Topic awaiting preservation: Wireframe Head?

I have been trying to make a wireframe head like this forever and this is the best I could do..has to be that size...any pointers how to make one and make it prettier?

Use a 3D program or use a reference and draw it. Your not going to get what your after by using filters, so it's either a 3D program or hand drawn using a wacom or pencil and scanner.

I agree, but i'd say it's also dependant on just how much detail you're after...? Eyes? Nose? Ears? Hair?... 3D meshes of heads usually have these details... but if you're after something with minimal facial details, then i'd say it's totally possible in PS using Paths & stroking them. And as Dracusis mentioned, using a reference photo and tracing over it.



[This message has been edited by theGuest (edited 06-26-2003).]

I guess it's also possible using the displace filter ... I don't know how you'd go about bending it for a whole head, but for a face ... I just tried it and here's what I did and the result. I doubt it would shring to that small size though .. ther just arent enough gridlines .. for that - get a book on sketching and see how a face is constructed.

... choose a monochrome photo of a face ( http://www.trib-design.com/images/wire/face1.jpg )
... blur it, adjust the brightness & contrast 'till it's smooth, and the background is about 50% gray
... paint in the eyes and any other items which are sunken in, to make them darker (more sunken)
(... optional - you can also play around with inverting the red or green channel and see what different effects you get)
... save your alien AS A PSD file ( http://www.trib-design.com/images/wire/displacemask.jpg ) - that's your distort mask
... make a new pikkie the same size as the face (the size is important) and on a new layer fill it with a grid on a transparent b/g
... duplicate the grid layer and then switch off the duplicate layer
... select the grid layer and distort - displace - 30%/30%/stretch/wrap using the psd "alien" from above as the mask
... If you have spurious gridlines reflecting the original grid (I did) you can ctrl-click on the undistorted grid layer to make a select mask, and try deleteing from the distorted layer ... that cleaned them up for me ...

... finally ... a 5 min grid ... not brilliant, but quick, and with a lot of tweaking, and a decently shaded face to start with, I think you can do much better than this


sorry about only including links, but the page would have gotten out of hand I think.


Bug-free software only exisits in two places
A programmer's mind and a salesman's lips


[This message has been edited by trib (edited 06-26-2003).]

Aaah excellent thinking trib. Never thought to use the Displace filter.
Good explanation too.

yup yup, displace is your friend.

All I would say is do the face and displace much bigger than your final image, then size it down. I would also use a grid with fairly thick lines.

Thanks TheGuest ... it's always nice to be appreciated ...

I find these 5 minute mini-tuts quite fun to do, and if anyone wants to preserve this one, or any other of my quickie tips, they are free to post them as long as they carry a credit for the author (me - http://www.trib-design.com), and the board which originally hosted them).

more examples ...
Perspex (Asylum)
Moire Sigfile (Asylum)
Gears & Cogs (FxZone)


Bug-free software only exisits in two places
A programmer's mind and a salesman's lips

[This message has been edited by trib (edited 06-29-2003).]

Hey guys, I just signed up but I've been around the block a few times and might have an interesting solution.

The main problem is that it involves Illustrator...

Open Illustrator, create white representations of your basic object with a small black stroke around the edge.

Once you have your objects and have them layered, create a plain white mesh. The mesh is merely a tool in Illustrator, you can't export it directly.

Take a screenshot of your picture with the mesh selected. I always just use Snagit.

Piece together your screenshots to recreate your image in Photoshop. There may be some extra stuff other than the lines that needs removing.

Select all the blank area, inverse selection, expand by a few pixels and pour in the black.


Sorry about using Illustrator for this but it's original and should theoretically work. If you want a sample wireframe Illustrator 9 has a sweet one of a Japanese woman in the samples folder. I don't think there's a face in 10 tho...