What are all softwares that I need to make textures as good as Vale Koer, Dust Bunny, Blueberryand such

[IIianII]

I know I'm aiming too high, esp for someone who does not have proper training on mesh making but I'm really really motivated. I want to know what it takes to make it to that level and I want to know what the pros do. I know it takes more than just having all the right software but I have to start somewhere, right?

So if there's any pro out there who are willing to help I'd be glad to take your advice.

[Sciuriadi]

I am by no means an expert on texturing but I do love to tinker in 3d packages. Generally "realistic" looking textures will be baked from a high resolution model (very high polygon count) to a low resolution model. That way one can accurately render things like creases onto a flat surface so as it looks like it has depth. With the use of a normal map as well as baked shadows one can get a pretty nice effect. Some folks however paint their textures completely by hand. As for software, there are many choices out there, from free and very effective to ridiculously expensive. Personally I have subscribed to use Photoshop for texture editing and also use Blender for the modelling side of things which is free. Many people use GIMP in place of Photoshop, this is a free program and can produce amazing results. However I find the interface a little clunky for my liking.

For the textures themselves, you can get some lovely looking effects by simply playing around with filters and layers in Photoshop. These work nicely for basic surface textures, although for more specific patterns take a camera out into the world and take pictures of EVERYTHING. You never know when that close up of a discarded sofa or the wall of the local church will come in handy. There's thousands of tutorials on Youtube detailing how to use both Photoshop and Blender. The learning curve is pretty steep if you are looking to make complex items but it's well worth the effort.

[carley Greymoon]

you have to piece it together yourself.

here is a list of some popular programs pros and hobbists alike use for everything from sculpting mesh to making textures, in no particular order:

maya

3D Max

Modo

Wings 3d

Mudbox

Zbrush

3D coat

Blender

Gimp

Photoshop

Paintshop

Cinema 4D

Mari

Marvelous Designer

there are a lot more.

 

 

 

 

 

[Chic Aeon]

I am not sure about the others but "from the look" it appears that Blueberry uses Maya. She gave away a lovely house a couple of years ago at Christmas and it definitely had that Maya bake which is impressive.  I am a Blender user and I still sigh over that Maya bake which I have never seen reproduced using Blender. 

While there is no real "need" for post processing after a 3D render onto a texture plane, it is of course done sometimes. The most popular graphics program and the one used by most of the pros is Photoshop.

Having and using those programs of course doesn't guarantee in any way that you will get the same look or quality -- at least not before a few thousands of hours of practice, learning and trial and error (and no, that really wasn't an exaggeration :D).   

Enjoy the learning journey! 

 

 

[Bitsy Buccaneer]

Would you consider breaking it down into smaller pieces? Learning to make good mesh is hard, but you can buy quality full perm mesh clothing to texture yourself. Then you only have 1,694 more steps to learn in order to sell things in SL.

In getting to grips with making mesh for SL, I'd really suggest starting with simple, static projects like decorative items. Living with your completed projects will help you figure out what aspects you most need to improve on.

For software, GIMP (for textures, custom textures with the shadow layers from FP mesh, plus vendor pictures, signs and advertising) and Blender (mesh, animations, baked textures if that suits your work) are both free and very useful.

It can feel overwhelming if you dive in at the deep end, but fortunately there are other approaches. Taking it one step at a time gives the buzz of finishing something with a manageable amount of frustration. I heartily recommend it.

[Klytyna]

On 10 October 2017 at 4:54 PM, IIianII said:

So if there's any pro out there who are willing to help I'd be glad to take your advice.

You're coming at the problem from the wrong direction...

Many people seem to think that the 'secret' to making 'great textures' is what application they buy, which one has the best "make art" button.

There is no "make art" button, what makes for great textures is... SKILL & TALENT.

One can be learned with patience, the other can't. Neither can be purchased in a damn box.
 

[ChinRey]

Klytyna is absolutely right. The only software that is really important is the grey one between your ears. Everything else are just handy tools to get the job done faster.

 

Edited October 15, 2017 by ChinRey

[Lexbot Sinister]

Of course, no texture/object/any other work gets any better than the makers skills, BUT that doesn't mean you can't ask about, and see what program lies behind a specific texture or model.

Just like a long-time Photoshop user can recognize every filter Photoshop inherently comes with, and most effects, a Zbrush user will recognize Matcap texturing.

Same with models, every program has it's quirks, and leaves recognizable traces behind. The more you mix different programs for different tasks, the less is it possible to say what programs were involved.

 

While i can't answer the question of the thread title, i don't find it offensive as in asking for the "create art" button. I'm willing to bet that there's people that can pinpoint exactly what program Blueberry textures with, for an example.

 

[Haytch Quicksand]

I'm Actually a Senior Environment Artist at Rebellion ( A Game Studio )

And to get 'realistic looking textures' you can either do two things, one, use programmes like Substance Designer/Painter To create procedural textures which hold any resolution you require. or two: use programs like Zbrush (Sculpting) And Maya/3DS/Blender to Model any specific textures (Like Trims, Sidewalks Etc) Then Bake the High Poly onto Low poly Planes with use of the Full UV Grid giving you a power of 2 Texture, Don't forget to bake Gloss/Roughness, Specular, Diffuse & also Normals

I Don't think Secondlife Uses any of the PBR Material workflow yet so you're limited to Diffuse & Specular with normal instead of Diffuse Glossy Normal (Photorealistic)

A Third option is to use a high megapixel camera and Photosource/Scan the Specific thing you want to make, using BM2 (Bitmap2Material) To Create the Entire texture set.

Any other questions email me for more info.

 

Meshcore@Live.co.uk

I Don't have a lot of materials here but here's my artstation

https://www.artstation.com/haytch 

You can see what I talk about by texture resolution etc here

[Charlotte Bartlett]

It also is really not just which software.... to really get the bakes you want you are going to need to know how to light a scene, how to make it efficient etc (e.g. samples / balanced with AA). 

There is some fantastic theory out there made far more easier for the likes of us SL creators who are not always formally trained.     I did the Grant Warrick Vray course.   To get some theory under my belt on using Vray (even though he uses a different underlying software 3ds).  So once I got the theory I could apply it to my specific workflow where applicable - it really helped my workflow speed up for example.

One thing I have learnt in 5 years of making meshes preceded by 6 years of SL regular creation, is there is always a ton to still learn / software keeps improving.

There is no easy route that's for sure, and a lot of the creators who do lovely bakes have put a significant level of work in.      

A lot of creators I see use Blender and Cycles and seem to get good results with that.  And the positive news is low cost and a ton of SL tutorials are aimed at this software.

Creators who have that detail you are seeing likely are using z-brush in their workflow.

And agree with the Maya render/bake on the clothing items mentioned.  Also with powerful rigs to push super bakes so their hardware will be prepped for the work too.