about prop blur

[smilo]

can someone please tell me
how to go about improving it?
is it a major production
or can an average nimrod perform the task?

at present, i am looking at the AlphaSim Boston Mk.III,
but i'm sure i have others that could use the work,
so i figure i should learn the process.

[Milton Shupe]

Smilo,

Transparency depends on how the blurred prop was modeled. It can be totally controlled by the model, or totally by the alpha channel of the texture, or it can be some of both.

To determine what process was used, investigate the texture.

If the texture has no alpha channel, it is totally controlled by the model and texture changes will not help you.

If the texture has an alpha channel, chances are good that the transparency is at least partly controlled by the alpha channel. The darker the alpha, the more transparent. Try making the alpha channel black (0,0,0) and if the prop blur disappears then you have control and can modify it. If there is no change, then you do not.

With that information, explore various prop blurs for several aircraft and you will get a sense of how it is done.

I hope this helps.

[OBIO]

I'm not at home at the moment so can not check, but I do know that many of the older Alphasim prop planes have prop blurs that are part of the model file and not dependent on a prop blur texture. If that is the case with the Alpha Boston, then you really can't change the prop blur without making changes to the model (MDL) file.

OBIO

EDIT: I home now and have checked the Boston. It does not have a dedicated prop blur texture...meaning the prop blur is part of the model and can only be adjusted via the MDL material settings. I will take a look at it and see if I can improve it any.

[andersel]

Slightly to the left of topic. In many posts that I see here on SOH there are references to using the prop blurs from other aircraft as replacements for (oh, I din't know, let's call them) ones that are less tham optimum for a given application. I have followed such suggestions and damned if they don't work perfectly! So, my question is this:

How does one go about choosing an alternate prop blur from among the many hundreds (thousands?) that are out there, and are modifications necessary before they can be used? Is it, perhaps, merely a matter of experience and "just knowing" which ones to try?

LA

[racartron]

Andersel, Before y'all get the official (read techie) answers, let me give ya my layman's version.

For me it is real simple. If I don't like the prop blur that came with the plane, I find one from my rather large inventory of planes and try it out. I base my choice on how it looks to me -- not anyone else. How dark, how reflective, how "complicated," number of blades, etc. Sometime one I really like on one plane will look screwy on another, so it's hunt and peck until I'm happy. I keep trying until I either fine one that suits me or someone on line offers up one they like. Banana Bos has created a huge number of alternate prop blur files over the years.

The actual process is also simple.
1...I select one texture folder in the target plane,
2...Rename the "prop_blur.bmp" to "prop_blur - ORIGINAL.bmp",
3...Copy in the new version,
4...Rename it using the original name,
5...Save the texture folder and,
6...Reload the plane to check the result

If I like the result, I create a folder under the plane called "Alternate BMPs" and stick in both the original and new version. This way I can stick in the modified version to any other variants I might add. This becomes a very handy folder as it allows me to include other alternative files I might wish to add to the plane such as different glass bmps, low or high reflective skin bmps, etc.

Calling the folder "Alternate BMPs" places it at the top of the list in the plane folder so regardless of how many texture folders I might have, it is always at the top of the list so I won't miss it.

Like I said, the simple solution:icon_lol:

ps: You can create other "Alternate xxx" folders to keep other alternate things close to the plane like, sounds, panels, models, etc. that way all the relevant bits stay with the plane even if you take it offline and stow it in a hanger.

[smilo]

many thanks for the replies.

apparently, the AS Boston's prop blur is in the model.

but, for future reference;
i have heard a lot about Banana Bob's work.
i've also heard that he hasn't been around for a while.
my question is, is his work still available,
and, if so, where can one find it?
does anybody else do this kind of work?
i guess that's another question.

[Cazzie]

Just give me a few minutes, the blur for this is a DXT3 bitmap with an Alpha, I'll have you a prop blur in about 30 minutes.

Caz

Edit: Strange, it has a DXT3 .bmp blur in the texture folder, yet when I did my blur and substituted it, it looked the same. Must be keyed to the model file in some way. Ready for bed now, will make another attempt tomorrow.

[andersel]

Racartron - that is EXACTLY the kind of information I was seeking. One additional question: Does the type of plane really matter or is a prop blur pretty much a prop blur, no matter what A/C it's on?

LA

[OBIO]

The best prop blur textures are designed for specific props...ie, 2 blade, 3 blade, 4 blade. If you drop a 3 blade prop blur texture into a 2 blade plane, the prop blur will reflect a 3 blade prop which will look odd on a plane that you know has a 2 blade prop.

There are some differences in the way the prop blur disc is set up between models. Some models have prop blur discs that just won't fully accept hi-quality prop blur textures and will only work right with DXT1 prop blur texture files. Not sure what the difference is, but I have seen it on a number of planes.

I have been working on the prop blur on the Alphasim Boston. It looks better, not great, but better. I have also done some material recoloring to add a bit more punch to the engine nose cone section and the still prop blades. The still prop blades, including the yellow tips, are colored via the MDL materials. I made the blades a much darker near black instead of the mid-gray tone of the originals, the yellow tips I made a bit more yellow instead of a greenish yellow and the engine center section I made a bluish gray instead of a mid-gray. The prop blur...composed of 4 materials set at different transparency levels...has been refined to one transparency level that is a lot more transparent than the original prop blur...and the outer most material I set to 100% transparency so that the individual blurred props are narrower than the original ones.



OBIO

[Jagdflieger]

Kelticheart is a master of prop textures for CFS 2. I'm sure that many of his creations will work in FS 9 with some tweeking.

Search for "Kelticheart" in the archives to find all of his uploads.