefined modifiers.

Particles tab enables creating particle systems and adding them to the selected object.

Physics tab contains various physics simulations and manipulators like cloth, rigid body, smoke, fluid, collision, force fields.

Constraints tab deals with relationships between selected objects and other objects/values.

Mesh Data determines the shape of the object - can manipulate vertex groups, shape keys, UV maps here.

Material tab controls how the object is shaded during rendering - affects shininess, color, roughness.

Texture tab is for applying textures to the World, materials, brushes etc. as textures are separate entities.

Lamp Properties allows tweaking brightness, light radius, shadow casting, lamp type.

Camera options include focal length, perspective type and more.

Transcripts

Blender provides a lot of information with its interface and can be flexible enough to fit the workflow you need.

Let's go over some of the basics on how to interpret and interact with Blender's UI.

Before we begin, I want to point out that there is a very handy display at the very bottom of the user interface.

This is an informative display that lets you know what each click can do in the context your cursor is at the moment.

It also applies to when certain hotkeys are being held down to change the function of certain clicks.

For example, if you hold Shift, you can see the information at the bottom changing.

It tells us that without holding Shift, your middle mouse button rotates your perspective,

but holding Shift pans your perspective.

Feel free to refer to this display at any time while watching this series

or playing around with Blender to learn more of its features.

As a quick reference, here are what some of the mouse icons translate to.

Now, the next big thing you'll notice is that each important section of the UI is separated into panels.

These panels are scalable if you click and drag any of the boundaries, and they can also be whatever you'd like them to be.

Simply click the drop down menu in the top-left or bottom-left of a panel and select a different type of editor.

You can also create more panels by right-clicking a boundary,

clicking split area, and then left clicking at a position of the screen you desire.

To delete a panel, simply right-click a boundary, click Join Area and left-click over the panel you'd like to overwrite.

Additionally, if you would ever like to maximize a panel to focus on it, simply mouse over an area and press Ctrl-Space

You can also press Ctrl-Space again to return.

While this is extremely powerful, Blender also provides default workspaces

you can choose from that set up the appropriate editors for specific workflows.

You can find these workspace options in the tabs above.

For hotkey users, you can press Ctrl-PageUp or Ctrl-PageDown

We will be going over each of these workspaces in future videos.

However, for this video, we will focus on the primary editors of the layout workspace.

Further introduction of other editors will be given in editor-specific videos.

So, let's begin. If you saw our Viewport Navigation video, then you already know what the viewport is.

This is where our 3D scene is displayed.

In this editor, you can perform a variety of tasks that interact with your 3D scene and its objects.

However, it's important to note that there are two helpful quick menus in the viewport.

Simply press T (as in "tools") or left-click this arrow here to expand the quick tools menu for the viewport.

This includes tools such as the Select Box, Move, Rotate and Scale.

For hotkey users, keep in mind you can also use Shift-Space at any time to bring up the same Tools menu

but labeled, and at your cursor location.

This works similarly to a pie menu in that you have the option to hold the Shift-Space hotkey,

move your cursor to the tool you want and release the hotkey to select a tool.

You can also press N (as in "number") or left-click the arrow on the right to open additional quick settings, which include

your item's transformation data, tool specific settings and other viewport options.

You'll notice here there is an option for the 3D cursor, and this is a very powerful tool

which you can see right here.

This red-and-white circle acts as the spawning point for any new objects and can be used as a reference for pivoting,

which we'll go over in another video.

To place it around your scene simply hold Shift and right-click

To recenter the cursor simply press Shift-S and select Cursor to World Origin from the pie menu or

adjust the location and rotation settings in the right-hand side quick menu.

Now, this feels like a good time to explain what pie menus are for those who are unfamiliar.

Pie menus are quick wheel menus that appear around your cursor after a hotkey is pressed.

You have three options when navigating a pie menu.

The first option is to right-click to cancel in case you changed your mind.

The second option is to press and hold the hotkey to initiate the pie menu,

drag your cursor to your desired choice,

then let go of the hotkey to select, with no clicking necessary.

Or, the third option is to let go of the hotkey that initiated the pie menu before moving your cursor.

Then use your cursor to left-click select the option you like.

After you get used to where each option is,

this can greatly speed up your workflow while also making several options available with less keystrokes.

Throughout the series, you will see pie menus quite often for various different contexts.

Now, below the viewport we have the Timeline. This controls playback of your animation.

You can zoom in and out with your scroll wheel, drag the timeline with your middle mouse button,

change the start and end frames for your output, and create and manipulate keyframes. All of which we'll go over in another video.

The Properties Editor contains several tabs vertically to display the properties of your scene,

your current tool, and whatever object you have selected.

To start at the top,

this first tab represents the options your currently selected tool in the viewport may have.

In this case, the Select Box tool gives you a few different selection options. The next few tabs

which you can see are separated by a small gap, contain your scene specific properties.

Just to clarify, your scene refers to your entire 3D scene.

However, you can create more than one scene in a single Blender file by clicking up here.

You can also select a scene from existing scenes using this drop-down.

This back-facing camera icon is your Render tab.

This allows you to change render engines, sampling, engine specific properties

and other properties that affect your final image and how it's interpreted from the 3D scene.

The next icon looks like a printer, and this is your Output tab.

This is where all of your output settings can be tweaked before render. Resolution, frame rate, file path, file type, and much more.

The icon that looks like a stack of photos is the View Layer tab and is similar to what used to be called Render Layers.

View layers are typically used to separate background and character passes. For example, for easy compositing after render.

However,

you'll notice this is only the Pass properties, not the Objects, and is for only one view layer, the one we're currently in.

To select a different view layer to change its properties, you'll need to go up here, similar to creating a new scene.

You can create and select existing view layers here.

While we're on the topic,

I'd like to point out what this panel above properties is for.

In order to specify which collections of objects are rendered out in each view layer,

you can check and uncheck collections here in what's called the Outliner.

I highly recommend using descriptive names for your collections and view layers by double-clicking them, but we will go over this in another video.

Next, we have the General Scene tab.

This has other miscellaneous scene properties that affect your scene, such as your active camera, your units, and rigid body settings.

Finally, the globe icon is the final tab of this section and is called the World tab.

This includes properties for the sky and air of your scene. In other words,

the surface option for your world is the shader used for your sky or background color,

while Volume allows for volumetric lighting throughout the atmosphere of your scene as a whole, such as fog or mist.

For the next section, the property tabs will be specific to the active object you have selected.

So in this case, I will select the cube.

Our first tab is the Object tab.

This contains basic information such as Location, Rotation, and Scale of the object.

You can also specify parent-child relationships, which collections it belongs to, and visibility of the object.

The next tab is a very important tab for Blender.

Represented by a wrench icon, the Modifiers tab allows for powerful manipulation of objects using predefined modifiers.

Simply select a modifier from the drop-down menu to add it to the stack below.

You can use as many modifiers as you like,

and change the order or application of these modifications using these arrows.

For example, the Subdivision Surface modifier and the Bevel modifier.

This next tab is the Particles tab.

You can see the icon looks like an object shooting particles out from its main body.

In here, you can create particle systems and add them to the object you have selected.

Next is the Physics tab which looks like an orbiting planet icon.

This contains several different types of physics simulations and physics manipulators including cloth,

rigid body, smoke, fluid, collision, and force fields, such as wind.

The next icon looks like two objects wrapped together.

This represents the Constraints tab. This tab is very similar to the Modifiers tab

but deals more so with relationships of the objects you have selected with other objects or values, rather than

manipulating the object by itself. You can have an object copy the location of another object with the Copy Location constraint,

stay above the ground with the Floor constraint, or point at another object with the Tracking constraints.

The green triangle icon is for your Object's Mesh Data.

To explain what mesh data is, I can tell you that the reason why our cube is a cube is

because of the mesh data.

If I were to take this exact same object and change the mesh data, its shape would not be the same

but its object properties, such as its location, would remain the same.

Here, you can manipulate your Vertex Groups, also known as Weight Maps,

your Shape Keys, also known as Blend Shapes,

and your UV maps. Other geometry-specific settings belong here as well.

And finally, we have our Material tab. This is represented by a material sphere icon,

and is where you control much of how your object is shaded during render.

The material you choose here will affect how shiny your object is, what color it is, and how rough it may appear to be.

The final tab is actually in a different section, as you can see.

There's a small gap there.

This is the Texture tab, represented with a checkered canvas icon, and is not object specific.

Textures exist as separate entities that can be referenced for a number of things including the World (AKA skybox),

materials or brushes. Because of this ubiquity, they are in a separate section.

Before we move on, let's go ahead and left-click to select our Lamp object.

This is the dotted circular thing you see next to our cube.

Once you have that selected, you'll have access to its Lamp Properties, which looks like a light bulb.

This is where you can tweak its brightness, the radius of lights, whether or not it casts shadows,

and what type of lamp it is.

We can also left-click to select our camera object,

which is this sideways rectangular pyramid shape we have here.

Now you should have access to the Camera options

which include focal length, perspective type, and much more.

And that's the summary for the default layout workspace we see when we open Blender.

I hope this is helpful for you and I'll be going into more detail about the other workspaces

and what each editor does in separate videos.