RISE OF FL IGHTSK INNING FOR BEGINNERS

A clear cut tutorial guide for painting (skinning) planes and objects Rise of Flight for the Photoshop® user

By WWDubya

A clear cut tutorial guide for painting (skinning) planes

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RISE OF FLIGHT SKINNING FOR BEGINNERS

A clear cut tutorial guide for painting (skinning) planes and objects Rise of Flight for the Photoshop® user

By WWDubya

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DOCONICUS@WINDSTREAM.NET

ArtDesignLayoutEditing

Doconicus

Written by: WWDubya

Images/Photos:the contributors of RiseofFlight.com

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CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................7

WHAT YOU WILL NEED ........................................................................9

LAYERS/LAYER GROUPS ...................................................................10

EDITING THE TEMPLATE ...................................................................10

SAVING THE TEMPLATE.....................................................................10

VIEWING YOUR WORK AS YOU PROGRESS ...................................12

THE ALPHA CHANNEL .......................................................................13

POSTING/UPLOADING AND POLLING ...........................................16

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INTRODUCTIONThis tutorial, as suggested in the title, is a down-and-dirty, no frills, step-by-step, learning tool for creating skins in Rise of Flight. This guide assumes that you already have at least a basic under-standing for how to operate Photoshop, and are already familiar with the way layers interact with each other.

This guide also assumes that you already own a copy of Photoshop.

I operate Photoshop version 7, but others may be using versions older or newer than mine. Any speci� c details I may mention are with version 7 in mind, so your mileage may very.

I will not attempt to discuss using the G.I.M.P. (Any other graphics manipulation software), as there are several major operational differences that I have little to no experience with. Perhaps one of the G.I.M.P. Rise of Flight skinning experts (and there are several!) May use this tutorial as a basis for his/her own “Rise of Flight Skinning 101” course, or maybe as a companion to this one.

I also don’t “speak” Photoshop Elements or Illustrator... So don’t ask me about those either, be-cause I’ll just stare blankly at you, not comprehending anything you may be saying.

The guts of this tutorial are written --for the most part-- in outline form in an effort to keep things as simple as possible and allow for ease of reference.

No effort will be made to tutor the reader in the � ner art of actually packaging or submitting your works of art to Rise of Flight for inclusion into the game. There are plenty of other docu-ments at the Rise of Flight site that go over this in detail. I will, however, direct you to the follow-ing page as a courtesy between skinners.

http://riseof� ight.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=112&t=8092

I sincerely hope you � nd this tutorial informative and helpful.

–WWDubya

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I would like to thank the studio(s) that have created this incredible simulation (Rise of

Flight). Their tireless work and incredible creativity and technical knowledge conveys

thier respect to all the brave pilots of the First World War.

All Images and icons herein are the property of. 777 Studios et. al., whom have full

rights to allow or disallow the images contained herein.

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WHAT YOU WILL NEED

DOWNLOADING

First, download the nVidia Photoshop plug-in for Adobe Photoshop 5.0, through CS5. This plug-in is what allows Photoshop to open and save .DDS � les, which is the graphic � le format that Rise of Flight needs aircraft skins saved as.

http://developer.nvidia.com/nvidia-texture-tools-adobe-photoshop

Install the nVidia Photoshop plug-in

You will then be required to download the skin template(s) of the plane you plan to work on. Download one or more of these templates from the Rise of Flight Useful Materials page

http://riseof� ight.com/en/community/usefulmaterials

The templates are on the column to the left of the page.

These come packaged in a .ZIP � le. Unzip to a folder of your choice then open the unzipped � le with Photoshop®. Some versions of Photoshop cannot read all layers or nested layer groups. Click “OK” through any error messages you may receive. (While in Photoshop 7, I have lost nested layer sets/groups and some weathering effects)

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LAYERS/LAYER GROUPS

MAP LAYERS

Here is a discription of the layers and thier role.

Wire Map:

+ It displays location and exact shape of all parts that are paintable/editable in lower layers.

+ It is to be used only as a reference tool.

+ Only, unhide when needed, hide prior to Save As .DDS

For Advanced Users Only!:

+ It’s a Set (or Group) of layers.

+ It contains several layers that are locked, by default. These ‘sub’ layers are for shading effects, lighting effects, texture effects, distress effects, weathering effects, and other details.

Use caution when editing these layers, I would suggest duplicating layer (as backup insurance) before modifying.

Draw Here:

+ This layer is an area where you would apply new colors and other effects you create yourself, Again, I would suggest creating ‘Layer Sets’ to help organize your work (This may not be on all aircraft types.)

Emblem 2/1:

+ This layer is appears in several skin templates and is the base art for optional decal types (crosses and rosettes) on various planes.

Default Paint/Background:

+ This layer is a � at layer image containing base/default coloring. I use very little, if any, of this layer, other than for reference, or background “� ller”

EDITING THE TEMPLATE Leave “For Advanced Users” alone until you become more familiar with how each layer inside of it contributes to the overall � nished product. As mentioned above, suggest creating layer sets below “For Advanced Users”. Be sure to organize your work, and take advantage of upper layer effects.

SAVING THE TEMPLATEAs a precaution, I would recommend saving the .PSD template � le at least every 30 minutes.

I often keep a “base” copy (basic, personalized, etc) saved to in a stand-alone folder and work off of copies of it. These copies are my working copies.

Working copies are saved as work in progress (wip) from within the Rise of Flight aircraft skin folder for that particular model. Saving the � nal .DDS � les is easier, so I’m not constantly moving� les from one folder to another.

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SAVING AS A .DDSIn your Photoshop menu File>Save As...>Format:> D3D/DDS (*.DDS;*.DDS)

[NOTE: Be sure to uncheck the “Alpha Channels” box.] We’ll discuss “Alphas” later

The � le name can be anything, but there are the suggested or required Rise of Flight poll standards. Please visit this site for more detail:

http://riseof� ight.com/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=112&t=8092

Verify save location (Save In:) is in the proper skin folder the Save the � le.

DDS Tool setting window will pop-up

First drop-down � eld: DXT5 ARGB 8 bpp | interpolated alpha

Seconddrop-down � eld: 2D Texture

Mip Map section: Generate Mip Maps

All: Everything else = default settings

Click Save

(You can leave Photoshop open with the working copy of the template active if you wish )

DXT5 ARGB 8 bpp | interpolated alpha

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VIEWING YOUR WORK AS YOU PROGRESS1. Open the Rise of Flight UserViewer tool.

777\Rise of Flight\bin_viewer\release\UserViewer.exe

2. Load Model.Select model you are working on.

3. Load Skin.Select skin you just saved.

4. Rotate the skin to check progress of your work. You will notice that the skin is matt, with no shiny areas; this is normal behavior since the skin was saved without an Alpha channel.

5. Discover areas that need work.Go back to your open template in Photoshop, and make adjustments if needed.

Repeat the “Saving As a .DDs” and “Viewing your work...” instructions as often as needed.

NOTE: It would be purdent to created a desktop shortcut for this tool. (I use it VERY often)

NOTE: It’s � ne to let this program run while working within Photoshop.

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THE ALPHA CHANNEL

UNDERSTANDING THE ALPHA CHANNEL.

The ALPHA CHANNEL is a way to control the shapes and textures on the plane model. The following are what you will be capable of changing.

Shiny Areas: Lacquer, Varnish, Polished Metal

Matt Areas: Dirt/Grime, Worn Spots, Un-Lacquered Fabric,

Certain 3D effects/illusions: Dents/Bumps, Canvas Texture, Wood texture, Panel Lines

Cutouts (invisible sections): Louvers, Removal of Cowling Sections, Wooden Wing-Spar/Fuselage Bracing Holes

For accentuating painted areas (differences in surface glare) National markings vs. surface paint

Creating contrast between elements without changing colors or color values

Pure black = invisible

Pure white = no effects (matt) o

Dark gray = matt

Light gray = shiny

Between dark and light gray are degrees of matt and shiny

For more detail, see the reference in the PDF � le that accompanies each of� cial Rise of Flight

template located at the Rise of Flight “Useful Materials” page.

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Creating contrast between elements without changing colors or color values

Between dark and light gray are degrees of matt and shiny

For more detail, see the reference in the PDF � le that accompanies each of� cial Rise of Flight

template located at the Rise of Flight “Useful

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EDITING THE ALPHA CHANNEL LAYER (THE SIMPLE METHOD) :

1. Go to the Channel tab in your working

copy template (you will notice...) RGB, Red,

Green, Blue, Alpha (grayscale image)

2. Select Alpha (not just unhide, but make it

the only layer in Channels that is unhidden)

Right-click > Duplicate channel... (so we

keep the original safe) > Change name if

you wish > OK

3. Select the newly duplicated channel layer

so it is the only active layer in Channels

4. Using your selector tools, select an area

(dancing ants)

Menu item >Image > Adjustments >

Brightness/Contrast.

Verify that the “Preview” box is (checked)

5. Slide the controls to create desired effects

6. Click OK

7. Save your .PSD (remember, every 30 minutes!)

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APPLYING THE ALPHA CHANNEL LAYER TO THE SKIN:

1. With your working copy template still open (windowed inside of Photoshop), open the .DDS

� le we earlier created (make sure it is windowed as well) .

2. Situate both windows so you can see each (Window/cascade or tile works well)

3. Make the .PSD � le the active window

4. Open the Channels Window Pane

5. Click and drag the new duplicate Alpha Channel layer (from the Channels list itself) over to

the .DDS � le, drop new Alpha Channel into the .DDS � le

6. In the .DDS you will now see two grayscale “Alpha Channels” in the Channels list, one pure

white, the other is the one you just edited, delete the white one (right-click/delete)

7. Close the .DDS � le and select OK to save the changes.

8. Go back to the UserViewer (assuming you left it open with the skin you were working with

still selected). Click the Refresh Scene button and rotate to see the alpha layer at work. You

should notice the changes in the area you modi� ed earlier.

9. Repeat all steps as necessary until you have a completed product.

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POSTING/UPLOADING AND POLLING

I NEED A CLEAR EXPLANATION ON HOW TO POST AND POLL SKINS

If some enterprising individual would care to write a description on how to upload a skin and what a poll is, why it’s needed and how to set up a poll. I would appreciate it.

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