On balance, I think it's better to go with the latest figure your content collection will support, simply because the best and latest skin resources over time will correlate to the latest figure. However, I have bought a couple of high quality merchant resource files for this purpose. The main downside is that my best skin textures are Generation 4, and I can't use them without some conversion. (The character morph portability aspect is irrelevant in this instance because we're making our own). So I can use my full wardrobe of hair and clothes on a Genesis 2 figure. I came to Daz as Genesis 2 was starting, so I have very little Genesis content, and my Generation 4 content auto-fits pretty reliably to Genesis 2. For me, my interests, and my personal collection of content, it's a no-brainer to use Genesis 2. Next, let's think about what base character to use.

In addition, the character lines that really make a face don't tend to be captured.

See the example on the right (this is after some cleaning up - I no longer have the original of this figure, which was much worse). This can play havoc with necklines in some poses, and also the fitting of hair. Secondly, the transition between the base head and the imported head tends to be pretty dodgy, often with a major change in width and depth. Firstly, the lines tend to be jagged, no matter how carefully you enter the guidelines. I have used FaceShop and the other plug-ins for this purpose, and I don't like them. First, let's talk about why I do this work manually. You don't strictly have to have a 3D modelling program to achieve a reasonable approximation, but your model won't have the character lines that really bridge the gap between the right shape and the person. I'm using Daz Studio 4.6 Pro and Hexagon 2.5, but the general concepts will carry over to other software. The approximate time usually is 2-3 hours, but probably more on your first go. However, it can also be used as a means of getting inspiration for your own characters, and breaking out of the perfect-young-model mould. The primary application for me, as a fanartist, is scenes featuring movie and television characters. 2 Tutorial: Lookalike Faces in Daz Studio and Hexagon This tutorial walks through copying a celebrity face (or any face) in Daz Studio and Hexagon.

Hexagon 2.5 tutorials pdf