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Help me find a workflow - 3DC to C4d/Octane


Count Joshula
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Hey everyone, 

I've been doing daily sculpts and so far I've kept my work completely in 3D Coat. And, rendering in 3D Coat just isn't cutting it anymore (for what I'm trying to do, I think it is a nice feature overall). I want to get my work into Cinema 4D and render with Octane.  

Basically, I want to do a High Poly sculpt, texture it, and then get it into C4D.  Automapping High Poly sculpts in 3D Coat often leaves me with a lot of seams.  So, any tips to help with that would be appreciated.  And, I also have a very hard time getting the auto re-topology working.

Here is my current best idea:

1. Create new layer and merge visible to get all my sculpting layers to one layer.  Then, smooth/fill problem areas. Export as OBJ.

2. Use Decimatation Master in ZBrush. Export OBJ.

3.  Go Back to 3D Coat and map the UVs. Export OBJ.

4. Export the High Poly sculpt from 3D Coat and then go to Knald to bake Height/Displacement, AO, Curvature, and whatever else I might need to the Low Poly OBJ.

5. Go Back 3D Coat for painting textures. (optional before painting: Bake the shaders I used during sculpting to the low poly - which works decently)

6. Export to Cinema 4D.

This workflow gives me decent results without losing too much of my original detail.  But I wonder if there's a better workflow.  I want good results, but my priority is definitely speed.  I'm doing sculpts everyday, and adding too much to my workflow will only wear me out.

IDEALLY, my steps would be:

1. Sculpt in 3D Coat

2. Paint on High Poly Sculpt in 3D Coat

3. Magically Export High Poly, painted sculpt to C4D

So, please help me find a way to get my High Poly painted sculpt into C4D as quick and dirty as possible (well, not too dirty).

I also invite you to check my stuff out: https://www.instagram.com/count.joshula/

 

Thanks for reading!

-Josh

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Vertex Colors are not part of the .obj file type specification, however some programs use an unofficial extended format for inter-change and add r,g,b information on the same line as the vertex coordinates.

There was a plugin to solve this issue in C4D.

Or to export a .wrl or .ply file from 3DC and import it into C4D could help too.

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Hmm, the plugin does seem like a step in the right direction. Thanks for pointing it out. And, if I tweaked my workflow to specifically cater to it, then it could work.  Since I would only be getting colors (and nothing else like roughness maps), anything that was a different substance (like metal vs plastic vs skin) would have to be a different object so I could make separate materials in Octane and adjust other parameters accordingly.  It wouldn't give me a lot of control, but it would at least be fast.

I'm also looking into ptex at the moment, but I'm a little unfamiliar with using it. Cinema 4D doesn't support ptex, but it seems like the standalone Octane might. So, I could temporarily use that to get me a step in the right direction.  What I need to find out about Ptex is 1. Can I export multiple maps (albedo/roughness/specular color/etc) and 2. what are the limitations (polygon count a problem?)

 

 

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Little update:  I managed to adjust my workflow a little and figure out how to get things from 3dcoat to Octane.  I think there are still some kinks to work out.  But, attach is my first attempt.

Basically, I sculpted in 3d Coat, and when I was ready to move on, I merged whatever I thought needed merging, then changed the layers to Surface layers.  I then used 3d coat's decimate, and then I exported the OBJs to be auto UVed in 3dcoat.  I then textured the OBJs and exported all the maps to be ready for Octane.

I was hoping to find a workflow that was a little more flexible.  If I wanted to make changes to the sculpt, there's a lot of work I'd have to redo.  But, since I'm trying to do speed sculpts daily, I don't really have to fix mistakes anyway.  

If anyone has any questions, let me know.  

Also, you can follow my progress on instagram, I'll be doing another sculpt late tonight.

031_03.png

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On 9/6/2016 at 0:23 PM, Count Joshula said:

Little update:  I managed to adjust my workflow a little and figure out how to get things from 3dcoat to Octane.  I think there are still some kinks to work out.  But, attach is my first attempt.

Basically, I sculpted in 3d Coat, and when I was ready to move on, I merged whatever I thought needed merging, then changed the layers to Surface layers.  I then used 3d coat's decimate, and then I exported the OBJs to be auto UVed in 3dcoat.  I then textured the OBJs and exported all the maps to be ready for Octane.

I was hoping to find a workflow that was a little more flexible.  If I wanted to make changes to the sculpt, there's a lot of work I'd have to redo.  But, since I'm trying to do speed sculpts daily, I don't really have to fix mistakes anyway.  

If anyone has any questions, let me know.  

Also, you can follow my progress on instagram, I'll be doing another sculpt late tonight.

031_03.png

 

Nice sculpt! And thanks for sharing your workflow from 3DCoat to C4D/Octane. I too have been trying to optimize my workflow to C4D/Octane and am not yet satisfied. The default Octane preset just does not look right in C4D/Octane. Specifically the metal materials. I'm not 100% sure I'm even  setting up the C4D/Octane material correctly. Figured I'd reach out to see what your process is.

First off, when painting, which 'texture export/import workflow' are you using? I think this can be toggled anytime, but figured I'd check. I've been using (the default?) metal/rough workflow, as it aligns with my Unity work. (Unity export preset looks fantastic in-game...just can't get the same thing in C4D/Octane)

Exporting out of 3DC with the default Octane preset (using metal/rough workflow), I get:

  • Normal
  • Albedo color (RGBa)
  • Roughness (RGBa)
  • Metalness (RGBa)

In Cinema, I create new Octane Glossy Material, and add 'c4doctane > image texture' to the color slot and add the albedo. Then another image texture in the specular slot and add the Metalness map from 3DC.  Then another image texture in the roughness slot and add the roughness map from 3DC. Finally, another image texture in the normal slot and add the normal map from 3DC.

The color and normal seem fine, but the metal looks nothing like what I get in 3D Coat. I've loaded the exact same HDR in both C4D/Octane and 3DC, but not even close. Screenshots attached for reference.

Let me know if you have any thoughts. And keep up the great sculpting work!

-Dave

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3DC.jpg

C4D-Octane.jpg

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