ZBrushCentral

Displacments, Bumps seperate and quality.

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

Hello all who dwell here.

Im trying to get the best from Zbrush but am just not getting what is the correct way to do certain things.

This brings me to my questions.

I wish to create a displacement map, then Bump map holding just high frequency detail, no displacement infomation in this second map.

Is this correct way?

I v been storing the morph target, making a layer for both sculpting and high frequency detail. I turn on the sculpting layer and sculpt away. I then switch on the second layer and add high frequency details like skin pores e.c.t.

Then I turn off the high detail layer go to lowest sub d level and switch morph target. I generate a displacment map based on Adaptive, 4096, no Uv smoothing due to texture maps not being able to smooth also, I use non liner in Modo to match both.

Now for the high bump map generation.

Right! I then!, I now go to higher level turn off sculpting layer and on with the detail layer. I now need to generate just the high detail. This is what im doing. Im simply going to the highest level turn sculpt level on, and high detail layer off. I then I delete all lower levels other than the last 2 higher levels and store morph target at lowest level. I then go right back up to highest level again, then turn on high detail layer.

Now! I go back down to lowest level, then switch morph. I now have just sculpting layer showing ready for displacment map making for just high detail.

This seems to work. Now im still getting problems with quality for displacments, some off arteffect are still coming through the detail bump map.

Also im unshure at what base level is best for applying maps, Do I use the realy low base mesh or one above?

Any better methods please tell me.

#2


  1. Store morph target and divide.
  2. Sculpt
  3. Save your work
  4. Drop down a couple levels. Create a displacement or normal map. This will be just your high frequency details.
  5. Delete the higher levels.
  6. Go to level 1 and switch to the stored morph target.
  7. Create a displacement map. This will be just your medium frequency details.
That’s it!

#3

Thankyou for the quick run down.

At stage 4, did you mean delete all levels below the second to highest, then make the displacement?

#4

theres many ways but a simple workflow would be

1.store morph
2.divide to highest level
3. create a layer
4.complete the modelling
5.generate 32bit normal and disp map from base level
6. go to the middle subd level or three quarters.
7.generate either a 16bit or 32bit disp map (which will be your bump)
note: the benefit of having a 16bit map is to edit in zbrush or photoshop

I suggest generating your maps with all the details applied and using the subd history to generate low and high frequency maps

e.g if you have 6 subd lvls and you generate a map from lvl 5, the detail will by the nature of the calculation be only the high frequency stuff

:+1:

#5

Nope. I meant press the “Delete Higher” button.

Difference maps are calculated based on the difference between the current level and the highest level. If you have a 7 level mesh and create a map at level 5, then that map will contain all details from levels 6 and 7. That’s your high-frequency details. When you go to level 1 you no longer need levels 6 and 7 as they are already accounted for in the first map. So you need to make level 5 the highest level by deleting everything else. That way, when you go to level 1 the map will be calculated with just the details from levels 2 through 5 – you’re medium-frequency details.