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# 82 19-01-2010 , 05:05 PM
ctbram's Avatar
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Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Michigan, USA
Posts: 2,998
Okay since this is a learning process I thought I might share some stuff as I go along.

In the little bit of texturing I have done so far I tried adding a bump to the panel lines. However, I now realize that trying to add bump in the end is probably not worth it for a few reasons.

From almost any camera distance the actual bump is imperceivable and from any angle where you can make out the bump the panel lines appear to be cavernous. My map for the nose is 4k x 4k and the 1 px panel line is still almost too thick. Finally, when rendering computing bump adds unnecessary time. So in the end I am going to just use color, diffuse, and spec for panel lines.

I find the panel lines are a good guide to determine the minimum area of your texture map though. For any map they tend to be the smallest visible thing at just 1px, so sizing the map so that they look correct from the closest distance you plan to render from pretty much insures everything else will have plenty of texture space.


"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Isaac Newton, 1675

Last edited by ctbram; 19-01-2010 at 05:10 PM.