ZBrushCentral

Vector Displacment for deformable objects

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

Has anyone had success using vector displacement maps generated in Zbrush for use in Maya? I’m using Maya 2013 and need the map for an animated deformable object. So far nothing I have tried seems to work.

I’ve set the FlipAndSwitch and Tangent FlipAndSwitch both to 7 as well as turned on vd Tangent in the multi-map exporter plugin. So far the only map that renders properly inside Maya is the standard Vector Displacement map with vd Tangent turned off. Also in Maya, the vector space needs to be set to “Object” instead of “Tangent”. Problem is, this doesn’t allow for deformations.

Really appreciate any help on what steps need to be taken if it is even possible at this point in time.

Thanks!

#2

Try setting the FlipandSwitch to 11 for tangent instead of 7.
Saw this and tried it, seems to work.
http://chrix.us/?p=582

#3

Thanks for the reply, seems to help a bit but not perfect. The page you referenced does mention that with tangent space VD maps do tend to have seams because they are very similar to normal maps. I’m getting some seams that I believe I could go into photoshop and correct. It also mentions that if the deformations seem to be inverted to check to make sure the uvs are facing the correct way. I recently made a post about this issue as well here.

Do you happen to know of a way to invert a particular R,G, or B channel for a 32bit exr? The invert option is disabled in photoshop for this type of file.

Thanks!

#4

When I export from Zbrush to Maya, textures and UVs are flipped vertically so if I “Toggle shaded UV display” in Maya it shows red, but everything renders fine. In the example that you posted everything seems flipped left to right. I have never tried flipping left to right. Is that the way Zbrush normally exports to Maya for you? All I can suggest is to flip vertically only and see if it works.