Saving a scene, a figure, a character

rnollman

I need to understand what I am saving when I save a scene, a figure, and a character. I assume that saving a scene means that I am saving all the figures in their current state, all the props, the scenery, and the lighting and so on.

What am I saving when I save the figure and how is that different than saving the character?

Fauvist

rnollman said:

I need to understand what I am saving when I save a scene, a figure, and a character. I assume that saving a scene means that I am saving all the figures in their current state, all the props, the scenery, and the lighting and so on.

What am I saving when I save the figure and how is that different than saving the character? 

When you save a character, I believe it is saved as an ACTOR.  When you save it like this - you lose everything you've attached to the actor - such as all hair, and clothing.  
 

If you save the character as a SCENE SUBSET, you will get a list of everything in the scene with a check-box next to each item.  So you can save the ENTIRE scene with everything in it and all the lighting, or you can save ONE figure with it's character preset, it's textures, it's hair, clothing and parented props, in the pose you had it in when you saved it, or, if you don't check the box for hair or clothing, it won't save those.

When you save a SCENE, you have to open it as a complete scene containing everything - and it ERASES EVERYTHING you have in any scene you currently have open in the viewport - but you are given the choice of erasing your already open scene, or saving it as a seperate scene, which is then CLOSED, and replaced with the SAVED SCENE.  You CAN'T ADD THE SAVED SCENE to a scene already open in the viewport.

When you save a character as a SHAPE preset - it saves only the shape of the character, NOT THE MATERIALS OR SHADERS or ANYTHING ATTACHED.  To use a SHAPE preset you have to load the base FIGURE (like Genesis 8 Female) and then click the SHAPE preset to turn the G8F into your character - WITHOUT ANY TEXTURES, SHADERS, HAIR, etc.

When in doubt, I use "save as" SCENE SUBSET.  That gives the option of saving the WHOLE SCENE, or any element of the scene which you choose - and then adding it to another scene later.

*****I MAY HAVE GOT THIS MUDDLED, so better get what I've written confirmed or corrected by someone else.

 

JOdel

In order to insert a saved scene into another scene you use 'Merge'. It's in the file menu and has a key command especially to do it with.

Depending on the coordinates of where you saved the scene you're merging, it may merge your saved scen into the new one off-canera, and you'll need to move it or the camera, or the rest of the scene to get them all together, but it will bring the saved scene in without erasing anything -- UNLESS you've been playing in the geometry editor.

If you've modified an object in the geometry editor without saving it as another name, loading or merging it into your scene with another iteration of the original object is likely to apply the modification to any other copy of that object in the scene. 

Fauvist

Save as "MATERIALS" preset and save as "SHADER" preset is also confusing.  If you have a character and want to save all the materials for every part OF THE CHARACTER including the skin for each part of the body, the eyes, the toenails, then use save as MATERIALS.  If you want to save the textures and shader settings for ONE SURFACE of your charachter, such as the CORNEA, save it as a SHADER preset.  When you save ANYTHING - NAME IT EXACTLY WHAT IT IS.  So, if you are saving the SHADER for a cornea, include the word CORNEA, include the word SHADER, and include the figure it's for - such as G8F, and also include the name of the specific CHARACTER the cornea is from, and the REASON you are saving it, such as "superior light reflections".