Day 6: Blender tutorial for making illustrations - Introduction to Layers and Organizing Elements

Objective: Create a simple mind map from scratch while learning to use layers in Blender to organize different components effectively.

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Step-by-Step Guide

1. Open Blender:

• Start a new Blender project by opening Blender and selecting "General" from the splash screen.

2. Set Up Your Scene:

• Delete the default cube by selecting it and pressing X to delete it.

3. Create Basic Nodes:

• Add a Circle:
• Press Shift + A to open the Add menu.
• Select Mesh > Circle. This will be your first node.
• Resize the Circle:
• Press S to scale it down slightly, if needed.
• Duplicate for More Nodes:
• With the circle selected, press Shift + D to duplicate it. Move the duplicate to a new position.
• Repeat this to create a few more circles to represent your mind map nodes.

4. Add Text Labels:

• Create Text:
• Press Shift + A and select Text.
• Edit Text:
• With the text object selected, go to the Properties Panel (press N if it’s not visible).
• Under the Text tab, change the text to label your nodes (e.g., “Main Idea,” “Subtopic 1,” etc.).
• Position the Text:
• Move the text close to its corresponding node using the G key (grab) to position it.

5. Create a Collection for Organization:

• Go to the Outliner (top right panel).
• Right-click and select New Collection. Name it “Mind Map.”
• Drag and drop all your circles and text objects into this new collection.

6. Create Connecting Lines:

• Add a Line:
• Press Shift + A and select Mesh > Cylinder.
• Resize and Position:
• Scale the cylinder down along the Z-axis (S, then Z).
• Move it to connect two nodes.
• Duplicate Lines:
• Duplicate the line for other connections between nodes as needed.

7. Organize Lines into a Collection:

• In the Outliner, create another collection named “Lines.”
• Move all your connecting lines into this collection.

8. Color the Elements:

• Select a node or line, go to the Material Properties (the sphere icon in the Properties Panel).
• Click New to create a new material, and adjust the base color to your preference.
• Repeat this for each node and line for better visual distinction.

9. Use Layers to Manage Visibility:

• Press M while an object is selected to move it to a different layer.
• Organize your elements by moving some nodes to one layer and others to a different layer.

10. Save Your Work:

• Go to File > Save As and save your project with an appropriate name (e.g., “Mind_Map_Scratch.blend”).

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Outcome

By the end of this session, you should have a basic mind map structure organized into layers and collections. This setup will allow you to easily edit, animate, or enhance your visuals in future sessions.

Source:
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