Let's Talk Materials

The list of improvements this last week is long; exploration is called for *wink*. I will be highlighting some of them in upcoming posts so be sure and check back, but let's talk about ground level -- where most wander when they first find MOSP.

Among the new changes are the disappearance of the gray beach house. Don't be sad, it had a good run and was indeed one of my favorites. In its place -- or lack thereof -- is a new navigable water area. So when you need a boat, windsurfer or another type of watery scene, help yourself. If someone stays sitting on the prop it will not disappear in that 20 minute window.

There is a new rustic pavilion at the end of the train tracks now. About half of LEA7's ground level is now themed in vintage farm and ranch. So movement from one area to another can be more contiguous and natural.  I will be improving some of the interior props and replace some sculpted items with mesh -- soon I hope.

If you noticed the title of my post you know there is some techie stuff coming. I spent a couple of days rebuilding the Bayou Shack. Megaprims disappeared, sculpts disappeared, textures were enhanced and MATERIALS were added.

Now I am not firmly seated in the materials camp. Sometimes they look glorious and sometimes not. It can have a bit to do with the making of the normal and specular maps (see? told ya - techie) but more often it has something to do with viewer side choices. If you have tried to photograph or film in a materials enhanced area, you have likely discovered that the Windlight setting makes all the difference.

I don't have a grand answer yet, but I do have a few settings that let materials enhance rather than overpower. They aren't what I would consider ready for prime time yet, but finding some good material Windlight settings IS on my list. When I get some, I will zip them up and link to them, so those of you that know how to add settings to your Windlight folder will have a starting place.

Meanwhile, remember that you can have shadows without materials and materials without shadows. You can also have both -- and don't forget Depth of Field (such a cornucopia of goodness lately). You do need a materials viewer to see the changes; you also need to have "advanced lighting" turned on.

If you can't find lighting that suits the mood of the shoot AND let's the material layers do their job, turning off advanced lighting works too.