SOLVED: NDO - Add/mix normal map details
polycounter lvl 8
Hi everyone, I'm quite new to NDO, I can't find the correct workflow for a simple problem, here it is.
While doing a personal library of normal map details/decals to add on more complicated baked normal maps, I baked a hipoly bolt to a simple lowpoly plane using xNormal. I got a simple good tangent space normal map that applied to the plane works fine.
How can I use this kind of normal map details in a NDO project? I tried with different workflows but still can't figure the proper way to do it. I also tried using a baked heightmap, but the results are not very good.
While doing a personal library of normal map details/decals to add on more complicated baked normal maps, I baked a hipoly bolt to a simple lowpoly plane using xNormal. I got a simple good tangent space normal map that applied to the plane works fine.
How can I use this kind of normal map details in a NDO project? I tried with different workflows but still can't figure the proper way to do it. I also tried using a baked heightmap, but the results are not very good.
Replies
By the way Teddy, I think its a good idea to change "nDo2" to "ndo" in "Mix" menu just for avoid the inconvenience in user experience.
Ok, and then manually set their blend mode to Overlay, right?
What about normalization? I suppose I have to do it as a separate step after the export/save as...
Moreover, do NDO normal maps need normalization? (I suppose they do, since after applying the xNormal normalization filter in photoshop the color values change)
Isn't there any "export" function that handles all this?
If you need to place your detail on underlaid normal details and don't want to mix it with them like pic.1 You need to place your details before a "NORMAL" ndo folder with "normal blend mode". Or if you need just take each layer and drop down under channel layer in ndo NORMAL folder and apply to them separately Mix -> Normal to nDo2 Normal.
If you want to mix your details you need to apply to each layer separately Mix -> Overlay Normal like on pic.2. (Tip: You can make an action to that layer style apply and bind it on hotkey and you dont need to go in NDO options every time)
Dont use default Overlay blend mode it's basically destroys blue channel.
The Layers Layout variants is respective to numbers above.
Normalization, well as far as i see ndo cant normalize perfectly. But i dont use normal map baked on fully smooth model (like mudbox love to bake) instead i use hard edges/smoothing groups and getting less noticeable gradients on flat surface and i dont have to normalize normal map if I add some details on it. But if you use mixed details on gradient you more likely need to normalize (Like on pic.2).
I may be wrong. And sorry if I dont get your point and wrote a captain obvious post