Today we delved deeper into normal maps. Normal maps are a texture that is put over a low resolution model to make it look like a higher resolution. They use a lot of colours and are easy to pick out.
The first thing we did was load up a 3D model from the internet and opened it in Substance Painter. We then went to the normal maps menu and dragged the one we wanted to use into the brush bar. It's important to remember to turn off the alpha, so the stamp isn't blurring at the edges.
We then had fun putting stamps onto the model to try things out.
After we'd gotten comfortable with using the stamps, we had a quick go at making our own. The first thing we did was open up Maya and create a simple indent. I went with something simple as a test, and it took me a few tries to get it right.
I had to render the shape out in one axis, using the Arnold bar in Maya. I had to go back a few times to correct some errors in Maya before it finally worked. It was then a matter of taking a render of the normal map into photoshop.
It was important to do this so that we can invert the green to make sure the lighting falls correctly when applied as a stamp. We then saved it as a PNG and selected it in Substance Painter. the last picture is of me trying out the stamp I made in Maya and Photoshop.
Overall, I think I did well in this lesson. Although I admit I would still need instructions to do it again, but after a few times I would definitely remember all the steps. I am confident about doing this in the future.
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