Part 2: Adding a Label

In this part of the tutorial, you will take a graphic design for the label of the shower gel bottle, and apply it to the label surface.

The process of applying the graphic is called Mapping.

The graphic file (shown on the left) is in a standard format, such as a .tif or .jpg. It can be mapped onto a surface (shown on the right).

The result is that the graphic file follows the U and V directions of the surface. If the surface is trimmed, the graphic appears on the part of the surface that is visible.

To apply the graphic as a colored label, you will map the Color parameter.

TipMapping can be used on many of the shader parameters, such as transparency, bump, or reflection.

Opening the tutorial file (optional)

If you successfully completed Part 1, proceed to the next step: Create a Label Shader, below.

If you were not successful in part 1, open the file called Render_Basics_part2.wire, located in the wire directory of the CourseWare project. This file contains the completed model from Part 1.

Watch Part 2 of the tutorial.

Create a Label Shader

Click the Default shader to select it. Then, choose the Copy Current Shader tool to create a third shader.
Double-click the icon of the new shader. Change the Shader Name to Label and set the Shading Model to LAMBERT to represent a matte paper label.

You don’t need to change the color of the shader, as you will now map the label graphic onto the Color channel. The graphic image will replace the default grey color.

Mapping the Color Channel

In the Label shader editor, click the Map… button beside the Color parameter.
The Texture Procedures window appears. Choose the Surface > file texture.
The File Texture editor is opened. Choose the Browse button next to the Image section.

The File Browser opens into the pix directory of the Lessons project. To retrieve the file that contains the label image, navigate to the CourseWare directory.
Select the ShowerGel_Label.tif image.
The pathname of the label file is shown in the Image section.

Leave the editor window open on the screen, as you will use it later to modify the position of the label.

The shader icon in the Visualize Panel shows the label wrapped around the shader ball.

Now, you will assign the label shader to the label surfaces.
Pick the label surfaces using the Layer sub-menu.
Assign the Label shader to the label surfaces using the Visualize Panel Assign icon.
The label graphic now appears on the label surfaces.
Choose Pick > Nothing to de-select the surfaces.
The placement of the label can be modified in the Surface Placement section of the texture editor window.
In the Rotate section, type in 90 degrees to see an alternative label position.
Return the label rotation to zero degrees, to get the correct label view.
Toggle off the wireframe and grids using the Show button in the Perspective window pane.

TipTo see how the label graphic is applied to the shader choose Render > Multi-lister > Shaders. The Multi-lister is an alternative to the Visualize Panel for working with shaders. (You will use it in the next section to work with lights.)

In the Multi-lister, you can see the label graphic is shown as a File Texture attached to the Label shader. If you want to delete the label graphic, you can select it in the Multi-lister and use Delete > Active on the Multi-lister menus.

NoteDon’t use Delete > Active from the main menus, as this will delete any geometry selected in the scene!

Save your work

Save your work in the wire directory of the Lessons project.
Name your file myRender_Basics2.wire.