Model, Texture, and Render the Legendary Katana in Maya: Part 2

In this 3 part Maya workflow tutorial you will learn how to model, texture, and render a Katana, the legendary Samurai sword. For the modeling portion, we will use Maya's basic polygon editing tools, while UVlayout will be used to create the UVs, and of course Photoshop to create the textures. We will also briefly cover Mental Ray for rendering the final image.

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Additional Files/ Plugins:

Step 1

Here we are, beginning from where we left off in Day 1. In this part of the series we will prepare our meshes for texturing by laying out the UVs. For this, we are going to use Headus UV layout to make the boring process of laying UVs, much easier and quicker. First let us subdivide our mesh so that we get less distortion later.

Step 2

Go to "Edit > Delete All by Type > History".

Step 3

Select all of the pieces, and under "Polygons" go to "Mesh > Smooth".

Step 4

To use the pieces in UVLayout we will need to export them as .obj files. To do so, first we need to make sure that the plug-in is loaded. Go to "Window > Settings/Preferences > Plug-in manager".

Step 5

In the plug-in manager, make sure that "objExport.mll" is loaded. If it isn't, check the boxes near its name.

Step 6

Select the blade, and go to "File > Export Selection..."

Step 7

In the new window, for file type choose OBJexport(*.*), and for the file name use "bladeUV_out". By default it will save it in the "data" folder of your current project. Click "Export".

Step 8

Repeat these steps for the Saya and the Handle. The Cloth Bow will need some work first, and the Tsuba, Habaki, and Fuchi will need only a Maya or Mental-ray material, and thus will not need to be UV'd.

Step 9

Because we will never see the inside of this part, we will delete the faces that can't be seen. Be sure to leave enough faces to hold the edge. Note: To make selecting the faces easier, start by selecting the edge loops that are in the middle.

Step 10

Hold the Ctrl key, now right click and hold and select "to faces". This will convert the selection from edges to faces.

Step 11

After the faces are selected, delete them. This will make your scene lighter and laying out the UVs easier. Now you can export it like the others.

Step 12

Now we are ready to work in UVLayout. For those of you who haven't worked with UVlayout before, you have nothing to worry, I will take you through it as we go. After it loads up, press the load button.

Step 13

Click the dir button and navigate to your data directory. Press OK.

Step 14

In the load window, all the obj files will be shown. In the "Load Options" windows, make sure that "Poly" and "New" are pressed. Then click on the name of the blade obj, and click load.

Step 15

Now you are in the edit window. You can move in it just like in Maya. The first step is "cutting" (defining the seams). First we will cut out the blood grooves. Place your pointer over the edge that you want to cut out, and press 'c' on your keyboard. This will define the edge that will be cut later.

Step 16

Add another selection line on the other side of the groove.

Step 17

To deselect a part of an edge that you don't want, place your mouse pointer over the edge and press 'w' on your keyboard.

Step 18

Make sure the selection line is all the way to the end of the blade. If it stopped somewhere along the edge, just place your pointer and press 'c' to continue it.

Step 19

Place your mouse pointer over the piece that you want to cut out and press 'Enter' on your keyboard. Now you have successfully cut out a piece. Repeat the same process for the blood groove on the other side.

Step 20

To move the cut out piece out of the way, place your mouse pointer over it, press the space key on your keyboard, middle click, hold, and drag.

Step 21

Next, we will cut out the back piece. Start at the tip of the blade, again make sure it goes all the way to the end.

Step 22

All that's left is to separate the sides of the blade. Start at the tip of the blade, make sure it goes all the way to the end.

Step 23

In the main window of UVLayout, press on the display button to open up few more options. Now you can switch between the edit window and the UV window.

Step 24

To flatten a piece first you need to drop it to the UV space. To do this, place your pointer over a piece and press the 'd' key on your keyboard. Next, press the UV button under the display options.

Step 25

When in UV view, place your pointer over the piece and press and hold the 'f' key on your keyboard. With this you will start to flatten the piece. A green color indicates no distortion, a blue color indicates stretching, and a red color indicates pinching. If you notice any light blue or red areas, don't mind them, as they probably won't be noticeable.

Step 26

Go back to the Edit window and drop the next piece, then go back to the UV window and flatten it. Repeat this for all of the pieces.

Step 27

After you have flattened all of the pieces, press the 'save' button. Where it says bladeUV_out, replace the word 'out' with 'in', and then press the 'save' button.

Step 28

Load the clothbowUV_out.obj. For this piece we only need one cut. Make sure it's selected all the way around to the inside.

Step 29

Drop this piece in the UV space and flatten it. Note: If you don't want to hold the 'f' key all the time, click the 'optimize' button and press the 'run for' button.

Step 30

You may have a little distortion, but it's OK since its going to be within the folds and it won't be noticeable. Save it as clothbowUV_in.obj.

Step 31

Load the handleUV_out.obj. For this piece we will need only two cuts. One to cut out the bottom...

Step 32

and another cut along the side of the handle.

Step 33

Flatten it, and save it as hanadleUV_in.obj.

Step 34

Load the sayaUV_out.obj, and first cut out the tip.

Step 35

Cut out the extruded part on the beginning.

Step 36

You don't need to flatten this piece. There won't be any texture on it.

Step 37

Add another cut along the length of the Saya.

Step 38

Flatten it, and save it as sayaUV_in.obj. With this you have finished laying out the UVs in UVLayout.

Step 39

Go back to Maya and delete the Blade, Handle, Cloth Bow, and Scabbard.

Step 40

Go to "File > Import". In the "Import" window, navigate to your "data" folder, and import the "_in.obj" files one by one .

Step 41

Now we have our new meshes with laid out UVs. Select the Blade and go to "Window > UV Texture Editor".

Step 42

As you can see the UVs are all over the place. To properly use them we will need to fit them in the 0 to 1 space.

Step 43

Before that, we need to do some more work on the Blade UVs. We will connect the side pieces with the back piece. Zoom in to the back piece, and go to edit edge mode (Right click > edge).

Step 44

Select one of the outer edges, press and hold the Ctrl key then "right click and hold > to edge loop".

Step 45

In the UV texture editor go to "Polygons > Move and sew UV edges" or press the move and sew edges icon. This will move the piece and sew the shared edges.

Step 46

Go to UV edit mode "right click > UV ". Select some UVs of the new piece and press and hold the Ctrl key, then "right click and hold > to shell".

Step 47

With the rotate tool, rotate the shell, so that it stands vertical.

Step 48

Grab the shell of the blood groove, and set it vertical next to the blade. Do this for both pieces.

Step 49

Select the shells, and using the scale tool, scale them to fit into the 0 to 1 space. Scale all of the pieces together, so that the proportions remain the same.

Step 50

In the UV texture editor go to "Polygons > UV snapshot". In the new window, for file name enter "outUV_blade", for the size in x and y enter 2048, and for image format choose JPEG. Press the OK button. With this you have created a UV snapshot, which you can use as a guide when painting the textures.