Resolved - Milkshape and UV mapping for objects - Can we use it?

[porkypine]

HI, I am accustomed to using Milkshape for clothing and hair meshes and for working with the UV maps in Milkshape for clothing and hair. Is it necessary to use UVMapper on object mapping? Can't we use Milkshape for object UV mapping too? Or, is there some kind of problem using Milkshape UV mapping on objects?

[Paleoanth]

For me it depends on the object. I DO use Milkshape mapper for square objects, but I have found for rounder things I have to use UV Mapper classic, then import into Milkshape and rescale.

[porkypine]

That's good to know. thanks! :D I'm working on some squarish stuff. :D

[Dr Pixel]

I never use anything but the built-in UV mapping in MilkShape - I find it much better to uv_map parts immediately as I make them, sometimes even before I "shape" them.

I must admit, though, that I do things quite differently than most tutorials.

I actually make at least a primative texture image first, before I ever start on the actual meshing, then Uv_map my parts onto it as I make them.

Of course, this means I sometimes need to go back and forth, revising either the texture image or the UV_map (or both) as I go along, but I think it produces much better results this way.

[porkypine]

Thanks! I've found that using the uvmapper is somewhat cumbersome. but then again. for those who hate Milkshape, they probably like uvmapper..

One thing I dislike about uvmapper is that your map is horizontal but once you 'import' it, it can tuen verticla which totally stretches the texture map. Looking at the layout of the original texture map and placing the Milkshape UV map onto it will work best for me.

I guess it's all what you are accustomed to using. :D Since I've already learned the quirks of Milkshape, I'll keep using that. :DThanks guys!

[Paleoanth]

Dr. Pixel-how do you use Milkshape mapper for round objects? Doesn't it cause stretching?

[Dr Pixel]

You mean like a sphere?

Yes, a sphere will be distorted if you just simply uv_map it straight-on, from only one "veiw" - but often, this will be fine depending on it's intended purpose. For example, a brass bedpost - it will look great uv_mapped from a side view, then textured to be brighter in the middle, darker towards the sides.

Or, it is easy to select only certain faces, and uv_map them from different views - then put them side-by-side. Great for, say, an umbrella or a lampshade.

If I was making something like a globe, where I wanted as little distortion as possible, in that case I would in fact use an external mapper (I have the old, free, version of LithUnwrap myself, and it does have some excellent options for sphere-mapping.

A cylinder, again, will be distorted around the sides if uv_mapped from a single "view" - but again, often this is desirable - for example, the 8 multiple twisted exhaust pipes used on my car engine were made from a multi - stack cylinder which I uv_mapped from the side immediately after making it. Then I duplicated it and made all the twists and turns. The end result is that all the pipes are uv_mapped to a single small rectangle which was also very easy to highlight to give it a nice rounded appearance without using a gazillion polys.

Cylinders do have another advantage though - if you need a sort of continuous strip uv_map, you simply leave it alone - MilkShape automatically uv_maps cylinders into a continous strip when you make them, you just need to scale this as needed - great for something like a soda can with logo's all the way around, no distortion. All you have to do is separately select and uv_map the top and bottom faces.

With a box, once again, you can separately select and uv_map the faces from different "views", if necessary. So, for a tabletop, you can uv_map just the top of it from the top view, the front and back edges from a front view, and the left and right edges from a left (or right) view, and get a nice wood-grain to appear on all of them quite easily.

It can seem a bit awkward to use MilkShape's built-in uv_mapper at first, since it doesn't have a lot of the features of external uv_mapping programs, but if you play with it a while you will find many other good tricks that can't really be done after-the-fact - for example one of my earliset projects was a desktop picture in a frame - I made it sit at an angle to the tabletop, as well as having it "lean back" on it's stand - but I uv_mapped it first, while it was still a plain, flat, rectangle - so the texture image for the picture is easy, it's simply a plain rectanglular picture just like on a Maxis painting. If I had uv_mapped it afterwards, the picture texture area would be an odd-shaped trapezoid and the picture would always look distorted...

I'm not saying to throw out your uv_mapping program, of course there will be times when it will be better for all, or part, of your mesh.

But don't overlook the built-in mapping tools in MilkShape (or whatever 3d editor you use)

[IgnorantBliss]

One thing I dislike about uvmapper is that your map is horizontal but once you 'import' it, it can tuen verticla which totally stretches the texture map.

You can change the dimensions of the map to anything you like. You can change the shape of the window to get the correct dimensions while working on it, and when you export, you can set the pixel dimensions to anything you like, as well. I never leave the UVMapper window to the shape it's when I first open a map, I change it a lot :)

[Paleoanth]

Those are some great tips. I had just started doing what you have suggested, Dr Pixel, when I made my kitchen meshes. Since someone else was doing all the recolors, it soon became clear that it was often easier for me to adjust my map according to her textures than it was for her to try and continuously tweak her texture to my original map. Doing this project with someone else helped my mapping skills immensely. I didn't know that about the cylinders, though. That is very cool.

I have found, like you, that doing a sphere I have to use UVmapper classic first and then rescale in Milkshape unless I want a certain amount of distortion which I did on an egg decoration I just did as a part of another upcoming set.

IB-I haven't played with it much, but I do know there is also a way to rotate the map or even subgroups in UVmapper.

Mapping is something that probably takes more time than anything else when I do a mesh. I am still figuring out exactly the best way to do something often by trial and error.

[IgnorantBliss]

Yes, rotating is possible, too. There are a lot of things you can do with UVMapper, just takes a while to figure out everything, and there is no undo option.

[porkypine]

Thanks for all the tips! I appreciate it. :D