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Matt Paintin
Known Participant
May 22, 2023
Answered

Question about working with high poly/low poly meshes

  • May 22, 2023
  • 1 reply
  • 4034 views

Hi All

I'm looking to move from Mari to Substance Painter and wanted some more info about working with high poly meshes. I've only been able to find info regarding the baking process that utilises a high to low workflow.

As a character artist working with Mari, my workflow to date is as follows:

  1. Sculpt in ZBrush
  2. Bake out Normal and Displacement maps for application in 3D app (Modo)
  3. Export high poly OBJ from ZBrush to retain inherrent displacement and fine detail
  4. Import this high poly OBJ into Mari and Paint on highpoly mesh.

Painting on this displaced, high poly mesh in Mari ensures that any maps created will closely match the position and finer detail of the displaced mesh when all of the maps are used incombination in Modo.

In Substance, as I understand it, high poly details are only baked onto low poly meshes as Normal map info when setting up and therefore the baked result is not a displaced, higher poly mesh.

Is there no Substance workflow that utilises higher poly meshes (with much of the detail and displacement inherrent) and therefore represents an arguably more accurate approach?

Or have I missed something?
Thanks

 

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Cyril Dellenbach

Hello @Matt Paintin,

 

Thanks for the interesting question.

 

Working with Low Poly and baking the High Poly is the common workflow with Substance 3D Painter, but nothing prevents you to directly import the High Poly as the working mesh, except the performances. Substance Painter isn't Zbrush and millions of polygons meshes with Multiple 4K UDIM will probably cause some performance issues.

 

That's really depending on the PC and the project, so I'd say you'll have to try it out with the trial version, but theoretically I don't see any issue with your current workflow and Substance Painter.

 

Best regards,

 

1 reply

Cyril Dellenbach
Community Manager
Cyril DellenbachCommunity ManagerCorrect answer
Community Manager
May 23, 2023

Hello @Matt Paintin,

 

Thanks for the interesting question.

 

Working with Low Poly and baking the High Poly is the common workflow with Substance 3D Painter, but nothing prevents you to directly import the High Poly as the working mesh, except the performances. Substance Painter isn't Zbrush and millions of polygons meshes with Multiple 4K UDIM will probably cause some performance issues.

 

That's really depending on the PC and the project, so I'd say you'll have to try it out with the trial version, but theoretically I don't see any issue with your current workflow and Substance Painter.

 

Best regards,

 

Cyril Dellenbach (Micro) | QA Support Artist | Adobe
M
Matt PaintinAuthor
Known Participant
May 23, 2023

Thank you for replying Cyril.

Thats good to know.

Yes, it felt as though the High to Low baking workflow was more applicable for game assets somehow rather than for other production purposes such as film or commercials but I'm sure I will have a better understanding by trying it for real.

Thank you again!

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