Member Slipping_Through_07 Posted January 24, 2011 Member Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 Lets say you have completed a sculpt with a complete set of textures, retopo and uvs. Is it possible to go back and create a new topology and assign it to your sculpt without having to rebake, remerge and repaint your textures? Many thanks in advance! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psmith Posted January 24, 2011 Report Share Posted January 24, 2011 All texture painting operations depend, entirely, on UV maps - which are entirely based on topology. When you "retopo", you change the topology and a new UV map must be created to receive a texture. Since your original painting efforts are based on a completely different UV map, they won't work with the new topology and the correspondingly new UV map. So, the bad new is - you've got to start over, (painting-wise), I mean. Greg Smith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Slipping_Through_07 Posted January 25, 2011 Author Member Report Share Posted January 25, 2011 I had a feeling that was going to be the case. Thanks Psmith! You're a scholar and a gentleman!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reputable Contributor AbnRanger Posted January 25, 2011 Reputable Contributor Report Share Posted January 25, 2011 Actually you can re-project the texture onto another mesh with the Texture baking tool. It needs to be similar in shape, but slightly different topology shouldn't matter. I was once working on a display model that, when subdivided, was too high-poly for the UV unfold to do a very clean job. I had already done the texture work, but the client later wanted the UV layout to be done a specific way. I didn't have a copy of the low res mesh saved, so I sent the high poly model over to Max, used the Dot Loop/Ring tool to reduce the poly count dramatically (been asking for this little tool forever in 3DC) in just a couple of clicks. I then exported that, and re-worked the UV's in 3DC and it did a great job. From there, all I had to do was use the Texture Baking tool to project the texture from the hi-res model to the low res model...with completely different UV's. Worked like a charm. Different topology....different UV's. No problem. I just haven't tried it on a model that is considerably different in overall shape. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psmith Posted January 25, 2011 Report Share Posted January 25, 2011 Sorry, I'm wrong again. I didn't know about this technique. Is it reliable, if the meshes are mostly similar? How about distortion? Is there any? Greg Smith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philnolan3d Posted January 25, 2011 Report Share Posted January 25, 2011 I have used it to bake Ptex textures to a UV map, it works very well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Slipping_Through_07 Posted January 26, 2011 Author Member Report Share Posted January 26, 2011 Tremendous! Awesome advice guys! Thanks so much!!! I'll give it a shot and I will definitely let you know how I make out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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