Tutorial #2 - Textures with Texporter

Level: intermediate
Tecnique: planar map+textporter
Software: 3DSMAX 5.0

Copyright Krishnamurti Martins Costa. 2003.

In this small tutorial, I will try to demonstrate the use easiness and the flexibility of TEXPORTER, (free plugin) with two simple planar maps, an alternative for who doesn't intend to lose a long time "sewing" unwraps. You will be knowing one in the simplest and effective ways of mapping an object. For that tutorial, I used only 2 maps and 1 mask (b&w map). With time and according to your need, you can discover that the number of maps can be 3, 5, 20 or how many your object needs.

1. Choose the object to be mapped. In this case, I will be using the plumber's boot (editable poly), modeled for my short movie WIP:

2. We will apply the first UVW map for it to cover all the lateral of the boot. This map will be defined as planar, X axis, channel #1. A "fit map" always help.

3. Then, I applied second UVW front map. This map will also be defined as planar however in the channel 2 (don't forget!). Select the "gizmo" and rotate 45 degrees in relation to lateral, as illustrated above. Click again in "fit".

4. Activate the texporter's menu as in the illustration below. If it still not available, add it clicking in the button "configure button sets":

5. Click in texporter. We will generate the first map for painting in photoshop. For this work, I configured in the way demonstrated below. Again, don't forget to verify the map channel, in this case configured for #1.

6. Click in "pick object" and click in the object. It will show the base map for texture. Observe that he will generate the map with the proportions in agreement with the proportions of the object. As the boot has a almost square shape, I used the resolution of 1100x1000 pixels. You should adapt that resolution for fit in the best way in your object shape. Otherwise, undesirable distortions can be generated in the texture. I saved this image with this name: Bota_Lateral_Ref1.jpg. Here is the generated texture base:

7. Repeat the procedure above with a single difference: configure the map channel for 2 (don't forget!). Observes that I altered the size of the texture for 600x1500 pixels, adapting better to the proportions of the front area, where they are located the shoelaces. I saved this image as Bota_Frente_Ref1.jpg

8. Open those two generated images in photoshop and paint them in the way that you prefer. My final textures are these:

10. Using the image of the lateral of the boot as reference, I painted an opacity map (mask), where, the more black, more transparent and the more white, less transparent. For that, I used as reference the seam that involves the area of the shoelaces. He will serve as the map that will "mix" the two coordinates UVW configured according to the previous procedures:

11. Create a new material according to your need. In this case, I created an opaque material:

12. Add to your material, in the "diffuse color" channel a "mix" material (in the illustration, forget the other channels for the time being). Add the first image (front / shoelaces) in the superior slot, the second image (lateral) in the slot of the middle and the b&w mask in the inferior slot. The material editor will show a similar screen:

13. Configure the parameters of each one of them according to the illustrations below (front, side and mask, respectively):

15. After the end of the tests and certainty that it is everything ok, you can collapse the maps and object and do small adjustments in the model, if you prefers:

16. Here is the model after the maps be applied and with addition of some irregularities in the boot shape:

18. Here's the boots final version, mapped without "amendments":