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Creating/Altering G2F

Stryder87Stryder87 Posts: 899
edited December 1969 in The Commons

I'd like to try my hand at creating, or at least modifying an existing base character. I'm looking to create a Hispanic G2F. I have body morphs, so making her shorter shouldn't be a problem, or adjusting basic body shape, but I'm not sure how to go about darkening the skin, or change eye colour or lip colour. Can anyone suggest one or two packages that I could use to do this? I'd like to keep it all in DAZ if possible as I don't really know any how to use any of the other software I see in the store, like Carrera or Hexagon or Bryce (even though I have that one).

Tutorials wouldn't be a bad thing either... and I see a few things in the marketplace in the Resource sale, like http://www.daz3d.com/daz-studio-rigging-made-easy, or http://www.daz3d.com/tutorial-morphing-genesis-2-female-with-daz-studio-and-hexagon.

And one last thing that's been driving me up the wall... when I create a character and go to save it, if I save it as an Actor, it's always nude. To get it to save with clothes on, I end up saving it as a scene. Is that normal or am I missing something way too obvious?

Thanks.

Comments

  • nightwolf1982nightwolf1982 Posts: 1,226
    edited December 1969

    Eyes, lips, and skin color are all done through texturing. You would need a program like Photoshop or GIMP for that.

  • JimmyC_2009JimmyC_2009 Posts: 8,891
    edited December 1969

    And one last thing that’s been driving me up the wall… when I create a character and go to save it, if I save it as an Actor, it’s always nude. To get it to save with clothes on, I end up saving it as a scene. Is that normal or am I missing something way too obvious?


    Save a complete character with clothes as Save As > Scene Subset, that way you can select from your scene what you want to be saved, ignoring Cameras and Lights etc.

    You can then merge that Scene Subset with any other scene by double clicking on it.
  • Stryder87Stryder87 Posts: 899
    edited December 1969

    Thanks Jimmy! I knew it was something simple I was missing. I'd seen that option there, but wasn't sure what it did. I can think of a lot of applications for that function.

  • Stryder87Stryder87 Posts: 899
    edited December 1969

    nightwolf1982 said:
    Eyes, lips, and skin color are all done through texturing. You would need a program like Photoshop or GIMP for that.

    So, if I took, say V6, and did all my alterations to her using the body morphs, and then saved her, do the original textures get copied with the new character into whatever folder it goes to, or is it still linked back to the original? If it was copied and saved, then I would use those to put into photoshop or gimp and do my editing on them, but if they're linked back to the original, I couldn't alter them as it would affect everyone using them.

    Looking in the folder where my saved characters are, I'm only seeing two files, a .png and a .duf. This would suggest that, when loaded, they link back to the original textures.

    Hmmm... is there a book or something I can read on how to create characters? It seems like I'm trying to do some pretty involved things and just don't have the necessary background knowledge on how this all works. I do have a tendency to bite off more than I can chew. haha

  • Stryder87Stryder87 Posts: 899
    edited December 1969

    I wonder if this would help me do what I'm looking to do... it looks promising...

    Skin Builder Pro for Genesis and Genesis 2 Female(s)

  • AbbyCloneAbbyClone Posts: 99
    edited December 1969

    I picked up Skin Builder Pro lately, its very good, simply to use and will do everything you're looking to do.


    Like nightwolf1982 said, you can make changes in Ps or GIMP. To edit Victoria 6 skin you need to find it, for me its: Users/Public/Public Documents/My DAZ3D Library/Runtime/Textures/Daz/Characters/Genesis2/Victoria6.

    Open the skin you want to change in photoshop and when you're finished save the new skin in the same folder (give it a different name of course)

    Load V6 go to settings tab and change the diffuse maps to the new skin. At least that's how I do it.

  • SpottedKittySpottedKitty Posts: 7,232
    edited December 1969

    stryder87 said:
    Looking in the folder where my saved characters are, I'm only seeing two files, a .png and a .duf. This would suggest that, when loaded, they link back to the original textures.

    Yes, that's how DAZ|Studio assembles the content loaded into a scene — the .duf file doesn't contain the textures or object/morph data, it contains pointers to the original texture files, and object/morph data files, and also includes the actual morph dial settings. This means that, no matter how many scenes in your content contain e.g. a Genesis2 figure (or even multiple figures), there is only ever one set of G2F texture and object files. This lets you have lots of relatively small(ish) scene files, but the bulky texture and data files only exist once, with all the objects in your scenes pointing back to those files.

    Going back to your original question, what you need to do is edit a copy of the original texture files, open the scene where you want to make the changes, and alter the texture pointers for the materials to point to your new edited textures. Note that these edited textures can only be used to create renders, you can't distribute the altered files as a freebie or for $$$ unless you are the copyright holder of the original textures.

  • ZarconDeeGrissomZarconDeeGrissom Posts: 5,414
    edited December 1969

    I didn't bother trying to make a skin texture, as I was really new. Wachiwi was rather close enough. Even just using the skin texture for (As spotted Kitty stated) my own renders.

    Some of the proportions, simply are not in any of the current G2F morph sets.
    http://www.daz3d.com/forums/viewreply/749197/
    My best attempt, and fail thus far.

    There is the possibility of using "V4 EliteTexture: Natasha" texture, and converting it to G2F. I tried and failed months ago before several products were released to make that easier. I have been told that it now works, and have yet to try again, as the shape is as important as the skin color.
    http://www.daz3d.com/v4-elitetexture-natasha
    http://www.daz3d.com/v4-skins-batch-converter-to-genesis-2-female-s

    It's some thoughts, and there is at least hope.

    Galen - There is always hope. Only because that is the one thing no one has figured out how to kill. Yet.

  • Stryder87Stryder87 Posts: 899
    edited December 1969

    You guys are awesome. Great info and advice! I've been sticking to pretty much pre-packaged stuff, but want to start getting a little more unique and I'm finding it really daunting. The most involved thing I've finished is this: http://www.daz3d.com/gallery/#images/51671 The red light on the dash was brutal to get figured out and working.

    On a totally different note; I read that it might be best to do your entire scene just using the scene lighting, then add the 'real' lighting, light skydomes etc. Is this a better way to do it? I seem to spend a lot of time fighting with lights when I put in pre-packaged environments.

  • ZarconDeeGrissomZarconDeeGrissom Posts: 5,414
    edited January 2015

    Glad to help spur ideas. I kind of just had on one myself.
    Some Figures require base figures (Like Wachiwi requires Victoria6). In the 'Shaping' tab (or in the 'Parameters' tab), there are shape sliders for some of the stuff. Not all figures have those sliders, Tho Wachiwi came with two shapes, that both use some of Victoria 6 (V6).

    I had tried Wachiwi without V6 before, tho I was just curious what she would look like with a tad of other figures in place of V6. :coolsmile:

    Simple experiments like that are probably the easiest way to try that out, without enduring the full onslaught of the Multi-Axis Trainer (MAT). That ever jumping from front to side and back, as you adjust shaping sliders. Having found that "Split-Screen" view has been such a help with keeping the sea-sick pills out of my diet, lol.

    Left, Wachiwi2+V6. Midle Wachiwi2 with No V6. Right, Wachiwi2 at 50% and some Serena.

    Wachiwi2_vs_NoV6_Vs_Custom001.png
    1420 x 552 - 543K
    Post edited by ZarconDeeGrissom on
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