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How do I use Ron's brushes and stuff?

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  • MelissaGTMelissaGT Posts: 2,611
    edited February 2020

    Most of Ron's packs include overlays already on a black background...and for anything else you can quickly make something up by stamping the brush/brushes you want onto a black background. Then you can easily load that black backround image onto a plane primitive and apply an emissive shader (the same image would also go into the cutout space). I've attached a couple examples that do just that...the embers in the foreground and all of the rain drips and splashes in the second. (As a bonus, the holo-billboard with the girl in the background was also created with this same technique...obviously not one of Ron's brushes though.) I prefer this method as the primitives will react accurately to depth of field, etc...rather than trying to fanagle it in post. There are also many pre-made products in the store that essentially are already packaged versions of the same technique. 

    And as @Drip mentioned, it should be easy enough to load them onto a decal too. I haven't tried it, but I imagine if I can figure out how to make an emissive plane of them, a decal wouldn't be that much more. 

    Commission - Darth Rexira - Small.jpg
    3000 x 3600 - 7M
    Nine 40 - small.jpg
    3000 x 3000 - 8M
    Post edited by MelissaGT on
  • tkdroberttkdrobert Posts: 3,606
    edited February 2020
    melissastjames said:

    Most of Ron's packs include overlays already on a black background...and for anything else you can quickly make something up by stamping the brush/brushes you want onto a black background. Then you can easily load that black backround image onto a plane primitive and apply an emissive shader (the same image would also go into the cutout space). I've attached a couple examples that do just that...the embers in the foreground and all of the rain drips and splashes in the second. (As a bonus, the holo-billboard with the girl in the background was also created with this same technique...obviously not one of Ron's brushes though.) I prefer this method as the primitives will react accurately to depth of field, etc...rather than trying to fanagle it in post. There are also many pre-made products in the store that essentially are already packaged versions of the same technique. 

    And as @Drip mentioned, it should be easy enough to load them onto a decal too. I haven't tried it, but I imagine if I can figure out how to make an emissive plane of them, a decal wouldn't be that much more. 

    This sound very interesting, but I'm confused.  Do you apply the brush with a black background to the base color of the "plane" or to "cutout opacity"?  If it's the former, does appliying the emissive back the black invisible?  If I can figure this out, it will be a game changer for me.  I'm pretty decent with Photoshop.  BTW, I just bought Ron's Space Brushes.  

    P.S. Love those pictures

    Post edited by tkdrobert on
  • MelissaGTMelissaGT Posts: 2,611
    edited February 2020
    tkdrobert said:
    melissastjames said:

    Most of Ron's packs include overlays already on a black background...and for anything else you can quickly make something up by stamping the brush/brushes you want onto a black background. Then you can easily load that black backround image onto a plane primitive and apply an emissive shader (the same image would also go into the cutout space). I've attached a couple examples that do just that...the embers in the foreground and all of the rain drips and splashes in the second. (As a bonus, the holo-billboard with the girl in the background was also created with this same technique...obviously not one of Ron's brushes though.) I prefer this method as the primitives will react accurately to depth of field, etc...rather than trying to fanagle it in post. There are also many pre-made products in the store that essentially are already packaged versions of the same technique. 

    And as @Drip mentioned, it should be easy enough to load them onto a decal too. I haven't tried it, but I imagine if I can figure out how to make an emissive plane of them, a decal wouldn't be that much more. 

    This sound very interesting, but I'm confused.  Do you apply the brush with a black background to the base color of the "plane" or to "cutout opacity"?  If it's the former, does appliying the emissive back the black invisible?  If I can figure this out, it will be a game changer for me.  I'm pretty decent with Photoshop.  BTW, I just bought Ron's Space Brushes.  

    P.S. Love those pictures

    I'm glad you like them!

    The process begins in Photoshop.  You would create a new document with a black background and then apply the brush on a separate layer and save it (I usually go with png). Then you would load that image onto the plane in DS. The image goes into the base color, emissive, and cutout. (You'll also want to change the gloss color to black.) Obviously, the specific emissive values will need to be tweaked to your specific needs. The reason why we need to have the brushes on the black background (or like I said before, many of Ron's brushes already come with a folder full of overlay files made up on black backgrounds), is so that the cutout will know what needs to be invisible. I hope that helps!

    PS - This technique can also be used to make an actual background for your render in DS, rather than using HDRI or adding it in post. Just forego the cutout and load in whatever image you want onto the plane and position as needed (this totally beats out using the backdrop tab). The challenge there, however, is making sure the lighting matches. 

    PPS - I also use Adobe Stock to find overlays...those are not free, though...but if you search for "overlay" and whatever you're looking for, be it dust or embers or fog, you'll find tons. 

    Post edited by MelissaGT on
  • benniewoodellbenniewoodell Posts: 1,999

    This is great, Melissatjames! I have a few of Ron's brushes but never use them because I'm not photoshop skilled, but what you're explaining I can do and finally really use them! 

  • MelissaGTMelissaGT Posts: 2,611
    edited February 2020
    benniewoodell said:

    This is great, Melissatjames! I have a few of Ron's brushes but never use them because I'm not photoshop skilled, but what you're explaining I can do and finally really use them! 

    Yeah, I really do minimal post on my renders (really, just color/contrast type stuff) and I never bought brushes because I didn't really know how/what to do with them. But then I was playing around and tried the plane trick in DS and was like HUZZAH! 

    Granted, the placement can get a little tedious depending on what you're doing...the rain image I posted above has something like 75ish individual planes hand-placed...but it was worth it just to have drops and drips that react accurately to depth of field and the scene lighting. 

    Post edited by MelissaGT on
  • tkdroberttkdrobert Posts: 3,606
    melissastjames said:
    tkdrobert said:
    melissastjames said:

    Most of Ron's packs include overlays already on a black background...and for anything else you can quickly make something up by stamping the brush/brushes you want onto a black background. Then you can easily load that black backround image onto a plane primitive and apply an emissive shader (the same image would also go into the cutout space). I've attached a couple examples that do just that...the embers in the foreground and all of the rain drips and splashes in the second. (As a bonus, the holo-billboard with the girl in the background was also created with this same technique...obviously not one of Ron's brushes though.) I prefer this method as the primitives will react accurately to depth of field, etc...rather than trying to fanagle it in post. There are also many pre-made products in the store that essentially are already packaged versions of the same technique. 

    And as @Drip mentioned, it should be easy enough to load them onto a decal too. I haven't tried it, but I imagine if I can figure out how to make an emissive plane of them, a decal wouldn't be that much more. 

    This sound very interesting, but I'm confused.  Do you apply the brush with a black background to the base color of the "plane" or to "cutout opacity"?  If it's the former, does appliying the emissive back the black invisible?  If I can figure this out, it will be a game changer for me.  I'm pretty decent with Photoshop.  BTW, I just bought Ron's Space Brushes.  

    P.S. Love those pictures

    I'm glad you like them!

    The process begins in Photoshop.  You would create a new document with a black background and then apply the brush on a separate layer and save it (I usually go with png). Then you would load that image onto the plane in DS. The image goes into the base color, emissive, and cutout. (You'll also want to change the gloss color to black.) Obviously, the specific emissive values will need to be tweaked to your specific needs. The reason why we need to have the brushes on the black background (or like I said before, many of Ron's brushes already come with a folder full of overlay files made up on black backgrounds), is so that the cutout will know what needs to be invisible. I hope that helps!

    PS - This technique can also be used to make an actual background for your render in DS, rather than using HDRI or adding it in post. Just forego the cutout and load in whatever image you want onto the plane and position as needed (this totally beats out using the backdrop tab). The challenge there, however, is making sure the lighting matches. 

    PPS - I also use Adobe Stock to find overlays...those are not free, though...but if you search for "overlay" and whatever you're looking for, be it dust or embers or fog, you'll find tons. 

    Thank you very much for your reply.  I'm going to have a lot of fun playing with this.

  • nelsonsmithnelsonsmith Posts: 1,337

    I've found a few tutorials on brushes, but I'm going to have to get some in depth photoshop books.  Brushes, in order to achieve some of the results I'm seeing in many promo renders, and other artwork requires some real skills.  I always pick up some of Ron's Brushes whenever they go on sale, but as of yet they're just sitting on my HD until I can use them properly.

  • mwokeemwokee Posts: 1,275
    edited February 2020
    It really boils down to how well you know Photoshop. I own most of Ron's products and use them in virtually every image I create because it's impossible to get the same effects in a render. Steam and Smoke brushes can be used to create fog and... well... smoke. Background JPGs can be used as overlays to create textures on clothes. Daz clothes are always too uniform and clean, giving them more texture makes them more realistic. Dirt and Grit brushes can also add texture to just about anything as most Daz products render too clean and sterile looking. Light and Shadow brushes create lighting effects you can't do in Daz. Background JPGs also make nice backgrounds for portraits. PSDs such as cables and wires and other props provide objects you can add into a scene. But adding "props" usually requires additional Photoshop skills in order to "blend" the object into the scene so it doesn't look out of place. Many of Ron's products can be used for digital art applications, not just finishing touches for renders. Virtually every image in my gallery here has been post worked with something from Ron.
    Post edited by mwokee on
  • MelanieLMelanieL Posts: 7,729

    Steam and Smoke brushes also make quite effective fire with a little effort - Ron Deviney created a free sampler set of brushes which indcludes a tutorial on how to make fire - you can find them here: https://www.brusheezy.com/brushes/12896-rons-sampler-brushes

  • Mr ScottMr Scott Posts: 51

    Will Ron's Brushes work with GIMP?

  • DripDrip Posts: 1,238
    scot60656 said:

    Will Ron's Brushes work with GIMP?

    The latest version of Gimp can more or less automatically convert them, there are some guides around for "using photoshop brushes in gimp".
    Do note that not all of Rons' products are brushes. There's also flat images, layers, layerstyles, and a couple of other things (I'm not a Photoshop expert, so forgive that the right names of further tools elude me). I suspect most will work in Gimp, but look through the product carefully (the readme contains a link to a file list) to figure out what's there, and just google or duckduckgo or whatever it for more information.

  • tkdroberttkdrobert Posts: 3,606

    My 1st attempt using Rob's brushes on a plane.  The explosions are Ron's

    Gundam00 by tkdrobert

  • dawnbladedawnblade Posts: 1,723
    edited February 2020

    Thank you @melissastjames for your very helpful instructions! Here is a test with Ron's Explosions and Ron's Ashes inside DS. I also adjusted the plane's Metallic Flakes so that the explosion would look like there were bits of metal flying. I used Iray SurfaceWorx--which Ron and KindredArts teamed up to make--to give the bot scratches/grunge. I didn't think of it in time, but "Ron's Flying Dirt and Debris Particles" would have worked nicely!

     

    RonsBrushesInDS.jpg
    1600 x 900 - 811K
    Post edited by dawnblade on
  • srieschsriesch Posts: 4,243
    edited February 2020

    All my .abr files (or the ones I've tried out of those products anyway) work fine in GIMP.  There was something else that didn't work for me in GIMP, although that was a number of years back so I'm not sure if that still holds true.

    I usually just apply them to a plane, but there's nothing stopping you from picking some premade object that is UV mapped appropriately and applying it to that surface, for example think of a flexible scroll or map object, to instantly give your 2D billboard some bend/twist morph options.

    When you are applying it in Photoshop/GIMP, if you've never done that before, note that brushes vs. pencils will give you different results.

    Post edited by sriesch on
  • tkdroberttkdrobert Posts: 3,606

    Every thing in this picture was made with Ron's Space Brushes except the planet.

    Space Wallpaper 2 by tkdrobert

  • WendyLuvsCatzWendyLuvsCatz Posts: 40,111
    edited February 2020

    And had to convert them all not only with ABRmate but then batch convert in irfanview to use as them as alphas in Zbush though

    Post edited by WendyLuvsCatz on
  • MelissaGTMelissaGT Posts: 2,611
    dawnblade said:

    Thank you @melissastjames for your very helpful instructions! Here is a test with Ron's Explosions and Ron's Ashes inside DS. I also adjusted the plane's Metallic Flakes so that the explosion would look like there were bits of metal flying. I used Iray SurfaceWorx--which Ron and KindredArts teamed up to make--to give the bot scratches/grunge. I didn't think of it in time, but "Ron's Flying Dirt and Debris Particles" would have worked nicely!

     

    Awesome!

  • Griffin AvidGriffin Avid Posts: 3,819

    Here's two videos. One on converting brushes and how to install brushes..- with a plug for my own set. smiley

  • ChoholeChohole Posts: 33,604

    Some of Ron's early water brushes  (image dates from 2010)

  • Fungible UserFungible User Posts: 456
    melissastjames said:

    Most of Ron's packs include overlays already on a black background...and for anything else you can quickly make something up by stamping the brush/brushes you want onto a black background. Then you can easily load that black backround image onto a plane primitive and apply an emissive shader (the same image would also go into the cutout space). I've attached a couple examples that do just that...the embers in the foreground and all of the rain drips and splashes in the second. (As a bonus, the holo-billboard with the girl in the background was also created with this same technique...obviously not one of Ron's brushes though.) I prefer this method as the primitives will react accurately to depth of field, etc...rather than trying to fanagle it in post. There are also many pre-made products in the store that essentially are already packaged versions of the same technique. 

    And as @Drip mentioned, it should be easy enough to load them onto a decal too. I haven't tried it, but I imagine if I can figure out how to make an emissive plane of them, a decal wouldn't be that much more. 

    I really really love your work. Do you have a DA account where I can see more.  I am a huge Cyberpunk and Sci-Fi fan. Your renders are just breathtaking

  • MelissaGTMelissaGT Posts: 2,611
    empty said:
    melissastjames said:

    Most of Ron's packs include overlays already on a black background...and for anything else you can quickly make something up by stamping the brush/brushes you want onto a black background. Then you can easily load that black backround image onto a plane primitive and apply an emissive shader (the same image would also go into the cutout space). I've attached a couple examples that do just that...the embers in the foreground and all of the rain drips and splashes in the second. (As a bonus, the holo-billboard with the girl in the background was also created with this same technique...obviously not one of Ron's brushes though.) I prefer this method as the primitives will react accurately to depth of field, etc...rather than trying to fanagle it in post. There are also many pre-made products in the store that essentially are already packaged versions of the same technique. 

    And as @Drip mentioned, it should be easy enough to load them onto a decal too. I haven't tried it, but I imagine if I can figure out how to make an emissive plane of them, a decal wouldn't be that much more. 

    I really really love your work. Do you have a DA account where I can see more.  I am a huge Cyberpunk and Sci-Fi fan. Your renders are just breathtaking

    I do! Flickr - Tumblr - DeviantArt

    I'll add them to my signature. 

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