Texture Critique/Help Needed

KennyTies

Hi all, coming fresh off of GDC and recommendations and encouragement from Josh Singh and others I have decided to post some of my stuff. I really need help on texture critiques and really making my props pop! Thanks in advance. Also I apologize if the images are to big I am still new to this.

JBelay

Hey,
Some quick comments

first image: It is not exactly clear what the function of this asset is in the fiction of the world. Try to think of what the object's purpose is, so that each of its design choices support its function. The texturing should also match this assets purpose in the world. Think about why paint would be worn in certain areas and not others. Here is a good read about hard surface texturing. Be careful not to over do the wear and tear.

http://www.game-artist.net/forums/spotlight-articles/42-tutorial-hard-surface-texture-painting.html


Grenade: Apply the same texturing logic to this object. Also I would try to make the wooden handle look more like wood. It is not quite reading as wood.

Barrel: Push the lights and darks in your texture. Also watch your uvs the metal strips around the barrel are half metal texture half wood texture. Does the barrel have a top? What happens if it is viewed from a higher angle?

Hope this helps some, keep at it!

strobelite

I think if there's one thing I could recommend, it would be to push color and value variation in your textures. Even solid colored things can have color variation like warmer lights and cooler shadows. I can see that you're adding some wear and tear to the first two props and that's great! Here's another good link for textures: http://www.cgsociety.org/index.php/CGSFeatures/CGSFeatureSpecial/the_top_ten_tips_of_texturing

I think the barrel would improve by using a harder brush for sharper details and varying the size of the wood grain. I think the most helpful thing is to find some good reference of wood grain patterns and go to town Hope that helps!

KennyTies

@JBelay thank you for the comments, you have me running with even better ideas right now. The first image is actually a scifi pillar in a modular set. Thanks for the link it is very helpful on that. I now realize that I need to work on my localization of texture wear. For the grenade I plain on going back and breaking up the metal a bit more. What would you suggest I do to the wood to make it look more like wood? So for the barrel should I go with darker browns and lighter browns or through some more red and yellow in there. The barrel does not have a top currently, when I did this it was more of a texture practice then anything. Thanks for the tips its very motivating.
@strobelite I totally agree that I could stand to push the color and value variation alot. Thanks for the link I will defiantly study it alot. And as for the barrel after looking at it on here I totally agree that It needs a harder brush to really bring out the details. I also plain on going back to the barrels silhouette and push it further. You guys rock and have totally inspired me to push my work alot further.

KennyTies

Hey all I went back and worked on the barrel a bit more. Crit's and comments welcome. Thanks ahead of time!

strobelite

Awesome! Looking better. I like how you added some different colors and varied the wood grain a bit more. I would add even smaller details for more visual interest, and maybe even push the highlights brighter. What is inside the barrel? Can you add paint on the outside, or maybe stains to indicate its purpose? Also, don't forget the metal! It's looking a bit dull compared to everything else.

KennyTies

@Strobelite Thanks! I plain on adding in smaller details, maybe some chips or something along that line. I also plain on adding wood to the top of the barrel since there originally was not a top to it. Any tips on the hand painted metal?

KennyTies

Continued working on the barrel decided to restart on the texture and go with a different direction.

Anthy9986

The edges of the wood planks do not seem to line up correctly. I like that it is lighter it makes it easier to read but it is lacking most all of its little definition.

KennyTies

Hey Anthy9986 thanks for the crit, I will go back and add more definition in the smaller details, I was just trying to knock out the style in this run. Thanks again. I greatly appreciate the motivation!

KennyTies

Hey all Ive changed gears and decided to work on my hand painted textures for a grander scene in udk. The grass is based off of Jeff Parrott's tutorial and the rocks are based off of Jessica Dinh's rock tutorial.Updated with just the texture sheets.

megancheung

While we do occasionally accept images that have been blended like this, it has to be well executed and with clean results that don't degrade the image. This one just isn't working. The overall quality is poor and the texture seems to be applied only to the sky, which sort of ruins the continuity of the "grungy old image" illusion.

KennyTies

Thanks for the heads up megancheung, I will go back and post the tga files instead of rendering them in a scene.

Blaisoid

hand painted textures need to have a consistent lighting. on your stone texture light comes from all kinds of directions because you rotated stones after painting highlights on them.

stones look obviously cloned, maybe it would look ok if they were small but at this size it's too bold.
i think it would be easier to just fill the canvas with spots of flat colors in varied sizes and shapes, and paint in shadows/highlights only after that is done.

the way it is now you'd have to paint over all stones anyway to fix the light and give them depth (and diversify shapes), so i don't think copying and pasting gave you any advantage over paintng them manually.

grass kinda looks better, but it's pretty blurry and has heavy seams.

KennyTies

@Blasiod, thank you for the awesome critique. I plain on redoing the rock texture at the base and painting the whole thing instead of cloning it all over the place. Where are you seeing the seams on the grass? I currently cannot see them? Thank you once again for your very helpful critiques I will now go back and fix this up.

KennyTies

Hey all I took a new take on the grass and if not already stated im making all of my textures tiling.
I also have been reworking the rocks and decided to individually hand paint each one.
And finally some work on a brick texture.
Thanks in advance for taking a look at my work. Crits and comments welcome.

uohm

hey Kenny-

Just a quick word on your brick texture- be mindful of the vertical joints. In the real world they would never line up as closely as in the middle of your image and if they did the wall would collapse! Do a quick image search on google and notice how each brick overlaps the one underneath. Even if you are trying for a stylized look like in WOW or League of Legends, things like this stand out to players who know better and your environments will not be as immersive.

Keep working, and never forget to gather a reference library of images to inspire you!

killnpc

Keep it up Kenny.

In your free time, I'd suggest drawing some still life. They are very beneficial drawing exercises.

KennyTies

@uohm thanks for the tip it is greatly appreciated. I was running into a problem with the bricks were they would snap to a grid and would give me to much space in between, when I moved them together they were butt up against each other. Any suggestions around this? Thanks again for the awesome feedback! @Killnpc thank you for the amazing feedback and image it is extremely helpful and inspiring. So for the first image I should go back and fix the presentation and work on the minor detail? And for the barrel your saying I should bow it out more. Thank you for the observation with the grass I just noticed the repeating spots. And the last reference for the rocks is exactly what I needed. I will most certainly keep it up all the comments on here have me extremely motivated. I will also take a stab at still life, as I find it very fun. Thanks again everyone for all the awesome comments!