PSAD: The Moving Image

Maya Texturing and Concept Rendering 

by ward2021

This next task is to enhance my Space-Based Escape Pod by designing unique textures and materials using Adobe Substance Painter. To accomplish this, I first needed to U.V unwrap my model in Maya, a process that involves flattening the model’s surfaces into a 2D representation for texture mapping.

Unwrapping

As stated in the introduction, the initial step is to U.V. unwrap my model in Maya, thus allowing easier application of textures and colours using Adobe Substance Painter. Thankfully, the process is made easy using the application’s automatic unwrap tool.

Figure 1: In order to perform UV unwrapping on the final product, I utilised the UV menu within the software. Initially, the components were overlapping, making it challenging to differentiate each individual component.


Following the completion of the model unwrapping, as shown in Figure 2, the product is presented in 2D components. Initially, these components were overlapping, making them difficult to work with; this was resolved using the automatic layout tool.

Figure 2: Once again utilising the UV menu editor, I used the automatic layout tool to resolve the issue of overlapping components. By applying this tool, I successfully arranged the UVs in a manner that eliminated the overlap, allowing each component to be clearly distinguishable.


To conclude this part of the task, I exported the finished product as an OBJ, which allowed me to import it into Adobe Substance Painter, which took me to the next step.

Aim

Before creating alterations to my model, I needed to understand what I was aiming for. As stated in my previous post, during the design process of the escape pod, the primary aim is to reflect a futuristic and modern look. While I want the outcome to be aesthetically pleasing, I have also incorporated scientific reasoning when choosing materials, textures and colours to achieve a realistic product.

Design Development

I began the design process in Adobe Substance Painter. There were many experiments with textures and colours, which are demonstrated in the following figures.

Figure 3: Adding the Steel Painted smart material to the space escape pod.
Figure 4: Adding Iron raw damaged material to the product.
Figure 5: Adding a fill layer and adjusting the base colour.
Figure 6: Adding the Metal Edge Wear material as a generator on the fill layer.
Figure 7: Inverting the mask so the edges of the model have the metal edge effect.
Figure 8: Adjusting the settings of the layers to get the desired effect.
Figure 9: Adding the Steel Rust and Wear to the model to begin the process of adding texture and colour to the window edges.
Figure 10: Using the unwrapped 2D image, I added the material to specific sections of the model.
Figure 11: Using the same steps as figure 9&10, I added window material for the window.
Figure 12: To the rear of the pod, I added Steel Painted Charcoal as the door material.
Figure 13: Adding dirt into all the edges of the model to give a more realistic effect.
Figure 14: Exploring stamps, adding a handle and a push sign to the door.

Final Product

Concluding the experimentation, my design choices are communicated through the following four renders.

Front View
Left Side VIew
Rear View
Right Side View
Figure 15: These renders showcase the ultimate design, encompassing side views, rear view, and front view in Adobe Substance Painter.
Figure 16: An environment from the Adobe Substance Painter library was utilised to create this rendered shot.

References

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