Texture Transparency in #DMF

Texture Transparency in #DMF

I'm a newbie so I may be overlooking the obvious. I'm trying to create a helicopter rotor using a tif (created in photoshop) with a blurred blade. I load the tif image as a texture to the material, leave the transparency properties as white color, intensity 0.000, alpha channel on. Lastly, I add a UV tag to the object.
The image renders as I hoped in the openGL renderer but when exported as a 3DMF file, the transparent areas of the image are filled with whatever color is set in the material.
Without the tif (or png, I've tried that, too) image as a texture, I can successfully export a semi-transparent disc in 3DMF. But what I really want is the nice rotational blurred image.
Any help?
Ray
 
Hi,
I've just tried the 3DMF export. I've tested it with 3DMF Optimizer which is a old OS 9 tool and it worked fine. Also the transparent texture. So normally it should work.

Does it help if you click on the "save" button withing the UV Tag properties?

If it still doesn't work please mail me the .jas file and I will have a look into it.

Bye,
Martin
 
You could set the material color to 100% transparency as well, maybe that helps?

Regards,

Peter
 
Hi,
I looked into your scene and there was a mistake. You had two materials. A grey material and one material with the rotor texture. But you assigned grey material to the cylinder and not the material with the texture.

No just delete the grey material and assign the rotor material to the cylinder. Now the rotor texture should appear in the 3D preview.

I've exported that scene to 3DMF and it worked fine in 3DMF Optimizer.

Bye,
Martin
 
Thanks Martin,
I confused the situation previously with the .jas file I sent. I had two materials: one with a .png and one with a .tif. I was demonstrating to myself that either file format for the texture produced the same result. I closed the file with the .png texture assigned to the cylinder. When I tried to upload the .zip archive it exceeded the 250k forum limit. So instead of reopening the .jas file and deleting the material with the .png, I just deleted the .png file from the archive. That's why you saw the assigned material having only a gray color.

OK, I opened the .jas file that you said worked. When I exported to 3DMF I got the same old result: no transparency. I preview the 3DMF exports on both 3DMF Viewer and in Geo3D. I even loaded the 3DMF into the heli sim (RCHS). All bad. Black rotor discs with white stripes (like a flying skunk). Could it be something in my computer or configuration?

Could I please ask you to send the 3DMF file you exported from my .jas that you see having transparency?

Sorry to be such a pain. I sure apppreciate the help.

Ray
 
Hi,
I've just tested it in 3DMF viewer, in 3DMF Optimizer and 3FDM Mapper. And it always appeared correct. So I'm quite sure that the attached 3DMF file is OK.

Bye,
Martin
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Fascinating! Your #3dmf works just as I hoped. Mine doesn't. Here are screen shots. Picture 1 is your rotor, picture 2 is mine: exported from the .jas you sent me

I looked at the two files in a text editor. In the area of the image I think the problem can be seen.

here is a line from your file: 0x00000000000000000000000000000000
and the same line from mine: 0xFF000000FF000000FF000000FF000000

And now the good news (sort of). A few days ago I set the export preferences for 3dmf to a scale that let me work in inches (sorry) but export in meters. While there I changed the texture format from ARGB32 to RGB32. I don't know why!!
I changed it back and bingo. Export has transparency.

Sorry for the problem but this thread will solve somebody's problem one day. Thanks VERY much for your patience.
Have a nice night.
Ray
 
oh, forgot the pix. Forwhatitsworth:
there in the next post
 

Attachments

  • Picture 1.png
    Picture 1.png
    37.6 KB · Views: 232
  • Picture 2.png
    Picture 2.png
    42 KB · Views: 243
raylepper said:
While there I changed the texture format from ARGB32 to RGB32. I don't know why!!

Hi,
ok that explains everything. RGB32 doesn't contain the alpha channel. I'm happy to hear that it works now.

Bye,
Martin
 
Back
Top