Kaze369's 3D Sketchbook

[kaze369]

This will be the place where I will be posting all the 3d or 2d work I've done in the past and what I'm doing now.

[kaze369]

Here's what I did for STC #33. I didn't turn it in on time but I would still like some feedback.

I started of using the render to texture to create a diffuse color and a AO map. Once that was done I overlayed the AO using multiply on top of the diffuse color. then i took a metal texture and overlayed on top of the diffuse color. I used 2 different types of metal in the texture & adding a few other things as well. The tire looks awful and I should've fixed the UV to my liking.

I made the specular map by using copy merge command. then I desaturated it, then I adjusted the contrast and brightness. to get the normal I used the desaturated map and put it in crazybump. that's pretty much it. I hope I can get some feedback.

[kaze369]

no feedback?

[Ghostscape]

You've got baked lighting in your wheel and your normal map was generated by running your raw diffuse through crazybump, resulting in weird shapes around shadows, dirt, etc.

[Kaskad]

Well, I don't think it's bad, but I think you need to do a few things to make it good. The base that you're using for metal does not read as metal. It's got this weird stippling that makes it look like it's trying to be leather. Just use a flat gray and then add onto that with overlays and painted details - you can't just use a picture of something metal as a base, it doesn't look right. Carrying on with that idea, simply converting the diffuse to a specular isn't the best way you could do it either. Better to re-save your diffuse .psd as a specular one, and then go in layer by layer changing things to what their specular value would be and getting rid of anything that wouldn't affect it.

As for normal maps, never simply run your diffuse map through crazybump or the nvidia filter to get a normal map for a prop. The way these programs work is by reading variations in tone and interpreting those variations as height data. When you have a diffuse that has all sorts of details, lighting information, etc. you are giving the normal converter false data. You need to do the same thing I said to do for the specular only instead of converting everything to its specular value you need to convert everything to its height value - ie, make a height map. If you skimp on this process you'd be better off not having a normal map at all.

[kaze369]

Originally Posted by Kaskad

Well, I don't think it's bad, but I think you need to do a few things to make it good. The base that you're using for metal does not read as metal. It's got this weird stippling that makes it look like it's trying to be leather. Just use a flat gray and then add onto that with overlays and painted details - you can't just use a picture of something metal as a base, it doesn't look right. Carrying on with that idea, simply converting the diffuse to a specular isn't the best way you could do it either. Better to re-save your diffuse .psd as a specular one, and then go in layer by layer changing things to what their specular value would be and getting rid of anything that wouldn't affect it.

As for normal maps, never simply run your diffuse map through crazybump or the nvidia filter to get a normal map for a prop. The way these programs work is by reading variations in tone and interpreting those variations as height data. When you have a diffuse that has all sorts of details, lighting information, etc. you are giving the normal converter false data. You need to do the same thing I said to do for the specular only instead of converting everything to its specular value you need to convert everything to its height value - ie, make a height map. If you skimp on this process you'd be better off not having a normal map at all.

Thanks for your help guys, it's hard (at least for me) to make a height map, diffuse, spec, and normal in less than 2 hours. Do you have any techniques to speed up the process.

Also I did start out by using just gray for the metal and a dark green for the army look. I then overlayed a metal texture.

[Kaskad]

Originally Posted by kaze369

Thanks for your help guys, it's hard (at least for me) to make a height map, diffuse, spec, and normal in less than 2 hours. Do you have any techniques to speed up the process.

Well, I don't know. Usually I only need to spend the last 10 minutes making the spec and normal, assuming the normal isn't baked and isn't overly complex. So long as you organize your .psd layers fairly well the only thing that'll make you faster is experience.

Originally Posted by kaze369

Also I did start out by using just gray for the metal and a dark green for the army look. I then overlayed a metal texture.

I'd go easier on it then, or find a different one.

[kaze369]

Just made my entry for SMC #60. Hope you guys like it.

[kaze369]

My entry for STC 34 Alter. Cheers



MAPS

[Crave]

Some of your stuff look okay, but it lacks in the diffuse maps.
For that alter entry stone/rock texture looks way out of proportions, and should be scaled down. As for the normal maps, I would run through the nvida filter, play around with the height, and overlay or change opacity's in cirtain areas of the normals. Your speculars are too strong in cirtain areas as well. Looks to shiny.

Keep up the good work though.
May I ask how many pieces would you get done for example in a week or something?