PSD notes for texture artists
Shift F5 is the shortcut
for Fill
Adjustment layers
When using adjustment
layers, Alt-click the layer mask to limit the effect of the adjustment.
To limit an adjustment
to a single layer
Adjustment layers affect
all layers . If you don’t want this, change the set’s
blending mode to normal, not the default pass through.
pass through
normal
Or, you could make a
clipping mask between the 2 layers ... hold Alt key down and hover over the 2
layers – the result [with passthrough]
You can set the opacity and blending mode of any adjustment layer.
Dodge and Burn
For a specular level map,
white = more reflective.
Also
used to soften details in bump maps.
Blending modes
Most used:
Multiply – makes white
transparent
Screen – makes black
transparent
Dodge
Burn
Overlay
Soft Light
Hard Light
Try them out on grayscale
layers to evaluate results
See:
file:///C:/Program%20Files/Adobe/Photoshop%20CS/Help/help.html
Lab Color
Has an additional channel
for lightness that can be edited
Grunge brushes
Take a messed up image of
metal or whatever and desaturate
This will make it gray ...
next, do a briteness/contrast and a
levels and possibly a threshold to get a hi-contrast image
Image/Adjust/Invert to
make what was white to black, which will be the brush ...
Work in a square area nad use the block eraser to make
the brush have soft edges
Edit/Define brush preset
Your brush will automatically
be selected. Save a preset ...
Create multiple grunge
brushes ... here is messing around with one ...
BTW this showed a BW
brush, but you could also use grayscale.
Grunge Mapping
We basically will be
making layers of grunge and making selections from those layers. From the
selections you can delete selections or create new layers, etc.
You need 3 textures ... a
metal [or wood, or plaster] BASE ...
A PAINT layer
...
A GRUNGE layer ...
Here is te original GRUNGE layer ...
What you do is this:
Layer as shown
Desaturate and increase contrast and threshold of the
original GRUNGE layer
With that selection
loaded, go to the PAINT layer and delete ..
So now, the [paint is
chipped away to reveal the original ‘[base] layer.
Seamless textures
Filter/Others/Offset
Soft edges
Using 32 bit formats like Targas, you can make a 2nd layer in blend layers
to effectively hid seems in the base texture.
Texture scale
Keep your texture scale
appropriate to the object and views in your scene