What You Will Need There are a few things that you’ll need in order to complete the tutorial. Make sure that you have all of the following items before beginning the tutorial. If you don’t have some of them, you’ll still be able to learn the principles involved, but you won’t be able to complete the tutorial steps. So, here’s what you need: If you have trouble setting up or installing any of these programs, just ask and I'll see if I can help you. Tools for Creating Your Models 3DS Max, Maya, Softimage, or Lightwave http://www.autodesk.com/3dsmax# http://www.autodesk.com/alias http://www.softimage.com/products/xsi/default.aspx http://www.newtek.com/lightwave/index.php This is the most important piece of software you’ll need. You have to have a 3D modeling program to create your high and low res models. I use 3DS Max. Tools for Generating Your Normal Maps Adobe Photoshop http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/main.html You’ll need Photoshop for creating your bump map in the first portion of the tutorial and for converting it to a normal map. ATI’s normal map generator program http://www2.ati.com/developer/NormalMapper-3_2_2.zip This piece of software will create your normal maps from the high and low res versions of your model. Once you’ve downloaded the program, be sure to install the Max or Maya exporter. The readme file explains how to do this. Nvidia’s DDS plugin for Photoshop http://developer.nvidia.com/object/nv_texture_tools.html This plug-in will allow you to convert your bump map to a normal map and save it in DDS format. Tools for Viewing Your Model With the Normal Map Applied Nvidia’s Cg plug-in for Max or Maya Max version: http://developer.nvidia.com/object/IO_3dsmaxCgFXPlugin.html Maya version: http://developer.nvidia.com/object/MayaCgPlugin.html Before installing either of these plug-ins, you’ll need to install the Cg compiler, which can be found here: http://developer.nvidia.com/object/cg_toolkit_1_1.html These plug-ins allow you to display real-time Cg shaders in the view port of Max or Maya. This tutorial uses the Cg plug-in for displaying the end results of your normal map applied to the surface of your model. If you have another program that supports normal map per-pixel lighting, you can use that instead. A Normal Map Shader https://www.bencloward.com/bcloward/simple_normal_map_shader.fx This is a shader that I wrote that you'll need to use together with Nvidia's Cg plugin in order to view your model with the normal map applied to it. An Nvidia GeForce3 or greater graphics card You could also probably use a Radeon 8500 or greater ATi card, but some of the features of the Cg plug-in for Max or Maya may not work correctly with ATi hardware. If you’re using another program to display your normal mapped models, then ATi cards will work fine. At the end of the tutorial there is a list of additional links. If you use software other than Maya, 3DS Max, and/or Photoshop you can find information there about using other software to create normal maps. Back     Next Page 1: Introduction Page 2: Enter the Normal Map Page 3: What You'll Need Page 4: Using Normal Maps for Bump Maps Page 5: Normal Maps for High Poly Detail Page 6: Applying Normal Maps to Your Model Page 7: Additional Tips and Tricks Page 8: Links to Additional Information