Photoshop CS3/4 Extended 3D

[Marcello]

Has anyone tried texturing features in PS CS3 or CS4 extended? I have PS CS3 ext installed but never used the 3D features. Looking at upgrading (mainly for photography purposes) I noticed adobe in CS4 having greatly improved on 3D features. I seems possible to import a certain nr of 3D formats natively and being able make maps and use UV mapping.

Does this really work well and can if so can these maps be used in Blender?

It makes a big financial difference upgrading to CS4 or CS4 extended so I want to be sure the difference is worth it.

[I.Brattin]

I had CS3 & CS4 before I had to format, and have yet to reinstall CS4. I was never really impressed with CS4, they took some of the features I used from time to time. So keep in mind you will loose some features at the same time you will gain some new ones when you upgrade.

About your question I don't know, sorry. I have not made textures with Photoshop.

Now personally I have always went with Extended, but of course as a professional photographer I need the best they put out.

[Mystified Explorer]

My experience with CS4 3D tools is limited to one occasion where it ate all my memory and crashed when I tried to paint onto a 3D model (It wasn't excessively complicated either). Also the controls were a pain to use. Although I might have been doing it wrong so I wouldn't just take my word for it.

Personally though I'd wait for CS5 since they'll probably have refined it and made it better there. At the moment I wouldn't say it's really worth it IMHO. If you want to do 3D texture painting and stuff I'd be more inclined to pick up a copy of mudbox or Zbrush, if you have the money.

[Aloys]

I haven't used those features myself, but judging by the various reviews and feedbacks I saw at the time of release I don't see why you would use them.
You'll get a betteer result by using Blender UV mapping and basic 3D painting features to lay out a base work and then go through Photoshop for the rest of the 2D work.

PS's new 3D features are just a good example of a software trying to be what it shouldn't be just to add another entry to its feature list and raise the pricepoint. Something Adobe is more and more guilty of lately; especially with Photoshop. To me the price difference between the Extended and Standard versions of PS is not justified.

[Mystified Explorer]

Very true that. I do most of my texturing by using the 3D paint tool (in this case in Maya, but I think Blender will have something similar) to paint guides on the object, then take a UV snapshot and use the two as guides for texture painting in Photoshop. It's worked pretty well so far