Textures - how does the sausage get made?

JQP

How do the textures for mundane objects in typical products get made? Are they usually custom made, or is there a lot of 3rd-party or even open license textures used? I'm curious because I toy with the idea of making stuff, but textures give me pause. I know Photoshop basics, but I'm a bit daunted by the idea of real texture work (never mind UVs). Again, I'm talking about mundane stuff like household objects, not prime-time stuff like character textures.

nonesuch00

Usually by taking pictures in a controlled lighting environment and then editing the reasons. You more or less create a brush or a stamp in a photo-editing or texture creation tool and scale and align the texture with the UV map that you should have created or have available for the model that is being textured. Then often bump, normal and other maps are created from the texture created from the photograph. One can use xnormal program for that.

There is 3D scanning devices available that can do most of that work in an automated way. Also there is SW that creates textured models just using photographs for some items in a photograph. Look at AutoDesk 123D products for free programs meant for beginners and hobbyist to do such things.

If you want to create a 3D model from the ground up then Hexagon or Carrara or Blender are your best programs with Blender by far aving the most youtube tutorials to teach yourself.

TabascoJack

You can also use things like FilterForge to create seamless textures.  It can create bump and normals also.

TabascoJack

Also, see http://www.daz3d.com/forums/discussion/74272/texturing-with-destinysgarden/p1 for a wonderful thread about texturing.

mjc1016

JQP said:

How do the textures for mundane objects in typical products get made? Are they usually custom made, or is there a lot of 3rd-party or even open license textures used? I'm curious because I toy with the idea of making stuff, but textures give me pause. I know Photoshop basics, but I'm a bit daunted by the idea of real texture work (never mind UVs). Again, I'm talking about mundane stuff like household objects, not prime-time stuff like character textures.

For me it's a combination of hand painting, my photos, generated (Filter Forge and the like), procedurally created and baked (in Blender) and rarely downloaded images...most of the free ones have all sorts of restrictions that makes actually using them legally a Class 5 headache...and most of the paid ones are too expensive for freebie items.

McGyver

As mentioned above, Filter Forge is great at creating many textures you might not have the patience to bother trying to make on your own or to photograph... Check out their filter library there are thousands of pre-made texture filters, which are free for downloading into FF... and endless possibilities to mix and combine effects nodes, plus if you have the inclination and skill, you can use Photoshop ( or GIMP, or Krita) to enhance them as well... You can even take photos that might not be so great and enhance them in Filter Forge.

Filter Forge often goes on sale at their site, so it might be worth waiting for a sale... If you like it, the pro version is really the best bargain, especially if you purchase it on sale... The really good sales can range from 70%- 80% off.   You should definitely try the Demo version, I think there is also a Beta version available for ver. 6 too. The current version is 5.  One thing to keep in mind with FF is that, if for example you purchase version 5, when the new version, 6 is released, anyone posting filters made in 6 will not work in 5... You'll still have use of everything 5 and below... Thousands of filters, but not the newer ones made in six... That usually only becomes a nuisance a few months after the new version comes out, and only if there are really great filters being made... So depending on what the new features are and how long it takes for people to learn to make the best of them, it might not even be a big deal... Next time I decide to upgrade, I'm going to wait for a great sale and choose the "lifetime upgrade"... I've been using FF long enough that it now makes sense.

Also worth considering, is Genetica, a similar texture creating program, Genetica has some unique feature, but usually does not have sales, so in general it's more expensive... But there is a FREE version call "Genetica Viewer" which is fairly limited, but can render out a couple hundred of their free effects filters... In addition to that there is also a FREE wood texture generator "Wood Workshop" or something like that, which is extremely useful.

I used to only use textures I made from photos I took... That became tedious and often disappointing (unless you own a very good camera), now I use photos, Photoshop, GIMP, Krita, Filter Forge, Genetica Viewer, AwesomeBump (a free CrazyBump alternative)... Pretty much anything that can give me the effect or texture I need.

Good Luck.

 

EDITED TO ADD- I just remembered... There is a free non-commercial version of MARI available now... I've been meaning to try that... Seems very interesting.

JQP

Wow, thanks for all the info, folks. Much appreciated.

BlueIrene

I took a ton of stuff out of my wishlist the day I discovered and bought Filter Forge - not just material presets I could suddenly do for myself using Filter Forge that were similar too or better than those I had wishlisted, but stuff that was identical. It's safe to say that it's not unusual for PAs to use Filter Forge for textures! A lot of PAs also contribute to Filter Forge too, assuming they're using the same names in both places. I remember that if I can when faced with any indecision when shopping for the many things I do still need here. Filter Forge has so many uses beyond Daz Studio too. I wouldn't be without it now.

FirstBastion

Digital camera is excellent for generating images that can be manipulated into texture use. Overcast daylight works wonder in producing evenlit images.

TangoAlpha

Substance Painter is also worth a look. It's a 3d paint program: you import your prop as an obj or fbx  and then paint on it. You can add photoshop-like layers, and there's a library of materials you can use (stone, cloth, metal etc). You can even make your own with a companion app, Substance Designer (using base textures generated by Filter forge maybe...) It can automatically do things like add rust & wear along the seams and edges, Produces PBR results ready for Iray (metallic-roughness), but it'll do non-PBR too. It does need your prop to be properly UV mapped though.

Here's an example using a radiator prop. I just used two materials - "painted metal" and "worn brass". Took maybe five minutes, most of which was tweaking the settings.

But there's rarely a one-solution-fits-all answer to this stuff, and a lot will depend on the look that you're going for - procedural wood textures won't look the same as a photograph, for example. Same goes for bricks. But a photo might look out of place if you're doing toon renders, and so on. If you're taking photos, there are some simple tips: use a decent digital camera for preference, not a smart phone, avoid bright sunlight or strong shadows (wait for a dull, overcast day if you can), face-on shots minimise distortion, etc. If you can't take photographs, there are sites like textures,com which may have what you're looking for either free or for a fee - and some PAs do use them. But pay careful attention to their terms of use.

mjc1016

TangoAlpha said:

Substance Painter is also worth a look. It's a 3d paint program: you import your prop as an obj or fbx  and then paint on it. You can add photoshop-like layers, and there's a library of materials you can use (stone, cloth, metal etc). You can even make your own with a companion app, Substance Designer (using base textures generated by Filter forge maybe...) It can automatically do things like add rust & wear along the seams and edges, Produces PBR results ready for Iray (metallic-roughness), but it'll do non-PBR too. It does need your prop to be properly UV mapped though.

Here's an example using a radiator prop. I just used two materials - "painted metal" and "worn brass". Took maybe five minutes, most of which was tweaking the settings.

But there's rarely a one-solution-fits-all answer to this stuff, and a lot will depend on the look that you're going for - procedural wood textures won't look the same as a photograph, for example. Same goes for bricks. But a photo might look out of place if you're doing toon renders, and so on. If you're taking photos, there are some simple tips: use a decent digital camera for preference, not a smart phone, avoid bright sunlight or strong shadows (wait for a dull, overcast day if you can), face-on shots minimise distortion, etc. If you can't take photographs, there are sites like textures,com which may have what you're looking for either free or for a fee - and some PAs do use them. But pay careful attention to their terms of use.

Substance, both Designer and Painter are both good.

For photos...a tripod is a good investment. 

TabascoJack

Also with FilterForge - try hitting their website with different browsers.  I've had instances where discounts on their site only show up when I use Chrome, but not Firefox or (God forbid) IE.  Or sometimes it's Firefox, and not the others.   Weird, but that seems to be the way they've set it up.

Jimbow

If you can't lug a tripod around, use a long piece of (very strong) string securely tied to a tripod screw (the type that screws the camera to the tripod - costs a couple of quid/dollars usually). Tie a loop at the other end of the string that will fit around your foot and screw the screw into the tripod thread on the baseplate of your camera. The length should be enough for you to have the loop around and under your foot while holding the camera to your eye. When you pull the camera to your eye, the tension in the pull of the string keeps the camera stable.

AllenArt

Jimbow said:

If you can't lug a tripod around, use a long piece of (very strong) string securely tied to a tripod screw (the type that screws the camera to the tripod - costs a couple of quid/dollars usually). Tie a loop at the other end of the string that will fit around your foot and screw the screw into the tripod thread on the baseplate of your camera. The length should be enough for you to have the loop around and under your foot while holding the camera to your eye. When you pull the camera to your eye, the tension in the pull of the string keeps the camera stable.

Clever ;)

Laurie

WendyLuvsCatz

something like Morguefiles can be useful

https://morguefile.com/search/morguefile/1/sausage/pop

using your sauasage for example

Ruphuss

ToeJam said:

something like Morguefiles can be useful

https://morguefile.com/search/morguefile/1/sausage/pop

using your sauasage for example

how do the lil dogs taste ?

ghastlycomic

Textures I usually paint the textures directly on the model in 3D-coat and then touch them up in Sketchbook on my tablet. Before I had 3D Coat I used to paint textures with Sculptris which works fine as long as you don't have overlapping texture maps.

There's also a freeware program called Awesomebump which is great for making bump and normal maps from photographs.