AUTODESK 3DS MAX 8 ® ® Reference Guide Volume III Autodesk Part No.: Date: 12811-050000-5000A 09.09.05 Colors: Black K Description: 3dsMax8_TutGd_BW_Mcvr.ai Dimensions: 7" x 9" or 177.8mm x 228.
Copyright © 2005 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved. This publication, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form, by any method, for any purpose. AUTODESK, INC., MAKES NO WARRANTY, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE REGARDING THESE MATERIALS, AND MAKES SUCH MATERIALS AVAILABLE SOLELY ON AN "AS-IS" BASIS. IN NO EVENT SHALL AUTODESK, INC.
toc Contents 17 Rendering..................................................... 1 Advanced Lighting with the Scanline Renderer... 43 Rendering .................................................................... 1 Render Scene Dialog .................................................. 2 Rendered Frame Window ........................................... 5 Render Output File Dialog .......................................... 8 Advanced Lighting Panel ..........................................
iv Contents Motion Blur with the mental ray Renderer............... 88 Depth of Field with the mental ray Renderer............ 89 Caustic Lighting Effects............................................. 91 Global Illumination with the mental ray Renderer... 92 mental ray Volume Shading ...................................... 93 mental ray Displacement........................................... 95 mental ray Contour Shading ..................................... 95 Render to Texture: General Settings Rollout .
Contents Backburner Command Line Control...................... 212 18 Effects and Environments ....................... 213 Effects and Environments ....................................... 213 Environment and Effects Dialog ............................. 213 Rendering Effects ................................................. 214 Introduction to Rendering Effects .......................... 214 Rendering Effects Command.................................. 214 Effects Panel and Rollout..........................
vi Contents Editing Layer Events ............................................. 355 Edit Alpha Compositor ........................................... 355 Edit Cross Fade Compositor ................................... 355 Edit Pseudo Alpha Compositor .............................. 356 Edit Simple Additive Compositor ........................... 356 Edit Simple Wipe Compositor ................................ 357 Adding Image Filter Events.................................. 357 Add Contrast Filter...........
Contents Differences Between Layers and Blocks in AutoCAD and 3ds Max ........................................ 444 Select Layers Dialog................................................. 444 Resolve External Reference File Dialog................... 445 Select Linked Objects Dialog .................................. 446 Working with AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop, and Revit Files .................................... 446 Working with AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop, and Revit Files ............................
viii Contents Exporting to ASCII ................................................. 535 Exporting Standard Lights...................................... 580 Setting Units and Scale............................................ 581 Exporting Daylight to Lightscape ........................... 582 Selecting Objects to Be Exported............................ 583 Exporting Camera Views ........................................ 583 Keeping Your Original 3ds Max Materials..............
Contents Importing HTR/HTR2 Files ................................... 624 Importing TRC Files ............................................... 626 Exporting HTR/HTR2 Files.................................... 627 Shockwave Files (W3D) ........................................ 628 Exporting to Shockwave 3D.................................... 628 Shockwave 3D Scene Export Options Dialog......... 629 Shockwave 3D Export Preview ............................... 633 Shockwave 3D File Analysis Window ..............
x Contents Additional Keyboard Commands........................... 717 Toggling Dialogs...................................................... 718 Starting 3ds Max from the Command Line............ 719 Menu Bar ............................................................... 720 Menu Bar ................................................................. 720 File Menu................................................................. 721 Edit Menu ...............................................................
Contents Light Hotspot .......................................................... 794 Roll Light ................................................................ 796 Light Falloff ............................................................. 796 Truck Light ............................................................. 797 Orbit/Pan Light ...................................................... 798 COM/DCOM Server Control Utility...................... 835 Customize User Interface Dialog .....................
xii Contents File Load: Units Mismatch Dialog .......................... 895 Viewport Configuration....................................... 896 Viewport Configuration.......................................... 896 Viewport Configuration Dialog.............................. 896 Rendering Method .................................................. 896 Viewport Layout...................................................... 899 Safe Frames..............................................................
Rendering Environments and Rendering Effects A variety of special effects, such as film grain, depth of field, and lens simulations, are available as rendering effects. Another set of effects, such as fog, are provided as environment effects. Environment settings (page 3–268) let you choose a background color or image, or choose an ambient color value for when you render without using radiosity.
2 Chapter 17: Rendering Object-Level Rendering Controls You can control rendering behavior at the object level. See Object Properties (page 1–111) and Object Properties Dialog (page 1–111). Render Scene Dialog Tip: When you render a very large image, you might get a message that says “Error Creating Bitmap,” or that says you are out of RAM. If this happens, turn on the Bitmap Pager. You turn on the Bitmap Pager in Rendering Preferences (page 3–863).
Render Scene Dialog multiple frames, and specify transforms, lighting, and changes of view. Production and ActiveShade Renderers In 3ds Max, there are two different types of renderings. One, called “Production” rendering, is active by default, and is typically the one you use for finished renderings. Production renderings can use any of the three aforementioned renderers. The second type of rendering is called ActiveShade (page 3–17).
4 Chapter 17: Rendering Render—Renders the scene. Once you have rendered the animation this way, you can render it again without using the dialog by clicking Quick Render. Tip: When ActiveShade is chosen, the name of this button changes to ActiveShade, and clicking it opens a floating ActiveShade window (page 3–17). Interface If the scene you’re rendering contains bitmaps that cannot be located, a Missing External Files dialog (page 3–504) appears.
Rendered Frame Window button’s label changes to Resume. Click Resume to continue with the rendering. • Hold down CTRL and then click to zoom in, right-click to zoom out. Note: The mental ray renderer does not support the Pause button. You can cancel a mental ray rendering, but you can’t pause it. • Hold down SHIFT and then drag to pan. If you have a three-button mouse, you can use its third button or its wheel to zoom and pan: • Roll the wheel to zoom in or out.
6 Chapter 17: Rendering it with the previous, cloned image. You can clone the rendered frame window any number of times. lets you see the information at different layers of the following channels: • Z-buffer Enable Red Channel—Displays the red channel of the rendered image. When turned off, the red channel is not displayed. • Normal • Non-Clamped Color • Coverage Enable Green Channel—Displays the green channel of the rendered image. When turned off, the green channel is not displayed.
Rendered Frame Window Available if the rendered frame window is invoked using View File in the File menu. Pixel Data When you right-click the rendered frame window, the color swatch is updated, and information about the rendering and the pixel beneath the mouse is displayed. If you hold the right mouse button down while dragging, the information changes with each new pixel the mouse crosses.
8 Chapter 17: Rendering UV Coordinates—Displays the range of UV mapping coordinates. Normal—Displays the orientation of normal vectors. Non-Clamped Color—Displays the "real" color Render Output File Dialog Rendering menu > Render > Render dialog > Common panel > Common Parameters rollout > Render Output group > Click Files. > Render Output File value delivered to the renderer in RGB order. The renderer uses a floating-point range of 0.0 to 1.0 to represent the range of each color channel. Thus, 1.
Render Output File Dialog automatically overwrite this file without being prompted for the duration of the session. Interface To set up options for the render output file: 1. Choose Rendering > Render and then in the Render Output group of the Common Parameters rollout, click Files. The Render Output File dialog is displayed. 2. In the File Name field, enter the name for the file to be rendered. 3. Navigate the Save In field to choose the directory where you want the rendered file to be saved. 4.
10 Chapter 17: Rendering • Small Icons: Displays the contents of a directory as small icons, tiled across the width, without the details. • List: Displays the contents of a directory without the details. • Details: Displays the contents of a directory with full details such as size and date. List of files—Lists the contents of the directory, in the format specified by the View menu.
Rendering Commands Note: To render a sequence of still images, choose the Active Time Segment or define a range of frames in the Common Parameters rollout of the Render Scene dialog. If you have selected a still image file type, each frame will append a four-digit number to the name you have selected, incremented with each frame.
12 Chapter 17: Rendering Rendering is multi-threaded and multi-processed on multiple-processor configurations. A two-processor system can render in nearly half the time a single-processor system can. Rendering can also take place on multiple systems by using a network. See Introduction to Network Rendering (page 3–169). For the mental ray renderer, also see Distributed Bucket Rendering Rollout (mental ray Renderer) (page 3–121). The Render Scene dialog (page 3–2) appears. 3.
Render Type to the window. This can be a time-consuming mistake, so an alert warns you about it. 2. Choose Region from the list. 3. To render a view without using the dialog, click Quick Render (page 3–16) or use the Keyboard Shortcut F9 to Render Last (page 3–24). Tip: Render Type Click Render Scene or Quick Render (Production). A window is displayed in the active viewport, and an OK button appears in the viewport’s lower-right corner. 4. Drag in the middle of the window to move it.
14 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface View—(The default.) Renders the active viewport. Region—Renders a region within the active viewport, and leaves the remainder of the rendered frame window intact. Use this option when you need to test render a part of the scene. Use the Clear button before rendering to remove any existing image from the window. Tip: Note: Region rendering is meant to create a draft rendering of a selected area of a view.
Render Type Blowup—Renders a region within the active viewport and enlarges it to fill the output display. A rectangular selection region appears when you render with either Blowup or Region selected in the Render Type list. You can change the size of the region by dragging its handles. Region Selected—When an object or objects are selected, renders those objects and other objects within the selection’s bounding boxes, but does not change the rendering outside the bounding boxes.
16 Chapter 17: Rendering Objects within the bounding boxes, including objects in front of or behind the selection, are rendered. When no objects are selected, Crop Selected renders the entire frame. Render Bounding Box/Selected Dialog Select objects. > Main toolbar > Choose Box Selected from the Render Type drop-down list. > Click Quick Render (Production) > Render Bounding Box/Selected dialog Select objects. > Main toolbar > Choose Box Selected from the Render Type drop-down list.
Quick Render (ActiveShade) You assign which renderer to use for production rendering on the Assign Renderer rollout (page 3–34) of the Render Scene dialog > Common panel. materials, the ActiveShade window interactively updates the rendering.
18 Chapter 17: Rendering There are two ActiveShade options: • Viewport—The ActiveShade rendering appears in the active viewport. • Floater—The ActiveShade rendering appears in its own window. Only one ActiveShade window can be active at a time. If you choose one of the ActiveShade commands while an ActiveShade window is already active, you get an alert that asks whether you want to close the previous one.
ActiveShade • Because of the preceding item, filters are coarser than in full-scale renderings, but they still have significant subpixel information. To update an ActiveShade window after moving an object or changing object geometry: • There is a limitation of 16 subdivisions per pixel. Because of this, any objects behind the sixteenth occluding object for a given pixel will be ignored. Rendered back faces count as separate objects. 2.
20 Chapter 17: Rendering Note: You can use any third-button pointing device to pan the image. To enable this, choose the Pan/Zoom option on the Viewports panel (page 3–874) of the Preferences dialog Interface Both the viewport and floating versions of the ActiveShade window have the same controls as a rendered frame window (page 3–5). In an ActiveShade viewport, the toolbar is off by default. In a floating ActiveShade window, the toolbar is always visible.
ActiveShade Commands (Quad Menu) ActiveShade menu. This menu contains a number of ActiveShade commands (page 3–21). ActiveShade and Object Selection If you select an object before you invoke ActiveShade, ActiveShade is done only for that object. This can greatly increase the speed of ActiveShade. Similarly, once the ActiveShade window is open, the initialize and update steps (page 3–998) (whether automatic or manual) are done only for the selected object.
22 Chapter 17: Rendering Material Editor—Displays the Material Editor (page 2–1253). Tools quadrant (lower right) These are the commands that perform ActiveShade operations. Draw Region—When on, lets you draw a rectangular region of the ActiveShade window. While it is active, only the region is updated by interactive reshading. This can save time, and also help you concentrate on just a portion of the image to be rendered. Default=off. To turn off Draw Region, click outside the rectangular region.
Preset Rendering Options are updated immediately, as you drag the mouse. Default=on. the bottom of the preset list, two choices let you create your own custom presets: Turning off Act Only On Mouse Up can make the ActiveShade window more responsive to changes, but it can also slow performance. Load Preset—When you choose Load Preset, 3ds Max displays a file selector dialog that lets you choose the RPS file to load.
24 Chapter 17: Rendering Show Last Rendering Rendering menu > Show Last Rendering Show Last Rendering displays the last rendered image. If no image has yet been rendered, this command is not available. Render Last Keyboard > F9 The Render Last command repeats the last render (whether a render view, render region, render blowup, or render selected) using the last viewport from which you rendered. Each category corresponds to one panel of the Render Scene dialog.
Print Size Wizard 3. Choose a preset paper size, or specify a custom size in inches or millimeters. Alternatively, specify an image size in pixels. 4. Choose or specify a DPI (dots per inch) ratio for the printed output. 5. Choose an output orientation: Portrait or Landscape. 6. When ready to render to a file, turn on Save File, click the Files button, and use the resulting Select TIFF File dialog to specify an output image file. 7. Do one of the following: • To render immediately, click Quick Render.
26 Chapter 17: Rendering Choose Unit—Lets you specify whether the measurement units for Paper Width and Paper Height are in millimeters (mm) or inches. Choose DPI Value—Provides four buttons for commonly used dots-per-inch settings: 72, 150, 300, and 600. Click one to set it in the DPI property, below. Paper Width/Height—Specifies the output width and height in mm (millimeters) or inches, depending on which is chosen under Choose Unit.
Common Panel (Render Scene Dialog) Common Rendering Parameters Common Panel (Render Scene Dialog) Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Common panel Main toolbar > Render Scene > Render Scene dialog > Common panel The Render Scene dialog’s Common panel contains controls that apply to any rendering, regardless of which renderer you have chosen, and that lets you choose renderers.
28 Chapter 17: Rendering All area and linear lights in the scene are treated as point lights during the rendering. This reduces rendering time, however some quality is lost. When you are ready to render at high quality, you can simply turn off Area Lights/Shadows As Points and render again. Interface Note: Scenes with radiosity (page 3–50) are not affected by the Area Lights/Shadows As Points toggle, as area lights do not have a significant effect on the performance of a radiosity solution.
Common Parameters Rollout (Render Scene Dialog) Range—All the frames between and including the two numbers you specify. other controls in the Output Size group. These are the options you can choose from on the list: Frames—Nonsequential frames separated by • Custom commas (for example, 2,5) or ranges of frames, separated by hyphens (for example, 0-5). • 35mm 1.316:1 Full Aperture (cine) • File Number Base—Specifies the base file number, from which the file name will increment.
30 Chapter 17: Rendering preset formats rather than Custom, the aperture width is determined by the format, and this control is replaced by a text display. In addition, when the aspect ratio is locked, altering the Pixel Aspect value alters the Height value to maintain the aspect-ratio value. Width and Height—Let you set the resolution Note: In viewports, the camera’s cone changes to of the output image by specifying the width and the height of the image, in pixels.
Common Parameters Rollout (Render Scene Dialog) Options group Atmospherics—Renders any applied atmospheric effects, such as volume fog, when turned on. Effects—Renders any applied rendering effects, such as Blur, when turned on. Displacement—Renders any applied displacement mapping. Video Color Check—Checks for pixel colors that are beyond the safe NTSC (page 3–1074) or PAL (page 3–1082) threshold and flags them or modifies them to acceptable values. By default, "unsafe" colors render as black pixels.
32 Chapter 17: Rendering when you click Render or Create now. They are generated before the actual rendering.
Email Notifications Rollout Email Notifications Rollout Rendering menu > Render Scene dialog > Common panel > Email Notifications rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene button > Render Scene dialog > Common panel > Email Notifications rollout This rollout lets a rendering job send email notifications, as network rendering does. Such notifications can be useful when you launch a lengthy render, such as an animation, and don’t care to spend all your time near the system doing the rendering.
34 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Assign Renderer Rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene button > Render Scene dialog > Common panel > Assign Renderer rollout Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Common panel > Assign Renderer rollout The Assign Renderer rollout displays which renderers are assigned to the production and ActiveShade categories, as well as the sample slots in the Material Editor. Pre-Render group Specifies a script to run before you render.
Choose Renderer Dialog For each rendering category, the rollout shows the name of the renderer currently assigned, and a button that lets you change the assignment. Procedure Choose Renderer (“...”)—Click the button with the • Click to highlight another renderer’s name in the list, and then click OK. ellipsis to change the renderer assignment. The button displays a Choose Renderer dialog (page 3–35). • Production—Chooses the renderer used to render graphic output.
36 Chapter 17: Rendering Depending on which renderer is active, additional panels can become available. When the mental ray Renderer Is Active Tip: The default scanline renderer (page 3–37) and the mental ray renderer (page 3–77) each have their own capabilities. In general, for each scene, you will decide which renderer you want to use. It is a good idea to design materials with a particular renderer in mind.
Default Scanline Renderer Rollout When the VUE File Renderer Is Active Environment Alpha Toggle and Filtering The Renderer panel contains a single rollout: To control whether or not the renderer uses the environment map’s alpha channel in creating the alpha for the rendered image, choose Customize > Preferences > Rendering (page 3–863), and then turn on Use Environment Alpha in the Background group.
38 Chapter 17: Rendering While the method used in R2.5 and subsequent versions provides superior results, this method also produces inconsistencies when rendering objects that are supposed to match the environment background, because the antialiasing filters do not affect the background by default (FilterBackground=0 in the [Renderer] section of the 3dsmax.ini file or Customize menu > Preferences > Rendering tab > Background group > Filter Background).
Default Scanline Renderer Rollout Interface Shadows—When off, cast shadows aren’t rendered. This can speed up rendering for tests. Default=on. Force Wireframe—Set to render all surfaces in the scene as wireframes. You can choose the thickness of the wireframe in pixels. Default=1. Enable SSE—When on, rendering uses Streaming SIMD Extensions (SSE). (SIMD stands for Single Instruction, Multiple Data.) Depending on the CPU (or CPUs) of your system, SSE can improve render time. Default=off.
40 Chapter 17: Rendering Name Description Area Computes antialiasing using a variable-size area filter. Blackman This is the original 3ds Max filter. Tip: Leave Filter Maps turned on unless you are making test renderings and want to speed up rendering time and save memory. A 25-pixel filter that is sharp, but without edge enhancement. Filter Size—Allows you to increase or decrease the Blend A blend between sharp area and Gaussian soften filters.
Default Scanline Renderer Rollout Sampler drop-down list—Lets you choose which supersampling method to apply. Default=Max 2.5 Star. The options for a supersampling method are the same as those that appear on the SuperSampling rollout (page 2–1302) in the Material Editor. Some methods offer expanded options that let you better control the quality of the supersampling and the number of samples taken during rendering.
42 Chapter 17: Rendering dialog for that object. Image motion blur blurs the object by creating a smearing effect rather than multiple images. It takes camera movement into account. Image motion blur is applied after scanline rendering is complete. • MeshSmooth on polygons with Keep Faces Convex on. • Anything with Displacement Material. In general, if you have objects with changing topology, use scene or object motion blur rather than image motion blur.
Advanced Lighting Panel that are out of range (0 to 1). Typically, specular highlights can cause color components to rise above range while using filters with negative lobes can cause color components to be below range. You choose one of two options to control how the renderer handles out of range color components: • Clamp—To keep all color components in range Clamp will change any color with a value greater than 1 down to 1 while any color below 0 will be clamped at 0.
44 Chapter 17: Rendering Light Tracer does not attempt to create a physically accurate model, and can be easier to set up. Outdoor scene lit by skylight and rendered with light tracing. Tip: Indoor scenes can use light tracing, but radiosity is usually the better choice for indoors. Previewing the Effect of Light Tracing • To get a quick preview of the effect the Light Tracer will have, lower the values of Rays/Sample and Filter Size. The result will be a very grainy version of the full effect.
Light Tracer Other Tips for Using the Light Tracer program to thoroughly blur the map before using it. This helps reduce variance and the number of rays needed for light tracing. You can blur the map beyond recognition, and it will still look correct when used for regathering. • To improve rendering time, use the Object Properties dialog (page 1–111) to disable light tracing (or radiosity solving) for those objects that don’t have a great impact on the final effect.
46 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Above: Increasing the sky lights value Below: Increasing the object multiplier General Settings group Global Multiplier—Controls the overall lighting level. Default=1.0. Color Bleed—Controls the strength of color bleeding. Color bleeding results when light is interreflected among scene objects. Default=1.0. Note: This setting has little effect unless Bounces is greater than or equal to 2.
Light Tracer smoothness of the effect, at a cost of render time. Decreasing this value results in a grainier effect, but renders more quickly. Default=250. Tip: To get a “first draft” preview of the effect of light tracing, reduce the value of Rays/Sample and the Filter Size. Changing the filter size. Increasing the filter size reduces noise in the rendering. Extra Ambient—When set to a color other than black, adds that color as extra ambient light on objects. Default=black.
48 Chapter 17: Rendering For volumetric lighting to work with light tracing, Bounces must be greater than 0. Volumes amount—Multiplies the amount of light regathered from volumetric lighting effects. Increase to increase their impact on the rendered scene, decrease to decrease their effect. Default=1.0. Increasing the number of bounces increases the level of global illumination and the amount of color bleeding in the rendering. Cone Angle—Controls the angle used for regathering.
Light Tracer Initial sample spacing values Subdivision Contrast—The contrast threshold that determines when a region should be further subdivided. Increasing this value causes less subdividing to occur. Too small a value can cause unnecessary subdividing. Default=5.0. Initial sampling uses a regular grid. Adaptive undersampling concentrates on areas of transition. Tip: If you use adaptive undersampling, try adjusting the Subdivision Contrast value to obtain the best results.
50 Chapter 17: Rendering Radiosity Modeling Global Illumination with Radiosity with a real-world lighting interface, you can intuitively set up the lighting in your scenes. You can focus more on your design exploration than on the computer graphic techniques required to visualize them accurately. Radiosity is rendering technology that realistically simulates the way in which light interacts in an environment.
Modeling Global Illumination with Radiosity each pixel based on the model information and a specific viewpoint (camera). The color of any specific point on a surface in a model is a function of the physical material properties of that surface and the light that illuminates it. Two general shading algorithms: local illumination and global illumination are used to describe how surfaces reflect and transmit light.
52 Chapter 17: Rendering materials display some degree of both specular and diffuse reflection. you would see if you were standing in a real environment. A second goal is to accomplish this task as quickly as possible, ideally in real time (30 images per second). Currently, no single global illumination algorithm can accomplish both goals.
Modeling Global Illumination with Radiosity and so on until a maximum number of iterations is reached or until no more surfaces are intersected. Ray-tracing: Rays are traced from the camera through a pixel, to the geometry, then back to their light sources. The ray-tracing algorithm is very versatile because of the large range of lighting effects it can model.
54 Chapter 17: Rendering Lighting Algorithm Advantages Disadvantages Ray-Tracing Accurately renders direct illumination, shadows, specular reflections, and transparency effects. Computationally expensive. The time required to produce an image is greatly affected by the number of light sources. Memory Efficient Process must be repeated for each view (view dependent). Radiosity: A ray of light that hits a surface is reflected by multiple diffuse rays, which can themselves illuminate other surfaces.
How Radiosity Works in 3ds Max from fast, interactive lighting studies to images of exceptional quality and realism. See also How Radiosity Works in 3ds Max (page 3–55) Radiosity Workflows (page 3–56) Animation with Radiosity (page 3–59) Radiosity Controls (page 3–60) Lighting Analysis (page 3–75) Lighting Analysis Dialog (page 3–75) Advanced Lighting Override Material (page 2–1410) Refinement Steps for Radiosity The radiosity process involves three stages of increasing refinement.
56 Chapter 17: Rendering distribution. As with any statistical sampling process, the greater the number of rays used in the approximation, the greater the accuracy of the solution. During the initial quality stage, the overall appearance of the lighting level of the scene is established. The results can be interactively displayed in shaded viewports. The initial quality stage performs repeated passes, which are shown in the dialog’s progress bar. 2.
Radiosity Workflows imported to 3ds Max, the room will measure 244 units long (20’*12+4”). To process radiosity for photometric lights using a physically based workflow: Tip: Use the Measure Distance tool (page 2–15) to 1. Ensure that your geometry is set to a physically correct scale and that the materials have valid reflectance values. quickly check dimensions in 3ds Max. Physically Based Workflow 2. Place photometric lights in your scene.
58 Chapter 17: Rendering decay), the radiosity engine will always solve for these lights using the physically correct Inverse Square attenuation. This means that the amount of energy that bounces between surfaces might not be equivalent to the way the Standard lights render. Lighting Analysis After you generate a radiosity solution, you can use the Lighting Analysis tool (page 3–75) to analyze the lighting levels in your scene.
Animation with Radiosity 6. In the Interactive Tools group of the Radiosity Processing rollout, click Setup to display the Environment panel (page 3–268), where you set exposure controls. 7. When working with non-physically based lights, always use the Logarithmic Exposure Control (page 3–293). On the Logarithmic Exposure Control rollout, select Affect Indirect Only. This will cause the exposure control to affect only the results of the radiosity solution.
60 Chapter 17: Rendering Object Animation The radiosity solution is calculated for each frame if any object is animated in the scene (the default is to calculate the current frame only). You specify the parameters (goals/quality) you want to reach on the Advanced Lighting panel. It is recommended to run a solution first and verify if it’s successful before proceeding to the whole animation. These parameters will then be reprocessed for each frame.
Radiosity Controls 2. Choose Tools > Measure Distance to measure some object in the scene for which you know the size; for example, a door or window. The distance displays in the Coordinate Display of the status bar. Tip: You can use the Move transform to adjust the location of the light or its target. 7. 3. Choose Customize > Units Setup and adjust the Scene Unit Scale.
62 Chapter 17: Rendering 1. Create or load a scene containing the 11. On the same rollout, use the Physical appropriate geometry for lighting. There is no need to adjust any scale factors. 2. On the Create panel, click Lights. Standard is the default choice of light type. 3. In the Object Type rollout, click a light type such as Target Spot. 4. Drag in a viewport. The initial point of the drag is the location of the spotlight, and the point where you release the mouse is the location of the target.
Radiosity Processing Parameters Rollout Light Painting Rollout (Radiosity) (page 3–69) Interface Rendering Parameters Rollout (Radiosity) (page 3–70) Statistics Rollout (Radiosity) (page 3–74) Radiosity Rollouts Radiosity Processing Parameters Rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene > Render Scene dialog > Choose Default Scanline Renderer as the active production renderer. > Advanced Lighting panel > Select Advanced Lighting rollout > Choose Radiosity from the drop-down list.
64 Chapter 17: Rendering Once the full Initial Quality percentage has been reached, clicking Continue has no effect. Stop—Stops the radiosity processing. The Start menu changes to Continue. You can later click Continue to resume radiosity processing, as described for the Start menu. Keyboard shortcut: ESC Process group The options in this group set the behavior of the first two stages of the radiosity solution, Initial Quality and Refine.
Radiosity Processing Parameters Rollout when the radiosity needs to be processed at every frame, and the same level of quality between frames has to be maintained. Update Data When Required on Start—When on, the radiosity engine must be reset and then recalculated if the solution is invalidated. In this case, the Start menu changes to read Update & Start. When this is pressed, the radiosity solution is reset and the calculation starts over again.
66 Chapter 17: Rendering Note: Direct Light Filtering works only when you use Shoot Direct Lights (page 3–68). If you’re not using Shoot Direct Lights, everything is considered indirect lighting. Filtering—Reduces the amount of noise between surface elements, by averaging the lighting levels with the surrounding elements. A value of 3 or 4 is usually sufficient. If you use too high a value, you risk losing detail in the scene.
Radiosity Meshing Parameters Rollout Interface Meshing (shown in light red) subdivides flat surfaces in the scene. Left: No mesh. The solution looks very flat. Middle: Coarse mesh, every 24 inches. The lighting improves. Right: Fine mesh, every 4 inches. The lighting reveals more subtle effects. Note: A tight meshing is not necessary when you use the regathering feature on the Rendering Parameters rollout (page 3–70).
68 Chapter 17: Rendering Initial Mesh Size—When improving the face shape, faces that are smaller than the Initial Mesh Size are not subdivided. The threshold for deciding whether a face is poorly shaped also gets larger as the face size is closer to the Initial Mesh Size. Default=12” for imperial units and 30cm for metric units.
Light Painting Rollout (Radiosity) not included in illumination calculated directly at vertices. Default=on. Include Linear Lights in Subdivision—Controls whether linear lights are used when shooting direct lights. If this switch is off, then linear lights are not used in calculating the illumination at vertices. Default=on. Include Area Lights in Subdivision—Controls whether area lights are used when shooting direct lights.
70 Chapter 17: Rendering Intensity—Specifies the intensity of the illumination in lux or candelas depending on the units you have selected in the Customize > Units Setup dialog (page 3–891). filtering amount will also discard any changes to the solution you made with the light painting tool. Pressure—Specifies the percentage of the sampled energy to be used when you add or remove illumination. Add Illumination—Adds illumination starting at the vertex of a selected object.
Rendering Parameters Rollout (Radiosity) and shadows. This second option is usually slower but more accurate. With Render Direct Illumination, the radiosity solution provides only the indirect lighting. When Render Direct Illumination is the method you choose, you can turn on regathering to correct artifacts and shadow leaks. Regathering provides the slowest but the best-quality rendering.
72 Chapter 17: Rendering The radiosity mesh is the foundation for the regathering process. In the following illustrations, solutions were processed with an Initial Quality of 0%. There is a high variance between small surfaces when a dense mesh is used. Regathering gives acceptable results regardless of mesh density. But more subtle details appear with a denser mesh; for example, at the base of the sculpture. the indirect illumination from the scene.
Rendering Parameters Rollout (Radiosity) polygons in your scene. During the Initial Quality stage, this bright energy gets bounced in random directions, leading to a “sparkle” effect. Typically you can detect these polygons before regathering. Pixel radius of 10 Left: 10 rays per sample Middle: 50 rays per sample During the final Regathering stage, bright spots can be avoided by setting Clamp Values somewhat below the luminance of these bright surfaces and spots.
74 Chapter 17: Rendering taken. The ideal settings for adaptive sampling vary greatly from scene to scene. Adaptive sampling initially takes samples from a grid superimposed on the pixels of the scene. Where there is enough contrast between samples, it subdivides that region and takes further samples, down to the minimum area specified by Subdivide Down To. Lighting for areas not directly sampled is interpolated.
Lighting Analysis Light Object—Lists the number of light objects processed. Note: Self-illuminated objects count as one light per face. Meshing Size—Lists the size of radiosity mesh elements in world units. Note: Transparent, 2–sided, and translucent objects’ faces are counted twice. Mesh Elements—Lists the number of elements in the mesh processed. Lighting Analysis Dialog Select an object that has radiosity solution information.
76 Chapter 17: Rendering • Luminance—The amount of energy leaving a surface. • Illuminance—The amount of energy arriving at a surface. Point—The luminance or illuminance at the point movement between each rendering. The multiple passes simulate the blurring that film in a camera would register under certain conditions. Two multi-pass effects are provided: • Depth of field (page 2–1228) on the object where you clicked.
mental ray Renderer Scene rendered with the default 3ds Max scanline renderer Above: Motion blur applied to wings of the flying dragon Below: Multiple passes appear in successive refreshes of the rendered frame window. Tip: These effects are for the default scanline renderer. The mental ray renderer (page 3–77) has its own depth-of-field and motion blur effects. See Motion Blur with the mental ray Renderer (page 3–88) and Depth of Field with the mental ray Renderer (page 3–89).
78 Chapter 17: Rendering mental ray renderer is optimized to use multiple processors and to take advantage of incremental changes for efficient rendering of animations. Unlike the default 3ds Max renderer, which renders scanlines from the top of the image downward, the mental ray renderer renders rectangular blocks called buckets. The order in which the buckets are rendered can vary, depending on the method you choose.
Rendering with the mental ray Renderer Common Parameters Rollout See also When you render with mental ray, controls on the Render Scene dialog > Common panel > Common Parameters rollout remain the same, and function just as they do with the default 3ds Max scanline renderer.
80 Chapter 17: Rendering To make the mental ray Renderer the default renderer for new scenes: • After you make the mental ray renderer the active production renderer, click Save As Defaults on the Assign Renderer rollout.
Getting Good Results with mental ray Rendering Renderer panel > Rendering Algorithms rollout (page 3–113). • Near wine surface Tip: While the mental ray renderer ignores the • Far inner glass surface global inclusion or exclusion settings for the ray tracer, you can enable or disable ray-tracing at the local level of a Raytrace material or map. • Far wine surface • Far outer glass surface Therefore, increase the value of Sum to 12.
82 Chapter 17: Rendering If a single light object is causing the problem, you can reduce the Energy multiplier’s value in that light objects’ mental ray Indirect Illumination rollout (page 2–1187), which is displayed on the Modifier panel. • To improve the quality of caustics, go to the Caustics group of the Caustics And Global Illumination rollout (page 3–104) and increase the number of Samples.
3ds Max Materials in mental ray Renderings to experiment with parameter values to get a comparable rendering result. Tip: If Blur effects are not rendering well with the mental ray renderer, try increasing the Maximum number of samples in the Renderer panel > Sampling Quality Rollout (page 3–97).
84 Chapter 17: Rendering Enhancements to Standard Features The primary interface to the mental ray renderer consists of rollouts on the Render Scene dialog. You must use the Assign Renderer rollout to choose the mental ray renderer, as described the "Procedures" section of mental ray Renderer (page 3–77). In addition, object properties, lights, and the Material Editor have additional controls to support mental ray rendering.
Processing Panel (mental ray Renderer) Camera Enhancements On the Parameters rollout (page 2–1218), a “Depth Of Field (mental ray)” choice has been added to the Multi-Pass Effect drop-down list to support the mental ray renderer’s depth-of-field effects. To use this, turn on both Enable in the camera’s Multi-Pass Effect group (default=off), and Depth Of Field on the Render Scene dialog > Renderer panel > Camera Effects rollout (page 3–100).
86 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Interface Example of mental ray Messages window Three status fields appear above the messages area: • Num. CPUs—Shows the number of CPUs in use. • Num. threads—Shows the number of threads being rendered. • mental ray version—Shows the current mental ray renderer version, in detail.
mental ray Concepts This is equivalent to the preference, Open Message Window On Error. Clear—Click to clear all messages from the messages area. mental ray Concepts Ray-Traced Reflections and Refractions with the mental ray Renderer The mental ray renderer can generate reflections and refractions by ray tracing. Ray tracing traces the path of rays sampled from the light source. Reflections and refractions generated this way are physically accurate.
88 Chapter 17: Rendering Shadows with the mental ray Renderer The mental ray renderer can generate shadows by ray tracing. Ray tracing traces the path of rays sampled from the light source. Shadows appear where rays have been blocked by objects. Ray-traced shadows have sharp edges. In 3ds Max, a special shadow generator type, mental ray Shadow Map, is provided to support the mental ray renderer.
Depth of Field with the mental ray Renderer but this works better for rotary motion than for traveling motion. Depth of Field with the mental ray Renderer Motion blur added to rendering of an animated wheel as it speeds up and rolls forward Depth of field is a way to enhance the realism of a rendering by simulating the way a real-world camera works. With a broad depth of field, all or nearly all of a scene is in focus.
90 Chapter 17: Rendering To render depth-of-field effects with mental ray, ray tracing (the Ray Trace toggle) must be enabled on the Render Scene dialog > Renderer panel > Rendering Algorithms rollout (page 3–113). You must also enable depth of field for the camera: in the camera’s Multi-Pass Effect group, choose “Depth Of Field (mental ray)” as the depth-of-field type. (If you choose the scanline renderer’s Depth Of Field option, the rendering that results can be out of focus.
Caustic Lighting Effects Decreasing the f-stop to narrow depth of field Swimming pool rendered without caustics Focal plane set at the nearest apple, and f-stop set to 0.1. Reflective caustics added to swimming pool Increasing the f-stop to broaden depth of field Focal plane in same location, f-stop increased to 1.0. You set the f-Stop in the camera’s Depth Of Field rollout. See Depth of Field Parameter (mental ray Renderer) (page 2–1227).
92 Chapter 17: Rendering Refractive caustics rendered with the default of Radius turned off. Photon count increased to 50,000 (in Global Light Properties group) for greater detail in the caustics. Radius size is based on scene extents; specifically, 1/100 the radius of the full scene. Global Illumination with the mental ray Renderer Global illumination enhances the realism of a scene by simulating radiosity, or the interreflection of light (other than caustics (page 3–91)) in a scene.
mental ray Volume Shading You enable global illumination and final gathering on the Render Scene dialog > Indirect Illumination panel > Caustics And Global Illumination rollout (page 3–104). In addition, you must designate: • Which light objects can generate global illumination. • Which renderable objects can generate global illumination. • Which renderable objects can receive global illumination.
94 Chapter 17: Rendering On the Render toolbar, click Render 2. Scene. If the active renderer is not already the mental ray renderer, go to the Common panel, and on the Assign Renderer rollout, click the “...” button for the Production renderer. A Choose Renderer dialog is displayed. Highlight “mental ray Renderer” in the list, and then click OK. 3. Click the Renderer tab to go to the Renderer Same model rendered in mist panel.
mental ray Displacement 4. Also on the mental ray Connection rollout, click to unlock the Surface component. Click the button and use the Browser to assign the Transmat (Physics) shader to the surface. 3. (If you are using the mental ray material, you don’t need to first unlock the Surface component.) Open the Material Editor. For the materials of objects you want to render with displacement, use the mental ray Connection rollout (page 2–1305) to assign a shader to the Displacement component.
96 Chapter 17: Rendering Model rendered without contours Rendering of the model’s contours only Contours Only output shader, background set to white Note: Contour shading does not work with distributed bucket rendering. Procedure To add contours to a mental ray rendering: 1. Choose Customize > Preferences. Go to the mental ray panel, and turn on Enable Mental Ray Extensions. Model with contours added to the rendering Scene.
Sampling Quality Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Another technique would be to use the mental ray material (page 2–1385), and assign shaders to both the Surface and Contour components. Tip: The Simple contour shader renders uniform lines whose color and width you can control. The other contour shaders provide variant contour styles with more direct user controls. 4. On the Render Scene dialog, go to the Renderer panel. On the Camera Effects rollout, turn on Enable in the Contours group.
98 Chapter 17: Rendering Samples per Pixel group Set the minimum and maximum sample rate. Minimum—Sets the minimum sample rate. The value represents the number of samples per pixel. A value greater than or equal to 1 indicates that one or more samples are computed per pixel. A fractional value indicates that one sample is computed for every N pixels (for example, 1/4 computes a minimum of one sample for every four pixels). Default=1/4. Maximum—Sets the maximum sample rate.
Sampling Quality Rollout (mental ray Renderer) (fully opaque, or 255 in eight-bit encoding). Default=0.05. • Color swatch—Click to display a Color Selector (page 1–157) to let you interactively specify the R, G, and B threshold values. Note: The spinners in the Color Selector show the eight-bit values for color components, which range from 0 to 255, rather than the normalized values used in the Sampling Quality rollout, which range from 0.0 to 1.0.
100 Chapter 17: Rendering This method supports high-dynamic-range imagery. Depth Of Field (Perspective Views Only) group, turn on Enable. 2.
Camera Effects Rollout (mental ray Renderer) To render with contours: 1. Use the mental ray Connection rollout to assign a contour shader to an object’s material. The mental ray material also lets you assign a contour shader. 2. On the Render Scene dialog > Renderer panel > Camera Effects rollout, in the Contours group, turn on Enable. 3. Change the contour output shader if you so desire. Note: By default, only one contour contrast and store shader are provided with 3ds Max.
102 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Blur All Objects—Applies motion blur to all objects, regardless of their object property setting. Default=on. Shutter Duration (frames)—Simulates the shutter speed of a camera. At 0.0, there is no motion blurring. The greater the Shutter Duration value, the greater the blurring. Default=0.5. Shutter Offset (frames)—Sets the beginning of the motion-blur effect relative to the current frame. The default value, 0.
Camera Effects Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Shader Library Shader Library Contour Contrast Function Levels contour Shader List (page 2–1533) 3ds Max Wrap Around lume Contour Store—This component stores the data on which contours are based.
104 Chapter 17: Rendering Enable—When on, the mental ray renderer calculates depth-of-field (page 3–89) effects when rendering a Perspective view. Default=off. Method drop-down list—Selects either f-Stop, for controlling depth-of field by an f-Stop parameter, or In Focus Limits, by selecting Near and Far limits. Default=f-Stop. In most cases, the f-Stop method is easier to use.
Caustics and Global Illumination Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Object Properties dialog to make sure Receive Caustics is turned on. Also, to speed rendering time, you might want to turn off Receive Caustics for those objects that don’t need to show them. Interface 2. In the Render Scene dialog, go to the Caustics And Global Illumination rollout and turn on Caustics. 3. Adjust the caustics parameters to get the effect you want. 4. Render the scene. To render with global illumination: 1.
106 Chapter 17: Rendering Enable—When on, the mental ray renderer calculates caustic effects. Default=off. the Kernel value makes caustics sharper, but also slightly more noisy. Default=1.1. Maximum Num. Photons per Sample—Sets how Opaque Shadows when Caustics Are Enabled—When on, shadows are opaque. many photons are used to compute the intensity of the caustic. Increasing this value makes caustics less noisy but also more blurry. Decreasing this value makes caustics more noisy but less blurry.
Caustics and Global Illumination Rollout (mental ray Renderer) To get good results, you might need to turn on Maximum Sampling Radius and increase the photon size. Volumes group The controls in this group and the ones that follow are for the photon maps (page 3–1088) used to calculate caustics and global illumination. This group controls volumetric caustics. Volumetric caustics require a material to have a volume shader assign to its Photon Volume component. Maximum Num.
108 Chapter 17: Rendering values, or by setting local values (using multipliers is the recommended method). Average Caustic Photons per Light—Sets the number of photons emitted by each light for use in caustics. This is the number of photons in the photon map (page 3–1088) used for caustics. Increasing this value increases the accuracy of caustics, but also increases the amount of memory used and the length of render time.
Final Gather Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Final Gather Rollout (mental ray Renderer) this value makes global illumination less noisy, but also increases rendering time. Default=500. Filter—Applies a median filter using neighboring Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Indirect Illumination panel > Final Gather rollout final gather rays that are shot from the same point. Default=1.
110 Chapter 17: Rendering Like photon maps and shadow maps, the fast lookup computation can be saved in a file and then reused in subsequent renderings. Preview (No Precalculations)—When on, final gathering skips the precalculation phase. This results in a rendering with artifacts, but begins rendering more quickly, so it can useful when you want to do a series of trial renderings. Default=off.
Shadows and Displacement Rollout (mental ray Renderer) • Stop—Specifies the maximum length, in 3ds Max units, of a light ray. If the ray reaches this limit without encountering a surface, then the environment is used for shading. Default=0.0. When Enable is off, the other shadow controls are unavailable. Mode—The shadow mode can be Simple, Sort, or Segments. Default=Simple. • Simple—Causes the mental ray renderer to call shadow shaders in a random order.
112 Chapter 17: Rendering • Shadow Map—Settings on the Shadow Parameters rollout are translated into a mental ray equivalent before shadows are generated. The quality of shadows generated this way might not always meet expectations. • Area Shadows, Advanced Ray Traced Shadows, or Ray Traced Shadows—Shadows are generated using the mental ray ray-tracing algorithm. Motion Blur—When on, the mental ray renderer applies motion blur (page 3–88) to shadow maps. Default=on.
Rendering Algorithms Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Rendering Algorithms Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Interface Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Renderer panel > Rendering Algorithms rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene > Render Scene dialog > Renderer panel > Rendering Algorithms rollout Note: The Renderer panel appears only when the mental ray renderer is the currently active renderer.
114 Chapter 17: Rendering Use Fast Rasterizer (Rapid Motion Blur)—When on, uses a fast rasterizer method to generate the first generation of rays to trace. This can improve rendering speed. Default=off. This option works well with object motion blur, and also with scenes that have no motion blur. The following settings are available for the fast rasterizer: • Samples per Pixel—Controls the number of samples per pixel used by the fast rasterizer method.
Translator Options Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Note: If you attempt to render motion blur with the Grid method active, the mental ray renderer automatically switches to the BSP method. This happens in the .mi file but is not reflected in the 3ds Max interface. • Large BSP The Large BSP method has the same controls as BSP. See Ray-Trace Acceleration: Parameters for the BSP Methods (page 3–125). This method is a variant of the BSP method.
116 Chapter 17: Rendering 3. A Save As dialog is displayed. Use it to enter a Interface name and location for the PASS file. 4. Click Render. The partial rendering is saved in the PASS file you specified. 5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 until you have generated all the passes for the rendering (or all the passes but the last). Warning: If your scene includes an environment, render it only in the final pass.
Translator Options Rollout (mental ray Renderer) When the mental ray renderer is low on memory (as defined by the Memory Limit setting), Use Placeholder Objects enables it to increase available memory by deleting object geometry from the scene database. This can dramatically reduce memory usage, but with a possible cost in rendering speed. Memory Limit—The mental ray renderer keeps a count of the memory it uses at render time.
118 Chapter 17: Rendering translation process, but reduces the amount of data being sent to the mental ray renderer. Default=off. This option is useful when you are trying to render a huge scene and time is not necessarily an issue. When you render to an MI file, this option can also help reduce the size of the output file. When on, this toggle also tells the mental ray renderer to save frames as temporary .map files.
Translator Options Rollout (mental ray Renderer) (“merged”) rendering. See the “Procedures” section, above, for more information. its name appears on the button). When the toggle is on, this shader is used for merging. Note: You cannot render to passes when you render Important: No merge shaders are provided with 3ds Max. This option is provided for users who plan to write a custom merge shader appropriate to their particular compositing project. to texture (page 3–139).
120 Chapter 17: Rendering Diagnostics Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Processing panel > Diagnostics rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene > Render Scene dialog > Processing panel > Diagnostics rollout Note: The Processing panel appears only when the mental ray renderer is the currently active renderer. • Object—Shows local coordinates (UVW). Each object has its own coordinate space. • World—Shows world coordinates (XYZ).
Distributed Bucket Rendering Rollout (mental ray Renderer) Final Gather—Renders the scene with initial final-gather points displayed as green dots, and final final-gather points displayed as red dots.
122 Chapter 17: Rendering then configure and run the SPM license server. Instructions about how to do so are provided with the mental ray renderer sold by mental images. Once the remote hosts have been configured to run a licensed instance of ray.exe, you can use them for distributed rendering simply by naming them in the RAYHOSTS file (page 3–1095). You can add hosts to the RAYHOSTS file using the Add button described in the “Interface” section, below, just as you would add a satellite processor.
Distributed Bucket Rendering Rollout (mental ray Renderer) copy of 3ds Max: four dual-processor machines or eight single-processor machines (or equivalent). 1. Choose which machines (other than machines A, B, and C) will serve as satellites, install 3ds Max on each, and write down each machine’s IP address. 2. Use the Windows Notepad program or a text editor to open the max.rayhosts file on machine A, located in C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3dsmax8\mentalray\. 3. In the max.
124 Chapter 17: Rendering Distributed Maps—When on, specifies that maps can be found on all systems doing distributed rendering. When off, specifies that all maps used in rendering reside on the local system; that is, the system on which you start rendering. Default=off. If you are doing local rendering only, this parameter has no effect. Remove—Click to remove the currently highlighted host processors from the list and the RAYHOSTS file. Available only when one or more list entries are highlighted.
Ray-Trace Acceleration: Parameters for the BSP Methods Name or IP Address—Enter the name or the Interface numeric IP address of the processor you want to add. Use Default Port—When on, 3ds Max assigns a port number to the new processor. The Port Number control is unavailable while Use Default Port is on. Default=on. Size—Sets the maximum number of faces (triangles) in the leaf of a BSP tree. Increasing the Size value reduces memory consumption but increases rendering time. Default=10.
126 Chapter 17: Rendering Size—Sets the maximum number of triangles in a voxel. If a voxel would contain more triangles, and the Depth setting permits it, then the voxel is subdivided into a subgrid. Default=128. Depth—Sets the number of recursion levels. The VUE file is written to disk. The rendered frame window (page 3–5) is displayed, but it doesn’t display an image. Interface If a voxel grid contains too much detail, it is subdivided into a subgrid, which adds one level of recursion. Default=2.
Render Elements Panel and Rollout and opaque in black (value=0). Translucent pixels appear in gray. The darker the pixel, the more transparent it is. The alpha channel can be useful when you composite elements. • Atmosphere: The atmospheric effects in the rendering. • Background: The background of the scene. Other elements do not include the scene background. Include this element if you want to use the background in compositing.
128 Chapter 17: Rendering • Matte: Renders a matte mask, based on selected objects, material effects channel (effect IDs), or G-Buffer IDs. • such as creating motion blur or retiming an animation. The Velocity element displays an additional The Matte element displays an additional Matte Texture Element rollout (page 3–137). Velocity Element Parameters rollout (page 3–137). Object ID: Retains the object ID information assigned to the object.
Render Elements Panel and Rollout It appends an underscore (_) and then the name of the element to the basic file name. For example, if the render file name is "C:\render\image.jpg", when you add a Specular render element, the default path and file name for the rendered specular element is "C:\render\image_specular.jpg". Similarly, when you enable output to a Combustion workspace (CWS) file (page 3–660), the file name you assigned is the default name of the CWS file.
130 Chapter 17: Rendering Top: Atmosphere Second from top: Shadow element Middle: Diffuse + Specular + ... (other elements) Bottom: Background "Screen" Compositing for Specular and Reflection Elements The other exception to additive composition is when specular or reflection elements have been generated by certain material shaders. These shaders generate specular and reflection elements you must composite differently: • Anisotropic assign an output file name and file type for the (entire) rendered scene.
Render Elements Panel and Rollout The rendered elements are also displayed on the desktop, each in its own rendered frame window. (The rendered frame windows are displayed on top of each other.) Interface To generate a Combustion™ workspace (CWS) file that contains the rendered elements: 1. In the Output to Combustion group, turn on Enable. If you have assigned a file name for the entire rendering, the new element is assigned a file name automatically.
132 Chapter 17: Rendering Display Elements—When on, each separate element is displayed in its own rendered frame window (page 3–5) when you render. When off, the elements are rendered to files only. Default=on. The buffers for each rendered element appear directly on top of each other. Move one element’s buffer to see another’s. Enable—Turn on to enable rendering the selected elements. Turn off to disable rendering. Default=on.
Render Elements Dialog Warning: If you are rendering elements to composite over a background, make sure that the file format for the Diffuse, Shadows, and Alpha elements supports an alpha channel. The formats we recommend for this purpose are: RLA (page 3–680), RPF (page 3–681), PNG (page 3–678), or TGA (page 3–683). Warning: 3ds Max supports some file types that Combustion does not. For use with Combustion do not render elements as EPS, FLC, FLI, or CEL files.
134 Chapter 17: Rendering Procedures To name the render element output file: 1. Choose Rendering > Render, and then click update the file name automatically. The file options dialog depends on the type indicated by the file name, not the type indicated by Save As Type. Files in the Selected Element Parameters group of the Render Elements rollout. 5. Click OK to close the Render Output File The Render Element Output File dialog is displayed. 6. If the Render Output File dialog is still open, 2.
Render Element Output File Dialog List—Displays the contents of a directory without the details. Details—Displays the contents of a director with all the details. List Window—When details are turned on, the contents of the directory are displayed with Name, Size, Type, Date Modified, and Attributes. You can sort based on these columns by clicking the column label. File Name—Displays the file name of the file selected in the list. Save as File Type—Displays all the file types that can be saved.
136 Chapter 17: Rendering Blend Element Parameters Rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene button > Render Scene dialog > Render Elements panel > Render Elements rollout > Add button > Render Elements dialog > Add Blend element to the elements list (or select an existing Blend element in the list).
Matte Texture Element Rollout Interface Direct Light On— When on, the render element includes information from any direct lights in the scene. The light’s color and projection map should appear. Note: The final color for direct lighting takes surface normals into consideration. Indirect Light On— When on, the render element includes information from ambient or bounced lighting in the scene. Note: When using radiosity, you should expect things such as color bleed.
138 Chapter 17: Rendering blur; for example, those created by RE:Vision Effects, Inc. The advantages of rendering a Velocity element are that the composition application might give you finer control over the motion blur than 3ds Max does; you can render a “beauty” frame that does not contain motion blur; and the Velocity element is quicker to render than using one of the 3ds Max motion-blur effects. Another use of the Velocity element is to re-time clips rendered in 3D.
Z Element Parameters Rollout Z Element Parameters Rollout Diffuse Texture Element Rollout Main toolbar > Render Scene button > Render Scene dialog > Render Elements panel > Render Elements rollout > Add button > Render Elements dialog > Add Z Depth element to the elements list (or select an existing Z Depth element in the list).
140 Chapter 17: Rendering devices such as graphics display cards or game engines. rendering such as diffuse color, shadows, alpha (transparency/opacity), and so on. You can render to textures using the mental ray In this dialog, you can also choose various renderer (page 3–77) display options (page 3–145) for showing the baked texture in shaded viewports. Typical Texture Baking Method Tip: If you have a Direct3D graphics display 1. Set up a scene with lighting.
Render to Texture The new textures are “flat”: In other words, they are organized according to groups of object faces. • In the modifier stack, a new modifier is applied to the object. It is called Automatic Flatten UVs. It is simply an Unwrap UVW modifier (page 1–867), automatically applied. This modifier manages the mapping of the flattened texture to faces of the object, and lets you adjust that mapping if necessary.
142 Chapter 17: Rendering If Linear or Automatic exposure controls are used, each object will have different lighting levels, generating a different histogram. Each object renders as if it had a different light level and in some cases, you may not get a rendering at all. This happens because Linear and Automatic exposure controls are view dependent. Logarithmic Exposure Control is not view dependent, and will reproduce the image correctly.
Baked Texture Elements • Refractions Specular Map The mental ray renderer renders only these elements of a Composite or Blend material correctly: A specular map saves only the specular color of the object. • Lighting • Shadows Component Options (Selected Elements Unique Settings) • Normals For a specular map, you can choose not to render lighting or shadows. Component Options (Unique Settings) Diffuse Map Many element maps let you choose to include or not include components of the rendered scene.
144 Chapter 17: Rendering With DirectX 8, you can view a normals map in shaded viewports by using the Metal Bump Direct3D viewport shader (page 2–1424). With DirectX 9, you can view a normals map in any shaded viewport. Component Options (Selected Elements Unique Settings) There are two unique settings for a normals map: Output into Normal Bump—When on, assigns a Normal Bump map to the Target Map Slot, and places the rendered Normal Bump map in the Normal component of the Normal Bump map (page 2–1541).
Target Map Slot Assignments Component Options (Selected Elements Unique Settings) There are no unique settings for an alpha map. Dark—Sets the color in the map where complete occlusion occurs. The default color is black. Click the swatch to change the color. Note: Colors between the Bright and Dark values Ambient Occlusion (MR) Map Use an ambient occlusion map when you want the surface information to describe how much ambient light the surface can receive.
146 Chapter 17: Rendering \3dsmax8\plugcfg folder is where the Target Map Slot assignments are stored. Creating and Using Normal Bump Maps Normal bump mapping is a way of adding high-resolution detail to low-polygon objects. It is especially useful for real-time display devices such as game engines, and it can also be used in rendered scenes and animations. A normals map is a three-color map, unlike the grayscale maps used for regular bump mapping (see Bump Mapping (page 2–1347)).
Troubleshooting Normal Bump Maps Viewing Normal Bump Maps If your display driver uses DirectX 8, you can view normal maps in viewports by using the Metal Bump shader (page 2–1424). If your graphics driver is DirectX 9, you can view normal maps in any shaded viewport. See Direct3D Driver Setup Dialog (page 3–887). If your display driver is Software or OpenGL, you can’t view normal maps in viewports. However, you can still render them and use normal mapping in renderings.
148 Chapter 17: Rendering The reason is that with the default projection cage, the rays parallel the sides of the indentation, and so details are lost. When the cage is adjusted this way, the indentation appears in the normal bump map. Projection rays (shown in red) parallel the sides of the indentation. To correct the problem, you can move the end of the cage upward, and scale it inward a little, so the rays don’t run so nearly parallel to the side of the indentation.
Troubleshooting Normal Bump Maps Flipped seams in rendering of pants Left: Left side shows a discontinuous red stripe Right: Right side shows a discontinuous blue stripe Breaking low-res vertices causes the indentations to render in the normal bump map. However, projection now misses some areas of the geometry, so the cage needs to be adjusted further. Flipped Seams in Tangent Space The arrows show how the maps are misaligned.
150 Chapter 17: Rendering Noise when Rendering a Normal Bump Map with the mental ray Renderer If you use the mental ray renderer to render a normal bump map, and the model has overlapping faces (for example, where the low-resolution and high-resolution objects overlap in space), then the normal bump map can show noise where the faces overlap. Normal bump maps corrected using Flip Horizontal Red and blue are more evenly distributed, with blue predominating.
Render to Texture Dialog mirrored UVs. If you are working with a character that has mirrored UVs, we recommend that you render only half the character to a texture. For example, use a Mesh Select modifier to select half the character, then add a Delete Mesh modifier to remove it from projection. Add the Projection modifier above Delete Mesh, and then render the normal bump map.
152 Chapter 17: Rendering Close—Closes the dialog and saves any changes to settings you have made. Original/Baked—When set to Views, the original or baked material is displayed in the viewports. When set to Render, the original or baked material is used in the rendering. Render to Texture: General Settings Rollout Rendering menu > Render To Texture > Render to Texture dialog > General Settings rollout This rollout has the texture-baking controls for the current scene.
Render to Texture: Objects to Bake Rollout mapping and turn on Sub-Object Levels, this option is unavailable. Render to Texture: Objects to Bake Rollout Rendering menu > Render To Texture > Render to Texture dialog > Objects to Bake rollout This rollout has controls for the texture baking of individual objects. It lets you choose which map channel the texture will use, which elements will be rendered, and at what sizes.
154 Chapter 17: Rendering Object list List of objects—Shows all selected objects. • Name column—Lists the object’s name. • Map Channel column—Lists the object’s current map channel setting. • Edge Padding column—Lists the object’s current edge padding setting. Selected Object Settings group Enable—When on, the Channel and Padding controls are used for individual, all selected, and all prepared objects.
Render to Texture: Output Rollout Multiplier to 2.0 in the Projection modifier, each sub-object rendering is now 32 x 32 pixels. Mapping Coordinates group Object—These controls are for basing the rendered texture on the object level of the source object. • Use Existing Channel—When chosen, unwrapping uses an existing map channel. • Channel—When Use Existing Channel is active, lets you choose the channel to use for unwrapping. • Use Automatic Unwrap—(The default.
156 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Add—Click to display an Add Texture Elements dialog (page 3–160) to choose one or more element types to add to the list. See Baked Texture Elements (page 3–142) for a description of the different element choices. Delete—Click to remove the currently highlighted element from the list. Selected Element Common Settings group Enable—When on, renders this element. When off, disables rendering of this element. Default=on. Name—Enter the element component of the file name.
Render to Texture: Baked Material Rollout Use Automatic Map Size—When on, sets the texture size automatically, using the values in the General Settings rollout (page 3–152). When off, the texture is the size specified by the following controls in this rollout. Default=off. Map Type Components Blend Lighting Diffuse Specular Reflection Width—Lets you specify a custom resolution for Shadows the texture. Range=0 to 8192. Default=256.
158 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Shader list—Allows you to specify a shader to be used for the newly baked texture. Update Baked Materials—Builds a Shell material for all selected objects, and populates the baked material according to the current Render To Texture settings. Clear Shell Materials—Removes the Shell material (page 2–1409) applied to the texture-baked object, and replaces it with either the original material or the texture-baked material.
Render to Texture: Automatic Mapping Rollout Render to Texture: General Settings Rollout (page 3–152) introduced as a result of texture faces’ proportions deviating from their geometry-equivalent faces.
160 Chapter 17: Rendering Render to Texture: Add Texture Elements Dialog Rendering menu > Render To Texture > Render to Texture dialog > Selected Object Settings rollout > Click Add to add a texture element > Add Texture Elements dialog This dialog lets you choose which elements will be part of a baked material. Each element is an individual bitmap. When you display a baked texture in shaded viewports, some elements might not display.
Render to Texture: Projection Options Dialog other current Projection Options settings. This button is available only when there is an individual source object. Filtering Options group Crop Alpha—Removes antialiasing from the alpha channel. Global Supersampler—When the default scanline renderer is active, the text field shows the type of global supersampling that is currently in use. When the mental ray renderer is active, it shows the number of samples per pixel. Default=None.
162 Chapter 17: Rendering Include Working Model—When on, bakes from the source object if no target object can be found. Default=off. Turning on Include Working Model can be a quick fix when a lot of the projected rays miss the target object (the Ray Miss Color will be apparent in the rendered normals map). However, if the low-res object occludes the high-res object, then Include Working Model will not have the desired effect, and the normal map will not show high-res details that you want it to.
Preview Renderings • Red—Can be Left or Right. Default=Right. • Green—Can be Up or Down. Default=Down. Orientation: World, Screen, and LocalXYZ For World, Screen, and LocalXYZ red indicates that the normals are pointed either towards a positive or negative X value while the green indicates that the normals are pointed either towards a positive or negative Y value.
164 Chapter 17: Rendering to start, choose File > Preferences > General and, in the UI Display group, turn off Autoplay Preview File (page 3–859).) Interface Note: Do not open up any other program windows that cover up the viewport while rendering a preview. Anything that covers up the viewport will be rendered into the preview AVI file. Procedure To create a preview: 1. Choose Animation menu > Make Preview. The Make Preview dialog appears. 2.
View Preview is 640x480, and you set the Percent Of Output spinner to 50, the preview resolution is 320x240. Note: The size of the preview image is limited by the size of the viewpanel region (the region that contains the viewports). The spinner is clamped to the maximum value that allows the preview image to still fit in the viewpanel region. preview as a flic by specifying a file name with a .flc extension. If you specify a single-image format, such as .
166 Chapter 17: Rendering it under another file name; otherwise, the next Make Preview will overwrite _scene.avi. Interface Procedure To rename the preview file: 1. Choose Animation > Rename Preview. 2. Specify a folder and a name for the preview file. 3. Click Save. The Panorama Exporter rollout has two buttons, which let you create or view a panoramic rendering. Render—Opens the Render Setup dialog (page Panorama Exporter Rendering menu > Panorama Exporter 3–166) for the Panorama Exporter.
Panorama Exporter Render Setup Dialog Interface For example, if you have a Lens setting of 43.0 mm, and you change the Aperture Width from 36 to 50, when you close the Render Scene dialog (or render), the camera Lens spinner has changed to 59.722, but the scene still looks the same in the viewport and the rendering. If you use one of the preset formats rather than Custom, the aperture width is determined by the format, and this control is replaced by a text display.
168 Chapter 17: Rendering Tip: Leave this off unless you’re sure you need it. Force 2–Sided—2-sided rendering (page 3–995) Viewport—Chooses the camera viewport to render. renders both sides of all faces. Usually, you’ll want to keep this option off to speed rendering time. You might want to turn it on if you need to render the inside as well as the outside of objects, or if you’ve imported complex geometry in which the face normals are not properly unified. Default=off.
Introduction to Network Rendering the opposite direction from the mouse and camera.) • Hold down the middle button and move the mouse up and down to zoom in and out. • Hold down the right button and move the mouse to rotate the camera around the panorama. With the right button, you must drag the mouse to see any movement, and the view of the panorama moves in the same direction as the mouse. To export a rendered panorama: 1. Open a rendered panorama in the Panorama Exporter Viewer. 2. Click File > Export.
170 Chapter 17: Rendering Important: It is strongly recommended that you follow these procedures for setting up and running network rendering. Do not attempt network rendering without reading the instructions that follow. The links on this page are ordered like chapters in a manual: a sequence of major topics containing more specific nested topics. Links marked Next Step indicate the next topic in the sequence.
Basic Procedures for Network Rendering • All of the computers have names that start with letters. Machine names that start with a number will fail. is that you can submit multiple rendering jobs for the computer to render. In effect, this lets you perform batch rendering. • You haven’t previous attempted network rendering. If you have already attempted network rendering and want to return to the original state, delete everything in the \Program Files\Autodesk\Backburner\Network folder except nrres.dat.
172 Chapter 17: Rendering has a green dot next to it meaning that it is a Server system that is ready to start rendering. 6. Click the Server name to highlight it in the list 5. In the Render Output group, turn on Net Render, and then click the Render button. The Network Job Assignment dialog appears. window, and then click the Submit button. The Manager submits the job to the Server, both running only on this system, and the Server begins rendering each still frame or the animation. 7.
How Network Rendering Works Basic Procedure 3: Network Rendering from Manager and Servers When rendering across a network, you first assign one machine to be Manager, and then any number of others as Servers. In this procedure, you’ll use the Manager computer as a rendering Server as well. 1. Start the Backburner Manager and start the Backburner Server on all server systems that you intend to make available for rendering jobs.
174 Chapter 17: Rendering In the software, one computer is set up as the network Manager. The Manager "farms out" or distributes the work to rendering Servers. You can also have the same computer function simultaneously as both Manager and Server, so computing cycles don’t go to waste. Once rendering is under way, the Queue Monitor program lets you directly monitor and control the operation of the network rendering workload.
Starting Network Rendering the maps and XRefs, the server fails for that particular job. This is why it is important to use UNC paths for all maps and XRefs in your scene file, so that all render servers can find them. However, if the maps and XRefs were included, then 3ds Max will get the ones that were unzipped into the \jobtemp folder. 8. When a frame is finished rendering, 3ds Max on the Server saves the frame to the location specified via the Render Scene dialog before you submitted it. 9.
176 Chapter 17: Rendering To start a network rendering job: 1. Start the Backburner Manager and Backburner Server. See Setting Up Backburner Manager for the Rendering Network and Setting Up Backburner Server for the Rendering Network 2. Start the software on a machine with an authorized copy of the program. 3. Open the scene you want to render. 4. Choose Rendering menu > Render to display the Render Scene dialog. You can also render from the Execute Video Post dialog or the Render To Texture dialog.
Troubleshooting Guide When network rendering begins on a rendering Server, the Rendering dialog appears on machines running serverapp.exe. If a machine is running the service version, no dialog appears. PROBLEM: When I try to assign a job in the Network Job Assignment dialog, some of the servers display a gray or yellow icon. SUGGESTION Regardless of their state in the Network Job Assignment dialog, servers can always be assigned new jobs.
178 Chapter 17: Rendering PROBLEM: When I submit a job to be rendered, the server fails. SUGGESTION • Add an Alternate Map Path on the Network Job Assignment dialog that points to the folder containing the missing map. Servers can fail for a variety of reasons during a network render job. Many of these reasons are covered in Troubleshooting Backburner. One reason that is specific to 3ds Max which can cause a server to fail is the presence of a scene which does not contain texture coordinates.
Troubleshooting Guide Special User Account for the Backburner Server Service . in the Setting Up Backburner Server for the Rendering Network topic. • Check to make sure the target output directory is shared, with both read and write permissions. • Verify that the path for saving file output in the Render Scene dialog is set to a valid UNC path name. • Verify that the path for saving file output in the Render Scene dialog (or the Output Event dialog in Video Post) is set to a valid UNC path name.
180 Chapter 17: Rendering PROBLEM: Backburner not found message when clicking Render button: System Setup Cannot network render. Backburner not found or not installed. This error dialog appears because the path to Backburner is either not set properly in the Path environment variable or Backburner is missing altogether. SUGGESTION Verify that the Path variable is set properly and make sure you’ve installed the latest version of Backburner.
Setting Up Directories interactively and is used to submit jobs for network rendering. Refer to the Installation Guide for details about installing 3ds Max. Note: Systems that are intended to act a dedicated rendering servers do not require authorization. Setting Up Directories During network rendering, common directories (directories that are shared across the network) allow access to files needed by all the rendering servers. You can organize, share, and (if necessary) mount these directories.
182 Chapter 17: Rendering creating a common output directory, follow these guidelines: Procedure • Decide on a machine to accept final output. It should have enough disk space to store the largest completed animation file you’re likely to render. 1. Go to the machine that contains the directory To share a directory: you want to share. 2. In Windows Explorer, right-click the directory • Create or choose a directory for final output. to share, and then choose Sharing from the right-click menu.
Using Configure User Paths Before beginning this setup, choose a common drive letter for all servers to mount. If you have other drives mounted, you might need to switch assignments to free the drive letter for this mount. If a Map or Target directory is on a rendering server, mount the directory on this machine like all the others, even if the directory is on the local disk. When using a mounted directory, be sure that the directory to be mounted is correctly shared.
184 Chapter 17: Rendering Procedures To add bitmap paths to the External Files panel from within the software: 1. Run the software on a machine running an Fonts=d:\3dsmax\fonts Scenes=d:\3dsmax\scenes Import=d:\3dsmax\meshes Export=d:\3dsmax\meshes ... authorized copy of the program. 2. Choose Customize > Configure User Paths to open the Configure User Paths dialog, and then click the External Files tab, if necessary. 3.
Network Job Assignment Dialog Procedure To use the Network Job Assignment dialog: The Network Job Assignment dialog is accessible when you turn on the Net Render toggle. The Net Render toggle can be accessed from three different dialogs used for rendering. You see a listing of all servers available for network rendering. Each server is marked with a colored icon to denote its current status: Green—Running and not rendering any jobs. Yellow—Rendering another job.
186 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Automatic Search—Determines whether the software connects to a specific manager or searches for one using a subnet mask when you click Connect. When off, the software attempts to connect to the manager you specify in this group. When on, it searches the network for a manager using the specified subnet mask. Refresh—Updates the Server and Job lists. By default, all servers are used for the job.
Network Job Assignment Dialog Options group Enabled Notifications—Lets the software send turned on, the servers get the file via TCP/IP only. Default=off. rendering-related messages via email. When this is on, its Define button becomes available. For information, see the Notifications dialog (page 3–190) topic. Initially Suspended—Adds the named job to the queue in an inactive state. The job is not started until you activate it manually from the monitor.
188 Chapter 17: Rendering Server list The Server list, located on the upper-right side of the Network Job Assignment dialog, displays all network rendering Servers (page 3–1073) registered with the network manager after you connect to the manager. You can also display only members of a specific Server group you’ve defined in the tree view by clicking the appropriate tab above the Server list.
Network Job Assignment Dialog • User - current user name Submit—Click Submit to exit this dialog and send Note: The Historical Performance Index value, the current job to the Network Manager, which places it in the queue for rendering. listed under the Perf. Index heading in the Server list window, offers information on the relative speed of the listed servers. The fastest machine is rated at 1.0, while the other servers are rated as fractions of the fastest.
190 Chapter 17: Rendering Job Dependencies Dialog Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Turn on Net Render (Render Output group) > Render > Network Job Assignment dialog > Connect to a Manager. > Priority group > Dependencies Rendering menu > Render To Texture > Render To Texture dialog > Turn on Net Render (Render Settings group) > Render > Network Job Assignment dialog > Connect to a Manager.
Strips Setup Dialog Interface To—Enter the email address of the person who needs to know the rendering status. SMTP Server—Enter the numeric IP address of the system you use as a mail server. See also Configuring Backburner Log Files Strips Setup Dialog Rendering menu > Render > Render Scene dialog > Common tab > Turn on Net Render (Render Output group) > Render > Network Job Assignment dialog > Options group > Turn on Split Scan Lines.
192 Chapter 17: Rendering 7. In the Options group, turn on Split Scan Lines, Interface and then click Define. The Strips Setup dialog appears. The dialog displays the output resolution, and lets you determine how to split up the rendering job by specifying the number of horizontal strips into which the image will be subdivided. 8. Specify the vertical size of each strip in pixels or as a percentage of the total image height, or set the number of strips. Changing one also changes the other. 9.
Advanced Settings Dialog won’t be finished until the slower machine renders its half of the final image. But if you set Number Of Strips to 4, the faster machine can render three of the strips while the slower machine renders one, effectively halving the total render time. number, specify pre-render scripts and affect job handling and archive settings. Interface This setting is interdependent with and inversely proportional to the Strip Height setting; increase one, and the software decreases the other.
194 Chapter 17: Rendering Wait for MAX to Unload—When a job is complete, Note: Any setting made while Override Global the manager tells the server to unload the software, then waits for a reply from the server saying 3ds Max is down and it’s ready for a new job. This spinner specifies the amount of time the Manager will wait for the Server to reply to this notification. If a server exceeds the specified value, it is flagged as "failed" by the manager, and no more frames are sent to it.
Job Settings Dialog Interface Queue Monitor Job Settings Dialog Windows Start menu > Programs > Autodesk > Backburner > Monitor > Highlight a job. > Jobs menu > Edit Settings Windows Start menu > Programs > Autodesk > Backburner > Monitor > Highlight a job. > right-click menu > Edit Settings Use the Job Settings dialog to change job-related settings such as frame range, output size, and output directory, without having to use the Render Scene dialog and resubmit the job.
196 Chapter 17: Rendering Job Name group The job name cannot be changed from this dialog. Job Description—Displays a brief description of the job. Editable from keyboard. Restart Job—When on (Yes), changing one or more job settings in the middle of a rendering job causes the job to restart at the first frame in the range, so all frames are rendered with the same settings. When off (No), the job continues rendering without restarting. Toggled by double-clicking the entry. Default=No.
Job Settings Dialog See Gamma Preferences Settings (page 3–873) > Bitmap Files group. Editable from keyboard. Pixel Aspect Ratio—Sets the shape of the pixels for display on another device. The image may look squashed on your display but will display correctly on the device with differently shaped pixels. Editable from keyboard. Render Elements—When enabled, renders any render elements (page 3–133) in the scene. Toggled by double-clicking the entry. Default=Enabled.
198 Chapter 17: Rendering Batch Rendering “Batch rendering” is a term used to describe the process of rendering a series of tasks or jobs that have been assigned to a queue. Batch rendering is useful when you need to render images without supervision. Batch rendering can also be used when you want to see how your project looks from different camera viewpoints. There are several methods for setting up batch rendering in 3ds Max.
Using Backburner for Batch Rendering 6. Click the Submit button. Note: Each job should have a unique output file name and/or path to avoid overwriting output files. If you get an alert dialog that says, "Another job is using the same output name…," you can click the No button, click Cancel to exit the Network Job Assignment dialog, and then change the output name and/or path. Otherwise, you can click the Yes button and let the job overwrite the frames from the other job in the queue. 7.
200 Chapter 17: Rendering 1. In the Job Name field, either accept the default name (the name of the scene), or specify a new one. 2. Click the Connect button to connect the software to the Manager. After a moment, your TCP/IP address appears in the field over the window, and the Server appears in the window. 3. Click the server in the window so that its icon displays a green circle with an arrow through it. 4. Click the Submit button.
Batch Rendering - Batch Render Dialog (page 3–169) by multiple systems for even faster rendering. 7. Repeat steps 3 through 6 to continue adding • Exporting the batch rendering tasks and all parameters set in the Batch Render dialog to a BAT file for later command line rendering (page 3–206). 8.
202 Chapter 17: Rendering Interface Selected Batch Render Parameter group By default, any tasks you’ve designated for batch rendering use the current Time Output and Output Size parameters from the Render Scene dialog (page 3–2). For example, if the Output Size settings on the Render Scene dialog shows that you have a Time Output settings of Single and an of 800 width and 600 height, when you add a camera, its Selected Batch Render Parameters will mimic those settings.
Batch Rendering - Batch Render Dialog Render Scene dialog >Time Output Batch Render dialog Frame Start/End Single Defaults to the frame set by the time slider. Active Time Segment Defaults to 0 (zero) and the last frame of the animation as set in the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768). Range Defaults to the range of frames specified, such as 0 (zero) To 14 or 6 To 11. then the batch-rendered element output becomes Test_Diffuse_View01.tga.
204 Chapter 17: Rendering Note: Choosing a camera changes only the camera. It does not change the name of the camera task. Scene State—This drop-down list displays the scene states (page 3–519), if any, that you can assign to the highlighted task. If no scene state is active then current scene settings are used. Preset—Lets you choose a render preset for the Batch Render Completed If a problem is encountered by the Batch Renderer, you will be notified by means of the Batch Render Completed dialog.
Batch Render Tool - Batch Render Warning Dialog Batch Render Tool - Batch Render Warning Dialog Rendering menu > Batch Render > Click Render to render tasks that do not have an output path set. Rendering menu > Batch Render > Click Render to render tasks that could overwrite previously saved files. OK—Allows you to continue with the batch The Batch Render Warning dialog informs you of certain conditions you may have overlooked while assigning the rendering tasks.
206 Chapter 17: Rendering path are not automatically saved and only appear in the rendered frame window (page 3–5). 1. Open a command prompt window (for Cancel—Cancels the batch rendering. 2. Enter the following: “c:\program example, Windows Start > Run). files\autodesk\3dsmax8\3dsmaxcmd” -? and press ENTER. Command-Line Rendering The command-line rendering tool lets you perform batch rendering jobs without having to manipulate parameters by hand in a MAX file.
Command-Line Rendering files\autodesk\3dsmax8\renderoutput\ myImage.jpg” -w 800 -h 600 “c:\program files\autodesk\3dsmax8\scenes\ myscene.max” 3. Once all the switches are entered, save the files and press ENTER. 5. Enter the following: Note: The specified output path must already exist. If it doesn’t, the image doesn’t render and you get an error message.
208 Chapter 17: Rendering The second scene is almost ready, but you need to test the look of some materials and do a video color check: “c:\program files\autodesk\3dsmax8\ 3dsmaxcmd” -o=“c:\program files\autodesk\ 3dsmax8\renderoutput\scene2.jpg” -w=640 -h=480 -force2Sided=true -videoColorCheck=true “c:\program files\autodesk\3dsmax8\scenes\scene2.
Command-Line Rendering Switches On/Off Command-Line Switches Switch Effect Many of the switches you’ll use are simple on/off toggles, such as the -rfw: or -renderFields: switches. If you prefer, instead of using a 1 or 0 to designate their states, you can also use True or False. For example, to render a scene to a specified file type and display the Rendered Frame Window, your command line might look like this; -workPath: Root location for job data folders. “c:\program files\autodesk\3dsmax8\ 3dsmaxc
210 Chapter 17: Rendering Switch Effect Switch Effect -nthFrame Sets the Every Nth Frame value. -renderFields:<1/0> Toggles Render Fields. “1”=On, “0”=Off. -frames Lets you specify a frame list; for example, (1,3,5-12) or all. -fieldOrder:even or odd Toggles Field Order. Default=”Odd”. -stillFrame or -sf Indicates that this is a still-frame render; no frame suffix will be added. -displacements:<1/0> Toggles Displacement Mapping. “1”=On, “0”=Off.
Command-Line Rendering Switches Switch Effect Switch Effect -priority Sets job priority. -TIF_ALPHA:<1/0> -suspended:<1/0> Toggles initially suspended. “1”=Yes, “0”=No. Toggles TIF file alpha. “1”=On, “0”=Off. -writeJobFile -readJobFile: Writes all job settings to an XML file. The file uses the same name as the MAX file, so, for example, test.max produces test.xml. Reads all job settings from an XML file.
212 Chapter 17: Rendering The following -RPF_xxxx switches do not have corresponding -RLA_xxxx options. Switch Effect -RPF_ NODERENDERIDCHANNEL Turns on RPF Node Render ID Channel. -RPF_COLORCHANNEL Turns on RPF Color Channel. -RPF_TRANSPCHANNEL Turns on RPF Transparency Channel. -RPF_VELOCCHANNEL Turns on RPF Velocity Channel. -RPF_WEIGHTCHANNEL<1/0> Turns on RPF Sub-Pixel Weight Channel.
Effects and Environments Effects and Environments A variety of special effects, such as film grain, depth of field, and lens simulations, are available as rendering effects (page 3–214). Another set of effects, such as fog, are provided as environment effects (page 3–267). Environment and Effects Dialog Rendering menu > Environment Rendering > Effects You apply effects and environments by using the Environment and Effects dialog. Interface The fog environment effect adds atmosphere to a street scene.
214 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Effects Panel and Rollout (page 3–215) Environment Panel (page 3–268) Rendering Effects Rendering Effects and 32–bit Floating-Point Output Most rendering effects in 3ds Max are not compatible with 32-bit floating-point output, such as that provided optionally by the mental ray renderer (see Frame Buffer Type).
Effects Panel and Rollout Render Effects have the added advantage of allowing animated parameters and references to scene objects. You can also adjust and view the effects interactively. Add—Displays a dialog listing all available rendering effects. Select the effect you want added to the window list, and then click OK.
216 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Update Effect—Manually updates the preview rendered frame window when Interactive is not on. What is shown in the rendered frame window is only an update of any changes made in Rendering Effects. Any changes made to the scene itself will not be rendered. Merging Effects Rendering menu > Effects > Environment and Effects dialog > Effects panel > Merge The Merge button on the Effects panel (page 3–215) lets you merge effects from other 3ds Max (.max) scene files.
Hair and Fur Render Effect Interface (Hair and Fur render effect) • geometry: Creates actual geometry for the rendered hair at render time. This geometry is assigned the material ID set by the Hair and Fur modifier > Geom Mat ID parameter. Note: Geometry hair derives its texture from the growth object, not from any maps applied via the Material Parameters rollout. Compositing options aren’t available with Geometry hair.
218 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Oversampling—Controls the level of antialiasing applied to the Hair buffer render. The available choices are Draft, Low, Medium, High, and Maximum. The Draft setting uses no antialiasing. High is suitable for most final renders, and in extreme cases, use Maximum. The higher the Oversampling level, the greater the memory requirements and render time.
Lens Effects Rendering Effects lights to which you’ve added hair properties (see following) can affect hair. Default=on. Note: When this switch is on, the hair shadows use each light’s shadow map properties as defined on the Shadow Map Parameters rollout (page 2–1208), unless the light already contains hair properties (see following), in which case the shadow map uses the Hair Light Attr(ibutes) rollout (page 2–1196) settings.
220 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Interface Lens Effects Parameters rollout Note: Saving an effect as an LZV file will only save the attributes of the effect on the frame that it is saved at. The LZV file format doesn’t save the animation keys of an animated parameter. Size—Affects the size of the overall Lens Effect. This value is a percentage of the size of the rendered frame.
Lens Effects Rendering Effects Lens Effects Globals rollout, Scene panel The size and intensity of the effect are at a maximum when the light is pointed at the camera (or viewport). Occlusion group Affect Alpha—Specifies whether or not the Lens Effect affects the alpha channel of an image when the image is rendered in a 32-bit file format. The alpha channel is an extra 8 bits of color (256 colors) that indicate transparency in an image.
222 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Glow Lens Effect Interface Glow Element rollout, Parameters panel Rendering menu > Effects > Environment and Effects dialog > Effects panel > Add > Add Effect dialog > Lens Effects > Choose Glow, and click the (>) arrow button. Adding glow to the light Glow lets you add a glowing aura around any assigned object. For example, for an exploding particle system, adding a glow to the particles makes them seem as though they are brighter and hotter.
Glow Lens Effect Occlusion—Determines how much the Lens Effects Scene Occlusion parameters will affect the particular effect. The value entered determines what percentage of occlusion set in the Lens Effects Globals panel will be applied. Squeeze—Determines whether the effect will be squeezed. When activated the effect will be squeezed according to Lens Effects Globals under the Parameters panel in the Squeeze spinner.
224 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Glow Element rollout, Options panel to it. Effects ID’s are applied in the materials editor by assigning the material one of the Material Effects channels that are available. The Lens Effect will only be applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present. Note: In many instances, you may want to apply different Lens Effects settings to different pieces of geometry or ID’s.
Glow Lens Effect channel is interpreted opposite that of the Mask channel. Range=0 to 255. might need to use the Perimeter option at times when the alpha channel is unavailable. Z Buffer Hi and Lo—Highlights objects based on Bright—Filters the source objects based on their their distance (Z-Buffer distance) from the camera. The Hi value is the maximum distance and the Lo value is the minimum. Any objects between these two Z-Buffer distances will be highlighted. brightness values.
226 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Ring Lens Effect Interface Ring Element rollout, Parameters panel Rendering menu > Effects > Environment and Effects dialog > Effects panel > Add > Add Effect dialog > Lens Effects > Choose Ring, and click the (>) arrow button. Adding a ring to the light The ring is a circular color band that surrounds the center of the source object. Warning: This effect is not supported by the mental ray renderer (page 3–77). Name—Displays the name of the effect.
Ring Lens Effect Plane—Sets the location of the effect along the axis of the effect which extends from the center of the effect through the center of the screen. Thickness—Determines the thickness, in pixels, of the effect. Glow Behind—Gives the effect the ability to be displayed behind objects in your 3ds Max scene. Occlusion—Determines how much the Lens Effects Scene Occlusion parameters will affect the particular effect.
228 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Mix—Mixes colors set in Radial Color and colors set in Circular Color. Setting the spinner at 0 will only use values set in Radial Color while setting the spinner at 100 will only use values set in Circular Color. Any value between 0 and 100 will mix between the two values. Ring using radial and circular colors mixed 50/50 Falloff Curve—Displays the Circular Falloff dialog (page 3–250) in which you can set weights for the colors used in Circular Color.
Ring Lens Effect to it. Effects ID’s are applied in the materials editor by assigning the material one of the Material Effects channels that are available. The Lens Effect will only be applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present. Note: In many instances, you may want to apply different Lens Effects settings to different pieces of geometry or ID’s. To accomplish this, add additional Lens Effects entries to the Lens Effects Parameters list.
230 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments might need to use the Perimeter option at times when the alpha channel is unavailable. Bright—Filters the source objects based on their brightness values.
Ray Lens Effect Interface Num—Specifies the overall number of rays that Ray Element rollout, Parameters panel appear in the lens flare. Rays are randomly spaced around the radius. Angle—Specifies the angle for the rays. You can enter both positive and negative values so, when animated, the rays rotate in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. Sharp—Specifies the overall sharpness of the rays. Higher numbers produce crisp, clean, and clear rays. Lower numbers produce more of a secondary glow look.
232 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Falloff Curve—Displays the Radial Falloff dialog (page 3–253) in which you can set weights for the Ray Element rollout, Options panel colors used in Radial Color. By manipulating the Falloff Curve you can make the effect use more of one color or map than the other. You can also use a map to determine the falloff when a light is used as a Lens Effects source.
Ray Lens Effect to it. Effects ID’s are applied in the materials editor by assigning the material one of the Material Effects channels that are available. The Lens Effect will only be applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present. Note: In many instances, you may want to apply different Lens Effects settings to different pieces of geometry or ID’s. To accomplish this, add additional Lens Effects entries to the Lens Effects Parameters list.
234 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Additional Effects group Additional Effects allows you to apply maps such as Noise to your Lens Effect. You can display the Material/Map browser by clicking the long button next to the Apply check box. Apply—Applies the selected map when activated. Edge filter applied to rays emanating from object Perim(eter) Alpha—Applies the Lens Effect only to the perimeter of an object based on its alpha channel.
Auto Secondary Lens Effect camera position changes relative to the source object, the secondary flares move. Interface Auto Secondary Element rollout, Parameters panel Max—Controls the maximum size of secondary flares in the current set. This number is defined as a percentage of the overall image. Axis—Defines the overall length of the axis the automatic secondary flares will be distributed along.
236 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Radial Color group The Radial Color settings affect the inner and outer colors of the effect. You can set the color swatches to set the inner and outer colors of the Lens Effect. Each color swatch has a percentage spinner that determines at what point that color should stop and the next should start. You can also use bitmaps such as gradient or cellular to determine the radial color. displays the Radial Size dialog (page 3–255).
Auto Secondary Lens Effect when you right-click any object and select Properties from the menu. Then, set the Object Channel ID under the G-Buffer ID controls. Effects ID—Applies the Lens Effect to an object or part of an object with a specific Effects ID assigned to it. Effects ID’s are applied in the materials editor by assigning the material one of the Material Effects channels that are available. The Lens Effect will only be applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present.
238 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments keeps all of the edges clean because it relies on the scene alpha channel to derive its effect. Perim(eter)—Applies the Lens Effect only to the perimeter of an object based on Edge interference. Although not as precise as Perimeter Alpha, you might need to use the Perimeter option at times when the alpha channel is unavailable. Bright—Filters the source objects based on their brightness values.
Manual Secondary Lens Effect Interface Intensity—Controls the overall brightness and Manual Secondary Element rollout, Parameters panel opacity of the individual effect. Higher values produce a bright, more opaque effect, and lower values produces a dim, transparent effect. Plane—Controls the distance, in degrees, between the flare source and the manual secondary flare. By default, the flare plane exists at the center of the chosen node source.
240 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Lens Effect. You can also use bitmaps such as gradient or cellular to determine the radial color. Manual Secondary Element rollout, Options panel Falloff Curve—Displays the Radial Falloff dialog (page 3–253) in which you can set weights for the colors used in Radial Color. By manipulating the Falloff Curve you can make the effect use more of one color or map than the other.
Manual Secondary Lens Effect Effects ID—Applies the Lens Effect to an object or part of an object with a specific Effects ID assigned to it. Effects ID’s are applied in the materials editor by assigning the material one of the Material Effects channels that are available. The Lens Effect will only be applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present. Note: In many instances, you may want to apply different Lens Effects settings to different pieces of geometry or ID’s.
242 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Perim(eter)—Applies the Lens Effect only to the perimeter of an object based on Edge interference. Although not as precise as Perimeter Alpha, you might need to use the Perimeter option at times when the alpha channel is unavailable. Star Lens Effect Rendering menu > Effects > Environment and Effects dialog > Effects panel > Add > Add Effect dialog > Lens Effects > Choose Star, and click the (>) arrow button.
Star Lens Effect Interface Star Element rollout, Parameters panel Width—Specifies the width of the individual spokes, as a percentage of the overall frame. Angle—Sets the starting angle in degrees in which the star spokes point. You can enter both positive and negative values so, when animated, the star spokes rotate in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. Taper—Controls the taper of the individual spokes of the star. Taper widens or narrows the tips of the individual star points.
244 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Radial Color group The Radial Color settings affect the inner and outer colors of the effect. You can set the color swatches to set the inner and outer colors of the Lens Effect. You can also use bitmaps such as gradient or cellular to determine the radial color. around the light or object. You can also use a map to determine where the effect should be placed. A check box is used to activate the map.
Star Lens Effect Properties from the menu. Then, set the Object Channel ID under the G-Buffer ID controls. the Lens Effect applied to them are determined by the settings in the Image Filters group box. Effects ID—Applies the Lens Effect to an object or Alpha—Applies the Lens Effect to the alpha channel of an image. The transparency of an alpha channel is interpreted opposite that of the Mask channel. Range=0 to 255. part of an object with a specific Effects ID assigned to it.
246 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments keeps all of the edges clean because it relies on the alpha channel to derive its effect. Perim(eter)—Applies the Lens Effect only to the perimeter of an object based on Edge interference. Although not as precise as Perimeter Alpha, you might need to use the Perimeter option at times when the alpha channel is unavailable.
Streak Lens Effect Interface Streak Element rollout, Parameters panel Width—Specifies the width of the streak, as a percentage of the frame. Angle—Specifies the angle for the streak. You can enter both positive and negative values so, when animated, the streak rotates in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. Taper—Controls the taper of the individual spokes of the streak. Taper widens or narrows the tips of the individual streak points.
248 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Falloff Curve you can make the effect use more of one color or map than the other. You can also use a map to determine the falloff when a light is used as a Lens Effects source. Streak Element rollout, Options panel Section Color group Section Color determines the color of the effect by using three different color swatches that are matched to the three sections of the effect. A map can also be used to determine section color.
Streak Lens Effect to it. Effects ID’s are applied in the materials editor by assigning the material one of the Material Effects channels that are available. The Lens Effect will only be applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present. Note: In many instances, you may want to apply different Lens Effects settings to different pieces of geometry or ID’s. To accomplish this, add additional Lens Effects entries to the Lens Effects Parameters list.
250 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments might need to use the Perimeter option at times when the alpha channel is unavailable. Lens Effects Dialogs Bright—Filters the source objects based on their brightness values. The effect is only applied to objects with a brightness above the spinner setting This option can be inverted by clicking the I button next to the spinner Hue—Filters the source objects by their hue. Select the hue by clicking the color swatch next to the spinner.
Circular Falloff Graph (Lens Effects) Interface Move—Moves selected points in any direction. Click and hold the Move button to display the flyout where you can select a button to move in any direction, move only in the horizontal direction, or move only in the vertical direction. The Move function remains active until you click another button. The button is yellow while it is active. Scale Point—Scales a point vertically. Click once to enable Scale Point.
252 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Zoom Extents—Fits the curve within the graph window both vertically and horizontally so that the entire curve is visible. Zoom Horizontal Extents—Fits the curve horizontally within the graph window so that the full length of the curve is visible. Zoom Vertical Extents—Fits the curve vertically within the Circular Falloff graph window so that the full height of the curve is visible. Zoom Horizontally—Scales the width of the Circular Falloff graph window.
Radial Falloff Dialog (Lens Effects) direction, move only in the horizontal direction, or move only in the vertical direction. The Move function remains active until you click another button. The button is yellow while it is active. Scale Point—Vertically scales a point up or down. Click once to enable Scale Point. The Scale Point function remains active until you click another button. The button is yellow while it is active. Zoom Vertically—Scales the length of the Radial Density dialog window.
254 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments You can also manually enter a horizontal or vertical position by entering a value into the two entry boxes. Interface Move—Moves selected points in any direction. Click and hold the Move button to display the flyout where you can select a button to move in any direction, move only in the horizontal direction, or move only in the vertical direction. The Move function remains active until you click another button. The button is yellow while it is active.
Radial Size Dialog (Lens Effects) active until you click another button. The button is yellow while it is active. Zoom Extents—Fits the curve within the dialog window both vertically and horizontally so that the entire curve is visible. Zoom Horizontal Extents—Fits the curve horizontally within the dialog window so that the full length of the curve is visible. Zoom Vertical Extents—Fits the curve vertically within the Radial Falloff graph so that the full height of the curve is visible.
256 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Zoom Extents—Fits the curve within the dialog window both vertically and horizontally so that the entire curve is visible. Zoom Horizontal Extents—Fits the curve horizontally within the dialog window so that the full length of the curve is visible. Zoom Vertical Extents—Fits the curve vertically Interface Move—Moves selected points in any direction.
Blur Rendering Effect Directional—Applies the Blur effect in any direction according to the Directional parameters. The U Pixel Radius and Trail blur the pixels horizontally while the V Pixel Radius and Trail blur the pixels vertically. Rotation is used to rotate the axis of the horizontal and vertical blurring. U Pixel Radius—Determines the horizontal Interface intensity of the Blur effect. Increasing the value increases the number of surrounding pixels that each pixel will use to compute its blur.
258 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments center or an arbitrary location set by the X and Y Origin spinners. The Blur effect will apply the least amount of blur to the center origin of the effect and gradually increase the blur to the pixels further away from the center. This can be used to simulate motion blur caused by camera zoom. Blur Parameters rollout, Pixel Selections panel Pixel Radius—Determines the intensity of the Radius Blur effect.
Blur Rendering Effect Non-Background—Affects everything but the Map Mask—Applies the Blur effect according to the background image or animation when chosen. This is useful when the Blur effect has dimmed your scene objects but not the background. By Using Brighten, Blend, and Feather Radius, you can maintain the original colors of the scene. channel selected and mask applied through the Material/Map Browser. After selecting a mask you must select a channel from the Channel list.
260 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Min Lum—The minimum luminance value a pixel General Settings group must have in order to have the Blur effect applied to it. Max Lum—The maximum luminance value a pixel can have for the Blur effect to be applied to it. Brighten—Brightens the portion of the image that the Blur effect is applied to. Blend—Blends the Object ID Blur effect with the original rendered image. F.
Brightness and Contrast Rendering Effect brightening provides a soft highlight to the Blur effect. Brighten Curve—Lets you edit the brightening Brightness—Increases or decreases all color components (red, green, and blue). Range=0 to 1.0. curve in the Feather Falloff curve graph. Contrast—Compresses or expands the latitude Blend Curve—Lets you edit the blend curve in the between maximum black and maximum white. Range=0 to 1.0. Feather Falloff curve graph.
262 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Yellow/Blue—Adjusts the blue channel. Preserve Luminosity—When on, retains the luminosity of the image while correcting the color. Ignore Background—When on, allows you to image correct a model without affecting the background.
File Output Rendering Effect Interface Targa Image File (page 3–683) (TGA, VDA, ICB, UST) TIF Image File (page 3–684) (TIF) Devices—Opens a dialog so you can send the rendered output to a device such as a video recorder. Clear—Clears any file or device selected in the Destination group box. Driver group These buttons are available only when you choose a device as the image source. About—Provides information on the source of the image-handler software used to bring the image into the software.
264 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Depth Parameters When Depth is selected as a channel, new parameters are available for determining what parts of the scene should be rendered into the Depth channel image. Grain automatically randomizes to create the look of moving frames. Copy—After choosing a camera with the None button, click Copy to use the camera’s clipping planes to determine which part of the scene should be rendered into the Depth channel image file.
Motion Blur Rendering Effect Motion Blur Rendering Effect Rendering menu > Effects > Environment and Effects dialog > Effects panel > Add > Add Effect dialog > Motion Blur Work with transparency—When on, motion blur is applied to objects behind transparent objects. When off, objects behind transparent objects receive no motion blur. Turning off this toggle can improve rendering speed. Default=on. Duration—Specifies how long the "virtual shutter" is open. When this is set to 1.
266 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments be rendered. The order of the rendered effects is listed in the Effects tab of the Environment and Effects dialog. Interface Tip: To minimize sampling artifacts in out-of-focus areas with the default scanline renderer, try using the Blend filter in the Antialiasing group of the Render Scene dialog (page 3–2) (on the Renderer panel). The Depth of Field Parameters rollout contains the following parameters.
Environment focal node. You can also press H to display the Select Objects dialog (page 1–78) from which you can select objects to use as a focal node. Remove—Removes the object selected as the Focal Environment and Environment Effects Node. Use Camera—Specifies that the focal length from the camera selected in the Camera Selection list be used to determine the focal point.
268 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Exposure Controls One of the limitations of rendering perceptually accurate images is the limited dynamic range of computer monitors. Dynamic range is the ratio of the highest to lowest intensity a monitor can produce. In a dark room this ratio is approximately 100 to 1. In a bright room, this drops to approximately 30 to 1. Real environments can have dynamic ranges of 10,000 to 1, or larger. • Apply exposure controls (page 3–289) to renderings.
Environment Panel either in the Material Editor or from a projection light, and so on. Drag a bitmap from the Material Editor’s map preview to the Environment Map button. On the Environment panel, the name of the Environment Map button changes to show the type of map you chose, and Use Map turns on. After you have set up the map, you can later turn off Use Map to test rendering the scene without the mapped background.
270 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments the Rendering panel of the Preference Settings dialog. To add an atmospheric effect: 1. Choose Rendering > Environment. The Environment and Effects dialog is displayed, with the Environment panel visible. 2. Under Atmosphere on the Environment panel, click Add. The Add Atmospheric Effect dialog appears. 3. Choose the kind of effect you want to use, and then click OK. The effect has now been added. Use the Atmosphere rollout to adjust parameters.
Environment Panel light effect by changing the ambient light color at a nonzero frame with the Auto Key button on. Atmosphere rollout Delete—Deletes a selected atmospheric effect from the list. Active—Sets the on/off state for the individual effects in the list. This is a convenient way to isolate effects within a list of complicated atmospheric functions. Move Up / Move Down—Moves the selected item in the list up or down to change the order in which the atmospheric effects are applied.
272 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments If Use Environment Alpha is turned off (the default) the background receives an alpha of 0 (completely transparent). If Use Environment Alpha is turned on, the alpha of the resulting image is a combination of the scene and background image’s alpha. Also, when writing TGA files with Pre-Multiplied Alpha set to off, turning on Use Environment Alpha prevents incorrect results.
Fire Environment Effect • Drift=200.0 The Fire effect doesn’t cast any light in the scene. If you want to simulate illumination from the fire effect, you must create lights as well. Sample fire effects Example: To create a campfire: 1. Click Helpers on the Create panel and choose Atmospheric Apparatus (page 3–300) from the subcategory list. 2. Click Sphere Gizmo. Drag the cursor in the Top viewport to define an apparatus radius of about 20 units.
274 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments You create a fire apparatus, or "gizmo," to position the effect in your scene and to define the maximum boundaries of the effect. The apparatus is a Helper object found in the Atmospheric Apparatus subcategory. There are three kinds of apparatus: BoxGizmo (page 3–300), SphereGizmo (page 3–303), and CylGizmo. (page 3–302). You can move, rotate, and scale the apparatus, but you cannot apply modifiers.
Fire Environment Effect Shape group You control the shape, scale, and pattern of flames within the fire effect using controls under Shape. Two options set the direction and general shape of flames. to change the boundary of the effect and scale the shape of the flames. Use the Stretch parameter to scale only the flames inside the apparatus. You can also use Stretch values to reverse the effect that scaling the apparatus had on the flames.
276 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Characteristics group You set the size and appearance of flames using parameters under Characteristics. All of these parameters depend on the apparatus size and are interdependent on each other. Changing one parameter affects the behavior of the other three. Effect of changing Flame Detail Flame Size—Sets the size of individual flames Value=1.0, 2.0, 5.0 inside the apparatus. The size of the apparatus affects the flame size.
Fire Environment Effect Note: 100 percent transparent objects that intersect the effect become partially visible. To use particles with Fire, consider using 3D particles instead of opacity-mapped particles. Motion group Use the parameters in the Motion group to animate the churning and rise of flames. Phase—Controls the rate of change for the fire effect. Turn on Auto Key and change the phase value at different times.
278 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Set Up Explosion—Displays the Set Up Explosion Phase Curve dialog. You enter a start time and end time, and then click OK. The Phase value animates automatically for a typical explosion effect. 3. Set Adjust Near Range and Far Range to include Fog Environment Effect 4. Choose Rendering > Environment. the objects you want to fog in your rendering.
Fog Environment Effect Interface To assign the map you can drag a map from a Sample slot or Map button in the Material Editor (or anywhere else in the software; for example, a projector map button) and drop it on the Environment Color Map button. A dialog asks if you want the environment map to be a copy (independent) or an instance of the source map. Clicking the Environment Color Map button displays the Material/Map Browser, where you can choose a map type from the list.
280 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Near %—Sets the density of the fog at the Near Range (Camera Environment Range parameter). Far %—Sets the density of the fog at the Far Range (Camera Environment Range parameter). Layered group Thins and thickens the fog between an upper and lower limit. You can have multiple layers of fog by adding multiple fog entries to the list.
Volume Fog Environment Effect 3. Under Atmosphere on the Environment panel, click Add. The Add Atmospheric Effect dialog is displayed. Seed button randomly generates a new seed value for you. 4. Choose Volume Fog, and then click OK. To assign volume fog to a gizmo from an apparatus modify panel: 5. Set the parameters for volume fog. 1. Open the Modify panel of an apparatus. Note: If there are no objects in your scene, rendering shows only a solid fog color.
282 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Interface You can pick multiple gizmos. Click Pick Gizmo and then press H. This displays a Pick Object dialog on which you choose multiple objects from the list. Changing the dimensions of a gizmo changes the region that fog affects, but doesn’t change the scale of the fog and its noise. For example, reducing the radius of a spherical gizmo crops the fog, and moving the gizmo changes the fog’s appearance.
Volume Fog Environment Effect Turbulence—An iterative turbulence pattern. Invert—Reverses the noise effect. Dense fog becomes translucent and vice versa. Left: Original scene Right: Increased fog density Step Size—Determines the granularity of the fog sampling; the "fineness" of the fog. A large step size creates coarse (and to some extent, aliased) fog. Noise Threshold—Limits the noise effect. Range=0 to 1.0.
284 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Volume Light Environment Effect Rendering menu > Environment > Environment and Effects dialog > Environment panel > Atmosphere rollout > Add > Volume Light Left: Fog with noise Right: Decreasing the size Phase—Controls the speed of the wind. If you have Wind Strength also set to greater than 0, the fog volume animates in accordance with the wind direction. With no Wind Strength, the fog churns in place.
Volume Light Environment Effect Procedures To use volume light: 1. Create a scene with lights. 2. Create a Camera or Perspective view of your scene. Avoid making the view axis parallel to the cone of a spotlight. This tends to create only a washed-out scene, possibly with rendering artifacts. 4. Select Volume Light from the Add Atmosphere or Effect dialog and click OK. 5. Highlight Volume Light from the Atmospheres & Effects list and click setup to adjust the Volume Light parameters.
286 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Lights group Pick Light—Click the light that you want to enable for volume light in any viewport. You can pick multiple lights. Click Pick Light and then press H. This displays a Pick Object dialog that lets you choose multiple lights from the list. when you want to render transparent objects in volume fog. Density—Sets the density of the fog. The denser the fog, the more the light reflects off it inside the volume.
Volume Light Environment Effect Filter Shadows—Allows you to get better quality volume-light rendering by increasing the sampling rate (at the cost of some increased rendering time). These are the options: but in some cases you may want to increase it (for extremely high sample quality). Low—The image buffer is not filtered but directly sampled instead. This option is fine for 8-bit images, AVI (page 3–658) files, and so on. Medium—Adjacent pixels are sampled and averaged.
288 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments casts light much farther than it actually glows. Default=100. • Fractal—An iterative fractal noise pattern. • Turbulence—An iterative turbulence pattern. Invert—Reverses the noise effect. Dense fog becomes translucent and vice versa. Noise Threshold—Limits the noise effect. When the Left: Original scene Right: Attenuation limits the range of the light. noise value is above the Low threshold and below the High threshold, the dynamic range stretches to fill 0-1.
Exposure Controls Phase—Controls the speed of the wind. If you have Wind Strength also set to greater than 0, the fog volume animates in accordance with the wind direction. With no Wind Strength, the fog churns in place. Because there’s an animation track for phase, you can use the Function Curve editor to define precisely how you want your wind "gusts" to happen. Wind moves the fog volume in the specified direction over time. Wind is tied to the phase parameter so as the phase changes, the wind moves.
290 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments larger dynamic range of the (simulated) physical scene, into the smaller dynamic range of the display. Interface Left: Linear exposure control maps intensity evenly. Right: Logarithmic exposure control maps most intensities to low and mid tones. Tips: • If the primary lighting from your scene comes from standard lights (rather than photometric lights), use the Logarithmic Exposure Control and turn on Affect Indirect Only.
Automatic Exposure Control Automatic Exposure Control Rendering menu > Environment > Environment and Effects dialog > Environment panel > Exposure Control rollout > Choose Automatic Exposure Control from the list. > Automatic Exposure Control rollout This parameter is animatable. Contrast—Adjusts the contrast of the converted colors. Range=0 to 100. Default=50. This parameter is animatable. Exposure Value—Adjusts the overall brightness of the rendering. Range=-5.0 to 5.
292 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments a reflector is about 4500 cd because the light flux is concentrated into a narrow angle. Photometric lights are unaffected by the Physical Scale value. This parameter is animatable. Color correction check box and color swatch—When the check box is turned on, color correction shifts all colors so the color displayed in the color swatch appears as white. Default=off.
Logarithmic Exposure Control The exposure value can be thought of as an exposure compensation setting in cameras with automatic exposure control. This parameter is animatable. Physical Scale—Sets a physical scale for exposure control to use with lights that are not physically based. The result is an adjustment of the rendering that approximates the eye’s response to the scene.
294 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments This parameter is animatable. Left: The intensity of an IES sun light completely overexposes a scene. Right: Logarithmic exposure control corrects the overexposure. Note: Logarithmic Exposure Control is the best type of exposure control for animations because it doesn’t use histograms. Note: You can use the Logarithmic exposure control with the mental ray renderer (page 3–77).
Logarithmic Exposure Control Note: The mental ray renderer treats Physical Scale in the same way the scanline renderer does in terms of its effect on reflections and refractions. Physical Scale does affect the appearance of self-illuminated materials. Range=0.0 to 200,000.0 candelas. Default=1500.0. A single candle is approximately 1 candela (the unit can also be called a "candle"). A 100-Watt (W) incandescent light bulb is approximately 139 candelas (cd).
296 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments scanline renderer. When you use standard lights but leave Affect Indirect Only off, radiosity and exposure control yield results that can be quite different from the default scanline renderer. choose a grayscale where the brightest values are white, and the darkest are black.) The rendering includes the colored or grayscale spectrum bar as a legend for the image.
Pseudo Color Exposure Control • Illuminance (the default) displays values of light incident on surfaces. • Luminance displays values of light reflected off surfaces. Style—Chooses the way to display values. • Colored (the default) shows a spectrum. A display of illuminance shows that it is the same for all three spheres. • Grayscale shows gray tones that range from white to black. The spectrum bar displays the values the rendering will use.
298 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments emit more light than the brightest light object in the scene; in this case, use the object’s Luminance value as the Physical Scale. Range=0.0 to 200,000.0 candelas. Default=1500.0. Left: Linear scale Right: Logarithmic scale Display Range group Minimum (Min.)—Sets the lowest value to measure and represent in the rendering. Values at this quantity or below it all map to the leftmost display color (or grayscale level).
Lighting Data Exporter Utility (page 2–1165), the Physical Scale value is disregarded, and you don’t need to change it. • If you use Standard lights (page 2–1142), the Physical Scale value acts as a conversion scale that the radiosity engine uses to calculate energy. Set it to the equivalent of the brightest light source in the scene. This will set the appropriate conversion scale for reflections, self-illumination, and all other non-physically based elements a 3ds Max material offers.
300 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Interface Atmospheric Apparatus Helper Objects Create panel > Helpers > Atmospheric Apparatus (from drop-down list) You can create three types of atmospheric apparatuses or gizmos (page 3–1043): a box, a cylinder, or a sphere. These gizmos limit the spread of fog or fire in your scene. BoxGizmo Helper (page 3–300) CylGizmo Helper (page 3–302) SphereGizmo Helper (page 3–303) List of atmospheres—Displays the atmospheres that you can associate with the apparatus.
BoxGizmo Helper This creates a duplicate atmosphere for the apparatus. Its settings are initially identical to the atmosphere you chose. You can adjust them using Setup. Interface Name and Color rollout The Name and Color rollout (page 3–800) lets you rename objects and change their wireframe color. Box Gizmo Parameters rollout Box gizmo with volume fog Procedures To create the BoxGizmo: 1.
302 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments Atmospheres & Effects rollout Cylinder gizmo with volume fog The Atmospheres & Effects rollout, available from the Modify panel, allows you to add and set up atmospheres directly to the gizmo. Procedures Add—Displays the Add Atmosphere dialog (page 1. Drag in a viewport to define the initial radius, 3–300) from which you can add an atmosphere to the BoxGizmo. To create the CylGizmo: then release the mouse and drag vertically to set the initial height.
SphereGizmo Helper This creates a duplicate atmosphere for the apparatus. Its settings are initially identical to the atmosphere you chose. You can adjust them using Setup. Atmospheres & Effects rollout Interface Name and Color rollout The Name and Color rollout (page 3–800) lets you rename objects and change their wireframe color. Cylinder Gizmo Parameters rollout The Atmospheres & Effects rollout, available from the Modify panel, allows you to add and set up atmospheres directly to the gizmo.
304 Chapter 18: Effects and Environments the atmosphere you chose. You can adjust them using Setup. Interface Name and Color rollout The Name and Color rollout (page 3–800) lets you rename objects and change their wireframe color. Sphere Gizmo Parameters rollout Sphere gizmo with volume fog Procedures To create the SphereGizmo: 1. Drag in any viewport to define the initial radius. 2. Adjust the radius with the spinner. To add a new atmosphere: 1. Select the apparatus gizmo. 2.
SphereGizmo Helper Atmospheres & Effects rollout The Atmospheres & Effects rollout, available from the Modify panel, allows you to add and set up atmospheres effects directly to the gizmo. Add—Displays the Add Atmosphere dialog (page 2–1195) from which you can add an Atmosphere to the SphereGizmo. Delete—Deletes a highlighted atmospheric effect. Setup—Displays the Environment panel (page 3–268), where you can edit the highlighted effect.
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Video Post-Production Video Post Rendering menu > Video Post Video Post provides composited rendered output of various types of events, including the current scene, bitmap images, image processing functions, and so on. The result of video post: a composited frame Video Post is a self-contained, modeless dialog, similar in appearance to Track View. The edit window of the dialog shows when each event occurs in the finished video. Each event is associated with a track that has a range bar.
308 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Video Post Toolbar (page 3–319): Provides Video Post commands. Procedure To use the Video Post dialog: 1. Choose Rendering > Video Post. This displays the Video Post dialog. 2. Create a new Video Post sequence by adding events to the queue, or open an existing Video Post file in order to edit it.
Useful Video Post Procedures This operation might not be allowed if the result would be impossible to execute. At the top level of the queue, you can almost always swap events; at lower levels, an event’s output must be legal input to its parent event. To edit an event in the queue, do one of the following: • Select the event and click Edit Current Event (page 3–320). • Double-click the event name. • Double-click the event’s range-bar area in the edit window.
310 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 8. Click the Execute Sequence button (page 3–321). 9. Click Render on the Execute Video Post dialog. The final product is an animation. Example: Create an animation from a series of still images: Another common process you’ll use Video Post to achieve is taking a series of still images you’ve rendered and convert them to an animation. To accomplish this task, you need an IFL file (page 3–666). 1.
Useful Video Post Procedures 7. Set the output file format to BMP Image File and enter a filename like MyStarfield. 2. Click Save when you’ve set the name and format Choose your first image and click Open and then click OK to close the Add Image Input Event dialog. 8. Click OK to accept the default setting on the BMP configuration dialog. Then click OK to close the Add Image Output Event dialog. 9. Click Add Image Input Event (page 3–328) and then click Files. 3.
312 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 11. Select the Cross Fade Transition event and drag 1. Use the IFL Manager Utility (page 3–668) to the left-hand end of the range-bar to frame 5 and then drag the right-hand end of the range-bar to frame 15. create an IFL file containing the sequentially number image files you want to resize. 2. Choose Rendering > Video Post. This sets the period in time when the cross fade occurs. 3. 12.
Useful Video Post Procedures 8. Select the first Image Input Event and then hold down the CTRL key while selecting the second Image Input Event. Both events will highlight in gold. 9. Example: Composite two image sequences: Compositing two sets of images together is one of the “workhorse” operations of Video Post. This is commonly done when a project is nearing completion and it lets you combine all the images your artists have been rendering. Click OK to close the Add Image Layer Event dialog.
314 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 4. you’d choose a set of background images that equals the number of frames in your scene. When this sequence is executed, as is, the images in the IFL file will only appear for the first ten frames and then disappear. Click Add Scene Event (page 3–325) and set the view to Perspective or a Camera you have in the scene. Click OK to close the Add Scene Event dialog. 5. Click Add Image Output Event (page 3–334) and then click Files. 6.
Useful Video Post Procedures 3. Click Add Image Input Event again and click Files. Choose the next animation file and click Open and then click OK to close the Add Image Input Event dialog. 4. Repeat the last step for any other animations that need to be joined. 5. Switch between views: a filename like MyFinal. It’s not often that a final scene shows views from only one viewpoint. Either the camera moves or there are multiple cameras from which images are rendered.
316 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 11. Click Add Image Output Event (page 3–334) and then click Files. 12. Set the output file format to MOV File and enter a filename like MyViews. Click Save when you’ve set the name and format 13. Click OK to accept the default setting on the Compression Settings dialog. Then click OK to close the Add Image Output Event dialog. 14. Click the Execute Sequence button (page 3–321). 15. Click Render on the Execute Video Post dialog. 5.
Video Post Status Bar / View Controls Pan Lets you drag horizontally in the event tracks area to shift the view left and right. Zoom Extents Video Post Status Bar / View Controls Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post Status Bar The Video Post Status Bar contains an area for prompt and status information and for buttons to control the display of tracks in the event tracks area. Interface Adjusts the size of the event-track area horizontally so that all the frames of the longest track bar are visible.
318 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production There are two key things that can cause a Video Post queue to fail. The first is incorrect ordering and nesting of events in the queue. The second is faulty positioning and/or overlapping of the range bars. When you come up again a problem, especially if you’re attempting to set up a very complex queue, the best way to diagnose the problem is to create a new queue that should only result in the effect that is failing.
Video Post Toolbar or you remove the current output event and add it again, making sure no other events are selected. The following images show the two ways this queue could be set up to successfully show the glowing object. You’ll be prompted to confirm the deletion of any entries in the current queue. Procedure To create a new Video Post file: • Click New Sequence. Warning: This command erases all the current Video Post data.
320 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 2. On the Open Sequence dialog, change the Files Of Type setting to All Files (*.*) Edit Current Event 3. Browse to the folder where you store your MAX Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select an event. > Video Post toolbar > Edit Current Event files. 4. Select the MAX file that contains the Video Post sequence you want to execute or edit and click Open. Video Post loads only the Video Post data from the existing .
Delete Current Event Delete Current Event Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select an event. > Video Post toolbar > Delete Current Event The Delete Current Event button deletes the selected event from the Video Post Queue. You’ll be asked to confirm event deletion. Procedure To delete any event in the queue: • Select the event and press the Delete key. You can delete both enabled and disabled events, which are unavailable.
322 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production During execution, you can move or close the rendered frame window, but you can’t use the rest of 3ds Max until the execution is completed or cancelled. Every Nth frame—Regular sample of frames. For The rendering time for the last rendered frame in the Video Post sequence is displayed in the prompt line of the main 3ds Max window. Format—Choose Custom or a standard film or Procedure To execute the queue: 1. Click Execute Sequence.
Configure Presets Output group Interface Keep Progress Dialog—Forces the Video Post Progress dialog to remain displayed when the Video Post sequence has finished executing. By default, it closes automatically. If this option is selected, you must click the Close button to close the dialog. Rendered Frame Window—Displays the Video Post execution in a window on the screen. Net Render—Enables network rendering (page 3–1073).
324 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production To select multiple range bars: 1. Click a range bar. 2. Hold down CTRL and click additional range bars. To select multiple contiguous range bars: When you select two or more range bars, the last one selected is the current event. The end boxes of the other events are white, while the end boxes of the current event are red. When you click Align Selected Left, the current event stays in place, and the remaining selected events are aligned to its left end. 1.
Make Selected Same Size Make Selected Same Size Add Scene Event Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select one or more events. > Video Post toolbar > Make Selected Same Size Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Make sure no events are selected in the queue. > Video Post toolbar > Add Scene The Make Selected Same Size button makes all selected events the same size as the current event. The Add Scene Event button adds the scene in the selected camera viewport to the queue.
326 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production executing the queue renders scene frames 25 to 35. Moving the range bar for the scene is like moving a time window within the scene. Other Scene Range options are disabled when Lock to Video Post Range is selected. To offset the scene in time: • Select Lock Range Bar to Scene Range. The Scene Start control is enabled but the Scene End control remains disabled - synchronization is controlled by the Scene Start value and the length of the range bar.
Add Scene Event Interface scene. This is different from object motion blur (page 3–1075), which creates motion blur for individual objects in the scene. Scenes created with previous versions of 3ds Max that use both Object Motion Blur and Scene Motion Blur may not render correctly, due to changes to Object Motion Blur. Execute some test frames and adjust your blur settings if needed. When you render with Scene Motion Blur activated, the Render Progress dialog tells you which subsample is being rendered.
328 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production If you clear the box, you can change either Start or End spinners to whatever you want. This allows you to keep your scene range locked to its native length, and still provides flexibility for mapping an arbitrary scene range to an arbitrary Video Post range. Lock to V ideo Post Range—Renders the same range of scene frames as Video Post frames. You can set the Video Post range in the Execute Video Post dialog.
Add Image Input Event 4. Click Options to choose the size and placement Devices—Lets you choose an installed hardware of the image in the final video frames. input device, for example, a digital disk recorder. An Image Input Options dialog appears. Options—Displays the Image Input Options dialog 5. Adjust other Image Input settings, and then click OK. The Image Input event appears at the end of the queue.
330 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production An Add Image Filter Event dialog appears. Add Image Filter Event Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Make sure no events are selected in the queue. > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event The Add Image Filter Event provides image processing for images and scenes. Several kinds of image filters are provided, see list below. For example, the Negative filter inverts the colors of an image and the Fade filter fades an image in or out over time.
Add Image Layer Event Interface Files—Select a file to use as a mask. The name of the selected file appears above the Files button. Options—Displays an Image Input Options dialog (page 3–342) where you can set alignment and size, relative to the frames of video output. For animated images, you can also synchronize the mask with the frame sequence of video output. This is the same dialog used for Image Input Event options. Enabled—Enables the mask.
332 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production of the plug-in compositor. The list might include plug-ins for special transformations, such as wipes, etc. An Image layer event is always a parent event with two children. The children can themselves be parents with children. The children of an Image Layer event can be Scene events, Image Input events, Layer events that contain Scene or Image Input events, or Filter events that contain Scene or Image Input events.
Add Image Layer Event Layer Plug-In group Label—Lets you give the event a unique name, making it easier to distinguish in a long list of events. Layer List—Selects the compositor 3ds Max uses for layering the rendered images in the queue. Alpha is the default compositor, but you can also choose from any others you have installed. See the separate help topics for descriptions of the compositors that come with 3ds Max.
334 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production disabling a composite layer event does not disable the composited image events. The range bars of disabled events are unavailable in the event track area.
Add External Event Interface Video Post Parameters group VP Start Time/End Time—Sets the starting and ending frames for the selected event within the overall Video Post queue. Video Post renders the event over the number of frames specified here. Enabled—Enables or disables the event. When this box is clear, the event is disabled and Video Post ignores it when rendering the queue. Each event must be disabled individually.
336 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 4. Use the file dialog to choose the external Interface program you want to execute, and then click OK. 5. If the external program accepts command-line options, enter these in the Command Line Options field. 6. If you want the external program to read the current Video Post image, select Write Image to Clipboard. 7. If you want Video Post to use the result of the external program, select Read Image from Clipboard. 8. Click OK.
Add Loop Event %h is replaced with a 4-digit image height (for example, 0480) For example, if the given command line option is: -w%w -h%h -oframe%f.tga The string sent to the external program might be: -w0640 -h0480 -oframe0001.tga Write image to clipboard—Writes the current rendered image to the Windows clipboard for retrieval by an external application. Read image from clipboard—Reads the contents of the Windows clipboard after processing by the external application.
338 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Interface overall Video Post queue. Video Post renders the event over the number of frames specified here. Enabled—Enables or disables the event. When this box is clear, the event is disabled and Video Post ignores it when rendering the queue. Each event must be disabled individually. For example, disabling a composite layer event does not disable the composited image events. The range bars of disabled events are unavailable in the event track area.
Edit Scene Event Procedures To match scene frames with Video Post frames: • Turn on Lock to Video Post Range. Frames in the scene match Video Post frames and have the same frame number. Frame 0 in the scene is frame 0 in the Video Post dialog, and so on. The range bar for the Scene event represents which portion of the scene is selected. If the range covers Video Post frames 25 to 35, executing the queue renders scene frames 25 to 35.
340 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production moving object, instead of the default single image. Interface Scene Motion Blur—Turns on the scene motion-blur (page 3–1101) effect for the whole scene. This is different from object motion blur (page 3–1075), which creates motion blur for individual objects in the scene. Duration—Sets the virtual shutter speed for motion blur. When it’s set to 1.0, the virtual shutter is open for the entire duration between one frame and the next.
Edit Image Input Event Lock to V ideo Post Range—Renders the same range of scene frames as Video Post frames. You can set the Video Post range in the Execute Video Post dialog. Video Post Parameters group VP Start Time/End Time—Sets the starting and ending frames for the selected event within the overall Video Post queue. Video Post renders the event over the number of frames specified here. Enabled—Enables or disables the event.
342 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production This can change the image resolution, causing it to be rescaled for every frame. • Choose Custom Size and then enter the width and height of the image in the output frame. To control playback of an animated image: 1. In the Frames group of the Image Input Options Options—Displays the Image Input Options dialog (page 3–342) to allow you to set up alignment, size, and frame range for the Image Input. Cache—Stores a bitmap in memory.
Image Input Options you also use it to synchronize the Image Input event with the frame sequence of video output. The same dialog appears when you click Options from the Mask area of the Filter Event and Layer Event dialogs. Interface Procedures To align the input image, do one of the following in the Image Input Options dialog: • Choose Presets and then click one of the preset alignment buttons. • Choose Coordinates and then enter the X,Y coordinates for the image’s location.
344 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production if the frame range used is less than the Video Post frame range. Procedures To choose the mask file: 1. Click Files. Edit Filter Event 2. Use the file dialog to choose the mask file, and then click OK. Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a filter from the Video Post Queue.
Edit Layer Event Filter Plug-In group Label—Lets you edit the event name. Filter List—Lists the filter plug-ins (page 3–1089) disabling a composite layer event does not disable the composited image events. The range bars of disabled events are unavailable in the event track area. you have installed. See the separate help topics for a description of the filters that come with 3ds Max. About—Provides version/source information specific to the plug-in. Setup—Displays a setup dialog specific to the plug-in.
346 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production An Image Input Options dialog (page 3–342) appears, identical to the dialog you use with Image Input events. to the foreground image. The rate of the cross fade is determined by the length of the Cross Fade Transition filter’s time range. If the mask is animated, you also use this dialog to specify its time range and playback speed.
Edit Output Image Event Options—Displays a Image Input Options dialog (page 3–342) in which you can set alignment and size, relative to the frames of video output. For animated images, you can also synchronize the mask with the frame sequence of video output. This is the same dialog used for Image Input Event options. Enabled—Enables the mask.
348 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Interface overall Video Post queue. Video Post renders the event over the number of frames specified here. Enabled—Enables or disables the event. When this box is clear, the event is disabled and Video Post ignores it when rendering the queue. Each event must be disabled individually. For example, disabling a composite layer event does not disable the composited image events. The range bars of disabled events are unavailable in the event track area.
Edit Loop Event Interface For example, if the given command line option is: -w%w -h%h -oframe%f.tga The string sent to the external program might be: -w0640 -h0480 -oframe0001.tga Write image to clipboard—Writes the current rendered image to the Windows clipboard for retrieval by an external application. Read image from clipboard—Reads the contents of the Windows clipboard after processing by the external application.
350 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production A Loop event is always a parent event with a single child. The child itself can be a parent with children. Any type of event can be the child of a Loop event, including another Loop event. The Loop event’s range bar displays the original duration of the child event’s playback in color and the range of looped events in gray.
Edit Fade Filter Interface Interface Contrast—Set the spinner between 0 and 1.0. You can set the following controls in the Setup Options: This compresses or expands the latitude between maximum black and maximum white by creating a 16-bit look-up table for any given gray value in the image. The computation of the gray value depends on whether you select Absolute or Derived. Brightness—Set the spinner between 0 and 1.0. This increases or decreases all color components (red, green, and blue).
352 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production The G-Buffer ID can be any positive integer. If you give the same G-Buffer ID value to more than one object, all these objects will be post-processed. Edit Negative Filter Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a Negative Filter. > Video Post toolbar > Edit Current Event > Setup Interface Effect of negative filter You can set the following: The Negative Filter inverts the colors in the image, making it negative like a negative color photograph.
Edit Simple Wipe Filter There is also a layer event called the Pseudo Alpha Interface Compositor (page 3–356). There are no Setup options for this filter. Edit Simple Wipe Filter Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a Simple Wipe Filter. > Video Post toolbar > Edit Current Event > Setup The Simple Wipe Filter reveals or erases the foreground image with a wipe transition. Unlike the Wipe Layer (page 3–357) event, Wipe Filter wipes across a fixed image.
354 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production 3. Select the Scene Event in the queue, click Add Image Filter, select the Starfield filter, and click the Setup button. 4. In the Stars Control dialog, make sure that the Dimmest Star—Specifies the dimmest star. Range = 0 to 255. Brightest Star—Specifies the brightest star. Range = 0 to 255. selected camera matches the camera used in the Scene Event.
Edit Alpha Compositor Compositing group Background—Composites the stars in the background. This is the default. Foreground—Composites the stars in the Edit Cross Fade Compositor Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a Cross Fade Compositor. > Video Post toolbar > Edit Current Event foreground.
356 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Edit Pseudo Alpha Compositor Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a Pseudo-Alpha Compositor. > Video Post toolbar > Edit Current Event 2. Select both events and assign an Image Layer event consisting of the Pseudo-Alpha Composite Filter. Edit Simple Additive Compositor Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a Simple Additive Compositor.
Edit Simple Wipe Compositor Edit Simple Wipe Compositor Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Select a Simple Wipe Compositor. > Video Post toolbar > Edit Current Event Left-pointing arrow—Wipes from right to left. Mode Push—Reveals the image. Pop—Erases the image. The Simple Wipe Compositor reveals or erases the foreground image with a wipe transition. Unlike the Wipe Filter (page 3–353), the Wipe Layer event moves the image, sliding it in or out.
358 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production highest value of any of the color components. Derived uses an average of the three color components. Add Fade Filter Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Fade Filter from the Filter Plug-In list. The Fade Filter fades an image in or out over time. Add Image Alpha Filter Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Image Alpha Filter from the Filter Plug-In list.
Add Negative Filter entire scene or can be generated around specific objects in your scene. Lens Effects are applied through the Video Post interface. To learn about adding scene and image filter events to the video post queue, see Add Scene Event (page 3–325), and Add Image Filter Event (page 3–330). 3. In the Object Properties dialog, set G-Buffer Object Channel to a non-zero value, and then click OK. The G-Buffer ID can be any positive integer.
360 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Video Post track in the Track View – Curve Editor. Specifically, in the above example, you’ll find the following hierarchy in the Curve Editor: Because only one pixel color becomes clear, edges of the opaque areas are aliased. The main use for this filter is when you want to composite a bitmap whose format does not have an alpha channel. There is also a Pseudo Alpha Layer Event (page 3–352). There are no Setup options for this filter.
Add Starfield Filter -->Simple Wipe (filter) Procedure ------>Image #2 To use the Starfield filter: The rate of the wipe is determined by the length of the Wipe filter’s time range. The area not covered by the image renders as black unless you use an Image Layer event to composite the Wipe filter with another image. Interface 1. Create a camera and (optionally) animate the camera’s or target’s position, field of view, and roll. 2.
362 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Interface Use—Determines whether to use the motion blur. If clear, the stars appear as dots, no matter what the camera’s motion. Amount—The percentage of the frame time that the camera "shutter" is open. Default = 75%. Dimming—Determines how the streaked stars will dim as their trails lengthen. The default of 40 provides a good effect for video, dimming them a bit so they don’t appear to flash.
Add Alpha Compositor Adding Image Layer Events rate of the cross fade is determined by the length of the Cross Fade Transition filter’s time range. There are no Setup options for this compositor. Add Alpha Compositor Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Make sure the two child events are in the order you want the Image Layer event to use them. > Select the two events. > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Layer Event > Choose Alpha Compositor from the Layer Plug-in list.
364 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Add Simple Additive Compositor Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post window > Make sure the two child events are in the order you want the Image Layer event to use them. > Select the two events. > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Layer Event > Choose Simple Additive Compositor from the Layer Plug-in list. Additive compositing The Simple Additive Compositor composites the two images using the second image’s intensity (HSV value) to determine transparency.
Animating Lens Effects Properties Image Layer event to composite the Wipe filter with another image. green button turns gray to indicate the parameter can no longer be animated. Interface There are two ways to set Lens Effects parameters for use in animation: • Enable the Auto Key button, set the frame in which you want to create a key, and set the value. • Use Track View.
366 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Warning: When you animate Lens Effects parameters, this creates pointers into the actual scene, so Lens Effects animation is lost if you save the Video Post queue in a VPX file (page 3–1125). To preserve the animation, save the Video Post data, including Lens Effects animation, in the MAX file. Interface Flare Filter Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Flare from Filter Plug-In list.
Lens Effects Flare Filter main preview window indicates that it is updating a change made within the lens flare dialog. Preview—When you click the Preview button, the window displays your flare in the upper left corner if your flare has automatic or manual secondary elements. If your flare does not contain these elements, the flare is centered in the preview window. If the VP Queue button is not on, the preview displays a generic flare to which you can make adjustments.
368 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production mimics a camera, in which the aperture does not rotate. Rays, stars, and streaks don’t animate either unless you turn on their individual Auto Rotate toggles. Intensity—Controls the overall brightness and opacity of the flare. Higher values produce bright, more opaque flares, and lower values produce dim, transparent flares. This parameter can be animated.
Flare Preferences Flare Parameter tabs Let you create and control the lens flare. Each of the nine tabs controls a specific aspect of the lens flare. Warning: When you animate Lens Effects parameters, this creates pointers into the actual scene, so Lens Effects animation is lost if you save the Video Post queue in a VPX file (page 3–1125). To preserve the animation, save the Video Post data, including Lens Effects animation, in the MAX file. A flare is composed of eight basic parts.
370 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Alpha channels are used to composite one image seamlessly over the top of another. If you want to composite a lens flare, or an image that contains a lens flare, over the top of another image, enable this option. If you are not rendering to a 32-bit file, do not enable this option. Affect Z Buffer—The Z-Buffer stores an object’s distance from the camera. The Z-Buffer is useful for optical effects such as fog.
Flare Glow Parameters Flare Glow Parameters Flare Ring Parameters Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Flare from Filter Plug-In list. > Setup > Glow tab Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Flare from Filter Plug-In list. > Setup > Ring tab The glow of a lens flare is centered around the source object of the flare.
372 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Gradients—Use radial, circular, transparency, and size gradients (page 3–392). a percentage of the overall image. This parameter can be animated (page 3–365). Max—Controls the maximum size of secondary Automatic Secondary Flare Parameters Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Flare from Filter Plug-In list.
Manual Secondary Flare Parameters Manual Secondary Flare Parameters Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Flare from Filter Plug-In list. > Setup > M Sec tab Manual secondary flares are additional secondary flares that are individually added to the lens flare. These can be used in addition to, or in place of automatic secondary flares (page 3–372). You use Manual secondary flares when you want to add unique flares that you don’t want repeated.
374 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production You control the parameters for rays in the Rays panel of the Lens Effects Flare dialog. Interface Hue—Specifies the gradation of the color of the rays. This parameter can be animated. Sharp—Specifies the overall sharpness of the rays. Higher numbers produce crisp, clean, and clear rays. Lower numbers produce more of a secondary glow look. Values range from 0 to 10. This parameter can be animated. Gradients—Defines the gradient (page 3–392) for the rays.
Flare Streak Parameters and negative values so, when animated, the star spokes rotate in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. This parameter can be animated. Random—Enables random spacing of star spokes Flare Streak Parameters Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Flare from Filter Plug-In list. > Setup > Streak tab around the flare center. Qty—Specifies the number of spokes in the star effect. Default = 6.
376 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Angle spinner under Lens Flare Properties. Auto Rotate also ensures that the stars maintain their relative position to the flare as it is being animated. Interface Hue—Specifies the gradation of the color of the streak. This parameter can be animated. Sharp—Specifies the overall sharpness of the streak. Higher numbers produce crisp, clean, and clear streaks. Lower numbers produce more of a secondary glow look. Valid values are from 0 to 10.
Lens Effects Focus Filter the direction set by the Direction spinner. For example, if you want to simulate a raging fire, you want the fractal patterns to move upward. This parameter can be animated (page 3–365). fractal inferno patterns. Higher values result in fractal patterns with brighter colors. Lower values result in the same patterns, with muted colors. This parameter can be animated. Direction—Specifies the direction, in degrees, of the inferno effect motion.
378 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Warning: This filter is not supported by the mental ray Interface renderer (page 3–77). Procedure To save your focus settings, do one of the following: You can save all of your lens focus settings to a file, so you can reload them any time. Lens Effects Focus settings are saved as LZO files. • Click the Reset button. This resets Lens Effects Focus to its default settings. • Click the Load button.
Lens Effects Focus Filter determine how much blurring is applied to the scene. Scene Blur—Applies the blurring effect to the entire scene, not just a portion of it. Radial Blur—Applies the blurring effect to the entire scene in a radial fashion, starting at the center of the frame. This is useful for emphasizing fish-eye lens effects and effects where the edges of the frame are blurred. This type of Focus depends on the Focal Range and Limit settings. A scene with a radial blur is applied.
380 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Interface Glow Filter Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Glow from Filter Plug-In list. > Setup The Lens Effects Glow dialog lets you add a glowing aura around any assigned object. For example, for an exploding particle system, adding a glow to the particles makes them seem as though they are brighter and hotter. The Lens Effects Glow module is multi-threaded and will take advantage of multi-processing machines.
Glow Properties Focus Control tabs The Lens Effect Glow dialog contains four tabs: Properties (page 3–381), Preferences (page 3–383), Gradients (page 3–392), and Inferno (page 3–384) Button group Reset—Resets Lens Effects Glow to its default sub-object/sub-material level. The Effects Channel ID of the parent Multi/Sub-Object material is ignored. To set up an RLA file so it saves Object and Material Effects channel data: 1. Place an Image Output Event in the Video Post Queue. settings. 2.
382 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production pixel in the scene a potential glow source. The areas of the scene that have glow applied to them are determined by the settings in the Filter section of the dialog. Object ID—Lets you apply the glow to an object or part of an object with a specific Object ID (in the G-buffer (page 3–1040)), if the object matches the Filter settings. To apply an Object ID glow for an object, right-click the object and select properties from the menu. Then, set the Object Channel ID.
Glow Preferences ones to actually apply the Glow to. Glow uses the filter controls to find out which source pixels to apply a glow to. All—Selects all source objects in the scene and Glow Preferences Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Glow from Filter Plug-In list. > Setup > Preferences tab applies a glow to them. Edge—Selects all source objects along a boundary edge and applies a glow to them.
384 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Bright—Lets you fade the brightness of the glow effect based on the distance from the camera. This is ideal for submarine running lights and any other effect where you want your glow to disappear into the distance. This parameter can be animated (page 3–365). Size—Lets you fade the size of the glow effect based on the distance from the camera. In most circumstances, you want the overall size of the glow to diminish as it gets farther away from the camera.
Lens Effects Highlight Filter Motion—When you animate the inferno, motion specifies how fast the inferno patterns move in the direction set by the Direction spinner. For example, if you want to simulate a raging fire, you want the fractal patterns to move upward. This parameter can be animated (page 3–365). Direction—Specifies the direction, in degrees, of the inferno effect motion. By default, 0 is aligned in the 12 o’clock position, and works clockwise. This parameter can be animated.
386 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production This displays a Windows-standard Save As dialog in which you specify a directory and filename. Interface Example of highlights Another good example of an effect perfect for Highlight is the creation of pixie dust. If you create a particle system and animate it moving in a straight line with small four-point Highlight stars applied to each pixel, it will look a lot like twinkling magic.
Highlight Properties Preview—Activates a generic cross star filter so you can quickly set up a Highlight effect. However, as with the Glow module, it is more effective seeing your entire scene and how your effect will interact with your geometry. highlights applied to them, as well as how the highlights are to be applied. Interface VP Queue—Lets you preview the scene in the Video Post queue. Preview must be selected for the VP Queue function to work.
388 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production material one of the eight Material Effects channels that are available. See G-Buffer (page 3–1040). This parameter can be animated. The highlights are then only applied to areas of the geometry where that particular ID is present. Note: In many instances, you may want to apply different highlight settings to different pieces of geometry or ID’s. To accomplish this, add additional Lens Effects Highlight entries to the Video Post queue.
Highlight Geometry Edge highlights Perimeter highlights Perimeter Alpha—Applies a highlight only to the perimeter of an object based on its alpha channel. Selecting this option highlights only the outside of an object without any spill on the interior. Whereas highlighting by Edge produces a spill onto the object, Perimeter Alpha keeps all of the edges clean because it relies on the scene alpha channel to derive it’s effect. Bright—Filters the source objects based on their brightness values.
390 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Interface Effect group Angle—Controls the angle of the highlight points over the course of the animation. This parameter can be animated (page 3–365). Clamp—Determines the number of pixels highlight must read to place a single highlight effect. In many cases, you want to key your highlight effects off of the brightness of objects that can produce a lot of pixels to generate from.
Highlight Preferences Pan—Automatically rotates the individual Highlight elements as they move laterally across the screen. If you have objects in your scene that are passing by the camera, they can be automatically rotated based on their position. The faster your elements move across the screen, the faster they will rotate. Highlight Preferences Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose Lens Effects Highlight from Filter Plug-In list > Setup > Preferences tab Alt.
392 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production If you want to use Focus to blur a highlight, you must select this option. If you are not sure about whether or not to select this option, leave it disabled, because you probably don’t need it. Distance Fade group Intensity—Lets you control the intensity or brightness of the highlights. Values range from 0 to 100. This spinner functions only when you are using either the Pixel or User color methods to control the brightness of the highlight effect.
Lens Effects Gradients When you place two gradient flags on top of one another, you create a sharp break in the gradient. When a third flag is placed on top of the second flag, a sharp edge appears in the gradient. Warning: When you animate Lens Effects parameters, this creates pointers into the actual scene, so Lens Effects animation is lost if you save the Video Post queue in a VPX file (page 3–1125). To preserve the animation, save the Video Post data, including Lens Effects animation, in the MAX file.
394 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production Gradient Options Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose a Lens Effects Filter from the Filter Plug-In list. > Setup > Gradient tab Each gradient in Lens Effects has a set of common options. Right-clicking the gradient bar displays a shortcut menu with the following options. Interface Load Bitmap—Displays a 3ds Max file browser so you can select a bitmap to use as your gradient.
Types of Gradients you set in one gradient are used exclusively to achieve the effect. Average—Calculates an average value between the colors. In the example above, the resulting color would be 175, 225, 225. This option is good if you want to mix gradient values and results in effects that are not as bright as High Value. Low Value—Selects the lower color values, resulting in a less intense lens flare and a more subtle overall effect. In the example above, the resulting color would be 100,210,295.
396 Chapter 19: Video Post-Production with brighter values producing bigger sizes and darker values producing shorter sizes. Gradient Colors Rendering menu > Video Post > Video Post toolbar > Add Image Filter Event > Choose a lens effects filter from the Filter plug-in list. > Setup > Gradient tab Scheme of a circular gradient Color (Radial and Circular)—Defines the colors used (page 3–396) for an effect. This is based on the RGB color system, but can also be set with HSV.
Managing Scenes and Projects Managing Scenes and Projects These topics are concerned with managing scenes, projects, and the files that make them up. • The Bitmap / Photometric Path Editor utility (page 3–511) lets you view bitmap paths or remove them from the scene file. • The File Finder (page 3–511) is another resource for finding 3ds Max scenes. Working with AutoCAD and Architectural Desktop • The Resource Collector (page 3–513) copies or moves a scene’s bitmaps into a single directory.
398 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects RAM Player Save Selected (page 3–404) You can preview images by using the View File command (page 3–503), or by using the more interactive RAM Player (page 3–685).
New New File menu > New Keyboard > CTRL+N New clears the contents of the current scene without changing system settings (viewport configuration, snap settings, Material Editor, background image, and so on). The New command also gives you the option, when you use it while a populated scene is active, to reuse objects from the current scene in the new one. Procedure To create a new scene: 1. Choose File > New or press CTRL+N. 2. In the New Scene dialog, specify the types of objects to keep, if any.
400 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Open File menu > Open Keyboard > CTRL+O Open loads a scene file (MAX file), character file (CHR file), or VIZ Render file (DRF File (page 3–528)) from an Open File dialog. You can also choose a previously opened file and use command-line options (page 3–719). The MAX file type is a complete scene file. A CHR file is a character file saved with Character menu > Save Character.
Open from Vault To start 3ds Max and open a specific file: • In a command prompt window, specify the file name after the executable name. For example: c:\3dsmax\3dsmax.exe myproject.max To start 3ds Max and open the last file you worked on: • In a command prompt window, type -L after the executable name: c:\3dsmax\3dsmax.exe l Interface If you resave the scene, you will overwrite the file.
402 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Procedure To use Open From Vault: 1. Open the File menu and choose Open From Vault. 2. If you’re not logged in to a provider, you’re asked to log in via the Vault Log In dialog. Fill out the form and then click OK. After you click OK, the Browse For Folder dialog opens, which you can use to specify a working folder. 3. Use the Open File From Vault dialog to browse the vault and choose a MAX file to open. 4.
Save As Saving to an Obsolete File When you open a file that was created with an earlier version of the software, and then attempt to save it in a current version of 3ds Max, an alert is displayed, warning you are about to overwrite the obsolete file. A .chr file is a character file saved with Character menu > Save Character. For more information on the .chr file format, see Character Assembly (page 2–681) and Save Character (page 2–686).
404 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Clicking the plus button appends a sequence number to the file name you entered, or increments the sequence number if the name already has one, and then saves the file to that name. Interface For example, if you have highlighted a file named test00.max, clicking the plus button changes the name to test01.max and then saves test01.max.
Referencing Objects, Materials, and Scenes Procedure To save selected objects to a new file: 1. Select one or more objects. 2. Choose File > Save Selected. 3. Enter a name in the File Name field. 4. Click Save. External References (XRefs) to Objects and Scenes Referencing Objects, Materials, and Scenes You can use two kinds of externally referenced files (XRefs): XRef Objects (page 3–406) and XRef Scenes (page 3–416).
406 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects However, if you merge the objects into the target scene, you can edit them in the stack. However, changes that you make to the modifier stack in the target file have no effect in the source file. Note: The XRef behavior of world-space modifiers is different than the object-space modifiers.
XRef Objects the source file can cause XRefs in the target file to become unresolved. XRef objects can be modified or transformed in your current scene just like any other object. XRef objects also allow the use of proxy objects to stand in or substitute for geometry. Use XRef objects to manage the complexity of your scene during animation by substituting “lightweight” proxy objects for more complex geometry.
408 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Record From File. This includes all objects and materials, and bypasses the XRef Merge dialog. 3. Highlight the objects that you want to add as XRefs, and then click OK. 4. The XRef record appears in the upper list of the XRef Objects dialog and has the same name as its source file. The entities appear in the lower list, where an entity can be either an object or a material. Make additional choices at this time if you like.
XRef Objects Dialog conflict that there was in versions of 3ds Max prior to v8. However, if you choose a different source object for an existing XRef object, this is resolved by object name. In this case, if the XRef source file contains multiple objects with the same name, 3ds Max might not properly define which one will be used. Interface XRef Record toolbar Use these tools to create and update XRef records.
410 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Warning: If you update an XRef in a scene with radiosity (page 3–50), probably this will invalidate the radiosity solution. After you update the XRef, reset the radiosity solution and then recalculate it. Merge in Scene—Converts all objects for the highlighted record into native objects in your target scene. The objects, materials, and manipulators are no longer referenced from the source file but become part of your target scene.
XRef Objects Dialog If you create an XRef record when Include All is turned off, only those entities selected for that XRef record (in the XRef Merge dialog) will be a part of the record: any new objects created in the source file will not be part of the record. If Include All is turned on when you create a record, then any new objects created in the source file will be included in the XRef record when you reopen or Update the target file.
412 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects will appear in the modifier stack in the Modify panel. They are applied to the XRef object and can be changed in the modifier stack. However, if you make changes in the target file, these changes are not reflected back into the source file. • Ignore—Any modifiers assigned to the XRef object (in the source file) are disregarded and the base object is brought into the scene as an XRef object.
XRef Files List Right-Click Menu XRef Entities list Displays the XRef objects and materials that belong to the record that is currently highlighted in the XRef Record list. If no source file is highlighted, this list is empty. Right-clicking the XRef Entities list displays a pop-up menu (page 3–415) that has further options for managing the list and the objects and materials in it.
414 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects File Submenu Open—Opens the source file. If you have not saved changes to the current, target file, 3ds Max prompts you to do so. Browse—Displays a file dialog that lets you browse for a new source file. The file you choose replaces the selected file record in the XRef Objects dialog. Reveal Location in Explorer—Launches an instance of Windows Explorer, open to the folder in which the selected source file resides. Update—Refreshes the contents of all XRefs.
XRef Entities List Right-Click Menu list below. This works on a XRef record basis, so all entities belonging to the highlighted XRef record are converted. The contents of the source file are not affected by this button. Merging an XRef object loads the full modifier stack of the original object into the target scene (your current scene), while maintaining any additional stack items that were added while the object was an XRef.
416 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects restore the XRefed source material if the material was originally merged into the target scene. Merge XRef File Dialog File menu > XRef Objects > XRef Objects dialog > XRef Files window > Add When you merge an object that’s linked to a parent object in a source scene, and an object of the same name as the original parent exists in the current scene, you can recreate the same hierarchy using this dialog.
XRef Scene source scene is protected from any modifications you might make to the XRef scene. Updates or changes made to the source scenes are also updated in the target file once the changes are made and saved to the source file. The XRef scene feature allows team members working on a project to have access to each other’s work without the risk of changing the files. A modeler can create a setting, while a second modeler might create a character.
418 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects XRefed a CAD file that lays out the plumbing of the building, as well as a scene of ground terrain that contains some XRefs to some trees. The XRef scene graph might look like this: The building scene XRefs the terrain and the plumbing data. The terrain scene XRefs the trees. You decide you are the only one who needs to see the CAD plumbing data.
XRef Scene Procedures To add an XRef scene: 1. Choose File > XRef Scene. 2. Click the Add button. An Open File dialog appears that lets you locate the .max file you wish to reference. A thumbnail display is provided to help you identify your file. 3. Click Open to bring the XRef scene into your current .max scene. 4. The path and file name of the selected file appears in the XRef Files window. You can add as many files as you like; each one appears in the XRef Files window. 5.
420 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects This works best if both the parent object and the XRef scene have their pivot points positioned at 0,0,0. You can do this by using Transform Type-In to move the parent object. If the XRef scene was created a large distance from the origin, you can run into a problem. As you try to scale, the XRef scene will move away from the center. To counteract this problem, you can create a second dummy object centered over the XRef scene.
XRef Scenes Dialog XRef File path field—Lets you change the path or file pointed to by a selected XRef scene. To use, choose one of the XRef scenes in the list, and then change the information in the field. You can either directly enter a new file name or path, or you can click the Browse button to the right of the field, and then choose a new file from the resulting file dialog. The new XRef scene that you choose replaces the one currently highlighted in the list.
422 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects are not set to Automatic). When you click Update Now, the XRef is updated to match the latest saved version of the source scene. Display Options group These options let you specify how the selected XRefs are displayed in viewports. These options have no effect on the rendered scene. Visible—Turn on or off to display or hide the selected XRefs. This affects the visibility of the XRef in the viewports only (not in renderings).
XRef Object Rollout XRef Object Rollout Select an XRef object. > Modify panel > XRef Object rollout When you’ve selected an XRef object in a scene, the XRef Object rollout appears along with the Proxy Object rollout (page 3–423) on the Modify panel. The modifier stack for the XRef object simply displays “XRef Object.” Interface Highlight Corresponding XRef Record in the XRef Dialog—Click to display the XRef Objects dialog (page 3–408), with the object highlighted in the XRef Objects list.
424 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Missing XRef Paths Dialog File menu > Open > Open a file that references other missing files. If you load or render a scene with XRefs, but the originally specified path of the XRef object or scene can’t be found, or if the XRef object name doesn’t match the object name in the source file, an alert appears telling you this. The alert works in the same way as the missing bitmap dialog, and provides you with three options, described below.
Working with Drawing Files Using File Link with AutoCAD and Architectural Desktop Files are commonly organized by layers, blocks, and objects, and 3ds Max scenes are organized by hierarchies of objects. For translating between systems, 3ds Max includes object types called VIZBlocks (page 3–1125) and Block/Style Parents (page 3–1012).
426 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects geometry in your scene. Note, however, that 3ds Max won’t edit or change your original linked file. The integrity of your other software’s design database is never compromised by the File Link Manager. Finally, if you decide to break a link to a linked file, there are two options. You can use Bind to keep the objects from the linked file in your scene, or you can use Detach to have them removed along with the link.
File Link Basics 3ds Max after a file link reload. These include adding or removing objects, moving objects, changing material assignments (specific to ADT and Revit drawings), and enabling Live Section objects (specific to ADT drawings). Changes made in 3ds Max, such as moving objects, changing material assignments, and adding lights, will never appear in your AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop or Revit drawing.
428 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects File Link Tips Here are some tips for choosing File Linking options and avoiding common pitfalls. • Turn on the Force 2-Sided switch in the Render Scene dialog (to render the faces correctly), and turn on Force 2-Sided in the Viewport Configuration dialog (to display the faces correctly in the viewports.) Linked Data and Face-Normal Conventions • Apply a material with the 2–Sided switch turned on.
File Link Tips • by excluding specific layers during the File Link Attach/Reload process or Import process so you do not have to freeze layers in the drawing. This is the preferred workflow. If you need this type of 2D geometry in your visualization, try to use polylines instead of connected lines to get cleaner geometry in 3ds Max and to reduce the final size of your scene.
430 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects copies are automatically converted to editable mesh or editable spline objects. If your selection contains several objects which instance another object, the resulting copies also instance the same object. Compound Objects Containing Actively Linked Objects If you use an actively linked object as part of a compound object, you should always choose Copy when you specify how the linked object is transferred to the compound object.
Scale Synchronization to any layer you choose, including layers created by the File Link Manager. Linked objects from AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop or Revit, with some minor exceptions, will be assigned to the same layers they occupy in program where the drawing was created. Any changes made to the layer settings in 3ds Max (hidden/unhidden, frozen/unfrozen, display color) affect linked objects just as they do unlinked objects.
432 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects You can establish, refresh, and break links to any number of linked files. You can also edit out unnecessary information by using layers and other filters. The File Link Manager defines which geometry is included in the 3ds Max scene from the linked file, how the geometry is organized, and when it’s regenerated. The objects that you bring in from linked files behave just like any other object created in 3ds Max.
File Link Manager Utility 3. Click OK to reload the file. Interface The File Link Manager dialog contains three panels for listing linked files: • Attach (page 3–433) • Files (page 3–434) • Presets (page 3–435) These panels let you attach files, update attachments and settings, and change presets used by File Link. The terminology is similar to the terminology for managing AutoCAD external references, or xrefs (page 3–1130). Note: An xref is an AutoCAD external reference.
434 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Attach This File—Attaches the selected file to your scene, using the settings selected in the Preset list, if one was selected. Close—Cancels all changes to settings and closes the dialog. Files panel Reload—Refreshes the link between the file and the 3ds Max session. This feature is useful when the file has been modified and you want to see the changes reflected in your 3ds Max scene.
File Link Settings Dialog Manager uses the reload settings stored in the current scene. Close—Cancels all changes to settings and closes the dialog. Presets panel Close—Cancels all changes to settings and closes the dialog. File Link Settings Dialog File menu > File Link Manager > Files tab > Turn on Show Reload Options. > Click Reload. Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > More button > File Link Manager > Files tab > Turn on Show Reload Options. > Click Reload.
436 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Basic File Link Settings Interface File menu > File Link Manager > Reload a linked file with Show Reload turned on. > File Link Settings dialog > Basic panel File menu > File Link Manager > Presets panel > Select an existing preset and click Modify. > File Link Settings dialog > Basic panel File menu > File Link Manager > Presets panel > Create a new preset.
Basic File Link Settings to the smooth angle, the faces are smoothed (that is, put in the same smoothing group). Unify Normals—Analyzes the face normals of each object and flips normals where necessary, so they all point in a direction that is consistent with adjoining faces. If the imported geometry isn’t properly welded, or if the AutoCAD geometry did not contain or specify normal information, normals might be oriented in the wrong direction.
438 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects defines the number of segments between knot points. A low value gives you a more linear interpolation between the knot points; a higher number gives you a more accurate curve. Advanced File Link Settings File menu > File Link Manager > Reload a linked file with Show Reload turned on.
Advanced File Link Settings Interface Note: This Derive By setting may cause unreliable material propagation when linking drawings containing dynamic blocks. Materials may propagate to some block instances and not to others. Warning: This option has the potential to create an enormous number of objects in your scene. • Layer—Linked objects are combined in 3ds Max, according to their layer.
440 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Note: Excluding unnecessary objects from linking can improve the performance of the reload operation. Create helper at drawing origin—When this is on, 3ds Max inserts the user coordinate system icon as an origin point helper. 3ds Max places this helper at the world origin of the linked file. It’s a reference point for all the geometry of the linked file.
Spline Rendering File Link Settings want to speed up the time it takes to reload the geometry. The following options are available: shape, its smoothing, mapping coordinates and if they can be rendered. Interface • Selected in Scene—Reloads only the objects currently selected in your scene. • Selected in List—Reloads only the objects that you choose from a named list. This list is defined by clicking Linked Objects. Linked Objects—Allows you to reload only objects that you choose from a named list.
442 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects generated by the Viewport settings. Available only when Enable In Viewport is on. Generate Mapping Coords—Turn this on to apply Thickness—Specifies the diameter of the viewport or rendered spline mesh. Default=1.0. Range=0.0 to 100,000,000.0. mapping coordinates. Default=off. 3ds Max generates the mapping coordinates in the U and V dimensions. The U coordinate wraps once around the spline; the V coordinate is mapped once along its length.
New Settings Preset Dialog New Settings Preset Dialog Interface File menu > File Link Manager > Presets panel > Copy or New Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > More button > File Link Manager > Presets panel > Copy or New The New Settings Preset dialog creates a new preset in the File Link Manager (page 3–431). The settings of the new preset either use default values (if you clicked New), or they inherit the values of a selected preset (if you clicked Copy).
444 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Preset Editing File menu > File Link Manager > Presets panel > Click a preset > Modify Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > More button > File Link Manager > Presets panel > Click a preset > Modify After you’ve created a preset, you can use this function to adjust its settings. For instance, you might want to make sure Weld is on, or perhaps to include lights or views (cameras).
Resolve External Reference File Dialog Select from list—Lets you select individual active layers to include/exclude. A check mark beside the layer name indicates the layer is selected. All—Includes all layers in the linked file by selecting all of them. You can then deselect just the layers you want to exclude. None—Excludes all layers in the linked file by deselecting all of them. You can then select just the layers you want to include from importing.
446 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Select Linked Objects Dialog object is selected; an X mark indicates the object is deselected. File menu > File Link Manager > Files panel > Select file to reload. > Reload button > File Link Settings dialog > Advanced panel > Turn on Selective Reload. > Linked Objects All—Selects all linked objects in the linked file. Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > More button > File Link Manager > Files panel > Select file to reload.
AutoCAD Geometry in 3ds Max AutoCAD Geometry in 3ds Max AutoCAD Geometry in 3ds Max Using the File Link Manager (page 3–431), 3ds Max maintains a live data link to AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop, or drawings exported from Revit that allows you to use the linked object data in your 3ds Max scene. You can perform various operations on this linked data in 3ds Max for visualization purposes, but nothing you do in 3ds Max will change the base data you see in the source application.
448 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects propagation of transforms are slightly different to mirror the behavior of blocks in AutoCAD. As with AutoCAD objects, linked AutoCAD blocks, of any type, and externally referenced drawings appear in 3ds Max as objects hierarchically grouped below a VIZBlock to reflect the structure of the block or xref in AutoCAD.
Restrictions on Editing AutoCAD Geometry To reset the transforms applied to a linked AutoCAD object: 1. Select a linked object in your scene. 2. On the Command panel, click the Modify tab to display the Modify panel. The name of the linked object appears at the top of the Modify panel, and the modifiers that have been added to the object (if any) are shown on the modifier stack. 3.
450 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Not all modifiers are topology-dependent. When you attempt to use a topology-dependent modifier on linked AutoCAD geometry, a warning dialog is displayed that gives you an opportunity to continue or abort the operation. When you use modifiers on linked AutoCAD objects and blocks, remember that the VIZBlock object you see in 3ds Max does not contain any geometry directly; applying modifiers to VIZBlocks will never have any visible effect.
Materials and Linked Architectural Desktop Objects • Component subtype (for example, in sectioned bodies) • Layer Name in 3ds Max Remarks Xref:Drawing1XRef: 5701 A VIZBlock containing one or more objects found in drawing1.dwg, which is an xref in the linked Architectural Desktop drawing. Window A VIZBlock for an object of class=Window and style=Picture-Arched.
452 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects that tell it how to render the surface of an object given certain lighting conditions. Those material properties that are so central to architectural visualization (that convey surface coloring, surface texture, transparency, and so forth) are only one of many sets of properties covered in an Autodesk Architectural Desktop material definition.
UVW Mapping in Architectural Desktop Objects that is still present in Architectural Desktop. Materials developed in this way can be viewed in Architectural Desktop and rendered with the legacy AutoCAD renderer. Any assignments of these materials to geometry in Architectural Desktop that is made through the RMAT command or its Material dialog in Architectural Desktop will be ignored in 3ds Max.
454 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects “Revit data” is found with an object, the object is treated differently by the import/file link process. The primary differences are: • object naming conventions • scene organization of incoming geometry (how the objects are combined) • parent-child hierarchy of scene objects • possible automatic material assignments Important: 3ds Max cannot directly import (or link) a native Revit project (RVT).
Revit Elements in 3ds Max properties and the graphical representation of system families; they include walls, dimensions, ceilings, roofs, floors, and levels. Besides being a class of elements, families are also a template that allows you to generate new types of items that belong to this family. • Types—Types, also called a family types, are a class of elements within a family that have the exact same values for all type properties.
456 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Imported/File Linked Name Casework Casework Casework Cabinet Import Symbol
Suggested Settings for Revit Projects Suggested Settings and Workflow Suggested Settings for Revit Projects The File Link Manager and DWG/DXF Importer have many settings that you can adjust so you get the best results when linking or importing a drawing that you’ve exported from Revit. In this section, you’ll find some recommended settings that you can use when linking or importing your DWG files.
458 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Elements are occasionally missing Revit embedded data. When this data is missing, the objects are "derived" according to the Derive AutoCAD Primitives By setting. Deriving by either of the Entity choices will not, generally, give you the end result you want and could result in a scene in 3ds Max that contains a vast number of individual objects. In particular, these settings can cause issues with railing balusters.
Material Translation and Linked Revit Objects program. 3ds Max comes into play when you’re ready to produce some higher end renderings and perhaps add some final details. Following is a basic description of the expected workflow between Revit and 3ds Max: 1. You’ve completed most of the design work in Revit and you’re ready to add finishing touches and create some presentation renderings. 2. From Revit, export a DWG file.
460 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Therefore, an AccuRender material that uses a bitmap image in the base texture definition will provide a more accurate translation to 3ds Max. Note: There are some limitations on what is translated between Revit/AccuRender materials and 3ds Max materials because there is not a one-to-one correlation between the two material definitions. Material Assignments The Revit DWG Exporter puts embedded information on each object it exports.
Applying Materials to Linked Revit Objects Applying Materials to Linked Revit Objects As with models that are imported or linked from Architectural Desktop, there are special behaviors exhibited with materials assigned to linked Revit objects. The behavior is controlled by the Propagate Materials To Instances toggle (page 2–1276). When applying materials to a linked drawing in 3ds Max, family and type plays an important role in material management.
462 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects AccuRender materials that are applied to objects in the Revit drawing are translated when you link or import the drawing to 3ds Max. If the texture used for the material is a digital bitmap like a BMP or JPG file, the texture will be included with the material. However, if the texture being used is one of the Procedures, the texture is not translated when the drawing is brought into 3ds Max. In these cases, you will see only the diffuse color.
Instanced Objects, Elements, Blocks and Styles Instanced Objects, Blocks, and Styles The primary structural entities you will find in a model or project that is linked/imported to 3ds Max from AutoCAD, Architectural Desktop or Revit are style-based objects (page 3–467) (in ADT models), family elements (in Revit projects) or blocks (page 3–464) (in both ADT and AutoCAD files). Each style-based object, family element, or block will most likely have many instances (page 3–463) in the 3ds Max scene.
464 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Family Elements When modifiers and materials are assigned to family elements that are imported or linked to 3ds Max, they propagate throughout all instances of the element if their family and type match exactly. For instance, one particular part of your model shows a room with three doors. Two of the doors are Doors and the third is a Doors .
Blocks Chair component of Desk1, the Chair component of all Desk1s in the scene will be moved. If the transform is undesirable, you can use the Reset Transform button (page 3–448) on the Modify panel to put the block or component back to its original position. Note: When assigning a material to a block or block component, you are not prompted to accept or cancel the material propagation. You can only control propagation of materials by toggling Propagate Materials To Instances (page 2–1276).
466 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects the original dynamic block definition in the form of Block: block_name where block_name is the actual name of the dynamic block definition. Dynamic block instances, even those that have been grip-edited, display certain types of instance behavior such as material propagation, if the setting is activated from the Material Editor Options menu (page 2–1272). Below is a table showing instance behavior of dynamic blocks.
Styles When drawings get very complex, finding the block or block instance you want can pose a problem. For example, a common block you might add to a drawing is a table. If you’re designing a corporate headquarters that makes use of several different types of tables, finding the one you want to change becomes more difficult. There are several ways for you to find and select a block more precisely in 3ds Max. • One way is by means of the block’s name.
468 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects double hung, bifold or hinged, solid core or glass pane. You can assign one style to more than one object, and you can modify the parameters of that style to change all the objects that have the same style assigned to them. For more information about how to work with styles in Architectural Desktop, refer to the Architectural Desktop Reference. A style is made up of components. Each component defines dimensions and display properties per view.
Merge Note: If you need to apply a material to individual To select objects or components by name: objects, or object selections, rather than to all objects of the same style, you can use the command Propagate Materials To Instances (page 2–1276). 1. Choose Edit menu > Select By > Name, or press For more information about working with materials and assigning materials to objects in 3ds Max, see Materials (page 2–1239).
470 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Automatic Unit Conversion When Respect System Units in Files is turned on in the Units Setup dialog (page 3–891), in the System Unit Scale group, merged objects from a file with a different scene unit scale are scaled to maintain their correct size in the new scene. No conversion is done when merging files created in 3ds Max 1.x.
Merge Animation To select objects to merge, do any of the following: • Enter the name of an item, or use wildcard characters to specify multiple items that share a set of characters in their names. • Click to select single objects. • Press CTRL and click to add and remove single objects from the selection. Display Subtree—Displays the objects in the list in an indented format. Turn off this option to activate the Sort group options.
472 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects between objects in the same scene. Animation data from several objects can be merged at the same time. Within the Merge Animation dialog, objects eligible for transferring or receiving animation data are called nodes. Source nodes refer to objects from which animation data can be transferred, while current nodes can receive animation data.
Merge Animation 3. Click Source File and choose the animation source file. 4. In the Merge Animation dialog, under Source Objects, use a wildcard expression to specify multiple items that share a set of characters in their names. For example, if the character bones are named Skater_Head, Skater_RFoot, and so on, enter Skater* under Source Objects. 5. Click Refresh for Source Objects. 6. Under Current Objects, use a wildcard expression to filter the current nodes’ prefix or suffix. Click Refresh. 7.
474 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Source Object—Selects a source object from within the current scene. If a source object is selected, the Source File selection is ignored. Merge Animation—Merges the animation data based on settings on this dialog. Before animation data can be merged, Merge Nodes must be listed for their corresponding Current Nodes on the Object Mapping rollout. The progress bar at the bottom of the dialog shows the progress of the merge operation.
Merge Animation Add New Defs—Adds custom attribute definitions to the current object if it doesn’t have the same definitions as the source object. Base Objects—Merges animation data of parameters at the object base level. For example, if a sphere’s Radius parameter is animated, checking this option will merge the Radius animation data. This option will also merge animation data at an object’s sub-object level, such as the animation of vertices on a spline or Editable Mesh object.
476 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Source Objects and Current Objects fields. If no wildcard expressions are entered, source objects are mapped only to current objects with identical names. • All objects in the scene with the same name as the incoming object are replaced by that object. If you have more than one object in the scene with the same name as the incoming object, all of those objects are replaced. Display Options group Show Animated Only—Displays animated objects See also only.
Saving and Loading Animation • Press SHIFT and click to select all objects between the previously selected object and the current object. • Click All or None to select or deselect the entire list. Interface When you choose replace, a standard file selector dialog is displayed. Use the file selector to choose the scene file with the replacement objects. After you click Open, the Replace dialog is displayed.
478 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Mapping is quite flexible: as long as data is comparable, it can be assigned. For example, each key for both position and rotation animation contains three numbers, so you could, if you wanted, assign incoming position data to a current object’s rotation track, or vice versa.
Load Animation 9. To map a pair of tracks manually, click a track in the Current list and another in the Incoming list, and then click the left-arrow (<-) button to the left of the Incoming list. This places the name of the incoming track in the Mapped list, opposite the Current-list track to which it is assigned. 10. To remove a mapping assignment, click its entry in the Mapped list, and then click the -> button. 11. Continue setting up the mapping assignments as needed.
480 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects mapping the animation; that is, specifying which objects in the scene are to receive the loaded animation tracks. For a procedure that outlines the basic method of saving and loading animation, see To use the Save Animation and Load Animation commands (page 3–478).
Save Animation User Data group The User Data list shows any user data present in the XAF file specified in the File Name field. User data can be created via the Save Animation dialog, or by editing the XAF file directly. Save Animation Select one or more animated objects. > File menu > Save Animation Save Animation lets you store animation from your scene to disk in the XML Animation File (XAF) format.
482 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects turn off Keyable for the LookAt track, and then save with Keyable Tracks on. Save—Saves the animation using the current file name. Note: Animated Tracks overrides Keyable Tracks. If a track is keyable but doesn’t contain any animation data, and Animated Tracks is on, the track won’t be saved even if Keyable Tracks is on.
Map Animation Dialog Map Animation Dialog File menu > Load Animation > Open dialog > Edit Mapping File menu > Load Animation > Open dialog > Load Motion > XML Animation dialog > Click Yes. The Map Animation dialog lets you assign incoming animation tracks when using the Load Animation (page 3–479) command. The dialog is resizable and contains three rollouts: for setting up basic parameters, doing the actual mapping, and doing retargeting.
484 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • At Frame—The frame at which the incoming animation is written (Replace) or inserted. Default=0. Relative/Absolute—These options determine how incoming animation affects existing values. Relative starts the loaded motion at the current values of the selected objects in the scene. Absolute sets the values of objects in the scene to those of the incoming motion.
Motion Mapping Parameters Rollout If any controllers are not mappable (for example, a Bezier controller getting mapped into a script), the status line will report the error and highlight the node that couldn’t map in the incoming list. Type—When on, allows mapping only between controllers of the same type. It prevents mapping between two controllers of different types. For example, a controller such as Noise and its parameters will map only to another Noise controller. Default=off.
486 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects transforms. The toggles that follow control display of individual transforms: Interface • Position/X/Y/Z—The Position check box lets you toggle display of all Position tracks, while the X/Y/Z check boxes let you toggle display of the track for each axis. • Rotation/X/Y/Z—The Rotation check box lets you toggle display of all Rotation tracks, while the X/Y/Z check boxes let you toggle display of the track for each axis.
Retargeting Rollout retarget references between the incoming nodes in regards to their scale dependency. Retargeting means to scale the animation so it matches the objects onto which you are mapping the motion. You need to retarget only when the size or proportions of the incoming model differ from the size or proportions of the current model. Retargeting applies to any kind of animation, from matching fight choreographies, to changing a weather balloon’s fly-through trajectory over hills and valleys.
488 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects If the characters are symmetrical and have the same proportions, you can now choose all the mapped tracks in the Retargetable Nodes list. If the characters are not symmetrical, or their proportions are different, then you need to take further steps. 5. In the Derive Scale Between Chains group, The fields in this list are as follows: • Current Mapped Node—Shows the node-to-node mapping, as in “CurrentObject->IncomingObject.
Retargeting Rollout • Multiply Derived Scale—(The default.) When chosen, scaling for the selected mappings is based on both the XYZ settings in this group, and calculations from the Derive Scale Between Chains group and the FK Retargeting Extent group (if that is used). • End—Choose the end of the incoming chain. This is a drop-down list that is restricted to children of the incoming Start object.
490 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects example, the thigh) must be specified. By defining the two chains to compare, 3ds Max can adjust the resulting rotations such that the feet don’t slide. When a character’s limbs are not symmetrical, you can also use these controls to keep rotations proportional. First, highlight the current child (for example, a foot or toe) in the Retargetable Nodes list.
Export Export File menu > Export Export converts and exports 3ds Max scenes in various formats. See the following procedure for a complete list of file types you can export. See also Export Selected (page 3–491) Procedure To export a file: 1. Choose File menu > Export. 2. Choose an export file type from the Files Of Type list in the file selector dialog.
492 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 5. Click the Save button. Asset Tracking Asset Tracking Dialog File menu > Asset Tracking The Asset Tracking feature provides direct access within 3ds Max to asset tracking systems (ATS), also known as providers. You use asset tracking systems to share files such as scene files and bitmaps used in materials with other members of your development team.
Asset Tracking Dialog users via the Vault. For example, you could call the working folder My_Vault. 2. Open the Asset Tracking dialog and log in to the tracking database if necessary. 3. On the Asset Tracking dialog, choose Server menu > Options. 4. On the Vault Options dialog, click the Change button and then use the Browse For Folder dialog to choose the folder you created in step 1. Tip: You can also use the Browse For Folder dialog to create this folder.
494 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Checkin—Lets you check in the highlighted assets in the Asset Tracking dialog list of assets. This opens a dialog that lets you confirm the checkin, specify whether to keep the assets checked out, and enter a comment. Also, if the assets have been edited but not saved locally, you’re prompted to save first. Important: The working folder is a folder on your local drive that mirrors the top-level folder of the provider database structure.
Asset Tracking Dialog Properties—Opens a read-only dialog that shows information about the highlighted asset such as vault and local locations, versions, and check-out status. Get From Provider—Lets you copy files from the database to the local working folder. Use the Get Files dialog to navigate to the folder from which to get files, highlight any number of files, and then click Open.
496 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects in the case of a single asset, the file name. Both versions of the dialog include drop-down history lists for reverting to a previous path or file name. The primary function for this command is to change the path pointed to by 3ds Max for existing assets whose locations have changed. However, for output files such as rendered images and render elements, you can also use Set Path to create and use new output directories.
Asset Tracking Dialog For example, if all maps were originally in various subdirectories within c:\maps\ and the entire subdirectory structure was moved to d:\resources\maps\, you could repath all files simultaneously using Retarget Common Root. To revert to a previous path, choose it from the drop-down list. If you change the common root for output files to a path that doesn’t exist, you’re prompted to confirm that you want to create the folder(s).
498 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects branches are hierarchical, but cannot be expanded or collapsed. Toolbar Refresh—Reloads the asset listing from the local scene and updates the window contents. Status Log—Opens a read-only window showing all status messages received from the Vault during the current session. Tree View—Displays a simplified, hierarchical listing of the assets in the current scene without path or status information.
Prompts Dialog provider, you can rename the provider field (in the section, near the beginning of the file) to Autodesk Vault, as follows: Change: Procedure To set prompts for asset tracking: 1. From the Asset Tracking dialog > Options menu, choose Prompts. Sample Provider Name Example2. Right-click the message to set prompts for.
500 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Icon Meaning File is checked out to you and the local version is the latest. you want to use in the Files tab of the Preferences dialog. Procedures To set up an external archive program: 1. Choose Customize > Preferences. File is checked out to you and the local copy is newer than the latest version. This typically means that you made changes to the file since it was checked out but have not checked it back in.
File Properties Interface The buttons at the bottom of the Summary Info dialog have the following functions: Save to File—Saves the contents of the dialog and descriptive text to a .txt (text) file. Plug-In Info—Displays a subdialog with information about the plug-ins (page 3–1089) used in the scene. By default, the subdialog shows the name and a brief description of each plug-in. Show Details—Shows information about all of the classes supported by each plug-in.
502 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Keywords—Enter keywords that identify your scene here. Comments—Enter personal comments here. Information that you add to the Description field on the Summary Info dialog (page 3–500) will appear in the Comments field and vice-versa. Contents panel When a scene is saved, a summary list of everything contained in the scene is generated and displayed in the Contents tab. If a scene has not been saved, the Contents tab remains empty.
View Image File Delete—Removes a selected Custom property To zoom out in the rendered frame window: from the Properties list. • Press CTRL and right-click. Properties—Displays all Custom properties entered into the scene. To pan the rendered frame window: • Press SHIFT and drag. View Image File File menu > View Image File To use a Microsoft Intellimouse to zoom and pan: 1. Roll the wheel to zoom in or out. 2.
504 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects here also. The history information is saved in the 3dsmax.ini file. Look In—Browses drives and directories. File Name—Displays the name of the selected file. Files of type—Selects the type of files to list in the Exit File menu > Exit Exit closes 3ds Max. If you have unsaved work, you’ll be asked if you want to save it. directory window. Devices—Lets you choose the hardware output device, for example, a digital video recorder.
Asset Browser Utility with missing files. When on, the program does not display this dialog if you render the scene without resolving the missing files. Don’t Display This Message—Appears only at render time. When on, the software does not display the dialog the next time external files cannot be found. File-Handling Utilities Asset Browser Utility Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > Asset Browser button Top: This dialog appears at load time. Bottom: This dialog appears at render time.
506 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects (such as when a bitmap is tagged as a button with hypertext links). Important: Downloaded content might be subject to use restrictions or license of site owner. User is responsible for obtaining all content license rights. Drag and Drop You can assign files represented by the thumbnail images by dragging the thumbnails over various parts of the Asset Browser or the 3ds Max user interface.
Asset Browser Utility 3. As a default, if you drag to a folder within the same partition or device, a move is performed. If you drag beyond the current partition or device (to another drive, for example), a copy is performed. If you hold the CTRL key down, a copy is performed, regardless of the destination. If you hold the SHIFT key down, a move is performed. To drag bitmaps onto a map slot in the Material Editor: 1. Open the Material Editor and click the Maps rollout. 2.
508 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects At the bottom of the window, there is also a tabbed favorites bar (page 3–510) (by default, it first contains a Startup button) and a status bar. Asset Browser menu bar Contains the menus for the Asset Browser. Important: If a file has been subsequently renamed, deleted, or moved from the directory it was in when its thumbnail was first created, then the thumbnail represents only the thumbnail bitmap itself.
Asset Browser Utility Thumbnails menu Favorites Bar—Turns the Favorites bar on or off. Sorts and sets the size of the displayed thumbnails. The Favorites bar is located at the bottom of the Asset Browser window. Create Thumbnails—Creates thumbnails for bitmap and geometry files. Sort by Name—Sorts by file names. Sort by Type—Sorts by file extensions. Sort by Size—Sorts by file size. Sort by Date—Sorts by file creation date. Large (200X200)—Sets the size to large (200 by 200 pixels).
510 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Browse menu Allows you to refresh thumbnails and Web pages, to move forward and backward between recently viewed Web pages, to return to your home page, and to stop loading a Web page. Refresh—For a Thumbnail pane, rereads the directory and redraws the thumbnails. For a Web pane, rereads the URL and redisplays the Web page. Forward—For a Web pane, displays a Web page you viewed before clicking the Back button.
Bitmap/Photometric Path Editor Utility Bitmap/Photometric Path Editor Utility Interface Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > More button > Utilities dialog > Bitmap/Photometric Path Editor The Bitmap/Photometric Path Editor lets you change or remove the paths of bitmaps (page 3–1011) and photometric distribution files (IES) used in the scene. It also lets you see which objects use a resource in question. By default, 3ds Max stores a path with the name of the files it references.
512 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects The utility comes in two formats: a standard utility, and a standalone executable. Both work identically. File Finder demonstrates how to read a MAX file’s properties from an external application. These properties include predetermined data such as object and plug-in names, plus information you provide via the File menu > Properties dialog.
Resource Collector Utility Use the << and >> buttons to step to the previous or the next file in the found list. Output Path—Displays the current output path. While in the property viewer, the search continues in the background. Browse—Click to display a Windows file dialog that lets you choose the output path. This can be changed using the Browse button.
514 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects and Autodesk VIZ. As a result, files might render differently than expected. The Fix Ambient utility looks for standard materials in the current scene whose ambient and diffuse colors are different, presenting you with the option to copy the diffuse color to the ambient color channel. This will ensure that your renderings are consistent with earlier versions of products.
Bitmap Pager Statistics Dialog Bitmap Pager Statistics Dialog Customize menu > Customize User Interface > Category: All Commands or Render > Action: Bitmap Pager Statistics Toggle > Assign to hotkey, menu, etc. The Bitmap Pager Statistics dialog provides information that helps you resolve issues with scenes that require large amounts of memory for texture maps. It is intended for advanced users to debug scenes and help shorten render times.
516 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects erases all thumbnail files from the cache directory you were using previously. remains on-screen depends on the size of the file you’re downloading. Delete Files—Removes all thumbnail files from your cache directory. Interface Maximum Disk Space—Sets the maximum size of the cache directory. When you exit Asset Browser, the program selects the size of the cache directory.
Favorite Location Dialog Favorite Location Dialog Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > Asset Browser button > Favorites menu > Add to Favorites added to the Favorites menu. When this box is not selected, the Web site or path-name shortcuts are added only to the Favorites bar. Menu bar > Tools > Asset Browser > Favorites menu > Add to Favorites The Favorite Location dialog allows you to add Web sites and path names to the Asset Browser Favorites menu and Favorites bar.
518 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 5. Enter the correct path in the New Path field, or click the "..." button to browse to the correct path in a Windows file dialog. The Bitmap/Photometric Path Editor updates the selected maps’ path to use the new path. Interface Find Files—Click to search for the maps or photometric files in the current selection. This button displays an alert that shows how many files are findable, how many files are missing.
Managing Scene States Interface a model. You save and restore scene states with the Manage Scene States dialog (page 3–521), which makes it a convenient way to quickly compare how different parameter settings affect how each scene looks. Because scene states are saved with the MAX file, they are easily accessible to everyone on a design team. Scene states also allow you to experiment with different scene setups without having to save the entire MAX file each time a change is made.
520 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • Materials—All materials and material assignments used in the scene are recorded. • Environment—Records these Environment (page 3–267) settings: Background, Ambient, and Tint colors; Global Lighting > Level; Environment Map; Environment Map on/off state; Exposure Control rollout settings. Tips for Managing Scene States • When first becoming familiar with scene states, minimize changes to make it easier to keep track of what each scene state contains.
Manage Scene States Dialog See also Manage Scene States Dialog (page 3–521) Batch Rendering - Batch Render Dialog (page 3–200) Manage Scene States Dialog 3. Highlight the parts you want restored with the scene state. Only the parts that were originally saved with the scene state are listed. 4. Click Restore. The scene state is restored in the viewport. To rename a scene state: 1. Right-click in a viewport and choose Manage Tools menu > Manage Scene States Right-click to open the quad menu.
522 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Save Scene State The dialog lists all the scene states that are saved in the MAX file. Save—Opens the Save Scene State dialog (page 3–522) where you enter a name for the current scene state. To select a continuous range of parts, drag or SHIFT+click. To select noncontinuous parts, press CTRL+click. Restore—Opens the Restore Scene State dialog (page 3–523) for the selected scene state.
Internet Access Restore Scene State Rename Scene State Enter a Scene State Name—Enter a new name in the Name field for the highlighted scene state. Click OK to accept the change or Cancel to close the dialog without renaming the scene state. Internet Access Enter a Scene State name—Displays the scene name that was selected in the Manage Scene States dialog. Use the drop-down list to select a different scene state to restore.
524 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects photos, and any design data in MAX or STL form. In this way, you are assured instant access to the latest design content, free from leading vendors around the world, without leaving your desktop. For Web Content Providers Any Web page that uses standard HTML source code can easily be enhanced so that 3ds Max users can access it for content. Making bitmap textures (.BMP, .JPG, .GIF, .TIF, etc.
Importing Geometry tool that is packaged with Autodesk Architectural Desktop 2005.
526 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects types of files, you should load the DesignVIZ default settings. For more information on how to do this, see Market-Specific Defaults (page 3–834). Objects AEC objects (walls, doors, windows, etc.) in an Autodesk VIZ file retain all their original properties as AEC objects when opened in 3ds Max. Autodesk VIZ models can also contain File Link created objects that appear as VIZBlocks or Linked Geometry.
Working with MAX Files from Autodesk VIZ or Editable Spline, the LinkTM controller is replaced with a PRS controller. Likewise, if an entire VIZBlock is converted to an Editable Mesh or Spline, the LinkTM controller for the node is replaced with a PRS controller. When using Track View, sub-object components of VIZBlock do not display. Data pertaining to the LinkTM controller is not displayed, however, you can access the PRS subcontroller.
528 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects case in Autodesk VIZ. As a result, MAX files from Autodesk VIZ may render differently in 3ds Max. To solve this issue, use the Fix Ambient utility (page 3–513). Missing Maps Many times, when you open a MAX file from Autodesk VIZ, you will be presented with a Missing External Files dialog (page 3–504). To locate the missing files, click Browse and then add the appropriate Autodesk VIZ directories to the Configure External File Paths dialog (page 3–855).
VIZ Render (DRF) Files default settings. For more information on how to do this, see Market-Specific Defaults (page 3–834). Units In VIZ Render, you can only use meters as your system unit. However, 3ds Max lets you define your own system unit, and how units are displayed. For more information on units, see Using Units (page 2–3) and Units Setup Dialog (page 3–891). Missing Maps Many times, when you open a DRF file, you will be presented with the Missing External Files dialog (page 3–504).
530 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects User Interface Changes Missing Maps Some of the user interface elements in 3ds Max are not where you would expect them if you are coming from VIZ Render. For example, the viewport controls (page 3–778) are in the bottom-right corner, instead of the top-left. Many times, when you open a DRF file, you will be presented with the Missing External Files dialog (page 3–504).
Importing 3DS Files linked geometry, the modifier is applied to all instances of that object. Linked Geometry objects are assigned a special LinkTM controller. If a the object is converted to an Editable Mesh, Poly, NURBS or Editable Spline, the LinkTM controller is replaced with a PRS controller. Substituted Objects There is no substitution modifier in 3ds Max.
532 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • Mask bitmaps are imported as 3ds Max mask textures. Completely replace current scene—Completely • When materials with both Texture 1 and Texture 2 are imported, a composite texture is created and added to the Standard material’s Diffuse channel. Convert units—When turned on, the software • Reflection maps, auto-cubics, and mirrors. • Automatic reflection map Nth frame and Map Size settings. • SXP translation for Marble and Noise materials.
Exporting to 3DS • Basic material color/parameters from the Standard material. • Single maps with their amount, offsets, scales, etc. • Auto-cubics and Mirrors. • Target cameras, target spotlights and omni lights. • Most "static" parameters for cameras and lights, and animation tracks for Roll, Falloff, Hotspot, and FOV. When importing PRJ files, the software converts polygons to shape objects.
534 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface dialog you see when you import a 3DS file. When you have set the options and clicked OK in the 3DS Import dialog, you then see a Shape Import dialog. When you choose 3DS as the export file format, enter a file name, and click Save, an Export Scene To .3DS File dialog is displayed. This dialog has a single option: Preserve MAX’s Texture Coordinates—When on, preserves mapping coordinates. When off, mapping information is discarded. Default=on.
Exporting to Adobe Illustrator Interface ASCII (ASC, ASE) Files File menu > Export > ASCII Scene Export (*.ASE) When importing AI88 files, the software converts polygons to shape objects. You choose an option in the Shape Import dialog to set how the shape objects are created: When you choose ASCII Scene Export (*.ase) as the Save As type, the exported file is an ASCII representation of your scene. A dialog lets you specify which scene components are included, and how they’re output.
536 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Animated Mesh—Exports a complete mesh definition of every n frames. The frequency is specified by the Controller Output spinner, described below. Each block contains the same information specified in the Mesh Options group box, described below. Turning this on can result in a huge file, even for small scenes. Animated Camera/Light Settings—Exports the animation data for cameras and lights, such as color, intensity, falloff, map bias, etc.
Importing AutoCAD Drawing Files AutoCAD (DWG) Files Importing AutoCAD Drawing Files File menu > Import > AutoCAD (*.DWG, *.DXF) Although you will usually want to use the File Link Manager (page 3–431) to connect to drawing files, you can also use the Import command to bind to the drawing file immediately. When you import a drawing file, 3ds Max converts a subset of the AutoCAD or Architectural Desktop objects to corresponding 3ds Max objects.
538 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface compare those units with the 3ds Max system units, and provide the appropriate conversion factor. For example: if a drawing file is built in millimeters and 3ds Max has its System Units set to inches, the AutoCAD DWG/DXF Import Options dialog will automatically be set with Rescale turned on and the Incoming File Units set to millimeters. Note: If the units are unspecified in the drawing, the drop-down list will appear blank.
Importing AutoCAD Drawing Files change the height segments, capping options, and height value. When off, objects with thickness (and closed capped objects) are converted directly to a mesh. Create One Scene Object For Each ADT Object—Architectural Desktop (ADT) objects are imported as a single object instead of being separated into their constituent components. This means that if you import an ADT door object, the door is represented as one object instead of three.
540 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • No Mapping Coordinates—When No Mapping Coordinates is used, the File Link Manager will not generate texture coordinates for the mesh objects that are linked. When drawings are imported, objects are added to the scene as Editable Mesh objects that do not have UVW coordinate assignments. Before assigning materials to imported objects, you’ll need to apply a UVW Map modifier (page 1–905) to add texture coordinates.
Importing AutoCAD Drawing Files Spline Rendering panel The controls on this panel are identical in name and operation to those found on the Rendering rollout of an Editable Spline (page 1–284). The values of these settings are “set” for all imported shapes. Once the import is complete, you can change the settings as necessary for each object. Skip all Frozen Layers—Excludes the import of objects on frozen layers. Select from List—Allows you to choose specific layers to import.
542 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Use V iewport settings—Lets you set different rendering parameters, and displays the mesh generated by the Viewport settings. Available only when Enable in Viewport is turned on. Generate Mapping Coords—Turn this on to apply Radial—Displays the 3D mesh as a cylindrical object. Thickness—Specifies the diameter of the viewport or rendered spline mesh. Default=1.0. Range=0.0 to 100,000,000.0. mapping coordinates. Default=off.
Legacy AutoCAD Import locked to Length that results in a constant ratio of Width to Length. A Note on Large-Scale Drawings If you attempt to import geometry that is created very far from the origin or contains a very large bounding box in tools like AutoCAD, the 3ds Max viewports and transform tools do not respond properly. When you use them, the cursor does not move smoothly. For example, if you have a file that is a mile wide, but your system units are millimeters, you have a scene width of 1.
544 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Entity—Names each 3ds Max object based on the object type. The object type name is followed by a number for each object converted. For example, a Line object becomes Line.01. Drawings can contain thousands of entities, so deriving objects by entity can create many 3ds Maxobjects. General Options group Convert to Single Objects—Combines multiple objects in the drawing file into a single 3ds Max object.
Exporting to AutoCAD DWG Files Note: Hatch patterns are stored in drawings as anonymous blocks. Skip Hatches And Points skips any other anonymous blocks in the drawing file. Hatch patterns created in AutoCAD R14 are skipped regardless of this setting. Group Common Objects—Puts imported objects into a common group, based on how they are derived. In other words, the group would include all objects on a common layer, or color, and so on.
546 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Exported objects that have modifiers assigned to them are affected by the current state of the modifier. For instance, if the Taper modifier, assigned to a Box, is turned off, the exported scene will show a non-tapered box. Note: Layers created in 3ds Max are not exported to AutoCAD. Note: Exporting to an AutoCAD R14 drawing file is no longer supported. Export to a 3DS or DXF file format if you are working with AutoCAD R14.
Importing DXF Files Entire Scene—All objects in the scene are exported. Default=on. Selected Objects—When turned on, only the selected objects are exported. Turning this switch on is comparable to using File > Export Selected (page 3–491). Geometry Options group Convert Instances To Blocks—Converts instances to AutoCAD block insertions. The block definition uses the same name as the first instance converted. When turned off, each instance is converted as a separate AutoCAD object.
548 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface compare those units with the 3ds Max system units, and provide the appropriate conversion factor. For example: if a DXF file is saved using millimeter units and 3ds Max has its System Units set to 1.0 inches, the AutoCAD DWG/DXF Import Options dialog will automatically be set with Rescale turned on and the Incoming File Units set to millimeters. Note: If the units are unspecified in the drawing, the list will appear blank.
Importing DXF Files • Depending on the Texture Mapping option you choose, UVW coordinates are translated correctly. Weld—Sets whether coincident vertices of converted objects are welded according the to Weld Threshold setting. Welding smoothes across seams and unifies normals of objects with coincident vertices. To use the Weld option, first turn on Convert To Single Objects, because welding occurs only for vertices that are part of the same object.
550 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects coordinates generated when the DXF file is imported. This option tells the DWG/DXF Importer to create UVW coordinates, but loading time is increased while the coordinate generation occurs. Layers panel This interface is very similar to the Layer Manager (page 3–706). Layer names remain the same as specified in the DXF file. Curve Steps—Adjusts how smoothly an arc or curve appears when the drawing is imported. Larger numbers result in smoother curves.
Importing DXF Files Layer List—This field displays all the layers that make up the drawing and shows their status such as on/off, frozen/unfrozen or locked/unlocked. Spline Rendering panel The controls on this panel are identical in name and operation to those found on the Rendering rollout of an Editable Spline (page 1–284). The values of these settings are ‘set’ for all imported shapes. Once the import is complete, you can change the settings as necessary for each object.
552 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Renderer—Turn this on to specify Radial or Rectangular parameters for the shape as it will display when rendered or viewed in the viewport when Enable in Viewport is turned on. Radial—Displays the 3D mesh as a cylindrical Aspect—Sets the aspect ratio for rectangular cross-sections. The Lock check box lets you lock the aspect ratio. When Lock is turned on, Width is locked to Length that results in a constant ratio of Width to Length. object.
Importing Autodesk Inventor Files Export version Export version list—Lets you choose the AutoCAD version to export. 3ds Max allows you to export to AutoCAD 2005, AutoCAD 2000, or AutoCAD R12 DXF formats. • Entire Scene—(The default.) All objects in the scene are exported. • Selected Objects—When chosen, only the selected objects are exported. Choosing this option is comparable to using File > Export Selected (page 3–491).
554 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects inverse kinematics (IK) (page 2–417) to restore Interface the constraints. • Dragging and dropping an Inventor file into 3ds Max uses the settings last set on the Inventor File Import dialog with the except for Mesh Resolution, which always resets to 0. • 3ds Max uses the last version of Inventor that was opened to set the Import version. For instance, let’s say you have both Inventor 8 and Inventor 10 on your system.
Importing Autodesk Inventor Files Material Options group Import Inventor Materials—When turned on, all Inventor materials and texture maps are translated and imported into the scene. If turned off, no materials are imported with the model. Assign Material IDs—Lets you control whether material IDs are assigned to objects that are imported from Inventor. You can assign different materials to different surfaces of the same object while working in Inventor.
556 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects about using the viewer, see the Autodesk DWF Viewer help system. Feature Support with 3D DWF Export • 2D and 3D splines. The Enable In Viewport setting on the Rendering rollout (page 1–262) does not need to be enabled in order to export splines. • 3D geometry. Left: Vertical axis set to X. Center: Vertical axis set to Y. Right: Vertical axis set to Z. • Texture mapped materials with a diffuse map channel, UV mapping channels, and material IDs are published.
Exporting 3D DWF Files • Two-sided materials are not supported. However, you can get around this by turning on Force Two Sided on the Render Scene dialog. Note: Turning on Force Two-Sided affects the entire scene. This can slow down the performance of the DWF Viewer because it has to process the two-sided display of everything in scene. • Materials from 3rd party suppliers and mental ray materials are not exported. Objects that have unsupported materials display in their diffuse color in the viewer.
558 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Group by Layer—When turned on, objects are grouped in the Model tree pane in the Autodesk DWF Viewer by their respective layers. Publishing Options group Publish Object Properties—When turned on, object property data is exported and displayed in the viewer and reported in the log file if Save Log File is enabled. Object Properties displayed are: object name, layer name, face count, vertex count, and whether the object is frozen or hidden.
Importing FBX Files Interface Filmbox (FBX) Files File menu > Import > Kaydara FiLMBOX (*.FBX) FBX is the Kaydara FiLMBOX file format. Kaydara FiLMBOX is a system used for the creation, editing, and blending of motion capture and keyframe animation. You can import files using this format. You can also merge FBX files with your current scene, to copy new animation onto existing models. When you merge FBX files into your scene, only geometry transform data is imported; the geometry itself is ignored.
560 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Note: Any object in the FBX file that does not match an object in the current 3ds Max scene is not imported to 3ds Max. Note: Control sets, optical markers, and other FBX elements are not imported. Add to New Scene—Imports the elements selected in the Import Configuration group to a new scene. Merge—Merges animated elements in an FBX file onto the corresponding elements in the MAX file. the Z axis.
FBX Import Advanced Parameters Dialog (Bones) Interface Matricial Conversion Consequences group Resampling Rate—Sets the rate at which animation will be sampled in the imported file. OK—Accepts all changes and closes the dialog. FBX Import Advanced Parameters Dialog (Bones) File menu > Import > Kaydara FiLMBOX (*.FBX) > Import FBX File dialog > Click More (next to Bones). The FBX Import Advanced Parameters dialog for bones lets you specify how bones imported from an FBX file will look in 3ds Max.
562 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Locked Width and Height—When turned on, the Width and Height values are always equal. Taper—Applies a taper to the bone objects imported to 3ds Max Reset—Resets any changes, assigning the default values to the controls in the dialog. OK—Saves any changes and closes the dialog. Exporting FBX Files File menu > Export > Kaydara FiLMBOX (*.FBX) FBX is the Kaydara FiLMBOX file format.
Exporting FBX Files Interface Shape (Morph Modifier)— When on, any morphing information in your scene is exported. Skins (Skin Modifier and Physique)—When turned on, any skin or physique information in your scene is exported. Animation—When turned on, any animation in your scene is exported. Misc group Resampling Rate—Lets you specify a sampling rate for controller-based and coordinate-interpolated animation, as well as the Flip-Book output rates.
564 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Building a Character to Export to FBX To properly export a 3ds Max character to the FBX file type, you need to design it in a certain way. This topic describes several things to consider while assembling a character for FBX Export. Building the Mesh • Negative scaling on mesh objects is not supported by FBX plug-ins, especially if the mesh is used as weight on a skeleton.
Overview of IGES in 3ds Max IGES Files Overview of IGES in 3ds Max The Initial Graphics Exchange Specification (IGES) is an ANSI standard that defines a neutral form for the exchange of information among dissimilar computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), and computer visualization systems. The software implements the IGES standard for translating files between 3ds Max and IGES file formats used by the mechanical engineering and entertainment industries.
566 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects is large. Avoid selecting all surfaces and then clicking Make Independent. Rather, save your file immediately after successfully importing it, and then use Make Independent with care. Future Compatibility The group that maintains and updates the IGES standard, the IGES/PDES (Product Data Exchange Standard) consortium, attempts to keep IGES upwardly compatible. It’s likely that files generated by the software will be compatible with future versions of IGES.
Importing IGES Files • List of the entity types encountered and those created. See also Overview of IGES in 3ds Max (page 3–565) translation failure and temporary files remain on your system, they might need to be removed to free up disk space. For storage of these temporary files in Windows, 3ds Max uses the directory specified by the TEMP environment variable, or the current directory if TEMP is not set.
568 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface IGES entity number IGES entity name 3ds Max 112 Parametric Spline Curve NURBS Curve 114 Parametric Spline Surface NURBS Surface 116 Point Point Helper 118 Ruled Surface NURBS Surface 120 Surface of Revolution NURBS Surface 122 Tabulated Surface NURBS Surface 126 Rational B-spline Curve NURBS Curve The IGES Import dialog has the following controls: 128 Rational B-spline Surface NURBS Surface Merge objects with current scene—M
Exporting IGES Files See also 3ds Max to IGES Export Table (page 3–570) Overview of IGES in 3ds Max (page 3–565) Procedure Exporting IGES Files (page 3–569) To export an IGES file: IGES Log Files (page 3–566) 1. Select the objects to export. IGES to 3ds Max Import Table (page 3–568) 2. Choose File menu > Export. Importing IGES Files (page 3–567) 3. Choose IGES (*.IGS) from the Save as type list in the file selector dialog. Exporting IGES Files File menu > Export > IGES (*.
570 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 3ds Max to IGES Export Table The following table lists 3ds Max objects and the IGES ID and IGES Type they translate to when you export them. Any 3ds Max objects not listed here do not export. Overview of IGES in 3ds Max (page 3–565) JSR-184 Files Note: The convention for denoting the type of IGES entity is the numerical construction type:form. For example, 214:2 is the IGES entity number 214, form 2.
Exporting JSR-184 Files 6. Preview your exported JSR-184 scene in the JSR-184 Standalone Player (page 3–576). Interface sub-object hierarchies and has two special sub-objects: Active Camera and Background. Add Group—Adds an empty Group. Use this option to group objects in your scene without the need to create a World Object. Convert Mesh to Sprite3D—Converts a selected 3ds Max plane object into a JSR-184 Sprite3D object.
572 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Auto Assign User IDs—Automatically assigns unique User ID values to all exported objects. JSR-184 Texture Tool File menu > Export > JSR-184 (*.M3G). > Name your file and click OK. > Select a texture in your scene. > Click the Texture Tool button to edit the texture properties. You can edit the parameters that are exported for the textures in your JSR-184 scene. The Texture Tool dialog displays a preview of the texture with its current settings.
JSR-184 Object Parameters objects in the JSR-184 data file can be adjusted to optimize the output of your scene. You can preview your exported scene using the JSR-184 Standalone Player (page 3–576). Note: All editable parameters are displayed in italic. The JSR-184 Data File treatment of coordinate values that are outside the [0,1] range. • Level Filter: Sets the texture filtering. Options are Nearest, Linear, and Base Level. • Image Filter: Sets the image filtering.
574 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects appearance are met. The Alpha Factor is defined for each node, and its value is between 0 and 255. • Scope: Allows the scene graph nodes to form conceptual groups independent of the scene graph hierarchy. By default, all objects are visible to all cameras and lit by all light sources. The scope is an integer bitmask set to -1 by default. Background Every world object has two sub-objects: [Background] and [Active Camera].
JSR-184 Object Parameters Light Light is a scene graph node that represents different kinds of light sources. A Light object is assigned the same name as its counterpart in the original 3ds Max scene. • Approx.Object Size: Shows the object size with sub-objects. • Scope: Allows scene graph nodes to form conceptual groups independent of the scene graph hierarchy. The default scope is –1, implying that all nodes are in the same scope.
576 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 3ds Max scene. Skinned mesh parameters are the same as Mesh Object parameters. Object # Object Name Object Type 0 Appearance Note: Biped meshes are not supported. JSR-184 Log Files File menu > Export > JSR-184 (*.M3G). 0 78 Group 0 66 Camera01Camera 0 89 0 90 Group 0 26 Light 0 50 Omni01 Light • Object #—Indicates the root object value.
Exporting Lightscape Files • Reopen—Displays a list of recently opened files. The list displays the most recently opened files at the top. Use Free Camera—Switches to viewing the scene from the free camera. The camera is controlled by the following keyboard shortcuts: • Exit—Closes the JSR-184 viewer window.
578 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects a block file can be selectively loaded into Lightscape. • Material file (*.atr) (page 3–607): Exports materials. Exporting Animations (page 3–585) How 3ds Max Objects Are Converted to Lightscape (page 3–588) • Layer file (*.lay) (page 3–607): Exports layers. Procedures • Parameter file (*.df) (page 3–608): Exports processing parameters. To export a Lightscape file: Overall Workflow for Exporting a Lightscape Preparation (LP) File 1. Choose File > Export.
Creating Materials for Lightscape • Avoid overlapping surfaces, and do not use double-sided materials. • Assign mapping coordinates to geometry that will use a textured material. • Try to keep polygon count to a minimum. Use the Optimize modifier and use smoothing groups to reduce the number of faces needed for smooth surfaces. • Lightscape calculates radiosity only for the front side of a face. Check face normals of the geometry.
580 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Materials assigned to windows should not be completely opaque. • Check texture alignment and tiling by viewing your textures in the viewport. • Material files (*.atr) can be exported to Lightscape. Selected materials or all the materials in a scene can be exported this way. Texture mapping alignment is not saved in Material files.
Setting Units and Scale Illumination settings by choosing Override Light Object Settings. There are three ways to convert standard light intensities for Lightscape. Each method is useful for different types of lighting. These are described in the sections that follow. Scenes Where Exact Light Intensities Are Important These are scenes where you are using 3ds Max to build a model, but you don’t require 3ds Max to render the lighting well.
582 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Exporting Daylight to Lightscape Controls for exporting daylight are in the Daylight panel (page 3–597) of the Export Lightscape Preparation File dialog. Set Master Units to the units used by 3ds Max. To find what units are current, choose Customize > Units Setup. The Units Setup dialog shows which units are used by the scene. If your scene does not use realistic units, adjust the value of Scale Factor so the scene will be exported at the correct size.
Selecting Objects to Be Exported Lightscape will calculate the position and brightness of the sun. 3. Set the sky coverage to Clear, Partly Cloudy, or Cloudy. Turn on Use Light to use the brightness of the selected light to calculate the sky coverage. 4. If you don’t indicate that the scene is Exterior, you will need to select windows and openings to allow daylight to enter the scene. Use the Windows panel (page 3–598) to do this.
584 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects To export additional camera views: Note: If the importer cannot find the 3ds Max 1. In the Export Lightscape Preparation File dialog material from which a Lightscape material was created, it will create a new 3ds Max material. or the Export Lightscape View File dialog, click the Views tab to go to the Views panel. 2. Select the name of a camera whose view you want to export. The name of the new VW file is displayed in the Save To File field.
Exporting Animations 8. Now you can load the blocks or materials from the exported file. Exporting Animations You can select multiple frames to be exported in multiple Lightscape Preparation (*.lp) files. Lightscape provides batch utilities to process and render the files to produce animations. This technique is expensive, and should be used only when you need to animate color bleeding and indirect lighting effects between moving objects.
586 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects ray traced, turn the light off, turn shadows on, and choose Shadow Map as the shadow type. If different instances of a light need different settings, you will need to make a copy of the light. Note: When a light is turned off in 3ds Max, its illumination is stored in the Lightscape mesh when radiosity is solved. That way, if it is imported back into 3ds Max, the light remains off, and the illumination comes from the radiosity mesh.
Exporting Animations 3. If you didn’t export all of the objects in your scene, choose the Selected Objects radio button. 4. Set the other parameters as you normally would. Important: Make sure the units are the same as when you exported the animated objects. 5. Click OK. This exports the parameters to be used for processing in a Lightscape Parameters (DF) file. default, it is installed in the \bin subdirectory of the directory where Lightscape is installed.
588 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 7. Create a batch file that calls lsanim for each frame being processed. The line should look like this: Note: See the online User Reference to view this code. Important: If a frame number has fewer than four digits, pad the number with leading zeros to make it four digits long. 8. Run the batch file. To create the animation: 1. Create an Image File List (IFL) file (page 3–666) to collect the image files into an AVI or FLC animation.
How 3ds Max Objects Are Converted to Lightscape Converting Standard Lights For standard lights, there are three methods for converting the lights when exporting them to Lightscape: scaling intensity, matching intensity, and using attenuation. • Scaling Intensity—Takes a value you enter and multiplies that times the standard light’s Multiplier value. The result becomes the intensity of the converted light in candelas.
590 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects LandXML (XML, DEM) Files Importing LandXML/DEM Models LandXML/DEM Model Import lets you import land development data into 3ds Max. Civil engineering data, from XML, DEM (digital elevation model), or DDF files, is used to create a 3ds Max model. • The DDF file type is an SDTS (spatial data transfer standard) format grid surface. DDF files are very similar to DEM files; however, DDF information is shared across multiple files.
Export Lightscape Preparation File Dialog or entire groups with their corresponding check boxes. Three types of civil engineering data stored in LandXML files are supported: • Surfaces—3D TIN ground and finished surface model. Terrain surface data is imported to 3ds Max as an editable mesh. • Alignments—2D road centerlines. Alignment data is imported to 3ds Max as a Shape object. Note: This option is only available for terrain surface objects. Smoothing Angle—Determines the size of the smoothing angle.
592 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Allows additional Lightscape View (VW) files to be output for cameras in your scene. Lightscape Preparation File General Panel This panel sets the general parameters for exporting the 3ds Max scene to a Lightscape Preparation (LP) file. Interface • General panel (page 3–592) General parameters for exporting your 3ds Max scene. • Lights panel (page 3–594) Controls the way in which light objects will be converted to Lightscape luminaires.
Lightscape Preparation File General Panel The Master Units are also used as the display units in the exported LP file. Scale Factor—A scaling factor that is applied to the entire model. Any positive real number is accepted. Use this setting to globally adjust the size of the exported model. Default=1. If your scene uses realistic physical dimensions, as it probably does if you use photometric lights, then leave Scale Factor set to 1.
594 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • Single—A single layer is created and all surfaces are put on that layer. When this setting is used, the Name field is enabled. You can enter the name of the single layer in this field. Default=The name of the exported file (with no file name extension). • Material—A layer is created for each exported material. Surfaces are assigned to layers based on the material assigned to the surface.
Lightscape Preparation File Lights Panel Interface Use Attenuation—Selects the Use Attenuation method for converting lights with range attenuation. Preserve Spotlight Angles—Selects how spotlight angles are converted from 3ds Max to Lightscape. When this option is off, the Lightscape beam angle is set to the angle where the 3ds Max intensity is one-half of the spotlight intensity, which matches the Lightscape intensity at the beam angle.
596 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • Cast Shadows —This option will be set according to the 3ds Max light Shadow Parameters Cast Shadows setting. • Store Direct Illumination—If the 3ds Max light is turned on, this option will be disabled. If the 3ds Max light is turned off, this option will be enabled. See the description of Store Direct Illumination below. • Raytrace Direct Illumination—If Use Ray-Traced Shadows is on in 3ds Max, this option will be enabled.
Lightscape Preparation File Daylight Panel Active Segment—Exports a file for each selected Interface frame in the active animation segment. Range—Exports a file for each selected frame in the given range. The format of values in the range depends on the current time configuration. Frames—Exports the selected frames. Single frames or frame ranges are separated by a comma. Frame ranges are specified by two frame separated by a hyphen.
598 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Latitude and Longitude—Enter the latitude and longitude where the model is located. When calculating the daylight parameters, latitude is displayed in red if the latitude is too close to the poles for the chosen light to give the sun direction. These are set automatically when a location is chosen. Time Zone—The time zone where the model is located. This is set automatically when a location is chosen.
Lightscape Preparation File Views Panel Lightscape. Windows also allow light to enter, but other material attributes are used for filtering the light as it passes through the window. When you create your scene, you need to make sure that there are surfaces for all of your windows and openings. Openings—Select the material you used for your openings. Faces that use this material will be marked as openings.
600 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Browse—Click to open a File Save dialog and choose the name and location of the file. Interface Views—Lists the cameras in the scene. You can select any or all of the cameras. A view file will be created for each selected camera. By default, the file name is the same as the camera name, and the files are put in the directory with the preparation file.
Lightscape View File General Panel Lightscape View File General Panel Lightscape View File Views Panel This panel is used to establish the units and scaling for the exported model. These should match the original values used when exporting the preparation file. The active view is always stored in the view file. This panel allows you to choose additional views that are saved in Lightscape view files.
602 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects the file name is the same as the camera name, and the files are put in the directory with the preparation file. If you are exporting preparation files for multiple frames, a view is exported for each camera in each frame. The frame number is appended to the end of the file name for each camera. If any of the view files to be exported would overwrite another file, a single message will be displayed, and you can choose to abort or continue the export.
Lightscape Block File General Panel Interface which is often the case when using standard lights or generic units, you might have to adjust the scene’s scale. Model Size—Displays the X, Y, and Z extents of the scene’s geometry using the current Master Units and Scale Factor settings. This can help you set up the exported file if you need to change either of these settings. Model Size does not include lights and cameras, which might be outside the extents of the renderable geometry.
604 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Tip: If you are using object instancing in 3ds Max, creating blocks can reduce the file size of the exported file, because the geometry of the object is only output once in the exported file. You can also use groups to group lights with the geometry that represents their fixtures. This will make moving and changing lights easier in Lightscape.
Lightscape Block File Lights Panel Textures group Interface Don’t Save Texture Data—Prevents textures from being exported with materials. Relative Texture Paths—Selects whether or not texture path names will be output as relative or absolute paths. If this option is off, the exporter will output absolute texture path names. If this option is on, the exporter will output relative path names. See Using Relative Paths with Block and Material Files (page 3–584) for more information.
606 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Use Attenuation—Selects the Use Attenuation method for converting lights with range attenuation. • Cast Shadows —This option will be set according to the 3ds Max light Shadow Parameters Cast Shadows setting. Preserve Spotlight Angles—Selects how spotlight • Store Direct Illumination—If the 3ds Max light is turned on, this option will be disabled. If the 3ds Max light is turned off, this option will be enabled.
Export Lightscape Material File Dialog also stored, then Lightscape must perform the additional step of removing energy from the mesh before it begins ray-tracing. Export Lightscape Material File Dialog This dialog is displayed when exporting a Lightscape material (ATR) file. Material files contain only the material definitions in the model. You can load materials from a Lightscape material file into an existing Lightscape model. Interface names.
608 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • Object—A layer is created for each 3ds Max object. All surfaces in all instances of the object are placed in the layer for the object. The name of the layer is the same as the name of the first instance of the object. • Group—A layer is created for each 3ds Max object and each group. All surfaces in all instances belonging to a group are placed in the layer for the group. All other surfaces are placed in the layer for the object.
Importing Lightscape Files and Scale Factor settings. This can help you set up the exported file if you need to change either of these settings. Model Size does not include lights and cameras, which might be outside the extents of the renderable geometry. Entire Scene and Selected Objects—These radio buttons select whether all objects in the scene are exported, or only selected objects. Length Tolerance—The tolerance between points that will be welded together when forming quadrilaterals.
610 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • In the Import Lightscape Solution dialog, turn on Replace Scene Contents. Importing Lightscape Preparation Files To group imported objects: • In the Import Lightscape Preparation or the Import Lightscape Solution dialog, use the controls in the Entity Grouping group to choose how imported Lightscape objects are grouped. See each dialog’s description for details about these options.
Importing Lightscape Solution Files Importing Lights the Luminaire Processing parameters in Lightscape. There are two sets of options for how you import lights from the LS file. These are in the Lights group of the Import Lightscape Solution dialog. Lightscape Radiance Map parameters correspond to the following: • The first set lets you choose the on/off status of lights: all on, all off, or on or off as they were set in Lightscape.
612 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Material effects that need 3ds Max light may include specular mapping, opacity mapping, and so on. To turn off direct illumination storage, use Lightscape. Select the lights that need to be on in the 3ds Max scene. Right-click and choose Luminaire Processing, then turn off the parameter Store Direct Illumination.
Lightscape Mesh Objects 4. In the Import group, turn off all Import options number of sub-materials to the number you want to use with the imported meshes. except for Radiosity and Lights. 5. Click OK. You can set the color and mapping of each sub-material as you would for top-level materials. The importer replaces the scene’s radiosity solution with the one obtained from the LS file. 6.
614 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface The Faces sub-object level for Lightscape mesh objects has a rollout in the Modify panel titled Material IDs. ID—The material ID you want to use to select faces. If this field is blank, all material IDs will be selected when you click OK. Raw Mesh to Texture—The state of the Raw Mesh To Texture flag you want to select. This check box has three states: on, off, and indeterminate (a gray check mark).
Using Illumination Maps You should not have more than 65,536 faces in any of the objects that you want to use with mesh-to-texture or illumination maps. Each face might create a unique texture, and each texture requires a unique material ID. 3ds Max imposes a limit of 65,536 on the material ID value. If your game engine can apply only a single UV coordinate map on a face, you need to be careful about the mappings on the faces. • Don’t face-map coplanar connected faces.
616 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 6. Adjust the texture scale to compensate for the 2. reduced contrast and brightness. Adjusting the texture scale can compensate. Try to get the model to look as good as it can. This step assumes that your game engine will multiply the illumination map by the diffuse texture. This method loses contrast. If your game engine applies illumination differently, to get a good-looking result you might need to use different values in steps 5 and 6.
Helpful Hints and Troubleshooting Helpful Hints and Troubleshooting This topic provides hints and troubleshooting tips on importing Lightscape Solution (LS) files. 2. On the Viewport Configuration dialog, click the Rendering Method tab to go to the Rendering Method panel. 3. In the Rendering Options group, turn on Default Lighting.
618 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 2. Click OK. If the view was scrolled, the focus point now moves to the center of the window. Refer to the Lightscape User’s Guide for more information. Selected Object group Displays the name of the currently selected object. If no objects are selected, displays None Selected. If more than one object is selected, displays Multiple Selected. Lightscape Materials Utility Utilities panel > Click More. > Utilities dialog > Choose Lightscape Materials.
Import Lightscape Preparation Dialog These parameters are used only when you add the Lightscape materials. They set the initial values of the new Lightscape material. Interface Radiosity Mapping group Brightness—Controls the brightness of the displayed image on your monitor. The setting of this control does not affect the actual lighting levels in the model. Default=50.0. Contrast—Controls the contrast between light and dark regions in the model. Default=50.0.
620 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Import Lightscape Solution Dialog File menu > Import > Lightscape (*.LS, *.VW, *.LP) > Choose an LS file. > Import Lightscape Solution dialog This dialog is displayed when importing the Lightscape Solution (LS) file format. Interface Replace scene contents—When on, the imported model replaces the current 3ds Max scene. When off, the imported Lightscape objects are added to the current scene. Default=off.
Import Lightscape Solution Dialog Options in the Lights group of this dialog, described below, specify how the importer imports lights. Sunlight—Imports a directional light that duplicates the color and direction of the sun. Default=on. Background—Imports the current background color in Lightscape. Default=on. The default background color in both Lightscape and 3ds Max is black. Layers that are off—When on, imports objects on Lightscape layers that are off. The objects are imported as hidden objects.
622 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects turned on, because photometric lights require the exposure control. Illumination Maps group You can import Lightscape illumination maps as 3ds Max material maps. Import Illumination Maps—When on, imports illumination maps from the LS file. Default=off. When you import the illumination maps, you must import into an existing scene that was imported from Lightscape previously.
Error Dialog (Lightscape Import) See Luminaires and Photometric Lights (page 3–611) for details of how luminaires are converted. The remaining options in the Lights group are for converting imported lights into standard lights. They are unavailable unless you turn off Make Lightscape Lights. • Automatic Intensity Calculation—The intensity of each standard light is based on the intensity of each Lightscape light. This option is chosen by default.
624 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects named object-material. Sub-material is the sub-material ID number. Interface • [Face-material ]: [object-material ] ( [sub-material ] ): UVW of illumination map does not match. The UVW mapping for the illumination map being used with the material named face-material did not match the coordinates in the explicit UVW 1 mapping coordinates. Face-material is assigned as a sub-material of the material named object-material.
Importing HTR/HTR2 Files The header section contains global parameter information: Skeleton group • file type Create—Choose this option to build a new bone skeleton from the incoming data. Default=on. • data type Segment Size—Set this value to modify the scale • file version factor for the weight and height of all bones from the motion capture data. Only available if Create is active. • number of segments • number of frames • data frame rate Note: This does not change the skeleton’s scale.
626 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Note: This does not affect the Base Position setting (in the Keyframe Options group), which sets a key at frame 0. Interface Set Frame Rate—When on, the frame rate (page 3–1038) from the HTR file overwrites the current one in the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768). Scale group Global—Sets the size of the resulting skeleton. Note: The scale value within 3ds Max remains 100. Ok—Proceeds with HTR/HTR2 import, using the current settings.
Exporting HTR/HTR2 Files Time Options group All/Range—Choose between using the entire animation range from the motion capture file, or a defined portion. To/From—These values represent the start and end frames of the defined range. Only available if Range is active. Offset—Sets the number of inserted empty frames before the imported animation starts. Set Frame Rate—When on, the frame rate (page 3–1038) from the TRC file overwrites the current one in the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768).
628 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Scale group Global—Sets the bone length scale factor in the export file. Ok—Proceeds with HTR/HTR2 export, using the current settings. Cancel—Cancels HTR/HTR2 export. Shockwave Files (W3D) Base Position group Saved Pose—Choose this option to use the skeleton’s pose at frame 0 as base position data. Default=on. Current Pose—Choose this option to use the skeleton’s pose at the current frame as base position data.
Shockwave 3D Scene Export Options Dialog Exporting Bones The exporter supports character animation using bones and the Skin modifier, or a character studio® biped with the Physique® modifier. Bones are exported not as geometry, but as Shockwave 3D bones. If the bones deform a mesh with the Skin modifier, the scene must be arranged in a specific manner to cause the bones and mesh to export properly: • All bones for each mesh object must be linked, and linked contiguously.
630 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • Information about any cameras, lights, and groups in the scene. Shockwave 3D treats cameras, lights, and groups as less important resources, and stores information about them only in the scenegraph. The scenegraph hierarchy is the glue that binds most of the scene assets in the Shockwave 3D file.
Shockwave 3D Scene Export Options Dialog when exporting just the animation in a scene; otherwise, the W3D file will not work correctly with Director. Texture map resources—Exports all texture maps associated with all objects supported by the exporter to the Shockwave 3D file. Texture maps in Shockwave 3D are bitmap images or 2D procedural maps, such as Tile and Gradient Ramp. All bitmap images used in 3ds Max are transformed by Shockwave 3D into streaming JPEG images.
632 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects of compression of the scene assets is set by three controls: Geometry Quality, Texture Quality, and Animation Quality. The controls have values that range from 0.1 to 100.0, with higher values giving less compression and better quality (a more faithful representation of the original model). A value of 100 means that the scene assets will be represented at the best quality possible, but with some degree of compression still present.
Shockwave 3D Export Preview Export Controls Author Check—Opens a window displaying warning messages about possible problems found converting the scene to the W3D file format. If no errors are found, the window is blank. These messages, which do not necessarily indicate problems with the scene, can be useful in debugging problems such as why the scene looks different in the preview window than it does in 3ds Max.
634 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects orthographic camera forward, because the lack of perspective effects does not hide models as the camera passes them. Dolly the camera back, and any visual artifacts should disappear. Interface You can navigate the export preview window using the following controls.
Importing STL Files • Unknown—includes, for example, streaming priorities, names, and block sizes. File Organization—Graphic display of the size of the entire file and its initial load segment (ILS) portion. The ILS, in orange, consists of all the data that must be loaded before Shockwave will display the scene (scenegraph data, animations, shaders, and any textures or geometry with a streaming priority of zero).
636 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Weld Threshold—Determines the size of the area which vertices must occupy to be welded. Vertices with distances equal to or less than this value are welded into a single vertex. Weld—Turns on the Weld Vertices function. In most cases, you should leave this box turned on because unwelded objects can’t be unified or smoothed. Use Threshold—If on, STL import uses the standard 3D Studio welding method. This can be a very slow process.
Importing Wavefront (OBJ, MTL) Files Interface Exporting Wavefront Object (OBJ) Files File menu > Export > Wavefront Object (*.OBJ) The ASCII-based OBJ format makes it possible to exchange graphical data between many applications. Both polygons and freeform geometries such as curves are supported with these format. You can export 3ds Max files to this format. Feature Support with OBJ Export Mesh Geometry Object Name—Enter a name for the object you want to save in STL format.
638 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Geometry group Rotate model—Exports the geometry to match its orientation in 3ds Max. Faces—Choose whether the mesh faces are stored as triangles, quadrangles, or polygons. Texture coordinates—When on, the texture coordinates are stored with the exported file. When you import the file in another application you will be able to use this information if it is supported. Normals—When on, the normal information (page 3–1074) for the mesh is stored.
Exporting Wavefront Material (MTL) Files Exporting Wavefront Material (MTL) Files File menu > Export > Wavefront Material (*.MTL) The ASCII-based MTL format makes it possible to exchange graphical data between many applications. The MTL format uses floating-point numbers to define each material’s ambient, diffuse, and specular colors, as well as alpha and shininess values. Optionally, the MTL files can also specify texture-map filenames.
640 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • The VRML 1.0 WWW Inline works only if the URL refers to a local file residing in the same folder as the .WRL file. Internet URLs are not supported. Procedure To export a file to VRML97: 1. Choose File menu > Export. 2. Choose VRML97 (.WRL) as the file format. Interface 3. Enter a file name, and click Save. 4. In the VRML97 Exporter dialog, set options as described below. Interface Reset Scene—Deletes any existing scene upon import.
Exporting to VRML97 Normals—Generates real normals for objects. Some browsers need normals to do smoothing properly. Check this box if you are exporting geometry that uses smoothing groups in 3ds Max, to see the correct shading. Default=off. Coordinate Interpolators—Exports animation effects that involve actual modifications of the mesh objects, and not just move, rotate, and scale. Examples include the Taper, Bend, and Twist modifiers, and space warps.
642 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects All scenes should have at least one camera, so you can control how the scene initially renders. Add more cameras to the scene than you might ordinarily use, so the viewer can switch between cameras if his VRML97 browser allows it. This lets you set up your scene with pre-installed vantage points. Otherwise, if the world is very large, it can overpower the viewer’s system and make navigation difficult.
VRML97 Export animation precision, use a lower number (a higher sampling rate). World Info Lets you enter information about the world. This has no effect on the visual appearance or behavior of the world. Some browsers can display what you enter in the Title field, for example, in the browser window’s title bar. You can use the Info field to provide author, version, and copyright information. VRML97 Export Vrmlexp.dle is for creating and exporting scenes in the VRML97 format. VRMLEXP exports .
644 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Use primitives whenever possible. For example, a scene containing only a sphere exports to a VRML97 file of about 400 bytes, but if you apply an edit mesh modifier and move one vertex on the sphere, the VRML97 file is about 7,400 bytes. Use the Polygon Counter (page 3–645) to keep track of the number of faces in your scene. Call your VRML97 .wrl files from a standard HTML page and constrain the viewer to a limited window on the screen using the embed command.
Using the Polygon Counter Utility CoordinateInterpolators. This applies to box, sphere, cylinder and cone primitives only. Materials You can export only standard and multi/sub-object materials, and only the following components of the material: • Diffuse, ambient, and specular color • One texture map, which must be in the Diffuse channel Use JPEG or PNG format for your maps, because they are recognized by all VRML97-compliant browsers and generally create the smallest files.
646 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Procedure VRML97 Helper Objects To set up an Anchor to jump to another VRML world: The VRML97 Helpers appear when you click Helpers in the Create panel and choose one of the VRML97 Helpers from the Object Type rollout. Insert a VRML 97 Helper into the scene by clicking and dragging at the desired location. 1. Add an Anchor helper object by pressing the Note: Some helper objects (for example, Billboard 3.
ProxSensor VRML97 Helper The Anchor rollout contains the following options: Pick Trigger Object—Specifies the geometry that will be the trigger for this anchor. Click this button, then select the geometry. Description—Lets you enter a text description or message that will appear in the browser’s status bar when the mouse is over an object that has an Anchor action defined for it. Hyperlink Jump—Creates an Anchor that jumps to a URL. URL—Specifies the location for Hyperlink Jump.
648 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects The Prox Sensor rollout contains the following options: Interface Length/Width/Height—Specifies the dimensions of the bounding box that triggers the action. Enable—Activates the Proximity Sensor. When this check box is turned off, the sensor has no effect, even if objects have been selected. Pick Action Objects—Specifies the objects in the scene to control with this helper. The objects can be animated geometry, cameras, lights, or AudioClips.
Fog VRML97 Helper Avatar Size—Specifies the user’s physical dimensions in the world, to detect collision distance and follow terrain. Interface Collision—Specifies the allowable distance between the user’s position and any collision geometry before a collision is detected. For example, you can set this so that a collision is detected one unit in front of a wall. Terrain—Specifies the height above the surface to maintain when following terrain.
650 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects more or less directional focus from the location of the sound. The sound node may also be used to describe an ambient sound that tapers off at a specified distance from the sound node. Interface The red ellipsoid of the helper represents the outermost range for which the sound can be heard. The blue ellipsoid represents the range of the maximum strength of the sound.
LOD VRML97 Helper Icon Size—Determines the size of the helper in the scene. To create all the objects and the LOD helper object at exactly the same coordinates: 1. Create the LOD helper object. LOD VRML97 Helper Create panel > Helpers > VRML97 > Object Type rollout > LOD The Level of Detail (LOD) helper lets you specify objects with varying face counts that are appropriate for different viewing distances.
652 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects The Level of Detail rollout contains the following options: Pick Objects—Selects objects of different face counts to substitute for the LOD helper object. Create all the objects and the LOD helper object at exactly the same coordinates. When the user clicks the trigger geometry, the geometry, camera or light animates, or the sound plays. Interface Distance—Sets the distance from the camera at which the user sees the selected object.
TimeSensor VRML97 Helper TimeSensor VRML97 Helper Interface Create panel > Helpers > VRML97 > Object Type rollout > TimeSensor The TimeSensor helper lets you add time-based animation controls, such as the start and end frames for a particular object’s animation, and looping. Use this helper to split up an object’s animation keys over several triggers, to automatically start an animation upon loading the .wrl file, or to make animation endlessly loop.
654 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Delete—Deletes an object from the list of picked Interface objects. Sky Colors rollout Icon Size—Adjusts the size of the helper object in the viewports. Background VRML97 Helper Create panel > Helpers > VRML97 > Object Type rollout > Background The Background button displays the Sky Color, Ground Color, and Images rollouts. Use these rollouts to specify colors and images for the sky and ground in your VRML97 world.
AudioClip VRML97 Helper Ground Colors rollout Lets you provide a colored background to the world’s ground plane using a gradient of up to three colors. The ground appears inside the sky sphere and below the objects of the scene. Number of Colors—Specifies whether the ground is one solid color or a gradient of two or three colors.
656 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 2. Enter the location of the sound file (.wav or .mid) you want to use in the URL text box. Interface Billboard VRML97 Helper Create panel > Helpers > VRML97 > Object Type rollout > Billboard The Billboard helper lets you create geometry that is camera-aligned in the VRML97 browser. The objects always align to the viewpoint in the VRML97 browser.
Inline VRML97 Helper Icon Size—Determines the size of the Billboard helper in the scene. The VRML Inline rollout contains the following options: Insert URL—Specifies the URL of the .wrl files to Inline VRML97 Helper Create panel > Helpers > VRML97 > Object Type rollout > Inline The Inline helper lets you reference another VRML97 file that is included in your world when you load it into your VRML97 browser. These inline objects are like instance objects, but they function at the browser level.
658 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects use as a bitmap, then the image changes over time when you render the 3ds Max scene. Note: Bitmaps are reloaded automatically after they have been changed and resaved by a graphic editing program. See the Reload Textures On Change toggle in File Preferences (page 3–870). When you render a scene, you can render a still image or an animation. You can render to most of the formats listed below. Some of the formats support various options.
BMP Files BMP Files BMP files are still-image bitmap files in the Windows bitmap (.bmp) format. Interface When BMP is chosen as the output format, clicking Render or Setup on the Render Output File dialog (page 3–8) displays the BMP Compression dialog. Compressor—Use the drop-down list to choose the codec (page 3–1015) (compressor/decompressor) you want to use to compress the file. You can use any codec that’s installed on your system.
660 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects DDS Files The DirectDraw® Surface (DDS) file format is used to store textures and cubic environment maps, both with and without mipmap levels. This format can store uncompressed and compressed pixel formats, and is the preferred file format for storing DXTn compressed data. Microsoft® is the developer of this file format. You can use DDS files as texture maps.
EPS and PS (Encapsulated PostScript) Files • A8 R8 G8 B8—32 bits per pixel: 8 bits each for the RGB and alpha channels. • A1 R5 G5 B5—16 bits per pixel: 5 bits each for the RGB channels, and one bit for the alpha channel. • A4 R4 G4 B4—16 bits per pixel: 4 bits each for the RGB and alpha channels. • R8 G8 B8—24 bits per pixel: 8 bits each for the RGB channels; no alpha. • R5 G6 B5—16 bits per pixel: 5 bits each for the R and B channels, 6 bits for the G channel; no alpha.
662 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects file-name extension. Flic files can also have a .cel file name extension. Flic files are restricted to a maximum of 256 colors (8-bit). Interface When a flic file is the chosen output format, clicking Render or Setup in the Render Output File dialog (page 3–8) displays the FLC Image Control dialog. Units—Select inches or millimeters. Preview—Check to generate a thumbnail image so that file browsers can preview the contents of the PostScript file.
HDRI Files HDRI Files HDRI is a file format used for high-dynamic-range images. Most cameras don’t have the capability to capture the dynamic range (the gamut of luminances between dark and bright regions) that is present in the real world. However, the range can be recovered by taking a series of pictures of the same subject with different exposure settings, and combining them into one image file. This type of image is called a high dynamic range image (HDRI) or radiance map. HDRI files have an .
664 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects clamped to black. When this option is turned off, the lowest possible value is used as the Black Point. Measured Min/Max—Displays the actual minimum and maximum luminance values in the image, expressed as both the logarithmic and linear values. Using these values for the Black Point and White Point will result in the image’s full luminance range being used.
HDRI Files Def Exposure—When on, the image will load as is without applying any changes to the colors. When off, you can use the parameters in the Exposure group to remap colors. Available only with the Real Pixels option. 16 bit/chan Linear (48 bpp)—Compresses the luminance selections into 16–bit color space, at 48 bits per pixel. This is the recommended setting.
666 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects high-dynamic-range data only if the renderer supports floating-point output. Currently the mental-ray renderer supports floating-point output, while the default scanline renderer does not. If you’re rendering with mental ray (be sure to set Frame Buffer Type to Floating-Point (32 bits per channel)) or another renderer that supports floating-point output, using this option ensures the highest-quality HDR data in the saved image file.
IFL Files 5. In the Image File List Control dialog, choose Tip: The viewport background does not render. To render the IFL file’s animation, assign the IFL file as a rendering environment. (See the following procedure.) the options you want, and then click OK. Tip: Use the Browse button to set the Target Path to a directory on your hard disk. Do not set this path to a CD-ROM drive, because you cannot save the file there. The Image File List (IFL) file is saved to the target directory. 6.
668 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Image File List Control Dialog Views menu > Viewport Background > Select Background Image dialog > Choose a directory with sequentially numbered files. > Sequence > Setup > Image File List Control dialog The Image File List Control dialog provides controls for creating an Image File List (IFL file) (page 3–666), which lists sequential still image files for rendering into backgrounds or materials.
IMSQ Files 5. Set the End spinner to specify the last numbered file in the sequence. The Start and End spinners default to the first and last number in the existing numbered files. Note: You can invert the Start and End values (setting the greater value in Start and the lesser in End) to create a reversed list in the .ifl file. 6. Click Create to display a file dialog where you can name and then save your IFL file. 7.
670 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • The format of the rendering file • The range of frames (Nonsequential frame sequences, such as 1, 7, 12–19, are not supported.) • The frame rate • The pixel aspect ratio • The output type, aperture width, and resolution (width x height) • The render element type and name • The camera name (when rendering a Camera view) 3ds Max generates a separate IMSQ file for each render element. JPEG Files JPEG (.jpeg or .
MPEG Files Note: The plug-in does not allow for the direct import of audio from a QuickTime file. Interface When you create a new QuickTime file or choose Setup for an existing one, you see a dialog that is typically titled Compression Settings. This dialog is provided by the QuickTime codec (page 3–1015) installed with your system, and can change depending on the version of QuickTime you’ve installed. MPEG Files The MPEG format is a standard for movie files.
672 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects only reads the 16-bit “half ” floating point RGBA files that are considered standard EXR files. Configuration File Usage Most bitmap I/O plug-ins, including those integrated into 3ds Max, store their configuration information in a binary CFG file that cannot be edited. To allow external scripting support as well as ordinary preferences, the OpenEXR software uses a standard INI file format to store its configuration data. The file is named openexr.
Saving OpenEXR Files • Zip (per scanline)—Zip-style compression applied to individual scanlines. R/G/B/Alpha—Let you specify the channels to save: • Zip (16 scanline blocks)—Zip-style compression applied to blocks of 16 scanlines at time. This tends to be the most effective style of compression to use with rendered images that do not have film grain applied. Use RealPixel RGB Data—When on, compresses the essential data of floating-point color into 32 bits.
674 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Attributes are data that is stored per frame, not per pixel, and they are embedded in the file’s header. Channels are data that is stored per pixel. In order to maximize flexibility with other software, this plug-in lets you edit the file tags. You should only do this if you know the tag required by some other software; otherwise it is best to leave the file tags at their default values.
Opening OpenEXR Files Version OpenExr —The plug-in version, OpenEXR API version, and ZLib version in plain text form. Version 3dsMax—The release version of 3ds Max itself, the API number, and the SDK revision used when the build of 3ds Max was compiled. This also reports whether the file was generated using 3ds Max or Autodesk VIZ. Extended Channels Z-Buffer—The standard buffer depth channel. (16-bit or 32-bit floating point) Object Properties dialog (page 1–112).
676 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects percentage of the image covered by pixels of that brightness. Histogram features are: • The histogram supports several display modes, which you can choose by right-clicking the histogram display window. The menu lets you choose between linear and logarithmic display, automatic or manual x-axis scaling, y-axis scale options, and which channel is graphed: luminance, red, green, or blue.
PIC Files source image over which black to white occurs; that is, to remap the color data. When Color Transform is on, you can adjust these luminance and general brightness controls: the file. See Extra Channels and Attributes (page 3–673).
678 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Image File format in input and output file browsers in 3ds Max. For further information, see HDRI Files (page 3–663). See also Radiosity Workflows (page 3–56) PNG Files PNG (Portable Network Graphics) is a still-image file format developed for use with the Internet and World Wide Web. Interface Clicking Render or Setup in the Render Output File dialog (page 3–8) displays the PNG Configuration dialog.
PSD Files Collapsed Layers displays the entire image. Individual Layer displays list of layers to choose from. Collapsed Layers—(The default.) Uses the entire Full Frame—When on, uses the entire layer as the composited image. bitmap. When off, uses only that portion of the layer occupied by image data. Default=on. Individual Layer—Uses a single layer of the image. When you choose this, the dialog shows a list of the layers, with a thumbnail of each, and the layer names.
680 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects • CMYK Color Standard Channels group • Lab Color • Multichannel The standard channels are RGB color and the alpha (transparency) channel. Non-Image Layers—Layers other than image layers Bits per Channel—Choose 8, 16, or 32 Floating (for example, text layers) are not supported. In Photoshop, you can “rasterize” a non-image layer to make it an image. Store Alpha Channel—Choose whether to save the alpha channel. Default=on.
RPF Files unless a map has been applied that uses the coordinates. post-production or effects work. Many channels available in RPF files are exclusive to this format. Normal—Displays the orientation of normal Tip: When you create a scene you plan to render as an RPF file for use with the Autodesk Combustion™ product, turn on Render Occlude Objects (on the Object Properties dialog (page 1–111) ) for objects in the scene. This is important if you want to use the Combustion G-Buffer Extract feature.
682 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Premultiplying saves computation time if you later use this image in compositing. See Premultiplied Alpha (page 3–1091) for more information. Optional Channels group For output RPF files, there are additional channels that you can generate (and view in the rendered frame window): Coverage—Saves the coverage of the surface fragment from which other G-buffer values (Z Depth, Normal, and so on) are obtained. Z-Coverage values range from 0 to 255.
RGB (SGI Image) Files Description—You can enter descriptive text here. Author—You can enter your name here. RGB (SGI Image) Files The SGI™ Image File format is a bitmap file type created by Silicon Graphics®. SGI Image File support in 3ds Max lets you load and save files in both 8- and 16-bit color depth, with alpha channels, and RLE Compression. Targa files are widely used to render still images and to render sequences of still images to video tape.
684 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Pre-Multiplied Alpha—When on, pre-multiplies the alpha channel. Pre-multiplying saves computation time if you later use this image in compositing. See Premultiplied Alpha (page 3–1091). Additional Information group Author Name, Job Name/ID, Comments—These fields are available for you to add information about the file.
YUV Files 16-bit SGI LogL—Creates a color image that also includes a logarithmic encoding of the luminance channel. 32-bit SGI LogLUV—Creates a color image that includes a logarithmic encoding of the luminance channel and UV color coordinate information. Store Alpha Channel—When on, stores the alpha channel along with other image data. Alpha data adds 8 bits per pixel to the image type you selected. Compression Type group Lets you render a compressed TIFF file. Default=No Compression.
686 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Save Channel—Displays a Save File dialog that lets you save the animation or image from the respective channel. You can save the animation as a .avi file or a numbered sequence of images. Playback Forward—Plays the frames in the animation in rendered order. The flyout contains an option to play the animation once and then stop. Note: The RAM Players converts everything it Next Frame—Advances the RAM Player to the next frame in the animation.
RAM Player Configuration Dialog RAM Player Function Keyboard Shortcut Open File in Channel A CTRL+A Open File in Channel B CTRL+B Open Last Rendered Image in Channel A ALT+A Open Last Rendered Image in Channel B ALT+B Scrub Animation CTRL+left mouse button or right mouse button ratio, regardless of the Width and Height values you enter. If you change the Width of the file, the Height adjusts according to the file’s original aspect ratio. Adjusting the Height does the same to the Width value.
688 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Schematic View Schematic View Window Menu bar > Graph Editors > New Schematic View Menu bar > Graph Editors > Saved Schematic Views > Choose a saved schematic view. Main toolbar > Schematic View button The Schematic View is a node-based scene graph that gives you access to object properties, materials, controllers, modifiers, hierarchy, and non-visible scene relationships such as wired parameters and instancing.
Schematic View Window • You can assign new controller types. • Schematic View offers extensive MAXScript exposure. Up Arrow—Collapses the entity it springs from and all child entities thereof up into the parent entity • Performance has been substantially improved. • Ability to drill down to more properties (such as static values and custom attributes). How the Components of Schematic View Behave Down Arrow—Expands the next child entity down from the entity that the arrow springs from.
690 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Delete Schematic View (page 3–702) Delete Schematic View Dialog (page 3–702) Saved Schematic Views (page 3–702) Schematic View Selection Right-Click Menu (page 3–702) 3. In the Schematic View window, select the transform of the object you want to assign a controller to. 4. Right-click the transform, from on the Tools quad, choose Assign Controller. 5. Choose the controller you want to apply from the list, then click OK.
Using Schematic View menu choices to display a list of objects based on a certain relationship. To add a background image: 1. On the Schematic View Options menu, choose Preferences. 2. In the Background Image group, click the File: button to launch the File Browser. 3. In the Browse Images for Input dialog, find and highlight the bitmap you want to use, then click Open. 4. On the Schematic View Preferences dialog, in the Background group, turn on Show Image.
692 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 8. In any viewport (other than Perspective or User), select the bones of the rig that you want to arrange. 9. In the Schematic View window, right-click and choose Project Into Schematic View from the quad menu. are selected. This launches the standard Wire Parameters dialog. Edit Object Properties—Displays the Object Properties dialog for selected nodes. This is unavailable when no nodes are selected.
Schematic View Menus Zoom Tool—Activates the zoom tool. Lets you move closer to or further from the Schematic display. Zoom Region Tool—Lets you draw a zoom window on the area of the Schematic view you want to see up close. Zoom Extents—Zooms the window back so all the nodes in the Schematic View are visible. Zoom Extents Selected —Zooms the window back so that all the selected nodes are visible in the display. Show Grid—Displays a grid in the background of the Schematic View window.
694 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Options Menu Always Arrange—Sets Schematic View to always arrange all entities based on the chosen arrangement preference. Displays a pop-up warning before doing so. Choosing this activates the toolbar button. Hierarchy Mode—Sets Schematic View to display entities as a hierarchy instead of reference graph. Children appear indented below the parent. Switching between Hierarchy and Reference mode is nondestructive.
Schematic View Preferences Dialog Show Occurrences— Opens or redraws List View with all entities that share a property or relationship type with currently selected entities All Animated Controllers—Opens or redraws List View with all entities that have or share animated controllers. Make Unique—In the All Instances and Selected Instances views, this makes the selected entity a copy and takes it out of the list.
696 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Include in Calculation group Schematic View can traverse the entire scene, including materials, maps, controllers, and so on. The Include In Calculation settings control which scene components Schematic View will know about. The Display Floater then controls what is displayed. So, if you don’t Include Materials, you can’t display materials. If you don’t include controllers, you can’t display controllers, constraints, or parameter-wiring relationships.
Schematic View Preferences Dialog • Cameras—Hides or displays cameras and their children. Show Grid—Displays a grid in the background of the Schematic View window. • Helpers—Hides or displays helper objects and their children. Snap to Grid—When this is on, all moved entities and children of those entities will snap their upper left corners to the nearest grid point. Entities not snapped to a grid point when snap is enabled will not snap until they are subsequently moved.
698 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Likewise, nodes selected in the viewports will have their corresponding entities selected in Schematic View. Everything—When this is chosen, all entities selected in Schematic View will have their corresponding entities selected in the appropriate places in the interface, given that those places are open.
Schematic View Toolbars Schematic View Toolbars Menu bar > Graph Editors > New Schematic View > Top and bottom toolbars Menu bar > Graph Editors > Saved Schematic Views > Choose a saved schematic view. > Top and bottom toolbars Main toolbar > Schematic View button > Top and bottom toolbars The Schematic View toolbar at the top of the window contains the following buttons: Display Floater—Displays or hides the Display Floater. Active button means floater is open, inactive button means it’s hidden.
700 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Collapse Selected—Hides the display of all children of selected entity, leaving the selected entity visible. Preferences —Displays the Schematic View Preferences dialog. This lets you control what is displayed and hidden in the Schematic View window by category. Various options are here to filter and control the display within the Schematic View window. See Schematic View Preferences Dialog (page 3–695).
Schematic View Display Floater Schematic View Display Floater The Display Floater controls by category what is displayed in the Schematic View window. The Schematic View Preferences dialog also filters that display of the window. Use these to manage the clutter of the window, and the performance speed. Note that unless you display the correct entity and relationship, you will not be able to perform certain operations. If you want to wire parameters, for instance, you must have Param Wires turned on.
702 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects only applies at activation time, it will not expand or contract entities that are already displayed. Focus—When this is turned on, only those entities that are related to others and have their relationships displayed will be filled with their color, all others will be displayed unshaded. For information on the Schematic View buttons and controls, see Schematic View Window (page 3–688).
Schematic View Selection Right-Click Menu Select quadrant Arrange Children—Arranges the display of children Select Tool— Activates the Select tool when Always based on set arrangement rules (align options) below the selected parent. Arrange is turned on. Activates the Select and Move tool when Always Arrange is off. Select All—Choose Select All to select everything in the window. Tip: Hold down the CTRL key to add to selections, and the ALT key to subtract from them.
704 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Options quadrant Shrink—Hides all selected entities’ boxes, keeps arrangement and relationships visible. Toggle Shrink—Changes the state of entity shrinkage. Shrunken entities become unshrunken, and the other way around. Unshrink All—Makes all shrunken entities visible. Unshrink Selected—Makes all selected shrunken entities visible. Hierarchy Mode— Sets Schematic View to display entities as a hierarchy instead of reference graph.
Using Layers to Organize a Scene render the furniture, you can turn off that layer’s Renderable property. Note: When you link an AutoCAD file into 3ds Max, any layers that are frozen (and all objects that reside on these layers) are not imported. Note: Objects can be hidden and frozen on a per-object basis; however, an object residing on a hidden or frozen layer will always adopt the hide/freeze state of its layer.
706 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Note: You can control whether newly created objects adopt the default layer settings on a per-object basis by using Default To By Layer For New Nodes in the General Preferences panel (page 3–859). You can also Freeze, Hide, or Isolate the layer of a selected object using the corresponding command in the display quadrant of the quad menu.
Layer Manager 3ds Max displays a new layer in the list with the temporary name Layer01. You can hide all layers by clicking Hide/Unhide All Layers on the Layer Manager toolbar. Tip: 3. Click the Layer to enter a new name. 4. To create more than one layer, click New again and enter the new layer name. Tip: If an existing layer is highlighted when you create a new layer, the new layer inherits the properties of the highlighted layer.
708 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects To rename a layer: 2. Select one or more layers in the Layer Manager. You might want to rename a layer to better define how it’s used in your scene. You can rename a layer at any time during a 3ds Max session. However, you can’t rename Layer 0. 3. Click the Layer Properties icon to open the Layer Properties dialog (page 3–711) for the highlighted layers. Interface 1. On the main toolbar, click Layer Manager. 2.
Layer Manager Note: This button is not available if any of the following items are in your selection set: nothing, the current layer, objects, Layer 0, or non-empty layers. Add Selected Objects to Highlighted Layer—Moves currently selected objects into the highlighted layer. Note: This button is not available if nothing is selected or if more than one layer is highlighted.
710 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Render—When on, objects appear in the rendered scene. Non-rendering objects don’t cast shadows or affect the visual component of the rendered scene. Like dummy objects, non-rendering objects can manipulate other objects in the scene. Shape objects (page 1–257) have the Render option turned on by default. In addition, they have a Renderable check box in their creation parameters. When both check boxes are on, the shape is renderable.
Layer Properties Dialog Cut is only available when objects are highlighted; if there are no objects highlighted or if a layer is part of a multiple selection, it is not available. your scene. Note: Objects are not actually cut from their objects. assigned layer until they are pasted to another one.
712 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Interface Viewport—Displays the objects on the selected layer using the current settings under Views on the viewport right-click menu (page 3–774). Bounding Box—Displays the objects on the selected layer as a bounding box (page 3–1013). Wireframe—Displays the objects on the selected layer in wireframe mode (page 3–1128). Shaded—Displays the objects on the selected layer in Smooth+Highlight mode (page 3–774).
Layer Properties Dialog 2D shapes as bounding boxes (page 3–1013). Produces minimum geometric complexity. Backface Cull—For objects on the selected layer, toggles the display of faces with normals (page 3–1074) pointing away from view. When on, you see through the wireframe to the back faces. Applies only to Wireframe viewport display. Edges Only—For objects on the selected layer, toggles the display of face edges. When set, only faces appear. When off, all mesh geometry appears.
714 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects Render Occluded Objects—Allows special effects to affect objects in the scene that are occluded by this object. The special effects, typically applied by plug-ins (page 3–1089) such as Glow (page 3–222), use G-Buffer (page 3–1040) layers to access occluded objects. Turning on this control makes the object transparent for the purposes of special effects. This makes no difference when you render to most image files.
Layer List Object Subdivision Properties group Use Global Subdivision Settings—When on, the object’s meshing settings correspond to the global subdivision settings on the Radiosity Control Panel. When off, you can change the meshing settings for each object. Default=on. • Subdivide—When on, a radiosity mesh is created for the objects regardless of the global meshing state. The subdivision that is performed is determined by the Use Adaptive Subdivision switch.
716 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects 3. On the Layers toolbar, click Add Selected Objects to Current Layer. Create New Layer Layers toolbar > Create New Layer Layers toolbar > Layer Manager > Create New Layer To change a layer’s properties: 1. Click Layers toolbar > Layer List to display the list. 2. Click the layer property icon that you want to set. You can change the following properties from the layer list: hide/unhide, freeze/unfreeze, renderable/non-renderable, and color. 3.
User Interface User Interface The 3ds Max user interface provides multiple ways to achieve the same goals. You can hide, float (page 3–1024) or dock (page 3–1024), resize and rearrange the user interface elements into your own personal design. For more information, see Customizing the User Interface (page 3–829). See the topics referenced below for detailed information on all of the elements of the user interface.
718 Chapter 21: User Interface the object is part of a hierarchy, all its child objects’ tracks are also toggled. Viewport Navigation This action can be undone. Default key: I (the letter “i”) Set Key Pans the active viewport, centering it on the current location of the cursor.
Starting 3ds Max from the Command Line • Material Editor Switch • Material/Map Browser (modeless version) -c othercui Starts program using othercui.cui instead of maxstart.cui. • mental ray Messages Window • Parameter Collector -d Causes Track View to use a double-buffered display, which is smoother than the single-buffered display but uses more system resources. -g Makes background white (instead of gray) in the following dialogs: Track View, RAM Player, Video Post, Loft, and Falloff Curve.
720 Chapter 21: User Interface 3dsmax anyscene 3dsmax c MaxCustom Menu Bar See also Startup Files and Defaults (page 1–17) Saving and Loading Custom User Interfaces (page 3–848) Graphics Driver Setup Dialog (page 3–881) Running Scripts from the Command Line (page 3–826) Using the -V Option You use the -V option to load a different display driver at startup. This option overrides the setting in 3dsmax.ini.
File Menu is open, pressing that character key invokes the command. An ellipsis (…) after a command name indicates a dialog will appear. A right-pointing triangle after a command name indicates that a submenu will appear. If a command has a keyboard shortcut, the menu displays it to the right of the command name. Menu commands that are on/off toggles use a check mark to indicate their status. If a check mark is present, the command is active.
722 Chapter 21: User Interface Object Properties (page 1–111) Grab Viewport (page 1–35) Measure Distance (page 2–15) Tools Menu Channel Info (page 2–1549) Menu bar > Tools The Tools menu displays dialogs that help you change or manage objects, especially collections of objects, in your 3ds Max scene.
Create Menu Grids Submenu (page 2–33) Viewport Background (page 1–38) objects (page 2–15). It is organized into various submenus.
724 Chapter 21: User Interface AEC Objects Particles Foliage (page 1–209) Particle Flow Source (page 2–131) Railing (page 1–212) Spray (page 2–240) Wall (page 1–218) Snow (page 2–242) Terrain (page 1–342) Blizzard (page 2–247) Pivot Door (page 1–246) PArray (page 2–252) Sliding Door (page 1–246) PCloud (page 2–249) BiFold Door (page 1–247) Super Spray (page 2–245) Straight Stair (page 1–234) Patch Grids L-Type Stair (page 1–227) Quad Patch (page 1–981) U-Type Stair (page 1–238) Tri Pa
Create Menu NGon (page 1–272) Sunlight System (page 1–394) Star (page 1–272) Cameras Text (page 1–273) Free Camera (page 2–1215) WRectangle (page 1–279) Target Camera (page 2–1216) Channel (page 1–279) Create Camera From View (page 1–48) Angle (page 1–281) Tee (page 1–282) Wide Flange (page 1–283) Helpers Dummy (page 2–15) Point (page 2–22) Lights Grid (page 2–19) Standard Lights > Tape Measure (page 2–23) Target Spotlight (page 2–1143) Protractor (page 2–25) Free Spotlight (page 2–1144)
726 Chapter 21: User Interface Fog (page 3–649) Geometric/Deformable > Inline (page 3–657) FFD (Box) (page 2–87) LOD (page 3–651) FFD (Cyl) (page 2–91) NavInfo (page 3–648) Wave (page 2–96) ProxSensor (page 3–647) Ripple (page 2–98) Sound (page 3–649) Displace (page 2–72) TimeSensor (page 3–653) Conform (page 2–99) TouchSensor (page 3–652) Bomb (page 2–101) Space Warps Modifier-Based > Forces > Bend (page 2–103) Motor (page 2–57) Noise (page 2–103) Push (page 2–55) Skew (page 2–103)
Modifiers Menu Modifier Stack Controls (page 3–802) Extrude (page 1–671) List of Available Modifiers (page 1–483) Face Extrude (page 1–673) Interface Selection Modifiers Mesh Select (page 1–710) Poly Select (page 1–752) Patch Select (page 1–743) Spline Select (page 1–822) Volume Select (page 1–935) FFD Select (page 1–680) Select by Channel (page 1–775) Patch/Spline Editing Edit Patch (page 1–617) Edit Spline (page 1–671) Cross Section (page 1–602) Surface (page 1–833) Delete Patch (page 1–606) Delete
728 Chapter 21: User Interface UVW Map (page 1–905) Relax (page 1–769) UVW Mapping Add (page 1–916) Ripple (page 1–773) UVW Mapping Clear (page 1–916) Wave (page 1–940) UVW XForm (page 1–916) Skew (page 1–780) Map Scaler (WSM) (page 1–532) Slice (page 1–815) Unwrap UVW (page 1–867) Shell (page 1–775) Camera Map (WSM) (page 1–498) Spherify (page 1–819) Camera Map (page 1–547) Affect Region (page 1–538) Cache Tools Lattice (page 1–701) Point Cache (page 1–750) Mirror (page 1–720) Point C
Character Menu Character Menu Menu bar > Character The Character menu contains commands for managing character assemblies and bones.
730 Chapter 21: User Interface XYZ (page 2–340) Parameter Collector (page 1–133) Attachment Constraint (page 2–376) Wire Parameters Path Constraint (page 2–380) Wire Parameters (page 2–393) Position Constraint (page 2–384) Parameter Wire Dialog (page 2–395) Surface Constraint (page 2–379) Reaction Manager (page 2–345) Rotation Controllers Toggle Limits—Toggles all Limit controllers (page 2–319) in the current scene.
Rendering Menu Saved Schematic Views (page 3–702) Print Size Wizard (page 3–24) Particle View (page 2–121) RAM Player (page 3–685) Motion Mixer... (page 2–581) Customize Menu Rendering Menu Menu bar > Rendering The Rendering menu contains commands for rendering scenes, setting up environmental and render effects, compositing scenes with Video Post, and accessing the RAM Player.
732 Chapter 21: User Interface Customize menu to load and save these custom UI files, or to revert to the startup user interface. Help Menu System preferences such as keyboard shortcuts, viewport configuration, units setup, grid and snap settings, and many important default settings, are also on the Customize menu. The Help menu provides access to the 3ds Max online reference systems.
Main Toolbar Several additional toolbars are hidden by default: Axis Constraints (page 3–735), Layers (page 3–735), Extras (page 3–736), Render Shortcuts (page 3–736), Snaps (page 3–737), and Brush Presets (page 3–737). To turn any of them on, right-click a blank area of the main toolbar and choose the toolbar’s name from the list. You can use this method to turn any toolbar on or off. Select and Link (page 2–404) See Customize Display Right-Click Menu (page 3–831) for more information.
734 Chapter 21: User Interface Edit Named Selection Sets (page 1–91) Window/Crossing Selection Toggle (page 1–88) Select and Move (page 1–419) Named Selection Sets Select and Rotate (page 1–420) (page 1–85) Mirror (page 1–433) Select and Scale Flyout (page 1–421) Reference Coordinate System (page 1–423) Use Center Flyout (page 1–426) Align Flyout (page 1–446) Select And Manipulate (page 2–26) Layer Manager (page 3–706) Curve Editor (Open) (page 2–489) Schematic View (Open) (page 3–688) 2D Snap, 2
Axis Constraints Toolbar Quick Render (ActiveShade) (page • 3–17) Layers Toolbar Right-click any toolbar > Layers Quick Render (page 3–16) Axis Constraints Toolbar Right-click unused area of any toolbar > Axis Constraints The axis constraint buttons and flyouts appear on the Axis Constraints toolbar. Note: The default UI does not display this toolbar: to see it, right-click an empty portion of any toolbar, and choose Axis Constraints from the menu.
736 Chapter 21: User Interface reactor Toolbar Preset Rendering Options (page 3–23) Render Shortcuts Toolbar The reactor toolbar provides quick access to many of the objects and commands for the reactor dynamics feature. For more information, see the reactor User Reference. Note: The reactor toolbar is docked on the left side of your interface by default. You can toggle its display by right-clicking any toolbar and choosing reactor.
Snaps Toolbar Interface button functions, see Standard Snaps (page 2–40) and Snap Options (page 2–43). Brush Presets Toolbar Render Preset Slot A, B, and C—Click a button to make its presets active. If you haven’t assigned presets to a button, clicking it has no effect. If presets are assigned, then after you click the button, its name appears in the field above the drop-down list: “a,” “b,” or “c.” After assignment, each button has its own render preset (RPS) file: a.rps, b.rps, and c.rps.
738 Chapter 21: User Interface The Brush Preset toolbar controls are available only when a brush tool such as Paint Deformation (page 1–1065) is active. Brush Preset Manager—Opens the Brush Preset Manager (page 3–739) dialog, which lets you add, duplicate, rename, delete, save, and load brush presets. This opens the Brush Presets toolbar. 3. Do either of the following: • Click any of the presets to use it instead of the default brush.
Brush Preset Manager changes it for all contexts. For example, if you set a preset brush’s size to 11.6, the brush will be that size when used with any other tool. Brush Preset Manager Brush Presets toolbar (page 3–737) > Activate a brush tool. > Brush Preset Manager The Brush Preset Manager lists all brush presets, showing the context-specific settings and lets you change contexts. It also lets you rename, add, copy, and delete presets, and set the range for the depiction of brush sizes on the toolbar.
740 Chapter 21: User Interface Icon Size Min/Max—Sets the range of the brush size depicted on the toolbar. Changing the actual brush size between the minimum and maximum settings changes the image of the brush as depicted on its button to show its size relative to the other presets. Changes to the brush size outside these limits are not reflected on the toolbar buttons. Add—Adds a new preset to the list, using the current brush settings.
Right-Click Menu for Scripted Toolbar Buttons • Mode (Paint, Blend [Paint Blend Weights=on]) Right-Click Menu for Scripted Toolbar Buttons Any toolbar > Right-click a button that is implemented by a script. > Pop-up button menu When you right-click a toolbar button that is implemented by a macro script, a pop-up menu appears.
742 Chapter 21: User Interface Some of the selections in the quad menu have a small icon next to them in the quad menu. Clicking this icon opens a dialog where you can set parameters for the command. To close the menu, right-click anywhere on the screen or move the mouse cursor away from the menu and click the left mouse button. To reselect the last selected command, click in the title of the quadrant of the last menu item. The last menu item selected is highlighted when the quadrant is displayed.
Quad Menu Rotate—Lets you rotate objects. This is the same as clicking Select And Rotate (page 1–420) on the main toolbar. You can open the Transform Type-In (page 1–412) by clicking the icon to the right of Rotate on this menu. is available only if an object is selected when you open the quad menu. Display quadrant These options are available from the Display quadrant: Scale—Lets you scale objects.
744 Chapter 21: User Interface visible only if there is a corresponding geometry selected when the quad menu is opened. Tools quadrants The two quadrants on the left side of the default quad menu are called Tools 1 and Tools 2. These quadrants contain commands specific to various geometries and modifiers such as: lights, editable geometries, and cameras. These quadrants are not displayed unless one of the corresponding geometries or modifiers are selected when the quad menu is opened.
Animation Quad Menu Animation Quad Menu ALT+right-click a viewport. > Animation quad menu The ALT+right-click quad menu has commands to assist in animation. See also Additional Keyboard Commands (page 3–717) Interface Pose quadrant Set Pref Angles—For a hierarchy with history-independent (HI) IK applied to it, sets the preferred angle for each bone in the chain.
746 Chapter 21: User Interface Rotation To Zero works only if you have previously invoked Freeze Transform or Freeze Rotation. Relative/Absolute Transform Type-In (page 1–412) Coordinate Display (page 3–755) Grid Setting Display (page 3–757) Status Bar Controls Prompt Line (page 3–746) The 3ds Max window contains an area at the bottom for prompt and status information about your scene and the active command.
MAXScript Mini Listener The MAXScript Listener window is divided into two panes: one pink, and one white. The pink pane is the MacroRecorder pane. When the MacroRecorder is enabled, everything that is recorded is displayed in the pink pane. The pink line in the Mini Listener shows the latest entry into the MacroRecorder pane. 2. Right-click the Mini Listener and choose Open The white pane is the Scripter window where you can create scripts.
748 Chapter 21: User Interface Interface If multiple objects of different types are selected, the status line displays the number plus the word "objects": "6 objects" for example. MacroRecorder Line—The pink, upper line displays the last thing recorded by the MacroRecorder. If the MacroRecorder is not enabled, nothing will appear in this line. Time Slider Scripter Line—The white, lower line displays the last entry typed into the Scripter window.
Time Slider Procedures To display SMPTE time code on the time slider: To move to a specific frame in the animation, do one of the following: • • Drag (scrub) the time slider right or left until the frame number is displayed on the time slider. To display subframes on the time slider: • Type the frame number into the current frame field in the time controls, and then press ENTER.
750 Chapter 21: User Interface shortcut; for instance, CTRL+T. Click the Assign button. 3. Close the Customize User Interface dialog and then press your hotkey for Time Slider Capture Toggle. 4. Move the mouse left and right without pressing any buttons. The time slider moves in tandem with the mouse. 5. To exit this mode, press the hotkey again or click any mouse button. Track Bar The track bar is located below the viewports, between the time slider and the status bar.
Track Bar If you select one of the controllers from the submenu, the properties dialog for that controller displays in a modeless dialog. The track bar can display a waveform (.wav file) that has already been assigned to the sound object in Track View. To display this feature, right-click the track bar and choose Configure > Show Sound Track.
752 Chapter 21: User Interface • With the right mouse button to change the active time segment end frame. only the transform key must move, display the Transform Properties dialog and use the Time parameter to move the transform key. • With the center mouse button to change the active time segment start and end frames simultaneously. 1. Right-click a key on the track bar and choose a key on the pop-up window key list. A Key Properties dialog is displayed. 2.
Track Bar right mouse button will change the end of the range, and dragging with the middle mouse button will change both the start and the end of the range. • Right-click to abort a move or clone operation. • During a move or clone operation, short, vertical, gray lines represent the original key locations. • The cursor changes to a cross when over unselected keys. • The cursor changes to a two-sided arrow over selected keys, signifying a move operation is possible.
754 Chapter 21: User Interface Right-click anywhere on the track bar, place the cursor over Filter in the track bar menu to display the Filter submenu, then choose a filter. According to the filters set, keys will disappear on the track bar. • Snap To Frames • Show Frame Numbers—Displays frame numbers in the track bar. All Keys—Displays all keys. All Transform Keys—Displays only keys for position, rotation and scale.
Coordinate Display selection. The cursor displays the current selection icon. When you want to deselect or alter your selection, click Lock Selection again to turn off locked selection mode. To exit sub-object selection mode, do one of the following: When you want to select something and you can’t, it’s frequently because you have locked your selection. • Open another command panel. This turns off Sub-Object selection. This button is off by default.
756 Chapter 21: User Interface While you are transforming an object, these fields change to spinners (page 1–13), and you can type values directly in them, as described below in “Using the Coordinate Display for Transform Type-In.” This is an easy alternative to using the Transform Type-In dialog (page 1–412). • While a transform button is active and a single object is selected, but you are not dragging the object, these fields show the absolute coordinates for the current transform.
Grid Setting Display See also Units Setup Dialog (page 3–891) Grid Setting Display Status bar > Grid Setting Display The grid setting display shows the size of one grid square. They let you easily jump to any point in your animation by selecting its tag name. The tags can be locked to be relative to other time tags so that the movement of one time tag will update the time position of another. The time tags are not attached to keyframes.
758 Chapter 21: User Interface 3. In the Add Time Tag dialog, enter the name of the tag. Choose whether to lock it to time and whether to make it relative to another tag, and click OK. The name of the tag appears in the tag slot, and will reappear whenever you go to that spot in time. To jump to a defined tag, click the Time Tag slot and choose the tag name from the list. To rename, delete, or change the properties of a tag, click the Time Tag field and choose Edit Tag (page 3–758).
Animation and Time Controls Interface This is a one-way offset. If you changed the time position of the second tag in the previous example, the first tag is not affected. In addition, circular dependencies are not allowed. You can’t have First relative to Second and Second relative to First. Delete Tag—Deletes the selected tag.
760 Chapter 21: User Interface Key Mode (page 3–767) existing Move key to a later frame, so an object pauses its motion momentarily (to keep the object still, you must use linear or step interpolation). You can also set keyframes for other animatable parameters in Track View and the Motion panel without using Auto Key.
Set Key Animation Mode All the objects remain in the scene but all keyframes have been removed. Example: To animate an object between three points using Auto Key: 1. Turn on the Auto Key button. 3. To remove the animation from just certain objects, delete their keys in Track View. 2. Drag the time slider (to frame 25, for example). 3. Move the object from point A to point B. A Move key is created at frames 0 and 25. The establishing key at frame 0 describes the object’s position at point A.
762 Chapter 21: User Interface character (or transform any object) and then if you like it, use that pose to create keys. If you move to another point in time without keying, your pose is discarded. It also works with object parameters. Procedures You can try out different values and then when you have what you like use it to create keys. Combine this with keyable tracks in the Curve Editor to create keys on just the object parameters you want to key. 2.
Set Key Animation Mode 4. Move the time slider to the frame where you wish to set keys swap between different selection sets and track sets. Note: Choosing a selection set from the list does Click the Set Keys button. 5. Keys will be added to all keyable parameters. not select objects in the viewports. To accomplish this, use the Named Selection Sets (page 1–85). Note: Selection set names appear between braces 1. Turn on Set Key.
764 Chapter 21: User Interface • Modifiers— allows modifiers to be keyframed. Note that you should turn on Object parameters when you turn on modifiers, so you can keyframe gizmos. the tangent types (page 2–300) from the Key Info (Basic) rollout (page 2–299) and the Curve Editor’s Key Tangency toolbar (page 2–513). • Materials— allows material properties to be keyframed. existing keyframes, only new ones.
Go To Start The position curve going from Flat to Linear tangents. 6. Go to frame 30 and move the sphere again. The position curve with Flat tangent. The curve interpolation from frame 20 to 30 is straight as both keys have tangents set to Linear. 4. Choose the Linear tangent type (second icon from the top) from the Default In/Out Tangents For New Keys flyout. The position curve going from Flat to Linear to Linear tangents. Go To Start Status bar > Time controls > Go To Start 5.
766 Chapter 21: User Interface Procedures Previous Frame/Key Status bar > Time controls > Previous Frame To play the animation in the viewport: 1. Activate the viewport where you want to play the animation. Keyboard > , (comma) 2. Previous Frame moves the time slider (page 3–748) back one frame. If Key Mode (page 3–767) is on, the time slider moves to the previous keyframe (page 3–1054). Keyframe options are set in the Key Steps group of the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768).
Next Frame/Key Interface The Play/Stop flyout contains two buttons. Both buttons become a Stop button when in use. Play—Plays the animation in the currently active viewport. Play Selected—Plays the animation for selected objects only in the currently active viewport. Stop Animation—Replaces the Play button when an animation is playing. Click to stop the playback. Stop Animation (Selected)—Replaces the Play Selected button when an animation is playing. Click to stop the playback.
768 Chapter 21: User Interface If you turn on Use TrackBar and turn Key Mode on, then clicking Next Key advances to the next key for the selected object. This will respect every type of key that appears in the track bar. If you turn Use TrackBar off, only transform keys are used by key mode. track bar below the time slider. Other options are available on the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768) in the Key Steps group.
Time Configuration You can change the active time segment without affecting the keys you’ve created. For example, if you have keys scattered over a range of 1000 frames, you can narrow your active time segment to work on only frames 150 to 300. You can only work on the 150 frames in the active segment, but the remainder of the animation stays intact. Returning the active segment from 0 to 1000 restores access and playback of all the keys.
770 Chapter 21: User Interface 3. Play the animation in the viewport using the Play button or the / key. The animation will play once and stop. To play your animation in multiple viewports: 1. In the Time Configuration > Playback group, turn off Active Viewport Only. Click OK. 2. Play your animation. The animation now plays in all four viewports. To use sub-frame animation: 1. In the Time Configuration > Time Display group, turn on FRAME:TICKS or MM:SS:TICKS. Click OK. 2.
Time Configuration For example, if the time slider is at frame 35, and the Frame Rate is set to 30 fps, the time slider would display the following numbers for the different Time Display settings: rendering to any image output file. These options are available only when Real Time is off. These settings can be recalled by saving to a maxstart.max file.
772 Chapter 21: User Interface you use Key Steps mode. If you turn this off, the transforms of all (unhidden) objects in the scene are considered. Default=on. Viewport Configuration dialog to see and select the alternative layouts. Use Current Transform—Disables Position, Rotation, and Scale and uses the current transform in Key Mode. For example, if the Rotate button is selected in the toolbar, you stop at each rotation key.
Viewports Viewport Labels selected the object you want. These tooltips are disabled when you work in sub-object mode. Viewports are labeled in the upper-left corner. You can control many aspects of a viewport by right-clicking the viewport label to display the viewport right-click menu (page 3–774). Tooltips (page 3–859) are on by default. To turn off this feature, see To turn off object name tooltips (page 3–774), below.
774 Chapter 21: User Interface To change the number of viewports and their arrangement: 1. Right-click any viewport label. Select Configure from the right-click menu. 2. In the Viewport Configuration dialog, click the Layout tab. 3. Select a layout from the 14 choices at the top of the dialog. 4. Assign what each viewport will display in the lower window of the dialog. 5. Click OK to make the change. To turn off the world-space tripod in all viewports: 1.
Viewport Right-Click Menu after either the new or original UI scheme is loaded. To use viewport clipping: Procedures 2. Choose Viewport Clipping (page 3–896). To hide or show the home grid, do one of the following: • Choose Views menu > Grids, and click Show Home Grid. • Right-click a viewport label. Click Show Grid to reverse the current display of the home grid in that viewport.
776 Chapter 21: User Interface See Safe Frames (page 3–899). To fix texture display problems in a viewport: • Right-click a viewport label, and then choose Texture Correction. This applies only to the software display driver; OpenGL and Direct3D displays automatically correct texture display. Tip: If you have materials with texture maps that are not displaying in the viewport, you need to turn on Show Map In Viewport in the Material Editor for each material that has this problem.
Viewport Right-Click Menu label as the keyboard shortcut (F for Front, for example. The exception is K for back). • Bounding Box—Displays objects as a bounding box (page 3–1013) only. Note: This menu appears at the mouse cursor, but Edged Faces—Available only when the current viewport is in a shaded mode. Displays the wireframe edges of objects along with the shaded surfaces. This is helpful for when you want to edit meshes in a shaded display.
778 Chapter 21: User Interface conform to the Width and Height of the output size of your rendering image output. Viewport Clipping—Interactively sets a near and far range for the viewport. Geometry within the viewport clipping range is displayed. Faces outside the range are not displayed. This is useful in complex scenes where you want to work on details that are obscured from view. Turning on viewport clipping displays two yellow slider arrows on the edge of the viewport.
Viewport Controls Perspective and Orthographic Viewport Controls Truck Camera (page 3–791) Walk Through (page 1–30) Perspective and Orthographic Viewport Controls (page 3–781) Zoom Viewport (page 3–782) Orbit/Pan Camera (page 3–791) Light Viewport Controls Zoom All (page 3–782) Zoom Extents / Zoom Extents Selected (page 3–783) Field-of-View Button (page 3–784) (Perspective) or Zoom Region (page 3–785) Pan View (page 3–786) Walk Through (page 1–30) Arc Rotate, Arc Rotate Selected, Arc Rotate Sub-Object
780 Chapter 21: User Interface Interface Controls Available in All Viewports Zoom Extents All, Zoom Extents All Selected Activate any viewport. > Viewport Navigation controls > Zoom Extents All flyout Keyboard > SHIFT+CTRL+Z The Zoom Extents All flyout is available in all viewports. The flyout has two options: • • Zoom Extents All centers all visible objects in all viewports. This control is useful when you want to see every object in a scene in every available viewport.
Walk Through Button • Walk Through • Pan or Truck The Walk Through button (page 3–781) is one way to turn on walkthrough navigation (page 1–30). The use of the Pan or Truck button depends on which kind of viewport you are in: • Perspective viewports (Pan) (page 3–786) • Camera viewports (Truck Camera) (page 3–791) This flyout doesn’t appear for orthographic viewports or spotlight viewports. These viewports don’t provide walkthrough navigation.
782 Chapter 21: User Interface Procedure Procedures To undo changes to a perspective or orthographic viewport, do one of the following: To zoom a view: • Right-click the viewport label and choose Undo. The type of Undo is specifically named on the menu (for example, Undo Zoom Extents). viewport. • Press SHIFT+Z. Note: This is different from camera and light viewports, which require the use of Undo on the main toolbar, or CTRL+Z. 1. Activate a Perspective or Orthographic 2. Click Zoom.
Zoom Extents / Zoom Extents Selected Procedures To zoom all views: 1. Activate a Perspective or Orthographic viewport. 2. Click Zoom All. The button highlights when it is on. control is useful when you want to see every object in a scene in a single viewport. Zoom Extents Selected centers a selected object, or set of objects, in an active Perspective and Orthographic viewport. This control is useful when you want to navigate to small objects lost in a complex scene. 3.
784 Chapter 21: User Interface Interface Zoom Extents—Centers and magnifies views so all the visible objects in the scene are shown in a single viewport. Objects can be excluded from zoom extents all if the Ignore Extents box is turned on under Object Properties. • As the FOV gets larger, you see more of your scene and the perspective becomes distorted, similar to using a wide-angle lens.
Zoom Region The button highlights in gold when it is on. 3. Drag in the viewport to adjust the FOV angle. • Dragging down widens (increases) the FOV angle, reduces lens length, displays more of your scene, and exaggerates perspective. • Dragging up narrows (decreases) the FOV angle, increases lens length, displays less of your scene, and flattens perspective. 4. Press ESC or right-click to turn off the button. To enter an FOV value in a Perspective view: 1. Activate a Perspective viewport. 2.
786 Chapter 21: User Interface • Press CTRL+P. Pan View Activate a Perspective or Orthographic viewport. > Viewport Navigation controls > Pan View Keyboard > CTRL+P; I pans so the cursor location becomes the center of the viewport. Middle mouse button > Drag in the viewport with the middle mouse button for instant access to pan the viewport. Pan moves the view parallel to the current viewport plane. Pan is modal (page 3–1067): it stays active until you right-click or select another command.
Arc Rotate, Arc Rotate Selected, Arc Rotate Sub-Object Arc Rotate, Arc Rotate Selected, Arc Rotate Sub-Object Activate a Perspective or Orthographic viewport. > Viewport Navigation controls > Arc Rotate flyout Keyboard > ALT+middle mouse button The Arc Rotate buttons, on the Arc Rotate flyout (page 3–786), spin the viewpoint freely around a center. Three Arc Rotate variants are available: Arc Rotate, Arc Rotate Selected, and Arc Rotate Sub-Object.
788 Chapter 21: User Interface Arc Rotate Selected—Uses the center of the current selection as the center of rotation. The selected object remains at the same position in the viewport while the view rotates around their center. Arc Rotate SubObject—Uses the center of the current sub-object selection as the center of rotation. The selection remains at the same position in the viewport while the view rotates around its center. Activate a Camera view from the viewport right-click menu, under Views.
Perspective Interface The Dolly Camera flyout consists of the following individual buttons: Dolly Camera—Moves only the camera to and from its target. If you go past the target, the camera flips 180 degrees and moves away from its target. Dollying a camera A free camera moves along its depth axis in the direction its lens is pointing. Unlike a target camera, its target distance remains fixed, no matter how far you dolly.
790 Chapter 21: User Interface • Drag down to move the camera away from its target, narrow the FOV, and decrease perspective flare. 4. Press ESC or right-click to turn off the button. Roll Camera Activate a Camera viewport. > Viewport navigation controls > Roll Camera Adjusting perspective Note: This button replaces the Zoom All button Roll Camera rotates a target camera about its line of sight, and rotates a free camera about its local Z axis. when a Camera viewport is active.
Truck Camera Truck Camera Activate a Camera viewport. > Viewport navigation controls > Truck Camera The truck is constrained to the first axis you move while the SHIFT key is down. To accelerate trucking: • Hold down the CTRL key. Truck Camera moves the camera parallel to the view plane. Orbit/Pan Camera Activate a Camera viewport. > Viewport navigation controls > Orbit Camera Orbit Camera rotates a camera about the target. Pan Camera rotates the target about the camera.
792 Chapter 21: User Interface Note: This button replaces the Arc Rotate button when a Camera viewport is active. You can constrain the rotation to a single axis by first pressing SHIFT before beginning the rotation. The rotation is constrained to the axis you begin rotating about. • Press SHIFT and drag horizontally to lock view rotation about the world Y axis. This produces a horizontal orbit. • Press SHIFT and drag vertically to lock rotation about the world X axis. This produces a vertical orbit.
Dolly Light, Target, or Both Light Falloff (page 3–796) Note: This is different from orthographic Truck Light (page 3–797) viewports, which require the use of Views menu > Undo, or SHIFT+Z. Orbit/Pan Light (page 3–798) Maximize Viewport Toggle (page 3–780) (available in all viewports) For photometric lights (page 2–1155), the Light Hotspot control actually adjusts the beam angle. At the beam angle, the light is 50 per cent of the maximum intensity.
794 Chapter 21: User Interface The buttons on this flyout replace the Zoom button when a Light viewport is active. This option is available only if the viewport’s light is a target light. See also Dolly Camera, Target, or Both (page 3–788) Dolly Light + Target—Moves both the target and the light to and from the light. Procedure This option is available only if the viewport’s light is a target light. To dolly a light: 1. Activate a Light viewport. 2. Click Dolly Light.
Light Hotspot Procedure To change a light’s hotspot: 1. Set up a Perspective viewport so you can see the light in 3D space. 2. Activate a Light viewport. 3. Press H to display the Select Objects dialog. Select the light. The light and its cones should be visible in the Perspective viewport. Widening the hotspot creates a brighter light.
796 Chapter 21: User Interface Roll Light Activate a light viewport. > Viewport navigation controls > Roll Light Roll Light rotates the light about its own line of sight (the light’s local Z axis). Although Roll does change the light view, it affects the light object only if the light casts a rectangular beam or is a projector (page 3–1092). Light Falloff Activate a Light viewport. > Viewport navigation controls > Light Falloff Light Falloff adjusts the angle of a light’s falloff (page 3–1048).
Truck Light You can’t adjust the hotspot larger than the falloff, because that would change the falloff value. Likewise, when you reduce the falloff, it stops at the hotspot size (in both cases, separated by the angle separation (page 3–863), specified on the Rendering page of the Preferences dialog). To override the separation of the hotspot and falloff parameters and cause the parameters to affect each other, hold down the SHIFT key.
798 Chapter 21: User Interface 2. Click Truck Light. The button highlights when it is on. 3. Drag to move the light and its target. The camera and its target move parallel to the view plane, which is perpendicular to the camera’s line of sight. 4. Press ESC or right-click to turn off the button. To constrain trucking to a single axis: • Hold down the SHIFT key. The truck is constrained to the first axis you use. Orbit/Pan Light Activate a light viewport.
Command Panel To pan a light: 1. Activate a Camera or Light viewport. Click Pan Light. 2. utilities. Only one panel is visible at a time. To display a different panel, you click its tab at the top of the command panel. These are the six panels: The button highlights when it is on. 3. Drag to rotate the view about the camera or • light. Contains controls for creating objects: geometry, cameras, lights, and so on. • Dragging rotates the view freely using the world X and Y axes.
800 Chapter 21: User Interface Object Name and Wireframe Color Create panel > Any object category > Name And Color rollout Modify, Hierarchy, Motion, Display, or Utilities panel > Name field and color swatch The name and color fields appear at the top of all command panels other than the Create panel. On the Create panel, the fields are contained in a rollout. You can change an object’s name or color from any of these locations.
Modify Panel Helper objects are aids to constructing a scene. They help you position, measure, and animate the scene’s renderable geometry. • Space Warps (page 2–51) Space warps produce various kinds of distortions in the space surrounding other objects. Some space warps are meant especially for use with particle systems. • Systems (page 1–380) Systems combine objects, controllers, and hierarchies to provide geometry associated with some kind of behavior.
802 Chapter 21: User Interface Procedure To use the Modify panel: 1. Select an object. 2. On the Command panel, click the Modify tab to display the Modify panel. The name of the object appears at the top of the Modify panel, and the remainder of the panel displays settings for the object or the modifier at the top of its stack. Tip: If you know the modifier name, you can jump to its section by pressing the keyboard key corresponding to first letter of the name.
Modifier Stack Controls Using the Modifier Stack (page 1–487) List of Available Modifiers (page 1–483) World-Space Modifiers (WSMs) (page 1–498) Object-Space Modifiers (page 1–537) Instances and References in the Modifier Stack Display In the modifier stack display, objects and modifiers appear in normal type unless they are an instance or a reference. Here is how instances and references appear in the stack display: • The name of an instanced object appears in boldface.
804 Chapter 21: User Interface • Choose the name of the modifier from the drop-down modifier list. the modifier unique but not the entire pipeline (the modifier’s name is no longer italic, but it is still bold). • Drag the name of the modifier from the stack display or the drop-down modifier list to the object in a viewport. SHIFT+drag from the stack display moves the modifier, removing it from the original object and applying it to the new one.
Modifier Stack Controls To turn the effect of a modifier back on, do one of the following: To turn the modified object into an editable mesh, do one of the following: • • Right-click the modifier stack, and choose Collapse All. Click to turn on the dark light-bulb icon to the left of the modifier’s name in the stack. A warning dialog is displayed that reminds you that the collapse operation cannot be undone, and gives you the option of performing a hold (page 1–94) before creating the mesh.
806 Chapter 21: User Interface To go to a sub-object level for complex objects: 1. Modifier List Click the plus-sign icon to display the object’s hierarchy. 2. Choose the sub-object level you want to adjust. The sub-object level highlights to show it is active. Keyboard shortcut: INS cycles through the different sub-object levels. 3. Adjust sub-objects. When you add a new sub-object type, the modifier stack updates to show the new sub-object levels.
Modifier Stack Controls • Above the object itself are entries for object modifiers. Click a modifier entry to display the modifier’s parameters so you can adjust them. This section lets you go back to any modifier you’ve applied and rework its effect on the object. You can also delete the modifier from the stack, canceling its effect. Reminder:3ds Max applies transforms after it applies object modifiers but before it applies space warps or world-space modifiers.
808 Chapter 21: User Interface When the hierarchy is open, you can select a sub-control, such as a gizmo, and then adjust it. The available sub-controls vary from modifier to modifier. Objects that have a sub-object hierarchy, such as editable meshes (page 1–984) and NURBS (page 1–1079), also show a collapsible hierarchy in the modifier stack. To work at a sub-object level, click to open the hierarchy, then click to select the sub-object level.
Modifier Stack Right-Click Menu Show End Result—Shows the selected object as it will appear after all modifications in the stack have taken place, regardless of your current position in the stack. When this toggle is turned off, the object appears as modified up to the current modifier in the stack. Make Unique—Converts an instanced modifier to a copy that’s unique to the current object. See Make Unique (page 3–812). Remove Modifier—Deletes the current modifier or unbinds the current space warp.
810 Chapter 21: User Interface 3. Select a modifier above which to paste the cut modifiers. (This can also be the object at the bottom of the stack.) 4. Right-click and choose Paste. The modifiers object. Choose Paste Instanced to make the pasted modifiers instances of those you copied. Interface are pasted above the current selection. To copy one or more modifiers: 1. Select one or more modifiers in the modifier stack display.
Modifier Stack Right-Click Menu modifier, in which case it is pasted at the top of the stack. You can paste a modifier from one object into the stack of a different object. Paste is unavailable when more than one modifier is selected in the stack. Paste Instanced—Pastes an instance of the modifier into the stack. The modifier instance appears above the currently selected object or modifier, unless it is a world space modifier, in which case it is pasted at the top of the stack.
812 Chapter 21: User Interface The light-bulb icon to the left of the modifier name shows "off in Renderer." Make Unique Off—Turns off the currently selected modifiers Modify panel > Tool buttons > Make Unique without deleting them. This can help you see the object without the effect of its modifiers. Modify panel > Right-click an instanced modifier in the stack display. > Make Unique The light-bulb icon to the left of the modifier name shows "off.
Make Unique 4. Select two of the cylinders and click Make Unique. 5. Choose Yes in the resulting dialog. At this point, the two selected cylinders each have unique Bend modifiers, while the remaining two cylinders share the original Bend. You can see this by selecting each cylinder and changing the Bend Angle setting. 6. Choose Edit menu > Fetch, and answer Yes. 7. Select two cylinders again, and click Make Unique. 8. Choose No in the resulting dialog.
814 Chapter 21: User Interface the selected objects, but become unique from other objects not in the selection. Interface Modifier Sets Menu Modify panel > Configure Modifier Sets button The button sets menu gives you options for managing and customizing shortcut buttons for applying modifiers. Procedures To display the current button set on the Modify panel: • Click Configure Modifier Sets, and then choose Show Buttons to turn on this item. This item is a toggle.
Configure Modifier Sets Dialog Configure Modifier Sets Dialog Modify panel > Configure Modifier Sets button > Configure Modifier Sets save a new set under a new name, you can use it later. Interface This dialog lets you create custom modifier and button sets for the Modify panel. Procedures To choose a modifier and button set to edit: • Choose a button set from the Sets drop-down list. To create a new modifier and button set: 1. Create a custom button set in the Modifiers group box.
816 Chapter 21: User Interface Modifiers group Previews how the button set will appear on the Modify panel. Because the box shows only 16 buttons at a time, a scroll bar on the right lets you see any remaining buttons. To change a button, drag the name of a modifier from the Modifiers list to a button in this group box, or click the button (its border highlights) and then double-click the modifier name. Gyroscope assembled as a hierarchy. The parent is the outer ring with handle.
Motion Panel Assign Controller Rollout (page 3–817) Motion Panel PRS Parameters Rollout (page 2–298) Key Info (Basic) Rollout/Dialog (page 2–299) Motion Panel Select an object. > Command panels > Motion panel The Motion panel provides tools to adjust the motion of the selected object. Key timing and easing in and out of a key are parameters that you can adjust with tools on the Motion panel, for example. The Motion panel also provides an alternative to Track View for assigning animation controllers.
818 Chapter 21: User Interface Interface Note: A target is considered part of its light or camera for purposes of hiding and unhiding. Display Panel Rollouts Display Color Rollout (page 1–52) Hide By Category Rollout (page 1–52) Hide Rollout (page 1–53) Freeze Rollout (page 1–54) Display Properties Rollout (page 1–55) Link Display Rollout (page 1–58) Assign Controller—Displays the Assign Controller dialog. If no track is selected, the Assign Controller button is unavailable.
Display Floater Hide/Freeze panel function. This mode is automatically turned off if you hide all objects in the scene. Unhide group All—Unhides all hidden objects. The unhide buttons are only available when you have specifically hidden one or more objects. They won’t unhide objects hidden by category. By Name—Displays a dialog in which you can unhide objects you select from a list. Note: You cannot unhide objects on a hidden layer.
820 Chapter 21: User Interface Note: You cannot unfreeze objects on a frozen layer. If you select an object on a frozen layer, you will be prompted to unfreeze the object’s layer. Hide Frozen Objects—Toggles display of frozen objects on and off. You don’t have to unfreeze objects to hide them; you can use Hide Frozen Objects instead to hide or unhide frozen objects in a single step. Object Level panel the All, None, and Invert buttons to change the settings of the check boxes.
Utilities Panel lets you see what’s behind or inside an object in a crowded scene, and especially to adjust the position of objects behind or inside the see-through object. Use this when you need to see inside an object, such as a character with bones inside. Default=off. This option is also available from the Display panel (page 3–818) and the Object Properties dialog (page 1–111).
822 Chapter 21: User Interface Utilities panel. Highlight a utility in the list and then click OK to display its controls in the Utilities panel. (You can also double-click the utility’s name.) Interface Sets—Displays a list of button sets to choose from. By default, there is only one button set, called MAX Default. You can create custom button sets by clicking Configure Button Sets.
MAXScript Menu 3. Clear buttons by dragging them to the Utilities list on the left. 4. Click OK. 3ds Max updates the Utilities rollout. You can customize the button set without saving it, but if you save a new button set under a new name, you will be able to use it later. Tip: Don’t alter the Default button set. Create a new one instead. Channel Info, NURBS, Radiosity, Skin Tools, Strokes, MAXScript Tools, Internet Extensions, Realviz Products, and reactor.
824 Chapter 21: User Interface Open Script (page 3–824) Run Script (page 3–824) MAXScript Listener (page 3–824) Macro Recorder (page 3–825) Visual MAXScript Editor (page 3–826) MAXScript Debugger Dialog (page 3–826) There is also a MAXScript Mini Listener (page 3–746) on the status bar (page 3–746). For detailed information about the MAXScript utility, open the MAXScript Reference, available from Help menu > MAXScript Reference.
Macro Recorder pane so as not to clutter the recordings. Both panes allow you to cut-and-paste, drag-and-drop, edit, select, and execute code. You can resize the panes by dragging on the split bar between them. The left-end of the status bar contains a resizable Mini Listener. If the Mini Listener is not visible, drag on the vertical split bar at the left edge of the status bar to reveal the Mini Listener.
826 Chapter 21: User Interface Visual MAXScript Utility (See MAXScript Reference) Utilities panel > Utilities rollout > More button > Visual MAXScript Visual MAXScript is a powerful interface to the 3ds Max scripting language, making the MAXScript feature easier to learn and use. With Visual MAXScript, you can quickly create UI elements and layouts for scripting. For detailed information about Visual MAXScript, open the MAXScript Reference, available from Help menu > MAXScript Reference.
Running Scripts from the Command Line Note: Command line -U MAXScript startup scripts are run after 3ds Max has completely booted and the standard scripts and startup scripts have been run. MAXScript Command-Line Switches The following switches work specifically with MAXScript files and functions. Switch Effect -mip Starts 3ds Max in a minimized mode – but never allows you to open the window for interactive usage. -mxs This switch is essentially the same as -U MAXScript file.
828 Chapter 21: User Interface
Customizing the User Interface Customizing the User Interface You can rearrange the components of the 3ds Max user interface, including the menu bar, toolbars, and command panel. You can also dynamically resize the viewport windows. You can specify which toolbars should appear and which should be hidden, and create your own keyboard shortcuts, custom toolbars, and quad menus. You can also customize the colors used in the User Interface.
830 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface To rearrange the order of rollouts in the command panel: the columns must fit within the main 3ds Max window. • Click the rollout title bar, and drag to another location on the command panel. A thick line indicates where the rollout will be placed. When you release the mouse button, the rollout is moved to the indicated location, and the other rollouts are shifted appropriately. The order of rollouts is saved in the text file rolluporder.
Customize Display Right-Click Menu mouse cursor and the panel outline change shape at a docking location. Release the mouse. Command Panel—Toggles the command panel display. By default, this is displayed. • Right-click the title bar, choose Dock from the pop-up menu, and then choose Top, Bottom, Left, or Right. Main Toolbar—Toggles the main toolbar (page • Double-click the handle or title bar. toolbar (page 3–735).
832 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Show UI Customize menu > Show UI The Show UI submenu lets you add or remove UI (user interface) elements from the workspace, so that you can customize your screen as you work. You can turn these elements on and off as you need by selecting them from the menu, maximizing the efficiency of your workspace. The settings are stored in the maxstart.cui file, so they will remain after you shut down and restart 3ds Max.
Custom UI and Defaults Switcher See also Plug-Ins Path Configuration (page 3–857) Interface When you start the Plug-in Manager, it scans through all the plug-in paths specified in the plugin.ini file and lists them in the Plug-in Manager dialog. The information is divided up into columns as described below. Tag—Use the right-click menu and select Tag Selected to add a check mark for selected plug-ins. Tagging plug-ins lets you perform right-click menu actions on them.
834 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface The dialog displays a detailed explanation for each of the four default sets and two UI Schemes that ship with 3ds Max. If you create your own defaults or UI Scheme, they will also appear in the list, however you cannot edit the general description of custom default sets or UI schemes. See also Market-Specific Defaults (page 3–834) Interface • DesignVIZ.mentalray contains the set for design visualization use with the mental ray renderer.
COM/DCOM Server Control Utility shadows. On the other hand, a typical design visualization scene can contain hundreds of lights, in which case shadow maps will cause memory issues. For this type of scene, ray-traced shadows (page 3–1094) are much more appropriate. Procedure To change the current set of defaults: 1. Choose Customize menu > Customize UI And Defaults Switcher. 2.
836 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface behind the COM is to expose the core of 3ds Max so applications can invoke 3ds Max to generate images. The COM facility is intended for application developers. For more information about applications development with 3ds Max, see the description of the COM object interface in the help file (sdk.chm) for the 3ds Max Plug-In Software Development Kit (SDK). Procedure To register 3ds Max as a DCOM server: 1. Start 3ds Max and go the Utilities panel.
Keyboard Panel Keyboard Panel Interface Customize menu > Customize User Interface > Keyboard tab The Keyboard panel lets you create your own keyboard shortcuts. You can assign shortcuts to most commands available in the software. The same shortcuts can be assigned to multiple commands, as long as they occur in different contexts. For example, in Video Post, CTRL+S is assigned to Add Scene Event; however, in the Main UI, it is assigned to Save File.
838 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Assigned To—Displays the action a shortcut is assigned to if the shortcut you’ve entered is already assigned. Assign—Activates when you enter a keyboard shortcut in the Hotkey field. When you click Assign, it transfers the shortcut information to the Action list on the left side of the dialog. Remove—Removes all shortcuts for the selected action in the Action list on the left side of the dialog. Write Keyboard Chart—Displays the Save File As dialog.
Quads Panel 3. Perform the actions you want to record. 4. Select the lines in the script that you want. Drag those lines directly onto the toolbar. Note that your macro might require some minor editing to remove extraneous steps or to refine the procedure. You can edit the appearance of the text or icons on your toolbars with the Edit Button Appearance (page 3–847) command, which is available when you right click the toolbar button. Interface New—Displays the New Toolbar dialog.
840 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface quad menu sets, or you can edit existing sets. In the Quads panel, you can customize menu labels, functionality, layout, and shortcuts. The advanced quad menu options (page 3–845) let you modify the color and behavior of the quad menu system. You can also save and load custom menu sets. To delete a quad set: Note: You cannot delete any of the default quad sets. 1. Choose Customize menu > Customize User Interface > Quads tab. 2.
Quads Panel Group—Displays a drop-down list that lets you select the context you want to customize, such as Main UI, Track View, Material Editor, and so on. Quad Shortcut—Allows you to define a keyboard Category—Displays a drop-down list of the available categories of user interface actions for the selected context. Show All Quads—When on, a viewport right-click shows all four quad menus. When off, a viewport right-click shows only one quad at a time.
842 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Load—Displays the Load Menu File dialog. Allows you to load custom menu files into your scene. Save—Displays the Save Menu File As dialog. Allows you to save any changes you’ve made to the quad menus to a MNU file. Reset—Resets any changes you’ve made to the quad menus to the default setup (defaultui.mnu). Use the same procedure to add menus and separators to your menu. To delete a menu: 1. Choose Customize menu > Customize User Interface > Menus tab 2.
Colors Panel Group—Displays a drop-down list that lets you select the context you want to customize, such as: Main UI, Track View, Material Editor, and so on. Category—Displays a drop-down list of the available categories of user interface actions for the selected context. Action Window—Displays all the available actions for the selected group and category. To add an action to a specific menu, select it and drag it to the menu window on the right side of this dialog.
844 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface use the Advanced Quad Menu Options dialog (page 3–845). Interface Elements—Displays a drop-down list that lets you select from the following high-level groupings: Track bar, Geometry, Viewports, Gizmos, Objects, Schematic View, Rollouts, Track View, Manipulators, and Grids. UI Elements List—Displays a list of the available elements for the selected user interface category. Color—Displays the color for the selected category and element.
Advanced Quad Menu Options Reset—Resets any changes you’ve made to the Colors group colors to the default setup (defaultui.clr). Advanced Quad Menu Options Customize menu > Customize User Interface > Quads panel > Advanced Options The Advanced Quad Menu Options dialog lets you customize the size and colors of your quad menus. You can also customize other quad menu behaviors such as repositioning, type font, and cursor behavior.
846 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Display group Move Cursor When Repositioned—Moves your cursor to the new location of the quad menu when it is repositioned. When this is turned off, you must hold down the mouse button when you right-click to display the quad menu. Once you move the cursor over the menu, you can release the mouse button. Uniform Quad Width—When turned on, all displayed quadrants will be the same width. The width is determined by the widest quadrant.
Edit Button Appearance Dialog • Stretch—Quad menus open by expanding one quadrant at a time, in a clockwise manner. They close similarly; contracting one quadrant at a time, in a counterclockwise manner. • Fade—Quad menus open by fading in from transparent to opaque, and close by fading out from opaque to transparent. Steps—The number of frames used to complete the animated display of the quad menu. As this value becomes larger, the transition (small to large, transparent to opaque, etc.
848 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Group—Displays a list of button categories. The groups of icons change with each category selection. Odd Only—Certain icon sets, like Internal, Classic, Main toolbar and others, are designed in pairs that show what the tool looks like when the button is enabled, and what it looks like when disabled.
Load Custom UI Scheme All the default UI files begin with the base file name defaultui. When you choose defaultui.cui, all default UI scheme files will load. To save a single UI scheme file: 1. Choose Customize menu > Customize User Interface (page 3–836). 2. Access the panel for the type of user interface To start the software with a custom user interface: item you want to save. 1. Arrange the user interface as you would like it 3. On the panel, click Save. to appear when you start 3ds Max. 2.
850 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Interface Tip: You can resize the dialog by dragging an edge or a corner. Use the Look In field to navigate to other directories. Click the folder to choose it. The files display in the window. Display or hide the details using List or Details buttons. If Details is turned on, you can sort by clicking the column labels in the window. Use the Files of type drop-down menu to search for other types of customization files. The default is .
Revert to Startup Layout For more information on saving and loading custom user interfaces, see Saving and Loading Custom User Interfaces (page 3–848). Interface After you enter a file name and click Save, the Custom Scheme dialog opens, letting you define which parts of the UI scheme will be saved. Note: The icon scheme you choose will be saved as part of the file set, regardless of whether the chosen icon scheme matches the current scheme displayed on your screen.
852 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Configure Paths all members of content-creation teams to keep projects organized and work efficiently by using the same paths. Configure Paths See also Customize menu > Configure User Paths Customize menu > Configure System Paths Configure Paths functionality is available in two dialogs: • Paths that you use to specify locations for bitmaps, scenes, etc.
Configure User Paths 3. Optional step (3rd Party Plug-Ins panel only): Edit the description of the path in the Label field. This description subsequently appears in the path list. only paths that exist in both the current configuration and the new one. Interface 4. If you want to include subdirectories in this path, turn on Add Subpaths. 5. Click Use Path. The new path takes effect immediately. To delete a path: This procedure is not available on the File I/O panel.
854 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Merge—Merges a path configuration from an MXP file. The merged configuration adds paths that exist only in the new file and replaces any existing paths. Interface For example, if your File I/O panel > Scenes path is set to c:\3dsmax8\scenes and you merge a path configuration file in which the Scenes path is set to the UNC path \\scene_server\max\scenes, the former path is replaced by the latter one. OK—Exits the dialog and saves any changes.
External Path Configuration External Path Configuration Customize menu > Configure User Paths > Configure User Paths dialog > External Files panel For descriptions of the general dialog controls, see Configure User Paths (page 3–852).
856 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface • Click Move Up to move the entry closer to the top of the list, giving it a higher priority in the search process. Interface • Click Move Down to move the entry closer to the bottom of the list, giving it a lower priority in the search process.
XRefs Path Configuration RenderOutput—Path for rendered output. RenderPresets—Path for Render Preset files. • Enter a path in the Path field. • Navigate to locate a path, and click Use Path. Scenes—Path for MAX scene files. To add an XRef path: Scripts—Loads and saves MAXScripts. 1. On the XRefs panel, click Add. Sounds—Loads sound files. 2. On the Choose Directory dialog, do one of the VideoPost—Loads and saves Video Post queues. following: • Enter a path in the Path field.
858 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface 3–1089) supplied by third parties and independent software developers. You can also store plug-ins in separate directories and use this panel to add the paths of those directories. Changing the list order specifies the search order. Put the most frequently used plug-ins at the top. To delete a path: 1. On the 3rd Party Plug-Ins panel, choose a path entry. 2. Click Delete. The path location is removed. Path information is stored in the plugin.ini file.
Preferences directory can be any local or remote directory. In addition, the INI file can have any name. 4. Save plugin.ini and exit the text editor. The next time you start the software, it will load plug-ins from the directories defined in plugin.ini, as well as those in any remote INI file that has been included in plugin.ini. You can add as many remote INI files as you need, making it easy to organize groups of plug-ins.
860 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface 4. As you work, use the Spinner Snap button to toggle the use of this setting. Normally, each transform switches to the coordinate system and transform center used the last time the transform was active. To set the Undo level: 1. Choose Customize menu > Preferences > Preference Settings dialog > General panel. 2. Change the value of Scene Undo Levels. The higher the value of Undo Levels, the more system resources are required. The default value is 20.
General Preferences also turn off the warning in the warning dialog. Default=on. Save UI Configuration on Exit—Restores panels and toolbars to the positions they were in the last time you used the software. Turn this off to restore panels to the state they were in prior to turning on this option. Sub-Materials group Assign Automatically—Enables the automatic creation of a Multi/Sub-Object material when you assign a material to a selection of face sub-objects in an editable object. Default=on.
862 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Paint Selection Brush Size—Sets the size of the brush used by Paint Selection Region (page 1–82). Spinners group Precision—Sets the number of decimal places displayed in a spinner’s edit field. Range=0 to 10 (where 0 is no decimal places). Snap—Sets the click increment and decrement values for all of the spinners in 3ds Max. • Do Not Propagate—Unhiding or unfreezing an object in a hidden or frozen layer affects only the object.
Rendering Preferences Rendering Preferences Customize menu > Preferences > Preference Settings dialog > Rendering tab On the Rendering panel of the Preference Settings dialog, you set options for rendering, such as the default color of ambient light in rendered scenes. The many choices available enable you to reassign the renderers used for production and draft rendering. Interface generally makes the illegal areas appear darker than they should be.
864 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface HotSpot/Falloff group Default Ambient Light Color group Angle Separation—Locks the spotlight hotspot (page 3–1048) and falloff (page 3–1048) cones ambient light (page 3–1002) color for renderings. at the angle separation defined by the spinner (degrees). This option constrains the hotspot angle so that it can’t equal the falloff and cause aliasing artifacts.
Inverse Kinematics Preferences off, 3ds Max treats a rendering task as a single processing task and won’t divide it up. Bitmap Pager group The Bitmap Pager can help with the rendering of scenes that have very large textures, a large number of textures, or when rendering a high-resolution image.
866 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface object to be considered a valid solution. The value represents a distance in the current display unit system. Small values increase accuracy but take longer to solve. Rotation—Sets how accurately the end effector has to match the orientation of the follow object to be considered a valid solution. The value represents a rotation angle in degrees. Small values increase accuracy but take longer to solve.
mental ray Preferences Radiosity Processing group Automatically Process Refine Iterations Stored in Geometric Objects—When on, all refine iterations stored in geometric objects are automatically processed. mental ray Preferences Customize menu > Preferences > mental ray panel Interface Start/Reset Behavior Display Reset Warning—When on, a warning message is displayed whenever you reset the radiosity solution in your scene.
868 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Clear Frame Window Before Render—When on, before rendering the rendered frame window (page 3–5) turns to a gray shade by clearing every other scanline. This makes it easier to see the progress of rendering. On the other hand, it can make it harder to see the effect of small changes to the model or the view. Default=on. Messages group Open Message Window on Error—Whenever the mental ray renderer detects an error, it generates an error message.
Animation Preferences Interface 3. Choose a controller type from the list of available controllers and click the Set button. A dialog containing the default settings supported by the selected controller type appears in, for example, the In and Out tangents for a Bezier controller. Key Bracket Display group When you move to a frame, the software displays white brackets around objects that have transform keys (page 3–1054) at that frame, including cameras and lights.
870 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Animate group Local Center During Animate—Locks the center method to local (page 3–1057). Turn off if you want to animate around a non-local center such as world or selection. MIDI Time Slider Control group Enables use of a MIDI device to control the time slider. Choose On to use the MIDI device specified in the MIDI Time Slider Control Setup dialog (page 3–890), which is displayed with the Setup button.
File Preferences Interface 1 (filename01.max, filename02.max, and so on). Default=off. Compress on Save—Saves the 3ds Max file in a compressed format. Depending on the details of the file, the compressed file can be as small as one-fifth the size of its uncompressed equivalent. Default=off. You can determine whether a 3ds Max file is compressed or not by bringing up Properties for the file in Windows Explorer.
872 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface in the list File > Open Recent. Range=0 to 50. Default=9. Auto Backup group Auto Backup saves your work periodically. In the event of a power failure, if you have not saved your work, you can load in an auto backup (autoback) file from the autoback subdirectory in the program directory and continue working with little lost work. Auto Backup creates auto backup files based on a time interval. The name of an auto backup file is autobakn.
Gamma and LUT Preferences Gamma and LUT Preferences Interface Customize menu > Preferences > Preference Settings dialog > Gamma tab On the Gamma and LUT panel of the Preference Settings dialog, you set options to adjust the Gamma (page 3–1042) and lookup-table (LUT) values for input and output images and for the monitor display.
874 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface value before you start making adjustments in case you need to restore it. You can use these controls to load an Autodesk View LUT or adjust gamma numerically; choose either option. Autodesk View LUT—Click the Browse button and then use the Load LUT File dialog to find and open a LUT file. Thereafter the LUT file name appears in the text field to the right of the button.
Viewport Preferences Interface Draw Links as Lines—Displays the hierarchical links (page 3–1045) between parent and child objects as plain lines, rather than shapes when Display panel > Link Display rollout > Display Link is turned on.Show Links is enabled in the Object Properties dialog. Backface Cull on Object Creation—Determines whether to display faces with normals (page 3–1074) pointing away from view. When turned on, you see through the wireframe to the backfaces.
876 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface rotoscoped (page 3–1097) background, even if your animation plays at 1 frame per second. When turned on, an IFL, (page 3–666) FLC or, (page 3–662) AVI (page 3–658) file updates on each frame when you click the Play button. Turn off the real-time (page 3–1095) switch in the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768) to use this feature. In 3ds Max, the viewport updates not only when you click Play, but also when you drag the time slider.
Gizmos Preferences Ghost Before and After—Displays ghosts both before and after the current frame. Ghost in Wireframe—Displays ghosts in black wireframe in shaded viewports. When turned off, the ghosts appear as shaded objects, using the same colors as the wireframe ghosts. Show Frame Numbers—Displays a frame number in the upper-left corner of each frame. Mouse Control group Middle Button Pan/Zoom—Sets the middle mouse button to pan in the viewport if you have a three-button mouse.
878 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Show Axis Labels—Toggles the display of the axis labels on the Transform gizmo. Rotate Gizmo group are turned off. Relative Size (%)—Sets the size of the Rotate gizmo, relative to the Size value of the Transform gizmo. Range= 0.0 to 500.0. Allow Multiple Gizmos—Toggles the display of Free Rotation—Toggles the use of free rotation. Note: Functionality is maintained when axis labels more than one gizmo at a time.
MAXScript Preferences switch to Linear Roll to prevent loss of control over the gizmo. This occurs when a Primary axis is nearly 90 degrees to the view plane, making it different to circle around. Any angle to the view plane that is higher than this setting will use Crank mode, but any angle equal to or less than this setting will always function as a Linear Roll. Scale Gizmo group Relative Size (%)—Sets the size of the Move gizmo, relative to the Size value of the Transform gizmo. Range= 0.0 to 500.0.
880 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Interface MAXScript supports a limited form of variables. You declare that a particular global is persistent and the value it contains is always saved to and restored from scene files as they are opened and closed. In this way you can, for example, keep direct references to objects in the scene in variables. Those references will move across scene save and reload.
Graphics Driver Setup Dialog Macro Recorder Group Enable Macro Recorder—Enables the Macro Recorder. 3ds Max starts with the macro recorder disabled and a minimized Macro-Recorder pane in the MAXScript listener window. You can also enable the Macro Recorder by turning on MAXScript > Macro Recorder or by turning on Enable in the Macro Recorder menu on the MAXScript Listener toolbar. This state is stored in the 3dsmax.ini file. Turning it on once keeps it enabled across restarts of the program.
882 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Interface the software display driver/SZB option may work best on systems with an ordinary 2D display card. However, with a 3D-enabled card, you may see dramatic acceleration using the OpenGL driver. The disadvantages of the Open GL driver are as follows: • All potentially visible scene data must be transferred to the driver, and this can cause a communication bottleneck across the system bus.
Configure Driver From Direct3D, and then choose the new driver from the Graphics Driver Setup dialog. The Microsoft Direct3D API supports both rasterization and 3D scene-level calls. It offers the optimum display performance for large modeling tasks, and pixel and vertex shading. (3ds Max supports only D3D Version 8 or above, which is included in DirectX 8.1.) D3D calls are accelerated if the display hardware supports this. Many inexpensive 3D display cards can use this driver efficiently.
884 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Configure Software Display Driver Dialog Customize menu > Preferences > Preference Settings dialog > Viewports tab > Display Drivers group > Configure Driver button (when Software Display Driver is the current driver) The software display driver does not require hardware acceleration. Interface Download Texture Size group 64, 128, 256, 512—These buttons specify the size of the bitmaps used to map surfaces in the viewports.
Configure OpenGL Dialog Interface destroys the back buffer only when there’s a single viewport, turn on this sub-option. The OpenGL driver redraws the scene when a single viewport is visible, but doesn’t have to redraw when multiple viewports are visible. Default=off. Windowed SwapBuffers Destroys Back Buffer—If, after updating the screen, the display card destroys the back buffer when multiple viewports are visible, turn on this sub-option. Default=off.
886 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface choosing Views > Redraw All Views (the default keyboard shortcut for this is the ‘ [accent grave] key). Use BGRA Pixel Format—When on, sends bitmaps using BGRA (blue-green-red-alpha) ordering for pixels. This is the default order for Windows. By default, OpenGL expects RGBA ordering. Because of this, under default conditions, loading textures or backgrounds requires the pixels to be reordered.
Direct3D Driver Setup Dialog on the map level nearest the ideal one, and with Linear, the texel values from the two closest map levels are interpolated. Default=None. Interface Note: When both Texel and MipMap lookup are set to Linear, a true trilinear weighting of 8 texel values is used for a single pixel display. This is very accurate and helps eliminate aliasing, but it is time consuming if the texture-mapping hardware is not accelerated.
888 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Configure Direct3D Dialog Customize menu > Preferences > Preference Settings dialog > Viewports tab > Display Drivers group > Configure Driver button (when Direct3D is the current driver) The Direct3D display driver provides options that support DirectX 8 drivers. You can download D3D drivers from this location: www.microsoft.com/windows/directx/.
Configure Direct3D Dialog dialogs such as the Material Editor or Track View. However, redrawing takes some time. Default=on. object. When turned off, the entire scene is redrawn for each new frame. Default=on. If your 3ds Max display easily becomes messy or "corrupted," turn this option on and then redraw viewports by choosing Views > Redraw All Views (the default keyboard shortcut for this is the 1 key on the numeric keypad).
890 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface bitmaps are individually resized before they are downloaded to the driver. This means that small bitmaps don’t get overexpanded and large bitmaps retain their resolution (but potentially use a lot more video RAM). Note: Bitmaps can be no larger than 4000 x 4000 pixels (or they will be scaled down to this size) and no smaller than 32 x 32 (or they will be scaled up to this size). Default=off.
Units Setup Dialog customize the buttons used by the Media Control Station. Channel—Specifies the channel to which your MIDI device is assigned. Note Number group With the controls in this group you can specify which note event triggers which function. Start Frame—Goes to the start frame (the Rewind button in the Media Control Station). End Frame—Goes to the end frame (the Fast-Forward button in the Media Control Station).
892 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface • If you choose Fractional Feet or Feet w/ Fractional Inches, choose the fraction on the drop-down list to the right. Interface To enter fractions in numeric fields: • When you enter fractions in numeric fields, they are converted to the correct units. For example, if units are set to Feet w/ Decimal Inches, and Default Units is set to Feet, type 37/45 and press ENTER for the result 0’9.867", or 37/45’.
System Unit Setup Dialog The US Standards are as follows: • Fractional Inches • Decimal Inches • Fractional Feet • Decimal Feet • Feet w/ Fractional Inches • Feet w/ Decimal Inches For the last two items, you can specify which unit is assumed when you enter a value in a numeric field and press ENTER without including a units specifier, such as ’ for feet or " for inches. For example, if Feet is the default, typing 5 followed by ENTER results in 5 feet. Typing 5" followed by ENTER results in 0’5".
894 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Interface of millimeters if you plan on modeling an island that’s many miles across. When you use the slider or the text field to enter a distance from the origin, the Resulting Accuracy changes to show what the round-off error will be at that distance. These controls don’t change the unit settings in 3ds Max. They don’t reflect the extents of the current scene, either. Origin Slider—Move the slider for interactive feedback of distance and accuracy.
File Load: Units Mismatch Dialog File Load: Units Mismatch Dialog Interface Change the system unit scale. > Open, Merge, XRef, or drag geometry from a file with a different unit scale. This dialog appears when you open or merge a file that has been saved with system unit settings that are different from those of your current 3ds Max session. The default system unit setting is Inches. If you open a file with the system unit set to meters, for example, you will see this dialog.
896 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface this option. If this occurs, choose the Rescale option rather than the Adopt option. Rendering Method Customize menu > Viewport Configuration > Viewport Configuration dialog > Rendering Method tab Viewport Configuration Customize menu > Viewport Configuration Right-click any viewport label. > Configure The Viewport Configuration command displays the Viewport Configuration dialog (page 3–896).
Rendering Method Interface When you open this dialog, the settings reflect the current viewport settings. Rendering Level group Determines how the software displays objects. Smooth+Highlights—Renders objects with smooth shading and displays specular highlights. Smooth—Renders objects with smooth shading only. Facets+Highlights—Renders objects with flat shading and displays specular highlights. Facets—Renders polygons as flat surfaces, shaded but with no smoothing or highlights.
898 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Texture Correction—Redraws the viewport using pixel interpolation (perspective-corrected). The redrawn image remains until you force the viewport to redraw for any reason. This command has an effect only when the viewport is shaded and at least one object’s map is displayed. Z-Buffer Wireframe Objects—Draws the wires ordered according to depth in the scene. Otherwise wires may be drawn out of order to speed the viewport display.
Viewport Layout Viewport Layout Customize menu > Viewport Configuration > Viewport Configuration dialog > Layout tab Right-click a viewport label. > Configure > Viewport Configuration dialog > Layout tab You specify the division method of viewports, and assign specific types of views to each viewport on the Layout panel of the Viewport Configuration dialog. To assign specific views, click the viewport in the screen representation. Choose a viewport type from the menu that appears.
900 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface area. High contrast titles falling outside the Title Safe area are likely to bleed or be obstructed by the bezel of the TV screen. When Safe Frames are displayed in the viewport and a bitmap image is assigned as a viewport background using either the Match Viewport or Match Rendering Output (page 1–38) options, the image is confined to the Live area of the safe frames and matches the rendered background.
Adaptive Degradation Options fields to the left and four fields down. The 12-field grid is a reference for this type of placement. General Degradation and Active Degradation groups 4 x 3/12 x 9—Lets you choose between two matrices Select the boxes in each column to indicate the rendering modes to step through during necessary degradation. Those selected in the General Degradation column affect all inactive viewports, while those selected in the Active Degradation column affect only the active viewport.
902 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface This is handy when you’re adjusting lights and want to see their effect, real time, in a shaded viewport. Or you might be adjusting the camera and need to see complex geometry exactly as it is. the Open GL driver so that the software does not compute the display change internally. Procedure To use the virtual viewport: Regions Customize menu > Viewport Configuration > Viewport Configuration dialog > Regions tab Right-click a viewport label.
Strokes Interface keyboard shortcuts because they can select an object and apply a command to it. For example, you can assign Arc Rotate to a downward stroke. When you draw this stroke, the software changes to Arc Rotate mode. You can assign a circular stroke to the Hide Selected command so that it both selects the objects and then hides all the objects in the bounding extents of the stroke pattern.
904 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Reviewing and Editing Strokes (page 3–907) Stroke Preferences Dialog (page 3–908) Strokes Utility (page 3–909) Procedures To define and use strokes with the middle mouse button: 1. Choose Customize menu > Preferences > Preference Settings dialog > Viewports tab. 2. In the Mouse Control group, turn on Stroke. You must turn on this option for all Stroke functions to work with the middle mouse button. 3.
Defining Strokes 6. Click OK. 7. Load a scene containing several objects, and select two or more objects. 8. Drag vertically from top to bottom in the viewport. The selected objects are all hidden. Defining Strokes Hold down CTRL and the middle mouse button and drag in a viewport to create the shape of an unused stroke. > Define Strokes dialog Hold down the middle mouse button alone or with SHIFT, ALT, or both, and drag in a viewport to create the shape of an unused stroke.
906 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface To define a stroke by example: command. Depending on the type of command you choose in this list, various options become available in the Command Should Operate On group. 1. Draw a stroke that doesn’t exist. Currently assigned to stroke—Displays the name 2. A Stroke Not Found message appears. Click of the stroke currently assigned to the selected command. If you pressed SHIFT or ALT when the stroke was drawn, they’re added to the name.
Reviewing and Editing Strokes Window/Crossing—When you choose either of the previous two options, these two options become available. Window selects only those objects entirely within the rectangular or circular region. Crossing selects all objects within or crossing the region. Current Stroke Set group—Displays the name of the current stroke set, so you can review the strokes defined in that set. You can create and save a number of different stroke sets. See Stroke Preferences (page 3–908). 2.
908 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface Move Mode (Set Constraints)—Switches to Move transform mode and displays a small dialog with the available axis constraints. Double-click to change the axis constraints for the current transform mode. Note: This command is only available when the Rotate Mode (Set Constraints)—Switches to Select Displays the name and shape of the stroke selected in the list window. and Rotate mode and displays a small dialog with the available axis constraints.
Strokes Utility 5. Drag an inverted L shape to access the Strokes Preferences dialog. Interface Show Grid Time (ms) The time it takes, in milliseconds, for the stroke analysis grid to appear in the viewports when you complete a stroke. Set it to 0 to hide the grid. Default=300 (about 1/3 of a second); Range=0 to 2000. Show Extents Time (ms) The time it takes, in milliseconds, for the extents of the stroke to appear in the viewports. Range=0 to 2000. Set it to 0 to disable this feature.
910 Chapter 22: Customizing the User Interface The Strokes system is also available as an option for the middle mouse button that doesn’t require the utility or the modeless dialog. This option can be found on the Viewports tab (page 3–874) of the Preferences dialog. For details, see Strokes (page 3–903). Procedures Example: To define a stroke pattern for Arc Rotate: 1. On the Utilities panel, click the More button, and choose Strokes from the list. 2. On the modeless dialog, click Draw Strokes. 3.
Default Keyboard Shortcuts Default Keyboard Shortcuts Keyboard shortcuts are keyboard alternatives you can use to initiate actions (commands or tools) normally accessed with the mouse. For example, to open the Select Objects dialog, you can press the H key, or you can change the active viewport to a view from the Bottom, by pressing B. Keyboard shortcuts offer a means to let you work faster and more efficiently. Many keyboard shortcuts are already set for most commonly used actions.
912 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Edit Normals Shortcuts (page 3–916) Edit/Editable Mesh Shortcuts (page 3–918) Edit/Editable Patch Shortcuts (page 3–919) Note: If the keyboard shortcut you enter is already assigned to an action, that action’s name will appear in the Assigned To field. 5. Click Assign.
ActiveShade Shortcuts ActiveShade Shortcuts To use ActiveShade keyboard shortcuts, the Keyboard Shortcut Override Toggle (page 3–912) See Also Default Keyboard Shortcuts (page 3–911) Keyboard Panel (page 3–837) on the Extras toolbar must be turned on.
914 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Action Shortcut Description Display Footsteps Action Shortcut Description Paste Posture ALT+V Pastes the posture from the clipboard onto the currently selected biped. Paste Posture Opposite ALT+B Pastes Posture Opposite for the currently selected biped. Play Biped V Toggles Biped playback. Enable Subanims Figure Mode Fix Graphs ALT+CTRL+F Searches for any problem in the motion and prompts you whether or not to fix problems it encounters.
Biped Curve Editing Shortcuts Action Shortcut Description Action TV Select entire footstep ALT+S Selects both edges of the selected footsteps in Track View. Show Pos Speed Curve TV Select start of footstep ALT+A Selects all left edges of the selected footsteps in Track View. Show Rot Curve Keyboard Shortcut Show Rot Accel Curve Show Rot Jerk Curve Show Rot Speed Curve Twist Links Mode Toggle Draw Every Frame * Not available for customization in the Customize User Interface dialog.
916 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Cloth Function Keyboard Shortcut Cloth Function Delete Object Cache Use End Frame Delete Constraint Use Gravity Keyboard Shortcut Drag Constraint Erase Simulation Forcefield Constraint Crowd Shortcuts Get Group Grab State Group Constraint Initialize Constraint Live Drag Live Rotate Make Group NoCollide Constraint Node Constraint Object Properties Paste Group Preserve Constraint Rename Group Reset State Self Collision Set Initial State Show Current State
Edit Poly Shortcuts Keyboard Panel (page 3–837) Customize User Interface Dialog (page 3–836) Edit Normals Function Keyboard Shortcut Average Mode Edit Poly Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Affect Backfacing Align to Grid Align to View Average Normals Attach Break Normals B Attach List Copy Normal CTRL+C Auto Smooth Edge Level CTRL+3 Bevel Mode Face Level CTRL+4 Bevel Settings Make Explicit E Border Level Normal Level CTRL+1 Break Object Level CTRL+0 (zero) Bridge Paste Normal
918 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Edit Poly Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Edit Poly Function Grow Selection Ctrl+PageUp Select Edge Ring Down Hide Alt+H Select Edge Ring Down Add Hide Unselected Alt+I (letter “i”) Select Edge Ring Down Subtract Hinge from Edge Mode Select Edge Ring Up Hinge from Edge Settings Select Edge Ring Up Add Ignore Backfacing in Selections Select Edge Ring Up Subtract Insert Vertex Mode Shaded Face Toggle Inset Mode Shrink Selection Inset Settin
Edit/Editable Patch Shortcuts Customize User Interface Dialog (page 3–836) Edit/Editable Mesh Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Edit/Editable Mesh Function Object Level Attach List Paste Named Selection Attach Mode Polygon Level Auto Edge Previous Sub-object Level Auto Smooth Refine Cut Ends Bevel Mode CTRL+V, CTRL+B Select by Vertex Toggle CTRL+C Set Vertex Color Collapse Set Vertex Illumination Copy Named Selection Show Normals Create Mode Slice Cut Mode ALT+C CTRL+D Divide Mode
920 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Edit Patch Modifier (page 1–617) Default Keyboard Shortcuts (page 3–911) (page 3–912) on the Extras toolbar must be turned on.
Free-Form Deformation (FFD) Shortcuts Editable Poly Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Editable Poly Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Edge Level 2 Select Edge Loop ALT+L Edit Triangulation Mode Element Level Select Edge Loop Down 5 Extrude along Spline Mode Select Edge Loop Down Substract Extrude along Spline Settings Extrude Mode SHIFT+E Select Edge Loop Up Select Edge Loop Up Add Extrude Settings Face Level Select Edge Loop Down Add 4 Select Edge Loop Up Subtract Select Edge Ring Fli
922 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Shortcut Override Toggle (page 3–912) on the Garment Maker Function Extras toolbar must be turned on.
Main User Interface Shortcuts Customize User Interface Dialog (page 3–836) User Interface Function Note: In the table below, "RMB" stands for "right mouse button": in other words, a right-click. ActiveShade Viewport User Interface Function Keyboard Shortcut Adaptive Degradation Toggle Numeric Expression Evaluator CTRL+N while the cursor is in a numeric field Adaptive Perspective Grid Toggle The following list shows all action items for which you can create a keyboard shortcut.
924 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Align ALT+A Asset Browser Align Bottom Asset Tracking Quad Align Camera Asset Tracking...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Auto Select Scale Blizzard Particle System Auto Select XYZ Components BlobMesh Compound Object Auto Smooth (Poly) Blur Brush Mode (VertexPaint) AutoGrid Bomb Space Warp Awning Window Bone Options Back View Bone Tools Backface Cull Toggle Bones IK Chain Backface Cull Vertices (Skin) Boolean Compound Object Background Lock Toggle ALT+CTRL+B Borrow license Backup Time One Unit , (comm
926 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Camera View C CloseUnwrapUI Cap (Poly) ALT+P Cloth Modifier Default Keyboard Shortcut Collapse (Mesh) Cap Border (Poly) Collapse (Poly) Cap Holes Modifier ALT+CTRL+C Collapse Controller...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Convert to Area Light Create Linear Dashpot Convert to Edge (Poly) Create Mode Convert to Editable Mesh Create Motor Create New Layer Convert to Editable Patch Create Plane Convert to Editable Polygon Create Point-Path Constraint Convert to Editable Spline Creat Point-Point Constraint Convert to Face (Poly) Create Polygon (Poly) Convert to NURBS Surface Create Polygons (Mesh) Convert t
928 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Curve Editor (Open) Delete Collection Curve Editor (Switch to) Delete Keys (All) Custom [Shift+Ctrl+Alt+ RMB] Delete Keys (Selection) Delete Mesh Modifier Custom [Shift+Ctrl+RMB] Delete Objects Custom Dependencies...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Disable Scene Redraw Toggle Draw Envelope on Top (Skin) D Dual Planes Toggle Disassemble Objects Dummy Disp Approx Modifier Duplicate Collection Disp Approx Modifier (WSM) DX Effect Toggle Display Displace Modifier DX Effect Toggle Display Selected Displace Space Warp Display As See-Through Toggle Display Channel Down (VertexPaint) Display Channel Up (VertexPaint) Display Command Mode Display Edges Only Toggle Disp
930 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Extrude (Poly) Filter Envelopes (Skin) Extrude along Spline (Poly) Filter Vertices (Skin) Extrude Edge (Mesh) Fixed Window Extrude Edge (Patch) Flex Modifier Extrude Edge (Poly) Flip Face Normals (Poly) Extrude Element (Patch) Flip Faces (Mesh) Extrude Face (Mesh) Flip Normals (Poly) Extrude Face (Poly) ALT+E Flip Normals Mode (Patch) Extrude Face along Spline (Poly) Fl
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Freeze Selection’s Layer User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Group Explode Group Open Freeze Transform Grow Selection (Poly) Freeze Unselected Front View Grow Selection (Skin) F Hair and Fur (WSM) Modifier Fuse Vertices (Spline) Halogen Spotlight Gengon Hedra Geometry Selection Visibility Toggle Alt+G Helix Shape GeoSphere Help Menu About Box Get from Object Hide (Mesh) Get from Provider Hide (Pat
932 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Highlight Editable Assets User Interface Function Introduction and New Features Guide Hinge Face from Edge (Poly) Hinge from Edge (Poly) Inverse Kinematics Mode Toggle History...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Last File 5... (Goes up to Last File 50) User Interface Function Load Menu File Local Coordinate System Lathe Modifier Lock a Character Lattice Modifier Launch Provider...
934 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function MAXScript Listener F11 Motor Space Warp MAXScript Reference Move Measure Distance...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Nudge Grid Up Ortho Snapping Mode NURBS Shaded Lattice Toggle Outline (Poly) Default Keyboard Shortcut Outline (Spline) NURBS Tessellation Preset 1 Outline Face (Poly) NURBS Tessellation Preset 2 Paint Channel Down (VertexPaint) NURBS Tessellation Preset 3 NURMS Toggle (Poly) Paint Channel Up (VertexPaint) Oil Tank Paint Mode (VertexPaint) Omni Light Paint Selection Region On/Off Apply
936 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Position Expression Controller Patch Select Modifier Path Constraint Path Deform Modifier Position Motion Capture Controller Path Deform Modifier (WSM) Position To Zero Path Follow Space Warp Preferences PBomb Space Warp Preserve Modifier PCloud Particle System Preview Animation PDynaFlect Space Warp Preview Depth of Field in Viewport Percent Snap Toggle SHIFT+CTRL+P Previo
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut RAM Player User Interface Function Remove Isolated Vertices (Mesh) Reaction Manager Reaction Position Controller Remove Isolated Vertices (Poly) Reactor Rotation Controller Remove Link to Object Reaction Scale Controller Reactor SHIFT+ALT+RMB Remove Multiple Bones (Skin) Reads the Pop-up Note Remove Unused Map Vertices (Poly) Recessed 250W Wallwash (web) Remove Vertex (Poly) Recessed 75W Lamp (web) Remove Zero W
938 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Reset Raytrace globals Roll Viewport CW Small Reset Selected Rotation Motion Capture Controller Resolve Path to UNC Location Rotation To Zero Resource Collector...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Save Track View 1 Select All CTRL+A Save Track View 10 Select All Rollout Save Track View 11 Select Ancestor Save Track View 12 Select and Link Save Track View 13 Select and Manipulate Save Track View 2 Select and Move W Save Track View 3 Select and Rotate E Save Track View 4 Select and Scale Save Track View 5 Select By Channel Modifier Save Track View 6 Select By Color Save Tra
940 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Select Open Edges (Mesh) Set Key Other Filter Select Open Edges (Patch) Set Key Position Filter Select Previous Bone (Skin) Set Key Rotation Filter Select Previous Sibling Bone (Skin) Set Key Scale Filter Set Key Selected Select Ring (Poly) Set Keys Select Start Point (Skin) Set Pref Angles Select Target (Lights) Set Skin Pose Select Vertices By Bone (Skin) Set View to Sel
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Show Command Panel Toggle Shrink Selected Shrink Selection (Poly) Show Dependencies Shrink Selection (Skin) Show End Result Skew Modifier Ctrl+‘ Skew Space Warp Show Floating Toolbars Toggle Skin Modifier Show Frozen Keys Skin Morph Modifier Show Ghosting Toggle Skin Pose Mode On/Off Toggle Show Home Grid Skin Wrap Modifier Show Key Times Toggle Skin Wrap Patch Modifier Show Keys in Track Bar Skylight Show
942 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Snap To Curve Edge Toggle Spacing Tool SHIFT+I (letter "i") Snap To Curve End Toggle Sphere Snap To Curve Normal Toggle Sphere Gizmo (Atmospheres) Snap To Curve Tangent Toggle Spherify Modifier Spindle Snap To CV Toggle Spinner Drag Update Toggle Snap To Edge/Segment Toggle ALT+F10 Snap To Endpoint Toggle ALT+F8 Spiral Stair Snap To Face Toggle
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Strip Path Taper Modifier Style Hair Taper Space Warp Subdivide Edge (Patch) Target Area Photometric Subdivide Element (Patch) Target Camera Subdivide Modifier Target Directional Subdivide Modifier (WSM) Target Linear Photometric Subdivide Patch (Patch) Target Point Photometric Sub-Object Level 1 1 Target Spotlight Sub-Object Level 2 2 Target Weld (Mesh) Sub-Object Level 3 3 Sub-
944 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Track View Key Quad Unbind (Spline) Track View Quad Undo Checkout...
Main User Interface Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function UVW Mapping Clear Modifier Viewport Render Level Smooth + Highlights UVW XForm Modifier Viewport Render Level Wireframe Vector Field Space Warp Default Keyboard Shortcut Viewport Transparency Best Vertex Paint Modifier Viewport Transparency None Vertex Weld Modifier Video Post Dialog Toggle Viewport Transparency Simple View Align (Mesh) Viewport View Align (Poly) Viewports V Virtual Vi
946 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts User Interface Function Default Keyboard Shortcut User Interface Function Walk Through View Mode Up Arrow Yaw Viewport CCW Small Default Keyboard Shortcut Wall Yaw Viewport CW Big Wave Modifier Yaw Viewport CW Small Wave Space Warp Zoom All Mode Weight Table Dialog (Skin) Zoom Extents ALT+CTRL+Z Weight Tool Dialog (Skin) Zoom Extents All SHIFT+CTRL+Z Weld (Poly) Zoom Extents Selected Weld Edge (Poly) Zoom Extents All Selected Z Weld Vertex
NURBS Shortcuts Material Editor Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Material Editor Function Access Editable Name Field Show End Result Assign Material to Selection Show Map in Viewport Background B Update Active Material Backlight L Video Color Check Default Keyboard Shortcut View Preview Change Material/Map Type Clean MultiMaterial Copy/Rotate Drag Mode Toggle NURBS Shortcuts Custom Background Toggle Cycle 3X2, 5X3, 6X4 Sample Slots X To use NURBS keyboard shortcuts, the Keyboard Shortc
948 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Customizable Keyboard Shortcut Function for NURBS Create a Multicurve Trimmed Surface Create a Multisided Blend Surface Create Blend Curve Create Blend Surface Create Cap Surface Create Chamfer Curve Create Curve Point Create Curve-Curve Point Create CV Curve Create CV Curve on Surface Create CV Surface Create Extrude Surface Create Fillet Curve Create Fillet Surface Create Fit Curve Create Lathe Surface Create Mirror Curve Create Mirror Surface Create Normal Pro
Object Display Culling Shortcuts Customizable Keyboard Shortcut Function for NURBS Keyboard Shortcut Join Surfaces Local Select Sub-Object by Name (beneath mouse) CTRL+H Lock 2D Selection SPACEBAR Object Display Culling Shortcuts To use Object Display Culling keyboard shortcuts, the Keyboard Shortcut Override Toggle (page 3–912) on the Extras toolbar must be turned on.
950 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Particle Flow Function Keyboard Shortcut Action Particle View Toggle 6 Paste In Particle View* CTRL+V Previous Selection Shift+I Level Select All In Particle View* CTRL+A Selected Particle Emission Toggle SHIFT+; * These functions are specific to Particle View. It is recommended that you use Customize User Interface to change their keyboard shortcuts only, and not assign them to toolbars, quads, or menus.
Schematic View Shortcuts Reaction Manager Function Keyboard Shortcut Set Min Influence ALT+I (letter "i") Schematic V iew Function Keyboard Shortcut Display Floater Materials Set State Display Floater Modifiers Display Floater Rel Constraints Schematic View Shortcuts Display Floater Rel Controllers To use Schematic View keyboard shortcuts, the Display Floater Rel Lights Keyboard Shortcut Override Toggle (page 3–912) Display Floater Rel Modifiers on the Extras toolbar must be turned on.
952 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Schematic V iew Function Keyboard Shortcut See also Select None CTRL+D Track View (page 2–483) Selected Relationships Default Keyboard Shortcuts (page 3–911) Show All Keyboard Panel (page 3–837) Show Background Image Customize User Interface Dialog (page 3–836) Show Downstream Show Grid G Track V iew Function Show Instances All Show Instances Selected Default Keyboard Shortcut Access Hierarchy Select Name Field Accesses the track selection field
Track View Shortcuts Track V iew Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Copy Controller CTRL+C Copy Time Description Track V iew Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Description Insert Time Keyable Properties Toggle Cut Time Lock Selection SPACEBAR Lock Tangents Toggle L Delete Note Track Make Controller Unique U Delete Visibility Track Modify Subtree Toggle Draw Curves Move Highlight Down Delete Controller Delete Ease/ Multiplier Curve Ease Curve Out-of-Range Types DOWN ARROW Move Highl
954 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Track V iew Function Default Keyboard Shortcut Reduce Keys Description Track V iew Function Slide Keys Respect Animation Range Snap Frames Reverse Time Toggle Limit Scale Keys Track View Utilities Scale Time Zoom Scale Values Zoom Horizontal Extents Scroll Up Select All Select Children Select Invert Select None Select Time Description Show Tangents Toggle Remove Limit Scroll Down Default Keyboard Shortcut CTRL+DOWN ARROW CTRL+UP ARROW Zoom
Unwrap UVW Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Keyboard Shortcut Allow Selections Inside Transform Gizmo Always Bring Up The Edit Window Description Unwrap UVW Function Lets you select vertices inside the gizmo by CTRL+clicking or ALT+clicking a vertex. When turned on, you can move only by dragging over empty space. Display Seams Highlights edges that are seams in texture space in the Edit UVWs dialog. A seam is an edge that has only one face attached to it.
956 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Description Unwrap UVW Function Flatten Map Dialog Opens the dialog for Flatten Mapping settings. Ignore Back Faces Flip Horizontal Detaches the current selection and then mirrors it in the U direction. When on you can select only faces in the viewport that are facing you. Load Defaults Loads the UI defaults from an .ini file. Keyboard Shortcut Flip Vertical Detaches the current selection and then mirrors it in the V direction.
Unwrap UVW Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Keyboard Shortcut Mapping Reset Description Unwrap UVW Function Scales the gizmo to fit the selection and aligns it with the object’s local space. Paste Pastes the contents of the paste buffer onto the selection. For best results the source and target should have similar topology. Paste Instance The pasted and source UVs will share the same vertices. Pelt Always Show Seams Toggles display of the pelt seams in the viewports.
958 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Description Unwrap UVW Function Pelt Dialog Relax Simulation Light Causes a relatively weak normalization of the distances between mapping vertices. Pelt Dialog Straighten Stretcher Lets you specify a polygonal outline for the stretcher by moving points. Pelt Dialog Reset Stretcher Returns the stretcher and the pelt UVs to their default shape and orientation.
Unwrap UVW Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Keyboard Shortcut Pivot Snap ... (nine shortcuts) Planar Map Faces/Patches ENTER Description Unwrap UVW Function Snaps the Freeform gizmo pivot to the specified gizmo edge. Reset Pivot On Selection When turned on (the default), the Freeform gizmo pivot is reset to the center every time the selection changes, otherwise the pivot maintains its offset. Reset UVWs Sets texture coordinates to the original values before Unwrap was applied.
960 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Keyboard Shortcut Description Unwrap UVW Function Show Seams in Viewport ALT+E Toggles display of cluster seams in the viewport. Works only when Edit UVWs dialog has focus. Soft Selection Edge Distance Range 5 Set Edge Distance to the specified value. Soft Selection Edge Distance Range 6 Set Edge Distance to the specified value. Soft Selection Edge Distance Range 7 Set Edge Distance to the specified value.
Video Post Shortcuts Unwrap UVW Function Keyboard Shortcut Description Unwrap UVW Function Texture Vertex Weld Selected CTRL+W Welds selected vertices in editor. Vertex To Face Select Texture Vertex Target Weld CTRL+T Lets you targetweld selected vertices in editor.
962 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts V ideo Post Function Keyboard Shortcut Align Selected Right Edit Current Event CTRL+E Edit Range Bar Execute Sequence CTRL+R Make Selected Same Size New Sequence CTRL+N Command Shortcut Decelerate Toggle Z Decrease Rotation Sensitivity Decrease Step Size [ Down C, SHIFT+DOWN-ARROW Forward W, UP ARROW Increase Rotation Sensitivity Open Sequence Increase Step Size Pan ] Save Sequence Invert Vertical Rotation Toggle Swap Event Left A, LEFT
Weight Table Shortcuts Command Shortcut Affect All Vertices Alternate Global Method Copy Create Vertex Set DebugMode Delete Vertex Set Drag Left/Right Mode Flip UI Paste Remove Zero Weights Right Justify Bone Names Select All Ctrl+A Select Invert Ctrl+I (letter i) Select None Ctrl+D Shorten Labels Show Affected Bones Show Attributes Show Copy and Paste UI Show Exclusions Show Global Show Menu Show Options UI Show Set Sets UI Show Weight Table Marker Update On Mouse Up 963
964 Chapter 23: Default Keyboard Shortcuts
appendix a Using the Reference Online The 3ds Max User Reference gives you information about every aspect of the software. Each topic contains an overview discussion, typically preceded by a path annotation showing how to access the feature in the program, and followed by a "Procedures" section with steps for using a command or feature, and an “Interface” section detailing controls and parameters for the user interface.
966 Appendix A: Using the Reference Online Searching for Help Topics (page 3–968) 3. Click the term, then click Display to see the topic for that term, or double-click the term to see its topic. Finding Information Fast Use the Navigation pane in the Help Window to get to information quickly. It contains tabs that let you use Contents, Index, or Search techniques to get to topics you need. Contents Tab The Contents tab displays the main sections of this online system as book icons.
Using the HTML Help Viewer • To link to another topic or a list of other topics, click the colored, underlined words in the Topic pane. • To browse through a table of contents, click the Contents tab. The table of contents is an expandable list of important topics. • If you use a particular help topic often, you can add it to your favorites list (page 3–970). • To see a list of index entries, click the Index tab, and then type a word or scroll through the list.
968 Appendix A: Using the Reference Online If you close the Help Viewer with the Navigation pane hidden, it will appear that way when you open the Help Viewer again. To see where the current topic fits in the information hierarchy (contents): • Press ALT+C. The Contents pane displays, with the current topic highlighted. Searching for Words or Phrases: Using Wildcards You can search for words or phrases and use wildcard expressions.
Searching for Help Topics following table shows how you can use each of these operators. If no operator is specified, AND is used. For example, the query "spacing border printing" is equivalent to "spacing AND border AND printing." Search for Example Results Both terms in dib AND the same topic. palette Topics containing both the words "dib" and "palette." Either term in a raster OR vector topic. Topics containing either the word "raster" or the word "vector" or both.
970 Appendix A: Using the Reference Online If you are viewing a long topic, only the first 500 instances of a search word or phrase will be highlighted. If you previously used this feature, the Search tab opens with this check box turned on. To repeat an earlier search: To search for words in the titles of HTML files: 1. Click the Search tab, type the word or phrase you want to find, and then turn on Search Titles Only.
HTML Help Viewer Right-Click Menus Hide/Show—Click this toggle to hide the Print—Same as the Print button, described above. Navigation pane when it is displaying, or show it when it’s hidden. Search Highlight On/Off—Toggles highlighting on Back/Forward—Click to move to the previously and off for each occurance of a word or phrase found with a search. viewed topic, or forward to the following previously viewed topic. Print—Prints the current topic (if the Topic pane is active).
972 Appendix A: Using the Reference Online To Press To Press Display the Options menu. ALT+O Type a keyword to search for. ALT+W, and then type the word Hide or show the Navigation ALT+O, and then press T pane. Print a topic. ALT+O, and then press P, or right-click in the Topic pane and choose Print. Choose a keyword in the list. UP ARROW and DOWN ARROW Display the associated topic. ALT+D Move back to the previous topic.
New Features Guide Notes • There are also shortcut menu commands (page 3–971) that can be accessed through the keyboard. • The Match Similar Words check box, on the Search tab, will be turned on if you used it for your last search. words you want to search for, the Search engine gives you a list of all topics containing those words. Note: When you open the User Reference from the Help menu, you are actually opening an umbrella reference, which contains references for 3ds Maxand reactor.
974 Appendix A: Using the Reference Online Tutorials Help menu > Tutorials Click Tutorials to display the online tutorials for 3ds Max. These display as a separate online help syste; a tutorials manual accompanies this software package. Hotkey Map Help menu > Hotkey Map Additional Help Help menu > Additional Help Click Additional Help to display help files for installed third-party plug-ins and for add-on products from Autodesk.
Activate 3ds Max • Training—Uses your Web browser to connect to the Autodesk Media and Entertainment Training page. Activate 3ds Max Help menu > Authorize 3ds Max Choose this command to restart Register Today in order to enter a new license authorization code. You’d need to reauthorize 3ds Max, for example, if you’re changing from a trial license to a permanent license. If you bypassed the initial registration after installing 3ds Max, you can also use this command to register your copy.
976 Appendix A: Using the Reference Online
appendix b Troubleshooting 3ds Max Troubleshooting 3ds Max This section describes a collection of problematic situations and what you can do to diagnose and fix them. These include many common problems that are reported to Autodesk Product Support, and the things you can try in order to resolve the problems yourself. When starting to diagnose a problem, by yourself or with the intent of contacting Product Support, you should take stock of the situation by answering the following questions.
978 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max vertex until you bypass the object completely. For example, Autodesk Product Support once received a file that returned an Assertion Failed error referencing a tab.h file. The scene recently had an AutoCAD component imported that 3ds Max couldn’t understand. However, after the support technician clicked the Retry button 88 times, the scene finally opened. After resaving the scene, it opened without incident. 4.
Fixing Boolean Problems Granted, this can be a long process, but it’s well worth it if you can salvage a majority of the model. Remember Backup Files By default, the 3ds Max automatic backup feature is turned on. It is set to store three backup files that are saved every five minutes. The files are stored in the \Program Files\Autodesk\3dsmax8\autoback folder. Using backup files is especially good if your file became corrupt due to a system crash or power outage. 1.
980 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max In this example, it would be the box. 2. Change the Length, Width or Height Segments of the surfaces where the subtraction will occur. 3. From the Compound Objects buttons, click Boolean. 4. Perform the subtraction as you originally wanted. By subdividing the surface with more faces, the Boolean operation has more faces and edges to work with. This results in fewer long, sliver-like faces that can produce creases or ridges.
Fixing Boolean Problems You only have to perform Boolean operations once instead of several times. This method is far more efficient and less prone to errors. It is also very useful for cutting rough openings for doors and windows into a wall if you’re already working with 3D geometry. Next, you’ll find an example for working with 2D spline objects. Splines and Boolean Operations All the cylinders are a single object. 5.
982 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max want to subtract the two outer rectangles from the central rectangle. You also forgot to turn off Start New Shape. 4. Turn off Attach and scroll up to the Selection rollout. 5. Turn on the sub-object Spline mode, and select the central rectangle. 6. Scroll down the Geometry rollout and click the Boolean button. Also click the Subtraction button to the right. 1. Start by selecting the central rectangle. 2.
Performance Issues While Running 3ds Max • Apply the STL-Check modifier. One way to check the validity of objects that you intend to use as operands is by applying the STL-Check modifier. This modifier is primarily used to verify that an object is a complete and closed surface in preparation for exporting to STL files. Because Boolean operations work best with objects that meet the same criteria, use STL-Check on your operands. After applying the STL-Check to an object, turn on Check.
984 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max • Each version of 3ds Max is programmed and optimized to use newer video technology than what was previously available. If you haven’t upgraded your video card in the last year, or at least updated video drivers, there is a very good chance 3ds Max will not start as quickly as in previous versions. You can also try a different 3ds Max video configuration. • If you have not defragmented your system recently, 3ds Max could exhibit a slower start time.
Performance Issues While Running 3ds Max Slow Response to Open or Drag Dialogs This situation is exhibited when you click a command that opens a dialog, like the Material Editor or graph window, like Track View. After you click, you notice an appreciable time lag until the dialog or window opens. If you then attempt to drag it to a new location, the dialog or window does not smoothly follow your cursor.
986 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max When you can see the object again, your clipping plane is set properly. Problems Caused by Unit Settings The unit settings of a model can often get you into trouble. Understanding some of the common problems can help you avoid them. This section addresses the two most common problems that modelers encounter. Scale the entire scene: If it doesn’t matter what units you work in, scale the entire scene so objects are not affected by viewport clipping. 1.
User Interface Problems and Recovery the entire scene with Rescale World Units. For example, if working on a tiny scale, like modeling coins, you might change the System Unit Scale from the default of 1 unit=1 inch to something like 1 unit=0.1 or 0.01 inch. For larger scaled scenes, like an airport, increase the System Unit Scale. As a rule of thumb, keep the scale such that the smallest detail is not less than one generic unit.
988 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max There are a couple of ways to recover a lost dialog; both entail working with the 3dsmax.ini, found in the \Program Files\Autodesk\3dsmax8\ folder. Thorough Method In this example, let’s say you’ve got a single monitor that’s configured for 1280x1024 resolution and you’ve lost your Rendering Progress dialog.
User Interface Problems and Recovery 2. Open Windows Explorer and browse to the \Program Files\Autodesk\3dsmax8\ folder. 3. Choose the 3dsmax.ini file and delete it. 4. Restart 3ds Max. A new 3dsmax.ini file is automatically created using default settings. You need to be careful when using this method, because you don’t necessarily know what custom settings are saved in the 3dsmax.ini file.
990 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max Video Driver and Display Problems Because 3ds Max heavily relies upon the graphics card in your system, many problems that you may encounter while using the program can be attributed to the video. Such problems could be slow performance, refresh delays, user interface discrepancies, and so forth. Problems and Resolutions Basic Troubleshooting Start Point Multiple or Missing Buttons on the Toolbars This is another tricky situation.
Video Driver and Display Problems 2. Open the Viewport panel and check your currently installed driver. If it’s not the Software driver, proceed. Otherwise, you can cancel and begin the diagnostics elsewhere. 3. If set to OpenGL, Direct3D, or a custom driver, click the Choose Driver button. The Graphics Driver Setup dialog is displayed. 4. Choose Software and click OK. You’ll see a message that the changes will take effect the next time you start 3ds Max. 5. Exit 3ds Max and restart the program. 6.
992 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max have two ports and your system has only one AGP slot, you can only drive dual monitors. After installing the card and drivers, you want to follow the manufacturer’s instructions for configuring your system. Configuration is done through your system’s Display Properties dialog > Settings panel.
Video Driver and Display Problems The software solution to multi-monitor configuration is often found in older graphic cards that fit into your PCI slots. Each board has a single port to accept a monitor and the video drivers give you the option to configure a single display in “Wide” mode to encompass multiple displays. Also, because you have four PCI slots in your system, you could theoretically drive four monitors.
994 Appendix B: Troubleshooting 3ds Max
glossary Glossary Glossary or to import complex geometry in which the face normals are not properly unified. This section of the Help system contains explanations of concepts and terms used in the reference, arranged alphabetically. There are two ways to render both sides of a face. Either turn on the Force Two Sided option in the Render dialog, or apply a two-sided material to the geometry. 2-Sided (Double Sided) Usually, you want two sided rendering turned off since it slows rendering time.
996 Glossary files are easy to publish and view on the Web using the Autodesk DWF Viewer. 3D Map A pattern generated procedurally in three dimensions. A 3D map does not require mapping coordinates in order to render. However, a 3D map will appear in viewports only if the object to which it is applied has mapping coordinates. See 3D Maps (page 2–1472) • All map parameters, including UV transforms, Negative, Mirror, and Rotation.
Action • Basic material color/parameters from the Standard material. • Single maps with their amount, offsets, scales, etc. • Composite and procedural maps don’t export. • Auto-cubics and Mirrors export. • UV mapping coordinates can be exported. UV mapping coordinates are exported if the toggle Preserve MAX’s Texture Coordinates is turned on in the Export Scene to .3DS File dialog. See Exporting to 3DS (page 3–533).
998 Glossary Clicking the Bind button will bind the drawing to 3ds Max and sever the active link with AutoCAD or Architectural Desktop. Active Time Segment The active time segment is the total range of frames that you can access using the time slider (page 3–748). By default, the active time segment runs from frames 0 to 100, but you can set it to any range from the Time Configuration dialog (page 3–768).
Adapt Locks The Update Shading Pass Updating shading takes the buffer created by the first pass, initialization, and uses information in that buffer to change the color of pixels when you make changes to lights and materials in the scene. During the update pass, progress is indicated by a row of pixels (white by default) that descends the right edge of the ActiveShade window.
1000 Glossary Note: When you use Arc Rotate (page 3–787) in a shaded viewport while Adaptive Degradation Override is off, objects degrade to bounding boxes regardless of the adaptive degradation settings. The Adaptive Degradation Toggle is accessed from the Views menu; you can also use the O (letter ’o’) keyboard shortcut to toggle it on and off. Additive Opacity An additive process adds two values together, such as two colors.
Aliasing/Antialiasing there are periods with no feet on the ground, causing the biped to become airborne, or ballistic. For example, running, hopping, and jumping are ballistic gaits with airborne periods. Alpha Channel Aliasing/Antialiasing Alpha channel shown in black, on the right Alpha is a type of data, found in 32-bit bitmap files, that assigns transparency to the pixels in the image. Pyramid is aliased on left, antialiased on right.
1002 Glossary is 32-bit, with the extra 8 bits of alpha providing 256 levels of transparency. 3ds Max creates the alpha channel automatically when you render. Any background pixels in the rendered image are fully transparent, and the alpha channel also accounts for any other transparency that you create via materials, etc.
Animation Animated textures can also be materials with keyframed parameters. In addition, in the context of particle systems, a material that uses the Particle Age map (page 2–1485) or the Particle MBlur map (page 2–1486) is considered to be animated. In general, when applying an animated texture to particles in Particle Flow, be sure incorporate it in a Material Dynamic operator (page 2–187). Animation Animation is based on a principle of human vision.
1004 Glossary and choose Controller Types from the list). The controller names appear beside the tracks to which they’re assigned. You can assign different controllers to the tracks, affecting the way they respond. The Bezier Controller, assigned by default to all the Position tracks, lets you move objects using the Select and Move transform tool, and converts those movements into Bezier splines. You can adjust the splines in Function Curve editing mode.
Area Shadows Area Shadows Scene rendered with a 3D (omni) area light The light uses the default radius of 20.0. Note: To render soft-edged shadows, shadows The shape of the shadow-casting region changes the shape of area shadows. must be ray-traced, not shadow-mapped. See the Render Scene Dialog > Renderer panel > Shadows & Displacement rollout (page 3–111). Area shadows simulate shadows generated by a light with area or volume.
1006 Glossary ratio of width to height, regardless of the image’s resolution (page 3–1097). Attenuation Aspect ratio is usually expressed either as a ratio of width over height (for example, 4:3) or as a real value relative to 1 (for example, 1.333). For example, pre-1950s movies and 35 mm slides have an aspect ratio of 4:3. Aspect ratios are used anywhere a bitmap is created or used.
AutoGrid • You can reduce rendering time, since attenuated lights don’t have to be calculated for surfaces that are beyond the attenuation range. For standard lights, you can explicitly set where attenuation begins and ends. This is partly so you don’t have to worry about setting up strictly realistic distances between light objects and the objects they illuminate. More importantly, this feature lets you fine-tune the effect of attenuation. In outdoor scenes, attenuation can enhance the effect of distance.
1008 Glossary the control vertices (CVs) of a B-spline affect only their local region of the curve or surface. B-splines also compute faster than Bezier curves. with no feet on the ground) such as a jumping or running pattern.
Behaviors Behaviors Bezier Curve In crowd animation (page 2–1006), behaviors simulate a range of activities. Seek, avoid, path follow, surface follow, repel, orientation, scripted, space warp, surface arrive, wall repel, wall seek, and wander are all behaviors available in a crowd simulation. Behaviors let you assign procedural activity types to delegates and objects linked to delegates.
1010 Glossary BIP Files BIP files contain skeletal size and limb rotation data for bipeds. This is the native character studio motion file format. you use the Display Preferences dialog to exclude them). This playback mode usually gives real-time playback, which you might not get if you use the 3ds Max viewport animation Play button. In Biped Playback mode, the biped is displayed as bones only, with no other scene objects visible.
Bitmap Bitmap A bitmap is a still image produced by a fixed matrix of colored pixels (page 3–1089), like a mosaic. You can use bitmaps as textures for materials, as backgrounds to viewports, and as rendered environments. You can use an animation or video file as a bitmap, in which case the material or background changes over time. Bitmaps can be reloaded automatically after they have been changed and resaved by a graphic editing program.
1012 Glossary Block/Style Parent A Block/Style Parent is closely related to a VIZBlock (page 3–1125) in that it is a compound object similar to a nested AutoCAD block. Just like the VIZBlock, it is used for organizing linked data from DWG files. When linking DWG data to 3ds Max, you need to decide how the incoming entities are to be organized in the scene. Objects in DWG files are commonly organized by layers, blocks, and entities, while 3ds Max scenes are organized by parent/child hierarchies of objects.
Boolean Operation Boolean Operation Bound Vertex Binding spline vertices via the Refine and Bind functions in Editable Spline (Vertex) (page 1–292) is useful for connecting splines when building a spline network for use with the Surface Modifier (page 1–833). The fence is operand A, and the cat is operand B. Upper left and right: A minus B Second to upper left: B minus A Second to lower left: Union Bound vertices are black, allowing them to be easily distinguished from standard vertices.
1014 Glossary The Align command (page 1–447) uses the maximum and minimum extents of the object’s bounding box to align objects. Bulge Physique allows you to “bulge” a mesh based on the orientation of a limb. Bulging the mesh is used to simulate muscle contraction. of mass can move outside of the biped body; for example, moving the center of mass forward can help simulate lifting a heavy object. The center of mass uses three animation tracks to animate the biped.
CIBSE Files CIBSE Files The CIBSE file type is the file format for photometric data adopted by the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers. It is used primarily in Great Britain. Clip Controller In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the GlobalMotionClip and MasterMotionClip controllers are used to create animation for multiple objects. Birds, butterflies, schools of fish, and bugs can be animated using these tools.
1016 Glossary Composite Compound (or complex) materials let you create a material consisting of two or more sub-materials. The real power in using compound materials is that each sub-material can be as complex as any standard material. The Multi/Sub-Object compound material lets you assign different materials to different sub-objects, at the sub-object level of your geometry. You load or create compound materials using the Material/Map Browser.
Continuity • Maps containers with all map types and map parameters. Control Lattice • Single Map containers with a single map type and its associated parameters. • Object containers directly below a named object item defining the creation parameters of an unmodified object. • Modified Object containers holding all of the modifiers applied to an object as well as the creation parameters. Continuity A property of curves, including NURBS curves. A curve is continuous if it is unbroken.
1018 Glossary Control Vertex (CV ) Cool It’s useful to be able to edit a material in the Material Editor and have it immediately updated in the scene. Sometimes you want to work on a material without affecting the scene. You want to adjust a material until you’re sure that it’s what you want, and then reassign it. In other words, you want to cool a hot material (page 3–1047). You cool a material by copying it in the Material Editor sample slots.
CPY Files CPY Files CPY files contain postures, poses and tracks you have copied and saved on the Copy/Paste rollout (page 2–818). You can load a CPY created with one biped to another biped. See Copying and Pasting Postures and Poses (page 2–768) and Copying and Pasting Tracks (page 2–781). Creation Parameters An object’s creation parameters are settings, typically available on its Parameters rollout, that you make when you first add the object to the scene.
1020 Glossary Track View. Curve View doesn’t use soft-selection like the Key Window, instead it has a specialized Show Layered Edit command for the equivalent of soft selection on biped keys. CV Curve CV NURBS CV curve CVs (control vertices) in the lattice surrounding a NURBS surface Short for control vertex. A NURBS curve defined by CVs. The CVs don’t necessarily lie on the curve. Instead, they form a control lattice that affects the curvature of the curve.
Deformable Envelope Deformable Envelope In Physique (page 2–927), envelopes (page 3–1027) follow the Physique deformation spline (page 3–1021) that runs through the joints in the skeleton’s hierarchy. A deformable (as opposed to rigid) envelope is one that moves the mesh vertices it encloses as the skeleton moves. A link can have both a deformable and a rigid envelope. When it has both, the effect of the two is averaged, creating a less flexible skin.
1022 Glossary curves typically are represented by cubic equations and have a degree of 3. Delegates In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the Delegate helper serves as an agent for the motion created by a Crowd object (page 2–1038) and its behaviors. The Crowd object controls a delegate or delegates, whose motion can then be imparted to a biped or other object. In viewports, the delegate object takes the shape of a pyramid. By default, the point of the pyramid indicates the delegate’s forward direction.
Diffuse Color When we describe an object’s color in conversation, we usually mean its diffuse color. The choice of an ambient color depends on the kind of lighting: for moderate indoor lighting it can be a darker shade of the diffuse color, but for bright indoor lighting and for daylight, it should be the complement of the primary (key) light source. The specular color should be either the same color as the key light source, or a high-value low-saturation version of the diffuse color.
1024 Glossary try applying maps to the flat areas in the scene to see if that eliminates banding before you turn on dithering. By default, 3ds Max renders 64-bit color output. Consequently, you also have the option of setting dithering for truecolor (24 or 32-bit color) (page 3–1121). The Dither True Color option ensures that you get the best quality on truecolor displays. You turn dithering on and off in the Rendering panel (page 3–863) of the Preferences dialog.
Dynaflector Keep the following in mind when you are creating your DXF geometry, and when you are deciding whether to convert by layer, color, or entity: • With AutoCAD Release 12, if you are using the AutoCAD Advanced Modeling Extension (AME), use the SOLMESH command on your AME models prior to saving the .dxf file. • After importing a DXF file, you might want to divide the resulting 3ds Max file into smaller objects.
1026 Glossary an animated parameter over time. An ease curve charts changes to the timing of the function curve. Changing ease curve values shifts the time of the original track left or right. The horizontal scale of an ease curve represents normal time, just as it does for all function curves. The vertical scale of an ease curve represents the time scale of the function curve the ease curve is applied to.
Element Element The antler is one element of the moose head. An element is one of two or more individual mesh objects (that is, groups of contiguous faces) grouped together into one larger object. For example, if you attach one box to another, you create one mesh object from the two boxes. Each box is now an element of the object. Any function you perform on that object affects all its elements. However, you can manipulate the elements independently at the Element sub-object level.
1028 Glossary cross-sections that allow you to shape the envelope to fit the surrounding mesh. • Cylindrical Typically, the envelopes of adjacent links or bones overlap each other. Vertices that fall in the overlap area are weighted to produce smooth blending at joint intersections. • Screen Environment Map • Shrink-Wrap The first three are the same as those used by the UVW Map modifier (page 1–905).
Event the Environment dialog map button to the sample slot. Note: To control whether or not the renderer uses the environment map’s alpha channel in creating the alpha for the rendered image, choose Customize > Preferences > Rendering, and then turn on Use Environment Alpha in the Background Antialiasing group. If Use Environment Alpha is turned off (the default) the background receives an alpha of 0 (completely transparent).
1030 Glossary Extents Bounding box shows the extents of the model boat. An object’s extents are its maximum dimensions in X, Y, and Z. These are the dimensions of the rectangular bounding box (page 3–1013) that surrounds the object. Event Level In Particle Flow, you can select particles at the Event level or at the Particle level (page 3–1084), using controls on the Modify panel > Selection rollout (page 2–134).
FFD Turn on Faceted to provide a faceted look to your geometry without having to explicitly change the smoothing groups in the object with the Edit Mesh modifier. Field of View Both Standard (page 2–1309) and Raytrace (page 2–1353) materials provide a Faceted toggle. Note: This feature was known as “constant shading” in versions of 3ds Max prior to v5. FFD FFD stands for free-form deformation. It is used in computer animation for effects like dancing cars and gas tanks.
1032 Glossary Fields result is a 60 fields-per-second animation suitable for play on an NTSC (page 3–1074) television monitor. Field Order Two fields combine to make a single frame. Your animations might ultimately be viewed on television monitors. Standard video signals display animation by breaking it down within time segments (frames). The image for each frame is split into horizontal lines (scan lines). A special method for conveying frame information on a video signal has been developed.
Fillet mode is also used to scale a biped that has a mesh attached to it, to make biped "fit" adjustments after Physique is applied, and to correct posture for motion files that need a global posture change. Filter Color / Filter Opacity When Figure mode is turned on, the biped jumps from its animated position to its Figure mode pose. Animation is preserved when you exit Figure mode. The parameters on the Structure rollout (page 2–837) are active only in Figure mode, and at creation time.
1034 Glossary two methods of pixel averaging. Only one can be active at a time. Both methods require approximately the same rendering time. Summed-area filtering generally yields superior results but requires much more memory. Pyramidal filtering requires the program to allocate memory equal to approximately 133% of the size of the bitmap. By comparison, summed-area filtering requires the program to allocate approximately 400% of the size of the bitmap.
First Vertex First Vertex Same scene with final gather used to smooth the global illumination First vertex of a spline When you create a spline object, the software numbers the vertices from 1 to the total number of vertices in the spline, according to the order of creation. When the spline is displayed in viewports, the first vertex has a box around it. Same scene with final gather but no global illumination, for comparison Final gathering can greatly increase rendering time.
1036 Glossary Flat Mirror Flow A particle system (page 3–1084) can contain any number of separate particle flows. Each flow consists of an isolated chain or sequence of events (page 3–1029), as depicted in Particle View (page 2–121). A flow typically contains a global event (page 3–1043) and a birth event (page 3–1010), and any number of additional local events (page 3–1057). Flat mirror map reflects the ice-cream shop’s interior.
Flyout Fluorescence is light emitted from an object when it absorbs radiation (for example, ultraviolet light) from another source. Raytrace materials have the ability to simulate fluorescence. Flyout For example, you might want to animate a figure that always points to another object. Bind the hand of the figure to the other object. Turn IK on and as you move the object the hand and arm of the figure move to point at it.
1038 Glossary viewports. The footstep position and orientation in the viewport controls where the biped will step. In Track View — Dope Sheet, each footstep appears as a block that represents a support period in time for each of the biped’s feet. Moving footsteps in time is done in Track View — Dope Sheet. Tip: To see the footsteps, you must turn on Edit Keys in the Dope Sheet. There are three ways to create footsteps for the biped. The first way is to place footsteps individually, one at a time.
Freeform Animation If you later discover you need to output to PAL video (at 25 frames per second), you can switch to the PAL frame rate. The 90 frames are automatically converted to 75, producing the same total animation time with a different number of frames. You can later switch back to NTSC frame rate to restore the original 90 frames of animation. Freeze/Unfreeze You can switch back and forth between frame rates at any time without losing animation data.
1040 Glossary Function curves appear in the Track View, and provide the best method of viewing and editing animation tracks. With the function curve display, you can actually see the characteristics of the animation as they change over time. The steepness of the curve indicates the velocity of an object in the scene. If the curve steepens, the object is accelerating. If the curve flattens out, the object is slowing. You can display key dots in function curves, as well as in the key editing displays.
Gait Pattern performs its post-processing only on those objects or materials. Warning: The mental ray renderer (page 3–77) does not recognize Z-depth with G-buffers. G-buffer data is saved on a single layer.
1042 Glossary Gamma Correction You do this in the Gamma panel (page 3–873) of the Preferences dialog (Display Gamma). • Determine the gamma value to be applied to files output by the renderer and files input into the software, such as texture maps. This control is also in the Gamma panel of the Preferences dialog (Files Gamma).
Gizmo/Center Gizmo/Center Global Event The first event (page 3–1029) in a particle flow (page 3–1036) is always a global event, whose contents affect all particles in the flow; the rest are local events (page 3–1057). Although a global event has the same name as the Particle Flow source icon, selecting the source icon in a viewport doesn’t highlight the global event, nor does highlighting a global event select the corresponding source icon.
1044 Glossary You can add other operators here to have them act globally, such as Material, Display, and Speed. Note: A global event is the only event that can be When the Specular Level is too high, and Glossiness is too low, you can get harsh backlights on your surfaces. The Soften option mitigates this. wired to another event without using a test (page 3–1115). It’s almost always wired directly to a birth event (page 3–1010).
Grid Object Grid Object The head object always points at the center of the target. Helper Object 3ds Max helper objects are used to help you set up an animation, but do not render. character studio crowd animation (page 2–1006) uses two kinds of specialized helper objects: the crowd helper (page 2–1038) and delegate helpers. Hide/Unhide One grid establishes the pitch of the boat, another the pitch of the ship.
1046 Glossary Child—An object controlled by its parent. A child object can also be a parent to other children. An object that doesn’t have any parent is by default a child of the world. (The "world" is an imaginary object that acts as the root of all other objects in the scene.) Home Grid Ancestors—The parent and all of the parent’s parents of a child object. Descendents—The children and all of the children’s children of a parent object.
Horizon Horizon If you raise or lower the camera, raise or lower the target by an equal amount, in order to keep them level and maintain the horizon. Hot Horizon in the distance of a scene The horizon of a scene is the edge of vision at the height of the camera, parallel with the world coordinate plane. You can view the horizon in camera viewports. A camera is level when it and its target are the same height from the world coordinate plane.
1048 Glossary Hotspot/Falloff IGES (Initial Graphics Exchange Specification) The Initial Graphics Exchange Specification (IGES) is an ANSI standard that defines a neutral form for the exchange of information among dissimilar computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) systems, and computer visualization systems. Hotspot and falloff cones, highlighted in red. You’ve seen how a flashlight or a theater follow spot casts a circle of light.
IK Solution the end joint of a kinematic chain. By default, its name is IK Chain01. The kinematic chain is a single branch of a hierarchy used for animation with inverse kinematics (IK) (page 3–1052). The chain starts with the end joint and travels up through ancestors until it reaches the start joint. When you move the IK goal, the IK solver then uses IK calculations to move and rotate all other objects in the kinematic chain to react to the object you moved.
1050 Glossary You can also apply image motion blur as a render effect (page 3–265). in this way. This also includes Displacement mapping and Optimization. (Another option, object motion blur (page 3–1075), is not meant to simulate a camera, but to improve the rendered appearance of fast-moving objects.) • Image motion blur can yield strange results with objects that have a MeshSmooth modifier (page 1–714) applied to them.
Initial Pose Initial Pose When you apply Physique (page 2–927) to a skeleton, the initial pose is the original position of the mesh relative to the skeleton. Some of the Physique sub-object levels (page 2–980) have an Initial Skeleton Pose control that temporarily puts the mesh into its initial pose. Initialize In Physique (page 2–927), when you attach a mesh (page 3–1066) to a skeleton such as a biped, the modifier is initialized.
1052 Glossary If you wanted to create a school of swimming fish, you might begin by making many instanced copies of a single fish. You could then animate the swimming motion by applying a ripple modifier to any fish in the school. The whole school would swim with exactly the same motions. Instance (Motion Mixer) The term instance has two meanings in 3ds Max. One is the standard definition (page 3–1051); the other is specific to clips in the Motion Mixer.
Inverse Kinematics (Biped) • Position and orientation of parent objects is determined by the position and orientation of child objects. Because of these added constraints, IK requires greater thought about how you link your objects and place pivots. Where many different solutions for linking objects might be suitable for forward kinematics, there are usually just a few good solutions for any given IK approach.
1054 Glossary Isometric View Keyframes/Keys Isometric view of a scene The red boxes indicate keyframes, the dotted line shows the interpolated trajectory. A special type of axonometric view (page 3–1007), where the sides of the object are equally inclined to the screen, producing equal foreshortening along the edges. You can create an isometric view by rotating a User view. Keyframes record the beginning and end of each transformation of an object or element in the scene.
Knot an object that you specify as a terminator for the chain. 3ds Max automatically determines the kinematic chain when you select and transform an object with the IK button turned on. properties including color, visibility, renderability, and display. An object can assume these properties from the layer on which you create it. You can adjust layer properties from the Layers toolbar (page 3–735) and the Layer Manager. See also Knot A value in an array or "knot vector" associated with a NURBS curve.
1056 Glossary See also Keyframe Mode (page 3–1054) Keyframes/Keys (page 3–1054) Lift In footstep animation (page 3–1037), the state of a foot at the frame when it is about to lift away from a footstep. Light Map A light map or lighting map is a bitmap (page 3–1011) that stores the lighting levels (intensity and color) falling on an object in the scene. Typically, you create a light map by rendering to a texture (texture baking) (page 3–139).
Links is used to negate and basic move, rotate or scale transforms. The local coordinate system is the coordinate system that relates specifically to the selected object. Links Each object has its own local center and coordinate system as defined by the location and orientation of the object’s pivot point. The local center and coordinate system of an object combine to define its object space. Links are the segments of the Physique deformation spline (page 3–1021).
1058 Glossary Lofting number of key points. These cross-sections are cut out to form two-dimensional templates that are then placed on a rail. The model builders fill in the space between the templates to generate the surface of the model. You create loft objects using a similar process. You first create two or more spline objects. One of these splines will be the rail, which is referred to as the path. The rest of the splines are the cross-sections of your object, which are called shapes.
Luminous Flux Luminous Flux Luminous flux is the quantity of light energy per unit time arriving, leaving, or going through a surface. The lumen (lm) is the unit of luminous flux in both the International System (SI) of units and in the American System (AS) of units. If you think of light as particles (photons) moving through space, then the luminous flux of a light beam arriving at a surface is proportional to the number of particles hitting the surface during a time interval of 1 second.
1060 Glossary Map Bias Map Channel On the right, increased map bias makes the dog appear to float. Left: Scene uses different map channels to place different copies of the same maps in different locations. Map bias moves the shadow toward or away from the shadow-casting object (or objects). Right: The three maps used to create the streets and the traffic markers painted on them By default, this value is 1.0 world coordinate unit.
Mapped Material different map channels to have different mapping types (planar, cylindrical, spherical, and so on). Mapping Coordinates If you apply a map that uses a certain map channel to an object that has no mapping coordinates for that channel, the map doesn’t appear on the object. When you render, a Missing Map Coordinates (page 2–1433) dialog appears to warn you of the problem. The dialog lists the map channel and the object name.
1062 Glossary once around the sphere, and then gathered at the top and bottom. Shrink-wrap mapping is also spherical, but truncates the corners of the map and joins them all at a single pole, creating only one singularity. • 3D procedural maps (such as Noise or Marble) 3ds Max provides a number of ways to apply mapping coordinates: • Face-mapped materials • Use the Generate Mapping Coords option in the creation parameters rollout of any standard primitive.
Marker Data Maps offer the level of realism you look for in materials. The different types of maps you can use range from the common bitmap, to the flexible procedural map. For many map types, the renderer needs instructions telling it where the map should appear on the geometry. These instructions are called mapping coordinates (page 3–1061).
1064 Glossary have default smoothing groups. The default material ID assignment depends on the type of geometry. Most curved objects such as spheres have a single material ID. Boxes have six IDs, one for each side. Cylinders have three: ID number 1 and 2 for the two caps, and ID number 3 for the sides. Hedra have three: one for each of their P, Q, and R axes.
Materials Materials Matte Object Spheres with variations of the standard material type (no maps used): Matte object reveals part of the background, making the hamburger geometry appear to be inside the oven. Green sphere: High Glossiness Red sphere: Constant shading Blue sphere: 60% opacity Yellow sphere: Wireframe mode, slight self-illumination A material is data that you assign to the surface or faces of an object so that it appears a certain way when rendered.
1066 Glossary MAXScript MFE Files MAXScript is the general-purpose scripting language for 3ds Max and related products. While it works the same for all products, some functions are specific to each. You can use MAXScript to automate many tasks, including modeling, animation, material construction, and rendering. You can also use MAXScript to add custom command-panel rollouts to the user interface. A MFE file contains a motion flow graph (page 2–897) and any scripts created for the graph.
MIX Files arrangement. A mix is sometimes called a raw mix to distinguish it from a mixdown (page 3–1067). You can save a mix to a MIX file (page 3–1067). with the preset list of known, supported marker names that are recognized by bipeds. See BVH Files (page 3–1014) and CSM Files (page 3–1019) for descriptions of how thesse two motion-capture file formats work with MNM files.
1068 Glossary Modifiers Example: Stack display of mesh showing its sub-object hierarchy, and Edge sub-object level chosen The modifier stack (page 3–802) is the key to managing all aspects of object modification.
Motion Blending The purpose of the morph object in 3ds Max is to create an animated object that changes shape by morphing between two or more objects. Although it appears that a single object is changing form, in reality the morphing process translates the position of the vertices from their arrangement in one object to the arrangement in another, relative to their local coordinate system. camera works.
1070 Glossary BIP files used in Motion Flow (page 3–1070) and the Motion Mixer (page 3–1070) are called motion clips. You can use these tools to combine several motion clips and make a longer or different animation. A BIP motion clip can be created by saving animation (page 2–774) you have made on the biped, or by importing motion-capture data (page 2–912).
Motion Synthesis different clips. Each trackgroup can contain transition tracks (page 3–1121) and layer tracks (page 3–1055), which hold the motion clips. Each biped in the Motion Mixer is assigned a balance track (page 3–1008), which automatically compensates for differences in balance between upper and lower body motion. the continuity level of the curve or surface. Two coincident CVs locally increase curvature. Three coincident CVs (or more) create an angular cusp.
1072 Glossary • Values less than 0.0 negatively scale the value of the function curve. See also Ease Curve (page 3–1025) Left: Spotlight with negative multiplier subtracts light from the scene. Right: Multiplier of 0 and a negative density on a shadow whose color is white creates the effect of a negative shadow. An unusual characteristic of the Multiplier is that you can use negative values to create negative light. You can use negative lights to further control the lighting in your scene.
Network Rendering The ideal place to install the Network Manager is on a file server. If you have a PC already set up as a texture-map file server, this would be an ideal place for it. to render network processes. The Server has no user interface itself, but you can set various options for it from the Queue Monitor client. For example, you can specify the times of day that the Server is available to do network rendering.
1074 Glossary Normal NURBS The normal of each face can point in a different direction. Fountain basin modeled as a NURBS surface A normal is a vector that defines which way a face or vertex is pointing. The direction of the normal indicates the front, or outer surface of the face or vertex. NURBS (Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines) are a technique for interactively modeling 3D curves and surfaces.
NURBS Surface A NURBS object (page 3–1074) consisting of one or more sub-objects. The 3ds Max documentation uses "NURBS model" to emphasize the final result of NURBS modeling using a variety of sub-objects and techniques. Modifying an instanced object is the same as modifying the original. NURBS Surface Each instance has its own set of transforms, object properties, and space warp bindings. These are not shared among instances. A surface object created by NURBS modeling (page 3–1074).
1076 Glossary Object Space Left: Object motion blur. Right: Object motion blur with dithering. Tip: Don’t use object motion blur to simulate the A book in object space rests on a table in world space. blur created by a camera. For this purpose, use image motion blur (page 3–1049) or scene motion blur (page 3–1101). Object space is the coordinate system unique to each object in your scene. It tracks the location of everything applied to an object.
Object Space (Biped) Most modifiers (page 3–1068) operate in object space. See Object-Space Modifiers (page 1–537). Omnidirectional Light Object Space (Biped) When you use freeform animation (page 3–1039) to animate a biped, you can place a biped limb into the space of another object, or into world space. For example, if the biped’s hands are in the space of a ball, then wherever the ball moves the hands move with it.
1078 Glossary Omniflector A space warp (page 3–1108) that deflects particles. Omniflectors are also capable of refracting particles and generating spawned particles.
Operand Operand An operand is one of a set of objects upon which an operation such as Boolean (page 1–333) is to be done. The Boolean operation takes two operands: the first operand is called operand A, and the second operand is called operand B. Operator In Particle Flow (page 2–105), the operator is the basic element of the particle system; you combine operators into events (page 3–1029) to specify the particles’ characteristics over a given period of time.
1080 Glossary Note: These settings do not affect the path a delegate takes, which is produced by other behaviors such as Seek and Avoid. Orientation influences only the direction the delegate faces as it traverses the path. From the origin, the coordinates at a location 100 units to the right, 150 units up, and 60 units away are X=100, Y=150, Z=60, or (100,150,60). Orthographic View Origin Origin is the 0,0,0 point where the X, Y, and Z axes intersect.
Out-of-Range Types of orthographic views: top and bottom; front and back; left and right. this example do not move from frame 20 to frame 100. Orthographic views are a special case of axonometric views (page 3–1007). You can set viewports to the various orthographic views using the viewport right-click menu (page 3–774) or keyboard shortcuts (page 3–911). Applying the Cycle out-of-range type will make the key pattern in frames 0–20 repeat cyclically for the remaining 80 frames.
1082 Glossary Overshoot technique can reduce the size of shadow maps and thereby improve rendering speed. PAL PAL (Phase Alternate Line) is the video standard used in most European countries. The frame rate is 25 frames per second (fps) or 50 fields (page 3–1032) per second, with each field accounting for half the interleaved scan lines on a television screen. Parameter Space In addition to their existence in 3D space, NURBS objects have a parameter space that includes the array of knot values.
Parameter/Parametric Unlike physical building blocks, which have a fixed shape and size, the geometric primitives (box, sphere, torus, and so on) are parametric; you can change their dimensions, segment settings, and other features after you create them. Parametric objects respond to changes in their parameters by dynamically updating their properties. Changing a parameter can dramatically alter the structure and appearance of an object.
1084 Glossary elements and logic. You edit the system by clicking actions (page 3–997) and events in the diagram and changing their values, by adding new actions and events, and by creating wires between events. The particle system object generates the particles over time. You use particle systems primarily in animations. 3ds Max provides several built-in particle systems, including Spray and Snow. Your configuration might have other plug-in particle systems installed.
Patch Patch The Path constraint (page 2–380) also lets you assign a line or other shape as a motion path. A motion path is a form of trajectory (page 3–1119). Get Path (Lofting) Example of a patch model A patch is a type of deformable object. A patch object is useful for creating gently curved surfaces, and provides very detailed control for manipulating complex geometry.
1086 Glossary produce the result you want. You can flip the orientation of the path by pressing CTRL while getting the path. Pressing CTRL aligns the path so that the tangent to the first vertex of the path is aligned with the negative Z axis of the shape. Perspective View Path Follow Behavior In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the Path Follow behavior lets you direct delegates to traverse a specified path during a crowd simulation.
Phases of Leg Motion adjusting the correct distances of hotspot and falloff for the light. Phases of Leg Motion A leg’s motion has four phases, beginning with the foot on the ground. Then the foot lifts, moves through the air, and returns to the ground again. Biped divides this motion into four phases, as follows: • Touch—Occurs at the leg keyframe where the leg’s foot first touches the ground and always corresponds with the start frame of a footstep in Track View — Dope Sheet.
1088 Glossary square meter or candelas per square inch. The candela was originally defined as the luminous intensity emitted by a single wax candle. The photon map stores photons only for objects that can receive caustics, global illumination, or both. Finally, luminous intensity is the light energy per unit time emitted by a point source in a particular direction. The unit of measure of luminous intensity is the candela.
Pivot Point including a biped (page 2–701), bones, splines, or any hierarchy. Note: For NURBS and FFDs, physique deforms the control points (control vertices), which, in turn deform the model. Pixel A pixel (short for Picture Element) is a single point in a graphic image. Graphics monitors display pictures by dividing the screen into thousands (or millions) of pixels, arranged in rows and columns.
1090 Glossary Surface, or when you create an individual point sub-object. Points that are part of a Point Curve or Point Surface are constrained to lie on the curve or surface. Point Surface Points behave somewhat like vertices for spline objects (page 1–261), but their behavior is not identical and they are a distinct object type. Helper object points (page 2–22) are also a distinct object type.
Precedence biped parts, as opposed to the overall pose (page 3–1090). You can copy and paste postures. See Copy/Paste Rollout (page 2–818). Precedence You control an IK solution (page 3–1049) by setting joint precedence to determine which joints contribute the most to the IK solution and which joints contribute the least. Joints with high precedence values are calculated first, and, therefore, contribute more motion to the IK solution.
1092 Glossary Projector Light Shadows created by projecting image of palm trees By adding a map to a light, you turn it into a projector. You can assign a single image, or you can assign an animation to create the effect of either a slide projector or a movie projector. Three procedural maps (bricks, Perlin marble, and splat), with variations A procedural map can be generated in two dimensions, or in three. For example, Wood has a grain that goes through the assigned geometry.
Quadtree There are six additional markers for the top, bottom, and middle of the two props. If these tracks are detected, character studio creates a 3ds Max dummy object. The length of the prop is the average distance between the top and bottom prop marker during animation. The prop will be oriented in the plane of the three prop markers, and its origin will be at the bottom prop marker. Quadtree A quadtree is a data structure used to calculate ray-traced shadows (page 3–1094).
1094 Glossary Ray-Trace Acceleration (mental ray Renderer) The mental ray renderer (page 3–77) provides three different ray-tracing methods of accelerating the process of ray tracing. The methods are: • BSP (Binary Space Partitioning). This method (the default) performs best for most purposes. • Grid. This method can perform better on multiprocessor systems. • Large BSP. This method can perform better with large scenes and with distributed bucket rendering.
RAYHOSTS File and the depth of the quadtree (page 3–1093) used to calculate ray tracing. Advanced ray-traced shadows are the same as ray-traced shadows, however they provide antialiasing (page 3–1001) control, letting you fine-tune how ray-traced shadows are generated. RAYHOSTS File The RAYHOSTS file is a text (ASCII) file that lists the name of host systems capable of mental ray rendering (page 3–77) in a distributed network.
1096 Glossary any slider, it mixes with the values of the other two, and the result appears in the swatch beneath the sliders. For example, if you move the Red slider all the way to the right (value 255) and leave the other two at the left (0), the active swatch turns red. If you then move the Green slider all the way to the right, the swatch turns yellow.
Repel Behavior the Physique modifier, you’d use reinitialization. Or maybe you’ve repositioned the biped structure relative to the mesh, or scaled both; you’d need to reinitialize Physique settings to recognize those changes. You set the resolution of the image you are going to render on the Render Scene dialog (page 3–2). Rotoscoping Repel Behavior In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the Repel behavior lets you specify any object or objects (sources) that will force delegates to move away from them.
1098 Glossary the arm and leg links simultaneously, by moving the link with the Move transform, instead of using scale. Rubber-Band mode scales both the link and its child in a single step. Sample Range This is particularly useful when fitting a biped to a skin prior to applying the Physique modifier (page 2–927). For example, rubber-banding the upper arm rescales the upper and lower arm objects and moves the elbow link without affecting the position of the shoulder or the wrist.
Sampling (mental ray Renderer) effect is somewhat like the falloff of a soft-edged spotlight. The default Sample Range value is 4. The Sample Range value can be any floating-point number from 0 to 20. Values of 2 to 5 are recommended. Values below 3 can produce coarse-edged shadows. You can reduce this effect by increasing the map size. Values greater than 5 can produce streaking and moiré patterns. You can reduce this effect by increasing the map size or the Bias value.
1100 Glossary You choose the sampling filter and set other sampling options on the Render Scene dialog > Renderer panel > Sampling Quality rollout (page 3–97). Note: Area lights (Area Omni Light (page 2–1152) and Area Spot Light (page 2–1153)) have their own sampling controls. These affect only shadows cast by the area light. They are independent of the sampling used to render the scene as a whole.
Scene Extents renderer to provide a quick and simple rendered view of your scene as you work on it. You might also have other plug-in or third-party renderers that you’ve installed to work with 3ds Max. Scene Extents Just as an object’s extents (page 3–1030) are its maximum dimensions in X, Y, and Z, the extents of a scene are its maximum dimensions in these three axes, and define a box that encloses the entire scene.
1102 Glossary Script Scripts (Motion Flow) A sequence of instructions used to automate a task. Scripts are typically text files containing coded instructions for a particular application. In motion flow mode (page 2–878), a script is a list of clips (BIP files) that are executed sequentially to animate a character. You can create scripts either manually or automatically using crowd animation (page 2–1006). In 3ds Max, the MAXScript utility supports a scripting language.
Segment Segment shadows are completely replaced by the diffuse color, creating the illusion of self-illumination. Unless you use environmental effects, only lights illuminate your scene; they don’t appear in the rendering. You can use self-illuminated materials on objects that represent lights to provide things like car headlights, and so on. A self-illumination map lets you use a map to affect the intensity in different areas of the self-illuminated surface.
1104 Glossary for Use with the mental ray Renderer (page 2–1384). The mental ray manual, Programming mental ray, describes how to write custom shaders. Shaders (Standard Materials) For a standard material (page 2–1309), the shader is the algorithm that controls how the material responds to light. Shaders especially control how highlights appear. They also provide a material’s color components, and control its opacity, self-illumination, and other settings.
Shadow Map (mental ray Renderer) A shadow-map is projected from the direction of the spotlight. This method provides a softer edge and can require less calculation time than ray-traced shadows, but it’s less accurate. You can adjust the shadow map settings to achieve a sharper shadow. This involves changing the resolution and the pixel sampling of the shadow’s bitmap.
1106 Glossary You can make shapes renderable to create tubular forms in the rendering. Renderable shapes don’t appear any different in viewports. Shapes can also be NURBS curves (page 1–1079). You can use NURBS curves in exactly the way you use spline-based shapes. You can also use a NURBS curve as the basis for a NURBS model that includes multiple curve and surface sub-objects. • The local Y axis of the shape is aligned with the local Z axis of the path.
Sliding Footstep See also Sunlight (page 3–1112) Sunlight and Daylight Systems (page 1–394) Sliding Footstep In footstep animation (page 3–1037), changing biped foot key parameters enables the biped feet to move or slide during a footstep period. This feature is also available for motion-capture file import to allow the biped feet to slide or pivot. In the viewports, a sliding footstep is displayed as a footstep with a line through the middle. Smoothing Groups will render as a smooth surface.
1108 Glossary with character studio. This space warp causes delegates to avoid an object while following its contours. You can also use multiple space warps on a single object or objects. Multiple space warps appear in an object’s stack in the order you apply them. Space Warps Spawn Particles Space warps (page 2–51) are objects that provide a variety of "force field" effects on other objects in the scene.
Speed Vary Behavior Spline Matching specular color to the diffuse color makes the surface less shiny. Top: Spline Speed Vary Behavior In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the Speed Vary behavior is useful for objects whose velocity changes as they move, such as strolling tourists who might occasionally slow down to do some sightseeing. Splice The term splice means to cut a sequence, insert a segment and join the cut ends to the segment. It can also mean a simple joining of ends to a segment.
1110 Glossary MAXScript first searches for .mcr (macroScript definition files) in the ui\macroscripts directory. These macroScript definitions are not compiled at this time; rather they are just scanned to identify the macroScripts that have been defined. MAXScript next searches for .ms, .mse, and .mzp files in the plug-in path directories (defined on the Configure System Paths dialog (page 3–854) and Configure User Paths dialog (page 3–852)) and their subdirectories, and compiles these files.
Sub-Object Sub-Object Left: A selection of face sub-objects Middle: A selection of edge sub-objects Right: A selection of vertex sub-objects A sub-object s a subset of an object’s geometry. Many objects have various types of sub-objects that you can work with independently. For example, an editable mesh object’s (page 1–984) sub-objects are vertices, edges, faces, polygons, and elements. To access sub-objects, go to the Modifier panel.
1112 Glossary Subtractive opacity darkens colors behind the material by subtracting the material’s colors from the background colors. If you simply want to reduce the apparent opacity of a material, while maintaining the color values of its diffuse (or mapped) properties, use subtractive opacity. See also of the rendered scene.
Surface Follow Behavior An example would be birds flying over a row of telephone poles, and then each one dropping to land on top of a different pole. Surface Follow Behavior In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the Surface Follow behavior moves delegates with respect to object surfaces. Target objects can be animated. For example, you can apply an animated Noise modifier to a patch grid to simulate a choppy water surface, and objects guided by Surface Follow will stay on top.
1114 Glossary TCB ( Tension, Continuity, Bias) The TCB Position controller provides Tension, Continuity, and Bias controls of the splines of a function curve. TCB Controllers (page 2–361) also produce curve-based animation much like the Bezier controllers (page 2–305). However, TCB controllers do not use tangent types or adjustable tangent handles. They use numeric values to adjust the Tension, Continuity, and Bias of the animation. Tension—Controls the amount of curvature in the animation curve.
Terrain Terrain Test The basic function of a test in Particle Flow is to determine whether particles satisfy one or more conditions, and if so, make them available for sending to another event. When a particle passes a test, it is said to “test True.” To send eligible particles to another event, you must wire (page 3–1127) the test to that event. Particles that don’t pass the test (“test False”) remain in the event and are repeatedly subjected to its operators and tests.
1116 Glossary 0 to 159, at which point the frames field increments by one, and the ticks field returns to 0. You can step forward or backward at single increments by clicking the single-frame buttons among the playback buttons. When you use the MM:SS:TICKS Display format, you see minutes (MM), seconds (SS), and ticks, each separated by colons.
Topology-Dependent Modifier from one to the other would cause the object to crumple or turn inside out as it morphs. Topology-Dependent Modifier Topology-dependent modifiers perform operations on explicit, topological sub-object selections. The Edit Mesh and Mesh Select modifiers are examples of modifiers that perform operations or selections on explicit vertex or face numbers.
1118 Glossary Trackgroup In the Motion Mixer, motions are placed on tracks, and the tracks are organized into trackgroups. In other words, each trackgroup is a holder for one or more tracks. Each trackgroup can be filtered so the tracks within it affect only certain parts of the biped, such as its arms or legs. Every biped in the Motion Mixer can have multiple trackgroups, each with its own selection of biped parts. See Adding Tracks to the Mixer (page 2–583) and Filtering Mixer Tracks (page 2–589).
Trajectory • Animation tracks contain the actual animated values for an item. Only controller items have an animation track. • Position keys are displayed as white boxes surrounding the appropriate frame dot on the curve. The values in an animation track are usually displayed as keys. Some controllers don’t use keys and instead display their values as a range bar or some other graphic symbol. For example, the Wave Form item displays a sound file as a two-channel sound wave.
1120 Glossary Top: Move gizmo Middle: Rotate gizmo Bottom: Scale gizmo Transforms Moving, rotating, and scaling a figure When you create any object, 3ds Max records its position, rotation, and scale information in an internal table called a transformation matrix. Subsequent position, rotation, and scale adjustments are called transforms.
Transition change transform values from frame to frame, each object always has only one position, one rotation, and one scale transform. Translucency You can animate your transforms by turning on the Auto Key button and then performing the transform at any frame other than frame 0. This creates a key for that transform at the current frame. Transition In the Motion Mixer and in Motion Flow, a transition is a gradual change between two motion clips.
1122 Glossary Twist Links when entering UNC path names into file selection dialogs. Some networks require drive letters instead of UNC names. Directories on such networks can be mounted as drive letters and shared over the network. See Mounting a Directory (page 3–182).
Vector Field orientation of a map, relative to its geometry. To do this, you need the third coordinate. The W coordinate also has a meaning for 3-dimensional procedural materials. Vectors and Vector Handles Vector Field In crowd animation (page 2–1006), a vector field is a special type of space warp that crowd members can use to move around irregular objects such as a curved, concave surface. The vector field gizmo, a box-shaped lattice, is placed and sized so that it surrounds the object to be avoided.
1124 Glossary Velocity Interpolation One method of interpolation used in motion flow editing (page 2–878). By default, in a transition between two motion clips, velocity is interpolated to blend smoothly between clips. If transitions are optimized, then a sophisticated algorithm is used that minimizes sliding feet. Video Safe Frame To view the frames, choose Show Safe Frame from the viewport right-click menu (displayed when you right-click the viewport label).
VIZBlock VIZBlock supported in 3ds Max because the 3ds Max exporter doesn’t export morph targets. A VIZBlock is a compound object similar to a nested AutoCAD block. It is used for organizing linked data from DWG files. When AutoCAD data is linked to 3ds Max, you need to decide how the AutoCAD entities are to be organized in the scene. AutoCAD drawings are commonly organized by layers, blocks, and entities, and 3ds Max scenes are organized by hierarchies of objects.
1126 Glossary T1 T2 T3 0 T4 T5 T6 0 T7 T8 T9 0 T10 T11 T12 1 The first nine values, T1–T9, describe rotation and scaling. The last three, T10–T12, describe a move, in world coordinates. The VUE file renderer transforms the points of the object by post-multiplication:| X’ Y’ Z’ 1| = | X Y Z1|*M Omni Light Command Controls the location and color of an Omni light. The first parameter is the name of the light. This is the name as it appears when you use 3ds Max, but enclosed in double quotes.
Walking Gait The , , parameters are the camera’s location. The , , parameters are the location of the camera’s target. The parameter is the camera roll angle, in degrees. The parameter is the camera’s focal length, in millimeters. Wander Behavior In crowd animation (page 2–1006), the Wander behavior imparts a random motion to delegates, letting you simulate meandering activity in which delegates move and turn in a haphazard manner.
1128 Glossary Wireframe Mode Wireframe mode display of a director’s chair and megaphone Wire from global event to birth event (above); wire from test to local event (below) To wire a test to an event, drag from its test output, the blue dot that by default sticks out to the left of the test, to the event’s event input, which sticks out from the top, or vice-versa.
Workbench Workbench World Coordinate System The Animation Workbench is a customized version of the Track View function curve editor designed to be used with bipeds. It contains a Curve View that displays keys on function curves which you can edit similar to the way you work in Track View. It also contains a set of four panels for selecting bipeds, analyzing their motion tracks for error conditions, and fixing those tracks individually or in groups.
1130 Glossary World Space For example, if the biped’s feet are in world space, then when you move the center of mass, the feet stay planted in the same location. World-Space Modifiers (WSM) World space is the universal coordinate system that applies to the entire scene. A world-space modifier, as opposed to an object-space modifier (page 3–1077), affects an object but uses world coordinates. A book in object space rests on a table in world space.
XRef (3ds Max Externally Referenced File) See also XRef (3ds Max Externally Referenced File) (page 3–1131) XRef (3ds Max Externally Referenced File) An XRef in 3ds Max is an externally referenced file or object. XRefs allow multiple animators and modelers to work on one scene at the same time without interfering with each other’s work. There are two ways to XRef another scene: • XRef Scene (page 3–416) The File > XRef Scene command XRefs an entire scene.
1132 Glossary
index Index Symbols & Numerics 1-rail sweep surface 1–1205 2 3 4 links 2–963, 2–1001 2 feet down 2–841, 2–849 2.
1134 Index active 2–987 active link (glossary) 3–997 active time segment 2–282 active time segment (glossary) 3–998 active viewport 1–22 active/inactive footsteps 3–998 ActiveShade 3–17 commands (quad menu) 3–21 floater 3–20 glossary 3–998 keyboard shortcuts 3–913 quick render 3–17 viewport 3–20 actual stride height 2–844, 2–847 actual stride length 2–844, 2–847, 2–849 actual stride width 2–844, 2–847, 2–849 adapt locks 2–729, 2–833, 3–999 adaptation 3–999 adapting keyframes to edits 2–729 keys to footste
Index foliage 1–209 railing 1–212 wall 1–218 affect region 1–538 soft selection rollout (EMesh) 1–945 soft selection rollout (NURBS) 1–1148 affine transformation (glossary) 3–1000 after trajectory 2–799 age test 2–207 AI import dialog 3–525 airborne option 2–841, 2–847, 2–849 airborne periods 2–736, 3–1000 aliasing/antialiasing alias against background 3–863 and supersampling 2–1302 fast adaptive 2–1374 filters 1–547, 3–37 glossary 3–1001 multiresolution adaptive 2–1375 align 1–447 align geometry dialog (e
1136 Index layers 3–1004 loading 3–479 mapping 3–483 to 3–484, 3–486 methods 2–271 NURBS 1–1092 preferences settings 3–868 previewing animations after attaching Physique 2–935 sample animations in this release 2–774 saving 3–481 selecting and moving tracks 2–743 show ghosting 1–46 tips (NURBS) 1–1101 toggle animation mode 2–274 utilities 2–630 with radiosity 3–59 animation controls 3–759 animation menu 3–729 constraints 2–355, 2–375 to 2–376, 2–379 to 2–380, 2–384, 2–388, 2–391 create bones 1–381 dummy 2–
Index create 1–104 disassemble 1–107 explode 1–107 open 1–106 using 1–97 assembly commands 1–104 assembly heads helper objects 1–108 assembly menu assemble 1–104 attach 1–108 detach 1–108 disassemble 1–107 explode 1–107 asset browser 3–505 internet download dialog 3–516 preferences 3–515 using 1–17 asset tracking dialog 3–492 icons 3–499 open from vault 3–401 asset tracking dialog 2–774, 3–492 asset tracking dialog icons 3–499 asset tracking prompts 3–499 assign controller (Track View) 2–523 controller rol
1138 Index Autodesk VIZ files 3–526 autogrid 3–1007 AutoGrid 2–7 automatic auto archive 3–870 auto backup 1–19, 3–870 auto secondary (lens effects) 3–234 auto termination (IK) 2–481 automatic exposure control 3–291 secondary flare parameters 3–372 unit conversion 3–859 automatic mapping rollout rendering to texture 3–158 autoplay preview file 3–859 AVI files 3–163, 3–658 avoidance behavior 2–1016, 2–1063, 3–1007 preventing collisions 2–1092 awning window 1–251 axis constraints 1–428 to 1–431, 3–735 and hi
Index before trajectory 2–799 behavior assignments and teams dialog 2–1052 behavior rollout 2–1062 behaviors 2–1011, 3–1009 avoid 2–1063, 3–1007 fabric 1–561 obstacle-avoidance 2–1016, 3–1077 orientation 2–1066, 3–1079 patch-based 3–1085 path follow 2–1068, 3–1086 repel 2–1070, 3–1097 scripted 2–1072, 3–1102 seek 2–1072, 3–1102 space warp 2–1073, 3–1107 speed vary 2–1074, 3–1109 surface arrive 2–1075, 3–1112 surface follow 2–1078, 3–1113 wall repel 2–1079, 3–1127 wall seek 2–1081, 3–1127 wander 2–1083, 3–1
1140 Index posing a biped 2–780 rotating objects 2–749 scaling after physique is applied 2–950 visible in playback 2–799 bipeds dialog 2–620 birth event 3–1010 birth operator 2–139 birth script operator 2–141 bitmap map 2–1441 bitmap pager 3–865 bitmap pager statistics dialog 3–515 bitmap/photometric path editor 3–511, 3–517 bitmaps choosing 2–1445 display 3–884, 3–888 glossary 3–1011 Material Editor 2–1441, 2–1445 path configuration 3–504, 3–855 path editor 3–511 blend blend curve (NURBS) 1–1159 blend el
Index standard primitive 1–166 box caustics filter 3–104 box method 2–1094 box selected render bounding box/selected dialog 3–16 branching events (particle flow) 2–119 break spline at selected vertex 1–292 vertices 1–992 breathe option (links) 2–943, 2–987 bricks 2–1468 bridge dialog 1–1068 bridge edges dialog 1–1070 brightness and contrast effect 3–261 browse 2–922 browser material/map 2–1256 browsing from 3ds Max 3–505 brush options 1–801 brush preset manager 3–739 brush presets 3–737 BSP method 3–125 BS
1142 Index roll camera 3–790 roll light 3–796 save sequence 3–320 scale keys 2–536, 2–556 scale values 2–557 select and link 2–404 select and manipulate 2–26 select and move 1–419 select and rotate 1–420 select and uniform scale 1–421 select by material 2–1283 select by name 1–77 select object 1–77 selection center 1–427 selection lock 3–754 sets of modifiers 3–815 show curves 3–752 show end result 2–1290 snapshot 1–438 spacing tool 1–440 spinner snap 2–37 squash 1–422 transform coordinate center 1–427 tr
Index candela 3–1059 canopy mode 1–209 cap holes modifier 1–550 cap surface 1–1196 capsule 1–190 capture viewport 1–35 cartoon shading 2–1414 casement window 1–252 category, hiding and unhiding objects by 1–72 caustics 3–91, 3–104 caustics (mental ray) 3–80 caustics and global illumination rollout 3–104 CCB files 1–933 cellular map 2–1473 center 1–416 center of mass 2–691, 2–788, 3–1014 object 2–704 selecting tracks 2–746 shadow 2–704 shifting balance with 2–734 tracks in Track View 2–800 chains (kinematic
1144 Index circle 1–268 circular falloff graph 3–250 circular arrays 1–474 circulating materials 2–1276 clean multimaterial utility 2–1552 clear UVW mapping 1–916 clip ratio 2–591 replace 2–611 timing 2–591 transition 2–900 clip controllers 2–1030, 3–1015 clip frame numbers motion mixer 2–591 clip mode 2–878 clip properties dialog 2–878, 2–897, 2–910 clipping planes 2–1218, 2–1224, 3–1015 clips 2–897 combining 2–878 create 2–878 looping with motion-capture filtering 2–912 menu 2–609 move 2–878 path 2–893
Index temperature (light color) 2–1130 color clipboard files 1–933 color clipboard utility 1–159 color coding 2–800 color controls 2–1327 color modifier maps 2–1502 color palette vertexpaint modifier 1–933 color RGB controller 2–311 color selector 1–157, 3–859 colors 2–733 biped keys in Track View 2–733 footsteps 2–727 in Track View 2–799 vertex type 2–941 colors panel (customize UI) 3–843 COM 2–788 COM/DCOM server control utility 3–835 combining animations 2–878 combining motions motion mixer 2–581 combin
1146 Index user paths 3–852 utilities button sets 3–822 viewports 3–896 configure paths 3–852 configure preset dialog 3–32 configure system paths 3–854 configure user paths 3–852 bitmaps 3–855 file i/o path configuration 3–856 FX files 3–855 plug-ins path configuration 3–857 using 3–183 configure userpaths bitmaps 3–183 conform compound object 1–319 space warp 2–99 connect to child link 2–998 to parent link 2–998 connect compound object 1–323 connect edges dialog 1–1072 connect parameter to shader dialog
Index time duration 2–484 transform script 2–364 types of 2–284, 2–523 understanding 2–285 viewing types 2–285 waveform 2–366 working with 2–284 controlling colors 2–294 display performance 1–28 flipping on path 2–380 IK precision 2–444 object display 1–51 position 2–293 rotation 2–294 time 2–281 transforms 2–293 viewport rendering 1–27 controls camera viewport 3–788 light viewport 3–792 perspective and orthographic 3–781 special 1–12 viewport 3–778 conversion modifier turn to mesh 1–860 turn to patch 1–86
1148 Index create character 2–683 create key dialog 2–280 create material preview dialog 2–1296 create menu 1–342, 3–723 AEC objects 1–209, 1–212, 1–218, 1–227, 1–230, 1–234, 1–238, 1–246 to 1–247, 1–251 to 1–256 cameras 2–1210, 2–1215 to 2–1216 compound objects 1–313, 1–323, 1–326, 1–331, 1–333, 1–347 extended primitives 1–181 lights 2–1126 NURBS 1–1103, 1–1105, 1–1108, 1–1112 particles 2–233 patch grids 1–980 to 1–981, 1–983 photometric lights 2–1156 to 2–1162 shapes 1–257, 1–265, 1–267 to 1–269, 1–271
Index point surface 1–1103 point surface sub-object 1–1182 primitives from the keyboard 1–164 ruled surface 1–1194 shapes 1–257 skin 2–928 sub-objects 1–1179 surface edge curve 1–1178 surface offset curve 1–1169 surface sub-objects 1–1179 surface-surface intersection curve 1–1167 tendons 2–948 transform curve 1–1159 transform surface 1–1183 U loft surface 1–1197 UV loft surface 1–1202 vector projected curve 1–1172 creation method rollout 1–349 creation parameters 2–703 glossary 3–1019 cross fade compositor
1150 Index curves curve approximation 1–1240 curve fit 1–1158 curve point 1–1222 curve-curve intersection point 1–1225 curve-curve point 1–1225 freeze non-selected 2–564 function 2–695, 2–857 curves menu Track View 2–510 curves toolbar 2–513 custom attributes 1–124 custom grid 2–19 custom splash screen 1–17 custom UI and defaults switcher 3–833 custom UI scheme 3–848 customize keyboard shortcut 2–1276 toolbar 2–1276 transitions 2–885 customize menu 3–731 configure system paths 3–854 configure user paths 3
Index define append 2–900 inser below 2–900 insert above 2–900 script 2–900 defining search terms (HTML help viewer) 3–968 time tags 3–757 deflector space warp 2–86 deflector space warps deflector 2–86 PDynaFlect 2–77 POmniFlect 2–74 SDeflector 2–83 SDynaFlect 2–81 SOmniFlect 2–80 UDeflector 2–85 UDynaFlect 2–82 UOmniFlect 2–81 deform deform bevel 1–361 deform fit 1–362 deform scale 1–359 deform teeter 1–360 deform twist 1–359 deformable envelopes 2–692, 2–936, 2–942, 2–960, 2–963, 2–981, 3–1021 deformatio
1152 Index detach dialog (NURBS curve/surface) 1–1230 editable mesh vertices 1–992 editable patches 1–971 patch surface 1–950 DGS material (mental ray) 2–1389 dgs material shader (mental ray) 2–1527 diagnostics mental ray renderer 3–120 dialog asset tracking 3–492 bevel polygons 1–1068 bitmap pager statistics 3–515 chamfer 1–1071 connect edges 1–1072 extrude polygons 1–1073 flatten mapping 1–889 MAXScript debugger 3–826 mixer transition editor 2–615 normal mapping 1–890 pelt map parameters 1–891 pick node
Index display menu curve editor 2–504 particle view 2–125 display panel 3–818 display color rollout 1–52 display properties rollout 1–55 freeze rollout 1–54 hide by category rollout 1–52 hide rollout 1–53 link display rollout 1–58 object display 1–51 display rollout 1–781 display subtree 2–981 display trajectories;trajectories,displaying 2–809 displaying links 2–403 selected key statistics (Track View) 2–571 selected keys 2–571 distance distance from origin (accuracy setting) 3–859 measuring 2–13, 2–15 dis
1154 Index enable toggle 2–561 glossary 3–1025 ease options key info rollout 2–809 transition editor 2–902 ease out-of-range types (Track View) 2–562 edge visibility threshold 1–997 edges aligning 1–997 and rendering 3–863 attaching 1–997 chamfer 1–997 creating shapes from 1–997 cut and slice 1–997 deleting 1–997 divide 1–1010 dividing 1–997 extruding 1–997 make planar 1–997 rotating 1–997 welding 1–997 edit alpha compositor 3–355 biped 2–889 button appearance 3–847 clip 2–900 contrast filter 3–350 cross
Index edge 1–642 extrude edges dialog 1–1074 extrude polygons along spline dialog 1–1072 extrude polygons dialog 1–1073 extrude vertices dialog 1–1074 hinge from edge dialog 1–1075 inset polygons dialog 1–1075 keyboard shortcuts 3–917 meshsmooth selection dialog 1–1076 object 1–630 paint deformation rollout 1–1065 polygon/element 1–658 preserve map channels dialog 1–1076 relax dialog 1–1077 tessellate selection dialog 1–1078 vertex 1–633 weld dialog 1–1078 weld edges dialog 1–1078 weld vertices dialog 1–10
1156 Index modifier stack 1–489 named selection sets 1–67 point sub-objects 1–1124, 1–1220 strokes 3–907 surface cv sub-objects 1–1132 surface sub-objects 1–1142 time (Track View) 2–542 time tags 3–758 wall objects 1–223 editing track sets 2–567 editor cognitive controller 2–1057 effects 3–213 auto secondary lens effects 3–234 blur lens effects 3–256 brightness and contrast lens effects 3–261 color balance lens effects 3–261 depth of field lens effects 3–265 effects (rendering menu) 3–214 effects panel 3–
Index event display 2–127, 2–129, 3–1029 event level 3–1030 glossary 3–1029 inputs 3–1051 local 3–1057 notating 2–202 properties 2–130 events (Video Post) 3–321 every step update script (particle flow) 2–135 exclude exclude left end point (Track View) 2–547 exclude right end point (Track View) 2–548 exclude/include lights 2–1137, 2–1179 exclude envelopes dialog 2–977 exclude left end point (Track View) 2–547 exclude option 2–938, 2–977 exclude right end point (Track View) 2–548 excluding layers 3–444 exclu
1158 Index L-Ext 1–193 L-Extrusion 1–193 oil tank 1–189 prism 1–200 ringwave 1–197 spindle 1–191 torus knot 1–184 extended shapes angle 1–281 channel 1–280 tee 1–282 wide flange 1–283 wrectangle 1–279 extended splines 1–261 extents scene extents 3–1101 zoom extents (particle view) 2–125 extents (glossary) 3–1030 external event 3–335, 3–348 external reference 3–1131 external reference, AutoCAD (glossary) 3–1130 extraction tolerance 2–922 extras dope sheet toolbar Track View 2–519 extras toolbar 3–736 extru
Index figure mode 2–692, 2–791, 2–835, 2–837, 3–1032 figure structure 2–922 file corruption 3–977 file formats 2–774, 2–1117 file i/o path configuration 3–856 file link 3–997 advanced settings 3–438 basic settings 3–436 basics 3–426 excluding layers 3–444 file link settings dialog 3–435, 3–441 including layers 3–444 manager utility 3–431 presets 3–436, 3–438 tips for using 3–428 working with drawing files 3–425 xref resolution 3–445 file menu 3–398, 3–721 archive 3–500 exit 3–504 export 3–491 export select
1160 Index fire environment effect 3–272 first vertex 1–292, 3–1035 fit 2–981, 2–998 fit (deformation) 1–362 fit to existing 2–922 fix ambient utility 3–513 fix panel 2–871 fixed transition editor 2–902 fixed width text button 3–859 fixed window 1–253 fixing errors 2–695, 2–864, 2–871 fixing motion errors 2–874 fixing problems 3–977 flag properties dialog (Material Editor) 2–1465 flag with black 3–863 flare 3–366 automatic secondary flare parameters 3–372 flare preferences 3–369 glow parameters 3–371 infe
Index footsteps 2–852 activating 2–723 airborne period 2–741 appending 2–720 bending path 2–726 convert to 2–852 creating 2–720 creating automatically 2–720 creating multiple 2–720 deleting 2–726 display 2–711 editing in time 2–727 editing placement 2–726 footstep mode dialog 2–853 freeform period between 2–741 moving and rotating 2–726 saving 2–740 selecting in Dope Sheet mode 2–727 selecting in viewports 2–726 timing 2–727 timing gait parameters 2–719 footsteps method 3–1037 force operator (particle flow
1162 Index geometric primitives 3–1042 geometric/deformable space warps bomb 2–101 conform 2–99 FFD(box) 2–87 FFD(cyl) 2–91 ripple 2–98 wave 2–96 geometry AutoCAD 3–447 AutoCADArchitectural Desktop 3–449 compound objects 1–308 doors 1–241 effect on cloth 1–558 extended primitives 1–181 file formats 3–524 geometric primitives 1–163 highlight lens effects 3–389 importing 3–525 loft object 1–347 standard primitives 1–165 types of 1–151 windows 1–248 geometry parameters rollout 2–1035 geometry rollout 2–1092
Index grid method, raytrace acceleration 3–1094 grids 2–33, 3–1045 activating 2–34 align to view 2–34 aligning to 1–989, 1–992, 1–997 and resolution of patch model surface 1–955, 1–959, 1–967, 1–971, 1–977 grid and snap settings 2–38 grid helper object 2–19 show home grid 2–33 using 2–4 to 2–5 viewing 2–6 ground plane (and collision detection) 2–749 group script 2–900 group menu 1–101, 1–107, 3–722 attach 1–104 close 1–102 detach 1–103 explode 1–103 group 1–102 open 1–102 ungroup 1–103 groups 1–95 and asse
1164 Index hide 1–53, 2–1001, 3–1045 hide attached nodes 2–960 hide by category 1–52 hide reference geometry 1–763 hide/show all 2–799 hiding and unhiding 1–53 by category 1–52, 1–72 by selection 1–71 edges 1–967 editable spline vertices 1–292 hide rollout 1–53 hierarchical linkage 3–1045 hierarchical subdivision surfaces 1–693 hierarchies hierarchical linkage (glossary) 3–1045 joint limits 2–403 navigating 2–407 terminology 2–398 using multiple 2–400 viewing 2–407 hierarchy of biped objects (Track View)
Index import table to 3ds Max 3–568 log files 3–566 overview 3–565 temporary files 3–567 ignore animation range 2–526 ignore backfacing 1–984, 1–1001, 1–1010 IK and control objects 2–417 and set key 2–276 animating with interactive IK 2–462 IK joints 2–418 IK solution (glossary) 3–1049 overlapping chains 2–427 preferences 3–865 IK blend 2–809, 3–1048 IK constraints 2–758, 2–760 IK limb solver 2–421, 2–454 IK object 2–809 ik only option 2–827 IK rollouts 2–473 auto termination 2–481 display options 2–439 IK
1166 Index input devices for motion capture 2–632 inputs (particle flow) 3–1051 insert 2–992, 2–998 actions, events (particle view) 2–129 bulge angle 2–965, 2–992 cross section slice 2–965 ctrl pts 2–965 insert animation 2–685 insert character 2–686 insert tracks dialog 3–471 time (Track View) 2–546 tracks 3–471 vertices 1–290, 1–303 insert keys 2–535 inset polygons dialog 1–1075 inside 2–987 installing 3ds Max (for network rendering) 3–180 instance duplicate maps utility 2–1555 instanced modifiers 1–496
Index setting parameters 2–465 sliding 2–465 sliding and rotational 2–478 surface 2–465 using default joint precedence 2–450 JPEG files (glossary) 3–670 JSR-184 editing parameters 3–572 export/import files 3–570, 3–572 log files 3–576 m3g player 3–576 texture parameters 3–572 JSR-184 player 3–576 jump 2–791, 2–841 jumping dynamics of 2–736 parameters 2–719 K Kaydara FiLMBOX 3–559, 3–562 KBD files 3–837, 3–848 keep apart operator 2–168 key filters 2–567, 3–761 key info Bezier controllers 2–305 key info rol
1168 Index layer properties dialog 3–711 layer track 2–583 layers 1–111 to 1–112, 2–827, 3–704, 3–1055 AutoCAD and 3ds Max 3–444 excluding in file linking 3–444 from AutoCAD 3–430 from Revit 3–430 glossary 3–1055 including in file linking 3–444 layer event 3–345 layer list button 3–715 layer manager 3–706 layer properties dialog 3–711 select dialog 3–444 layers toolbar 3–735 add selection to current layer 3–716 create new layer 3–716 select objects in current layer 3–716 set current layer to selection’s l
Index mental ray shadow maps 2–1205 name and color rollout 2–1127 omni 2–1148 orbit/pan 3–798 photometric lights 2–1155 placing 1–7 positioning 2–1136 properties of 2–1130 roll 3–796 standard 2–1142 target area 2–1161 target direct 2–1145 target linear 2–1159 target point 2–1157 target spotlight 2–1143 truck 3–797 types of 2–1126, 2–1155 using 2–1128 viewport controls 3–794, 3–796 working with 2–1128 lights name and color rollout 2–1127 Lightscape 3–583 creating geometry for export 3–578 creating materials
1170 Index link settings rollout 2–987 link sub-object level joint intersections rollout 2–991 link settings rollout 2–987 linkage, hierarchical 3–1045 linked file states 3–431 linked objects assigning materials to 3–452, 3–461 conversion settings 3–435, 3–441 selecting when file linking 3–446 linked XForm modifier 1–703 linking and unlinking objects 2–403 animatable parameters 2–393, 2–395 bones to follow objects 2–442 end effectors to parent 2–442 strategy 2–400 linking files 3–431 links 3–1057 adding a
Index skin parameters rollout 1–353 surface parameters rollout 1–349 lofting glossary 3–1058 shapes 1–257 log file 3–121, 3–1058 log files IGES 3–566 logarithmic exposure control 3–293 LogLUV format (TIFF files) 3–299 look at controller 2–329 look at object (particle flow) 3–1058 look-at constraint 2–388 loop 1–798 looping 2–912, 2–922 animation 2–528 animation (Track View) 2–547 to 2–548 loop event (Video Post) 3–337, 3–349 low res environment background 3–874 low-polygon modeling 1–1254 lower bound 2–998
1172 Index refraction 2–1350 self-illumination 2–1343 shininess 2–1342 shininess strength 2–1342 specular color 2–1341 specular level 2–1342 unfold 1–902 mapping biped motion 2–776 maps 2–1472, 3–121, 3–504 2D 2–1434 3D 2–1472 activate all 1–50 camera map per pixel 2–1542 cellular 2–1473 checker 2–1447 color modifier 2–1502 combustion 2–1448 composite 2–1498 compositor maps 2–1497 custom 3ds Max mental ray shaders 2–1521, 2–1524, 2–1526 to 2–1527, 2–1529, 2–1531 to 2–1534, 2–1538 to 2–1539, 2–1541 cutout
Index options dialog 2–1280 shortcuts 3–946 tools 2–1271 type button 2–1293 material effects channel flyout 2–1288 Material Editor 2–1287 material ID and attaching objects 1–1009 and Booleans 1–333 and editable meshes 1–1001 and editable patches 1–971 and editable splines 1–303 and particles 2–186 changing (particle flow) 2–187 glossary 3–1063 material IDs rollout Lightscape import 3–614 material operators dynamic 2–187 frequency 2–185 static 2–183 material propagation 2–1276 material shaders rollout menta
1174 Index using maps to enhance 2–1247 matte object (glossary) 3–1065 matte parameters rollout 3–137 matte texture element rollout 3–137 matte/shadow material 2–1393 max clips 2–626 MAX file finder utility 3–511 MAX files and Autodesk VIZ 3–526 max object add to motion mixer 2–583 max objects to mix dialog 2–619 maximum angular/positional deviation for a track 2–922 MAXScript 2–116 about MAXScript 1–xx and particle flow 2–204, 2–225 command-line 3–826 glossary 3–1066 listener 3–824 MAXScript listener 3–8
Index create 3–723 customize 3–731 edit 3–721 file 3–721 graph editors 3–730 group 3–722 help 3–732 material editor copy and paste 2–1262 MAXScript 3–732, 3–823 menu bar 3–720 menus panel (customize UI) 3–842 modifiers 3–726 particle view 2–122 reactor 3–729 rendering 3–731 Schematic View 3–692 tools 3–722 views 3–722 merge 3–469 animation (file menu) 3–471 custom sections 1–849 effects 3–216 insert tracks command 3–471 merge dialogs 2–1297 to 2–1298, 3–416, 3–469 scenes 1–16 shapes 1–849 merge from file s
1176 Index mixer transition editor dialog 2–613, 2–615 MNM file 3–1067 MNM files 2–774, 2–912, 2–916, 2–1117 MNU files 3–839, 3–842, 3–848 mobile gaming editing JSR-184 parameters 3–572 exporting JSR-184 files 3–570 MOC files 2–916, 2–922 modal (glossary) 3–1067 mode motion flow 2–878, 2–894 modeless (glossary) 3–1067 modeling objects 1–5, 1–833 modes 2–791, 2–835, 2–840 in place 2–785 mixer 2–629 rubber band 2–734 talent figure 2–912 Track View 2–501 modes menu curve editor and dope sheet 2–501 modifier
Index skew 1–780 skin 1–781 skin morph 1–802 skin wrap 1–809 skin wrap patch 1–815 slice 1–815 smooth 1–818 spherify 1–819 spline IK control modifier 1–820 spline select 1–822 squeeze 1–823 STL check 1–825 stretch 1–826 substitute 1–830 surface 1–833 surface mapper (world space) 1–536 SurfDeform 1–537, 1–838 sweep 1–839, 1–848 to 1–849 symmetry 1–851 taper 1–853 tessellate 1–854 topology dependent 3–1117 trim/extend 1–856 turbosmooth 1–857 turn to mesh 1–860 turn to patch 1–862 turn to poly 1–863 turn-to m
1178 Index samples 2–774 motion flow 2–695, 3–1070 and BIP files 2–779 BIP file location 2–774 clip properties dialog 2–897 compare with motion mixer 2–581 editor file 2–896 graph 2–878, 2–880, 2–896 to 2–897 mode 2–791, 2–878, 2–882, 2–894, 2–896, 2–900 optimize transition 2–909 random motion 2–887 random motion flow 2–890, 2–907 rollout 2–896 script 2–878, 2–900 shared 2–907 shared motion flow 2–890, 2–907 transition 2–880 unified motion 2–889 workflow 2–894 motion flow editor 3–1070 append 2–883 files
Index multicurve trim surface 1–1216 multiple instanced objects 2–117 multiple links 2–753 selecting and rotating 2–753 multiplicity (glossary) 3–1071 multiplier (glossary) 3–1071 multiplier curve applying 2–560 deleting 2–561 enable toggle 2–561 glossary 3–1072 multiplier out-of-range types (Track View) 2–563 MultiRes modifier 1–731 multiresolution adaptive antialiaser 2–1375 multisided blend surface 1–1215 multithreading and rendering 3–864 MVBlocks 3–465 N N blend surface 1–1215 n links 2–963, 2–1001 N
1180 Index next/previous key;finding, next/previous key 2–809 NGon 1–272 no blending 2–963, 2–1001 no footsteps 2–922 no key reduction 2–922 node (glossary) 3–1073 node track (glossary) 3–1073 noise and terrain effects 1–736 noise controller 2–337 noise map 2–1484 noise modifier 1–735 noise rollout (2D) 2–1439 noise threshold 2–1460, 2–1462, 2–1484, 3–278, 3–284 non-biped object 2–615, 2–618 non-vertical jambs 1–205 nonrelational NURBS surfaces 1–1118 nonscaling object size 3–874 normal bump map 2–1541 no
Index sub-object selection 1–1086 working with 1–1081 NURBS surfaces 1–1102 and IGES 3–565 creating from geometric primitives 1–1117 display line parameters 1–1120 glossary 3–1075 making rigid imported surfaces independent 3–565 surface approximation 1–1241 NURMS 1–714, 1–992 O OBJ exporting 3–637 obj files (wavefront) 3–637 object bounding box 2–963 object color dialog 1–155 object data flow 1–480 object display 1–51 object display culling 1–59 keyboard shortcuts 3–949 object fragmentation (particle flow
1182 Index open from vault 3–401 open physique file 2–958 open physique file button 2–949 open recent 3–402 OpenEXR files format 3–671 opening 3–675 saving 3–672 OpenGL driver 3–881, 3–884 opening screen 1–17 operands 1–333, 3–1079 operator icon 3–1079 operators 2–138 birth 2–139 birth script 2–141 delete 2–142 display 2–198 empty flow 2–205 force 2–200 glossary 3–1079 keep apart 2–168 mapping 2–191 material dynamic 2–187 material frequency 2–185 material static 2–183 notes 2–202 operator time frames 2–13
Index P pack UVs dialog 1–891 paint (vertexpaint modifier) 1–918 paint deformation rollout 1–1065 brush options 1–801 paint selection region 1–82 paint weights 1–801 paintbox vertexpaint modfier 1–924 painter options 1–801 PAL 3–863, 3–1082 palette vertexpaint modifier 1–933 paletted 3–863 pan panning views 1–29 particle view 2–125, 2–131 Track View 2–571 viewport controls 3–786 pan view 3–786 panels create 3–800 customize UI 3–837 to 3–839, 3–842 to 3–843 display 3–818 hierarchy 3–816 modify (command pane
1184 Index speed 2–229 split amount 2–230 split selected 2–231 split source 2–232 particle view depot 2–121 description panel 2–121 display tools 2–121 event display 2–127 introduction 2–105, 2–121 menu bar 2–122 open 2–132 parameters panel 2–121 particles along a path 2–159 and age 2–142 and binding to space warps 2–117 and deflector space warps 2–208, 2–211 and materials 2–183, 2–185, 2–187 and particle flow 2–106 and stretch 2–118 appearance when selected 2–134 caching 2–193 creating particle systems 2
Index path follow space warp 2–67 path parameters rollout 1–351 pattern background 2–1277 pattern design (cloth) 1–554 PBomb space warp 2–64 PCloud particle system 2–249 PDynaFlect space warp 2–77 pelt map parameters dialog 1–891 per-pixel camera map 2–1542 per-pixel camera projection 2–1542 percent snap 2–37 perform footstep extraction 2–922 performance 3–104, 3–125, 3–1094 and biped’s motion previewing 2–784 and weight painting 1–802 controlling display performance 1–28 improving in NURBS 1–1100 optimizi
1186 Index make edges 1–997 make vertices 1–992 threshold 1–710, 1–984 plane 1–180 plane angle manipulator 2–29 planet map 2–1488 plant 2–791, 2–817, 3–1089 leg state 2–725 plate match 3–37 plate match/MAX R2.
Index Schematic View 3–695 strokes 3–903, 3–908 viewports 3–874 preferences (display) 2–786 premultiplied alpha (glossary) 3–683, 3–1091 preserve map channels dialog 1–1076 preserve modifier 1–757 preset lights 2–1156 preset rendering options 3–23 preset views 1–24 presets 3–23, 3–443 brush 3–737 configure (Video Post) 3–323 rendering 3–23 preview animated material previews 2–1294 make 2–1278 play 2–1278 renderings 3–163 save 2–1278 previewing biped motion 2–784 motion 2–935 Shockwave 3D files 3–633 W3D fi
1188 Index PRS PRS controller (Track View) 2–341 PRS parameters 2–298 PS files 3–661 PSD file (glossary) 3–678 pseudo alpha compositor 3–356, 3–363 filter 3–352, 3–360 pseudo color exposure control 3–296 publish Shockwave 3–628 publishing to 3D DWF 3–556 pull 2–998 pull bias 2–998 pull/pinch/stretch options (tendons) 2–998 push modifier 1–769 space warp 2–55 put material to scene 2–1285 put to library 2–1287, 2–1298 pyramid 1–177 Q QOP files 3–845, 3–848 quad menu Schematic View 3–702 quad menus 1–1084,
Index ray-trace bias (glossary) 3–1094 RAYHOSTS file 3–121, 3–1095 specifying name and path 3–121 raytrace acceleration parameters 2–1372 adaptive antialiaser dialogs 2–1374 attenuation rollout 2–1516 basic material extensions rollout 2–1517 basic parameters rollout 2–1355 dynamics properties rollout 2–1368 extended parameters rollout 2–1360 global settings 2–1369 map 2–1508 map and material 2–1372 maps rollout 2–1364 material 2–1353 messages 2–1369 raytracer controls rollout 2–1362 refractive material ext
1190 Index remove ease or multiplier curve (Track View) 2–561 note track (Track View) 2–531 remove from link 2–941, 2–1001 remove from track set 2–568 remove note track 2–531 rename objects tool 1–123 rename preview 3–165 rename settings preset dialog 3–443 render ActiveShade 3–17, 3–20 blowup 3–13 common parameters rollout 3–27 default scanline 3–37 dialogs 2–1299, 3–2, 3–8, 3–683 presets 3–23 render operator (particle flow) 2–202 render scene 3–2, 3–11 render type list (main toolbar) 3–13 rendered outpu
Index radiosity 3–60 RAM player 3–685 raytrace global exclude 2–1372 raytrace settings 2–1369 render 3–11 render scene 3–11 render to texture 3–151 show last rendering 3–24 video post 3–307 rendering parameters rollout (radiosity) 3–70 rendering properties family elements 3–464 instanced objects 3–463 to 3–464 renderingmenu panoramic exporter 3–166 reparameterize dialog 1–1238 repathing 3–492 repel behavior 2–1070, 3–1097 replace (file menu) 3–476 replace clip 2–611 replace dialogs 2–1300, 3–476 replace ke
1192 Index ripple modifier 1–773 space warp 2–98 RLA files 3–680 RMAT materials in 3ds Max 3–452 roll angle manipulator 2–1179 roll viewport controls camera 3–790 light 3–796 rollout distributed bucket rendering 3–121 twist poses 2–805 rollouts 1–12, 2–470, 2–473 inverse kinematics 2–480 maps 2–1315 materials 2–1311 paint deformation 1–1065 PArray rollouts 2–254, 2–256, 2–258, 2–264 to 2–267, 2–270 root name 2–705, 2–837 rotate 1–420 rotating editable mesh edges 1–997 elbows and knees 2–749 lights 2–1136
Index scene/settings in buffer 1–94 save copy as 3–404 save custom UI scheme 3–850 save file 2–791 save parameters 2–922 save physique file 2–958 save reservoir items dialog 2–627 save segment 2–791 save talent figure structure 2–916 save talent pose adjustment 2–916 saved schematic views 3–702 saving backup on save 3–870 BIP files 2–774, 2–796 biped figure files 2–713 biped step files 2–779 compressed file 3–870 FIG files 2–796 files from previous versions 3–402 material 2–1250 materials 2–1253 physique d
1194 Index script and scripting definitions 3–1102 motion flow 2–878 random motion 2–887, 2–906 script controller (Track View) 2–356 shared motion flow 2–890, 2–907 script rollout (particle flow) 2–135 script wiring 2–130, 2–171 scripted behavior 2–1072, 3–1102 scripting birth operator 2–141 script operator 2–204 script test 2–225 script wiring (particle flow) 2–171, 2–201 scripts 2–882 and controlling particles 2–116 debugging 3–826 define script 2–882 start frame 2–882 start position x 2–882 start posit
Index vertex color 1–992 select by channel modifier 1–775 select by material ID dialog lightscape import 3–614 select delegates dialog 2–1057 select emitter objects dialog 2–147 select keys 2–484 select keys by time 2–511 select menu (particle view) 2–124 select menu (Schematic View) 3–692 select objects dialog 1–78 select objects in current layer 3–716 select region crossing 1–88 lasso 1–82 paint 1–82 window 1–87 window/crossing 1–88 select scale rotate control points 2–965 select time (Track View) 2–543
1196 Index LumeTools 2–1523 mental ray 2–1520 to 2–1522, 2–1533, 3–1103 mental ray (third party) 2–1521 viewport 2–1308 shading and lights 2–1243 shading type 2–1241 to 2–1242 shading, cartoon 2–1414 shadow (center of mass) 2–704, 2–788 shadow maps 2–1208, 3–1104 mental ray 2–1205 shadow parameters (lights) 2–1181 shadow types 2–1175, 3–44 shadows 3–88 shadow maps 3–88, 3–111, 3–1105, 3–1131 shadow modes 3–111 shadows rollout 3–111 shadows and rendering 2–1176 shadows from hair 3–218 shadows map (baking)
Index show buffer 2–916 to show original motion 2–912 trajectory 2–916 show entire trajectory 2–799 show graph motion flow 2–896 show icon control 2–1152 to 2–1153 show markers 2–916, 2–927 show prop markers 2–927 show recognized markers 2–927 show safe frame 3–899 show selected key statistics (Track View) 2–571 show tangents (Track View) 2–559 show time 2–799 show unrecognized markers 2–927 show/hide all 2–799 SHP files 3–534, 3–1106 shrink 1–798 shutter speed 3–100 sibling go forward 2–1291 go to 2–1291
1198 Index snaps 2D/2.
Index spherical area omni light 2–1152 spherical deflector 2–83 spherify modifier 1–819 spin operator (particle flow) 2–150 spindle 1–191 spine flexibility 2–705 spine link 2–837 spinner right-click menu 2–278 spinners 1–12 spinner precision 3–859 spinner snap 2–37, 3–859 spiral stair 1–230 splash screen 1–17 splash.
1200 Index start frame scripts 2–900 transition editor 2–902 start left 2–844, 2–847, 2–849 start position x scripts 2–900 start position y scripts 2–900 start position z scripts 2–900 start right 2–844, 2–847, 2–849 start rotation scripts 2–900 starting manager and server (network rendering) 3–175 network rendering 3–175 startup files 1–17 startup layout - return to 3–851 startup screen 1–17 startup script (glossary) 3–1109 startup.
Index surface approximation (NURBS) 1–1241, 1–1247, 1–1253 surface deform (SurfDeform) 1–537 surface edge curve 1–1178 surface mapper (world space) 1–536 surface modifier 1–602, 1–833 surface offset curve 1–1169 surface parameters (loft objects) 1–349 surface point 1–1223 surface properties rollout (editable objects) 1–303, 1–971, 1–989, 1–992, 1–997, 1–1001 surface sub-objects - creating 1–1179 surface tools 1–602, 1–833 surface trimming 1–1082 surface-curve intersection point 1–1226 surface-surface inter
1202 Index tendons sub-object 2–979 tension, continuity, and bias;TCB.
Index specifying active time segment 2–282 time configuration button 3–768 time ruler (Track View) 2–492 time slider 2–492, 2–533, 3–748 time tags 3–757 to 3–758 time controls 3–759 time frames 2–137 time in the air 2–736 time menu, Track View 2–510 time paste (Track View) 2–545 time reverse (Track View) 2–546 time ruler (Track View) 2–492 time to next footstep 2–844, 2–847, 2–849 time warps 2–597 TimeSensor (VRML97 helpers) 3–653 timing parameters 2–841 tips adjusting radiosity 2–1381 animation and textur
1204 Index snapshot 1–438 spacing tool 1–440 transform type-in 1–412 tooltips 2–129, 3–746 tooltips in viewports preferences 3–859 toon shader 2–1414 top/bottom material 2–1408 topology (glossary) 3–1116 topology dependent modifier 3–1117 torus 1–175 torus knot 1–184 touch 2–791, 2–817, 3–1117 leg state 2–725 touch dynamics 2–736 TouchSensor (VRML97 helpers) 3–652 trace depth 3–104, 3–113, 3–1088 track copying 2–544 glossary 3–1118 note 2–530 to 2–531 track bar 3–750 track selection 2–800 using motion-cap
Index transform type-in 1–404, 1–412, 3–756 transformation axis coordinate system list 1–423 transforms adjusting 2–413 and envelopes 2–938 and light objects 2–1136 and mesh sub-objects 1–988 and modifiers 1–485 animating 1–414 applying 1–401, 1–404 commands 1–419 constraints 1–428 controllers (glossary) 3–1003 curve 1–1159 curve sub-object 1–1159 glossary 3–1120 locking 2–414 locking axes 2–482 managers 1–414 resetting AutoCAD objects 3–448 surface 1–1183 surface sub-object 1–1183 transform tools 1–432 us
1206 Index video post 3–317 viewport transparency 3–990 truck camera 3–791 truck light 3–797 true/false, setting test results (particle view) 2–128 truecolor 3–863, 3–1121 tube 1–174 turbosmooth modifier 1–857 turn to mesh modifier 1–860 turn to patch modifier 1–862 turn to poly modifier 1–863 turning on/off actions, events (particle view) 2–129 particle system 2–132 tutorials 3–974 tweens 2–272 twist 2–805, 2–987 deformation 1–359 modifier 1–865 twist individual mode 2–807 twist links 2–713, 2–837 twist
Index use key reduction 2–922 use large toolbar buttons preference 3–859 use pivot point center 1–426 use pivot points 1–495 use planes (viewport preference) 3–874 use secondary threshold (IK) 3–865 use selection center 1–427 use soft select 2–509 use transform coordinate center 1–427 UseEnvironAlpha setting 3–1028 user grids 2–19, 2–48 user interface cloth modifier 1–562 customizing 3–829 garment maker modifier 1–593 hair growth modifier 1–509 introduction 3–717 menu bar 3–720 problems and recovery 3–987
1208 Index object display culling 1–59 panorama exporter 3–166 polygon counter 1–1254, 3–645 randomize keys (Track View) 2–539 rescale world units 2–49 to 2–50 reset XForm (transform) 1–418 resource collector 3–513 select keys by time (Track View) 2–541 shape check 1–260 skin utilities 2–678 strokes 3–909 surface approximation 1–1247 Track View 2–538 utilities menu, Track View 2–511 utilities panel 3–821 UVW remove utility 2–1252 visual MAXScript 3–826 UV coordinates 2–1249 loft surface 1–1202 sample UV t
Index video color check 2–1278 video driver and display problems 3–990 video post common procedures 3–309 common sequences 3–309 composite image sequences 3–309 composite scene over image sequence 3–309 create animation from still images 3–309 create starfield 3–309 join two animations 3–309 make an object glow 3–309 render in reverse 3–309 resize images 3–309 simple cross fade 3–309 switch views 3–309 troubleshooting 3–317 Video Post 3–307, 3–309 default keyboard shortcuts 3–961 edit current event 3–320 e
1210 Index grids 2–33 redraw all views 1–50 reset background transform 1–45 restore active view 1–37 save active view 1–37 shade selected 1–47 show dependencies 1–47 show ghosting 1–46 show key times 1–46 show transform gizmo 1–45 undo/redo 1–36 update background image 1–44 update during spinner drag 1–51 viewport background 1–38 viewport image 1–44 to 1–45 virtual viewport 3–902 visibility tracks 2–526, 2–533 visible after/before 2–827 visible/invisible 1–997 visual MAXScript utility 3–826 VIZ files link
Index fixed 1–253 pivoted 1–254 projected 1–255 sample preview 2–1264 sliding 1–256 wire editor 2–395 wire parameters 2–393, 2–395 expression techniques 1–141 wireframe color 3–800 wireframes 1–46, 1–52, 3–1128 wiring particle view 2–130 wiring (particle flow) 2–130, 3–1127 wiring tests to events (particle view) 2–127 wood map 2–1494 workbench 2–695, 2–857 analyze panel 2–869 analyzing curves 2–860 animation 2–864 curve view 3–1019 filters panel 2–874 fix panel 2–871 fixing curves 2–861 navigating 2–858 se
1212 Index glossary 3–1131 scenes 3–420 user path configuration 3–857 using XRefs 1–16 XRef merge dialog 3–416 XRef objects 3–405 to 3–406, 3–408, 3–423 XRef scenes 3–405, 3–416 XYZ controllers 2–311 to 2–312, 2–328, 2–340, 2–355 XYZ coordinate shader (mental ray) 2–1541 XYZ generator shader (mental ray) 2–1539 to 2–1540 xyz position 2–809 XYZ to UVW option (UVW map modifier) 1–905 Y YUV file (glossary) 3–685 Z -z command-line option 3–720 z element parameters rollout 3–139 zero all 2–807 zero twist 2–8
