06.11.2023 – Substance Painter
Week 6 – Basic tools in Substance Painter
Substance Painter is a powerful tool for texturing. I had used it at my previous workplace, but that was an older version, so I needed to update my knowledge.
Creating a New Project
When you want to texture complex and unwrapped models like 3D scan data or downloaded files, you can use the “Auto unwrap” feature. When creating a new project, you’ll encounter several settings:
- File: Selecting a model is essential for creating a new project. You can import mesh files such as FBX, OBJ, USD, and so on.
- Document Resolution: Set it according to your models. If there’s a specific size requirement, you can choose that. For smaller props or less critical items, 1K or 2K resolution is sufficient.
- Normal Map Format: Set it based on the rendering tools you’ll use. For example, Unreal Engine uses the DirectX system, while Unity Engine projects may use OpenGL. Don’t worry too much about this because you can change it anytime after creating the project.
- Use UV Tile Workflow: This option is handy when working with multiple UV tile maps. If you’ve unwrapped UVs in a 1×1 layout, you don’t need to select it. Change this option to only one UV when using Auto-unwrap for the model.
- Import Cameras: If your model file contains specific cameras, you can check this option. If not, simply turn it off.
Preparation before texturing
Once you’ve created the project, you’ll see the model on the left and the UVs on the right. Before you start texturing, it’s essential to bake maps. If you have multiple UVs, it’s a good practice to change the names (you can divide texture sets by applying other shaders in Maya). After configuring this, move to the Bake Settings.
Here, you’ll find options for the mesh maps you can bake for texturing. It’s usually best to use the default settings, as they cover the basics. Set the output size to match the size you selected at the project’s start. After all the settings are adjusted, click “Bake Selected Textures.” If you don’t need to bake specific texture sets, you can remove the checkmark. In my case, I didn’t need Ambient Occlusion because the UV covers both sides of the eyes.
After you finish baking, you can review the baked files on the “Texture Set Setting” tab. You can also change the size of the UV here. With that, the preparation for texturing is complete, and you can start painting or adding materials to your model.
Texturing
There are two types of layers you can paint over: the normal “Layer” and the “Fill Layer.” You can brush on a normal layer as you see fit, not just with paint but also materials. The settings can be adjusted in the “Properties” tab. If you click any material in the “Assets” tab while selecting a brush, the material is immediately ready for use in painting.
However, I didn’t prefer directly drawing on the normal layer because it’s challenging to edit after you draw, especially for other maps like roughness and metal. So, I usually created a “Fill Layer” and added a mask before painting. In my experience, this approach is easier to edit but can become challenging to manage when dealing with many layers, and it may make the project file heavy.
There are many more features you can explore for texturing, so there’s still much to learn..
Manos provided some useful links for further study:
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