Tutorial [ILLUSION] HS2 Studio Neo|Chara Maker - (Help & guides Thread)
- Thread starter hun hunter
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Is there a way to rapidly move around maps or do I just have to suffer through using shift and the arrow keys?
- Jul 6, 2020
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- Jul 6, 2020
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Also dont forget to toggle the "Advanced List" to find it.
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- Oct 12, 2020
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I haven't used lighting too much in Studio, so I might not be the best source. I just loaded those 2 chars and added them to one of my favorites: Tatami RoomA challenge!
(aka: I don't know how to do this thing right so please help me).
TLDR version: Here are two characters, how would YOU put them in a simple pose/scene together with proper lighting for a realistic effect (so as close to photographic as possible) where both characters are clearly visible and with proper ambient occlusion/shadows? Feel free to add any other char you want.
Longer version: Lighting has been my nemesis since day one as I have never been able to get the effects I want, particularly if the characters have skin tones that are too different. From what I can tell the skin they use also affects how the light reflects as well. So it's been ticking me off something fierce. So when I can finally get the look on one it either looks like cr*p on the other or I mess up the shadows on the scene. In particular, I have a hell of a time getting lighter skin tones not to blow out when I try to get proper occlusion/shadow effects. Don't even get me started on weird colors. If I try anything for a mood effect, like blue tint for night as an example, or near a fire source... I get some seriously weird effects and nothing at all like what I've seen on other's work. So yeah... I need help.
Is someone willing to pick up the challenge and do a basic demonstration scene using these extreme characters? I specifically chose two from my collection with as diametrically different skin tones as I could find.
Please let us know if you're using dhh or graphicsmod.
I basically stick with GM as that's what I started with and it's hard enough learning one but there may be others that benefit from different things.
Also, if you use a premade map, please note how you worked with the existing lighting. I've had the issue where I imported some characters I thought looked great but the pre existing lighting on the map just....no. All bad.
Thanks!
I tried a daylight and an evening setting and with those chars that's as far as I can get in a short time. I actually didnT change much in the settings.
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When you don't like the lights, coming from the map (an added map), you should see the mapcontroller and might find the objects, which can disable the lights of that map:
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It's not only the lighting. If you want a certain result, you have to play with the Color Grading. start with balancing Exposure, Contrast, Gamma and Gain. Usually small changes to the sliders.
Final with some additional GIMP touches here and there:
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I can't help much on how to control certain lights when using DHH, that was allways a pain for me as well when I was still only musing DHH. You miss a lot of control, when you're not using GM.
I wrote at least 2 Infos/guides about GM, with mostly basic settings (not lighting, that needs selfprectice). Allways considering keeping performance good as well.
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- Jul 9, 2022
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Hi!
Excelent explanation. My weak point doing scenes are the goddamn lights, some maps are unbalanced ligh that screw up all. Adding extra lights, chara, map, even whole lights doesn't helps. The maps are not standarized, thus there are maps too bright, or too dark, some maps make the Neck Seam more visible and so.
- Oct 12, 2020
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- Oct 12, 2020
- 471
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If the main struggle is the lights, I really suggest switching to GM. I don't know a way to directly access lights in DHH the way, you can in GM. I know myself, that it takes a while to get used to it, well, I even gave up when I tried it the first time. But as soon as you have your basic setup, it starts klicking in. The question is, are you using mostly the game or more studio? Are you using downloaded scenes or only self created ones?
When you want to add some mood or just configure the lights in more detail, do try it for a while. You need to figure out, when to safe what. Saving preset doesn't save the lights, that is done extra under via 'lights' -> 'saving lights to preset' in Maker or game. The Studio saves the settings for lights, cubemap and preset on the scene. You can use that like i did and 'cheat': A good looking scene: save that setting as a preset and check it out.
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Still you might wnat to disbale some lights you don't like in MapControler.
But if you add lights to a scene, you have control over them in GM:
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I wrote about it a bit here:
GraphicsMod
https://f95zone.to/threads/illusion...-maker-help-guides-thread.66252/post-11284423
SSS and GraphicsMod
https://f95zone.to/threads/illusion...-maker-help-guides-thread.66252/post-12165852
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Oh I only use GM. Tried DHH but just couldn't get it at all. Also, I just use studio. Don't think I've played the actual game (aside from using Maker) since i got the thing.
Your first example actually highlights the thing I'm looking for examples for perfectly. Notice how you got a nice glow on the darker skinned girl, but the pale girl, her skin looks flat? Almost like it's painted on.
I've had the issue when I swap out characters on scenes that others have made or when I try to use a pre-existing map. On some maps one character will look just fine, on another they look like crap even when it's the same character.
Like the guy will look like a plastic doll and the girl will be so white it's just glowing figure or so dark you can't see features.
Then there's the whole issue of lighting when the characters are on different planes. Like one further away and one closer up. Totally changes the lighting dynamic. I know it's a combination of skin type, map lighting and character lighting.
It's something I'm playing with so I just want to see what other's are doing, how other's work around that issue. That sort of thing.
Thanks for taking the time to share!
Also, how did you get GM to be full width? After one of the updates mine got shrunk and I have to scroll side to side. Can't figure out how to expand it.
- Feb 7, 2021
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Yo I'm back to experimenting with HS2. This time stopped being a caveman and downloaded BetterRepack with all the stuff.
So, a couple of questions to the veterans.
1. I found out that you can make custom expressions if you play with these sliders long enough, and save them. Anyone knows if there's a user-made library with lots of them or something? Maybe someone wants to share theirs? I think that facial expressions are very important, even if they are not animated. And HS2 has LESS built-in expressions in the "Kinematics-Face" menu than HS 1, for some reason...
2. Is there a full list of hotkeys? I can only find some, for addons in F1-menu. There used to be an .ini file for HS1 for this stuff.
What I'm missing a lot from HS1 are:
"shift+W" to center camera on currently selected object (shift-q = face, shift-w = center, shift+e = pussay). This solved a lot of problems when you had depth-of-field enabled, since you could focus the camera very quickly on what you were looking at.
"G" to quickly move objects in 2-dimensinal space (xy-axis). For some reason HS2 only has 1 key-bind per dimension, so I have to press Y to drag character along x-axis, then drop it and press I to move it along y-axis. 1 by 1. This is the equivalent of losing mouse scroll-wheel for no reason to me (like you could get used to using keyboard arrows, true, but WTF why is the technology lost?)
3. Can I have info about what these buttons do, and their potential usage? Doesn't seem to do anything no matter if they are ON or OFF...
edit. found what Transparallel does: botton-right corner extra object-mover if "Axis" are ON. Problem is, when axis are on, you can't see crap when carefully positioning characters... Back to the "G" problem, it was perfect bros...
View attachment 2023-07-14T09-04-15.webm
4.There was a plugin for HS1 that allowed you to press something like "shift+N" and the camera attached itself to currently selected character's center and moved along the animation. You could press it more times, and it would switch between head-booba-center-legs, so on. Was a very quick way of creating dynamically moving camera that gave "impact" feel. Click and you're literally living in the scene
PS: if anyone's willing to be in my direct messages for a while, so that I don't flood the thread with my micro-questions , pls ping me. It'd be way faster to ask a veteran directly
So, a couple of questions to the veterans.
1. I found out that you can make custom expressions if you play with these sliders long enough, and save them. Anyone knows if there's a user-made library with lots of them or something? Maybe someone wants to share theirs? I think that facial expressions are very important, even if they are not animated. And HS2 has LESS built-in expressions in the "Kinematics-Face" menu than HS 1, for some reason...
2. Is there a full list of hotkeys? I can only find some, for addons in F1-menu. There used to be an .ini file for HS1 for this stuff.
What I'm missing a lot from HS1 are:
"shift+W" to center camera on currently selected object (shift-q = face, shift-w = center, shift+e = pussay). This solved a lot of problems when you had depth-of-field enabled, since you could focus the camera very quickly on what you were looking at.
"G" to quickly move objects in 2-dimensinal space (xy-axis). For some reason HS2 only has 1 key-bind per dimension, so I have to press Y to drag character along x-axis, then drop it and press I to move it along y-axis. 1 by 1. This is the equivalent of losing mouse scroll-wheel for no reason to me (like you could get used to using keyboard arrows, true, but WTF why is the technology lost?)
3. Can I have info about what these buttons do, and their potential usage? Doesn't seem to do anything no matter if they are ON or OFF...
edit. found what Transparallel does: botton-right corner extra object-mover if "Axis" are ON. Problem is, when axis are on, you can't see crap when carefully positioning characters... Back to the "G" problem, it was perfect bros...
View attachment 2023-07-14T09-04-15.webm
4.There was a plugin for HS1 that allowed you to press something like "shift+N" and the camera attached itself to currently selected character's center and moved along the animation. You could press it more times, and it would switch between head-booba-center-legs, so on. Was a very quick way of creating dynamically moving camera that gave "impact" feel. Click and you're literally living in the scene
PS: if anyone's willing to be in my direct messages for a while, so that I don't flood the thread with my micro-questions
, pls ping me. It'd be way faster to ask a veteran directly
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- Oct 12, 2020
- 471
- 1,835
You're right. As it was only an example, I didn't pay to much attention to her.
I guess, the main point is getting a preset to your liking (saturation, contrast, AO,...) and disable all or at least all lights from the map or at least those, that are disturbing. At least checking, what they do. Then you can add small things like spot or point with low intensity and/or range for hightlights.
The window size and the font size decide if you ahve to scroll or not. On to of that, your screen resolution is involved as well.
And allways have that shocking truth about lighting in mind:
There is no light!
Just a flat screen with pixels of different colors, where the engine decides to give it a bit more or less luminance.
- Jul 9, 2022
- 606
- 1,054
You've hit the nail! the same issue I've suffering years ago. Now i am reading all the guide from Herbmetaru maybe in time i will be able to master the Graphic mode
- Jul 9, 2022
- 606
- 1,054
Hi!Yo I'm back to experimenting with HS2. This time stopped being a caveman and downloaded BetterRepack with all the stuff.
So, a couple of questions to the veterans.
1. I found out that you can make custom expressions if you play with these sliders long enough, and save them. Anyone knows if there's a user-made library with lots of them or something? Maybe someone wants to share theirs? I think that facial expressions are very important, even if they are not animated. And HS2 has LESS built-in expressions in the "Kinematics-Face" menu than HS 1, for some reason...
View attachment 3122389
2. Is there a full list of hotkeys? I can only find some, for addons in F1-menu. There used to be an .ini file for HS1 for this stuff.
What I'm missing a lot from HS1 are:
"shift+W" to center camera on currently selected object (shift-q = face, shift-w = center, shift+e = pussay). This solved a lot of problems when you had depth-of-field enabled, since you could focus the camera very quickly on what you were looking at.
"G" to quickly move objects in 2-dimensinal space (xy-axis). For some reason HS2 only has 1 key-bind per dimension, so I have to press Y to drag character along x-axis, then drop it and press I to move it along y-axis. 1 by 1. This is the equivalent of losing mouse scroll-wheel for no reason to me (like you could get used to using keyboard arrows, true, but WTF why is the technology lost?)
3. Can I have info about what these buttons do, and their potential usage? Doesn't seem to do anything no matter if they are ON or OFF...
View attachment 3122447
edit. found what Transparallel does: botton-right corner extra object-mover if "Axis" are ON. Problem is, when axis are on, you can't see crap when carefully positioning characters... Back to the "G" problem, it was perfect bros...
View attachment 3122468
4.There was a plugin for HS1 that allowed you to press something like "shift+N" and the camera attached itself to currently selected character's center and moved along the animation. You could press it more times, and it would switch between head-booba-center-legs, so on. Was a very quick way of creating dynamically moving camera that gave "impact" feel. Click and you're literally living in the scene
PS: if anyone's willing to be in my direct messages for a while, so that I don't flood the thread with my micro-questions
For the point number one:
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- Oct 12, 2020
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Don't forget, that I started from what Sykosis wrote. That was, what make me try GM again after I gave up the first time.
All I wrote was after hours of try and error and trying to find something to read up about it. No gain without pain. Since GM as well as DHH are just plugins to the games, there are some things that work well and some doesn't. The same with the shaders. Sometimes, there are misleading names or values, that do actually nothing. To add to the confusion, there are differences between Maker and Studio, how things work. That's why I still prefer to create in Maker but load characters in Studio for a preview. Sometimes I think I'm done only to notice there, that I have to rework the result, because it looks horrible there.
My guess is, most underestimate the power we have with material editor over the final result of a card. Without using that tool, just leaving everything to default causes many cards look flat or pale.
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Don't get me started on material editor. When I found out about some people modifying this I almost cried. Was going crazy when I would reset all the (non material editor) settings to what I thought were default and it wouldn't change that one thing that had been modified and that I wanted gone. Deleted more than one character because of it.
Unfortunately I just haven't been able to commit enough time to learning what the settings all do so still beyond my reach.