Kwazydog Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 Heya Guys, I was writing this for Thomm in the modelling thread, but I thought Id post it in a new thread for those interested. The question was basically - How do we convert a basic plastic model to a CM texture with camo, weathering, etc (at least I think it was Thomm, hehe). Well, what Im going to do is to quickly run you guys through the process Ill be using to take a basic model and turn it into a final product. Now its getting on for midnight here so forgive me if the colour is off or if it all looks a more than a little rushed First, below is a shot of the original image that I will be working with. It is a side turret off of a model that Michael sent in to us (thanks again Michael) and it will be a good help for the entire Pz-III series. Now, for a start lets pretend that we want to make a post '42 model, which generally should be yellow with a basic camo scheme over it (though this wasnt as common on the Pz-III's as the Pz-IV's). The first thing we need to do is to colour the side turret to the basic yellow colour we are after. This is a reasonably simple process and required me to increase the yellow and red in the model whilst reducing its saturation some. Below is the coloured turret (which alone would be fine for a Pz-III model in 42, as it wasn't uncommon for the colour not to be applied) Now, lets add a little camo. What I did next was to add a new layer in Photoshop but I changed its type to multiply, which multiplies the colour with the original image (and thus I dont loose the original detail). After painting my model using suitable colours (green and brown for the Germans) I then applied a few filters to give us a faded and weathered effect to the paint. Often the camo paint used was not of good quality, and if you look at photos you will often find that it is applied rather thinly. Generally petrol was supposed to be used to thin the origional thick paste supplied before it was applied to the tank, but often water was used as fuel became rarer, and the quality of the paint suffered. After applying the camo I then added what is commonly known as a grunge map on top of the texture. What this did was to give the overall impressed of dust and grime, as well as adding some of the water streaks you can see down the side of the model. Next, I have used the clone tool to remove the shiny spot near the front of the turret. Also Ive added a few chips to the paint around the hatches. Here is the final result! Now bear in mind guys that this was very rushed, but it should give you a good idea of the process we will use when working with models we receive. Also note that the above took me about 15 minutes as opposed to 2 or 3 hours if we had no original texture to work from. So guys, if you have any friends out there that are modellers, make sure you remind them about our competition! Hope this was of interest guys! Dan [ 01-18-2002: Message edited by: Madmatt ]</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PawBroon Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 Dan let me be the first to say it: Impressive. Lack of pics aside, it's Applicationism in its Truest Form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwazydog Posted January 18, 2002 Author Share Posted January 18, 2002 Hehe, thanks PawBroon...glad you enjoyed it. Awwww, I dont believe I made a spelling mistake in the heading though! Dan [ 01-18-2002: Message edited by: KwazyDog ]</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 Dan, I believe you can edit the subject line (at least I did so once). The technique you outline is pretty much the way I do most of my mods (with slight variations for using a different graphics package) and with a lot less finesse. I'll have to keep practicing. Gordon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PawBroon Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 <blockquote>quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by KwazyDog: Awwww, I dont believe I made a spelling mistake in the heading though!<hr></blockquote> Fret not dear Ozzer. Plastoc is familiar French slang for plastic. Let's all pretend the margin between knowledge and typo is paper thin... As Gordon said, what you highlighted is pretty much the Bed & Breakfast of MODers. It does wonder for weathering too. Just that it wont be Multiply but Screen or somesuch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeyD Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 One thing that wasn't mentioned was the adventure of matching-up your camou patterns from one BMP file to the next! It may take 10 minutes to do the first pattern, but it can take years off your life struggling to get the top and sides to match-up! My hat is off to all modders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Dorosh Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 Neato, Dan. It's good that all of us modellers are able to contribute, thanks from all of us to you for your hard work, and in giving us the opportunity to contribute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPS Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 Kwazydog, that was interesting, thanks for sharing. JPS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mace Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 IT takes me on average about 2 months to complete 1 kit, and you do it in about 15 minutes! Harumph!!! Mace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mattias Posted January 18, 2002 Share Posted January 18, 2002 Very interesting Kwazy! I for one will be looking more closely at those Pz III's and friends now Please go on with the rest of the process if you feel you have time.. M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kipanderson Posted January 19, 2002 Share Posted January 19, 2002 KwazyDog, It was very impressive to see how it is done. I started following CM when there were just 200 posts on the forum. What always impressed me so much was the quality of the research/military history done by Steve and Charles. I know nothing about graphics, but in your hands it is clear that the graphics will be every bit as high quality as the military history side of CMBB. Like so many, am counting the days to CMBB. All the best, Kip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skipper Posted January 19, 2002 Share Posted January 19, 2002 Err... I would be counting, too, if anyone can remind me when is the D-Day? Last time I heard was fall 2001... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kipanderson Posted January 19, 2002 Share Posted January 19, 2002 Skipper, hi, Yup, last I read was that first quarter 2002 was a real chance. I recon late March release, in my hands first half of April. Time will tell, All the best, Kip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puff the Magic Dragon Posted January 19, 2002 Share Posted January 19, 2002 KwazyDog This is cruel!!! I guess I won't sleep for three nights cause I have seen this beauty If all models in CM:BB will look this way, it means the end of the mod community - at least it will though to top this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hellfish Posted January 20, 2002 Share Posted January 20, 2002 So... maybe we can see the .bmp on a Panzer III now? Just to see what the in-game rendering looks like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomm Posted January 20, 2002 Share Posted January 20, 2002 THANK YOU! Thomm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwazydog Posted January 21, 2002 Author Share Posted January 21, 2002 Heya Guys, Glad you all enjoyed it! Hehe, hopfully time will permit for us to do all models to this quality. It can be very time consuming getting the camo right though, as Mike suggested Fytinghellfish, no Pz-III just yet, hehe, as the final model isnt quite yet in game. Once we get there though you can bet youll see some shots. This was just a sample though, so I dont know if you will see this texture in particualr Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwazydog Posted January 24, 2002 Author Share Posted January 24, 2002 Thought Id bring this up in case anyone interested missed it the first time around Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seahawk-vfa201 Posted January 25, 2002 Share Posted January 25, 2002 :eek: Impressive. Verynice Kwazy. Will this be the procedure for all vehicles in CMBB? Then we are in a for a REEEAAAALLL treat. Thanks for bumping it: I missed the first venue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PawBroon Posted January 25, 2002 Share Posted January 25, 2002 So I guess people are just NOT clicking the links when they are provided in a web site... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwazydog Posted January 25, 2002 Author Share Posted January 25, 2002 Seahawk, Ill be using this procedure where possible. For some models we have great textures alreayd, so its not necessary, but I think we will definately need to use this type of process for all of the variants we have out there. Of course, the Russian are stuck with their dark green Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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