Curly Hair Rendering in Blender presents unique challenges due to the complex nature of curls, their light interaction, and movement patterns. The Morphic Studio shares information about the process of creating stunning Curly hair rendering using particle systems and converting them to mesh hair with the powerful 3D Hair Brush plugin. Whether you’re creating characters for animation, games, or high-resolution still renders, these techniques will improve your hair creation workflow.

Follow the Fundamentals of Hair in Blender

Before diving into the specific techniques for curly hair, it’s important to understand how Blender handles hair creation. At its core, Blender offers two primary approaches:

1. Particle-based hair – Quick to generate but can be performance-heavy and limited in styling options
2. Mesh-based hair – More control and better performance when rendering, but traditionally more time-consuming to create

The approach defined in this article combines the strengths of both methods, starting with the intuitive particle system and then converting to optimized mesh hair using specialized tools.

Setting Up Your Foundation: The Scalp Mesh

The basic to realistic hair starts with a properly prepared scalp mesh. For optimal results:

Creating an Effective Scalp Mesh

1. Ensure your character model has sufficient topology density in the scalp expanse
2. Create clean UV maps of the scalp region for texture placement
3. Set up a separate vertex group specifically for hair generation

Vertex Group Preparation

Creating a dedicated vertex group allows precise control over where hair grows:

1. In Edit Mode, select the vertices where you want hair to grow
2. Create a new vertex group (e.g., “Hair_Scalp”)
3. Assign the selected vertices to this group with full mass (1.0)
4. For graduated hair density, paint varying masss using Mass Paint mode

Creating Base Curly Hair with Particle Systems

Particle systems provide the fastest way to establish your initial hair structure.

Setting Up the Particle System

1. Select your character mesh
2. Negotiate to the Particle Properties panel
3. Click “+” to add a new particle system
4. Change the Type from “Emitter” to “Hair”
5. In the Vertex Groups section, select your “Hair_Scalp” group for density
6. Adjust the number of particles based on your desired hair density

Basic Hair Configuration

For a foundation that will work well for curly hair:

1. Set an appropriate hair length (usually between 0.1 and 0.5 Blender units)
2. Increase “Random” to around 0.05-0.15 for natural variation
3. Set “Children” to “Interpolated” for added density without performance impact
4. For curly hair, increase the “Segments” value to 10-15 for smoother curves

Creating the Curl Pattern

The “Kink” settings are crucial for defining your curl pattern:

1. In the Children > Kink section, set type to “Curl” for basic curls
2. Adjust the “Amplitude” (0.1-0.5) to control curl tightness
3. Modify “Clump” (0.4-0.8) to bundle hairs together naturally
4. Fine-tune “Shape” (0.7-1.0) to control curl distribution along strands

Styling with Particle Edit Mode

While the Kink settings create a general curl pattern, Particle Edit Mode allows for precise styling:

1. With your mesh selected, enter Particle Edit Mode
2. Use the “Comb” brush to shape hair direction and flow
3. Apply the “Puff” brush to add volume at the roots
4. Use “Length” brush to vary strand lengths for a natural look
5. The “Cut” brush helps create layered hairstyles

Advanced Styling Tips

For more defined curls:

• Work in sections, styling one expanse at a time
• Use smaller brush sizes for detailed work
• Alternate between “Comb” and “Smooth” brushes for natural transitions
• Create a reference board of curl patterns to guide your styling

Enhancing with Children Particles

Children particles add complexity and volume to your hairstyle:

1. Increase “Children” count to 10-20 for medium density (higher for very thick hair)
2. Set “Clump” to 0.6-0.8 for natural curl grouping
3. Add “Roughness” (0.02-0.05) for realistic imperfection
4. Enable “Hair Energetics” for animation projects

Converting to Mesh Hair with 3D Hair Brush

While particle hair looks good in certain circumstances, converting to mesh hair offers numerous advantages:

• Better control over styling
• Improved rendering performance
• More realistic light interaction
• Better compatibility with game engines

Installing the 3D Hair Brush Plugin

1. Download the 3D Hair Brush plugin from VFX Grace
2. In Blender, go to Edit > Preferences > Add-ons
3. Click “Install” and locate the downloaded ZIP file
4. Enable the add-on by checking its box

Converting Particle Hair to Hair Cards

1. Select your character mesh with the particle system
2. Open the N-panel in the 3D viewport
3. Negotiate to the “Hair Cards” tab
4. Choose “Convert Hair to Cards”
5. In the dialog box:
   • Select “Active” to convert only the current particle system
   • Enable “Convert Materials to Textures” if using Blender’s default hair materials
   • Set an appropriate subdivision magnitude (3-4 for curly hair)
   • Adjust thickness based on hair type (0.002-0.005 for human hair)

Refining Mesh Hair

After conversion, you can further refine your mesh hair:

Using 3D Hair Brush Tools

1. Select the newly created hair mesh
2. Use the 3D Hair Brush grooming tools to:
   • Adjust curl tightness and direction
   • Add flyaways for realism
   • Create volume variation
   • Define curl clumps

Material Refinement

1. Examine the converted materials and textures
2. Adjust specular and roughness maps for proper light interaction
3. Add subtle color variation using vertex colors or texture maps
4. For curly hair, consider increasing anisotropic properties to enhance strand definition

Layering for Complex Hairstyles

For more intricate curly hairstyles:

1. Create multiple particle systems for different sections of hair
2. Style each section independently in Particle Edit Mode
3. Convert each particle system separately
4. Combine the resulting meshes for a complete hairstyle

Tips for Realistic Curly Hair Rendering

Material Settings for Realistic Curly Hair Rendering

Base Material Properties

Parameter	Suggested Value	Effect on Curly Hair
Base Color	Vary from scalp to tip (darker at root)	Creates depth and dimension
Subsurface Scattering	0.15 – 0.25	Simulates light penetration through hair strands
Subsurface Radius	(0.5, 0.5, 0.5)	Controls depth of light penetration
Specular	0.4 – 0.6	Higher values for oilier hair, lower for dry curls
Roughness	0.3 – 0.7	Controls tightness of specular says (higher for coarse curls)
Anisotropic	0.8 – 1.0	Critical for proper light reflection along curved strands
Anisotropic Rotation	0.0 – 0.5	Adjusts says direction based on curl pattern
Normal Strength	0.8 – 1.0	Enhances surface detail for individual strands

Advanced Settings for Specific Curl Types

Curl Type	Suggested Adjustments
Tight Coils	Higher roughness (0.6-0.8), increased subsurface, reduced specular
Loose Waves	Lower roughness (0.3-0.5), moderate subsurface, higher specular
Kinky Curls	Highest roughness (0.7-0.9), maximum anisotropic value, decreased specular
Mixed Pattern	Vary parameters using vertex color maps to control distribution

Color Variation Techniques

Technique	Implementation	Effect
Root-to-Tip Gradient	Use color ramp texture mapped to strand length	Natural color variation along strand
Strand Variation	Noise texture with medium scale	Subtle color differences between strands
Says Integration	Second UV map with targeted bright spots	Creates natural-looking says
Environmental Tint	Use ambient occlusion as mix factor	Darker colors in occluded expanses

Lighting Considerations

1. Use expanse lights rather than point lights to create soft illumination
2. Add a subtle rim light to define the hair silhouette
3. Consider HDRI environments for natural light interaction
4. For studio renders, use a three-point lighting setup with a hair light

Optimizing for Performance

1. Consider LOD (Magnitude of Detail) variants for interactive applications
2. Use texture baking to capture complex strand details
3. For dense hair, combine card-based and strand-based approaches
4. Consider using opacity maps for hair edges rather than high geometry counts

Animating Curly Hair

For projects requiring hair animation:

1. Add a Cloth modifier to the converted hair mesh
2. Configure Pin Groups to control which parts move freely
3. Adjust stiffness settings to match the bounce of curly hair
4. Use vertex groups to vary stiffness throughout the hairstyle

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Hair Appears Too Sparse After Conversion

• Increase the number of particle hairs before conversion
• Adjust the width of hair cards in the conversion settings
• Consider adding multiple layers of converted hair

Unrealistic Light Interaction

• Review material settings, particularly the anisotropic properties
• Ensure normal maps are correctly oriented along strand direction
• Add subtle roughness variation for more realistic specular says

Performance Issues with Dense Hair

• Optimize particle counts and children multipliers
• Consider converting only visible hair sections to mesh
• Use hair cards for background characters and strand-based approach for hero characters

Finally

Creating Curly Hair Rendering in Blender involves following both the artistic and technical aspects of hair rendering. By starting with particle systems and converting to mesh hair using the 3D Hair Brush plugin, you can achieve beautiful results while maintaining creative control throughout the process.

Think of that realistic curly hair often involves:

• Creating variation in curl tightness and direction
• Paying close attention to light interaction with the complex curl structure
• Adding subtle imperfections for natural results
• Building up the hairstyle in layers

With practice and attention to detail, you’ll be able to create stunning curly hairstyles that enhance your character designs and bring them to life. The techniques presented in this guide serve as a foundation that you can build upon and adapt to your specific artistic needs and project requirements.

For More Details Visit The Morphic Studio