Human skin is a tricky subject that needs a SSS shader to achieve good looking results. We will use VrayFastSSS2 material for this purpose.

First of all, the skin is composed from multiple layers. The outer layer is very thin and light, while the inner layer is quite red or pink in color. Together, they create the characteristic color we see every day. Different skin colors need slightly different combinations of these two colors.

Here are the basic maps for pale/white skin: the Diffuse is set at 0.7, so 70% of the color comes from that map. When combined with the red subsurface and pink overall color, it gives a pretty good result.

skin_white

The SSS settings are set up to simulate the physical properties of skin. It involves a bit of a guesswork, but generally, these values work well. Scatter depth is about 1cm, though this may need to be adjusted, depending on the scale of the model.
skinscatter
A slightly bluish specular color and a speckled Glossiness map will create nice reflections. The result is a pretty normal or average skin. For an oilier look, brighten the Gloss map and Spec map and reduce the blue tint in Reflections.
skin_spec skin_gloss
Use a weak Normal map to give the skin some bump.
norm

The resulting shader has nice translucency in the thinner areas (ears). Obviously, this is not tweaked to look correct on the head, but we’re just using it as an example model to show the shader on various organic shapes.

white

To adjust the skin color, adjust the Overall color and Diffuse color maps a little bit. Leave the Subsurface texture as it is: pink or red.

tan brown dark

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