Low Poly Liliha Updates #7
Finally.. the real fun begins! =D
On the top is the outline layer I was talking about yesturday. I've bucket filled the base colors for the major parts. You can consider this part the "flats". See how the flat colors are exactly the same on the model? This is what we want.. pure texture with no lighting so we can see exactly what it looks like on the model.
On the bottom I've added general shading. This is an important step. It gives the model shapes and form. When I shade I assume there is a light source directly above the model. Generally, areas on top are lighter. Areas on the bottom are darkest. Areas on the left and right are dark medium. Areas on the front and back are medium. Because the character can animated, be very careful of certain areas such as the armpit, crotch, and under the chin. If the character raises thier arm and there is a dark shadow there, it's going to look like hair. The same can be said about shadows under the chin.
Now that I look at my texture, the skin is a bad example since the darks are too dark. That shadow under the chin is probably going to be a problme. I'll fixt it tommorrow. =P
Some more things to keep in mind when texturing real time characters: Lights in games are crappy. Don't let a programmer fool you that lights in the game engine are wonderful. In all cases so far, it's crap! Because it's all crap, it needs help from the texture to make it look good. This is why shading your texture with shadows and highlights are important. Lights in the game DO affect your textures so make sure your color levels are clear of the extreams. This means stay away from whites and blacks. In fact, stay several levels away. If we are talking about a grey scale value from 0-255, stay within 40-200. Whites or very light colors will look blown out in the game. Blacks or very dark colors will cause an outlining effect making it appear more cartoony. So basically shade and hightlight your textures, but leave enough room for the game lighting to take it the rest of the way.