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588 Chapter 20: Managing Scenes and Projects
7.
Create a batch file that cal ls lsanim for each
framebeingprocessed.Thelineshouldlook
like this:
Note: See the online User Reference to view this
code.
Impor tant: If a frame number has fewer than four
digits, pad the number with leading zeros to m ake
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 fi les into an AVI or FLC
animation.
Tip: The Image File List does not need to
contain path names. You can use the Configure
User Paths dialog >
External Files panel (page
3–855)
to indicate the directory where y our
images have been saved.
2. In 3ds Max, choose R endering > Environment.
3. In the Environment dialog, click Environment
Map.
4. In the Mater ial/Map Browser, choose Bitmap,
and then click OK.
5. In the Select Bitmap Image File dialog, choose
the IFL fi le, and then click OK.
6. Click Time Configuration, and use
the Time Configuration dialog to m ake the
animation length m atch the number of frames
specified in the IFL file.
7. Render a v iewport to a movie-format fi le (AVI,
FLC, or MOV).
Tip: The aspect ratio of the rendered movie
should match the aspect r atio of the frames in
the IFL file.
Note: Some video compressors have been
found to add banding and other artifacts to
animations. T he Intel Indeo video compressor
tends to produce animations with fewer
artifacts .
How 3ds Max Objects Are
Converted to Lightscape
This topic describes how the exporter converts
names, lights (including st andard lights), and
materials.
3ds Max and Lightscape Naming
Lightscape requires unique names for materials,
blocks, and layers. These names are taken from
3ds Max material and object names, which are not
necessarily unique. When we process t he model
for export, we change m aterial and object names
to guarantee uniqueness by adding or changing
digits at t he end of the name.
Converting Geometry
To convert 3ds Max geometry, each object is first
conver ted to a mesh. Then the mesh is searched
for adjacent t riangles that have the same norma l
and the same material: these are collapsed into
quadrilaterals. Triangles and quadrilaterals
are then exported along with their material
assignments, layer assignments, UV coordinates,
and smoothing norma ls. Th e geometry is grouped
into Lightscape blocks according to the method
you chose in the
General panel of the export dialog
(page 3–592)
.
Hidden geometry is never expor ted.
Converting Lights
Photometric lig hts are simply exported to
Lightscape with the same distribution, intensity,
light color, and filter color. Photometric lights
w ith spotlight distribution maintain their beam
and field angles when exported to Lightscape. For
lights with web distributions, the IES file paths are
also exported.