Shader Baker - How use?

LK

Shader Baker - How use? Can someone help me and tell how It works?
I can't understand nothing!
In the very pure short manuals I can read only "Select a shader and puch button Bake". But I can't find a place where textures saves. Line "image Path" is inactive.
Nothing happens If I check "Auto Apply To Surface".
I trying different shaders - NOTHING!
Also I couldn't find no one smart manual about It. Only half-minute video on YouTube about very old version of DS. No more.

Edited to add subject to body of post

JimmyC_2009

This should help I think:
http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/artzone/pub/software/shaderbaker/start

LK

Many words, no information :)
Nothing about type of shaders which possible to bake.
Nothing about where to find a textures. In the root folder I don't see no one new file after bake.

Can someone tell me about It?

jestmart

Did you set the Image Path?

Bejaymac

All it does is bake surface effects into a texture, however it only works with the default surface shader, and anything made in the Shader Mixer that has the Baker brick properly connected.

Lets start with easy steps.

Grab yourself a seamless tile-able texture, spawn a 1 meter primitive cube in DS and apply the texture to the Diffuse channel of the cube. Now change the horizontal and vertical tiles settings to 10, and change the lighting model to Matte.

Now select the Shader Baker tab, Bake Illumination I don't think I've ever had that checked, but Bake Shaders is always checked.

Image resolution I always use power2 sizes (ie. 512, 1024, 2048, 4096)

Image type is what ever you prefer from that list

Image Path always seems to be blank nowadays, and will always open a search window in the main Program directory for DS, but you can navigate to a folder of your choosing and use that as the place to create the finished texture, DS will remember where you selected just as long as you don't open Image Path again.

Auto Apply to surface does exactly what it says, once the texture has finished being baked it will be added to the Diffuse channel, does make it look a bit weird if your baking tile-able textures though so I normally don't use it.

Bake Mode, can't remember what the "Default" does, Bake as One Texture will take all of the surfaces on the selected item and bake them onto one texture, great for most stuff (especially tile-able textures) but a nightmare for anything like G2F that has overlapping UV's, Bake Surface Simultaneously will bake each surface on the selected item to it's own texture.

The rest of the window is render settings, the better they are the better the baked result will be and the longer it will take to bake, but for this example we want to test things are working, so drag all of the sliders to the left except for Shading Rate which you want at 2.00.

Once that's all done hit the Bake button, now you just need to wait on it rendering the texture, then it has to create the texture (two separate windows with progress bars), once finished the baked texture will be named after the surface(s), and in this case that will be Default.

Woody4D

Bejaymac said:

All it does is bake surface effects into a texture, however it only works with the default surface shader, and anything made in the Shader Mixer that has the Baker brick properly connected.

Lets start with easy steps.

Grab yourself a seamless tile-able texture, spawn a 1 meter primitive cube in DS and apply the texture to the Diffuse channel of the cube. Now change the horizontal and vertical tiles settings to 10, and change the lighting model to Matte.

Now select the Shader Baker tab, Bake Illumination I don't think I've ever had that checked, but Bake Shaders is always checked.

Image resolution I always use power2 sizes (ie. 512, 1024, 2048, 4096)

Image type is what ever you prefer from that list

Image Path always seems to be blank nowadays, and will always open a search window in the main Program directory for DS, but you can navigate to a folder of your choosing and use that as the place to create the finished texture, DS will remember where you selected just as long as you don't open Image Path again.

Auto Apply to surface does exactly what it says, once the texture has finished being baked it will be added to the Diffuse channel, does make it look a bit weird if your baking tile-able textures though so I normally don't use it.

Bake Mode, can't remember what the "Default" does, Bake as One Texture will take all of the surfaces on the selected item and bake them onto one texture, great for most stuff (especially tile-able textures) but a nightmare for anything like G2F that has overlapping UV's, Bake Surface Simultaneously will bake each surface on the selected item to it's own texture.

The rest of the window is render settings, the better they are the better the baked result will be and the longer it will take to bake, but for this example we want to test things are working, so drag all of the sliders to the left except for Shading Rate which you want at 2.00.

Once that's all done hit the Bake button, now you just need to wait on it rendering the texture, then it has to create the texture (two separate windows with progress bars), once finished the baked texture will be named after the surface(s), and in this case that will be Default.

This is from a long time ago,  BUT:  like exporting Daz3D Genesis 3/8 characters to Unity/Unreal with all the high rez HD goodness intact and the quality skinning (I finally found a way!),  this remains something, people had trouble with for years...  I have never seen this feature used in any professional or amateur setting.  I would bet money the guy who asked, never got it work.  I notice you said things like 'if I rremember' etc, so I think maybe you never avtually tried your own advice? :)  The simple fact is, When you set an image path, nothing shows up in the image path textv box,    when you set it rendering shader, it takes 5-10 minutes, then when done, no new textures are in the older you selected, nothing has changed with thd scene (even with auto apply etc.)   Simply put, I too, like the guy above, I have never gotten it to do Anything At All, (having tried absolutely everything...) ,.   Rather than cubes and tiling textures, Could you maybe redo your instruction, while at your machine, nd maybe using a character, ince Dazv3D is character software a bit of instruction with a Genesis characters, on how to 'bale' and consolidate texture maps would help enormously!   I am trying to make maps that are,  combined, like an Atlas  and efficient for game work. 

Is there some restriction where it doesn't work with iRay materials or??

Thank You!

MEC4D

I know it is old post but maybe someone will search for it again.

Shader Baker is only for 3DL engine , you need to select 3DL engine before even do anything .

1. Select all your shades you need to bake
2. Go to shader baker
3.  follow the settings on image # 2
4. after you are done the full textures will be applied to one of the surfaces , don;t expect it to be in each surface material since you render all shades as one texture map, unless you choice to bake each shader surface separately .
5. If your model is low poly you will need to subdivide in DS at last once it or you get artifacts from the wire cage . If you bake hard edge model you need to change the Subdivison type to Bilinear /hard edge 

I render always Color ID for my props using shader baker for texturing as it give me good results , if you want to bake AO you can use Uber Environment or just use xN for better results and faster 

Shader baker is great if you want to use tilling textures and render it out as a base for texturing so you don't have to deal with the tilling while using Normal, but don't expect human skin to looks perfect , that's not what it is made for .

Also the path will be there for the rendered textures if you select one , if you don't the baked textures will land in a temporary folder 

I attached settings you can load, I set the path to Desktop in the settings , but you can change it 

1. Image is 3DL shader setting
2. Image is Shader Baker setting for Max quality , please note Shading Rate set on lower value will give better quality ( render slower)  the rest need to be set to max value 
3. Image is baked Color ID of the prop with all surface materials in one texture 

Please note that overlapped UVs of your figure or prop will not render. into one texture , you need to change the shader bake setting to render separate surfaces or you get overlapped results .

I hope it helps 

Catherine3678ab

Some more tips:

On W10 - the default location for saving the files MUST be changed before running. W10 guards program folders ;-)

While the location does not show up in that line where it should, it does save to the indicated folder [I highly recommend placing a dedicated folder on the Desktop for it] After each use, MOVE the textures to either a subfolder or put them elsewhere [Runtime > textures > your subfolders for example. The next time the feature it used it will overwrite files of the same name.

Also, use a collapsed uvset if trying to use the feature on G3, G8, etc.

The entire figure needs to be lit. But then when running Shader Baker, use the Perspective View or the textures may only "show" whatever it is the other choice "sees."

EACH time Shader Baker is used, reselect the destination folder [which is why I put mine on the desktop, got tired of hunting for it].

It can be useful for making templates with a buffer zone.

MEC4D

Good tip , if I bake AO , I use Bake Illumination box checked and use Age Of Armour's Advance AO Light for amazing results

Catherine3678ab said:

Some more tips:

On W10 - the default location for saving the files MUST be changed before running. W10 guards program folders ;-)

While the location does not show up in that line where it should, it does save to the indicated folder [I highly recommend placing a dedicated folder on the Desktop for it] After each use, MOVE the textures to either a subfolder or put them elsewhere [Runtime > textures > your subfolders for example. The next time the feature it used it will overwrite files of the same name.

Also, use a collapsed uvset if trying to use the feature on G3, G8, etc.

The entire figure needs to be lit. But then when running Shader Baker, use the Perspective View or the textures may only "show" whatever it is the other choice "sees."

EACH time Shader Baker is used, reselect the destination folder [which is why I put mine on the desktop, got tired of hunting for it].

It can be useful for making templates with a buffer zone.