3ds Max: Substance to Arnold

2h 4mIntermediate2018-03-06

Authors

Brian Bradley

3D Artist, Business Owner

Course details

Substance tools are now an industry standard when it comes to texturing 3D geometry in all areas of 3D. As Autodesk now includes the Arnold renderer as part of the base 3ds Max package, understanding how to use these two toolsets together is a must. In this course, discover how to use the substance-based toolset from Allegorithmic in conjunction with the Arnold renderer in 3ds Max. Instructor Brian Bradley explores the various workflow requirements and options for using the Substance Bitmap2Material and Designer applications with 3ds Max and Arnold.

Learning objectives
Why should we use substances?
Choosing a substance workflow
Using Bitmap2Material in 3ds Max
Building up your material
Working with substances and maps from the Designer application
Using a substance with Arnold
Improving your substance results
Exporting your map types

Skills covered

3D LightingSubstance PainterSubstance DesignerAllegorithmic3ds Max3D AnimationRenderingMotion Graphics and VFXAutodesk3D ModelingVisualization and Real-TimeAECProduct and ManufacturingAnimation and IllustrationDeep Dive (X:Y)

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - Welcome
02 - What you should know
03 - Exercise files
04 - The 3ds Max project folder
05 - A word on gamma and units
06 - How scenes are set up
07 - 3ds Max bugs that you may need to work around

1. An Overview of the Substance Toolset

08 - What are substances and why use them
09 - The substance toolset
10 - Choosing your workflow mode
11 - Using substance files in 3ds Max
12 - The substance settings dialogue
13 - Using the 3ds Max asset library

2. Using Bitmap2Material inside 3ds Max

14 - Loading the Bitmap2Material node
15 - Setting up the Bitmap2Material node
16 - Building up your material
17 - Swapping out the bitmaps
18 - Creating bitmap output files

3. Working with Substances from the Designer Application

19 - An overview of your material
20 - Metal, rough to spec, and gloss conversion for Arnold v4
21 - Exporting a substance
22 - Using a substance with Arnold
23 - Improving your substance results
24 - Augmenting a substance using Max nodes
25 - Resolution tweak
26 - Plugin features

4. Working with Maps from the Designer Application

27 - Exporting map types
28 - Using EXR maps in Arnold
29 - Using 8-bit maps in Arnold
30 - Setting up a custom output

5. Working with Maps from the Painter Application

31 - An overview of your material
32 - Exporting your map types
33 - Exporting PSD files
34 - Using the EXRs in Arnold
35 - Using the PSD file
36 - Final render settings

Conclusion

37 - Next steps