Paint Mode: Masking Modes #97955

New Issue

Julien Kaspar · 2022-05-08T11:08:03+02:00

Julien Kaspar commented

2022-05-08 11:08:03 +02:00

This is an important task related to the implementation of Paint Mode and #96225.

Painting Modes & Selections

In the current painting modes there are various ways of masking. Including all of these in their current form in a single Paint Mode would lead to a muddled and confusing design.
But still, these ways of masking should be supported:

Masking per vertex (Like Sculpt Mode masking)
Masking per face (To achieve sharp edges on face corner color attributes and image textures)
Masking based on selection (Synched with edit mode)
Masking based on a texture (Stencil Mask)

Issue

These ways of masking are very different and currently implemented as completely separate features and overlays.
For Paint Mode these have to be combined into a single cohesive design.

Proposal

Masking Modes

The proposal is to add three easily accessible “Masking modes” to choose which data is being used for the masking operations in Paint Mode.
These should be easy to switch between via the number keys.
This directly parallels the selection modes in edit mode, grease pencil and the UV editor. And just like in these other modes they should be interchangeably usable for intuitive and fast masking.

The 3 modes would let you:

Mask Vertices (Vertex float)
Same behaviour as sculpt mode.
Mask Faces (Face bool)
Similar to "Paint Mask" in other painting modes. Only fill or clear entire faces with the same masking toolset.
Mask Pixels (Greyscale image texture))
This feature should replace the current “Stencil Mask”.

Converting Masks

These masking features are meant for loose and temporary masks, similar to selections in other modes.
For more permanent masking for material and texture mixing it would still be preferred to paint image textures and use them as masks in the material.

With that use case in mind, it would be easiest to implement to convert the mask to another domain and data type every time the masking mode is changed (Similar to selection modes in Edit Mode).

Alternatively we could test a way of abstracting/propagating the selection between those modes but that could just end up as far more complicated, less predictable and for questionable advantages.

Edit Mode Syncing

An important task that is tied to this is to convert the mask of Paint Mode to the Edit Mode selection (and vise versa).
This way masks can be much more precisely created in Edit Mode.
While switching between Edit Mode should not be required - masking in Paint Mode should be intuitive enough for most cases - some workflows rely on this for painting precise attributes and technical textures.

So keeping this functionality will be a priority!

(There are even other potential advantages from considering a Paint Mode mask an Edit Mode selection, like assigning materials directly in Paint Mode.
The design of #97903 could help in making this more clear.

Sculpt Mode

If these masking modes should be included in Sculpt Mode as well is questionable.
Masking faces and based on an image texture is no use if you are only able to affect vertices with all tools available.
The only advantage would be to avoid mask conversion on mode switching (Which shouldn't be a problem) and to allow painting face corner color attributes with the Sculpt Mode painting toolset (Which is not what Sculpt Mode is for. For sharper edges you should increase the amount of geometry or use the bigger Toolset of Paint Mode).

This is an important task related to the implementation of Paint Mode and #96225. # Painting Modes & Selections In the current painting modes there are various ways of masking. Including all of these in their current form in a single Paint Mode would lead to a muddled and confusing design. But still, these ways of masking should be supported: - Masking per vertex (Like Sculpt Mode masking) - Masking per face (To achieve sharp edges on face corner color attributes and image textures) - Masking based on selection (Synched with edit mode) - Masking based on a texture (Stencil Mask) # Issue These ways of masking are very different and currently implemented as completely separate features and overlays. For Paint Mode these have to be combined into a single cohesive design. # Proposal ### Masking Modes The proposal is to add three easily accessible “Masking modes” to choose which data is being used for the masking operations in Paint Mode. These should be easy to switch between via the number keys. This directly parallels the selection modes in edit mode, grease pencil and the UV editor. And just like in these other modes they should be interchangeably usable for intuitive and fast masking. ![mask_modes_mockup.png](https://archive.blender.org/developer/F13057524/mask_modes_mockup.png) The 3 modes would let you: - **Mask Vertices** (Vertex float) Same behaviour as sculpt mode. - **Mask Faces** (Face bool) Similar to "Paint Mask" in other painting modes. Only fill or clear entire faces with the same masking toolset. - **Mask Pixels** (Greyscale image texture)) This feature should replace the current “Stencil Mask”. ### Converting Masks These masking features are meant for loose and temporary masks, similar to selections in other modes. For more permanent masking for material and texture mixing it would still be preferred to paint image textures and use them as masks in the material. With that use case in mind, it would be easiest to implement to convert the mask to another domain and data type every time the masking mode is changed (Similar to selection modes in Edit Mode). Alternatively we could test a way of abstracting/propagating the selection between those modes but that could just end up as far more complicated, less predictable and for questionable advantages. ### Edit Mode Syncing An important task that is tied to this is to convert the mask of Paint Mode to the Edit Mode selection (and vise versa). This way masks can be much more precisely created in Edit Mode. While switching between Edit Mode should not be required - masking in Paint Mode should be intuitive enough for most cases - some workflows rely on this for painting precise attributes and technical textures. So keeping this functionality will be a priority! (There are even other potential advantages from considering a Paint Mode mask an Edit Mode selection, like assigning materials directly in Paint Mode. The design of #97903 could help in making this more clear. # Sculpt Mode If these masking modes should be included in Sculpt Mode as well is questionable. Masking faces and based on an image texture is no use if you are only able to affect vertices with all tools available. The only advantage would be to avoid mask conversion on mode switching (Which shouldn't be a problem) and to allow painting face corner color attributes with the Sculpt Mode painting toolset (Which is not what Sculpt Mode is for. For sharper edges you should increase the amount of geometry or use the bigger Toolset of Paint Mode).

Julien Kaspar commented

2022-05-08 11:08:03 +02:00

Changed status from 'Needs Triage' to: 'Confirmed'

Julien Kaspar commented

2022-05-08 11:08:03 +02:00

Added subscribers: @JulienKaspar, @Jeroen-Bakker, @JosephEagar

Juanfran Matheu commented

2022-06-04 12:29:22 +02:00

Added subscriber: @jfmatheu

Julien Kaspar added this to the Sculpt, Paint & Texture project 2023-02-08 10:20:48 +01:00

Philipp Oeser removed the

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Paint Mode: Masking Modes #97955

Painting Modes & Selections

Issue

Proposal

Masking Modes

Converting Masks

Edit Mode Syncing

Sculpt Mode