UV Seams? Do they matter...

[EricChadwick]

The seams won't show during animation, they won't rip apart unless the model is actually in two separate pieces. Then the mesh itself may separate.

The real problem in my opinion lies with how the vertices are laid out around deformable parts of the body. If there aren't enough edges around a joint, then the faces will probably stretch a great deal, and hence so will the texture on them.

Here's an interesting site about topology for animation.
http://www.hippydrome.com/

Sometimes it helps to increase the pixel density in joint areas, so when they do stretch the texture will retain some resolution. But I'd only do this if I didn't have enough verts/edges/faces to make a nicely-deforming joint.

As far as seams go, 3d paint helps in fixing them, getting the same colors/patterns to flow across the seam.

Overpainting is also important. Otherwise colors tend to bleed into the seams, usually the result of texture filtering. Some texture baking tools will create the overpaint for you automatically.

Pixel size should be as close as possible on either side of the seam, otherwise one side will be blockier/blurrier on one side, making a more obvious seam.

Good artists place their seams carefully on the model, say the inside of the leg, or the underside of the arm.

It also helps to have as many contiguous UV elements as possible, since if others will be painting maps for your character it makes it easier for them to understand the layout. And easier to fix seams, since there are less.

Wow, this is a longer post than I thought it'd be. Hope it helps.

[ktpr]

thanks a lot. A lot of things are clarified.

It seems like what's important is to have deformable geometry with enough density to support movement and a readable layout with minimal seams.

cheers
ktpr

[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.