Human Skin WIPs and Tips (Everyone feel free to post your own skin WIPS here too)

#1

I have started this thread as a place where we can all post our skin WIPs and give crits and learn. So if you are working on some skin texturing, and want to show off some cool renders, or are needing some help, post it here :smiley:

In light of this past weekends rather fascinating (and heated) discussion on human skin, I decided to give it a bash. So I dug up a model I had lying around, unwrapped it and started painting.

Here is my first WIP:

Iā€™ve used a combination of handpainting, and cloning bits and pieces of photographs.

This is 2 hours work so far, and so far I am pleased with the results that I am getting.

The bump map is still very rough as I am trying to figure out what should be bumped, and what should be displaced.

Now, since the last thread turned into a bit of a flamewar, I thought that I would try and start a constructive thread :slight_smile:

Sooooā€¦ letā€™s get some suggestions flowing, and letā€™s see where this WIP goesā€¦

I want to have this eventually as a skin texturing tutorial in my book, so I want it to end up really realistic when itā€™s done.

#2

Yo Leigh,

IMHO :

Interesting. yep the bump is very strong. The veins are too rough, perhaps a little blur for them will help (perhaps itā€™s my lcd monitor, but they appear a lilā€™ too purple).
I think you use a lilā€™ specs on the skin, did you try replacing it for some reflections? with an hdr env, could look greater.
I would then vary the reflection (slightly) on veins/wrinkles and buttons (which are my favorite). Same thing for the mouth, if you want it too look more wetā€¦
I wonder if irises are not too small (not sure).
I would recommend to work also the lighting, I thik itā€™s pure white at the moment, perhaps explore something more real, mixing 2 or 3 areas with soft tints.
SSS, G2 style, could be a way (perhaps later in the wip). Or a camera incidence Translucency to make the light turn.
Hey wanna see the ears !!

#3

Allowing myself to polute you with a test I did for ears

Gradient Weightmap on luminous channel.

#4

Thanks for the feedback Facial :thumbsup:

Iā€™ll work on all those points you mentioned :slight_smile: Thanks!

Those ears look fantastic! You are using G2, arenā€™t you? Dammit I really need to get that plugin too :stuck_out_tongue:
Right now, my guys ears are just kinda plain, but I will do something cool with them soon :slight_smile:

I actually meant to mention that this guy is supposed to be middle aged, hence the very spotted and slightly ages skin. He reminds me of someone, but I canā€™t think who :surprised

Here are a few updates - just been tweaking some things here and there (particularly the bump map). Also added a gloss map, and added more spec and a bit of gloss to the forehead, as the skin is pulled tighter there, and is often therefore shinierā€¦

Iā€™ll try out the stuff you suggested, and post an update a little later :thumbsup:

#5

hey leigh,

any chance you could ā€œshow us your mapsā€:applause:

p.s. thanks for the quick response to my questions the other day:thumbsup:

#6

Yep using G2, but for the ears trick, Iā€™m not sure G2 has something to do. Iā€™m telling you, weightmap+luminous is good fake :slight_smile:
Love those wrinkles under the eyes (poor guy, must have suffer).
Brows are superbs, painted arenā€™t they ? eye brows are little all in the same direction.
Love the buttons on the chin.
Perhaps post a wire too, not sure of whatā€™s bump and whatā€™s meshā€¦ And of course the texturesā€¦

#7

Hey Leigh,

Great work. I do think that the bumpmap is a little bit rough, like the pores in the tip of the nose. If your going for a middle aged man, you should losen the skin a bit.
Oh, I donā€™t mean to hijack your thread, but hereā€™s an example I did a few months back. Itā€™s a slightly older man. Here Iā€™ve used G2 for the skin, but I only have the demo version. What I did was open the example scenes that contained the female head, and copied g2 settings, imported my own model in the scene and gave it the G2 setting. That way you can render your own model with G2 setting, you canā€™t change the settings themselfs, but it giveā€™s some interesting results I think. Maybe you could give that a try?
Hoping to see an update soon! Good luck!

Ayreon

#8

U really are the texture goddess!!:applause:

IMVHO : there is too much bump , very sharp, and veins at the side of the head, next to eyes are too much bumped.

eyesockets are a bit too red. a sick person can have them like that. but a normal person, donā€™t. also the bump at the bottom of eyesocket is too much, or better, seems not to follow the right shape in some way.
in his chin i donā€™t like these orange spots.

i like very much the personal look u gave to the texture as well as the model, so i think u will have no problem when the WIP is finished.
did u use SSS or its only texture?

#9

My main overall impression of the colour map is that it is way over saturated and the colours are too contrasty where they meet.

I think cranking up the subtlety setting might be in order. Reminds me more of a game character or theatrical make-up where you need to convey features from a distance.

It looks like youā€™ve just started on the bump map, but you might also want to give that a whack with the sbtlety stick as well :wip:

#10

NO suggestions for ya Leigh ( because i suck at texturing ), but rather just a little questionā€¦ I have just started to try to paint my human head textures, and iā€™m having BIG trouble painting things like the eyebrows, pores, and stubbleā€¦ I have a little Wacom tablet that i could use if i had to do all of that by hand, but i was wondering if there was any specific filters that you use in photoshop that give you a basis in which to start?? the eyebrows and little stubble are giving me fitsā€¦:surprised

#11

Hi, Leigh: sorry, but it looks unrealistic, both the model AND the texture.The colours look wrong, the lighting looks not so good and the model
has a few issues like the strange forehead, the too large eyesā€¦
The colour map looks strange around the eyes, like he was in a boxing ring or something.
The bump must be much smoother than this, the pores and freckles are way too strong still.Overall it looks like a bad B-movie rubber mask, there is still no life or character in it.
The lower part of the model is fine, but the upper part isnā€™t quite there yet, the ears look good, though but need a more reddish tone and probably a stronger spec/gloss map.
Looking forward to the next version !

#12

THANK YOU, Leigh, for starting this. I tried to rescue that other thread at the end, but too little too late.
How are you mapping? (UV, Cyl, Sphere, etc.)
When you do a gloss map, is it detailed like a spec or bump or more general like an alpha map? Iā€™m guessing the latter, right?

FD, please explain the gradient on luminous. I recently tried something similiar on the translucency channel but I think yours is better.

This is great! This is the thread I wanted
:applause:

#13

As always Leigh, simply amazing. I think it looks very realistic.

Keep it coming :slight_smile: :thumbsup:

#14

Originally posted by Zarathustra
[B]THANK YOU, Leigh, for starting this. I tried to rescue that other thread at the end, but too little too late.
How are you mapping? (UV, Cyl, Sphere, etc.)
When you do a gloss map, is it detailed like a spec or bump or more general like an alpha map? Iā€™m guessing the latter, right?

FD, please explain the gradient on luminous. I recently tried something similiar on the translucency channel but I think yours is better.

This is great! This is the thread I wanted
:applause: [/B]

Well I canā€™t check it right now 'cause itā€™s rendering heavy scene at the moment but for an ear, select point around the edge of the ear (where light is supposed to diffuse) create a New Weightmap(Ears_weight), make adjustements to have a soft weight.
Then in Layout, Surface editor, Luminous Channel, Gradient weightmap (select your Ears_weight) set it to 100% at 100% and 0% at 0% and -100%. Tweak a bit and there you are.

#15

I agree about the bump being a bit strong, even for a gruff looking guy. The skin also looks quite dry. I also agree about the colors being a bit saturated in areas. I think the magic lies in the subtleties.
Could we see the bump map or the color map Leigh? Perhaps it would be easier to see what could use improvement.
If I was to guess about the bump, I would say that maybe thereā€™s a bit too much contrast. It gives the appearence that the skin is quite rough. It might do to add another layer with some softly blended grays to soften the overall texture.

#16

OK. Thatā€™s what I did, FD, but in Translucency instead of Luminous. Iā€™ll give it a go.

#17

Originally posted by Facial Deluxe
Well I canā€™t check it right now 'cause itā€™s rendering heavy scene at the moment but for an ear, select point around the edge of the ear (where light is supposed to diffuse) create a New Weightmap(Ears_weight), make adjustements to have a soft weight.
Then in Layout, Surface editor, Luminous Channel, Gradient weightmap (select your Ears_weight) set it to 100% at 100% and 0% at 0% and -100%. Tweak a bit and there you are.

Hey everyoneā€¦what happens if you stick a Surface Thickness gradient on top of a Weight Map gradient in the Luminosity Channel?

I get a crash in Layout every single timeā€¦

the Surface thickness goes from 0 to 100% with a distance of 1m.:annoyed:

#18

What version are you using? I havenā€™t upped to 7.5c yet.

#19

Dunnoā€™ Iā€™m still on 7.5 too

#20

7.5c.

i think my configs are shotā€¦the Surface Thickness crashes layout everytime.

maybe i need to reboot.:annoyed: