Control path points tangents manually

It is now possible to manually set the tangents of a specific point on a path. This allows to override the automatic behavior to create new shapes.

Edit path points via manipulators

Sometimes, just slidings points on the surface of the object is not enough. The manipulators allow to move points beyond the surface. This can be very helptful to move several points at once for example in case they were too far from a surface after a mesh re-import.

Toggle paths visibility individually

Paths visibility can now be changed per path via the dedicated viewport panel. Disabling a path will remove its contributions from final textures without having to delete it.

Copy and paste path positions and properties

Copy and pasting paths has been extended to be able to only copy a path point positions or its properties. Syncing paths in different ways is now possible, making it easier to create complex effects (via the positions) or to share a specific look across different locations (via the properties).

New ASM shader settings

The ASM shader has been updated to support new functionalities, which can be modified via the Shader settings window:

• Transparency (opacity): is it not necessary anymore to switch to another shader to get transparent surfaces, like foliage. Instead, enable either the alpha test or alpha blending parameter under the Geometry > Opacity group. The usual settings, like dithering, are also available.
  
• Translucency: this new property allows to create surfaces like glass, making shapes transparent while keeping the specular reflections. To use it add a Translucency channel in your project and enable the Translucency parameter under the Interior group.
• Absorption: this new property allows to simulate light passing through an object and being absrobed which can be useful to simulate plastic or liquids in a better way than using sub-surface scattering. To use it enable the Absorption setting under the Interior group.

Improved shader settings UI and tooltips

With the rework of the shader we took the opportunity to improve the UI of the parameters, as well as adding many new tooltips to more easily discorver how to activate them.

The order of parameters should also match better other Substance 3D software, making it easier to do back and forth when trying out settings.

New sample project to demo the Adobe Standard Material

Manipulating the new ASM properties can be difficult at first, so a new sample project demonstrating several features of the shader has been added to make it easier to learn them.

This project is called French Restaurant Table and can be found via the File > Open sample menu. It also uses a lot of little tricks, so it can be a great learning resource to discover new ways of texturing.

Translucency channel now defaults to a black color

In order to make the new shader properties easier to use and avoid unexpected results in the viewport, the default color of the channel Translucency has been changed to black (instead of white).

If this channel was already in use in your project, you can get the previous behavior by simply adding a fill layer at the bottom of your layer stack and setting the channel value to white. You might want to enable the setting Use translucency as scattering mask in the shader parameter as well to re-apply the contribution of the channel to the sub-surface scattering result.

Import SVG files
SVG files can be imported like any other resources, in projects, in libraries, etc. SVG up to version 1.1 can be imported, features from newer versions are unsupported.

Import has also been made easier in this version as well (see below) so that using SVG files can be done by simply drag and dropping resources from outside Painter directly onto the mesh or the layer stack.

Dedicated SVG settings
When using an SVG resource, a few settings are available to control its look:

• Resolution: to either use an automatic one, one defined within the file or one a custom value.
• Crop area: to define the specific region of the SVG canvas to use.
• Scope: to select the whole content of the SVG or only some elements.
  

New SVG tailored materials

3 new resources have been added to help the use of SVG files when texturing:

• Custom Spray Paint: allows to simulate a decal painted on a wall from a single input image.
  
• Custom Sticker: to create a plastic sticker on a surface. It features several settings to simulate damage and folding.
  
• Graphic to Material: allows to create several material properties from a single image input. This resource is automatically inserted when drag and dropping an SVG file into the viewport. This resource offers an easy way to share the transparency of its input across multiple channels, making it perfect for simple decals.
  

Import via drag and drop into the viewport

Drag an external file into the viewport to be able to put it directly on the mesh. This action will automatically create a new layer. Depending on the nature of the resource (image, Substance material, Substance filter, etc.) the result will adapt accordingly.

Import via drag and drop into the layer stack
The same way it is possible to drop external resource files into the viewport, dropping files into the layer stack allow to directly create layers or effects with the resource in it.

Import via drag and drop into a resource slot

Importing a resource directly into a layer or a tool is also possible. If a fill layer or effect with the right setup already exists, simply drop an external file into one of the channel slot of the Properties window to import and apply it.

Drag and drop many types of resources

It is now possible to drag and drop types of resources directly into the viewport or the layer stack. The following type of resources can now be drag and dropped (almost) anywhere:

• Alphas
• Textures
• Procedurals
• Materials
• Smart materials
• Smart masks
• Generators
• Filters
• Environment maps

Drop resources as new layer or effect

By choosing where a resource is dropped, Painter will automatically create a new layer or a new effect:

Choose between Content or Mask effect stack while dragging

When dragging a resource over a thumbnail Painter will automatically switch to the associated effect stacks. After that it becomes very easy to just drop the resource in a precise location inside that stack. This avoid the need to switch to the right stack beforehand.

Create a new black mask on the fly

A new icon appears on any layer without a mask while dragging a resource. When a resource is dropped on this ghost mask it will automatically create a new mask and add the new resource. It is a quick way to setup a new mask and avoid to cancel the drag and drop to add it manually.

Drop in the viewport to create new layers

Drag and dropping resources can also be done in the viewport to create new layers. Depending on the type of the resource, the result may change. A filter will create a paint layer in passthrough mode, while a smart mask will create a fill layer with a new mask.

Use keyboard modifiers for advanced behaviors

When dropping a resource, maintaining the keyboard modifier CTRL or ALT can enable additional behaviors:

• CTRL while dropping in the layer stack: create a new layer with the resource in a black mask. can be useful to force a material to be put into a mask for example. Or to skip the dropdown menu with an alpha.
• ALT while dropping in the layer stack: only applies when dropping over a layer thumbnail. ALT will remove all the previous effects. This can be used as a quick way to try out different resources, notably smart masks, without having to manually remove them first.
• CTRL while dropping in the viewport: create a new layer with the resource in a black mask. The resource will be put under a Color ID Selection effect which will be set based on the selection done in the viewport.
• ALT while dropping in the viewport: same as before, will force a resource to be in decal projection mode.
  

Lossless compression of 16bit images

From now on, any images contained in a project with a bit depth of 16 will be compressed with a lossless algorithm, allowing to reduce their size without losing quality. This is in addition of the project file already compressing its own data.

This change principally target bake textures which are usually the reason why project files can be very heavy on the disk. In average we saw projects being reduced by 30% to 50% in size on disk.

This compression is applied automatically when saving any project (old or new) on resources not already compressed. It means that for old projects, saving for the first time in this new version could take a bit more time than usual. Saving time should be back to normal once this is done.

New UV set to UV set fill projection mode

A new projection mode for fill layers/effects has been added named UV set to UV set projection. It can be used to project a texture based on different UVs available on the mesh inside the project. It can be used to perform more advanced texture transfert without the need to rely on external tools.

UV set 0 is the default UV used for painting by Painter. If additional UV sets are available, they will be available inside the dropdown from the setting Source:

Temporal Anti-Aliasing is enabled by default on any new project

When creating a new project, the Temporal Anti-Aliasing setting available in the Display Settings window is now enabled by default in order to improve the quality of the rendering in the viewport.

New Python API improvements

The Python API recived a few additions in this release:

• Painter can be closed/shutdown via Python with the new substance_painter.application.close() function.
• The main viewport camera can now be modified via the API. This includes its position, rotation but also its other properties like Field of View, Aperture, etc. To make it easier to position the camera regarding the mesh, the API now also exposes the scene bounding box.
• Exporting the project mesh, with triangulation or not and displacement or not, is now possible via the export module.
• The project export textures path can now also be retrieved from the API.

New send to After Effects (beta)

A new send to action is available to export a mesh and its texture to After Effects, making it convenient to iterate on visual effects. This feature requires the access to After Effects version 24.1 beta minimum.