Infant to repainting fsx planes need basic help

[Mistro]

I been searching for 2 days now and cannot locate a basic step by step tutorial on how to repaint planes for fsx. Most tutorials I run into are for FS 2002 or 2004.

I tried to follow the one for 2004 http://www.flightsimworld.com/forums/in ... opic=14002

[Bruce448]

The place i used when first starting doing paints was Simmerspaintshop

http://www.simmerspaintshop.com/forums/forum33-tutorials/

Bruce

[JoBee]

Mistro,

There are a great many tutorials around for repainters, here is another one - http://mainescenery.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=paint

In terms of coloring pixels most of what you find for FS9 applies to FSX also.

The primary difference in the 2 sims is texture format.

Both use formats of .bmp files that Photoshop cannot read. This is where DXTBmp comes into play. It will convert files to a format PS can edit, then convert them back to something FS can use.

There are also tons of tutorials on the Internet for PS also, that may not apply directly to FS, but will expand your abilities.

Dive into repainting FSX defaults, the files you want end in _T. Don't worry about reflections, bumps, and specs untill your comfortable with the basic textures.

Another tip is to download others repaints and compare them with the defaults to see what they did.

Good luck and happy painting,
Joe

PS. Be careful, this can become quite addicting. [smiley=wink.gif]

[JoBee]

In addition to the above, I feel I should tell you that in my experience the default FS planes are some of the hardest to paint.

You will find texture mapping and mirroring issues that will cause lots of frustration. Don't let it discourage you.

I am currently working on a repaint for a default FS plane based on a RW plane. I have had to make several compromises to get something close to the original.

As an example, there is a handle on the cargo hatch that gets its texture from the middle of the vertical stabilizer. This means that I have to a) have a yellow handle on a white hatch, or 2) have a white rectangle in the middle of a yellow tail. [smiley=angry.gif] [smiley=angry.gif]

So I suggest start small. Find a texture you like and change the registration number. That's how I started.

hope this helps,
Joe