Export your high rez and lo rez out of ZB3 as objs and use XNormal. I think XNormal does as good of a job if not a better job than Zmapper with Normal maps. And it can handle way higher amounts of geometry than Max or Maya (on my machine anyway).
Try it out…a good option for now anyway.
I had the same problem, what i did was exporting every level into zbrush 2 and use zmapper from there… i export level one into ZB2, then i divide the mesh, then i import level 2, divide and import level 3 and so on…
Funny that you mentioned this idea. I was trying the same idea and it works! Depending on level of deformation you can just export out the lowest and highest, to save some time of course.
Of course if there’s allot of deformations, exporting out every level works the best.
whew!!! I guess this method will have to do until the new Zmapper!!
So this would be a solution for displacement as well? Not the most elegant…but at least it’s something that will work! Thanks for sharing!
Create a displacement map and export it, load the image in photoshop and use the nvidia normal map plugin for photoshop to convert the height information into a normal map.
Could you please give me some general settings that have worked for you Pieisgood? I’m trying it out but I’m getting some seriouse erros…and I’m not sure what the “correct” values should be in terms of intensity on the displacement map in ZB and that of the Nvidia plug.
Thank YOU!
I’ve been doing the same things in Modo. XNormal is cool too (it’s free isn’t it?)
-K
Please don’t quote me on this , but,
I think Both Nvidia , and ATI have a free commandline tool for this.
you take a low poly cage, and a high poly mesh… it poops out the proper normal map…
please forgive me for not knowing the name , I have Zbrush 2 for all my normal map needs for now… Last time I tred one of them must have been back in 2002 or 2003.
look in the developers section…
personally I am just going to keep using Z2 , and wait for the Normal mapper plug-in.
the way it shows it in the manual as “the” way to make normal maps, hints me in the direction that we should probably just wait until the plug-in is complete.
I remember using those (the ATI one)…not quite the same as using Zmapper…kind of looking for the next step…or at least one step back…this is like…3 steps back.
Ugh…
Anyway people,we all know that when all this little problems will be resolved(and i’m sure will be relatively soon and this time at a profesionists level)…well… 
…then who can stay against the mighty ZB3???who??? 
We can see it’s a gourgeous program…and all for us… 
actually these guys have the better idea of using the Nvidia normal mapping tools… but if you want to stick with what I said then I can’t help you, I sort of just learn by messing around so I never really found any particular setting to be correct and there are some errors in the way it creates normal maps with Auv Unwrapping. So i’d go with the Nvidia normal mapping complete package that allows you to import both low and high resolution meshes.
Most of the errors in ZB3 when generating a displacement map seem to be from camera/ray distance errors when projecting is happening (at least I think that’s what the problem is). I need to figure out how to set that distance…
Well I just “re-realized” that XSI has VERY nice remapping tools for displacement, normal maps and such with plenty of control (esp of things like ray distance/camera distance). No plugins needed- tiz a main feature. I just don’t know if my lowly XSI FND will take an 8 mill poly mesh on XP home! I’ve only gone up to 3mil per object…
I guess I just got lazy thanks to zmapper…oh zmapper…boo hoo…
Yup, I’m also putting XSI’s “giga-polygon core” through its paces to generate N and DMAPS - hitherto pretty unexplored by me, as I’d become so reliant on ZMapper et al. Ta also to those who suggested the Z2 re-import workarounds.
hey all,
It kinda sucks that zbrush does not have normal maps. and not sure about displacements. But a good work around I found is to take the High mesh from Z3 and export it out to Z2. then reconstruct the surface in Z2 and do all the maps there, only prob is that Z2 cant handle all the geomety Z3 can handle. anyway my friend is getting his DVD version of Z3 in June 1, they said they will have all the updates and plugins then. Hopefully they will fix these problems.
Not much to add to what everybody else has to say, except for my own vote for an official statement, other than “soon” on this.
The method of exporting a subtool as an obj into z2 and reconstruct / lower res works great for rebuilding the tool. Then make the map from the rebuilt tool. But if the object is anything over 6 million poly its a slow method.
Hi, I am quite disapointed by this as well, but to help a bit I use http://www.xnormal.net/, a free normal map generator, so this might help, but I really need zmapper in ZB3 .
So will there be a bug fix for the normal map button?
And yah the displacement map doesn’t take the HD geometry data, why?
I think for the time being until a bugfix is posted. I think we should go back to Z2 for production pipelines.
WARNING — RANT MODE RANT MODE RANT MODE — WARNING
Yeah it’s kind of frustrating…we have this application that is supposed to compete with other applications out there, and in many ways it blows them (one really) out of the water…except on a little issue of actually using it outside of Zbrush…
Until Zbrush comes with a complete game engine and dev kit, until it has robust animation and particle effects- until it has production level rendering fit for animation- until it has expressions- until it is on the level of Photoshop with image editing, the lack of these tools will be a major issue. Hell even if it had them it would be! Thankfully I hope it never has much more of these and just continues to do what it does so well- model like nobodies business! But that leaves us here…
Right now Zbrush 3 is mainly JUST an extremely powerful illustration tool. While everyone who is fanatical about zbrush is preaching on to everyone who will listen of its greatness (I am…but not fire and brimstone like some), the lack of these tools is just silly- and the longer it goes the less funny it gets.
I mean- if they had the beta team using something that still “worked” why not put those on the site with a disclaimer stating that there are beta tools for people who need them to use while they work on a better version? NO SUPPORT- USE AT OWN RISK! I can dig that- for now while I wait a bit (key work here is bit).
Think about it too from a new user or MB user point of view- they see the amazing videos on CGtalk and go and check out the program…make something amazing with this amazing tool…go to export it and…wait it doesn’t work! Then they come here to find out…well it just didn’t make the cut!?!
It’s almost like selling a copy of MAX, MAYA, C4D, XSI, etc. etc. without a render engine…or animation tools…or modeling. Something considered so basic, so fundamental by now that to NOT include it is ludicrous.
And that’s why I’m going to have to use ZB2 for 90% of my work until this is all sorted out- what a shame.
Anyway- I have a hard time thinking that Pixologic doesn’t see this issue as enemy #1 in terms of being competitive- so I think it’s entirely probable that they’re going to release it REALLY REALLY SOON! right?