Using the Relax UVs feature |
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The purpose of this tutorial is to demonstrate how to easily create texture
templates from models with multiple texture maps using UVMapper Professional. I'll be using
the Victoria
mesh available from DAZ3D, but the procedure shown here should
work fine with any model you choose.
Start by loading the model into UVMapper Professional and adjusting the 3D preview so it
resembles the screenshot to the left. You can do this by using the Rotate and Zoom
tools on the toolbar (see below). Right click on the ear in the 3D preview window and choose Select UV Set,
as shown.
Rotate Tool Zoom Tool
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Choose Select | Display | Hide Unselected from the main menu or press
the hotkey ' (apostrophe) to hide the rest of the mesh while we work on the ear.
Use the Rotate and Zoom tools in both the 2D and 3D preview
windows to display the portion of the mesh that we'll be working with.
Note: you can zoom in on the selection and center it for rotation in the
3D preview window by choosing View | Reset View from the main menu, or by presing the hotkey
backspace.
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By clicking on the 2D preview so that it
becomes the current viewport and selecting View | Back Face and View | White so that they are
both checked on the main menu, UVMapper Professional will automatically highlight inverted facets in red. Any facets that
are shown in red will have the texture map displayed backwards when rendering.
We'll correct this problem in the next
step by flattening the texture map.
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Choose Select | Select Method | by Edge from the main menu, or simply click on
the Select by Edge tool on the toolbar (see below.) Choose Select | All from the main
menu, or press the hotkey Ctrl+A to select all edge vertices that are currently displayed. All vertices
that are either selected or hidden are pinned down will not be moved by the Relax UVs routine.
Choose Tools | UVs | Relax from the main menu, or press the hotkey
Shift+Ctrl+R to bring up the Relax UVs dialog box. Change the number of iterations
to 850 and press the Apply button.
Select by
Edge
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Once you're happy with the results, click the OK button to dismiss
the Relax UVs dialog. Press Enter to clear the selection and save your changes.
Notice that there are no longer any facets shown in red indicating that the mapping has now been completely
flattened.
Note: if you'd like to continue the process, you can keep
pressing the Apply button. While the relax routine is running, pressing Cancel will cause
it to stop. Pressing Cancel when the routine is not running will undo the changes you've made using
the Relax UVs routine and dismiss the dialog box.
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For demonstration purposes, I've centered and enlarged the mapping for the ear and displayed
the results using the built in reference texture map (Texture | Checker | Color from the main menu.)
You can see that there is no longer any overlap of the facets, and that the texure now follows the geometry of the mesh
nicely. |