Skinning Tutorials

[meplay]

Hi guys i would like to try and start skinning and was wondering if there any good Tutorials for beginners? Ive got GIMP and PS and have been messing with them for some time now but ive never attempted to do a skin :cool:

Any help would be great :)

S!

[Shado]

"Any help would be great"

Same, your right there ;).
I'll post up my basics later, there is no right or wrong way, it's down to you how you do things, I'm sure the great artists have their own way of doing things and this could turn out to be a very interesting thread Meplay, in a positive way that is.
:-)
S!

[LcSummers]

That would be great. A tutorial. I never made a skin but want to start, understand how it works. Hopefully its not too complicated.
I see everywhere skinners making fantastic skins.

[Shado]

Right let me start my bit off by saying I'm no expert, there maybe easier and more time efficient ways to acheive the finished skin you want.

But this is my basic start to creating a skin.

I use both CS5 and GIMP to do my editing both have their strengths and weaknesses so I have the best of both worlds.

So, I start with three layers, the main skin, panel line layer and lastly the weathering layer, now depending on which aircraft you want to skin not all of them are available from your skins folders.

You can use the fantastic Kegetys mod available here:
http://www.kegetys.net/
To extract out the various layers that go to make up these skins and then use a programme called DXTbmp to convert them from .dds file to 24bit bmp files. ( I wont be going into setup details RTFM :)).

DXTbmp here: http://www.softpedia.com/progDownload/DXTBmp-Download-53836.html

If you have set up the Kegetys.dll correctly using the _Dump command you will end up within a folder within your Cod folder wherever it may be, mine is in : C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\_dump, you need to run the game for this folder to be created.

The files you need are in C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\_dump
\$bob\3do\Plane

The files I use are:

1. M-diffuse0.dds (main skin)
2. M-overlay0.dds (panel lines)
3. W-diffuse0.dds (Weathering)

Now to convert them to 24bit bmp's, ( I use BMP becuase I dont want to introduce jpeg noise at this level) using DXTbmp you just drag and drop them into the programme and it will display the file, quite simply save it as a 24bit bmp giving it a name and saving it to a place that works for you, repeat with the other files and your ready to go with your three basic layers.

Asleep yet? :)

In Gimp/CS5 I load up the three layers into one project, I start with the main skin switching the panel and weathering layers off for the time being, sampling each colour I flood fill them back using a tollerance that will only fill back the colour Ive picked, this cleans them up, of course you can change the colour completley depending what your trying to achieve.

I then go around all the edges where colours meet to clean them up, the line tool comes in very handy, especially for Luftwaffe Camo, just make sure you whichever tool you use have anti-alias on otherwise you will end up with very jaggy lines and it just looks pants.

Now I switch on the other two layers
the order is from top to bottom:

1. (Main skin layer)
2. (Panel lines layer)
3. (Weathering layer)


At this stage.

My Main skin layer has an opacity of 80%
My Panel lines layer has an opacity of 90%
And my Weathing layer is set to 0%

Once your at this stage your ready to paint, you can see clearly where most of the panels are just make sure you paint on the right layer.


3----2-----1---- your back in the room!
Thats my basics....:-P

[LcSummers]

Thank you for these useful information. It sounds and is more complicated than i thought.

But never mind.

S!;)

[meplay]

3----2-----1---- your back in the room!
Thats my basics....:-P

haha shado, thank you very much, i will give it a shot hopefully if i get some time over the weekend:-P

Thanks
S!

[Shado]

LCSummers, it doesnt have to be, thats just the way I do it, you could just use the one main layer and work on that, the panel layer will still come through as it's implemented at game level anyway, the weathering still needs fixing though, hence why mine are pre-weathered :)
I dont do it right, i dont do it wrong, I just do it my way (there's a song there somewhere) and that's it really. :)

[LcSummers]

Sorry Shado,

one layer? I see thousands of them:-P

Maybe i stay "demolishing" and building pc s. Its much easier than with those layers:rolleyes:

S! buddy

[meplay]

I dont do it right, i dont do it wrong, I just do it my way (there's a song there somewhere) and that's it really. :)

i can feel a power ballad coming on:-P

[Flanker]

I open example: Bf-109 template but the map is empty. Where is it? Do I have to download it?

[Ivan Fooker]

I am sure i ll sound like a dumbass now, but i would like to understand it....

So extracted all those layers and converted them, as u described.
But the "M-overlay0.bmp" has grey background,the W-diffuse0.bmp aswell.
So do i have to delete the grey coulour to be able using the layer in opacity?

[Ali Fish]

this isnt really a tutorial on how to make a skin, this a tutorial on how to make a template for a skin build with the extra factors. It requires knowledge of how to manipulate graphics. but to answer the question. there a several ways to eliminate that grey background through layer blending. but actually what you need to do in this instance is make the grey into white through contrast and brightness changes whilst retaining the clarity of data and assigning the layer as a multiply blend. As its white and due to the nature of white with this blend option, the white will appear invisible thus not affecting any other layers. and obviously these layers must be above your hand created skin job. (If you left it grey and used the blend it will darken your texture).

[BigPickle]

what was that remove white plug-in that we used with IL2? can we use that with cod?

[Ali Fish]

hehe BP i found it. Macs remove white !. Ive used photoshop for somthing like 10 years and never been aware of such a cool plugin untill you present us with "remove white plugin" googley google !. conceptually this is probally one of the best plugins ever made imo. especially for us lazy modders ! ive spent years refining my own method for removing white LOL ! and well this plugin ******* ROCKS ! but i dont regret all that time because thats how you really learn photoshop.without plugins. but regards remove white plugin operation <FACEPALM> Thanks never the less sir ! still alot of tweaking to the files before this can used imo, but it will definetly help.


http://www.pspug.org/filters/filtersff.shtml

[BigPickle]

awesome mate i could find it again :) GJ S!