Birch plywood

fox_pluto · May 03, 2017, 09:03:28 AM

Dear KeyShot users,

I would like to ask you for help in this task I am dealing now.
I am a super newby in keyShot and rendering in general. I would like to render a loudspeaker I am designing which is made by birch plywood.
Something similar to the attached jpeg.

I have designed the model an now I am dealing with the plywood. I have several questions:

- How could I find a texture like the one on the picture? I mean: on the top surface I could use the procedural wood present in keyShot but for the lateral stripes? I have to build the texture in photoshop by myself ? I can't find any similar on internet.

- I read on some blogs that for precisely positioning the texture on the model I have to use UV mapping. Is this a must? I would like to attach a wood texture to the top panel and the stripes texture on lateral surfaces.

- The software I am using (Solid Edge) is not capable to export bodies with UV mapping informations. In such a case which is the best workflow to use?
Reading on the blog I have imagined something like:
1) design in Solid Edge
2) import in Blender for UV mapping
3) final rendering in KeyShot
Is this workflow correct / feasible ? Do you suggest me something better?

Thanks for the people who would like to spend their time helping me.

Regards,
Stefano

richardfunnell · May 03, 2017, 10:03:37 AM

My suggestion would be to assign a single color for all the surfaces that share the lateral stripes, then apply a material (like plastic) in KeyShot that has the Marble procedural texture assigned to it. Marble is made up of layers, and the colors can be adjusted to match your desired colors. This should give you the impression of parallel planes to show the right appearance.

I've attached a KSP that has two material variants: one simple with a single texture and a complex material created via the Material Graph. The complex version is to create a little more color and spacing variation. With some tweaking, the complex version could be made to represent much more variation (check out the Material Graph webinar if you haven't already!).

You should be able to avoid any kind of UV unwrapping if this appearance is close to what you want.

fox_pluto · May 03, 2017, 10:10:21 AM

WOW,

thanks a lot this is really close to what I wont!
Now I will study your suggestions and the material you send me.

But I have a final question; what about the top? The top face will be of real wood, I mean that I would like to render all the complexity of the wood like in the procedural wood of KeyShot.
Is it possible without using the UV mapping to assign different material to different faces?

Anyway thanks a lot for your suggestions!

I attach an another pic from the site I am taking suggestions for my design, to clarify the concept.
Regards,
S.

richardfunnell · May 03, 2017, 10:33:13 AM

Yes, in Solid Edge you would assign a different color to the top surfaces and KeyShot will see that surface as a separate piece of geometry.

fox_pluto · May 03, 2017, 10:34:29 AM

Great!

Thanks for your help!

Now I know the direction!

Regards,
S.

designgestalt · May 04, 2017, 01:52:47 AM

hello Richard,
I think the approach with a procedural material is great and the marble seems to apply really good.
yet, and I am sorry to tease you

, do you also have an idea on how to mimic the imperfections (i.e. darker areas of the wood) of the plywood?
would it make sense probably to to layer a label on top ? while a label again would not behave procedural ?
any suggestion?
thanks a bunch upfront
designgestalt !

fox_pluto · May 04, 2017, 08:07:52 AM

Hi to all,

yes I tried to modify your example for getting the same result about imperfections, till now without successes.
I upload an another picture I am using like inspiration.

Regards,
S.

Will Gibbons · May 04, 2017, 01:52:52 PM

The solution isn't simple, but I found one. It can be pushed further, but here's what I've got for you.

Open the attached .KSP. You need to reverse-engineer the material in the material graph as it would take a while to break down. Make your material properties window as wide as possible and start manually adding stops to the color gradient texture to make your 'bands'. The rest is just details. I also decreased material samples to add some grain. Good luck.

fox_pluto · May 05, 2017, 01:15:52 AM

Ahhhhh,

this is an another good idea!

Thanks a lot! I am learning many tricks with this project of mine!
I will work on your suggestions and in few days I will post my material and rendering for your evaluation!

thanks again for the time you spend helping me.

Regards,
S.

mattjgerard · May 05, 2017, 05:32:06 AM

Dang, Will. Nice work. I am grabbing this for some other ideas I was working on. The technique is a solid one for lots of effects. Cheers!

richardfunnell · May 05, 2017, 06:05:06 AM

If you want to decrease the number of steps a bit (and don't mind a little repetition) you can always check the "repeat" button on the Color Gradient.

mattjgerard · May 05, 2017, 06:11:54 AM

And that right there is the reason I am so jealous of my co-worker being the one picked to go to RenderWorld. Thise little tips right there.

I'd pay my own way if I could afford it !

Another tip to go in my file.

Will Gibbons · May 05, 2017, 07:12:34 AM

Quote from: richardfunnell on May 05, 2017, 06:05:06 AM
If you want to decrease the number of steps a bit (and don't mind a little repetition) you can always check the "repeat" button on the Color Gradient.

#nailedit! Good catch Richard.

fox_pluto · May 05, 2017, 09:07:02 AM

You guys are great!

@mattjgerard please, if you find some other tricks in your experiments, share with us the info (if this is possible).

Really thanks,
S.

Will Gibbons · May 05, 2017, 09:57:36 AM

Nice thing about this approach, is with some time and care, you can make some completely procedural textures nobody else has. If you're likely to do more products with plywood, I'd think it's worth the hour or two to create a stellar material and then re-use as needed.