Learning Blender: A Hands-On Guide to Creating 3D Animated Characters

Adding a Subdivision Surface Modifier to Your Scene

The Subdivision Surface modifier is one of the most common modifiers used in models because it allows you to increase the details and smoothness of a low-resolution model interactively. You can change the number of subdivisions at any time to display a smoother surface. The modifier basically divides each polygon and smooths the result. As a rule of thumb, when you apply this modifier, the number of faces in your model is multiplied by 4 for each subdivision you apply; therefore, be mindful of the polygon count when setting high subdivision values. You can use this modifier to smooth out your monkey-head object, as shown in Figure 3.7.

Figure 3.7 Before and after applying a Subdivision Surface ...