Texturing the model: Detailed explanations of shaders and textures + Mapping

Introduction

The mastery of textures and shaders guarantees a very high quality model! This is one of the most important parts of the conversion

A shader is in a way a material, so you have to use precise shaders on specific materials in order to have the most realistic rendering possible.

It is possible to greatly improve the rendering of your model thanks to the creation of BumpMap

Adding the necessary textures in the "Textures Browser"

The textures we are going to use are to be added in the  Zmodeler 3 Textures Browser , don't panic if you don't add all the ones you are going to use from the start, it is always possible to add some later!

- Open the » Textures Browser «:

- Go to "  All textures   " then click on "  Add   ":

- Download and add the env.dds texture from:  ESSENTIAL MODDING PACK

- Click on "  New goup   " then name this group "  vehshare   ":

- Open OpenIV and navigate to  GTA V \ x64e.rpf \ levels \ gta5 \ vehicles.rpf . In the search bar at the top right, type "  vehshare   " then open "  vehshare.ytd   " which will appear:

- Click on "  Export all textures   " then select "  .PNG   " and export everything in a folder named "  Vehshare   " on your PC since you will need these textures each time:

- Once the textures have been exported, delete all unnecessary textures to keep only those visible on this image:

- Now import all these textures in the "  vehshare   " group created on Zmodeler 3:

- Now create a new group with the name of your choice and add the textures of your vehicle ( those from GTA San Andreas .txd, GTA IV .wft, those converted from Forza or those given in various formats with your 3D model, or your own custom textures ):

Prepare a shader and locate its location

When your vehicle is not textured ( all gray ) it is difficult to find out which part of the vehicle a shader belongs to. Some shaders sometimes correspond to a simple tiny button in the cabin, a small logo, a light… etc… so it is very difficult to find. So little tip: Put it in fluorescent green in order to see it stand out from the other parts of the car to be sure of what we are going to modify! 

It is also important to prepare your shader by correctly setting the diffuse and specular colors and then modify the power as indicated below, because since an update of Zmodeler 3, the diffuse and specular colors influence the colors of the elements in the game. A diffuse red color on a white textured shader, like white carpet, will have the effect of making your carpet red in game. It may be Chinese for now but it will quickly fit in once you will have understood the trick!

- Open the "  Material Browser   ":

- I advise you to carry out the assignment of the shaders and the texturization in the order of the materials in order not to forget anything.

- Select the first material ( under the »  Default Material  «, we will not modify it ) then click on the parameters at the top right, navigate to »  GTA V   » ► »  Vehicle generic   » select the shader »  vehicle_detail2   »:

- Double click on the material in question to open the properties. Fold the menus "  Parameters: Alpha, Blend, Depth  ", "  User-Defined options   " and "  Material States   " because they will not be used. In "  Color Parameters   " select white as "  Diffuse Color   " and light gray as "  Specular Color   " then set the " Power   " slider  to around  1200 . There is no exact value, it doesn't matter if you are slightly above or below. (On old versions of Zmodeler 3 these parameters do not affect the vehicle in play, it is purely visual on Zmodeler in order to have a better rendering, but since an update as explained above, the shaders will be affected by the colors.)  :

- In the " DETAIL   " menu  click on the white box with the " ...  " to the right of "  Texture map:   " and select the texture "  carbon_mesh_shader_spec   " which is in the "  vehshare   " group in order to locate what will change on the model since the part will turn green and will therefore be easily distinguishable:

- Now that we know what we are going to modify ( here the front LEDs ), we will be able to assign the appropriate shader as well as the texture, the bumpmap if necessary and the specmap.

Information and details on Shaders and textures (detail, bumpmap, specmap, mask ...)

-Depending on each part of the vehicle it will be necessary to assign a certain Shader. Each Shader is different, which is why you have to choose it well according to the material. Example: to make metal we will not use the same Shader as for plastic or windows, to make lights we will not use the Shader of tires ... etc ...
-In most cases the texture to be used is given in the name of the material. It will therefore be necessary to use the latter in "  DETAIL  " if the name of the material is similar to "  Matte: FF00FFC8 Is that the texture is simply a color, so you will have to open Photoshop, create a new project with a size of 4 × 4 pixel, apply a color to it then save it as .JPEG to then import it into the group Zmodeler texture.
-If you have no idea which texture to use, try several until you find one that will match.

IMPORTANT: Even if the rendering during the application of the shader and the texture is disgusting (stretched texture, in the wrong place…) DON'T PANIC, I'll show you how to best arrange this further down the page! Everything in its time !

WHICH SHADER TO USE AND FOR WHAT:

►PLASTIC / LEATHER / CARPETS / RUBBER / FABRICS:
►►  vehicle_mesh
DETAIL ►  Your
BUMPMAP texture ► Your custom bumpmap ( this is a purple texture ), either it is supplied with the textures of the vehicle you are converting, or it must be created by following the steps for creating a bumpmap further down on this same page. Otherwise use the  "  blank_normal   "textureavailable in "  vehshare  ", but the rendering will not be as nice.
MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture
SPECMAP  ► Download and import the texture " platic_spec2  " from: ESSENTIAL MODDING PACK

►CHROME:
►►  vehicle_mesh
DETAIL ►   "  black   " from "  vehshare" 
BUMPMAP  ► If you want to leave the chrome without relief ( smooth ), do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  blank_normal  ", otherwise create your bumpmap in following the manipulation detailed below MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture SPECMAP  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap  «  ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  env.dds   »That you will have added at the beginning

► STEEL:
►►  vehicle_mesh
DETAIL ►   "  black   " from "  vehshare" 
BUMPMAP  ► If you want to leave the steel without relief ( smooth ), do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  blank_normal  ", otherwise create your bumpmap by following the manipulation detailed below
MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture
SPECMAP  ► Download and import the texture " specmap_acier   " from: ESSENTIAL MODDING PACK
ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  env. dds   ”that you will have added at the beginning

►CARBON
FIBER : ►►  vehicle_mesh
DETAIL ►  A carbon fiber texture found in a higher texture pack
BUMPMAP  ► Use the carbon fiber texture bumpmap from the pack  (if it does not exist, create it by following the manipulation detailed below) or leave the default texture which will be "  blank_normal   " for smooth carbon fiber MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture SPECMAP  ► "  carbon_mesh_shader_spec   " from "  vehshare  "  ENV  ► Do not touch anything , leave the default texture which will be »  env.dds


  »That you will have added at the beginning

►METAL BLACK OR COLOR:
►►  vehicle_mesh
DETAIL ►  Your texture or a color which will be the color of the
BUMPMAP metal ► If you want to leave the metal without relief ( smooth ), do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  blank_normal  «, Otherwise create your bumpmap by following the detailed manipulation below

MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture
SPECMAP  ► "  carbon_mesh_shader_spec   " from "  vehshare  " 
ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you added at the beginning

► INTERIOR SCREEN (dashboard background, GPS, radio screen…):
►►  vehicle_emissive_opaque
DETAIL ►  Your texture  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default SPECMAP texture ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap  "  ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be"  env.dds   "which you will have added at the beginning

►LIGHTS OFF (interior ceiling light, lighthouse light background or lights…):
►►  vehicle_lights
DETAIL ►  Your texture  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the SPECMAP default texture  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap  "  ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be"  env.dds   "that you will have added at the beginning

►PERMANENTLY ON LIGHTS (LEDs) OR OTHER LIGHTS (headlights, lights, indicators, etc.):
►►  vehicle_lightsemissive
DETAIL ►  Your texture  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default SPECMAP texture ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap  «  ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  env.dds   » which you will have added at the beginning

► LICENSE
PLATE : ►►  vehicle_licenseplate
DETAIL ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  plate01  « 
-Transition ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  vehicle_generic_plate_font  « 
BUMPMAP  ► Do not touch anything, leave it default texture which will be »  plate01_n  « 
-Transition ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  vehicle_generic_plate_font_n   »  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be »  env.dds

  »That you will have added at the beginning

►TIRE:
►►  vehicle_tire
DETAIL ►  Your
BUMPMAP texture ► The bumpmap of the tire  (create it if it is not given by following the detailed manipulation below) MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default SPECMAP texture ► Download and import the " specmap_pour_pneu   "texturefrom: ESSENTIAL ENV MODDING PACK  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you will have added at the beginning

►RIM AND BRAKE DISC (and ANY other element on the wheel must be on THIS shader otherwise they will be invisible in game):
►►  vehicle_tire
DETAIL ►  Your
BUMPMAP texture ► The rim bumpmap IF you need one  (create it if it is not given by following the manipulation detailed below)  OR "  blank_normal   " from "  vehshare   "  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture SPECMAP  ► Use the specmap provided, or the same texture as  DETAIL , for a matte rendering in games, or "  carbon_mesh_shader_spec   " from "  vehshare 

 "For a metallic rendering, or the" platic_spec2  " texture of: ESSENTIAL MODDING PACK
ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be"  env.dds   "that you have added at the beginning

►EXTERIOR WINDOWS (windows, windshields, windows above the lights, glass roof…):
►►  vehicle_vehglass
DETAIL ► Download and import the texture “ vitres_exterieur  ” from: PACK DE MODDING ESSENTIEL MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture SPECMAP  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap  "  ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you will have added at the beginning

► INTERIOR WINDOWS (internal side of the windshield and other windows + speedometer window):
►►  vehicle_vehglass_inner
DETAIL ► Download and import the “ vitres_interieur   ”texturefrom: ESSENTIAL MASK MODDING PACK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default SPECMAP texture ► Download and import the texture " specmap_acier  " from: ESSENTIEL ENV MODDING PACK  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you have added at the beginning

►BADGES (interior buttons, brand on brake calipers, grilles, logos…):
►►  vehicle_badges
DETAIL ►  Your texture in transparent format  (.png, .dds, .tga…  NO  .jpeg for example)
BUMPMAP  ► The bumpap grid or brand provided, or create it by following the manipulation detailed below  ("  blank_normal   " from "  vehshare   "  IF  it is an element to be left in 2D) MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave it default texture SPECMAP  ► "  black   " from "  vehshare  "  ENV


 ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you have added at the beginning

►MAIN PAINT :  (Add [PAINT: 1] after your material name)
►►  vehicle_paint ► vehicle_paint1
DETAIL ►   »  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap   » from »  vehshare  «  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture SPECMAP  ► Do nothing touch, leave the default texture ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you have added at the beginning

► SECONDARY  PAINT : (Add [PAINT: 2] after your material name)
►►  vehicle_paint ► vehicle_paint2
DETAIL ►   »  vehicle_generic_smallspecmap   » from »  vehshare  «  MASK ►  Do not touch anything, leave the default texture SPECMAP  ► Do nothing touch, leave the default texture ENV  ► Do not touch anything, leave the default texture which will be "  env.dds   " that you have added at the beginning

DON'T HAVE THE INVISIBLE LIGHTS UNDER THE GLASS:
It may be that during the in-game test or even on Zmodeler the lights are invisible, this problem can be fixed in two steps. The first is in the material browser. The material of the glass above the light must be  BELOW  the light in the list of materials, I advise you to place the material of the glass ( or panes if there are several) at the very bottom of the material list and the light material at the very top of the list. To move a material, select it then hold the click on it and move it where you want by going up or down the list with the mouse wheel. The same must be done for the speedometer: the protective glass at the very bottom ( if you have one ) and the background screen as well as the hands at the top.
The second step to avoid this problem can be found in the "  Finalization of the prioritization   " part of this tutorial.

EXAMPLES:

Here are in-game screenshots of a vehicle with notations for the materials used. All the materials are not designated because otherwise we will not see much, but know that the most used material in a vehicle is the “ vehicle_mesh  ” shader !

Bumpmaps are adaptations of the basic texture to 3D texture of a predominantly purple color in order to give relief to certain textures  (tires, brake discs, chassis, carbon fiber, etc.).

- Either the bumpmaps are supplied with the textures, or you have to create them yourself. To create them two solutions:
► Use the plugin for Photoshop available on page 2 .
► Use this website:  NormalMap-Online                    

PHOTOSHOP PLUGIN:
- Install the plugin, import your photo into Photoshop then unfold the " Filters  "menu , hover over "  NVIDIA Tools   " then click "  NormalMapFilter ...  ":

- Enter all the settings as in the photo below, modifying the “ Scale  ” value by a larger or smaller value depending on the effect you want to give. The result will be displayed in the preview. Check or not the boxes " Invert X ", " Invert Y   " and " Invert Z   " to define if the texture should have a relief or depth aspect, make several different bumpmaps and apply them on your shader to see the rendering . Note that on Zmodeler 3 the rendering is never the same as in game:

- Then do "  File   " ► "  Save as…   " in "  Type   " select "  JPEG   " then name the photo as its original name by simply adding "  _n   " at the end  (for example because it is easier to find your way around) .

- Import your bumpmap on Zmodeler.

NORMALMAP-ONLINE SITE:
- Click on the left image or drag and drop your image on it to import it:

- Play with the settings above the middle image until you like the rendering of the right 3D image:

- Enter a name and choose your format  (JPG is recommended because it is lighter) , then click on "  Download   ":

Modify or create the UV Mapping (Placement of the texture, correction of the stretched aspect, bad scale ...)

The "M apping  " is one of the most important parts of modding, it is on this technique that the appearance of your vehicle will be played, the more you manage the mapping, the more your vehicle will be beautiful and realistic!

To put it simply, this is the position and size of the texture on the 3D object. For plastics, leathers, fabrics… we can thus modify the size scale ( example just after ) in order to add more or less detail to our object. And for buttons, seams, logos… we can change the position and size if they are not well placed.

Very often, when it comes to Forza models or professional models, the mapping is very often badly adjusted, so for some objects you have to redo it by modifying it, or by creating it yourself. Don't panic at the idea of ​​creating a mapping, it's not death!

Small example, here is a steering wheel. If we are careful, we can notice that the plastic of the central part ( the horn ) is raised, grainy. Ditto for the leather all around the steering wheel, you can't always see the reliefs and details on Zmodeler very well without really zooming in a lot, but in game it is more easily noticed.

By zooming in on the steering wheel we can see the details of the leather:

Did you get the point? So we can start working on this steering wheel, because it contains leather and plastic, but also stitches and logos!

When you adjust a shader and apply its texture to it, you may come across this result ( here the mapping of the leather, that of the logos and that of the stitching points are incorrectly adjusted ):

First, prepare your workspace as shown below:

- Display 2 " User  " view windows at the top ( this mode allows you to zoom infinitely on a component without going through it as in "  3D "  mode) and a " UV Mapper  " view mode at the bottom:

- On the left “ User  ” view, set the display options like this:

- On the right " User  " view, set the display options like this:

You should have a display like the previous screenshot.

To perform rotations in " User  " view mode, you must hold down the " Alt  " key ( for fast rotation ) OR " Alt Gr  " ( for slower rotation ) and the left click of your mouse.

Now that everything is ready, we will start by correcting the leather problem.

- Select the " Polygon  " selection mode :

- Click on your steering wheel in the left view:

- Activate the " Separated  " selection tool in the " Select  " menu :

- Open the " Material Browser  ":

- Reduce it, it will go to the bottom left:

- Right click on one of the polygons with leather on the left view in order to select a part of leather:

- Re-open the  reduced " Material Brower " just before ( you must always first open it and then select the polygons otherwise the manipulation will not work… ). Under " Scene Selection  " the leather material should appear. Then click on it to be redirected to it in the list on the right. Check that only this material is assimilated to your leather by hiding it ( uncheck the small box to the left of the material name ), all the leather of your object should then disappear, if this is not the case, select the leather polygons that have not disappeared, a new material should appear under " Scene Selection  ":

- Re-check the box to re-appear the leather. Click on the name of the material (s) assimilated to your leather and copy it:

- Open the " [By Material]  " selection window in the " Select  " tab :

- Paste the name of your material (s) in the " Quick Select  " box and check that only one is selected if you only have one material and only the right number if you have several! ( it is possible that several materials have the same name, you must select only the correct one (s),  you will know if you have taken the correct one in the next step ):

- Click on " Select  " and check that all your leather is selected on the left view. If this is not the case, you must cancel the operation ( blue arrow " Undo  " at the top of the screen or shortcut on the side button of some mice, CTRL + Z does not work on this software ):

- Take the tool " Edit UV  " in the tab " Surface  ":

- Check that the " Selected  " box is red at the bottom right, if it is not ( it is blue ), click on it to make it red:

- Now left-click on a polygon of your selected leather to open the mapping editing window:

IMPORTANT :
The steps below are for texture editing when it is just not at the correct scale. If your texture is stretched, distorted, cut… etc… the steps are not the same. I show you how to do this further down the page. Sometimes you might think a texture is distorted when in fact not at all, it's just not to scale. If you are not sure what the problem is with your texture, I advise you to try the following manipulation first to see the result, and if the texture is still not in place after that, we will correct the problem otherwise.

- Adjust the parameters like this. Under " Force mapping onto material  " select your material ( if you have several, take one at random ):

- Click on " OK  " then deselect your polygons by selecting an empty rectangle next to it:

- Now expand the "  UV Mapper " view, click on " Material ", then on your material:

- You will end up with something like this, namely parts everywhere:

- Go back to " Object  " selection mode  :

- Zoom out then draw a frame around all the components in order to select them all ( some can be scattered very far! ), They must turn red:

- Click on " Rescale  " in order to resize all the objects to the same scale because very often this is not the case. If nothing happens like in my case, it's because all the objects are already at the same scale:

- De-select all your objects by drawing an empty frame next to them then re-select them again ( illogical but mandatory because otherwise the software no longer considers them all selected after the rescale! ). Take the " Scale  " tool in the " Modify  " tab :

- Place the mouse over a random object then press the X key to place the origin point on it. Click and hold the left click while dragging up on a part to enlarge it and at the same time enlarge all the others next to it:

If the magnification is too slow, click on a part, check the “ All axes  ” box then enter a percentage value ( 200 to multiply the size by 2 for example, 500 by 5, 300 by 3… etc… ). 

- Maximize the top right view and zoom in on a place of your texture, then continue to enlarge the components in the UV Mapper until you have a result that suits you:

Do not make details too small either under penalty of not seeing them in game. Anyway this method is totally modifiable, if the result in game does not suit you it is quite possible to re-modify the mapping by following by repeating the previous steps. 

IF YOUR TEXTURE IS DEFORMED OR STRETCHED:

If your texture is not applied correctly, if it is distorted, cut, stretched… etc… the settings of the " Edit UV Mapping  " window are different, because you will have to re-create the mapping, and it will be up to you to do your own tests because each model is different and it would take too long or even impossible to detail everything. 

- All the steps up to opening the " Edit UV Mapping  " window are the same, always remember to check that the " Selected  " box is red before opening it. Adjust the parameters like this in order to do a first test, we will see what to do after if it fails:

- You will end up with this in the "  UV Mapper " view. Now follow the instructions given above as for the modification of the scale, namely the rescale and the modification of the size:

- When you like the result, it's over!

IF THE RESULT IS STILL NOT GOOD:

- Always starting again from your selected texture and after having followed the instructions until the opening of the window " Edit UV Mapping ", just before opening the window, place your object in a somewhat random angle and check that the "Selected" box is really red:

- Adjust the parameters as on this screenshot then click " OK  ":

- Now follow the instructions given above as for the modification of the scale, namely the rescale and the modification of the size until you have a result that you like. Note that this method is a bit like the nag method which will force a mapping but not in the best of qualities, certainly it is better than nothing, but some areas will see their textures stretched. Depending on the angle the result can be more or less clean. It is also possible to do the mapping in several parts to no longer have stretched areas. Over time you will master the mapping and will no longer encounter this problem too much!

BUTTON MAPPING:

For button mapping, all the steps are the same as for mapping the scale of a texture until after clicking on the "OK" button of the " Edit UV Mapping  "  window.

Once the components are in the UV Mapper, the steps change.

- So you will end up with something like this:

- Go back to " Object  " selection mode then take the " Moove  " tool in the " Modify  " tab  :

- Select all the objects in the UV Mapper and move them out of the texture:

- Now select each object one by one ( each being a button ) and move it around to determine which button it is by observing the " User  " view carefully, then place it in the right place on the texture ( use the " Scale  " tool of the " Modify  " menu to modify the size of a button if it is too small or too large ). Once all the buttons are in place you should have something like this:

For logos the method is the same!

STITCH MAPPING:

Your stitches may be incorrectly placed and not on the correct scale. 

As before again, all the steps are the same as for the mapping of the scale of a texture until after clicking on the "OK" button of the " Edit UV Mapping   "  window. 

Once the components are in the UV Mapper, the steps change.

- You will come up with something like this, think once again to use the option " Rescale  " in order to have all the components of the same size:

- Group all the squares or rectangles into a single block:

- Take the " Scale  " tool in the " Modify  " tab :

- Check the V axis at the bottom left:

- Select your entire block, place the mouse in the middle then press the X key to place the origin there. Click and hold the click on your block while dragging the top green to extend it:

- Check that the lengthening is done in the right direction, if not cancel the operation, take the rotation tool, uncheck the V axis, click on your block and enter an angle of 90 °, then start the extension again ( either on the V axis or on U, depending on your case ).

- Once the length suits you ( see screenshot just above ), you will have to modify the width. Check the U axis:

- Zoom in on your texture and place the point of origin by pressing  X  on one of the edges of your strip:

- Still with the " Scale  " tool, click and hold the left click while sliding down to reduce the band ( or up to enlarge it if it is too small ) until it is adjusted to your stitches then use the " Moove  " tool to align it correctly:

- Once you are satisfied with the result, it's over!

All you have to do is edit all the mappings that are not correct until your whole vehicle is correctly textured!

Don't be afraid, it's not death, most textures don't need to have their mapping retouched ( metal, chrome, car paint… etc… ).

Your vehicle should now be fully textured!