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Instruments and alpha
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Instruments and alpha // Archive: Tech Forum
Post by weaveribm // Apr 23, 2007, 11:26pm
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weaveribm
Total Posts: 592
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I've tried to create the glass that covers a dial of an old radio (wireless) but I can't work out how alpha works using Paint Shop Pro
The glass dial will have Hilversum? and those for-me-resonant-sounding European radio stations as the legend silk-screened on to the glass. Luxemburg :)
I can imagine a bitmap with the text in an arc I can do that but how to make the rest of the bitmap render as transparent in TS? I know about layers in PSP and general transparency
I've searched as this will allow dirty window panes and instrument panels etc too but still stumped, can anyone give me a walkthrough on how to implement the alpha channel in bitmaps under TS/PSP please? TIA
Peter |
Post by TomG // Apr 24, 2007, 2:27am
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TomG
Total Posts: 3397
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Lots of ways to do this. The one with most control is create the image and don't bother about transparency. Next create an image that tS will use as the alpha map, this will be greyscale.
In the tS shaders, load the regular image as the texture map, and the greyscale image for controlling transparency into the transparency shader of one layer. This works with layers in Lightworks btw, won't render with V-Ray.
The greyscale image tells tS which parts of the material to make transparent and which not. It gives you separate control over color etc and doesn't need anything odd in your 2D app either.
The other way is to create a 32 bit image, eg TGA. For this you will need to read your 2D apps manual about how to create the alpha channel that goes with the image. In this case you will define the color and the transparency in the same file, which personally I always find harder to work with than two separate files :)
EDIT - PS layers will make things transparent in your 2D app, but this is not the same as the alpha channel, which is something that makes part of the final exported image transparent when you save to an appropriate file type. Check out alpha channel in the help of your 2D app for more info. In Photoshop at least, channels and layers are different things :)
HTH!
Tom |
Post by weaveribm // Apr 24, 2007, 2:55am
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weaveribm
Total Posts: 592
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...create the image and don't bother about transparency. Next create an image that tS will use as the alpha map, this will be greyscale.
Thanks Tom, create an image - do you mean keep a copy of the legend image and then create a greyscale version of the same image in 256 colours (or more) please?
In the tS shaders, load the regular image as the texture map, and the greyscale image for controlling transparency into the transparency shader of one layer
Ah sorry mate this is tricky for me and would have been another request for help. Layered textures are a mystery, no worries I'll work it out ta
The greyscale image tells tS which parts of the material to make transparent and which not. It gives you separate control over color etc and doesn't need anything odd in your 2D app either.
Ah very nice that sounds elegant- thanks again I'll work out that layered texture thing
The other way is to create a 32 bit image, eg TGA. For this you will need to read your 2D apps manual about how to create the alpha channel that goes with the image. In this case you will define the color and the transparency in the same file, which personally I always find harder to work with than two separate files
Same here yes, 2D apps manual aaaggghhh! :)
EDIT - PS layers will make things transparent in your 2D app, but this is not the same as the alpha channel, which is something that makes part of the final exported image transparent when you save to an appropriate file type. Check out alpha channel in the help of your 2D app for more info. In Photoshop at least, channels and layers are different things
Yes the alpha channel and alpha I understand but it's another matter trying to actually create something useful. The layered texture thing sounds great I need to find out about layered textures anyway they sound good- cheers mate!
Hmm self-test memory, the alpha channel is 8 bit IIRC so 256 grey levels or 255 if one's a programmer, all zeros are zero and not in fact a level. Or even a number, denotes the absence of a number or anything else. The basement then off-world :)
Peter |
Post by weaveribm // Apr 24, 2007, 2:56am
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weaveribm
Total Posts: 592
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Oi grey is a colour. Color :)
Peter |
Post by weaveribm // Apr 24, 2007, 6:59am
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weaveribm
Total Posts: 592
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In the 6.6 manual I see the tiny 'eyeball' icons to get at layered textures but I don't see them in my Material Editor... some simple step I'm missing can someone point me at how to get at those Layer icons please?
From the manual so you know I'm trying, kind helper :)
Material Layer
Click on this icon to access a layer within a multi-layer material.
Current Material Layer
The Material Layer icon for the currently selected layer.
Page 284
TIA
Stop Press: :)
Ahah page 291 for other new users. Ahem newish I started out with TS4 what am I like lol.
Adding and Destroying Layers
Right clicking on the material preview panel will display a menu with the following options.
• Add New Layer - Adds a new layer to the stack above the uppermost layer in the stack.
There can be up to 8 layers in the stack.
• Destroy Layer - Removes the currently [and so on: Peter]
Phew :)
Peter
Sorry for silly formatting this editor is playing up. |
Post by stan // Apr 24, 2007, 8:40am
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stan
Total Posts: 1240
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with a right click in preview area of material editor panel the layer options drop list appears..when you 'add a new layer' you have a new 'eye' icon, which means the layer is visible...one icon for each layer added...once the icon is there, clicking on that icon will make the material layer invisible..clicking againmakes it vidible again
hth Gord :cool: |
Post by sleonard // Feb 12, 2009, 3:46am
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sleonard
Total Posts: 15
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i had a problem using images with transparent in them too....the trick is to prepare your image for transparencey...i first made the image to be transparent by colorimg the area to be seen thur white...then inverted the image so that the white area became black....then converted the image to grey scale and save it.....next i created 2 planes in truespace....the bottom plane was painted with the new background image to be seen...the top plane color channel was loaded with the original image from my paint program.....i then loaded the copy of the original " b/w transparency image" in the transparency channel and painted the top plane...you will not see the effect until you render the image |
Post by kena // Feb 12, 2009, 6:00am
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kena
Total Posts: 2321
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I created a Lightworks tutorial on how to create and use an image mask (http://forums1.caligari.com/truespace/showthread.php?t=2252) That might help |
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