Blender Basics · scottaferguson.org

Lesson 13: Organic shape with Subdivision

About 14 minutes · Blender 5.2.1 LTS · Mac Mini + Magic Mouse

Why this matters

Most natural forms are soft and rounded. Subdivision Surface, from Lesson 5, smooths a simple shape into a rounded one. A sphere is the easiest starting point. Small pushes and pulls then create the organic shape.

1. Sphere 2. Smooth 3. Dent top
What to look at: the sphere is smoothed, then one spot is pushed in to make the dent. Your apple will look different. That's fine.

Steps

  1. Tool Add a sphere with Shift + A, then Mesh > UV Sphere. menu name unverified in 5.2.1
  2. Menu Click the blue wrench tab. Click Add Modifier, then Generate > Subdivision Surface.
  3. Check The sphere looks smooth. Set Levels Viewport to 2, as in Lesson 5.
  4. Key Press Tab for Edit Mode, then 1 for vertex select. The dots are on the smoothed model's cage.
  5. Mouse Click one dot at the top of the sphere.
  6. Key Press G, Z, and move the dot down a little. Click to confirm. This pushes a dent into the top.
  7. Key Press O to turn on proportional editing (soft selection), then move the top dot again. Nearby dots follow more gently. O shortcut unverified on your Mac
  8. Key Press Tab to leave Edit Mode. Save as apple.blend with Cmd + S.
If the apple looks like a ball: the dent is too small. Press G, Z again on the top dot and move it further down.

Project: apple

A smooth apple with a dent on top. Save as apple.blend.

Finished: smooth apple, dent on top
Finished product: a smooth shape with a dent and a short stem. The stem is optional.
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