Masking using maps

[Lixus]

Hi all!

Is there a way to masking (a smart material, for example) by using a map?

I´m able to use a map as a stencil, and I also can import maps as curvature, AO, etc

However, I´m not able to find the way to use the map based on the UVs (I also try the Preferred Mapping set as UV mapping, however, the result is this:

The UVs are correct (I´ve tried them in other softwares). I´m a beginner in 3DCoat, so I´m sorry if this is a really basic question (however I did not find anything in the forums or internet or tutorials.

The same way to import the ID map (In other topic on this forum I saw this tutorial:

It´s useful and I´ve been able to import the ID layers. However, when I apply a Smart material on one of the ID layers I brought, it is applied on the entire object. What I´m doing wrong?

Thank you very much!

[Lixus]

Regarding the IDs question, it is answered! The solution is to use the Fill tool.

However I´ve not been able to figure out how to mask the layers by using a map based on the UVs.

Cheers!

 

 

[Carlosan]

Hello

You mean this ?

 

[Lixus]

Hi Carlosan!

Thank you very much for such quick response!

This tutorial is really useful! I did not how to make masks in this way to reveal layers. Thank you very much. However, what I´m trying is using a black and white layer as a mask. There is no problem if I import it a a stencil, and I can use it perfectly. The problem is that it isn´t maped.

For example, I created in Blender a Curvature map for my object:

I´m able to import in Coat3D. But, I´d like, to use it as a mask. For example, I´d like to paint the white areas of this map into blue. I tried creating a Smart material blue, and giving this map as a mask. the problem is that it is not adapting to my UVs:

Even changing the maping to UV mapping it does not work:

I can´t figure out what I´m doing wrong.

Thanks in advance!

 

 

 

[Carlosan]

Try Contrast value at 100% please

Hope it help

[Yousung]

What is the name of the imported Curvature map?

If the imported Curvature map is named 'Layer1', 'Layer2', it will not work.

Change the name of the layer to 'CurvatureMap'.
3DC will automatically recognize it as a Curvature Map and apply it to Smart Material and painting.

 

If you only want to work with the brush, you can change the Condition Top of the menu.

▼ Information about Conditions is on the wiki. ▼

https://3dcoat.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=general:paint_workspace:materials&s[]=condition

https://3dcoat.com/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=general:paint_workspace:paint_menu:textures_menu&s[]=condition

 

 

If you only want to work with smart materials, you can change the Condition here.

 

You can also use a combination of Brush Condition and Smart Material Condition.

[Yousung]

Oh, no need to bother importing and renaming layers. 
When you load a Curvature map with 'Textures - Import - External Curvature', it is automatically set as a Curvature map.

[Lixus]

Wow! Great!

It works perfectly!! Thank you very much you two!

Just a quick question. It is possible to do something similar in 3D Coat as this video? (import external maps to use them as alpha): 

In the video I used a Curvature Map, but the idea is to do with any map with black and white values.

I can achieve the results that I wanted thanks to your advices, so if it is no possible to do something like the video, it does not matter. But it would be really great!

Thanks again!

 

 

[Yousung]

Adjust the following options to control the painting area using the CurvatureMap.
- Overall Cavity Modulator
- Cavity area width
- Additional Cavity width
- Degree
- Contrast

 

If it's not the same as the video, but it's similar, there is a way to use Smart Material's 'Attach to the current layer'.

How to use
1. Right-click on the Smart Material you want to use
2. Click 'Attach to the current layer'
3. You can see that the Smart Material is attached to the selected layer.
- Attached Smart Materials work individually.
4. If you need to edit, right-click on the layer and edit it in the Smart Material Editor.
5. If you need to change to a different material, right-click and use the same Attach to the current layer.

 

All of these have the same Smart Material attached, but
The color has been changed on the layer.

[Carlosan]

Try this

Making a smart material that takes Ao or Curv as a condition. This effectively converts the smart material layer to an alpha of the crevices (and another for protrusions.)

These layers can now be referenced by other layers as a clip mask.

[Lixus]

11 hours ago, Yousung said:

Adjust the following options to control the painting area using the CurvatureMap.
- Overall Cavity Modulator
- Cavity area width
- Additional Cavity width
- Degree
- Contrast

 

If it's not the same as the video, but it's similar, there is a way to use Smart Material's 'Attach to the current layer'.

How to use
1. Right-click on the Smart Material you want to use
2. Click 'Attach to the current layer'
3. You can see that the Smart Material is attached to the selected layer.
- Attached Smart Materials work individually.
4. If you need to edit, right-click on the layer and edit it in the Smart Material Editor.
5. If you need to change to a different material, right-click and use the same Attach to the current layer.

 

All of these have the same Smart Material attached, but
The color has been changed on the layer.

Awesome! I did not know that you can attatch a Material to a layer.

 

Thank you very much!

[Lixus]

4 hours ago, Carlosan said:

Try this

Making a smart material that takes Ao or Curv as a condition. This effectively converts the smart material layer to an alpha of the crevices (and another for protrusions.)

These layers can now be referenced by other layers as a clip mask.

Great!

And how it works? I need to add a AO or Curvature map to the condition parameter?

And then, the layer where I applied the material is a mask layer?

Cheers!

[Carlosan]

 Ao or Curv

These layers can now be referenced by other layers as a clip mask.

 

 

[Lixus]

17 hours ago, Carlosan said:

 Ao or Curv

These layers can now be referenced by other layers as a clip mask.

 

 

Oh sorry, that´s right!

Thank you very much!

[SpectrumZX]

Is it possible to add a mask to draw on it, which was imported from Photoshop? 

[Carlosan]

Try this: import the mask picture to new layer, and use this layer as Paint layer mask

[SpectrumZX]

Quote

Try this: import the mask picture to new layer, and use this layer as Paint layer mask

Not work. This is the first thing i did or am i doing something wrong

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iL6m4esSMF_11gcnF6rQ4lxarP8YmFtq/view?usp=sharing

upd: I understand that you need to import a mask with transparency, then it works and you can further edit it in 3d coat. But now there is a question how to export this edited mask to 3d coat also with transparency? There is an option to use edit layers of the mask through the "synchronize layer" command, then this mask will move to Photoshop and from there it can be saved to a file

 

upd2:I also noticed a strong difference in the quality of the normal map when painting with a mask and when painting on a layer with a depth channel. It does not matter whether this mask is drawn in the 3 coat itself or was drawn in Photoshop and then imported. Is this somehow fixed?

when the resolution is increased to 8k, the difference in the quality of the normal map is even more obvious

[Carlosan]

This video is showing an outdated version, but the base workflow remains the same

 

quality of paint depends of quality of mask, avoid dithered maps.

[SpectrumZX]

53 minutes ago, Carlosan said:

This video is showing an outdated version, but the base workflow remains the same

 

quality of paint depends of quality of mask, avoid dithered maps.

Yes, I figured it out. But I didn’t figure out how to fix the noise on the normal map when you draw a mask

[Carlosan]

When you draw a mask, only opacity must be used.