Getting there...

[Willy]

I keep plugging away at doing bare metal from scratch and while I am making progress, I think I've still got a bit to go. But this T-33 paint I did for our up coming jet race is about where I'm at with it now. I need another "ah ha moment"....

 

[falcon409]

Looking pretty darned good Willy. Nice job!

 

[Willy]

FSX native with spec textures really helps. Unlike the F-80 which is a portover and my main focus. The T-33 is at a point now that unless I learn a new trick, any more tinkering will probably just make it worse. So, I've saved that "recipe" and try to see if I can apply it to the F-80 and see what happens. My previous attempt at the 80 came out with some odd pinkish, purplish tints so I'm redoing the metal layer using the shades of grey from the T-33.

 

[hschuit]

Willy, I like what you are doing with the F-80, did send you a PM.

cheers, Henk.

 

[nigel richards]

I keep plugging away at doing bare metal from scratch and while I am making progress, I think I've still got a bit to go. But this T-33 paint I did for our up coming jet race is about where I'm at with it now. I need another "ah ha moment"....

Spectacular work, Willy!

You may wish to try selecting some of those panel areas in Alpha mode, Go to Brightness/Contrast dialogue BOX, then play around with both contrast and brightness values. Some darker, some lighter - great fun to do.

 

[Willy]

Nigel, something like this?

When I started having problems the other day, I went to the paint kit for an aircraft that IMHO has the best bare metal going and tried to figure out how it was done. Your work on Milton's Harpoon. Didn't really figure out much but it did give me some ideas that guided me to the direction that the T-33 ended up in. A lot of times, I'll see something I like and try to sort out how it was done and incorporate that idea into what I'm doing. Some times it works and other times I end up having to try something different.

I'm trying to redo the base textures for the F-80 to match what I did with the T-33. Ed Wells made a great paint kit for the T-33 and I've got a lot of ideas from it and one of the things I'm doing with the F-80 is to try to make it match up as best I can with the T-33 which in my meager mind it should as the T-33 is just a 2 two seat F-80 with a slightly lengthened fuselage.

 

[falcon409]

Willy, I don't any image?

 

[Willy]

Ed, I'm seeing it just fine. Basically it's a work in progress alpha layer with the different panels on the fuselage having different shades of grey. I've been using it on my test textures.

 

[falcon409]

Ed, I'm seeing it just fine. Basically it's a work in progress alpha layer with the different panels on the fuselage having different shades of grey. I've been using it on my test textures.

Ah, OK. All I see is a large rectangle with "Attached Image" in the upper left corner, which means not only do I not see the original image, but I also don't see the attached image. Odd, as I've checked other posts that have images showing and they all look fine.

 

[nigel richards]

Oh WOW! That Alpha's spot on, Willy.

Man, you're doing some absolutely superb texturing.

Thanks for your very kind comments, Sir.

 

[nigel richards]

If you wish to experiment with the process used on Milton's PV-2, Here's the basic recipe (as I remember it).

1. Before you create the Alpha, switch -OFF ALL layers of the colour scheme IF they are intended to be gloss.

2. Make sure ALL other component layers are visible (shading, highlights, rivets, panels, weathering etc).

3. Go to your Channel dialogue BOX, make a Copy of Green Channel, name this Alpha 1 and invert.

4. Experiment making alterations to Brightness/Contrast until you're satisfied with the results.
Generally speaking, the lighter you go, the more you'll have to go slighly minus on the Contrast slider in order to retain just a wee tad of Alpha in the dark areas.


Observations:

1.I would then use the basic Alpha described above, and use the exact steps you have already used in your exemplary work.

2. The more intense Alphas for highly reflective subjects will need considerably darker work on your texturing.
In order to keep things less complicated, once you have a servicable Alpha, export as bmp and darken the texture work as a flat artwork.

 

[Willy]

Actually, all I did to make that one was to convert the original pdn texture to a bmp, make it black & white, invert the colors to the make the shiny bits dark, the painted sections that I didn't want shiny, I repainted in a very light grey (240/240/240ish usually works for me, just enough to give a slight gloss effect) and then adjusted the brightness up to lower the shine. Once I get the hang of it for a particular aircraft (values are often different due to model reflectivity), I can do one in less than about 15 mins including time spent sipping coffee.



Ed, can you see it this time?

 

[falcon409]

Actually, all I did to make that one was to convert the original pdn texture to a bmp, make it black & white, invert the colors to the make the shiny bits dark, the painted sections that I didn't want shiny, I repainted in a very light grey (240/240/240ish usually works for me, just enough to give a slight gloss effect) and then adjusted the brightness up to lower the shine. Once I get the hang of it for a particular aircraft (values are often different due to model reflectivity), I can do one in less than about 15 mins including time spent sipping coffee.



Ed, can you see it this time?

lol, Nope Willy, I can see all the others but for some reason that's blank. No biggee!

 

[Willy]

A circa 1946 factory fresh P-80B on it's first test flight...

Still got some more to go, but it's getting there compared to the F-80 pic above. I'll take any progress I can get...