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Comments
I love Lee, and love the makeup and skin options here. Will definitely purchase this.
Purchased and can't wait to put it to use! Love the Altern8 shaders.
Diva, will future releases be individual-character-based like Girl 8 and Lee 8, or will there be any more releases that cover more than one character like the original? Not to suggest that this release is deficient in any way with all the things included in it, but just wondering. Thanks!
Oh good, I'm glad it's rendering well. As far as the preview - I sometimes see oddness with that "texture shaded" preview option. Sometimes shaders will even show up bright yellow and bright red. It's weird but as long as it renders well I don't think it should be an issue. :)
Thank you! :D I hope you enjoy it!
Thank you for purchasing it! I appreciate the support!
I plan on an Altern8 product that covers quite a few figures.
I don't have Lee, but I bought this to use on other Gen 8 males. The results show in this thread look amazing!
I can not find any instructions. The link on it goes to a page that just says what is included, not what to do with it.
I tried using the settings you mentioned in an earlier post on Floyd, and he looked terrible, like he was really old and over-defined. I tried again on Edward, using another of your settings, and he was so washed out and sort of glowing. I tried with some Daz-bought lights that work well usually, and with just the headlamp.
I also had issues with just how to add the shader - I realised you had to select the surface, but it took me a while to work out which surfaces (ie not eyes as that is very scary). I obviously don't have it right.
I am a real beginner at iRay shaders, without a guide this is a very frustrating product indeed. Please can someone explain in very simple terms just how to apply to a Daz chap, or point me to the official instructions? Thank you.
Lighting and render settings play a big role in how a character looks. If you're new to Iray there is quite a bit to learn about lighting and render settings. No shader, character, or skin is ever going to look good in "any" light. Since I don't know what lighting you're using, what render settings you're using, nor what character you're using, I can't really give any advice. All those factors are going to play a big role in what settings to use. I've included 7 base skin settings shaders as well as 12 SSS Tint shaders, and 15 shine strength shaders, so that the character's settings can be adjusted for different skin textures, lighting, and render settings.
As for "how to use the shader" - did you not see the tip files in the Shaders Folder? There are tip files included in the product to tell you what to do:
If you let me know what character you're using and what render settings and lighting you're using I can try and give advice on what settings to use (if I have the character).
Thank you, Divamakeup. I can see the Documentation, but don't really understand how it works. There are "files" with words on, but some seem incomplete.. "Face Shape Sliders can be found in..." I don't know how to see the rest of that sentence. (yes, I know, I am a noob).
Now I know what I need to select in Surfaces though, that was confusing me before I was clearly picking the wrong stuff.
I didn't realise when buying this that it was for advanced users, I assumed it came with more instructions. I just wanted to inject a bit more realism into my renders, and ideally reduce the render time and load, as my pc is so ancient and underpowered.
I am going to keep playing, I loaded two copies of the same character so I can compare the base version with the one I am experimenting on. I just managed to get a rather nice improved Edward, so getting there!
PS - did you realise that if one is using a femal character, the Altern8 files no longer show up on the Smart Content tab. They are much harder to use in the Product tab.
Thank you very much for your help.
Try hovering your mouse over the incomplete message thumbnail and a tool tip with a larger version of the image may pop up
This product really isn't for advanced users.
The tips are side by side and listed as Tip 1 and Tip 2.
Face Shape Sliders can be found in... Shaping > Head > People > Real World
Those are just helpful tips for people who might want to manually dial in the morph shapes. All the shaping presets are listed right there - as well as presets to remove the shapes if wanted. If you want Face Shape A, click on "Face Shape A - ON", if change your mind just click on "Face Shape A -OFF".
It's not advanced stuff, honestly. lol I'm happy to help if you have any questions though. We all have to start somewhere and learning Daz and 3D products is like anything, the more you use something the easier it gets. I provided lots of tips though to help guide people who might be newbies.
In the very first folder it gives a quicky steps guide:
I tried to provide as many tips as I could. I set each file up in order and numbered them for easier steps. Honestly, I set up the product to be as user friendly and straight forward as I could, so it's a bit frustrating to hear someone say: "I didn't realise when buying this that it was for advanced users".
I focused on setting the product up to be easy to use. :)
I'm happy to help in any way I can though, so if you have any questions I can answer let me know.
I'm not sure what you mean. If you have a female character selected and have Altern8 Skin Shader System for Genesis 8 you will see files in smart content:
Materials >> Iray >> Feminine > Altern8 - Skin Shader System
If you mean the Altern8 Lee 8 files - no, those will not show up for females under smart content, as the product was set up for Lee 8, so they show up for Genesis 8 males. However you can use the included shaders from the "04 Skin Shaders" folder with the Altern8 Lee 8 product for any G8 or G3 character.
Not fully related to the Lee pack, but there was an update for Altern8. What is in it?
Well, for what it's worth, the exact same thing is happening with the Gens shaders. All of them, this time. Goes invisible in the workspace, but renders just fine. It's a bit disconcerting, but manageable, I guess.
I did notice that there's a truly odd difference in the shaders for the torso and the gens, although I can't imagine how it works or that it makes any difference. For the gens, glossy anisotropy and glossy anisotropy rotations both have a slot where you can insert a texture; the torso does not. That said, they're both set to 0.00, so I can't see how that would matter.
A question: the Gens shaders try to apply the Lee 8 anatomical elements textures when double-clicked, but the skin shaders do not try to apply the body textures. Is that behavior meant to happen?
I'm not sure, they didn't tell me. The onsite Read Me says Resolved Issues: 2019-03-07 - Metadata Update.
I wasn't aware that there were any issues. lol I downloaded the update and checked it out but so far I can't tell what, if anything, has changed. If I find out, I'll let you know. So far though, everything looks normal as far as I can tell. :)
Yes, for Altern8 Lee 8 the Shaders (in the folder named "04 Shaders") are shaders, the Gens Settings are material presets and they match the material presets that are in folder "02 Skin and Eye Settings". "Gens Settings A" matches "Skin Settings A", and so on.
Last week, I decided that my heroine was going to live in an Asian neighborhood. But Altern8 Lee 8 had gone off MM sale. UNTIL TODAY! So, now I'll have more help filling my streets. And since the guys will be extras and not main characters,l I won't have to be so picky (which is what takes me so long with the multitudinous options of the other Altern8). Thanks for keeping things going, Divamakeup.
So now I really feel extra stupid :(
I have not really used Daz Studio for quite a few years, so some of the shader/iRay and other new stuff is still something I am learning about.
Previously when I have bought products that are "utilities" there has been a PDF file with instructions. I guess I am just used to that. I didn't understand how the "tips" worked as I haven't really used those before. Plus things like "Choose skin and eye settings" is only really useful if one knows what a skin or eye setting actually is. Shaders, materials, shine stuff, there is a variety of things to choose.
I have been experimenting and have had some success, so will be keeping it. I will continue experimenting, and reading stuff online, as I learn more about shaders. I am sure that as I learn more this product will become more and more useful to me.
Don't feel stupid - we were all Daz newbies at one time or another (I've been doing 3D art for about 3 years and I'm still learning new stuff all the time). :)
Don't hesitate to ask questions here or in the "Commons". The community is usually helpful if you want to learn about something or if any questions come up. And of course if it's about one of my products pop in here or send me a PM and I'll be happy to help any way that I can. :)
I'm really glad to hear that you're using Altern8 Lee 8! :D Thank you for purchasing it, I appreciate you and everyone who supports me by purchasing my products!
I've been really blessed to have people like my products. One woman sent me a PM and said she has bought everything I've released so far and really likes all my stuff. I was on cloud nine for the entire day. lol :D You guys are a blessing!
Yes, there were metadata issues, and there still are. All of the shaders are still categorized as Materials as well as Shaders. The help request was bounced back to QA for more metadata fixes.
I have now had Altern8 Lee a month and I wanted to come back and say that I am very happy with it. Whilst I had been initially frustrated as I didn't understand how such products worked, now I have had time to play with it, it has become a very useful tool.
I still don't have Lee! I nearly got him during the March Madness, but he will have to wait... one day... anyway... it looks like everything in the pack works fine on other Genesis 8 figures anyway :-)
The Shaders - these can really make a difference. They can get rid of that weird red glow that many Daz base figures have. Again and again I have added a shader and found it improves a base texture no end. Very useful indeed.
The Shine settings - I haven't used these so much yet, but again, a nice effect that can be used with lots of characters
The Skin Tint shaders - these are jolly useful. Perfect when you want to make someone just a little darker, or stop a pale character looking waxy.
Face and Body Shapes - sure, these are probably great for Lee, but they work really well on other characters too. Especially Mr Woo and Edward! I have added them to quite a few chaps and they are a very handy addition to the gene pool.
Makeup - if you want to do gothy males, this is perfect! I really must try adding makeup to Mr Woo, that could be fun :-)
The Poses - useful poses for showing off new characters. I have found myself using one of these for quite a few recent "try out the new guy" renders.
The Expressions - again, these work nicely on other characters.
I realise in retrospect that I probably should have gotten the original Altern8 product for more versatility, especially with the girls too, rather than the Lee one.. but I am very happy indeed with this buy.