If I had a base mesh that had premade uvs, then subdivided / sculpted like normal. Would I be able to keep the uvs that came with it? Or do I need to remake the uvs when im done sculpting.
If so, why exactly? Much thanks.
Straight sub-dividing and sculpting doesn’t affect UVs, but operations that change the topology (changing the number and arrangement of the polygons) will destroy the UVs. So using Dynamesh or ZRemesher will delete the UVs. This is because UVs are linked to the specific mesh.
No, straight sculpting simply pulls or pushes the points, it doesn’t alter their order. Imagine your model is like a net - you can move the net about without actually breaking it. But if you create a new net then it has a new set of points connected in a different way.
I understand that the UV would still map correctly from the 2D representation to the 3D model. What I was trying to say is that wouldn’t sculpting alter the surface area of the affected polygons thereby distorting your UVs?
Ah, OK, I understand. If you changed the model considerably, then yes, your UVs would get distorted so some areas would appear stretched or of low resolution. But if your UVs are good to start with, and you are simply adding detail to the model at higher subdivision levels, then you don’t need to worry.
A simple example: if you took a square plane and UV mapped a checker pattern to it then you could sculpt it so that it was like a rolled-up - or even scrunched up - hankerchief and the checker pattern would still look good, provided you had kept the points from moving too far away from (or too close to) each other.
Oh I see, I appreciate the detailed response.