UV Map Workflow Questions

[vasf_jeffs]

Guy's I've searched quite a bit, done the tutorials and even gone back to the ofp stuff. Mondkalb's tutorial was great and allowed me to get a simple object into the game with the proper texture, maps, etc. What I'm running into is an utter lack of understanding how to get UVMaps put together for more "complex" objects. So after 5 hours of trial and error (and significant forum searches) I'm throwing myself at the mercy of you the experts.

I"m working on a billboard (don't laugh it is complex enough for me). I have it broken up into the following named sections in lod 0: Support, Advertising, Pole, Catwalk and Ladder. I asked someone earlier on Skype about just uv mapping on rung of the ladder and his reply (yes do that) got me thinking.

Should I be creating a separate UV map as i create each component in a model? Mondkalb's tutorial has you select the whole model first, then do the UV. When I attempt to unwrap more complex objects it doesn't seem to be the right answer as all of the faces aren't being shown. Alternatively can this be done as each object is made (i.e. ladder rung, ladder support, main support, etc)?? If I UV map an object and move it later is the map tied to the component independent of the location?

Is it easier to do the UV maps in 3ds? Any advice on your workflow for uvmapping would be sincerely appreciated.

Thanks,

JeffS

[Max Power]

It would be 1000 times easier to do it in 3ds max once you get used to the tools imo.

[STALKERGB]

I Personally create the whole model before I UV anything, although I personally don't have a good reason for doing it like this, I guess you could say you know how much you'll have to cram into your final UV if the whole model is there beforehand.

Although you can UV stuff in Oxygen, it is sooooo much easier to do it in an external modelling program. I can't speak for 3ds max in particular as I use modo but what would have taken days in O2 takes hours in modo when it coes to UV mapping. For the most part, all I'm doing is selecting edges where I want the "seams" to be and modo does the rest (obviously it needs tweaking here and there but still!)

If you are creating the UV in O2, you can always hide objects that are in the way (Ctrl + H, to unhide I select all Ctrl + A then press Shift + Ctrl + H).

If I UV map an object and move it later is the map tied to the component independent of the location?

The UV map shouldn't change regardless of how you actually edit the model itself. So say you UV'd a box, and then stretched and moved the box about, the UV map will stay the same

[Soul_Assassin]

There are also tools which are made specifically for this:

http://www.uvlayout.com/ for example. Avoid O2 UV tools like wildfire. Maybe only to fix something that you notice waaay after import. As to do it in the end or in progress, both have their own quirks. Sometimes I do UV while I havnt finished the whole model just to avoid being bored with just UV once its done. This way once the model is done so is the UV. Either way it will not affect the final result.
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[b00ce]

For those of us who don't have the wads of cash to throw at modeling programs, here's the easiest way I know how to do it in O2, though it doesn't really work for character meshes or spheres.

First off, you need to create two animation keyframes. This allows you to fillet your model, without destroying it.

Select the second of the two and start separating your model into manageable chunks via "split topology", you should bind it to a key.

Once you have the model in its pieces, you need to flatten it. Use the pin to rotate the faces so they're as flat as possible, though it doesn't have to be perfect.

For more squarish objects, split the faces off and move them away from the main body, rotate and then position them so they "make sense" from a texturing standpoint to you.


For cylinders, split it in half and use SelectObject to select the half you want for rotation.


Once you have the model splayed out, make sure they're all flat against one view port (It also helps to organize them as well), select them all (From that view port) and go into the UV editor.

Once there, hit the planer mapping button (In the middle of the row of buttons, Green box with an arrow pointing to a red mesh.), this will put the faces you selected down.
(If you have a view port that has a side view of the faces active when you "paste" the faces down, it won't work right.)

Make sure all of the faces are inside one of the boxes; once you're happy with it hit file -> Export and save it in your model folder in the P: drive, for the sake of keeping things together, it doesn't matter where... yet.

Next, open the .emf file in MS paint and save it as a .png so you can open it with the texturing program of your choice. (For some reason, Paint.net doesn't recognize EMF or WMF formats)

Once in Paint.net, Gimp, PS or whatever program you use, re-size it (The canvas, not the texture) so it is the nearest base of two (1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024, 2048), though it does not need to be square. 2048x32 works just fine, though it is a little daft to make a texture like that.

Make the UV map mesh the base layer and doodle on it a little (Just enough to make sure its working) Save it as whatever default save file the program has, to save the layers, and then as .TGA (Do NOT use RLE compression, it won't work.)

Once you got that saved, move it to the proper folder. (I use "P:\my_model\materials\texture_co.tga", and have my models in a models folder because I'm used to it from G-mod)

Once everything is where it should be, go back to the UV editor, select everything and copy it. This is important. You'll lose everything if you don't.

Hit Filter -> browse texture and browse for your .TGA file. It'll delete all of your UV data, don't worry, just paste it down again.

Once this is done, go back into O2 and start Buldozer, it'll have to convert the .tga files but it'll work. Alternatively, you can hit "Use Direct 3D" and then "Display Faces Filled" and it'll put the .tga texture on there without the need to convert.

Once you're done and happy with the UV map, go back to keyframe 0 then delete both of them (The keyframes, not the model) and then highlight your whole model and use merge near to stitch the points back up. You may need to do some manual work as well.

For the ladder rungs, I would map 3 or 4 and mix them around going up, so they don't appear to repeat.

Good luck.

Special thanks to Rock who showed this to me a while ago.

[PuFu]

For those of us who don't have the wads of cash to throw at modeling programs, here's the easiest way I know how to do it in O2, though it doesn't really work for character meshes or spheres.

blender is free, so is max, maya, softimage (as long as the output is commercial is free).

Other than that good post

[b00ce]

blender is free, so is max, maya, softimage (as long as the output is commercial is free).

Other than that good post

For students, yes? Not all of us are students.

I've tried blender and couldn't wrap my head around it, no matter what tutorial I followed, and I have a hard time working with any 3D program without 4 views. I know you can get it in blender, but that's a pain too... Blender is not new user friendly.

[PuFu]

For students, yes? Not all of us are students.

no. it is available for anyone for some time now. it is still available via students sub-site, but it is edu version. you don't need to testify you are a student anymore, you can even choose unemployment in this area.

I've tried blender and couldn't wrap my head around it, no matter what tutorial I followed, and I have a hard time working with any 3D program without 4 views. I know you can get it in blender, but that's a pain too... Blender is not new user friendly.

there is no such thing as user friendly 3d software. modo is closest here, but ten again, the more capable the software, he harder to make it noob friendly.

[Messiah]

Booce, no need to manually unwrap cylinders with that technique, O2's unwrap tool will do it perfectly well (Surfaces -> Unwrap Structure). It's a perfectly viable way of UV unwrapping, long winded, but viable. I believe Earl (BISim) pioneered the technique, and taught it to Rock and Myself.

Also, I find i easiest to layout a single sided face in the viewport you want to flatten everything to, so you can a) use it as a template to layout the unwrapped mesh and b) to use 'background from face' to create a texture box, and then load a chequer pattern texture to apply to the unwrapped model (obviously at this stag you can just delete the square guide). In that way you avoid a chunk of the faff with the uv editor, and just have to export the EMF. You can export the EMF at set ratios and make sure to tick all three boxes, which will ensure the EMF mesh stays in ratio by adding a bounding box.

[b00ce]

Oh, sweet, downloading Max now.

I'm definitely going to give it a shot.

Booce, no need to manually unwrap cylinders with that technique, O2's unwrap tool will do it perfectly well (Surfaces -> Unwrap Structure). It's a perfectly viable way of UV unwrapping, long winded, but viable. I believe Earl (BISim) pioneered the technique, and taught it to Rock and Myself.

Also, I find i easiest to layout a single sided face in the viewport you want to flatten everything to, so you can a) use it as a template to layout the unwrapped mesh and b) to use 'background from face' to create a texture box, and then load a chequer pattern texture to apply to the unwrapped model (obviously at this stag you can just delete the square guide). In that way you avoid a chunk of the faff with the uv editor, and just have to export the EMF. You can export the EMF at set ratios and make sure to tick all three boxes, which will ensure the EMF mesh stays in ratio by adding a bounding box.

When ever I tried using the Unwrap structure tool, it gets ugly...

Once the checker is applied to the mesh, how does that translate into the UV map/texture? By that I mean how does it look when you're actually painting it? Do you still have the wire frame?

And I'll have to remember to do that with the EMF though, it'll save a little time.