Hi guys, I’m Ashif Ali, and you’re watching CGHOW. Today, I’ll be showing you how I created this cool material effect, which I applied to a plane and some spheres. It’s just a material effect for today, so let’s get started with the tutorial! You can find these files on my Patreon, as usual.
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Step-by-Step Guide:
Creating the Basic Material:
Let’s create a new material, and we’ll call it M_Test.
I’ll apply this material to a plane and set it to Unlit mode. I’ll also turn on the background to view the environment better.
The base texture is a radial gradient that creates a circle. This will cut out the black area, but we can adjust it to get the desired look.
Adjusting the Opacity:
To manage the center’s transparency, I use a Step node. This helps control where the black area will start. I can multiply this with the opacity mask to make the center transparent while keeping the outer area visible.
Adding a Texture:
Next, I’ll add a texture for the material. I use a blurred noise texture, which I multiply with the existing texture to get the desired effect.
The result is a more detailed pattern, but it still needs some refinement, especially in terms of tiling.
Polar Coordinates:
To adjust the pattern, I use Polar Coordinates with a Vector2 for X and Y. This allows me to control the tiling and fix any seams that appear.
Adjust the values to get the right scale for the pattern.
Color and Distortion:
For the color, I use the Lerp node to blend two colors: one for the white part (I’ll use an orangish color) and one for the black part (a purplish color).
To create distortion, I use a refraction node and connect it to the Index of Refraction. This will distort the background, making it look like the material is warping the scene behind it.
Tweaking the Color and Brightness:
I can adjust the power value to control the brightness of the colors. If I need to make the effect more dramatic, I increase the power.
I also use the Saturate node to control how vibrant the color appears, especially when there’s too much of a specific color like purple.
Fine-tuning the Opacity and Mask:
To fine-tune the opacity, I use the Invert node and connect it to the opacity mask. This will control how much of the material is visible.
I can multiply the opacity to increase or decrease the amount of dissolve effect.
Final Adjustments:
For the final look, I’ll add a radial mask to limit the effect. This allows me to control the edges and make the material look more polished.
Once everything is set, I can apply this material to any object, like a sphere, to see the effect in action.
Final Words:
And that’s how I created this cool material effect! It’s a simple material but with lots of adjustments to make it look unique. You can apply this to a variety of objects in Unreal Engine, from planes to spheres, to get some interesting results.
Thanks for watching, and keep learning! I’ll see you in the next video. Bye-bye!
I am Ashif Ali, Real-Time VFX Artist, I make Unreal Engine Niagara Tutorial on this channel. I've made it my mission to share my knowledge and expertise with the world through my YouTube channel. So why not join me on this exciting adventure? Follow me on my social links, subscribe to my channel, and support my growth as a creator. Together, we can create amazing things and take our skills to new heights. And who knows, you might even get access to some of my exclusive files for free!