ZBrushCentral

How to set a UV Map size for 16K

Hello, is there a way to set a UV Map size for 16K (or more) instead of 8K default max. I need it for AppLink.

A 16K map is 281,702,656 points of data. That means that to get a clean map with no interpolation, you would need a model of over 200 million polygons. The maximum model resolution in ZBrush is 100 million polygons, but in reality it’s a very rare model that will be able to subdivide to that level. More common for a max resolution is around 50-70 million polygons, which is equal in detail to an 8K map (accounting for unused UV space).

In other words, what you’re asking for is a way to create UV maps that hold more data than the most detailed ZBrush model can support.

As computing technology has evolved to where ZBrush could reach higher levels of polygon counts, ZBrush has increased its maximum polygons per mesh size. As this size has crossed thresholds where UV map resolution would support it, ZBrush has increased the size of the maps that it can create. Not before then, though – the interpolation necessary to upscale your model’s resolution to match that of a higher resolution UV map would not result in better maps. You would actually come out of it with lower quality detail.