UVW head examples plz (my search skill sux)

mikejkelley

Hello, long time polycount fan, first time poster...

I have been character modeling for quite some time but I am a complete noob when it comees to UVWs. I am currently working on a model for a game mod called Nosferatu (QII engine btw) and have finally refined it to the point where I can begin UVW unwrapping (I'm quite obsessive-compulsive, so it's been a long time in the coming!).

I've made a map but when I throw a checker on it, the pattern looks very much less than square, which I have been told is a bad thing.

Would anyone be so kind as to post some examples of a "good" UVW head-map? Any help would be appreciated...

Eric Chadwick

Sounds like you might be using 3ds max.

This tutorial should help you get started.
http://www.planetquake.com/polycount/cottages/bk-coffeehouse/tut-max-mapping.shtml

More info about the various 3ds max UVW tools here.
http://waylon-art.com/uvw_tutorial/uvwtut_01.html

As for UV-ing heads, BoBo the seal seems to be pretty good at it. Notice how he halves the head map, but not entirely... he leaves part of the head un-mirrored, for variety (But for Q2 you'll want to use much smaller textures).
http://www.bobotheseal.com/personal_work/textures/engineer-final02.jpg
Another good example of his, this time with more texture res... (also not for Quake 2 I believe)
http://www.bobotheseal.com/portfolio/EF2/render05.jpg

Good luck with it!

mikejkelley

Thnx! The Waylon site was especially helpful. Sometimes it seems to be a question of knowing which buttons to push. Speaking of which...

I've applied a checker patterned material to my head but it doesn't show up in the viewport. I've "applied the material to selection" and I've checked the "show map in viewport" cube in the material editor window, but still, nothing. The only time I can see the checkers applied is when I select all the faces and render.

I assume this to be a settings issue and another "which buttons do I push" problem, so, uh, which buttons do I push?...

Eric Chadwick

Is the checker in the Diffuse Color channel?
What graphics card are you using?

mikejkelley

Yep, checker in the Diffuse Color channel. Using a Radeon 9800 SE.

Eric Chadwick

Ah... is the viewport set to Smooth (shaded)?

mikejkelley

Thanks. that has seemed to clear up the problem!

ino, does this seem to be a passable uvw layout? The head is 308 tris.

melkior

kudos to you for trying to check if the UVW is passable; why dont you pass it by the person who has to paint it and see how they feel about it? Its nice when the modeler and skinner (if they are separate people) have a workflow and communicate.

I can tell from here it could use a tad of work - but I dont know what they intend to do with the hair/top of the head area.

The face seems to be mostly uniform with a little bit of nose stretching - thats fairly common and most skinners can work around that without too much greif. So its at least mostly passable.


The areas that could use work as I see it form here is the neck and top of head.