I am looking for a software that is either free of very cheap in order to paint 3d models made in blender of sculptris. Please don’t recommend something like substance painter, $150 is not cheap lol
I think Blender has that feature to some degree
Blender does have a texture painting feature, as does Maya, Zbrush, Cinema 4D, 3D Coat as well as many others I’m sure. But I will tell you this now. $150 for Substance Painter is 150 of the best dollars you’ll ever spend. When I first learned of it, I was like, “Zbrush essentially does the same.” But after finally being pressured into buying it from a peer of mine. I will say that it is an amazing piece of software that if I had to purchase it again for $600, I’d still do it.
The difference between substance painter vs the other pieces of 3D modeling software is specifically designed with rendering in mind. It doesn’t have modeling features, it’s meant to be used in tandem with the other pieces of software.
It can also essentially one-click paint your model without seams or distortion by using the Tri-Planar projection node. That and it’s smart materials will intelligently add different kinds of textures to give it a much more realistic feel. And with Substance Share, there’s hundreds of free materials that are top-notch. And it will export all the textures needed for creating a full material in UE4.
Do yourself a favor and find a way to get $150 and get the program…
However, if you absolutely cannot afford it. I would try for Blender’s texture paint. Although it can be extremely finicky most of the time, but it should do the job until you are able to upgrade. I also recently learned that Photoshop CC has some 3D features, although since I’ve been clinging to my CS6 license for several years now, I haven’t had any direct experience with those, so I’m not sure how robust those features are overall, or if it even allows mesh painting.
One more free option is built within UE4 itself. It’s not difficult to setup a material to enable mesh/vertex painting on a model. But keep in mind that the shader cost for such a feature is relatively high and should be used sparingly. Perhaps if someone on the forums has figured out a way to export a painted mesh’s final image naps after painting from within UE4 that would be the most viable option. hint hint
Hopefully this helps enough to give something to work with.
You could use Substance Live and pay $20 a month (and put that money towards a license in the future). $150 is really cheap for professional software. Substance painter is basically a Photoshop replacement for 3D artist, it’s how texturing really should be done.
If you’re familiar with photoshop and use that software anyway, you alternatively could get Quixel Suite.
Educational licence is $39, Indie is $79.
Also some ppl still have a 50% discount ticket on Substance in their steam inventory.
Or you could wait for a steam sale (like there is right now).
I see Substance Painter 2 with a 63% discount for 51.79€.
Updated mine from 1.7 a few days ago.
Still i see the discount at 63%.
this article may can help you make your choice: 10 Best 3D Modeling, Animation and Design Software: Free and Paid | XPPen
I think Blender can do that, but I’m not sure. I’m using Substance painter as well.