I could use some help with ZBrush
theweezel_c08014c91f
Posts: 59
So a little history. Using the Victoria 4 model I had a character I really enjoyed using who was a female version of Frankenstein's monster, basically a woman made up of stitched together parts. From that time I have moved from Poser and V4 to DazStudio and G3F. With that change now I feel like I want to recreate her for the new model. I have done what I think is a good job so far and stitched together skin textures, bump maps, specular maps, and normal maps to give me a good looking character. Once everythere there was right I decided that the two last things to do were to modify the normal maps to better convey the seams between parts and then to convey the stitches used to hold the parts together.
So at this point for this character I need to modify the Normal maps and then work on the textures to look right. The problem I am having is that while I can export the character as an Obj and get it into the trial version of Zbrush I do need to load in either the bump map or texture so that I can see where I need to push down in the application to form a realistic seam. Is there a way to load in those normal maps and textures for while I am working so I can really make everything look right? I have very little artistic ability and so really think it is a bad idea to start from scratch.
I'll be absolutely honest and admit I am way way way out of my depths here. I love my Frankie character because clothing resources I have take on a new life over her green patchwork form. I really want to do her justice because while I may just be a hobbiest this is the character that really took me from occasional use to the hobby I can't wait to get home and work on. I know this is likely basic knowledge to some of you experts out there and I realize that is probably so common place that it should be basic knowledge but honestly when I have looked I find how to export as these file types but nothing on how to get them in to be used as a base. Please any help, direction, or references that you can provide or point me to would be cherished by me (I was going to say appreciated but really it is far more personally important to do Frankie justice than something that would be simply appreciated).
Thank you for any support you can provied a poor ignorant novice.
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Comments
How did you create your normal maps? Did you have a high poly version of the model? Hopefully you kept that as that is ideally what you would use to continue the work in order to change the mesh and produce new normals with the modified seams. So let's find out if you have that option available to you first.
To be perfectly honest, I am not sure if ZBrush handles multiple maps that are used in DAZ studio genesis models... So what you are trying to do is NOT a simple task, even for more advanced users.
You are trying to make a new character from the Genesis 3 Female base, is that correct? Well, if what I remember is correct - ZBrush does not support multiple texture/bump/etc maps, so you will have to load a normal map for the select body part - perform your work on the part - then export the map and swap to a different one to continue work and so on.
I'll check how the process would look in Zbrush when I return from work. Unless someone remembers how this is handled and you get a response sooner.
That said - if you have little to no experience with this kind of work, it might be better to just hire someone to do the job for you. Just saying.
There are materials which will assist you in painting bump and normal maps, but I've had no luck in loading existing maps so they can be modified. ZBrush workflows seem more focused on the creation of normals from high resolution models to a low poly cage.
Mudbox has a workflow that is closer to working in Photoshop and handles import/export of texture maps to and from Mudbox and Photoshop much better. I believe Mari will, too, but Mari is a darned site more expensive than Mudbox.
Well the character I am doing is only for my personal use so not something I really care about hiring for. I actually don't mind doing one part at a time. So far where I have the seams they are always contained on a single texture anyway so I won't need to match anything up from one side to the other.
The only other idea I had was to make normals from scratch and then go back and modify the textures I have already made to have them match the normal map. For obvious reasons that isn't something I want to get into doing though will admit that it could prove to be more organic looking in the end and would span between different textures.
"but Mari is a darned site more expensive than Mudbox"
Actually, Chris, it doesn't have to be, if being used for non-commercial purposes. The Foundry offers a free non-commercial version of Mari, available here:
https://www.thefoundry.co.uk/products/non-commercial/mari-non-commercial/
But Mari does have a 15 day trial. So long as I can get what I want done in that time I would be happy. I don't have the desire to make a lot of characters, Or really anyone but this one. I am happy that I wasn't foolish and just have layered PSD's using masking to get my final rextures. If I need to change up where the seams are I don't have to start from scratch. Alternately if one of these tools is awesome for doing everything then I could get far more interesting seams on her.
The 15 day trial version of Mari is great, since it is the full version of the software, if someone is interested in "try before you buy". But the licence expires after 15 days of use, naturally, which isn't a lot of time to learn, much less assess, the software. The non-commercial version on the other hand, although it does have certain limitations compared to the full version (which see), automatically renews the licence every 60 days, ostensibly in perpetuity.