What is 3D texturing?

Texturing is a very important part of the 3D modelling process. All of the finer characteristics of characters in 3D modelling, such as wrinkles and individual carpet threads, are the product of texture applied by a 3D artist. Usually, the 3D models created are in a program’s default flat grey colour. 2D photos must be set out on 3D models to add colours, designs, and textures. Adding colours or surface and material properties to a 3D model requires another step forward in the 3D modelling pipeline i.e. 3D texturing. This approach frequently results in the whole colour and surface properties of a 3D model.

What Is the Importance of 3D texturing?

Texturing can be understood as the process of clothing 3D models. Wrapping a 2D image around a 3D item and determining how light would affect it is what 3D texturing is all about. It is also called PBR – Physical based rendering.

Texture artists are in charge of giving 3D objects colour and surface properties. The overall goal is to match the surface of the model to its concept art design or real-world counterpart. For example, if the model is designed to depict a rock surface, the texture artist’s job would be to ensure that when rendered, the 3D Rocky Surface has the same colour and surface qualities as a real-world rock. Similarly, a polished metal surface should give a shiny metallic look.

For adding texture to a 3D model, different software packages have different tools and methodologies. A texture artist can add texture to a model by hand-painting the textures or even by using real pictures to produce a detailed or realistic appearance. Unwrapping, texture painting & shading and rendering are all parts of the texturing stage of the 3D animation pipeline. At the rendering stage of 3D animation, textured models will be used.

The Goals of 3D texturing

In a 3D environment, texture can give the spectator a sense of substance about an object. Just by glancing at these objects, viewers should be able to tell what they’re composed of.

Every object in the real world has unique properties like reflection, refraction, intensity, form, colour, and many others when exposed to light.

For both the programme and the artist, creating and processing every last element of a 3D object’s exterior during the 3D modelling phase would be a big pain. 3D texturing solves this problem by allowing artists to add microscopic details to the models’ surface, such as wrinkles, flaws, fractures, and bumps, without putting too much load on the hardware or software.

3D texture Library

A texture artist’s job is to paint surface textures on animated characters, environments, and objects. Fur, scales, wrinkles, sweat, and grime are just a few of the textures which animators deal with. In some cases, the surfaces used in animation are not readily available in nature. In these circumstances, the texture artist uses his imagination and ingenuity to create his textures. It becomes a time-consuming job. So, PBR texture libraries are available for this. A23D has the largest 3D Assets library where you find the right texture as per your requirement using their categories and filters. By using our platform, you no longer need to save data on your own computers.

3D texturing

When texturing a 3D object, 3D texturing is supposed to depict three main qualities of every surface, the material, light effects, and surface details.

• Material

In a 3D world, texture can give the spectator an impression of substance about an object to a large extent. The basic goal of 3D texturing is to give viewers a sense of what the object is made of simply by looking at it.

• Light effects

When exposed to light, every object in the actual world exhibits distinct qualities such as reflection, refraction, emissive, and so on. In a 3D animated world, the same attributes must be applied to 3D objects made of the same material.

• Surface details

Processing 3D things would be a huge pain for both 3D software and, of course, the 3D artist if every single feature on the surface of a 3D item had to be generated during the 3D modelling phase. This problem can be remedied by 3D texturing, which allows us to add microscopic details like wrinkles, scars, cracks, and bumps to the surface of the models without putting too much load on the hardware or software. To make a 3D model look more realistic in a 3D environment, many types of textures and texture mapping can be employed.

Texturing process in 3D world

To get the same results, each 3D artist can use a somewhat different technique. The standard procedure is as follows:

1. UV Mapping and Unwrapping

To begin the 3D texturing process, you must first unwrap the model, which is essentially the same as unfolding a 3D mesh. When the texture artists receive the finished models from the 3D modelling department, they will produce a UV map for each 3D object. A UV map is a flat representation of a 3D model surface that is used to quickly wrap textures. SUVs are two-dimensional representations of three-dimensional models. By directly linking a 2D image (texture) to vertices on a polygon, UV mapping can help wrap a 2D image (texture) around a 3D object and the generated map can be straight used in the texturing and shading process.

Most 3D software systems, have a few tools or approaches for unwrapping 3D models. It’s a matter of personal preference when it comes to creating UV maps. Unless you intend to use procedural textures, unwrapping a 3D model in the texturing component is almost always required. These are textures that are made using a mathematical method (process) rather than directly recorded data in 2D or 3D.

The majority of unwrapping is done by hand, especially for characters. Although manual unwrapping takes a little longer, it makes the painting process much easier. There are additional automatic techniques available, which can be handy for less important objects such as background props.

2. Texturing and shading

The accurate representation of an object’s overall appearance and interaction with light is essential for its credibility and attraction. The viewer’s mind may reject a material or surface property that is incorrect. This encapsulates the general goal of the texturing and shading processes, which work in tandem. A texture is generally a 2D image, and by texturing/shading, we mean a set of functions that govern how light interacts with the 2D image.

3. Lighting & Rendering

Rendering is the process of calculating the various maps assigned to the object’s shader as well as the lighting. Texturing, 3D lighting and rendering processes all rely on one another in some way. Hence, as a result, it becomes critical to choose your texture mappings based on the render engine, you’ll be using at the conclusion of the production stage.

4. Texture mapping

On a computer-generated visual or 3D model, texture mapping is a method for defining high-frequency detail, visual qualities, surface texture, or colour information.Albedo/Base Color map, Normal map, Displacement/Height map, Diffuse map, Specularity/Reflection map, Roughness/Glossiness map, Metalness map, Ambient occlusion map, Refraction map, Emissive map, etc. are some of the commonly used texture maps.