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Bitmap | Substance 3D Designer

Bitmap

In: Atomic Nodes

Simple

Compatibility: Designer 3+

Description

The Bitmap node is used to either import a bitmap into your graph or to create a new bitmap for use with the 2D painting tools.Any time you need a bitmap file in your Graph, this is the node you would use. There are a few ways to create this node, and all of them require you to understand the difference between Linking and Importing Resources. You can either Create the node from scratch, or by dropping a bitmap in a supported format into the Graph view.

Alert:

Bitmap caveats

Bitmaps are a special type of node, dependent on an external resource. For that reason, a few points need to be kept in mind when working with them:

  • Bitmap nodes can return either color or grayscale, but defaults to color even if the resource is a grayscale bitmap. This can affect graph performance and complexity, so always make sure to switch to grayscale mode if needed (see below parameters).
  • Deleting a bitmap node does not delete the resource in your package, you have to manually do that in the Explorer.
  • On the other hand, be careful when deleting a Bitmap Resource in the Explorer: it will still work in the Graph for that session (as it is kept in cache), but next time you open the program it will be missing.
  • When a Substance package is cooked, the bitmap resolution will be fixed at its resolution inside the graph and not based on its original size. It is recommended to use a bitmap node at an absolute size followed by a Transform 2D node with its size relative to the graph.

Parameters

  • Color Mode: Color, Grayscale
    Determines the output type of the node, to either return in color or grayscale.
  • PKG Resource Path:
    Path to the resource being used by the bitmap. Recommended not to type manually, but either copy a resource from the explorer and paste it (it will be converted to path on paste), or drag-and-drop a bitmap onto the bitmap node in the Graph.
  • Resize Method: Smooth Stretch, Nearest Stretch
    Resampling method to use when up or downscaling a bitmap. Allows for smooth linear resampling, or blocky, pixelated resampling.

Usage Guide

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