How to use obj files with mtl

Mosk the Scribe

I have a bunch of .obj files with included .mtl files. Is there a way to make use of those mtl files in Carrara, DAZ, or Poser?

And if so, how do I then save the file/object so those materials will load automatically next time in Carrara (which is my final, target application where I'll be using these objects)

Similarly, many of my 3ds files don't load the textures in Carrara. Is there a way to workaround this through Poser or DAZ Studio? Or is there any type of file converter that would let me use the textures already built into the 3ds file?

Thanks

WendyLuvsCatz

lol! hello, I spent most of last week trying to and finally solving this issue with my 3D ripper dx obj capture of GTA San Andreas!
Carrara STILL giving me non-transparency issues with my irfanview generated png's but it DOES now load all 900+ textures!!
should also apply to a 3ds but might have to look at the mtl file in notepad and an obj mtl file to see if any find and replace all bits need to be done to make it compatible
answer
export obj
open in Daz studio
re-export obj
replace the DS mtl file with your original mtl file
make sure your obj file opened in note pad has mtllib your filename.mtl in the first line
the thread I highjacked with all my questions and answers
I have become quite the intrepid notepad wielding file editor as a result! lol!
the worse you can do is not have it load! so long as you keep you originals safe!

3DAGE

HI Mosk :)

One of the old limitations of the OBJ / MTL format is that there's very little ability for the OBJ to reference the textures listed in the MTL file.
Simply put, the Texture maps need to be in the same folder as the OBJ and MTL file when you load it into any application.
then the application should be able to find and load the texture maps.

Once you have an model loaded, and have checked or loaded the texture maps / shaders, then you can simply drag 'n' drop that model into your "My Objects" folder, in the browser.

Once it's there it can be used in any scene, and will load in with the shaders / textures.

The 3DS files are a different story.
3DS is now seen as being an "older" Autodesk format, and not the format of choice for Max users.
(3DS converts everything to triangles when exported from Max)
Max scene files, or even Collada and FBX have more advanced options, and are better formats for saving the original geometry.

Carrara should be able to open the 3DS files, but as with the OBJ / MTL format, the texture maps generally need to be in the same folder as the model, so that they can be loaded. or you can load them manually, and save the shaded / textured model to your browser.

Hope it helps :)

WendyLuvsCatz

having the texture files in the same folder made no difference with my GTa object, the obj file was basically written differently to most obj files if you looked at it in notepad but Daz studio "fixed" it, (Carrara didn't) you can see in my post where I posted a sample, it actually imported as 900+ meshes by default even in iClone 3dx5 which obj files NEVER do, so it was in fact 900+ objects in one file

brandy_939bd50d

What you might find helpful, if you have the latest version of photoshop, is to import the obj file which should bring in the material file and then export as a dae file. This will ensure that daz studio reads both correctly and imports it correctly. I had to do something like this with a terrain map I created in another program.