making the handcuffs' metal material

[snot_nose]

and this is my material

i don't want my material to be 100% the same
but something close enough to recognise it's a handcuff

[Dave Black]

Ok, first, handcuffs are either Zinc or Stainless Steel.

You really do need to use a raytrace material for this one.

Lighting and bump mapping is going to have a great deal of effect on your render. If you use a bitmap as your reflection, you will need to UV map the cuffs. Not really the best idea anyway. Can't use raytrace unless there is something to reflect(other than the object).

Please provide more information about your scene, and I'm sure I can walk you through some tecniques.

-3DZ

[Clanger]

The key is the environment, as shiny metal reflects everything.

[snot_nose]

my scene is animated so i don't think that putting a bitmap in my reflection map will work there, i also don't have much objects in my back, it's like 2 characters a floor and a fence (and blue sky)
oh and a big screen.

in my reference picture there is no really environment but still the handcuffs have some special tint, like some kind of coating, maybe i need to use another layer of material or is it just the raytrace material?

[Clanger]

You don't have to put a bitmap in the reflection slot, put it in the environment so the material can reflect this and any other geometry you have in the scene.
Also put white self illuminated objects where the lights are so it can reflect these too.

[Chris Thomas]

What version of Max are you using snot?

[snot_nose]

max 4
why?

[Chris Thomas]

I have an example file for yeah, need to save it out as a 4 file though, i'll have to get Bobo's script.

[Chris Thomas]

ok, pop this script file in your max/scripts directory, run max
from the scripts menu, "run" , then pick this script. Its a bobo script that exports Max5 scenes as a script, run that script on Max4 and it should re-create the scene, Have a looksie at it for a material rig that gets close to what you need.

Cheers

tried to upload it here, couldn't :(, so I've uploaded it to the scripts area of the Max support forum. Log on there and get it :)

use the 3dsmax/forum link, create an account, real name needed

http://support.discreet.com/

[snot_nose]

it doesn't work, it's importing only 2 planes and a light.
the errors that i get on the"BFF import progress report" are:
failed to assign R4 style texture coordinates
failed to assign R3 style texture coordinates
spline import from external file FAILED

am i doing something wrong?

[Chris Thomas]

Nope, sounds like the script hasn't quite managed the task, ho hum :(

:annoyed:

should look like this anyway

http://www.christopher-thomas.net/cuffs.jpg

main things to do are....

use a raytraced reflection at %90

use a dark diffuse colour, you can titn this to tint the metals colour

use relfection cards (planes) where you light source is, assign a self illuminated material to these cards and increase the strength of the illumination to more than 1 (increase output)

the main key to relfective surfaces is not the surface itself, but rather its environment, put a chrome ball in a black room and you'll get a black ball.....

Also download the HDRI plugin from Splutterfishes site and also some HDRI images from Paul debevecs site, read up on this tech if you don't understand it. Then map some of these HDRI images into your scenes environment and render reflective obects, look at the reflection quality. Basicly you need to understand HDRI to get goot reflections going.

[halo]

1)u dont need uvw mapping for reflection maps at all, just set them to enviroment and spherical

2)u dont need to use raytracing here either, as theres no direct reflection in the example and most of the reflections are so diffused you can get away with using the reflection map

us a bitmap in your reflection slot, set it to rgb multiply and use a better setting for your specular and you should be 95% there in 10 mins, the rest is just tweaks

[snot_nose]

halo: do you mean i should use the raytrace mapping in the standard material instead of the raytracing material?

i tried both technices that you people offered.
i also understood that i can get a good fake of environment using gradients in the reflection and diffuse mapping,

but still i couldn't get that silver look :sad:
maybe i should just play more with the environment.
or maybe the HDRI plugin and images will help me with that.

can i blur reflections with the raytrace material?


anyway thanx for all the help

[Chris Thomas]

well yer luckily using Max4 and yes you can, it has a rollout in the raytrace map, have a look for it and how to use it in the help.

Strangely they removed bluring in Max5, odd. :surprised

[halo]

yeh u can blur reflections if you really need to...but raytracing isnt the only way to get good looking materials

start with a blinn

i was suggesting you put a bitmap into the the reflection slot (try chromic.jpg that comes with max for a start)...you can add some blur offset to make the "reflections" softer and also tick rgb multiply (or something like that) lower down, this will multiply your reflections with your diffuse colour making them look better
set the bitmap to enviroment and spherical to not need a uvw map modifier on the model

make your diffuse grey and adjust to suit

your reflection slot wont need to be 100, drop it down to 80 or 90 depending on how much you want to pick up shadows on your material

if the reflections dont look right you can play with cropping the bitmap or altering its uvw or paint onto the map in photoshop or something

blinn metals look better when the specular is set to about 30 or below and the strength is set around 100..but you can play with this

you dont need reflections as often as you think, they slow you down(and you can always switch them on afterwards anyway by dropping a raytrace material over the top and keeping the bitmap as a sub map)

[CGTalk Moderation]

This thread has been automatically closed as it remained inactive for 12 months. If you wish to continue the discussion, please create a new thread in the appropriate forum.