Skip to section:
Introduction | Image Editor Method | Blender Method |Scripted Mirrors

Mirroring Sculpts

Mirroring sculpts is pretty easy, though there is a couple of ways to do it.

You can do the mirroring in Blender and image editing software, or you can do it with JUST image editing software. Generally, it's best to just use the image editor, but I'll go through both methods, in case you ever need them.

Linden Labs has now added a feature to Second Life that lets you mirror a sculpt by simply checking a box in the edit window, which makes this tutorial obsolete. I leave it here, however, in case you need the tutorial for whatever reason.
*

Image Editor Method

Open your original sculpt map in an image editor. Choose one color channel (either Red, Green, or Blue) and invert it so black becomes white, white becomes black, etc.

Now flip the ENTIRE IMAGE horizontally.

Save and upload to Second Life.

Image Editor Method

You can mirror a sculpt using just an image editor, such as Photoshop or Gimp. Whatever editor you use, you need to be able to work with separate color channels.

After working with different image editors, I've come to the conclusion that each works so differently that they each need their own guide.

The basic steps can be read in the Quick Reference on the left. For application-specific guides, please follow the appropriate link below:

Photoshop
Paint Shop Pro
Gimp

Applications that don't support editing channels:
Photoshop Elements

*

Blender Method

Duplicate a sculpt mesh by hitting SHIFT D in Object Mode.

In Edit Mode, select all and hit M for mirror, and then select which axis you want to flip. If you choose the wrong axis, you can pick a different one until you Lclick to set the mirroring.

Bake your sculptmap and save, then open in an Image Editor and Flip it horizontally.

Resave and upload to Second Life.

Blender Method

This method is slightly problematic, however I include it here because some image editors do not support editing individual color channels, and sometimes it will be useful to you to mirror an object in Blender anyway.

First of all, you may want to copy your original mesh before you mirror it. To do this, go into Object Mode (tap TAB so that the object is outlined in pink) then hit SHIFT+D and move the new mesh off to the side.

Note: If you are working with multiple sculpt meshes at once ( See this tutorial ) You can SHIFT-RClick to select the other meshes and duplicate them at the same time.

Now go into Edit Mode and select all your vertices (tap A either once or twice). Tap M and Blender will ask you which axis you want to mirror. For me, this is usually X, which, if you've been building at the standard orientation, will mirror from side to side. Y will mirror from front to back, and Z will mirror from top to bottom.

After you've mirrored your mesh , Lclick to set it. Then export the sculpt map, but don't upload to Second Life yet.

Standard orientation has the NUM1 view as the front, NUM3 as your size view, and NUM7 as your top view. Having the orientation any other way can cause your sculpt to be on it's side when you first upload it. See this troubleshooting guide for more information.

Flipped Normals

When you mirror your sculpt, you will always have flipped normals, which will make your sculpt map appear inside-out. There is one easy solution to this problem. Open your sculpt map in your image editing software and flip the entire thing horizontally. Save, and happily upload your sculpt to Second Life.

The Problems With This Method

Although this method typically works just as well as the other, if you've rotated your sculpt in Object Mode, then mirroring it in Blender will NOT create an exact mirror for Second Life! Instead, it will be rotated differently in SL, sometimes a great deal. This can be troublesome if you're trying to resize your meshes symmetrically. To read more on this, look at this troubleshooting guide.

So unless you understand what you're doing, I recommend mirroring using the image editor method.

*

Scripted mirrors use a single axis to mirror across, so figure out which axis yours uses.

This may be trial and error, but both mirrors I have tried have used the Z axis.

Once you know which axis your mirror uses, always invert the corresponding color channel in your image editor.

X = Red, Y = Green, Z = Blue

On Scripted Mirrors

Often times people want to use mirrors with their sculpted prims. You CAN use them but you have to use the mirror AND use a mirrored sculpt. The trick is... finding the right axis to mirror.

I have yet to figure out a sure method for finding the right axis to mirror your sculpts at. All I know is that both mirrors that I've tried have used the Z axis, so I usually invert the Blue channel.

If inverting Blue channel doesn't work for you, you'll have to do some trial and error, but once you know the axis for your mirror, you won't have to guess ever again.

Just use your mirror script on the sculpted prim. It will probably give you an error, but mirror the prim anyway, though the mirrored prim might become a box, rather than a sculpt, depending on how your mirror works. Simply change it back to a sculpted prim, and then use the mirrored sculptmap on the mirrored prim.

Voila. Mirrored sculpt.

*

Remember to play around with what you've learned. Experiment. Be adventurous. Make mistakes.
Nothing in Blender is precious.

Return to section:
Introduction | Image Editor Method | Blender Method | Scripted Mirrors

Back to Tutorial Home

Sub Contents