machinimatrix

abstract: The tutorial describes how you can enable image processing with alpha-channels in blender. In addition to that, we also show, how you can apply your own alpha-mask to your sculpt-map for protection and for labeling your work. Note that the first part of the tutorial also applies to the Domino Design scripts, while the secnd part refers to the JASS-distribution only.

High quality download: ImagesWithAlphaChannel.wmv

Transcription

Creating images with an alpha channel in blender is simple. But you need to enable alpha-processing beforehand. So lets modify the default settings and first clean-up.

Now navigate to the scene-buttons window and there locate the format-tab. You will probably see that format has been preset to RGB. But for processing images with alpha we need to Switch to RGBA. Lets go back to the edit-button window and save our settings as default settings.

Now let us see how we can create a sculptie with our own alpha-mask. Here i create a default sculptie sphere for demonstration-purposes.  After some sculpting i will finally switch to object-mode.

In the UV-editor i open my favorite alpha-mask. This is a grey-scale image, where everything colored in black will end up fully transparent and everything colored in white will end up fully opaque. Grey-scale parts will end up half-opaque.

Still in object mode i open render -> bake second life sculpties. Here i ensure that map protection is enabled and “image” is selected as protection-map type.  After clicking on the OK-button your sculptie will be generated with alpha.

Switch to edit-mode so that you actually can see your sculptie-map. If you can not see the alpha-transparency now you need to click on the button “draw image with alpha” at the right side of the UV-editor’s button-area.

Now you are ready to save your sculptie-map. Although you can use TGA as image format, i will show you here how to switch to PNG-format instead which is also supported by Second-Life. You just need to open the format-selector box and select, PNG. At the end just click on the save-image-button and you are done.

You always can check if your sculptie-map has been created as expected by loading the image to your image-editor.

This was my tutorial about images with alpha-channel. If this video was helpfull for you please consider to give me a small donation. (Gaia Clary in Second Life)

Have a nice day!

Gaiae JASS-dist