I'm having some difficulty finding solutions to two problems that are preventing me from completing my second model (a tree).

First, I'm using a 512x512x256 texture for part of the model. Its a transparent texture and it renders fine - in HLMV it looks exactly right, but the texture on the model ingame looks to have been reduced in resolution to something like 256x256. I was wondering if there is some sort of image compression related to memory constraints going on, that I dont know about - the complete texture set for the model consists of one 512x512, one 256x256, and one 512x256, all 256 colours. Any ideas what's causing this?
Second problem is regarding shading of faces. The tree foliage has some near horizontal faces - the underside of which (facing the ground) are too dark to blend in with adjacent vertical foliage faces. Is there a way of fixing this?

I'd appreciate any help with these problems because I'm stumped.

I cant offer any solutions off hand but I find the texture one odd. HLMV has a habit of degrading a texture when you view it and it usually looks better in DoD.

Studiomdl doesnt (as far as I remember) resize a texture, although HLMV will scale it if its not power-of-two.

Does it help if when you compile your model you use $cliptotextures in the qc?

As for the second problem, can you attatch a pic so so we can see what you mean?

- Jed

Unless you tell halkf lfie otherwise, im pretty sure it renders every texture in 256 x 256, regardless of its actual size. So HL is shrinking your textures. Theres a console command somewhere out there that'll will eliminate this problem.

Trp. Jed - no, using $cliptotextures in studiomdl does not sort out the texture problem.
I've attached a pic of the shading problem - if you look at the faces marked with the red 'x' and the corresponding shading on the textures, you can see that they are a lot darker than the textures on the vertical faces. I need a way of reducing the shading on these faces.

shading problem (http://freespace.virgin.net/es.dawe/visual/tree.jpg)

Devin Kryss - Do you need to use this console command to view all 512x512 model textures in HL? If this is the case, then I will probably take the polygon hit and split the 512x512 into 4 256x256 textures.

For the shading problem I would simply build all the faces so they shade well. then I'd use the skeleton to shift them into the right position for the "idle" animation.

and I also have problems with HL screwing with my C-47 textures. I always wondered why they were never looked like they did when i made them, i was going to ask about it being 512 creating a problem...

For some strange reason, the shading problem has fixed itself. I simply altered the texture a bit, re-rendered it, and the shading is now correct. I'd still like to know whats going on.
No solution as yet to the 512x512 texture being reduced in resolution by HL though.

Transparency in HL seems to reduce texture quality, nothing you can do about it.

gl_max_size 1024

Add that in autoexec.cfg or userconfig.cfg (steam).