One or multiple UV maps?
Hi All,
I tend to have the following workflow for my character modeling.
I divide my character into sections (legs, boots, torso, belt, helmet etc) and then I individually unwrap each of those as 2048 uvmaps. I then rearrange every meshes uv sections so that all the combined maps can fit onto one single uvlayout, which is then imported into photoshop for texturing as one piece.
This means my entire map is covered on one diffuse image. I then bake normals individually for each mesh, and then again combine all mesh sections into one normal map (with the same layout as the diffuse)
Hope that makes sense.
Anyhow to fit all uv (islands?) onto the same 2048 x 2048 map I sometimes need to scale / reduce down some sections. My concern is that by doing this I lose detail / resolution in my texture.
Would it be better to not try and get all on the to the same map, but instead have individual maps for each section. So a diffuse for the boots, a diffuse for the torse, a diffuse for the helmet etc (and of course likewise for nrmal, oc, ao etc)?
For reference my characters are for games.
Thanks in advance.
EDIT: Wanted to add a question..should you avoid resizing uvmap sections as a rule? For example, if my torso UV map only covers 70% of the UVmap area, should I resize elements bigger to cover free areas?
I tend to have the following workflow for my character modeling.
I divide my character into sections (legs, boots, torso, belt, helmet etc) and then I individually unwrap each of those as 2048 uvmaps. I then rearrange every meshes uv sections so that all the combined maps can fit onto one single uvlayout, which is then imported into photoshop for texturing as one piece.
This means my entire map is covered on one diffuse image. I then bake normals individually for each mesh, and then again combine all mesh sections into one normal map (with the same layout as the diffuse)
Hope that makes sense.
Anyhow to fit all uv (islands?) onto the same 2048 x 2048 map I sometimes need to scale / reduce down some sections. My concern is that by doing this I lose detail / resolution in my texture.
Would it be better to not try and get all on the to the same map, but instead have individual maps for each section. So a diffuse for the boots, a diffuse for the torse, a diffuse for the helmet etc (and of course likewise for nrmal, oc, ao etc)?
For reference my characters are for games.
Thanks in advance.
EDIT: Wanted to add a question..should you avoid resizing uvmap sections as a rule? For example, if my torso UV map only covers 70% of the UVmap area, should I resize elements bigger to cover free areas?
Replies
You will have to condense. Two textures is probably a good starting point - usually one for the head, one for the body.
Heads normally get their own set of maps, due to the amount of focus the face will get in any given game with a first person view point.
The best way forward, performance wise is with a single material. If you have eg. 4 separate diffuse/normal maps, then this will make most programmers cry, as it will have a large performance hit.
Having the UV mapping equal across the model is often the best case with characters. This means that when you view the character with a chequered diffuse applied, all of the squares look roughly the same size. However, like I mentioned with the heads, you can possibly use a little more space with the upper body, and a smaller area for the boots. BUT this depends completely on the game you are working on, so to be safe try and use equal space for all parts, aside from possibly the head.
A case where this is bad practice, would be something with a fixed view. For example, the first person view of a gun. The scope would take up roughly 4 times more relative space than the muzzle. This is to do with the fact that the scope is always up near the screen, whereas the muzzle almost never is.
Go read up on Pixel-Texel ratio to get a better idea of what I'm talking about.
Hope this helps!