Book Image

Learn Three.js - Fourth Edition

By : Jos Dirksen
5 (1)
Book Image

Learn Three.js - Fourth Edition

5 (1)
By: Jos Dirksen

Overview of this book

Three.js has become the industry standard for creating stunning 3D WebGL content. In this edition, you’ll learn about all the features of Three.js and understand how to integrate it with the newest physics engines. You'll also develop a strong grip on creating and animating immersive 3D scenes directly in your browser, reaping the full potential of WebGL and modern browsers. The book starts with the basic concepts and building blocks used in Three.js and helps you explore these essential topics in detail through extensive examples and code samples. You'll learn how to create realistic-looking 3D objects using textures and materials and how to load existing models from an external source. Next, you'll understand how to control the camera using the Three.js built-in camera controls, which will enable you to fly or walk around the 3D scene you've created. Later chapters will cover the use of HTML5 video and canvas elements as materials for your 3D objects to animate your models. You’ll learn how to use morph targets and skeleton-based animation, before understanding how to add physics, such as gravity and collision detection, to your scene. Finally, you’ll master combining Blender with Three.js and creating VR and AR scenes. By the end of this book, you'll be well-equipped to create 3D-animated graphics using Three.js.
Table of Contents (21 chapters)
1
Part 1: Getting Up and Running
5
Part 2: Working with the Three.js Core Components
7
Chapter 5: Learning to Work with Geometries
10
Part 3: Particle Clouds, Loading and Animating Models
14
Part 4: Post-Processing, Physics, and Sounds

Exporting a static scene from Blender and importing it into Three.js

Exporting models from Blender is just as easy as importing them. In the older version of Three.js, there was a specific Blender plugin you could use to export in a Three.js-specific JSON format. In later versions though, glTF in Three.js has become the standard for exchanging models with other tools. So, to get this working with Blender, all we have to do is this:

  1. Create a model in Blender.
  2. Export the model to a glTF file.
  3. Import the glTF file in Blender and add it to the scene.

Let’s create a simple model in Blender first. We’ll use the default model Blender uses, which can be added in Object Mode by selecting Add | Mesh | Monkey from the menu. Click on monkey to select it:

Figure 13.6 – Creating the model in Blender that you want to export

Figure 13.6 – Creating the model in Blender that you want to export

Once the model is selected, in the top menu, select File->Export->glTF 2.0:

Figure 13.7 – Selecting the glTF export ...