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first time posting in here so please forgive any protocol mishaps, I will try to adhere to the rules as much as possible!

So this is an often asked question and I'm not so sure how or why the absolute correct answer has never appeared.

Is there a way to change the parameters of a primitive object once one has exited the initial pop-up window that appears bottom left upon placement of a primitive?

Here are screenshots:

initial parameter setting option

no option to change parameters of primitive after placement

Apologies for the sacrilege, but in Cinema 4D, until you make the primitive editable, you can go back and change parameters way after initial placement:

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C4D object manager while still primitive eminently editable primitive values

As a switcher from Cinema, it's little things like this that can make the transition questionable initially. For all of the far superior mdelling tools in Blender 2.8 compared to Cinema, this is an essential oversight. Yes one can simply delete and start again, but that really shouldn't be part of the equation…

Thanks

Chris Jones
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  • if you move the object, or go in Edit mode, or create another one, you won't be able to change the parameters anymore. Can you in Cinema 4D? – moonboots Oct 06 '19 at 08:10
  • In Cinema you can change every parameter until you make it editable. As I mentioned in my reply to Tareyes, I relise in Blender the best way to model is non-destructively with modifiers whereas in Cinema it's best to create everything using quads manually. – Chris Jones Oct 06 '19 at 16:36

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No, you can't do that right now. Blender is a software that focus primarily on artistic rendering of complex scenes, and not much on motion graphics or other kinds of precise projects. That's why Blender doesn't have effectors or parametric objects, and why its modeling style is quite destructive.

Once you create an object, Blender sees it as a mesh, so a 3D model with a number of vertexes, edges and faces, so it doesn't know anymore if it is a cylinder or a sphere. This could change in the future, but I've heard Ton Roosendaal (Blender Foundation's Chairman) doesn't consider it a priority.

You can also check the answers of this similar question: How to edit Parameters for an Object after it is created?

Tareyes
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  • Thanks Tareyes. I actually bought the Speedflow addon, and there's a tutorial series for modelling a speaker. The way Cedric Lepilliere approaches it is to create a path and use the screw modifier to create a cylinder that's eminently editable forever.Now, I have come from Cinema, and learned to create topology avoiding modifiers. For a while I've been resisting this approach because in Cinema it isn't the best way whereas in Blender it's the only way. So if I want to learn Blender I have to unlearn Cinema! – Chris Jones Oct 06 '19 at 16:34
  • I don't know if that's the case: you should use the tool that best fits your needs. If you do motion graphics or similiar videos, C4D is still better than Blender (for now), so you shouldn't move to a software that is focused on other things.

    However, mesh manipulation is a skill that every 3D artist should have, and Blender is a good place to learn it. With time you will be able to plan ahead your scene, and model history won't be so important anymore (it would be great, but you can work without it)

     – Tareyes Oct 06 '19 at 17:28