UV Mapping
I feel like I should just jump off a bridge when UV mapping to save the torture of it, it is by far the most mundane thing in this universe!
Fustration aside, it takes me forever to UV map, my question is how long does it take you to Map a model on average? (trying to guage how slow Iam.)
Do you have any tips or handy hits or methods you use to Map, or have found anything in particular to help you map it quicker?
Edit : Iam using Max 5
Fustration aside, it takes me forever to UV map, my question is how long does it take you to Map a model on average? (trying to guage how slow Iam.)
Do you have any tips or handy hits or methods you use to Map, or have found anything in particular to help you map it quicker?
Edit : Iam using Max 5
Replies
I normally start off with some kind of auto unwrap, then stitch the pieces that don't come out correctly and relax everything to minimize stretching.
Upgrading to 3dsMax 8 or higher will give you some better unwrap tools, I think. Pelt mapping is pretty nice for unfolding cylinders.
Something simple would only take a few hours, but a more complex object can easily take a couple of days. My longest unwrap was for this fella (Shameless sef promotion warning) who despite not looking all that complicated took me the better part of 4 days to unwrap.
Newer versions of Max have greatly improved unwrapping tools (as do many plugins, some of them free), but unwrapping is never going to be easy or remotely fun.
UVlayout takes some time to learn as almost everything is controled via shortcuts but it´s worth the time- its sooo much faster and fun for once. You have symetry functions, straighten tools and lots of other specific great ways to unwrap models in no time. So give the trial a shot and or have a look at some of the videos on the site:
http://www.uvlayout.com/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=67
dont have the money but a uber fast computer? a similar approach (pelt mapping,..) check this freeby:
http://www.pullin-shapes.co.uk/page8.htm
or a blog review:
http://mrblake.wordpress.com/2007/02/15/roadkill-11-uv-unwrap-tool/
(but its almost a pain using it since its way to slow)
modo has some nice unwrapping tools:
http://www.luxology.com/whatismodo/model.aspx
not as awesome as UVLayout but still comes with tools like auto orient edge- islands, pelt mapping loop select,...
there was some other specialized unwrap tool just like UVLayout but I dont know the name anymore but my impression back then was that it was less superior compared to UVLayout
if I am not mistaken id (Doom, Hexxen,...) released some custom scripts for modo to better use it in their Id tech 5 Engine like auto mapping simple objects, terrain,...
Heh, I'd hate to see how you're UV-mapping a character in 3dsmax if it's taking a day or two. UVLayout isn't that much faster than Max if you have a good set of shortcuts setup in Max and maybe Chuggnut's tools if you want.
However as soon as you work with much more dense models it's really becomes a matter of minutes with workflows similar to Roadkill. Last time I unwrapped a nextgen character model it really took me minutes as opposed to the hours I spent on this for instance :
http://www.pioroberson.com/modelpages/pior_3d_bunny_textures.jpg
This is especially true since nextgen mechanical stuff tend to take the form of a shell surrounding the objects outer limit, as opposed to the many little intersecting bits we dealt with a few years back. However as soon as you have separated pieces, there is some slowdown in the process for sure.
But then again, it depends. I simply observed that over the years, it evolved from being a chore to something almost fun and relaxing to do. I do it all in Maya+roadkill tho, used to do it in Max before.
Also, the more box-like the asset, the more precise the unwrap needs to be since you want to be able to paint a straight line on the texture and see it just as straight on the model. But as soon as you move to normalmaps, this doesn't apply anymore in my opinion - except for cylinder edges, that can be dealt with in many different manners.
a good UV layout plugin for max would be a godsend..
No your probably the type of guy we would like to collaborate with LOL.
I cant stand UV mapping, very boring but unfortunately necessary until the day when autounwrap and 3d painting work so well together that no one uses 2d texture painting.
Lol
Anyway, UV Mapping is boring, but yes, it's quite necessary, but I don't hate it. Maybe it's because I just do lowpoly models (I've never UV mapped anything above 2k polys) and am not really a perfectionist. All I do to UV Map is select the faces, make a quick planar map, do a relax, and then adjust as needed (if I adjust at all) xD But I'm a noob, so don't do what I do
yeah I always paint textures in photoshop or painter, even though I have access for bodypaint/zbrush I just use it to paint away seams or to lay down a rough texture. But 3D is probably the way its going.
Imagine the day when you can make a basemesh of a few hundred tris , start sculpting and get it finished and then when its done go down to the lvl2 or 3 of the mesh at around 15000 polys and hit the auto-retopologise button and then adjust a few edge loops and hit the auto-unwrap button, check the placement and size of the unwrap, then start texture painting and then its done. It would be a dream come true for me, so fast and so art focused.