Texturing

UV Mapping Techniques

UV Basics

• UV Coordinates: 2D coordinates mapping 3D geometry to 2D texture space
• UV Unwrapping: Process of flattening 3D geometry into 2D space
• UV Seams: Cuts in UV layout to enable flattening
• UV Islands: Connected groups of UV faces
• UV Density: Consistency of texel density across model
• UV Space: 0-1 coordinate space for UV mapping

UV Unwrapping Methods

• Automatic Unwrapping: Algorithmic UV generation
• Manual Unwrapping: Manual seam placement and unfolding
• Projection Mapping: Project UVs from different views
• Cylindrical Mapping: Wrap UVs around cylinder
• Spherical Mapping: Wrap UVs around sphere
• Box Mapping: Project UVs from 6 directions

UV Best Practices

• Minimize Distortion: Reduce stretching and compression
• Seam Placement: Place seams in less visible areas
• UV Density: Maintain consistent texel density
• UV Packing: Pack UV islands efficiently
• Multiple UV Sets: Create additional UV sets for lightmaps, baking
• UV Organization: Organize UVs logically for texture painting

Texture Painting Workflows

Texture Painting Tools

• Brush Tools: Paint, airbrush, smudge, blur
• Stencils: Use stencils for precise painting
• Clone Tool: Clone texture from one area to another
• Fill Tool: Fill areas with color or pattern
• Masking: Mask areas to protect from painting
• Layers: Use layers for non-destructive painting

Texture Types

• Base Color: Main color of the surface
• Normal Map: Surface detail and depth
• Roughness Map: Surface roughness for PBR
• Metallic Map: Metallic vs non-metallic surfaces
• Ambient Occlusion (AO): Self-shadowing and contact shadows
• Emission Map: Emissive/glowing areas
• Height/Displacement Map: Actual geometric displacement

Texture Painting Techniques

• Hand Painting: Paint textures by hand
• Photo Bashing: Combine photos for textures
• Procedural Generation: Generate textures procedurally
• Baking: Bake high-poly detail to textures
• Texture Projection: Project textures onto model
• Texture Synthesis: Generate textures from samples

PBR (Physically Based Rendering) Materials

PBR Fundamentals

• Physically Based: Based on real-world physics
• Energy Conservation: Light energy is conserved
• Microsurface Theory: Surfaces have microscopic roughness
• Fresnel Effect: Reflectivity varies with viewing angle
• Metallic Workflow: Metallic vs non-metallic surfaces
• Specular Workflow: Separate specular map

PBR Texture Maps

• Albedo/Diffuse: Base color without lighting
• Normal: Surface normal for lighting calculation
• Roughness: Surface roughness for specular reflection
• Metallic: Metallic vs non-metallic surface
• Ambient Occlusion: Self-shadowing and contact shadows
• Emission: Emissive/glowing areas

PBR Material Properties

• Albedo: Base color of the surface
• Roughness: How rough or smooth the surface is
• Metallic: Whether the surface is metallic
• Normal: Surface detail and orientation
• Emission: Whether the surface emits light
• Opacity: Whether the surface is transparent

Substance Painter and Designer Workflows

Substance Painter

• Texture Painting: Paint textures in 3D space
• Smart Materials: Procedural materials with smart masks
• Layer Stack: Non-destructive layer system
• Baking: Bake high-poly detail to textures
• Atlas Generation: Combine multiple textures into single atlas
• Export: Export to various formats and engines

Substance Designer

• Node-Based: Create materials with node graph
• Procedural: Generate textures procedurally
• Filters: Apply filters to textures
• Gradients: Create gradients for materials
• Pattern Generators: Generate patterns for textures
• Export: Export to various formats and engines

Substance Best Practices

• Non-Destructive: Use layers and masks for non-destructive workflow
• Smart Materials: Use smart materials for efficiency
• Baking: Bake high-poly detail for quality
• Organization: Organize layers and materials logically
• Export Settings: Configure export settings for target engine
• Performance: Optimize textures for performance

Shader Basics and Node Graphs

Shader Fundamentals

• Shaders: Programs that determine how surfaces are rendered
• Vertex Shaders: Process vertices and pass data to fragment shaders
• Fragment Shaders: Process fragments (pixels) and determine color
• Shader Properties: Exposed parameters for artists
• Shader Inputs: Textures, colors, values
• Shader Outputs: Final color and other outputs

Node Graph Shaders

• Node-Based: Create shaders visually with nodes
• Nodes: Individual operations in shader graph
• Connections: Connect nodes to create shader logic
• Inputs: Inputs to nodes (textures, colors, values)
• Outputs: Outputs from nodes (colors, values)
• Sub-Graphs: Reusable shader logic

Common Shader Nodes

• Texture Sample: Sample texture at UV coordinates
• Math Nodes: Mathematical operations
• Color Nodes: Color operations
• Vector Nodes: Vector operations
• Lerp: Linear interpolation between values
• Fresnel: Fresnel effect based on viewing angle

Texture Atlasing and Optimization

Texture Atlasing

• Atlas Generation: Combine multiple textures into single atlas
• UV Packing: Pack UVs efficiently in atlas
• Texture Channels: Pack multiple maps into single texture channels
• Mipmaps: Generate mipmaps for distance rendering
• Texture Arrays: Use texture arrays for multiple textures

Texture Optimization

• Resolution: Reduce texture resolution where appropriate
• Format: Use efficient texture formats (ASTC, ETC2, BC7)
• Compression: Apply texture compression
• Mipmaps: Generate mipmaps for distance rendering
• Texture Streaming: Stream textures based on distance
• Texture Budget: Manage texture memory budget

Platform-Specific Optimization

• Mobile: Lower resolution, simpler formats
• Console: Medium optimization, balance quality and performance
• PC: Higher quality, more complex textures
• VR: High frame rate priority, reduced complexity
• Web: Efficient formats, progressive loading

Texture Export and Integration

Export Formats

• PNG: Lossless compression, good for UI and transparency
• JPG: Lossy compression, good for photos
• TGA: Uncompressed, good for intermediate files
• PSD: Photoshop format, good for editing
• EXR: High dynamic range, good for baking

Export Settings

• Resolution: Set appropriate resolution
• Color Space: Set correct color space (sRGB, Linear)
• Alpha Channel: Include or exclude alpha channel
• Mipmaps: Generate or exclude mipmaps
• Compression: Apply or exclude compression

Integration

• Unity: Import textures, set import settings, assign to materials
• Unreal: Import textures, set import settings, assign to materials
• Godot: Import textures, set import settings, assign to materials
• Web: Use Three.js or Babylon.js with textures
• Custom: Parse texture data and apply to custom systems