ronknights: Sort of. UVMapper takes the 3D object and creates a template (UV Map). Poser still has to look at the UV vectors in the object to apply them to any specified texture map for correct application of the texture. I just haven't quite figured out how they go from 2D UV points to pixels within a bitmap (but I have a fairly and hopefully correct idea about it). I have a couple of good computer graphics books (Watt, Foley et al, Eberly), but none go into detail about the preparatory process and the mathematics of UV mapping, mainly the application of existing texture maps to 3d objects. hauksdottir: Give my sympathies to your remaining brain cells. ;) I may just take your advice and consult Steve on this. UVMapper is very much in line with what I'm doing (And integral as well. I donot intend to reproduce his magnificent endeavors, instead complement them), but haven't had a chance to play with it (busy coding, you know what I mean). The furthest I've ever gone in writing a 3d graphics engine is Gouraud & Phong shading and ray-tracing (so you can get an idea of how long ago some of it was!) At that time, texture/bump/transparency maps were in their infancy and many scoffed at ever having 'realistic' 3d renderings and animations. Since then, we all know that these new approaches have changed one industry after another. My latest engine, in Java, didn't require any of that sophistication for a simplified real-time, interactive 3D environment. Don't strain those cells! Kuroyume

Now for the tough question: how does a program like Poser coordinate the UV vectors within the object and the texture template? ;) I'm new to this, but it will need to be well understood to get the app up to a very useful level. What is known is that the UV vectors in the object are 2D (thus, UV minus the W). Do they directly index the 3D vectors into a 2D map space that is correlated with the texture map bitmap? Prying minds want to know! :) Kuroyume

hauksdottir: Right. But don't you have to remap the object mesh (new UV's) to set up a new template? Kuroyume

My answer would be "No.", twice. 1. A texture template, by definition, is a flattened-out 2D rendition of the mesh of the 3D object so that the corresponding 2D images placed over it can be 'wrapped' around the 3D mesh to form the texture. So, making several 3D views of the mesh will not suffice. It will be insufficient in creating a proper texture layout when applied. Try it and see the distortions created. 2. The templates are layed out in exacting positions within the 2D image for retrieval of the texture information wrt the appropriate figure. You can't just throw around body parts and expect Poser to be capable of discerning where on the figure the colored sections should be placed. This is why P4 textures don't work (unaltered) with Daz characters and vice versa. As ronknight pointed out: use the supplied texture template for Vicky at Daz's site. Use layers in your paint/photo editing software so that you can adjust the work without damaging the texture template image. Yes, it is a big pain to get accurate textures, but noone said they were easy to create. ;) I'm currently working on an application to reduce the amount of work in creating textures by applying the 3D mesh over a photo or other bitmapped image and 'unwrapping' the image (with whatever information is 'visible') to fit over the designated texture template. But, don't expect it to be released for at least a month or two, depending upon unforeseen roadblocks and time consumption by other necessities of life. Good luck and be patient, Kuroyume

Excellent! The "3D" part of 3D is so often ignored. Although there are a myriad of uses for it to create 2D images and video, stereoscopics is my favorite part of 3D imaging. At one point in the somewhat distant past, I had worked on a 3D graphics engine (in C) to display realtime stereographics with glasses. Alas, the project went south when the stereoscopic glass company went the same direction. ;( Nothing like getting the true depth perception to which we are all unconsciously aware. Let us know when its ready. It would be great to put it to use! Kuroyume

I'm all in favor! :) I like seeing lots of women, but also like to see men (no comments). ;) This is the reason I'm working on a "replacement" for Still to Real: to take hi-res photos and create texture maps (and bump maps and transparencies, hopefully) for M2 and V2, especially M2 since there are few that would work with the type of figures that I want to model. Kuroyume

LeeEvans, I did a search here at Renderosity and it appears to be available still (currently version 3.0). Most of the messages that I saw were complaints and confusion about getting it to work, though they are older messages. The new version has a "save-disabled" demo available. I might try it out and see what kind of results it yields. Yes! This is, at least for the first part, exactly what I had in mind. I figured that a great idea couldn't be considered in isolation. My only quip is that it's a bit pricy at $50. It'd better be good. ;) Kuroyume, his typing fingers heaving a sigh of relief at the possibility of not writing a big app.

I just had this weird idea. What if someone (maybe me, I'm a programmer after all, albeit not much in the full-blown apps area) were to make a program that took three sources and created the 2D texture mapping from them. You create a correspondence file between the P4Male object and its template (points, facets, whatever). Then, for instance, you take a frontal face photo, align a hidden-surface mesh view of P4Male to the face and save it as a 2D image, and have the program map the corresponding aligned-P4Male points/photo to the template points while unfolding the photo image to match the mapping. It may require the user to select just one set of correspondence points to fixate the mapping algorithm correctly (such as, this point in the 2D mesh image corresponds to this point in the template). Of course, to fill in the texture areas that are garbled by not being planar to the camera, several viewpoints will be required. Does this make sense to you? It would work similarly to PM Lite, but remove the need for setting up reference points as they will automatically be given by those between the P4Male object and the template. In other words, in PM you have to construct a 3D model so that it can reference faces and gather texture information. But Poser already has the appropriate (although approximate) models constructed, so it's just a matter of putting the images over the correct views. one difficulty would be removing shadows and highlights without affecting the skin texture, though this can be done in Photoshop with patience and know-how. Damn, now you have me thinking... Kuroyume

FyreSpiryt, have you used it for human anatomy or faces yet? I downloaded, installed, and went through the tutorials for Photomodeller Lite. It has definitely improved and has great potential. Though, I can't see an easy way (read: using less than ten thousand referenced points) to do something as convoluted as a human face or body with it and get good results. Any insights or experience? domo arigatou gozaimasu, ja mata, Kuroyume

Ahhhh. I just bought Poser 4. You had me thinking "upgrade costs", "incompatibilities", "should I just futz around with 4 until 5 is released" and "why didn't anybody tell me?" :) bass-turd!!! ;) Kuroyume

That's exactly the program I was talking about. I've used it before and the Lite version didn't handle complex photo objects extremely well while the full version (which probably does) costs $795. That's more than I spent for Poser 4, Pro Pack, M2, and V2 combined! I might be able to afford it by the end of the year, but not any time soon (The camera, 1GB microdrive, tripod, accessories cost $1300. So, I'm outta extravagance funds for awhile). :( Nonetheless, it may be worth fiddling with the Lite version to see how much they've improved the algorithms (it's been several years since I last demoed it). Thanks for reminding me of the name (it would've never dawned on me) and will let you know (or see) the results. Kuroyume

I checked the Sandals; no IK. I checked the Docs; IK. Hmmm.... Thanks everyone!!! BTW, I'm new here and your responses are highly appreciated. Although I have a 2D art background, good knowledge about computer 3D graphics (from programming real-time 3D engines, mainly), and some experience in 3D modelling, this stuff still leaves me in awe. Some of the Poser artwork that I've seen is SPECTACULAR!! and is helping to inspire me to learn the tools and tricks, and, most of all, ask questions and seek answers instead of guessing. Look forward to many questions and, hopefully, someday, my experience will allow me to be as helpful. Kuroyume

Ah, hauksdottir!! I thought I saw those shoes in New Joisey, too. :) Cool. Will take your advice on this! Kuroyume

Exactly, P4 Nude Man. DocL and DocR for the shoes (Figures: Clothing - Male). Also tried the Running shoes, did the same thing. IK is turned on for the L & R legs on P4NM (Figure 1), but IK=off doesn't help either. Conformed the shoes to Figure 1. I know what you mean. It doesn't make sense to me. Maybe should have dressed him before animating him? Just tried the Sandals, and they worked. (???) Could there be a corruption in the install or something? Kuroyume