I recently installed Carrara. When I first launched Carrara, it detected my existing runtime library from DAZ Studio. Very nice indeed. But something is not right with the shaders/materials for Victoria 4.

When I started to look in my folders I realized something peculiar. I have to sets of materials for Victoria. One right here...

<span style="font-size:x-small;"><span><span><span style="font-family:'Courier New';">[Content
Library]PeopleVictoria 4MaterialsV4
Standard-Res</span></span></span></span><br></br><br></br>

This seem to be native, custom materials for V4 in DAZ Studio. This folder will obviously not even be visible in Carrara since it's native to DAZ Studio. But there's another material folder here too...

[Content

Library]<span style="color:#ff0000;">Runtime</span>librariesPoseDAZ's Victoria
4MATerials Standard-Res</span></span>

This is the shader/material I get in Carrara. At first, I didn't even think this was strange. Textures and shaders look different in different programs, so I figured the native material was just a bonus for DS users. Hence, use the native materials in DS but use the Runtime materials in any other program. That's what I thought anyway. But, the materials located in Runtime cannot be right somehow. The texture maps are the same as in DS. But for instance, the bump map is loaded but the elevation is set to 0%, so the shader doesn't actually generate any bumping. No glossiness is set, which is most apparent on Victoria's lips. The entire character look dull and plastic.

What am I mising?

One question.  When you installed V4, what software did you tell it to use?  If you told it DS, then try installing it again and tell it Poser.  I tink it might have omitted some Poser maps or something.  I'm not sure but it sounds like that may be what happened.  Maybe someone else has  a better explaination.

Yes, I installed V4 to DAZ Studio long before I even got Carrara. I just tried to reinstall Victoria and picked Poser instead of DAZ Studio like you suggested. But the installer says that I need to install Victoria in the same folder as the executable Poser file. I don't have Poser installed so I'm not sure what to do now.

Shouldn't Carrara show up as an option when I'm being prompted what program to install Victoria for? Does it have anything to do with Carrara sharing my DAZ Studio content folder perhaps? Like I said, when I launched Carrara for the first time, it detected my existing DAZ content folder and didn't seem to create it's own content library.

Hmmm that shouldn't affect it.  I would ask on the DAZ support site since they make both V4 and Carrara.

Victoria is Poser/DazStudio content product just install it into your regular runtime.  Then in Carrara make sure you have added that runtime to the Content tab of the object browser.  You have to add the Carrara specific shaders to her.  There is a tutorial to save all the shader steps into just one, as well as what shaders to  use for V4. 

I have in mine for example I use an external runtime for just about everything.  There are some things that DazStudio ships with.  So I added both those runtimes to Carrara.  I also have a temp runtime that I test things with and can wipe completely.

V4 shaders in Carrara
http://forum.daz3d.com/viewtopic.php?p=1076290&highlight=#1076290
Saving the shading domains to one drag item (works for many objects).
http://forum.daz3d.com/viewtopic.php?p=1099125&flatnum=1#1099125

You can copy the poser.exe stub that is in the DazStudio directory (its to fool installers BTW) into any other runtimes for when poser is required, however by selecting dazstudio you are getting everything you needed.  Make sure you run the update victoria that shows up on your desktop, and have only one installed.

Daz gave us the C6-compatible shaders for V4 as a present with carrara. In fact, the poser shaders for anything are not quite right in Carrara. All the bump maps come through set at 0% and have to be tweeked to the proper level. Many, many texture maps open with another color multiplier on top. Any like this need to be corrected in the shader room (after which you can save them as "my objects" in the browser).
Load V4 into your scene and try dragging the carrara V4 shader onto her. This should work, though I personally don't like the default texture (sorry, DAZ). There are several other textures for V4 to play with in the poser v4 content folders. You can simply copy and paste the texture map into the shader room when V4 is selected.
There is a very good tutorial over at DAZ on shading V4 (I think it is called "V4 got you seeing blue?") and several others that are easy to follow and will give you a great looking V4.

Quote - Daz gave us the C6-compatible shaders for V4 as a present with carrara. In fact, the poser shaders for anything are not quite right in Carrara. All the bump maps come through set at 0% and have to be tweeked to the proper level. Many, many texture maps open with another color multiplier on top. Any like this need to be corrected in the shader room (after which you can save them as "my objects" in the browser).
Load V4 into your scene and try dragging the carrara V4 shader onto her. This should work, though I personally don't like the default texture (sorry, DAZ). There are several other textures for V4 to play with in the poser v4 content folders. You can simply copy and paste the texture map into the shader room when V4 is selected.
There is a very good tutorial over at DAZ on shading V4 (I think it is called "V4 got you seeing blue?") and several others that are easy to follow and will give you a great looking V4.

Sueposer,

I had V4 way before I had Carrara, but I never heard of Daz giving out the "C6-compatible shaders".  Were they .cbr files?  If not, then they are just poser content.  All poser content (regrettably) loads into Carrara incorrectly, with bump and highlight being WAY off the mark and nothing for SSS.  So you're doing the right thing by reading the DAZ forums and figuring out how to shade skin.

But to my knowledge, the only skin shaders for V4 that have ever been released especially for Carrara are the ones that come with the Elite textures.  If that's what you're referring to, then those should load perfectly.

:smooch:

Indi.

Thanks a lot Xerxes and Sueposer! Maybe I didn't quite read up on how Carrara works before I got carried away. I simply thought it would work the same way as in DS - dbbl click the character in the content view to load it, dbbl click the material in the content view to apply it to the character etc. Dragging the shaders manually from the shader view worked perfectly. Just a new way of thinking I suppose...

Just one tiny problem though. Once I tweaked my shaders I can save the full body shader as a preset, so far so good. But when I apply the shader to a new character, the names of the body part shaders change their name to "My preset 1", "My preset 2" etc instead of "SkinFace", "SkinTorso". How the heck would I know what is what if I want to change the color of the nails or something?

I think I'll post up a freebie with a nice procedural V4 shader that you can apply textures to.  It's what I use and you can just browse to find the correct texture, bump and spec maps that you like.

I'll throw in a nice light set too.

:smooch:

Indi

Quote - Just one tiny problem though. Once I tweaked my shaders I can save the full body shader as a preset, so far so good. But when I apply the shader to a new character, the names of the body part shaders change their name to "My preset 1", "My preset 2" etc instead of "SkinFace", "SkinTorso". How the heck would I know what is what if I want to change the color of the nails or something?

That's the downside of using Multichannel shaders, It won't combine like shaders or name them properly.

To get it to do what you want, go back to where you'd tweaked your shaders.  Then drop V4 (then entire model) down into the "Objects" tab of your Carrara browser.  Then when you drag that object into your scene, you'll load both V4 and her shaders all at once.

:smooch:

Indi

Ugh, I remember now that some V4 shaders did come with Carrara.  Sorry.  It's the heat.  I just don't use those anymore.  :)

Yes, indigone, I know how you feel. I once searched the web for hours for a cheap saxophone mesh. Then I found one was included in the C6 objects browser.
I was also refering to the V4 original product. As delivered by DAZ, it has a folder of textures. There is the infamous purple bikini, and a low res nude. But also, there is a higher res texture map in the texture folder. I guess it is called the "standard" map, but I did not see it existed until I started searching all my files for texture options. I don't know if it was just me, messing up the install, but I was surprised  to find it.