Noting the GIMP class that is listed at the end of the forum may make this a mute idea. Having said that, most courses seems like the emphasis is based on modeling with very little emphasis on the creation and/or composting to make make your games unique. I would like to see a texture based course from an art perspective that teaches you how to make your own textures from scratch…not just taking a premade texture and applying it to a given model…but one you create from the ground up either using GIMP or Photoshop. While I have had a bit of a taste of teaching myself to do these things, I would like to see a more formalized course how these are created via the gaming industry.
Some things I have encountered over the course of time for consideration in such a course and I am sure there are many others that can be added.
- Basics of how to install & set-up & use GIMP or Photoshop (PC, Mac, Linux)
- Basic principles of Art (perspective, shadowing, color, lightening)
- What is the best size for use with what gaming Engine? How will the texture looked applied? Are they usable for more than one specific object?
- GIMP & Photoshop tools, modes, and layering techniques
- Various methods of using filters, brushes, patterns, etc. plus how to create your own.
- Creating Textures from ground zero
- Creating good vertical/horizontal tilable seamless textures.
- Compositing 2 or more textures to create a completely new texture .
- How to achieve and maintain continuity in texture sets.
- Using pre-made textures or photos. How do you know if they will work for you?
- Understanding TOS or Eula when purchasing or using textures/photos from other sources.
- How and where to sell textures and/or texture packs.
- Using your texture with Cycles to enhance your creations.
- Creating diffuse, bump, normal, AO, and other maps from the textures you create.
- Using elements of a photo or texture. How do you extract them and merge them well with other elements?
- How to create a texture element and maintain the transparent background.
- Recoloring texture backgrounds or elements.
- Tips & Tricks how to make your 2D texture look more 3D.