Topic: wasnt there something somewhere for doing light maps

[manitoba1073]

wasnt there a tutorial on how to make the light maps somewhere i need help

[manitoba1073]

but i still want to know how

[atheorhaven]

but i still want to know how

I'll retype this.. didn't work well the first time. 

So a quicker reply..

I'll use p81's FCA3.BMP as an example.


The very first thing I'd do would be to convert it over to greyscale..


Then I'd bump the contrast and brightness.  In this example, I used -58 brightness and +68 contrast I think..


As you can see, some of the details (the windows etc) are coming out.. but I'd copy over the original engine and impulse crystal here, and then try it again to see what I got.  Then it'd be tweaking and getting it right.. blacking out the areas I didn't want lit, etc... but this is a basic way to start with getting an illumination texture going from your original ship texture..

[GotAFarmYet?]

but i still want to know how

I'll retype this.. didn't work well the first time. 

So a quicker reply..

I'll use p81's FCA3.BMP as an example.


The very first thing I'd do would be to convert it over to greyscale..

That is if you are using someone elses work

If you made the textures in layers I suggest you make the one you want lighted as a seperate layer. That way all you have to do is copy that layer to a black background and you are done. If you used more than one layer they you will have to copy more than one layer but the idea is the same.


Then I'd bump the contrast and brightness.  In this example, I used -58 brightness and +68 contrast I think..


As you can see, some of the details (the windows etc) are coming out.. but I'd copy over the original engine and impulse crystal here, and then try it again to see what I got.  Then it'd be tweaking and getting it right.. blacking out the areas I didn't want lit, etc... but this is a basic way to start with getting an illumination texture going from your original ship texture..

[atheorhaven]

That is if you are using someone elses work
If you made the textures in layers I suggest you make the one you want lighted as a seperate layer. That way all you have to do is copy that layer to a black background and you are done. If you used more than one layer they you will have to copy more than one layer but the idea is the same.

I've used this method on my own originals as well.. and the principle is the same for generating a quick basic illumination from your own original textures.

Case in point.. my TARDIS..


This is its Hull texture.. and here's an illumination map using exactly the same settings as I previously used in PSP after I converted it to greyscale...



What I was trying to do here was show him how to generate a quick basic illumination texture using his pre-existing textures.  If he has his former work saved in layers already.. awesome.  Then he can add in a black layer over his background texture, or whathaveyou and raise it up until windows or whatever start to disappear.  But, if he saved his texture as a merged texture and didn't save his originals (as frequently happens).. this'll allow him to generate some illuminations based off his originals.

Which is why I showed him this method.. and I used p81's FCA3 as an example because it's easy to locate, familiar, and a good practice texture to practice with. 

[FoaS_XC]

My question is how did you guys get the spotlight effect on the saucer.

[atheorhaven]

My question is how did you guys get the spotlight effect on the saucer.

I don't know about others, but one of the ways I do it is to use the Lights tool under Effects -> Illumination.

As an example, just made a grey square w/settings of 128x128x128 for color.. then went into Lights, selected "1 up" and got this:



If the grey square was a saucer texture or illumination map.. I'd now have a saucer light..

[Red_Green]

This work is mega cool. Atheohaven, you are one of the most helpful modders in the forum   
All these little details add so much to the ships!

[Rhaz]

My question is how did you guys get the spotlight effect on the saucer.

I don't know about others, but one of the ways I do it is to use the Lights tool under Effects -> Illumination.

As an example, just made a grey square w/settings of 128x128x128 for color.. then went into Lights, selected "1 up" and got this:



If the grey square was a saucer texture or illumination map.. I'd now have a saucer light..

That is *so* much easier than the way I was doing it.  I've got to give this a try.

This work is mega cool. Atheohaven, you are one of the most helpful modders in the forum
All these little details add so much to the ships!

ditto.  Thanks

[FoaS_XC]

Hmm...time to make a Photoshop Brush.

[FoaS_XC]

Okay, could someone who has PSP send me a 512x512 at 72 dpi of a spotlight much like ATheorhavens image above. Photoshop is only capable of making Rounded or elliptical spotlights. I would like to create a brush set for lighting.
Now if this is gonna work i need it the white of the light to NOT touch the edge of the image.

Thanks

[FoaS_XC]

And if anyone has any ideas for what needs to go into such a brush set, let me know.

[atheorhaven]

Okay, could someone who has PSP send me a 512x512 at 72 dpi of a spotlight much like ATheorhavens image above. Photoshop is only capable of making Rounded or elliptical spotlights. I would like to create a brush set for lighting.
Now if this is gonna work i need it the white of the light to NOT touch the edge of the image.
Thanks

I can do that.. what color do you want the background?  Black as possible?  Or something more neutral?  Conversely.. I can look through PSP and see if there's any options to just save it as a layered thing that might be readable in Photoshop..

[GotAFarmYet?]

PSP can save that as a PS file. I do think PS has something thta can do the same thing though it might just be getting use to the controls.

[manitoba1073]

yeah thats what i was thinking how to do it.  just couldnt remember.  thanxs guys. should get stickied too for other stuff too.

[atheorhaven]

PSP can save that as a PS file. I do think PS has something thta can do the same thing though it might just be getting use to the controls.

Tried it, but it wouldn't open in PS Elements... however, the .PSD I tried saving from PSP opened fine in it, so that's what I'm sending over.  Made it large (2048x2048) in order to minimize funky artifiacting when using this.. and archived it with RAR in a self-extracting archive to minimize size.  Two layers, so should be good I think..

One thing you'll have to do when you finish downloading it is rename it with a .EXE extension.  The upload here wouldn't accept the .EXE extension.. so it became .RAR and I reuploaded it to get it up here..