Creating Textures and Surfaces?

[ChrisAlb]

Hey Everyone, Been a long time since I've been in here. Work is thick.

Just curious if anyones knows if... A) there is a way to create, save and use textures and surfaces beyond those provided and if not...B) Has anyone heard whether or not LHR has any plans for future software updates to do so?

I built a really nice log cabin scene and I'd like to make a couple textures to use. Some roof shingles and stone for the chimney. I know I can "draw" them in PaintShop but.... hey.... ya know?

Just updated to the latest 1.25 this morning. Some nice improvements. Being able to scale in Pattern Designer before saving is very nice. All these folks need to do is bring the designer even half way close to say PaintShop Photo X2 as far as tools and we wouldn't need to go outside the CW software.

Merry Christmas All!!!! & Happy Carving! :cool:

[Kenm810]

Hi Chris,

I've made a few background files to use in my carvings.
Here's one using a photo of plain old Dried Mud, but you can use stone, water, metal, shingles, even photos of tree bark for landscaping.
You can find several photos and drawings online, or like me, carry a compact digital camera around,
I've even used my cell photo camera in a pinch.

Convert your photo to gray scale, flip it around, invert it, in other words just play with it till it suites your needs.
I do it often just for fun, to see what I can come up with, and once in awhile I even surprise myself with the results. http://www.carvewright.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif

[ChrisAlb]

Hi Ken,

Thanks for the tips. Cameras I have and use them extensively. I have no shortage of pics and this is a great idea for backgrounds. But wouldn't it be difficult to apply them to "irregular" closed vector shapes?

For instance on my cabin, picture looking at the gable end of a chalet, now picture a 90 degree wing coming off the side of it. The gable of course is a square and a triangle which I drew as one closed shape. I could then apply the "Horizontal Waves" texture and scale it within that shape to produce a very nice log siding. The wing roof ties back into the main roof creating another odd shape. Textures can be applied to any "closed" shape you can draw. In order to use your idea I'd have to perfectly reproduce and scale that shape with shingles in some other software and then bring it in.

I'm hopeful that they will allow us to take pictures such as yours or hand drawn elements and save them as textures and or surfaces so they can be easily applied.

Here's a picture of my cabin freshly carved along with the on screen look.
This started as an exercise in learning and one little fleeting thought later... it grew into this. Keep in mind this was my first attempt at doing anything more than just throwing pre made patterns and lettering on the wood. I have some "tweaking" to do before putting it to expensive wood.

About 5-6 hours of "fun time" in the evening drawing.
Normal mode with only some items like the deer optimized for bit.
A 2:18 carve at 18.5" x 9.25" in soft pine.

I never thought of just using the tools and drawing right on the board. I'm learning...lol :cool:

Chris

[Kenm810]

Hi Chris
I know what you mean, it is time consuming to draw a scene in designer,
using bits and pieces of textures, as .ptn file building blocks to fill in different elements
of the landscape or buildings in your composition ------ Hours.

I guess for me that’s part of the challenge, to find a piece of a photo or drawing with the right lighting, right angle, and right size
for me to modified and assemble as the carve able elements to build a Hard Wood Forest, a Meandering Stone Wall,
or even a Field Stone Chimney for a Log Cabin. --- And no, the process is really not for everyone,
as I’ve mentioned in the pass, it’s not always easy to find the perfect match. http://www.carvewright.com/forum/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif

[ChrisAlb]

Hi Ken,

I know what you mean about taking photos. Very often in my 30 years of designing and building custom homes I found it necessary to help the client "visualize" what their project would look like. I'd take the siding or such from one project I did and apply it to photos of their home.

After optimizing the cabin through and through I flipped my board and carved it at Best. Nicer result for sure. Once I have all the drawing elements the way I want, I'm going to run it through several grades of woods from soft to hard as a test for differences.

I picked up a piece of MDF the other day. Have you ever carved in that? When I saw it I figured it might carve nice but I'm concerned about smaller raised sections flaking off. :cool:

[Kenm810]

I have used MDF for a few projects, it does care smooth, but most often I just for practice stock for some carvings. Be very careful of the MDF dust it’s very fine, it can and will clog up your filters along with your lungs. The type paraffin and formaldehyde that it’s made with is a known health hazard. Plus the fine dust sticks to everything and will travel through - and can be spread by any forced air heating or cooling system. So a good dust mask is needed at the least or a respirator system if you have one. – Better Safe than Sorry. There are several posts and threads on the subject of carving MDF.