Help for someone who is determined but pretty hopeless.

Hi guys,
I had given up on learning how to make clothing using templates after trying to read several tutorials. But, I am meeting so many people who are making clothes using the templates now, I'm not referring to the wonderful designers who make unique fashions which I have spent alot of L$ on (btw.) but the normal "on the street" avatar who has no designing background, has no experience making clothes and then within a few weeks, they reveal they have opened a clothing shop.

I am not aspiring to any great designs but I would like to make clothes for myself and sell a few in a shop that a friend of mine is opening. I would really be interested in learning how to make different types of uniforms from medical to military also.

I took the first two parts of a class on using GIMP that was a fee based class and worth it too. Unfortunately, at the time the class was given, my phone kept ringing and I've tried to use the transcript but not everything that was said went to the transcript.

I need someone or some guide that takes me for the very beginning step by step and doesn't assume that I already know things.

I am willing to pay for private tutoring if someone will be patient with me and willing to break the instruction up into 30 minute intervals. I have a chronic illness and it is hard for me to follow something new intensely for longer than that.

I have Paint Pro and the Gimp. If anyone knows of a detailed guide to using either of these for making clothes in SL or is willing to give private lessons as I described above, please contact me. It is best to reach me inworld as I am not on the forums very much.

Thanks,
Coreshadow Bordiga

You really have two hills to climb here and you should take them one at a time. The first is to become familiar with your paint program so you can use its tools to paint and shade and create the particular style you'd like to achieve. I don't mean clothing style, I mean art style - idealized, cartoony, realistic, painterly, or some combination thereof. Your best bet for this is to purchase a good book on using PSP or GIMP (I'd recommend PSP). That will allow you to take your time with its tutorials and concepts without worry of missing anything due to a phone call or lag.

Once you feel like you know your paint program well enough to create a look that you're satisfied with, then and only then should you attempt to apply those techniques to the SL clothing templates. That part is much easier than learning to use a good paint program from scratch. Trying to do both at the same time will likely cause you unnecessary frustration.

Mastering the templates has nothing to do with being skilled with your paint program. It's just a matter of learning how the textures wrap around the avatar so that you can visualize the end result while painting your clothing items on the templates. If you want to create a specific neckline or hemline, how do you need to create the front and back parts so that they come together to create a good shape? There are many quirks to the templates - parts of the avatar that distort or stretch - places where you want to avoid putting much detail and others where you can really pack it in. When experimenting to discover and learn to work around those things, you'll be best served by not also struggling with your paint program. Don't worry about creating something worthy of putting up for sale in SL right away. Break the learning process down into smaller more manageable steps.

Don't forget to check out my previewer. A lot of people have been telling me it's a great tool to aid learning.

Coreshadow,

I agree with what Chip is saying. Just like when you were a baby, first you roll over, then sit up, then crawl, then walk, then run... you're trying to run without sitting up first. I think it's great that you are willing to learn how to use a program instead of just asking for a quick fix to something.

There are a lot of books available that will start you at the beginning, then add to those skills as you make your way through each section. Good Luck!

I agree with everyone. Learn how your version of PSP works first. Study the layers and the raster deform tool (great for fixing, growing and shirking cut parts). It will get easier. Just work at it. Take shots of yourself for textures. Cut them up. Get the previewer and the tga viewer tool. Read up on Alpha channels (called masks in PSP). Soon you will produce good clothes.

oho, where's this?

There is the *.tga preview tool: /109/47/141938/1.html

Still, I have another question. I think I am fine with the templates - not perfect, but what I create is good enough for me and my friends. Now I am interested in creating more interesting clothes. For example a skirt for men like a kilt. This is impossible with the skirt template as the template is just made for a women anatomy. I need a more triangular, straighter shape. So I went to someone selling kilts and asked there how she gets this done (as the form of them is a lot more like the stuff I want to make).

She told me that she uses prims to create them. Okay, I went to learn about prims and after a night with a lot of cigarettes, even more coffee and learning about prims ingame I think I have a basic (very basic) understanding of what a prim is and how they work. And I am confident that I would be able to create a chair, a table or a bed - but I still have no clue how this is used to create clothes.

I have to admit I found some stuff in the forums about prims but when it comes to clothing everybody seems to speak just about the templates. Also ingame prim classes are usually about creating a couch of a chair of whatever but do not deal with the clothes part. I would apreciate if someone could provide a link to a prim clothes creating tutorial I simply did not find or a video that shows someone doing this - just to get the idea. There is enough left to learn but I would like to watch someone creating something this way. Its that I can't imagine how this is done. *grml*

And thank you.

heh, that's the previewer I wrote. He said "and the tga tool" so it sounds like he's talking about some other tool in addition that I don't know about.

To create clothes out of prims, you just build the attire you want and then use Attach To to wear it attached to the appropriate body part (for a kilt, hips probably.) Note that making the prim flexi, under the Features tab in the Edit window, often looks nicer for clothing.

I know... but I guessed that was the one he meant.

that is what I meant. the Tga viewer that would mentioned by Robin for use in PS CS2 (I have both CS2 And PSP 11. )

From what I have learned from reading and looking at the pics of peoples clothes. A prim skirt is made of half cylinders. I haven't tried this yet, so correct me if I am wrong. The halfcyliners are linked together with a flat torus band around the waist of the AV.

Yes, this is how I make mine.

It does take some trial and error to learn what level of flexi works for the look you are going for.

Using a posing stand is the best way to create the item you are working on and making adjustments to the item.

Best,

~Ari

This seems like one of those things where you need to already be able to do it. "In order to become skilled with your paint program, you must be skilled with your paint program." If you're ABLE to make textures, you already CAN make textures. And you need one of the fairly expensive paint programs (though the GIMP serves reasonably in my use of it as a photo-vivisector, even though I don't like the look of it generally). And it really seems like you need a tablet, because what good is a mouse, really? D'jever try and draw a curve with a mouse?

Then, THEN you need artistic ability. People seem to forget this sometimes.

Then, and only then, can you make a texture that doesn't have a 'banding' or 'striping' effect, or a little dark spot in the center which tiles itself 40 times across your prim, which is a step most people skip, and I'm fairly sure they do this to annoy me personally.

I have none of these things, therefore I will always be dependant on other people for my textures, which burns me up because shopping for textures is about the most painful thing you can do in Secondlife.

--Matt,
Who Is Really Bitter About Texturing Today As He Entered The Texturing Stage Of A Build And Texturing Is A Comprehensive Hassle

If you convince yourself that something is beyond you, it will be. Good texturing is a skill that can take a long time to learn. The software is fairly complex and there are many techniques and fundamentals to learn. There's no shortcut. The good thing is that learning is fun if you look at it realistically. That's why I suggest small steps and goals. If you've never cooked before and don't know how to use the tools in your kitchen and immediately try to make a complicated souffle you're guaranteed to end up frustrated. Every single person who's skilled in GIMP or Photoshop and who's a good texturer started out exactly where you are so don't despair. You can learn it if you apply yourself and you're patient and motivated enough to keep at it. Some of SL's top designers didn't know anything about texturing or Photoshop when they arrived here and now after a year or two are making beautiful textures. It just takes time.

Having a tablet can help a lot, but it's not necessary. I have one, and I love it, but I rarely use it. I'm used to working with the mouse and I can do almost everything I need to do with it. The only thing using the mouse really lacks over a tablet is pressure sensitivity so you can vary line width and opacity by how soft or firm the stroke is. Yep, drawing a good curve with the mouse isn't easy, but like everything else it just takes practice. Don't beat yourself up if you're not an instant Rembrandt. We ALL suck in the beginning.

I just want to add, last night when I pulled out my tablet to work on something, I actually had to blow the dust off. Admittedly I'm not a texture artist, but still I do a fair amount of work in Photoshop and that's how long it's been since I last used my tablet. Like he said, I love the thing to death but don't use it that often. Maybe it's just me, but I don't find I need to draw curves particularly often, and when I do I tend to use vector tools anyway for more control.

Oh this is SOOOOO true! LOL

Alright, maybe I was overreacting because this is a timely discussion that I found right at the end of a long texturing session. Honestly, if I could figure out how to be a successful builder without having to texture anything, I'd be a happy man. Now, I'm GOOD at texturing, on the technical side, it's just the process of having to decide on a look, then actually manage to HAPPEN upon that 512x512 seamlessly-tiling needle in a 'Viewing 24 of 62 in an unlabeled texture vendor' haystack (Texture stores SUCK. Watch for a tread sometime around when I get to texturing another six hours), and THEN not have it look like 1) crap or 2) a zebra once you tile it more than once across a large surface and 3) pleasing in relation to the OTHER lovingly picked textures.

I'm also a reasonably intelligent guy! I'm sure if I sat down with a book and made an sincere effort, I could make a passable texture, which would really help me out in one particular thing I"m working on right now (which requires a lot of abstract, or at least 'generic' textures). It's just a daunting process for a guy who can scarcely draw, either now or historically!

It's just that yes, there is no shortcut. The 'how to make textures' tutorial that OP wants would look basically like:
1) Procure graphics software. Maybe watch for a sale at CompUSA.
2) Get a book about it
3) Learn to use it. This is beyond the scope of this Howto.
Congratulations! Thus concludes 'how to make textures, part 1'. Pick up Part 2 in about nine months once you've mastered your software, then we can talk.

Part Two, of course, has never been finished or released.

Maybe this all reminds me too much of computer science classes, where they often flat out TOLD you that you already basically needed to know how to do the stuff before they could teach you. Making textures is a lot easier if you already know how to make textures.

hehe, well if it makes you feel any better I still can't cook to save my life. The good news is that you don't really need to be able to draw to make great textures. That's the nice thing about digital art. It has more to do with technical knowledge than artistic skill, as long as you can visualize what you want and know your tools well enough so you know how to approach it.

I have a different approach to learning. I approach from different angles. Sometimes I just mess about in a program, and I've come up with ineresting and useful textures that way. But I probably learn best when I have a specific goal and try to attain it. One of my first projects was a bearskin rug. In restrospect, that was nuts. But I did it anyway and learned a lot because I *wanted* a bearskin rug.

If you want individual tutoring, contact me in game and we'll see.

I have a different approach to learning. I approach from different angles. Sometimes I just mess about in a program, and I've come up with ineresting and useful textures that way. But I probably learn best when I have a specific goal and try to attain it. One of my first projects was a bearskin rug. In restrospect, that was nuts. But I did it anyway and learned a lot because I *wanted* a bearskin rug.

If you want individual tutoring, contact me in game and we'll see.

My experience is that both GIMP and Photoshop are excellent choices when working with alpha channels, and I give GIMP a slight edge in ease of use.

Uhm... I think it doesn't have much to do with intelligence. I once tought my 5 year old niece how to "work" with Photoshop. Just drawing simple basic shapes, filling them with color etc., more or less the same she did on paper at that age. She picked that up in an intuitive way. Basically she was able to draw because she had the talent to draw and therefore already could draw; all she needed in addition was a 1 minute instruction on basic mouse usage and the curiosity to try out all those tool buttons in Photoshop. I ended up printing a lot of her... uhm... digital artwork

I'd say, learning to use Photoshop to creatively draw is impossible if you can't draw. You can learn photo manipulation and retouche, up to some point, but drawing is a talent. The tutorial in two parts you mentioned could look like this (I'd add a third part for clothes creation, once you mastered prim texturing):


- Preconditions:
1.) Have the basic graphics talent
2.) Purchase an image editor / painting software of your choice
3.) Learn about the coherence between image resolution, image size, display size and file size
4.) Read about the differences and limitations of image file formats
5.) Learn how color mixture in the RGB color space works

- Part 1 - Image Editor / Paint Program Usage
1.) Try yourself at photo retouche, using tools to change lightness, contrast, saturation and gradient
2.) Learn about layers, selections, masks and alpha channels
3.) Learn the ways to manipulate particular image areas, working with selections and layers
4.) Find out what you can do with filters
5.) Start to paint, using the basic brush and airbrush tools
6.) Use all you learned in steps 1-5 to create realistically shaded images

- Part 1-2 - Illustration Software (optional; useful for logos, signs and architectural textures)
1.) Learn the basics of vector drawing tools and bezier curves (can be useful for Photoshop work as well)
2.) Work with Illustrator, FreeHand or CorelDraw and learn how to import your work into your paint program
3.) Learn about typography and experiment with different fonts, kerning and spacing

- Part 2 - Basic Texturing
1.) Read about the limitations of textures in Second Life (size, file formats, alpha channels for transparency)
2.) Upload images and apply them to a cube, find out how large your textures need to be at certain cube sizes and image detail levels
3.) Learn how the texture offset works
4.) Try to create seamless tiled textures
5.) Apply textures to spheres, cylinders and other prim shapes and learn to optimize them for curved surfaces
6.) Experiment with alpha channels - learn how to create walls with transparent windows, or a neon sign on transparent background

- Part 2-2 - Advanced Mesh Texturing (optional; useful for tutorial part 3)
1.) Purchase Poser or another rendering / 3D software
2.) Download a free UV mapping tool like Lith Unwrap
3.) Learn how to use UV maps as template files for texture creation
4.) Try to create textures for complex meshes like 3D avatars based on template files

- Part 3 - Clothing and Body Textures (optional)
1.) Get the template files for SL avatars (I'd recommend Chip's templates, they're great)
2.) Learn about the texture baking process and avatar texture size in SL
3.) Upload the templates and apply them to your avatar, find out how they're wrapped around the avatar mesh; take screenshots from all angles for later reference
4.) Modify your body shape to extremes (broad shoulders, wide hips etc.) and watch which texture parts are stretched and distorted; remember not to apply fine details or straight lines to these parts
5.) Create your first clothing textures, upload them, apply them, modify your avatar shape again to optimize your textures for all body shapes
6.) Experiment with higher contrast and sharpness for fine details, blur and soften shaded parts to find the right levels of contrast for different environmental lighting
7.) Repeat steps 5-6 until your textures start to look good

- Part 3-2 - Skin Textures (optional)
1.) Grab a cheap CD with reference photos from an online shop like Renderosity, to get some license-free quality skin photos
2.) Bend and distort body parts cut out of photos to fit the avatar templates
3.) Try to paint and shade in skin colors, use filters to apply a realistic skin grain
3.) Learn to mix painted and photographic elements and equalize the colors
4.) Put your first skins together; use photographic elements for details like eyes, brows and lips, try to paint in the missing parts, find the right contrast level for muscularity shading
5.) Upload your work and repeat steps 4-5 until your skin textures look right


That'd be the ultimate texturing tutorial, in my opinion. Of course, no one needs to learn everything on that list. If you want to specialize in architectural textures or clothing only, you can scratch many points. I for one found out that I'm only mediocre (at best) at skins and clothing and will concentrate on prim textures, since I'm mainly a 3D modeller with a moderate little scripting talent. But it can't hurt to try it all, to find out what you're really good at.

Ishtara... excellent post!

Thanks

Yes, good stuff!

I agree that a tutorial covering how to make clothing with prims would be most useful. I'm fine with texturing and using the templates, but I would love to make flexis and know nothing about prims. I don't want to go to a class on building furniture...

(Writing this in one window while another window has a half cylinder and my av staring dumbly at it