Help with surfaces please

deeahr2169

Hi
First i am relatively okay with the use of surfaces in DS4Pro, so the absolute basics i can handle in most cases. However i am finding it difficult to alter or adjust the skin textures/tones of characters, and in would very much like to learn how to do this.
There are some techniques i just do not understand, for example the use of shaders, i have some in my runtime, but have no idea how to employ them. Similarly i keep seeing examples of the use of sub surface scattering in art by people or by creators advertising their creations.
I checked out SSS to learn what it actually was, and now have some limited knowledge of translucency.
What i really need are step by step tutorials, preferably in PDF format, that i can follow at my own snails pace, stopping and returning when i feel the need.
If anyone can provide links or suggestions or practical guidance i would be really grateful
Thank you

Richard Haseltine

You use shaders every time you render - they are what tell surfaces, lights and cameras how to produce an image. What sort of shaders is that you are asking about, and what do you want to do with them? Are you wanting to create new skin settings from scratch, or are you wanting to use a texture set that doesn't have DS settings, or are you just wanting to adjust settings for consistency across different characters? RawArt did post a thread with his settings, but I'm not finding the thread with the forum search.

DWG

Getting skin settings right is probably one of the most difficult tasks out there (and I certainly don't claim to be able to do it reliably). With regard to shaders, Adamr001 has a good one on Ubersurface, and IIRC it's linked to both from his sig and in a stickied post in Nuts and Bolts. It may well answer some of your general questions on shaders even if it doesn't focus on skin surfaces.

deeahr2169

Hi and thank you for your time
You already lost me to some extent, by asking what sort of shaders i am asking about and what i want to do with them. Who knows to be honest. I have a few shaders and i want to know what i can do with them, how to use them . What i actually want to do eventually is alter the skin settings of a pre made character to produce a translucent effect. Then i want to play around to see what can be done with all these shaders, and how SSS and HSS is actually used. I have included some screen shots to show what shaders i have. Also one of a character advertised that shows exactly the kind of skin i would like to apply to V$ V5 or genesis.
Hope this somewhat garbled response shows some of what i would like to achieve