TheOriginalBatatis
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Shadow Baking Experiment
🕑 Added 2020-08-14 03:11:48 +0000 UTCBefore you get too excited, the first image is not my work, it's simply the idea of what I'm trying to attempt.
So for the past week, I have been experimenting with trying to bake shadows into a texture, it's also called Light Projection.. Same thing. The idea is very simple, why draw shadows manually when you can project light into texture from certain angles and bake the shadows to get well.. Toon Shaded effect like the first image? So, we use 1 color tone, then apply baked shadows and wabam. <- I discovered it's not as simple as that π
Honestly, this is quite frustrating, it is very difficult to bake the shadows across all different textures at the same time without braking something or it looking way too... Rigid.
I'm aiming for a more cartoony texture, as this well enable me to explore a more in depth approach on how to texture properly, specially specific Monster Styles that when you add more details, it brakes the look rather then make it better. A real example to this can be simply the Draenei figure in the first image, I can do a realistic texture for her with no issues, but it will not fit the theme of the creature/look. It needs to be more cartoony. Think Blood Elf from WoW too. Same idea, can even say all Overwatch figures too.
I think this is an okay thing but only as a first step, as probably from troubleshooting, I have discovered that you will have to draw over the texture, there is no avoiding that. This is going to take a very long time to master, which is taking a lot of my barely free time from other projects.
Speaking of which, the Orc girl is going to be named Khadija, she too had texture rework. Her morphs though were all over the place, specially the Tusks, had to redo the damn things, after it was done, I discovered that there is a breakage in her lower gum when her mouth is fully open, which prompted me to go redo the damn thing again.
I'll be uploading progress and concepts for her tomorrow hopefully as another WIP. If all goes well, I can probably manage to package her as well π.
Comments
Batatis
That is true, details are not everything. Beauty and aesthetics can be appreciated if done correctly. Specially in texturing, there is something quite fascinating in simple texture done on a sculpted physic, think 2B for example. Still a long way to go though, as I have no clue what I'm doing generally. That's how most Monster Girls are created in the first place. No Clue then wabam!
George Nelson
Finally , somebody stepping back from the uncanny valley! Too many people seem to think the secret is More Detail, and More Realistic Detail. Sometimes, less Realism is fun.
