PixaFlux

Recommended

Pixaflux is an free node-based image compositing application, designed especially for texturing 3D models. It has a huge variety of tools, ranging from noise generators, to mathematical operations, to model edge detection. It is available for Windows.

PixaFlux Website

PixaFlux Wiki

Competition

Material Maker
Materialize

Features

• Non-destructive node-based compositor
• Load 3D models for preview using a PBR shader and view their UV maps
• Generate noise or patterns in 3D space for seamless application to a 3D model
• Create text, curves, shapes, or free-form paint on the image
• Sculpt shapes in normal maps
• Create, mix, and edit normal maps
• Mesh edge detection and smoothing via normal maps
• Write to any number of files
• Composite images using blend modes, masks, or mathematical operations

Usability

PixaFlux’s main interface is a node graph. It is an intuitive system that is used in many compositing programs, and PixaFlux works as you’d expect. The responsiveness of the UI is not the best, however. Often, pipes jump to the wrong socket in unexpected ways, and overall the node graph requires more pixel-perfect mouse movements than other programs.