Hight map in the shape of a face.
by Max Thomas · in General Discussion · 08/24/2004 (8:15 am) · 10 replies
I was wondering if anyone could help me out with making a hight map that when exported into the game it will look like a huge head. I've made a few attempts but it allways comes up kinda screwy the eye sockets are too deep the head is out of probortion and such. I need it to have eye sockets a nose and lips and have the general looks of a face. So, I was wondering if any one could help me out.
#2
08/24/2004 (8:33 am)
If I can find a good single mesh face somewhere, I'll see how well max can export it as a heightmap for you.
#3
08/24/2004 (9:35 am)
Thanks, If it works out I'll put you in the credits. 
#4
08/24/2004 (4:35 pm)
My first thoughts would be what Jacob suggested. find a bitmap of a face, import it as a bmp as a heightfield, and see how it looks. edit it in photoshop, etc... as needed until it looks right for importing. :) I have never tried this, but I know the terrain editor allows import from BMP. 
#5
Secondly its a 256x256 .png file thats required in common/editor/heightscripts just in case there were any queries.
Thirdly I'd suggest just finding an image, and making the heightmap yourself. (ie not just greyscaling an image) Airbrushing, dodging/burning should do the trick well enough.
08/25/2004 (2:57 am)
First off the main problem with finding a picture of a face is the lighting angle etc. This provides a relative source for the light, not a directly front facing light. Thus it wont work as a heightmap...Secondly its a 256x256 .png file thats required in common/editor/heightscripts just in case there were any queries.
Thirdly I'd suggest just finding an image, and making the heightmap yourself. (ie not just greyscaling an image) Airbrushing, dodging/burning should do the trick well enough.
#6
08/25/2004 (3:18 am)
The best way is still, like Erik said, to let MAX make the heightmap from a face mesh.
#7
08/25/2004 (4:10 am)
Agreed, but who says he is a modeller? ;)
#8
08/25/2004 (12:20 pm)
I'm not a good modeler :) I spent some time looking for a decent face model, but all I found were some massive polygon versions. They didn't work out well at all. Bryce is happy with the counts, but it can't be convinced to change the object to a terrain.
#9
08/25/2004 (12:56 pm)
What did it look like in game? Or did you put it in the game. It doesn'd need to look great in the game because I want it to be fairly huge and when it's that big it doesn't need to be very detailed to look like a face.
#10
I don't know if you're still interested in this thread, but there's no way you can create a heightmap to form a head, simply because of one reason: heightmaps are formed in torque's Z-up direction only. And to get a head to form, you need some X and Y values as well, otherwise it'll just look like a washed out version of the head (like a cloth draped over it) especially since terrain maps can only be something like 512x512 max!. So, if you're a bit experienced with any 3D modeling application, I suggest you model the head (or import one from a free model library on the net) , and export it to map, or dts (when as dts, make sure you duplicate it, and export it as a collision mesh along with the actual mesh).
05/01/2005 (1:16 am)
Hi Max,I don't know if you're still interested in this thread, but there's no way you can create a heightmap to form a head, simply because of one reason: heightmaps are formed in torque's Z-up direction only. And to get a head to form, you need some X and Y values as well, otherwise it'll just look like a washed out version of the head (like a cloth draped over it) especially since terrain maps can only be something like 512x512 max!. So, if you're a bit experienced with any 3D modeling application, I suggest you model the head (or import one from a free model library on the net) , and export it to map, or dts (when as dts, make sure you duplicate it, and export it as a collision mesh along with the actual mesh).
Torque 3D Owner Jacob Dankovchik