WANT TO GET STARTED AS A VTUBER? LOOK NO FURTHER! 🔥🔥
I want to share my knowledge and experience in commissioning multiple VTuber models over the years - ranging from very entry level cost to something I knew I wanted to invest into more heavily! I'm going to miss some things, no doubt, but I know this is uncharted territory for a lot of people!
I'll be listing helpful pieces of advice in point form underneath. These will be designed to give you an idea of what to expect from seeking out a commission for your very own Live2D/3D model and what you can do to prepare! The idea is to have the best experience for yourself as possible within your own control as it's very exciting to get your very own OC brought to life for you to use for content creation! If you can make it all the way through, PROPS TO YOU!
* PREPARE. Before you reach out to somebody that you want to do your Live2D art for you - make a google doc that you can share with them beforehand containing detailed information on description for character design! Do a "moodboard" of pictures you find with specific pieces of references that you can tell them you like the style of! The idea of this step isn't to give them a design to TAKE, it's to give them ideas of the direction you want to go towards! For instance - you're commissioning a male presenting model: steer them in the direction of the "energy" you want the character to have - mysterious, masucline, big juicy booby man with no brain? Remember that pictures are one thing, but you can also accompany text with them underneath so you can best get across what you want! I cannot stress how important this step is because if an artist is NOT comfortable doing the style you're looking for - they can tell you right away before they accept the commission fully and take payment! It saves so much time and hassle on both sides, and lets you come across a lot more professional! (and you will be)
* KNOW WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR. This is a hard one to simplify. What I mean by that is, first of all, purchase within your MEANS. Are you just starting out streaming, or have you not even started yet? Don't feel like you need to jump on and commission a $4000 model if you're not even sure you enjoy streaming yet! Through Twitter, Fiverr and other intermediaries in which you can commission people from, you can find SO many good artists doing PNGTubers, VRoid commissions (substantially cheaper) and lower layer count Live2D models for simplicity and cost sake!
* BE PATIENT. I can mean a few things by this! First of all - know that you don't need to buy EVERYTHING at once. If what you're aiming for is a specific level of quality and style and you've got an artist you REALLY want to commission, but their commissions are closed, send them a message to state your interest and how long it might be until they're opening commissions again! You don't want to let your eagerness take over and commission somebody else with whom you might not vibe with as much. Everyone has their own style, everyone has their own IDEAL style that they want for a model. In many ways our models represent us and if used for content creation and streaming, end up being a larger part of our online identity than you might think! When it comes to budget, also, if you need to responsibly SAVE to afford your dream commission/artist, create a budget plan! Don't take on debt to commission them right away, and don't feel like you need to drop your budget if it's something you can reasonably save up for over the course of 6 months! I streamed using a PNG asset for almost a year while I waited for my rebrand (current) model to be done. Personally, I'm so glad I waited and went with my initial gut feeling on who I wanted as my artist and rigger.
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* IT'S NOT JUST ART - THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE ART MATTER, AND JUST AS IMPORTANT, YOUR CHOICE OF RIGGER FOR YOUR MODEL IS HUGE! I can't stress this enough! You can have the most AMAZING art for your Live2D model, but there is a lot more to it then JUST the art at face value. I'll list what I mean RIGHT below.
Layer count and quality of cutting. Models are made in a series of layers, usually through photoshop. The more layers that a model has and the better it has been separated/cut, the more a rigger has to actually bring it to life. The layers are what will be worked with in Live2D Cubism - typically things like HAIR will have a lot of layers as hairstyles can be very intricate and need to be separated a lot to provide a "smooth and flowy" look when rigged.
Work with people that seem GENUINE. This one is kind of like.. how can I do that, right? You're telling me I need to find my ideal artist/rigger and THEN also make sure that they're somebody that is genuine and that I get along with? Well, not REALLY. But what I mean by this is rather than a single commission, this is something that typically has multiple revisions and can only get better with proper communication. Between my artist and my rigger - we had a group chat over 7-8 months in which both would send progress back and forth, along with feedback and edits needed to be made as we discovered and experimented with new things. I was SO LUCKY to be able to get this from both of them, it made the experience a lot more personal and fulfilling, and there were some AWESOME things that we were able to do because both people were willing to communicate with each other!
Remember that the rig is what brings the model to LIFE. If you get the most beautiful, amazing art and it costs you $2000 - and then you decide that your budget for the rigging portion is only $100-$150... while price doesn't dictate all, it is usually a reflection of experience and time required to finish the product. A simple, basic rig on a beautiful set of art WILL make it look stiff, lack features, expressiveness and most likely sully your expectations when you receive the finished product. 😵💫😵💫
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THE SECTION EVERY VTUBER NEEDS TO READ WHEN IT COMES TO PREPARING FOR USING YOUR MODEL!
🔥 DO NOT just get your model, throw it into VTubeStudio and GO! This is overlooked by SO MANY. [VIDEO BELOW TO EXPLAIN WHAT I MEAN!]
You need to adjust your parameters! So much! Please do this! Your models parameters are what dictate expressiveness and how your model reacts to your tracking software! Things like how mouth open reacts, how easy mouth smile will be triggered, all of your minimum and maximum input triggers mapped and set DIRECTLY for your face. Your rigger cannot pre-set up parameters for YOUR face, and unless your rigger is your identical twin, their fine tuning with the model will not translate to working the same on YOU.
Think about the area you want to stream in! Just because you buy a really expensive or good model doesn't mean that it will look how you expect unless you sit down for a TINY bit of time and plan out your stream area! Here are some things you should look into BEFORE you receive your finished piece!
🟢 Tracking hardware - iPhone tracking is still superior, anything from iPhone XR and up! I will say, from my own experience, if you have the OPTION.. don't just get an iPhone XR. Many people experience heating issues while using these to stream, so if you have the luxury of getting something a bit newer, I suggest it! If you want to use a webcam, by all means, go ahead! Even BETTER if you have an RTX enabled graphics card and can utilize the enhanced tracking algorithm they let you access!
🟢 Something to hold your phone/webcam in a way that allows it to have an unobstructed view of your face! Go on Amazon and search "iPhone stand" for $10-$20 options of little stands. This is what I use, I angle it between my two monitors on my desk (a little to the right of me) and it works perfectly.
🟢 LIGHTING. I use a cheap Neweer light that is VERY bright, I aim it at my wall behind my monitor and the light bounces off my wall to reflect on my face. You NEED good lighting, or a well lit environment, for your hardware to properly track VERY, VERY minute changes in your expressions. If you don't have adequate lighting and want to have reactionary parameters, you'll experience things such as model eye twitching and the sides of the mouth twitching rapidly!
🟢 Everything else that a regular content creator wants/needs to produce content they're happy with. This part is subjective - work within your own means. You don't NEED a $1000 audio setup if it's outside of your means. What you can do, however, is proper research into making your microphone sound good, setting up filters for things like noise gates, limiters, compressors.. the result here is based solely on the amount of effort you want to put in. Get your overlays one at a time - use premade ones for the time being! Get emotes for your channel as time goes on! Everything doesn't need to be at ONCE.
🟢 YOU'RE AN ACTOR! In a sense, yes. Your voice is your weapon - your level of expression that you can portray through a model using exaggerated movements will feel AWKWARD at first but they will make a DIFFERENCE. Never stop trying to find ways to improve!
🟢 In VTubeStudio you can set hotkeys to record the current position of your model. It looks so much better if you record different positions where you want your model to be on the screen in regards to actual location AND size, rather than clicking and dragging all the time live on stream. Utilize the tools within the programs!
🍁 WHERE ARE WE NOW?
It's hard to encompass the entire process and everything you need to know. What I WANT to accomplish, is open communication and knowledge of what to expect! Gatekeeping the process only hurts creators and people doing the commissions themselves. Be smart, be wise about your decisions, most importantly, HAVE FUN. This should be an awesome experience for you as you watch your ideas come to life together with talented individuals! IF YOU HAVE ANY DIRECT QUESTIONS - ASK ME UNDERNEATH. Reach out - DM me, join my Discord server, catch me on my streams and ask me questions live!! I seriously do not mind and I love helping out!!