i’ve noticed that most of people who post best work (in my oppinion) here are very good in drawing. so my question is like the name of topic says it self, do you need to be very good in drawing to work good in zbrush?
no, of course not 
The point is not so much that these people can draw well as rather the fact that they know what theyre doing. People that know how to paint have obviously a developed sense to capture the relevant details of reality. Thats what makes their sculpting work look great too. But the techniques are completely different.
Drawing and Sculpting are different mediums! They relate to each other… When you draw the human body, you look for form. When you sculpting here in zbrush, you start by looking for the form of what your sculpting. It’s also very good to know how to draw, and the reason why is because if you can draw your own reference, it will help a lot with whatever you want to sculpt. So… I think it’s very important to know how to draw. It’s not necessary for some people, but it will be very useful at the end.
Check some of the graduates from VFS, and look at their modeling reels. You will see their concept drawings which I think all of them can draw beautiful.
This is my opinion! 
Javier Loredo
“is drawing essential for zbrush?”
absolutely.
drawing teaches you to notice things. the better you are at noticing things, the better you will be at reproducing them.
Perception is the most important attribute whether you are drawing or sculpting. I think most people who know how to sculpt really well, also know how to draw at least fairly decently. I think it really goes hand in hand.
I don’t know of any outstanding sculptors, digital or otherwise, that can’t draw decently.
To directly answer the question, no. To do good work in ZBrush you do not need to draw really well, but to do GREAT work, I think it’s essential.
Have fun Zbrushing 
i dont agre on some points
i cant draw at all but i can use Zbrush pritty good.
i also do some home clay sculptures that dont turn out bad.
but if you give me a pen and paper i cant draw any thing its all crap.
i can translate geomaty i see to 3d fine but i cant translate it thrue pen and paper simply because your facking depth with pen and paper by drawing shadows.
thanks for all the replies. i’m not really bad (nor really good obviously in drawing but my characters on paper always lacked of details and shading. i’m just starting with zbrush so i hope that my models will be much better. i would like to do something like that maddam guy btw, why do people start with base mash from some other program? why not do everything in zbrush?
pz
Drawing is just one way to express an idea. IMO its not totaly essential if you can use another way. like sculpting with clay or modeling with other things…like Legos for instance…of corse legos have almost no detail with smaller works. That is where a keen eye for detail comes in handy. many designers don’t need to draw to see what they need to see to be able to do great work. Its all in the eyes. If you can relate it to some events in life (or movies and other entertaining media) it makes it easier to realise your work.
Topology in easier to control in other software packages because of the modeling tools involved. Also with proper topology, you have less trouble posing/animating your figures. I’m one to talk though, cuz I have trouble with that stuff anyway!
What helps more than drawing is experience in make up and masks. That allows control over the skin texture like nothing else. Look at stuff from Monstermaker or Patton. There you got two pro’s who make their work shine with their effects knowledge. And of course… when you can draw you can nicely sketch a scene before you sink 3d time into it and if you can sculpt… then your models look better.
Cheers
Lemo
I create from scratch in Zbrush, mantodea. The end result looks the same to me, but outside of Zbrush I’m sure my meshes might cause problems in other apps, I dunno to be honest, i’m scared stiff of other 3D apps :eek:
Drawing is going to help your basic sculpting a great deal, but you may have a more creative mind than someone who simply has great drawing skills. Some of the best artist can’t even draw! In Zbrush you may discover your own unique technique, or be great with colour/texturing etc, it’s all down to creativity and originality more than simply drawing ability i’d say.
well I have talked to alot of past zbrush artists on this before in a chat room a few times…I was suprised to find that alot of our zbrush artists didnt draw as much or as well as I thought they would…
I like to draw and always have…whether I am any good…hmmm…I dunno…I try to improve and if it doesn’t look right, well that is ok too…the love of drawing is the key for me…
I don’t think it is essential for zbrush, but I am sure it doesn’t hurt.
I think the real life sculptors on the forum have commented that it is an easy transition to zbrushing…
Practice in any area will help you, though. Paying attention to the little things, wrinkles in clothing, different shades in a person’s skin, lighting a subject, expressions on faces and which muscles are affected, scenery and setting a scene, basic anatomy, (all of these things which I still have to desperately work on)…the imperfections in everybody’s appearance which gives them character…those are a few of the things that come to mind that will help in zbrushing or probably any other 3d modeling situation/app…
but simply, yes, I think being able to draw good helps the artist a bit more…
Would loved to have seen Giger or DaVinci with Zbrush for sure :))))))
just my itty bitty 2 cents worth
Ron
Drawing should be mandatory for all artists it is the simplest form of expression their is next to speech. But pre bulit blocks can be manipulated and called art. So no it is not essential only desired in my opinion.
Actually that is just an opinion. Some people find sculpting easier then drawing. Some have a reason they can’t draw effectivly. Like me. I have unsteady hands and when I draw I can never copy a line the way I did before. I also press to hard on the pen/pencil. I prefer to use a more ‘easy to fix’ way to work. my sketches usualy just turn out to be covered in eraser marks and impossible to identify :lol:
ctrl + z is my best friend
it’s really nice to see all this answers. the main reason why i thought that drawing is essential is because of all those characters that i’ve seen here, who have tons of wrinkles, scars, etc. and by looking them i figure out that in zbrush you need to draw them all, one by one on your character. one more question. what is the “best” material to use in real sculpting? i only know for clay, and i’m interesting what material is good for sculpting, let’s say high detailed faces for example? one more time thanks for all the answers.
pz
IMHO the key to ANYTHING artistic (sculpting, painting) is looking. Really looking.
I can’t remember whether it was Manet speaking of Monet or vice versa, but what was said is what is important.
I think the quote goes:
“Monet is just an eye… but WHAT an eye!”
The esential thing is to have great perception abillities, the rest of it is just a matter of practice and technique. You must be able to see the forms in 3d space either if you’re painting or sculpting. Painting however can be a little more difficult, since you have to translate the 3d form onto a 2d plane, while in sculpting you can concentrate more on the form itself, rather than trying to translate it onto a plane. Contour and shading are the most important technical abilities in drawing (and these can be achivied through practice). However, you must know what you’re doing in both cases, as some of you just said. The rest is hard work and practice.
i had the same question when i wanted to practise with real material.p
obviusly the most artists favorite tool is SUPER SCULPTY.
but its to bad you cant realy find it here in the netherlands 
what i use is pollyster clay dryng on air i wish i had non dryng on air but it seams very hard to find.
what i use now works good but hase some draw backs i do advise you not to buy a big sack of clay (it looks tempting because of the amount) but you cant realy do alot of detail with it.
also dont sculpt real size or big start small its easyr.
Good Drawing, Painting, Scuplting or Digital work is all, in the end, just good seeing. The rest is just different tools. Most people who are very good at drawing can easily move to other methods because of the training in seeing things correctly and in there proper relationship to the whole. Learning to draw (on paper that is) is also easier because you dont have the limitations of processors and memory and computers that don’t do what they’re supposed to. Its also damn fun… Yes I do teach traditional drawing and painting but the priciples apply to any medium.