Shader Forge

On July 26, 2018

Release date:2018

Duration:08 h 15 m

Author:Jonathan Lampel, Bartek Skorupa, Kent Trammell

Skill level:Advanced

Language:English

Exercise files:Yes

This course is an on-going series about constructing materials (shaders) for the Cycles render engine. With enough time and effort, materiality can breathe such life into a CG scene. On the other hand, lackluster materials can suck the life out of an otherwise high-quality scene. You will be wise, padawan, to sharpen you material creation skills.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: 3D Print Resin
Always on the look-out for a new way to present 3D models, in this lesson I explore a specific kind of 3D print resin that seems tailor-made to accentuate form and shape.
3D Print Resin 23 min
Chapter 2: Bodies of Water
This chapter involves light refraction and absorption as characteristics of water collections.
Bod ies of Water: I ntroduction l min
Procedural Wave Displacement 15 min
Refractions & Reflections 27 min
Caustics & Pool Demo 16 min
Ocean & Lake Demo 12 min
Shader Forge – water 4xp
Chapter 3: Brushed Metal
A specific finish for metallic objects, brushed metal’s key characteristic is the ‘stretching’ of reflections across a model’s surface. It’s common with kitchen appliances, jewelry, household accessories, and more.
Brushed Metal 31 min
Chapter 4: Carbon Fiber
Carbon fiber is a great material that can be used anywhere from the trim on a fancy sports car to a scraped up sci-fi helmet Since it can be molded into practically any shape and can be ten times stronger (and five times lighter!) than steel, carbon fiber goes well with anything high tech.
Carbon Fiber 12 min
Chapter 5: Car Paint
Vehicle rendering is one of the most popular uses of computer graphics. Car paint has a specific look and feel that leans heavily on the concept of ’fresnel”.
Car Paint 18 min
Chapter 6: Clip Art
Sure it’s not 1995 anymore, but turning your 3D model into clip art is totally cool! Plus this shader exposes you to some unconventional usage of nodes.
Clip Art 8 min
Chapter 7: Dispersion
This is the optical phenomenon that occurs when light passes through transparent material causing the separation of the color spectrum.
Dispersion 7 min
Chapter 8: Gemstones & Ice
Dazzling gems and crystals are relevant to jewelry, pirate treasure, a monarch’s crown, and anything else that needs bedazzling. The emphasis in this chapter is on manipulating complex refractions despite an object’s simple surface.
Gemstones & Ice: Introduction 1 min
Analyzing Reference 5 min
Implementing absorption 4 min
Using Bump for Refractions 13 min
Reflection & Color 10 min
Chapter 9: Gold
This precious metal focuses on reflection and bump texture as it’s primary characteristics of surface quality. Additionally, the last lesson demonstrates the consolidation process of a node group.
Base Shader & Bump Texture 17 min
Tweaking Reflections 13 min
Node Grouping 16 min
Chapter 10: Hologram
This effect is popular in the Sci-fi genre and it’s a fun material to build.
Hologram 8 min
Chapter 11: Lava
This molten material features highly-detailed geometric displacement, multi-layered procedural textures, and adaptive subdivision. It’s a hot chapter.
Lava: Introduction 1 min
Lava Reference Analysis 3 min
Lava Main Mask Layer 10 min
Lava Secondary Level 13 min
Lava Wrinkle Layer 8 min
Dialing in the Displacement 14 min
Chapter 12: Leather
Leather makes a good procedural candidate because it’s used often for things like car interiors, furniture, and clothing among others. So an artist’s material library benefits from having a flexible material that’s not restricted by image textures and UVs.
Bump Map 10 min
Color Variation 7 min
Leather Couch 12 min
Chapter 13: Marble
A natural stone that’s used often in architecture, countertops, tile, and statues/sculptures among other things.
Marble 31 min
Chapter 14: PBR
Create a shader group node based on a modern standard.
PBR: Introduction 3 min
Building a PBR Shader 8 min
Creating a PBR Group Node 8 min
Metalness& Specular Workflows 5 min
Using the Principled Shader 11 min
Chapter 15: Snow
This is the white stuff that falls from the sky during the winter time.
Snow 29 min
Chapter 16: Speed Boost
A simple trick to speed up render times for materials using bump maps.
Speed Boost 9 min
Chapter 17: Wood
Expert-level lesson about procedural wood grain. NOTE: This is from guest author Bartek Skorupa.
Wood 42 min