Skin Making

[omegaeleven 9]

Are there any skin making guides? I'm trying to make a skin based on Shin Kazama's F-5E Tiger, also my apologies if I'm bothering anyone, it's sort of complicated and I need some help.

[+EricJ 4,240]

There are plenty of tutorials online man, Google is your friend. But one question is what can you afford? there's GIMP, which is free, and stuff like Adobe Photoshop and the like. You'll also need the PSD template (if one exists) too to work on your skin. And have a lot of reference and texture files to pull it off.

[omegaeleven 9]

18 minutes ago, EricJ said:

There are plenty of tutorials online man, Google is your friend. But one question is what can you afford? there's GIMP, which is free, and stuff like Adobe Photoshop and the like. You'll also need the PSD template (if one exists) too to work on your skin. And have a lot of reference and texture files to pull it off.

Honestly, I'm pretty poor at the moment. Is paint.net a good option? I don't really remember, but I saw a guide in here, kinda forgot who did it.

Edited June 27 by omegaeleven

[+EricJ 4,240]

I don't know about Paint.net, but GIMP is totally free, so you have that option, and works with PSD files. Daddyairplanes knows about it more than me, as I use it to reformat files for Arma 3 and such.

Edited June 28 by EricJ

[omegaeleven 9]

Just now, EricJ said:

I don't know about Paint.net, but GIMP is totally free, so you have that option, and works with PSD files.

Alright, thanks! :)

[+EricJ 4,240]

Just now, omegaeleven said:

Alright, thanks! :)

No problem!

[+daddyairplanes 10,230]

gimp works awesomely considering the price (free) and i would say has most of the functionality of photoshop (99.99% of what you might ever think you need for basic skinning). frankly i still use it over Photoshop despite having an active subscription for Creative Cloud atm. i absolutely prefer it for decal making to PS

[+Jimbib 746]

A few resources that may be of use:

The skin templates downloads section here at CA - there are tonnes of excellent skin templates uploaded by other modders here, would recommend opening some in GMIP (I believe it can use .psd photoshop file format), have an explore and see how other modders lay out their layers. Usually, there are separate layers for base paint, camo patterns, panel lines, rivets, stencils, dirt, aircraft parts, markings etc.

 

A couple of discussion threads worth reading:

https://combatace.com/forums/topic/81503-need-experts-advice-on-creating-a-template/

https://combatace.com/forums/topic/76264-skin-templates-sf2/

 

A couple of tutorial threads on making skins and decals specifically in GIMP:

https://combatace.com/forums/topic/83470-creating-a-skin-step-by-step-with-gimp/

https://combatace.com/forums/topic/76701-making-decals-using-gimp/

 

and finally a gratuitous mention of the Knowledge Base section of the forums here at CA, there are tonnes of useful tips and tricks written out in detail by other modders over the years, it is well worth the time browsing through:

https://combatace.com/forums/forum/268-thirdwire-strike-fighters-2-series-knowledge-base/

[+daddyairplanes 10,230]

1 hour ago, Jimbib said:

would recommend opening some in GMIP (I believe it can use .psd photoshop file format),

will confirm it can open psd, and it can export to psd

[omegaeleven 9]

Thanks so much everyone! If anyone is curious on what skin I'm doing, it is the F-5E that Centurion made a few years ago, didn't find any templates, sadly. But one skin seemed like a good start, (Honduras Air Force Grey). Is this.. kind of a good idea? If I messed up somewhere, please let me know.

Edited June 28 by omegaeleven

[+EricJ 4,240]

Well, you could learn how to make your own template too. I don't know if one exists though so not sure if you need to make one or not.

[+Trotski 936]

Paint.net can be a useful tool, but not really good enough to do a complete skin, Gimp is very good, especially for making decals, and the added bonus of it being FREE, is maybe the way for you to go. I personally prefer Photoshop for making my skins, I find it easier to use, however it ain't cheap, so Gimp is by far your best option.

[+Jimbib 746]

11 hours ago, omegaeleven said:

Thanks so much everyone! If anyone is curious on what skin I'm doing, it is the F-5E that Centurion made a few years ago, didn't find any templates, sadly. But one skin seemed like a good start, (Honduras Air Force Grey). Is this.. kind of a good idea? If I messed up somewhere, please let me know.

I don't think any templates for Centurion's F-5E ever got uploaded here (although the download does contain a grey Honduras skin), I did a quick check on the mapping compared to the Mirage Factory F-5E (which Centurion's was developed from and does have templates available), but unfortunately the UV's don't match.

That might necessitate making your own templates, but I say go for it! The best way to learn is trial and error. Make sure to grab mue's LOD Viewer, it really speeds up reviewing your skin on the model instead of constantly launching and shutting the game down:

 

[+EricJ 4,240]

11 minutes ago, Trotski said:

Paint.net can be a useful tool, but not really good enough to do a complete skin, Gimp is very good, especially for making decals, and the added bonus of it being FREE, is maybe the way for you to go. I personally prefer Photoshop for making my skins, I find it easier to use, however it ain't cheap, so Gimp is by far your best option.

I've used Photoshop for skins for about 24 years, so I'm naturally sold on it myself.

[+daddyairplanes 10,230]

no time like the present to learn on the templates. biggest thing i can advise on making your own is LAYERS, LAYER LAYERS. dont be afraid to make layers, it will help you greatly in the long run. also, bigger is better at least in development. if you can blow up the original skin to 2048px or even 4096, do so. the results will be much better even if you shrink it back down at the end

back the the what program,  we all got our preferences and all the old  heads round here will swear by what they use. 

find what works for you (including cost) and play with it. make mistakes. fix those mistakes. its how you learn

[omegaeleven 9]

6 hours ago, Jimbib said:

I don't think any templates for Centurion's F-5E ever got uploaded here (although the download does contain a grey Honduras skin), I did a quick check on the mapping compared to the Mirage Factory F-5E (which Centurion's was developed from and does have templates available), but unfortunately the UV's don't match.

That might necessitate making your own templates, but I say go for it! The best way to learn is trial and error. Make sure to grab mue's LOD Viewer, it really speeds up reviewing your skin on the model instead of constantly launching and shutting the game down:

 

About the LODViewer, since it's my first time using it.. are there any tutorials I can find for a noobie like me? It's sort of overwhelming. Again, my apologies for asking too many questions.

Edited June 28 by omegaeleven

[+daddyairplanes 10,230]

um, it is simple enough for most of us that i dont think anyone ever thought to do a tutorial

what questions do you have?

[omegaeleven 9]

1 hour ago, daddyairplanes said:

um, it is simple enough for most of us that i dont think anyone ever thought to do a tutorial

what questions do you have?

When I open the F-5E's LOD, it doesn't show the roundels or paint scheme, just blank. I don't know if it's a problem on my end or that's just how it is. (Tried to tinker with the Paint Scheme, Service, Unit, Individual Markings settings.)

Edited June 28 by omegaeleven

[+EricJ 4,240]

Sometimes you gotta open up the Actual named ini (Such as F-18F.ini or something like that) if my mind serves me correctly. I know I have to do it with my Super Hornets to look at the scheme. Personally I'd wait until you get the template done (which will take hours depending on how much detail you work out from the skin), but getting familiar with LOD Viewer doesn't hurt either.

[+Jimbib 746]

2 hours ago, omegaeleven said:

About the LODViewer, since it's my first time using it.. are there any tutorials I can find for a noobie like me? It's sort of overwhelming. Again, my apologies for asking too many questions.

Inside the LODViewer directory there's a folder called "doc", within that is a readme text that mue wrote that should help with all the controls, how it works etc.

[omegaeleven 9]

7 minutes ago, Jimbib said:

Inside the LODViewer directory there's a folder called "doc", within that is a readme text that mue wrote that should help with all the controls, how it works etc.

Thanks!

Edited June 28 by omegaeleven

[+yakarov79 11,077]

So I will chime in, using this as an opportunity to appeal to skinmakers new and old.

I know that for many this is obvious, but also sometimes we can forget about something....

When making new skins/templates for existing aircraft (as daddyairplanes said - using as big as possible format 4096x is quite good enough). But before starting a new skin/template make sure, what needs to be done for that model.  

Many new aircraft (but also old ones) have bump maps (normal) and Specular maps as additional features - that can improve the quality of the model as a whole. So when you are making new templates in higher resolution - make sure to make new bump maps too* - so they will correspond with new skins. It is not (never) going to look good if you have nicely done 4096x skins with beautiful thin lines, and small rivets if you will combine it with - let's say stock 512 bump maps you will have a mess with lines and poops instead of rivets. 

Interesting is a fact that bump maps can be  - 'bumped" and "sunken" at the same time - just a matter of arrangement and creativity. - for example depressed lines and raised rivets etc...

The same rule applies to Specular Maps. And this is somehow neglected more often than you can imagine, especially with metal/silver skins. Not going to dwell on why specular maps are used (or not) but since they are used sometimes they also have to match skins. Personally, I love it when a model can use specular maps, as it can give nice depth to the skin. And again wrongly made specular maps can spoil the final effect

And specular maps are bringing one more issue. If those are assigned to a model then they should be used always in a specific skin folder despite the skin being silver/natural metal or camouflaged. If a model is using specular maps they also need to be attached to a camouflaged skin folder. Otherwise, the skin will look pale, or too glossy, or too shiny,  or simply not the way it should.

So no. Specular maps are not only for shiny metal surfaces.  Not to mention, that with some practice create nice "different" surfaces.

 

while bump maps should be at least the same size as all skins to have the best quality (4096x or 3072x) and must be inside the main aircraft type folder, specular maps usually can be much smaller (even 4x smaller - 1024x1024, as for some small pieces of model like fuel tanks, extra rails if any specular maps can be even 512x512. And it must be (again) in every single skin folder.

 

* when one has done new templates already  - making bump maps is an additional 10 minutes, and it is somehow easy with certain software. 

 

 

examples of mismatch between skin-bump maps - in fact it is hard sometimes to portray it on the screenshot, but hope you will get the idea. 

skin 2048x2048 mixed with stock TW bump maps 

and here bump maps based on that new skin set 2048x2048 (by ludo)

 

 

wrongly edited specular maps. This is an extreme example but shows how it should not be.

clearly you can see us air force "brand" on the fuselage and just near roundel  additional roundel "underneath" 

noticeable is the reddish canopy - because I used a specular map from different skin sets where the canopy is painted red. This can be used to advantage when we want to add sometimes something special to the skin.