Notes on Using DAZ Figures in Vue Infinite

Also Using DAZ Figures in Poser

This is going to be a work in progress. This document was started in July of 2012. When I was just beginning to use DAZ Studio 4 Pro (free download), I had a lot of questions. While I found a lot of documentation especially on YouTube, I still had unanswered questions. I first started to just keep notes for myself and, then, thought others might benefit. I am using Windows 7, 64-bit. The paths I will discuss apply to this setup. In December of 2012, I started using Vue 11 Infinite and DAZ Studio 4.5. Unless otherwise noted, all of this applies to these newer versions as well as newer ones.

I use Vue as my main 3D program and have been for about 10 years. I have, also, used Poser about the same amount of time, but only to create figures, and played with DAZ Studio a little throughout the years. I decided I wanted my figures to be more life-like. I have been experimenting with Photoshop toward this goal once the scene has been rendered in Vue. I decided to work and finally learn DAZ Studio. I downloaded the free Studio 4 Pro. I am now (December 2012) working in Vue 11 Infinite and DAZ Studio 4.5. Unless otherwise noted, everything in this document that says DAZ Studio 4 and Vue 10.5 Infinite applies to the newer versions. (Now I use Vue 11.5 and DAZ Studio 4.6, Poser 2014 -Spring 2013. So far nothing has changed.)

Topics Covered in Order of How they Appear

Unzipping Zip or Rar Files Putting DAZ Content into Poser Exporting DAZ Studio 4 Content into Vue 10.5 Infinite Fixing Mats in Vue 10.5 Organizing DAZ Content Putting Back Older CMS Data Files Fixing the CMS Data Base - Lost Files Adding External Runtimes Notes on Using DIM Dressing a Model Using Genesis Figures and Changing the Skin Colors Notes on Importing Objects other than Figures as OBJs into Vue Comments on Working with Mats in General in Vue Working with Collada (dae) Exports Mesh Resolution Human Anatomy Charts

Mesh Smoothing and Collision Setting Up DAZ Studio 4 on Another Computer Installing DAZ Studio 4.5 over DAZ Studio 4 Aging Skin Changing Skin Tones Getting Rid of the Glow in Vue Mesh Transfer Miscellaneous Notes

I had collected a number of DAZ figures over the years. Some have been upgraded. I re-downloaded the new upgraded ones and installed the files into my DAZ Directory: Computer/User/Owner's Name/Documents/DAZ 3D/Studio/My Library. This is the path for the EXE files. If you have a Zip file you need to put the files in the correct places. So the path looks more like this: Computer/User/Owner's Name/Documents/DAZ 3D/Studio/My Library/Runtime. In Runtime, it will normally go into the Geometries, Libraries, or Texture folders or a subset of them. You can use DAZ's instructions on "opening zip files" or you can just place them. I found I preferred to place them. Since I wrote this, I have simplified how I unzip my files.

Unzipping Zip or Rar Files

Since I have seen posts on forums where people are having issues placing the content of these files, here is how I do it. There is, also, an excellent tutorial by Wilmap that describes the process which is similar to mine. How to Install a Zip File by Wilmap. We emphasize different points so I am still creating my mini-tutorial. As a note. It seems creators use the term content in some files for DAZ not as the term used to be used in earlier versions of DAZ Studio, but to mean "product content." Thus, when you see that word, remember all it means is what is in the folder. You want to open the folders until you see names such as data, people, runtime, etc. These are the files you will be dropping and dragging or copying into your Library folder.

Putting DAZ Content into Poser

I did not want to have to reload all the files into Poser. I read that I could create a library in Poser from my DAZ Runtime. In Poser 9 I clicked on Add Library. Then I chose the following path: Computer/User/Owner's Name/Documents/DAZ 3D/Studio/My Library/Runtime. The Green arrow points to my new library. While it is not organized in a way that makes a lot of sense, it is workable.

Exporting DAZ Studio 4 Content into Vue 10.5 Infinite

I am sure there are many ways to do this. I chose to export the file as an OBJ with Maps. That latter is critical. For some reason the Poser selection worked the best for me.

When you import it into Vue, make sure you click on "Import Options" by the green arrow and set to "Resize" and "Manual." For me, the 2 meter setting seemed appropriate. However, You do not want to have to make the figure bigger, so if necessary set the import option to 3 meters and downsize the image. I could change that as I worked. The figure will import partially below the ground, so you will have to just raise it up.

Below is a screen capture of a preview just to show the figure. (Ignore lighting). I selected the figure and right clicked on it which brought up the menu. Then I saved the figure as a vob. I have not as of yet played with any material settings or others in Vue. I will discuss this at a later date.

Fixing Mats in Vue 10.5

I have been doing a lot of experimenting with figures exported from from DAZ Studio. My goal is to make them as life-like as possible. I like figures that have bump maps because they can be made to look less perfect than ones that do not have any bump mats. The basic problem is that the way a figure renders in DAZ Studio is very different from how it renders in Vue. In DAZ Studio, it always seems to look great. The biggest issue is that when a figure is exported from DAZ Studio to Vue, the skin can be lizard like. The other problem is the highlights. Often they are black and need to be changed to white. However, I discovered that this does not need to be done all the time. Below are two examples of Lizard-like skin. In the image of Michael 4, I did not modify the black highlights in the After image. Here his skin is still a little pitted and I think looks more real than if it were smooth.

In the image below, I modified the highlights as well as changed the bump depth. The Original is how it came into Vue. A good low-light setting for Caucasion skin is white at 15% with a size of 5.

There are two ways that I know of to fix these figures. The easiest is to just change the bump depth setting in Vue. This can be tedious, but it works. Start at around 0.08 and work back to 0.001. There are a number of factors that will contribute to the choice of setting. I found that the larger and sharper the bump map, the lower the setting will have to be in Vue. Not all settings need to be the same. I like a setting that shows some "imperfections" in the skin. The setting for the figure directly above is a little too "perfect" for me.

The second way you can control this extremely bumpy skin is to modify the bump mats. If the size is very large like 4000x4000 it will be very detailed. Reduce it and use a Gaussian blur on it. If it is still too contrasty and causing weird skin conditions, you can compress the tonal range in Photoshop's Level's setting. You still, however, might need to adjust the bump setting to a lower number in Vue.

The easiest way is to adjust the bump settings in Vue. As soon as I bring the OBJ from DAZ Studio into Vue, I save it as a Vob and then make the changes to the bump depth and the highlights if necessary and resave it to save these changes.

The skin, also, usually needs work in Vue. Below are a few relatively quick changes that can be made.

I just purchased SkinVue. Right out of the "box" the results were excellent. I only lowered the Lip Gloss setting. I'm glad I experimented by hand as much as I did because I learnt a lot.

I have now worked with SkinVue more and am noting the changes I have made. Actually, in general, I make one change after the initial injection and, then, update it. I change the bump settings to 0.008 or 0.006. I like a little more texture than the default setting and not always the same for the body as for the head. (I modified the settings in SkinVue as I worked with them. I will discuss these modifications later.)

Now that the texture of the body and head of the figure have been customized, I look at the hair and clothes and see what I need to do. In this instance I redid the clothes and hair mats by changing their bump settings. With all the settings, a lot will have to do with how close the image is to the camera and the lighting. If the image is in the background, I am not as picky.

I am adding to this part since I am now using Vue 11 Infinite and DAZ Studio 4.5 (12-02-12).

 

Organizing DAZ Content

This was the hardest area to find current information on. Most of what I was able to find dealt with earlier versions of DAZ Studio. Here are a few very useful sources written by Adam who is part of the DAZ Forum team.

• DAZ Studio Content Manager Tutorial This is an excellent tutorial by Adam. While it applies to earlier versions of DAZ Studio having been written in 2008, most of it applies to DAZ Studio 4.

• Content Management DAZ Studio 4 This is a video by Adam that refers to DAZ Studio 4.

I decided to follow his instructions and use the Category Tab found in the Content Library. You must highlight "Categories." The cyan arrow points to the drop down menu. Left Click on it and it will open.

I was very confused at first because a number of the DAZ documents state not to Scan your hard drive for files if in any type of List View. And as you will notice, you are in List View. However in DAZ Studio 4, you do not have the Category View options in this drop-down panel that were in DAZ Studio 3, so I followed what I saw in Adam's video and what I have read in threads both in the DAZ as well as Renderosity forums. and Scanned Known Directories for Files.... but made sure I was in Categories View in the Content Library. I would like to thank mishamcm in the DAZ forum on Renderosity for initially steering me to these appropriate threads and tutorials.

Before I even Scanned my drives, I wanted to back up the database for the Content Management Service. C: ProgramData/DAZ 3D/Content Management/databases. From here on, I suggest you read DAZ Studio Content Manager Tutorial. It will explain and guide you through the process of setting up your Categories.

Categorizing is time consuming and very tedious, but in the long run, I believe, very worthwhile. To work well, I need to be very well organized. Honestly, I didn't know where to start since files and folders were literally all over the place. Before I even scanned my hard drive, I reorganized the categories in Category view. This took days.

Because one can't delete many of the categories in the Default system, I made up my own set of categories and called it Basic-Paula. Now I can delete whatever categories I want. Since I do not have many animals and am not into fantasy ones, I wanted to delete all those folders. When I tried on the Default tab, they all came back when I re-opened the program. I read somewhere that this would happen.

It is useful to understand the file formats. Since Daz can work with Poser files, sometimes the file are in Poser format and sometimes in DAZ format. I took the following information from a DAZ document entitled "Understanding Content Installation in DAZ Studio." Strictly DAZ format files have a "d" in them. One of the most common is the .ds extension which stands for Texture Presets.

Most files used in DAZ are Poser files.

• .cr2 loads humans, animals or clothing.
• .hr2 loads hair.
• .pp2 loads props.
• .pz2 can load a texture, pose a figure, and inject a morph.
• .hd2 poses a hand
• .fc2 poses a face.

Since I do not understand exactly what this means I am quoting this from the DAZ document. " Poser 6 and higher also supports a material preset file (.mc6). DAZ Studio doesn't’t read these files, but rather uses its own format (.ds or .dsb) for texture presets, like shaders". How it works, I do not know. I can only state that you can apply a texture in the .mc6 format to a model and it will work.

There are some new types of files: DSF and DUF. The .dsf is used for data while Studio 4.5 uses .duf. For example, a .dsf file can be a character file.

Now let's look at some of the various formats used in runtime. I looked through many of my files and made notes of the file formats. For more in depth information you will need to search through DAZ documentation.

• Geometry uses .obj files.
• Textures uses .jpg files.

In Libraries, you have a number of subsets. I will just name a few.

• Character uses .cr2.
• Materials uses .mc6.
• Pose uses .pz2 and .ds.
• Props uses .pp2

Each time I add contents to Daz Studio, I run the "Scan Known Directories for Files"so that I can categorized everything. My Library is at this point in time 12.9 GIG. Normally I check all three boxes.

However, I decided to just check the middle box and was surprised at how many items had not been categorized. However, it was hard to tell what the issue exactly was because I categorize not in the Default or the Themes area but in what I call "Basic-PAULA." With all the boxes checked, (see above), only new material was showing up in the Default Unassigned category. So if it does not overwhelm you, you might check only the middle box and search. This should show if there are any items that you have not categorized.

Since different types of files go into different places, another place to look is under Products. If you see the screen below, at least part of the file can be found in the products section.

When I installed a clothing file for Victoria 4.2 called "Lindsey," some parts went into the Unassigned Category and some others went into the "L" section of Products A-Z. Generally, from observations, it seems, and this is just a guess, that items without metadata go into the Unassigned while those with metadata go into Products A-Z. I could not find any material on the DAZ site to state whether this is correct all the time or not.

 

Putting Back Older CMS Data Files

I ran into a problem the other day. After a comedy of errors, I realized that I had messed up my content categorization. How I did it is not really relevent. Every few days I go to C:ProgramData/DAZ 3D and copy the folder: Content Management Service and the file: dzInstall.ini. I copy these to an external drive. While I keep regular backups of drive C, I wanted to see if I could return my categories to the state they had been in before I messed them up. I was successful and here is how I did it. You cannot delete or rename the Content Management Service folder while CMS is running.

Step 1 - Go to Start and type in Service. Service will appear in the list of files above.

Step 2 - Click on it to bring up the Services menu.

Step 3 - Find DAZ Content Management Service and notice that it is Started.

Step 4 - Right Click to change that to Stop.

Step 5 - So as not to lose the original file if I needed it I now changed the name to "No Content Management Service" from Content Management Service. I could have renamed it anything. Notice the dzinstall.ini file is gone. I, then put in the fiolder: Content Managment Service and the file: dzinstall.ini I had saved from a few days ago.

Step 6 - Lastly I went back to the Services Menu and restarted DAZ CMS.

I opened my DAZ Studio 4.5 and the content categorization was fixed.

Fixing the CMS Data Base - Lost Files

If you have been following my articles on content organization, you know that I categorize my content. Recently I added a lot of content. When I went to access it the next day, some had disappeared. I began to hunt for a solution and posted a notice in the DAZ discussion forum. I knew I had seen information there before, but I could not find it. Basically what was suggested was to export my data from the Content Manager; reimport it; and, then, scan for missing data. Whether I retrieved it all, I do not know, but the size of my data base was a lot greater than it had been a few days ago. I don't take any credit for figuring this out. I will post information here and the appropriate threads. I have added illustrations to some of the steps. Here is my thread asking for help http://www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthread/29207/#434336. I knew how to turn off and on CMS, but I didn't know the easiest way. Estroyer outlined it for me. Go to start>all programs>DAZ3D> DAZ Content Management Service>Start Content Management Service.

From there, I followed the steps outlined by Adam001. http://www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthread/8028/#105548. A note. Anything I added is in brackets . He stated:

Here is another helpful pieces of information from the thread I created that started this. It is from fixmypcmike, a DAZ administrator.

"When most of the categories are working but some items you categorized recently aren’t showing up, the problem is in the database itself rather than the CMS.

1) If you haven’t exported user data recently, do that first, so you can restore the categories that are still working.
2) Close DS and uninstall CMS.
3) Reinstall CMS by running the installer in C:\Program Files (x86)\DAZ 3D\DAZ3DIM1\cms (if you have DIM installed) or by reinstalling DS. That will give you the latest CMS, which will reduce the chances of the problem recurring.
4) Search for the file ContentDB.ind—if you let CMS install to the default locations it will probably be in Program Files (x86) or ProgramData. I would search your entire hard drive with “Hidden and System Files” visible, in case you have more than one set of databases, which could also cause problems. That file is the index for the database.
5) Stop CMS and delete ContentDB.ind, then start CMS and launch DS. Let DS rebuild the index—it might take a minute or two.
6) Scan for new content and categorize it.
7) Close and restart DS, and see if the categorized items are staying. If they are, you should be good to go.
8) If newly-categorized items are still disappearing, close DS, stop CMS, and delete all the files in the databases folder. Restart CMS, launch DS, and re-import metadata to get your user data back. It can take a long time, so don’t panic if it seems to be taking a long time and the progress bar isn’t moving."

These were not the only helpful threads, but they should get one started if one has an issue with lost files.

Adding External Runtimes

After I reimported my content when I was fixing my files, I noticed that all my thumbnails of the Pose and Scene files that I had created were blank. They had been located on drive G. I scanned drive G using "Search Hard drive for files" using the fly-out on the left in the Content Library. (Look at the pictures in the above section..) But it never found them. So I started looking at how to add External Runtimes and found this from DAZ 3D Organizing Content: External Runtimes for Poser and DAZ/Studio.

Here is what I did. It is really very simple. I added a folder on my drive G and called it DAZ Studio Extra Runtimes. Open DAZ Studio and go to the Library Tab and the drop down menu on the top left. You have used these for scanning, etc. Choose Content Directory Manager. Since this runtime was comprised of DUF files, I clicked on Daz Studio Formats. An ADD button popped up, and I added the path to the new runtime. Now when I did a scan for new content, I checked all the boxes. My new runtime showed up in my categories.

 

Notes on Using DIM

I was hesitant to start using DIM so I first experimented on my secondary computer because I didn't care if I messed it up. When all worked fine, I installed all my files on my main computer into the My Library directory where everything is. I did not use a new location as they recommended because I have too much content from other sources. I downloaded to their recommended location on one machine and to a different one on the other and after install, I moved all the files to an external hard drive. I realized after I had installed all the files that I had another old account with DAZ 3d. When I rejoined a year ago, I couldn't figure out how to change the e-mail address so I just started a new account. I have been afraid to merge them. Anyway, I then installed all those older files with DIM. So far I do not have any issues, but I just did this (07-17-13 using DAZ Studio 4.6). Anyway, here are screen captures. You can have as many accounts as you wish. I have one for my older DAZ account product library and one for my current one and one for my older machine.

Once you start your account, the little wheel in the upper right corner is critical to customize your settings.

I didn't do this the first time on my older machine, and it left a number of items that failed to install. Make sure you uncheck those you don't want in DAZ Studio

Below is how you add paths. I chose "install to selected path" even though I was installing into the folder that had all my DAZ content. Make sure the bottom choice Current is the same as the path.

Everything seemed to go in properly. I, also, did a scan inside DAZ Studio (if you don't know how, the directions are above) to see if there was any material missing. I found quite a bit.

Dressing a Model

There are so many types of files since models in DAZ Studio can also be used in Poser that it sometimes gets confusing, especially because many of these files can be found in the Pose Directory and most people think of the word pose to only mean the stance of a figure. I think of CR2 files as nouns and the material (MAT) files that are used to change aspects of a prop or figure as adjectives. Thus, you can have a noun stand alone in a sentence, but an adjective needs to have the noun there.

Once you have a model in the viewport, you can dress it. To put a shirt, for example on it, I can double click on the shirt or drop and drag the shirt. If you look at the model, he is wearing a long sleeve shirt that isn't textured. The shirt, being an article of clothing, was in the .cr2 file format. However, I wanted him to wear a sleeveless shirt. This shirt modified the original shirt. To modify the garment, I selected it using the Surface Selection tool. Notice the orange lines.

Below is a compilation showing the different parts of the shirt. Each part can be modified.

Using Genesis Figures and Changing the Skin Colors

I was not happy with the skin tones for Genesis. I searched and couldn't find any information on how to correct this. This might not be the quickest or best way to change the skin tone colors, but it works and is easier than correcting each aspect that relates to skin. When I used the Hi Resolution skin maps for M4, I didn't like the color with Genesis as the base. I used the "All Natural" and the "Bald Head."

The first step I took was to highlight all the skin. The original colors are in figure 1. I changed the Diffuse Color to white. If you look at the Ambient Color, the black is at zero strength. Change the Ambient Color to white, also. This gives you the ability to change the strength in a lighter direction if you desire. The initial grey or silver figure will look lighter. If you want it even lighter, move the Ambient Strength slider.

Next I applied the All Natural and Bald Head maps. Each time I did this, I scrolled down using the left hand controls until I reached UV Set and Selected M4 UV Set. This way all will line up. I did this for each skin map I applied. I used M4 since I was working with M4 skin maps. Before applying the skin maps, I selected the whole figure and all its parts. When I just kept the skin selected, and not the lips, the lips appeared a dark red as if they had lipstick on them. The Specular color will become a light blue after these maps are applied. Change it to white.

Below is a final version. Using this method, you can easily change the skin colors if the skin maps are not to your liking.

Now I will set some individual controls. Selecting all the skin elements again, I will change the Diffuse (white) to 100% and the Glossy setting to 6%. Specular I can leave alone. I, can, then alter any individual settings if necessary.

A few months after I wrote the above, I decided to look at changing skin color using the definitions of color by DAZ and making fewer changes. Here is another approach that works. Different sources seem to define the same terms differently. In addition, terms are used differently depending on the object of discussion. Here we are looking at 3D terminology. So I decided to use "DAZ" definitions to keep a consistency in terminology. (http://www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthread/46/)

Ambient color: "A global pervasive light color that is applied to a scene."

Diffuse color: "The color of an object where it receives direct illumination."

Specular: "Specular refers to the perfect, mirror-like reflection of light (or sometimes other kinds of wave) from a surface, in which light from a single incoming direction (a ray) is reflected into a single outgoing direction. The most familiar example of the distinction between specular and diffuse reflection would be glossy and matte paints. While both exhibit a combination of specular and diffuse reflection, matte paints have a higher proportion of diffuse reflection and glossy paints have a greater proportion of specular reflection. Very highly polished surfaces, such as high quality mirrors, can exhibit almost perfect specular reflection."

Below is the Surfaces Editor. Thus, you can see how there are many ways to change skin colors.

 

Notes on Importing Objects other than Figures as OBJs into Vue

Sometimes I cannot find what I am looking for in vob format and have to use an object that has been configured for use in either DAZ Studio or Poser, such as a particular building. I have found it easiest to open it in DAZ Studio, as a rule, and, then, export it as an obj, as I do a figure. Sometimes few changes have to be made when I open it in Vue. In some instances major changes have to be made in bump depth and scaling. For bump depth I have found the changes usually fall within .02 and .002. After a few changes, you can usually know what numbers to use. Sometimes you, also, have to alter the particular mat. In the following example, I had to alter the bump depth, scale, and mat.

Working with mats in Vue 10.5 is easy. Go to the "linked chain" icon and double click on the mat.

This will open the mat in a viewer. Then click on Open and choose the program to use.

Once you have modified the mat, you can replace the link or reload it depending on whether you have modified the original or created a new name for the mat. For this type of situation, I normally store the new mat with a different name in a folder with the rest of the Vue file and replace it.

These principles and methods can, of course, be used for figures as well.

Comments on Working with Mats in General in Vue

If you need to make global changes to mats, right click on a mat, and a screen will pop up. I make the changes separately. I do not do Edit All Materials and make multiple changes at one time. At times, I have found it easier to make global changes and then change a few mats that I want to be different.

Even though I wrote about working with colors in DAZ, I have found that sometimes they do not appear in Vue as expected when they have been changed in the Surface tab in DAZ. Also, for accuracy, I prefer to work with colors and other properties in Vue itself so I've begun to more than fix mats in Vue. Now I customize the colors there rather than in DAZ. Since I am using Vue to render, I can control the colors, luminosity, transparency, highlight setting, etc. After I have fixed the bump maps, if necessary, I then decide if I have to change other settings.

I am not eliminating the section on working with colors, etc. in DAZ, but stating that since I initially wrote how I worked with mats, I have changed my methods. To what degree I customize them beyond fixing what might be wrong, depends on how the figures will be used.

The mats and how the colors, reflectivity, highlights, etc. were originally configured for either DAZ Studio or Poser, will determine my settings in Vue so each mat for skin or hair or clothes will be different. I normally only work with the mats for the body parts unless I want to change the color of a pair of pants or I want to substitute a texture in a mapped picture. Once again, in Vue there are different ways to accomplish this. I am demonstrating one of them. I like this method for tonal control.

In this first example, I wanted the skin to be darker, but I wanted to keep the tonal relationships.

The next example shows two areas that I have changed, luminosity and reflectivity. I, often, change highlight properties as well.

Lastly, are just two examples of how easy it is to change the lip color.

Now, if I wanted to add highlights to her cheeks, I would paint directly on the texture map.

Working with Collada (dae) Exports

I exported a Daz file using the Generic Collada Export and, then, exported another using the Unity setting. It did not make a visible difference with the file I used. This is my first time working with exporting daz files as Collada files. I wanted to see the differences between Collada files and OBJ files in how they come into Vue. The differences are striking although the end results are not very different. I will discuss this later.

Earlier I discussed bringing OBJ files into Vue. Now I will discuss my experiences in bringing the Collada files into Vue. When I first saw the following file, I almost panicked.

While I wish I understood why OBJ files and DAE files behave as they do when exported from DAZ, I admit I don't. I can only report how they act and what I do to fix them. The first step I take is to highlight the file and right click on the material and select edit all. I, then change the reflectivity to 10%. That figure is a value judgment. I like the way normal (non wet) skin looks at that percentage. Also, if the highlight is black or another color, I like to change it to white. All of these numbers are just a place to start.

No matter what Textures or setting I have used in DAZ, all figures will take work in Vue to make them look good. I have found that once in Vue, even with the modifications I have made, they look better after running the SkinVue script.

I did not modify the tones or skin color in SkinVue for these tests. If you look closely at the figure, the skin appears slightly blotchy before SkinVue. Below are the settings I used. The only important ones for this demonstration are the Specular ones. I always modify others depending on whether I want the skin to appear warm or cool.

Even though I have to make many adjustments in Vue, the quality of the skin texture in DAZ has a great impact. Here is an example. I used M3 for a figure. I decided to test out Collada exports and Obj exports. I expected them to behave in a similar way as did V4. I was very wrong. Here is what I found out. I will give examples of settings; however, each body, face mat or clothes materials will behave differently when imported into Vue. Thus, even though there are significant changes in Vue and modifications you must make, the "best" skin textures are very important. Let's get back to looking at examples of figures imported into Vue 10.5. Notice how the hair in the Collada file format is partly missing and has a white outline on top. The OBJ imported OK, but the quality of the skin is very poor and the dark shadows under his chin are strange.

Using the same image, I first made changes in the DAZ file itself. The images below reflect the changes. I will, also, change the ambient to other than white. On some materials I will leave it at black. If the image looks good, I will not change these settings as I have done here. I only do it when I do not like the way the texture looks.

Below are the SkinVue settings for this figure.

This original lighting is obviously not portrait lighting. I kept it the same and a little harsh for all these images. I was mainly concerned with the differences in how the image looked. The lighting and angle have been changed for the one on the right.

As I have stated in the beginning, this whole article is a WIP because as I discover new things, I add them. By accident I stumbled upon a combination of mats from Syyd Raven's excellent "Oxygen and Infuse" texture maps for V4 that do not need any adjustment in Vue. The first set of textures I used did require work in Vue even though they rendered beautifully in DAZ Studio 4. I have not tried them in Poser. In creating two figures for an image, I stumbled upon a combination of Oxygen and Infuse texture maps that brought in a beautifully textured image into Vue 10.5 Infinite that did not require any adjustments. Unfortunately I didn't keep track of what I used so I decided to see if I could repeat this. Obviously I was able to. For those who have Oxygen or are going to purchase it, purchase Infuse as well. These are the steps I used:

1. In DAZ Studio 4, I clicked on V4.2 and used the Base Morphs and 4.2 Morphs ++.
2. Next I clicked on the Oxygen>UberSurface>OxygenUber
3. Next I clicked on Infuse SSS1>Chocolate SSS1 Blend AG

Since I know this is not exactly what I did before, I know now that I can use different Oxygen texture maps. While I obviously haven't tried all types of mats, I did use in the past many of the advanced texture maps from DAZ and others. These from Syyd Raven are the only ones I have found that give me great skin when loaded into Vue 10.5 Infinite as OBJ files. Nothing was modified in Vue in the renders below..

Mesh Resolution

I decided to see if changing the mesh resolution of Victoria 4.2 through subdividing would make a difference. In DAZ Studio 4, I selected the figure in the Scene tab and right clicked on the word scene. This brought up a list of choices and I chose Edit and then Convert to SubD... (I did not weld the figure together because I did not want it welded when I loaded it into Vue.)

This is the default for Victoria 4.2. The icon by the arrow tip is what you click on to bring up the Parameter Setting dialogue.

For this test, I set the parameters accordingly.

Next, I loaded the figure without the subdivision and the one that was subdivided by 2 into Vue 10.5 Infinite and looked at the estimated sizes in memory.

Lastly, I rendered both figures to see if I could see any noticeable changes.

My next test was using a Genesis figure. The mesh resolution default is different than the one for Victoria 4.2.

I increased the subdivision level to a 2. Then I exported both OBJ files to Vue 10.5 Infinite and double clicked on them to see the screens below. Obviously the subdivision of the mesh worked because the file sizes are different.

Lastly, I rendered both images in Vue.

Notice, once again, to the naked eye there is no difference.

Human Anatomy Charts

Since I do not know where all the muscles are in the human body, I decided to make some charts so that when I am using morphs, I recognize the names.

There were also terms that had to do with the face that were not initially familiar to me.

Mesh Smoothing and Collision

Smoothing is a way of getting rid of poke-through. I decided I wanted to work with it myself. However, autofit seemed to work so well (when it worked) that it took me a while to find a piece of clothing to use. There were some instances where I couldn't do anything with what I call "fly-away" clothes (those that will not conform at all to the figure). There is a very good video by DAZ which I used for my basic work: http://docs.daz3d.com/doku.php/public/software/dazstudio/4/userguide/posing/videos/smoothing_collision/start

I started with a pair of pants for M4 on a rather enlarged Genesis figure. The demo below is to go along with the video. I am not trying to rewrite the script in the video. There are two different methods for using smoothing; one for Genesis and one for Gen 4 characters. The one below applies to Genesis characters.

When you use Gen 4 characters and below, you work with the nodes on the articles of clothing. Some do not have nodes and you will get this message

There are two ways to access the Smoothing Option - through Edit/Apply Smoothing Modifier or through Edit/Geometry/Apply Smoothing Modifier. If there is a difference, I am not aware of it. I did find that sometimes, smoothing will take place after you have performed these operations without the smoothing and collision dialogs showing up in parameters.

If you have not performed the Smoothing operations before, I strongly suggest looking at the movie at least once, especially since Genesis figures are treated differently from Gen 4 and those below.

Setting Up DAZ Studio 4 on Another Computer

I wanted to put a carbon copy of DAZ Studio 4 on my other machine because I wanted to experiment and didn't want to do it on my major machine. Both systems are Win 7, 64-bit. I copied over to the new machine My Library and the databases from the Content Management Services. To have it work, I had to have the paths exactly the same. However, one machine is called Paula Sanders (my major machine) and the other is called Owner. Obviously, on the "Owner" machine, My Library wanted to go into the C:/Users?Owner/ Documents.......path. This would not work so here is what I did.

On the machine I wanted to install a carbon copy of DAZ Studio 4, I went to drive C and clicked open the folder Users. You should find 3 folders there: Default, Public, and the name of your computer (in my case it was Owner.) However on the computer with the first install of DAZ Studio 4, the name of the computer was Paula Sanders; So I made a folder and called it Paula Sanders. Then inside that folder I made another one and called it Documents. In Documents, I made one called DAZ 3D and inside that I made one called Studio. Into Studio, I put My Library which I had copied from the original computer. Now the paths were identical.

In the C:ProgramData/DAZ 3D/Content Management Service was the databases that were installed by default when DAZ Studio 4 was installed on this second machine. I merged my databases file from the original machine with this new one.

Everything worked well. The setup of the two machines was identical. Thus transferring DAZ Studio 4 to a new machine was easy and relatively quick.

Installing DAZ Studio 4.5 over DAZ Studio 4

Next I was going to install DAZ Studio 4.5. Before I did that, I went into My Library and copied that whole folder just in case I needed any of it in the future. However, you really only need to copy the folder for all the Genesis material, but just in case, I suggest if you have room, copying all of My Library. I, then, installed DAZ Studio 4.5 and the Genesis Started Essentials. DAZ Studio 4.5 will remove DAZ Studio 4.

After everything was installed including the Genesis Starter Essentials, I found that the Genesis BasicMale and BasicFemale were not there. Since I did not know whether I would need them or not, I wanted them there. I found those files and added them to the new My Library under DAZ Studio 4.5.

When I installed DAZ Studio 4.5 on my older machine, it found the proper path that I had set up C: /Users/Paula Sanders/Documents..........

During the beginning of the installation process, I was asked whether to customize the Content Management Services. I clicked on the box to do that. When the ContentManager Services Install pane came up, I chose Cancel so I wouldn't modify what was already there. This aborted this part of the installation. I was not sure if this was the correct way, but since it worked, I assume I guessed correctly.

Next I had to put in Genesis Starter Essentials. I followed the recommended default path.

These were the paths on this machine. I don't normally install anything in Poser since I don't use it. When I have used it with DAZ figures, I have found that I can find all the necessary DAZ items.

After all was installed, I was able to find the files under Products/G/Genesis Starter Essentials in the left pane of DAZ Studio. I, found new files like BasicChild, but, as stated previously, Genesis BasicFemale and BasicMale were missing. I added them to My Library/People/ Genesis/Characters.

Then I clicked on Categories and Scanned Known Directories for files as described in a much earlier portion of this. It might also be a good idea to go through the readme to see other files that might be missing such as Sally Mae Hair which is now in the Duf format. Another thing that I found helpful especially with the new Duf format was to go into Preferences>Content Library and check Show File Extensions. The default, at least with my installs, did not have this checked. This helps separating and categorizing much easier and I wished I had found this earlier.

Aging Skin

There are a number of good aging morphs out there for different characters, but I was having issues getting my skin to look uneven and blotchy. If you own Photoshop and Filter Forge, here is an easy method.

After working in DAZ Studio and using various products including Zev0 vascularity, my mat looked like this. I brought this file into Photoshop.

In Photoshop I duplicated the layer and opened Filter Forge 3 to the filter - A Watercolor Painting. I used the default setting.

Selecting the top layer, I did a layer blend using Multiply.

I flattened the layers and, using curves, lightened it until it was similar to the first mat. Now the skin is more uneven.

Changing Skin Tones

There are two ways you can change the color of skin or other surfaces. You can do it in DAZ Studio or in a destination program such as Vue. I prefer to do it in Vue because different render engines show surfaces slightly differently. I will describe both how to do it in Vue as well as in DAZ Studio.

I have found that if Vue is your destination program, it is easier to change the color of mats in Vue than in DAZ Studio. Character shape changes are best done in DAZ of course. Here is the easiest way I have found to do this in Vue.

However, you can change them in DAZ Studio, if you wish. In DAZ Studio it is simpler and easier to do than in Vue, so you have a choice. Some setting changes will have more effect than others, so you need to experiment.

Getting Rid of the Glow in Vue

I like to use Global Radiosity for my Lighting Model in Vue. Sometimes, however, the figures that I have imported as OBJs have a weird glow around them. In the past, I changed the lighting model. However, this time I decided to just get rid of the glow while keeping the model. It was easy to do.

Often when using Global Radiosity as my lighting model, I have materials that have properties of luminosity in them. When that occurs, screen 2 will pop up. I always choose to temporarily disable it. This, though, will not remove the glow from the figure.

Probably, I could edit just some of the materials, but that is too cumbersome in this case, so I right click on a material from the figure and choose Edit All. (I do this to change the bump maps all at once and then edit individual ones after if necessary.) Lastly, if you look at scrren 4, you will see where I disabled indirect lights for all the materials on this figure. I could do it on just a few of the materials. Notice, though that the figure and chair are lighter and have lost a certain richnness of color.

Mesh Transfer

The Mesh Transfer utility is probably the most underused that I have come across. Perhaps I wasn't aware enough about it to remember it existed. Zev0 who sells excellent products on Renderosity and DAZ 3D mentioned it in a post and described how to use it. I want to thank him. I had a figure whom I was using as a nude because I couldn't fit clothes to her. While I liked what I did, I wanted to use her and other non-skinny models but have them clothed. Not all clothes will work. I tried some one piece dresses that didn't work. I decided to use two piece outfits and I chose these at random. The lack of sleeves probably made the fit easier when I moved the arms.

To accomplish this, I performed the following: The little box at the top of the Scene panel is very very useful. In step number 3, I chose to include all morphs.

Once I had one garment finished, I used Mesh Smoothing to control any poke throughs. There were only a few, but for the shirt, they took a relatively high number for the Smoothing.

Lastly, I repositioned the figure and performed some very minor modifications. I made the person's legs shorter since I could not find a way to lengthen the pants. And I tightened the shirt's morphs in a few places. Once you have transfered the morphs, you need to check out how they show up. Expand the item of clothing and see what morphs appear and to what parts of the clothing they are attached (shin, thigh......).

Miscellaneous Notes

1 - What files to install? On 28 October, 2012 fixmypcmike, a DAZ Admin, posted this information:

• For DS 4.5 you only need the DSON Core
• For earlier versions of DS (4.0 or 3) you only need the Legacy
• For Poser 9/PP2012 you need DSON Core and Poser Companion Files

2 - Finding Morphs:

If one cannot find a morph in DAZ Studio. Select in Parameters or Shaping the major name like actor and do a search.

3 - Fixing OBJs:

I had an interesting experience. I needed a prop for an image I was creating. I found a free Poser 7 item. However, I wanted to change the positioning of a part of it and couldn't do it in DAZ Studio 4.5. I accessed the cr2 in Poser 9 and there were numerous dials. I made the changes and exported it as an OBJ. When I imported it in Vue, no materials came with it. So I imported it into DAZ Studio 4.5. Here some of the materials came in. So I selected other parts of it and added textures. Then, I saved it as a duf and exported it as an OBJ with maps. When I opened it in Vue, it was complete. While this might sound cumbersome, it only took a few minutes.

Where are My DAZ Files Located?

DAZ Studio files are in many locations.

CMS files can be found under C:ProgramData/DAZ 3D/Content management Service.
I copy this whole folder to another hard drive and Export the User Data. I open DAZ Studio
1-On the Content tab go to the context menu at the top corner and select Content DB Maintenance. You do not need to turn off CMS
2-Check the next to last checkbox “Export User Data”
3-The exported file will be in Runtime/Support/UserData_1.dsx (and _2, etc if you have a lot).

Library Files If you do a default install, Library files can be found under C: User Name/My Documents/DAZ 3D/ Studio?My Library. I copy this file periodically to another hard drive.

Files that may be hidden are under AppData. These are found under C:User name/AppData/Roaming/Daz 3D/Studio4. I copy these as well even though I don’t know if I will ever need them.
I do all of this at one period in time, like on June 11, 2013. I start and don’t change anything while I am copying these.

Updated 07-19-13

©All material in this website is
copyrighted by Paula Sanders 2001-2013