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In 3D modeling, surfaces are represented by polygons. Lighting calculations are performed based on the geometry of these polygons, just as artists use shading techniques to mimic three-dimensional space. This approach is very effective, however, it can be computationally intensive, limiting the possible overall level of detail. Normal maps provide an excellent lightweight solution by modifying how light interacts with the surface without altering the underlying geometry.
A normal map stores information about a surface in the form of a texture image. By encoding surface normals in a texture, normal maps can simulate the appearance of surface details such as bumps, scratches, wrinkles, and so on, without adding complexity to the following geometry.
The normal map is calculated during rendering using the modified surface normals in the normal map. Because these calculations are less computationally intensive, even high levels of detail can be done in real-time, making normal mapping a popular technique used by video game developers.
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Normal mapping technique
Overall, normal mapping is a versatile technique that any 3D artist and designer should use to speed up and improve their workflow.
You'll see that normal maps are not only used in scenes where hardware constraints are extremely important, such as video games, where the scene needs to be rendered in real-time for the player, but also for computer-animated films, architectural visualization, and product design.
The normal map does not affect the color of the object, so you'll see that it's most commonly used when the surface of the object isn't completely flat or smooth. To be fair, this means that almost every 3D model can be approved for realism using normal maps, including frayed leather, bumpy wood grain, human skin, fabrics, and more.
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There are several basic tools and software that are commonly used for normal maps. Here are some of them:
1.3D Modeling Software: Use tools like Blender, Maya, ZBrush, and more to create a model that will be used for normal mapping. There are many great software solutions, all of which bring their own approach to modeling and sculpting.
2. Texture painting software: Software such as Substance 3D Painter and even Adobe Photoshop can be used to create and edit texture maps, including normal maps.
3. Texture Mapping Tool: GLTF Editor -NSDT is a tool dedicated to 3D model texture mapping, it supports the editing and modification of various material texture maps of 3D models, including: color, roughness, metalness, map, vertex color, emissive map, transparency map, bump map, normal map, displacement map, rough map, metal map, light map, transparency, etc.
4. Game Engines: Game engines such as Unreal Engine and Unity have built-in support for normal maps. These engines provide the necessary tools and rendering capabilities to take advantage of normal maps. They are equally great when it comes to creating renders and creating game experiences.
5. Shader Programming Languages: Knowledge of shader programming languages such as HLSL (High-Level Shading Language) or GLSL (OpenGL Shading Language) is useful for creating custom shaders that take advantage of normal mapping. These languages allow developers to define how lighting interacts with normal maps and other texture maps to achieve stunning visual effects.
This list may not be exhaustive, but it provides a good starting point for creators to have a basic understanding of normal maps and how to implement them in a real-time rendering environment.
GLTF Material Editor: https://gltf.nsdt.cloud/
GLTF Material Editor: https://gltf.nsdt.cloud/
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The difference between a normal map and a bump map
Normal maps and bump maps are similar techniques for adding surface detail to 3D models. They differ in the way they represent and manipulate surface normals. Here's everything you need to know about their differences.
Bump mapping
Bump maps can also be referred to as height maps or displacement maps. They store height information that represents changes in the surface. They use grayscale images, where lighter or darker values represent higher or lower areas of the surface. Bump mapping modifies the geometry of the model at render time by perturbing surface normals based on these grayscale values. So, while this technique creates the illusion of surface detail as light interacts with the model during rendering, bump maps store no surface normals at all, only height information.
Normal map
Normal maps use RGB images to store explicit surface normal information, where each color channel represents the X, Y, and Z components of the surface normal vector at each texel. The normal map captures more information about the direction of the surface. Normal maps do not affect the geometry of the model itself, but it still modifies how rays interact around it.
Compared to bump maps, normal maps provide the most accurate results, capturing only surface details beyond height variations.
Advantages and disadvantages of normal maps.
All in all, normal maps have several advantages and some potential drawbacks. Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of normal mapping to consider:
Advantages of normal maps
1. Realistic Surface Detail: Normal maps allow complex surface details to be added without adding geometric complexity.
2. Efficiency: Normal mapping is a computationally efficient technique, especially when compared to increasing the number of polygons in a model to achieve surface detail.
3. Reduced memory requirements: Normal maps store information in a texture format, which typically uses less memory than storing geometry information.
4. Reusability: Normal maps can be easily applied to different models, allowing artists and developers to reuse them across multiple assets. This saves time, effort, and the final size of the product.
5. Interactive Lighting Effects: Normal maps enhance the interaction of light with the model, allowing for dynamic 3D lighting effects such as specular highlights, shadow variations, and more accurate reflections.
Disadvantages of normal mapping
1. Limited geometry changes: Normal maps only affect the appearance of surface details, not geometry. The illusion they create is often useful, although sometimes other techniques may be required when the geometry needs to be actually modified.
2. Creation and editing: Creating high-quality normal maps can be difficult and requires expertise and software. Editing normal maps can be difficult due to the complexity of the data.
3. Texture Space Limitations: Normal maps require additional texture space because they are usually stored as RGB images. This can affect overall memory usage and may require careful optimization in some cases.
4. Tangent Space Limitations: Normal maps are typically defined in tangent space, which means they depend on the orientation and UV coordinates of the model. This can sometimes lead to visual artifacts when the same normal map is applied to models with different UV layouts or orientations.
Despite some limitations, normal maps are the most effective technique for improving the visual quality and realism of 3D models in real time. Normal maps provide a healthy balance between performance and visual fidelity, making them an invaluable tool for 3D texturing and rendering.
When to use the normal map
When real-time rendering is required, normal maps are needed to keep the polygon count low in the scene while maintaining high visual fidelity. Typically used to add detail without using more polygons. A common use of this technique is to greatly enhance the appearance and detail of low-poly models by generating normal maps from high-poly models or height maps. Normal maps are used to refine simplified meshes.
Reprint: What kind of 3D effects can be achieved with normal maps