Datasheet

Project: Assigning Materials  9
panel, do so while the Select By Object Type button is acti-
vated on the Status Line (see Figure 1.10). If the Select By
Hierarchy And Combinations button is activated instead,
you may inadvertently select a group node. If a material
is assigned to a group node, all the group node’s children
automatically inherit the same material.
Exploring Shading Networks
Any material you create is part of a larger shading network
composed of multiple nodes. The nodes are represented as
square icons in the Hypershade node tabs and work area.
Some nodes are provided automatically and are necessary
for basic rendering. Others arrive as you add texture maps.
To view a shading network, go to the Materials tab of the
Hypershade, RMB+click a material icon, and choose Graph
Network from the marking menu. The network is revealed in
the work area (see Figure 1.11). Initially, several nodes are hid-
den. To see the entire network, select the visible nodes in the
work area and click the Input And Output Connections button
(see Figure 1.9 earlier in this chapter). It may be necessary to
select all the visible nodes and click the button several times.
Within the work area, you can delete node connections or add
new ones. For more information, see Chapters 5 and 6.
You can change the view within the work area by using
the camera controls (Alt key and mouse buttons). If the
work area becomes cluttered, you can clear it by choosing
Graph

Clear Graph from the Hypershade menu.
Project: Assigning Materials
After examining the scene file, the first important step to tex-
turing and lighting is the creation of new materials and their
assignment to surfaces. As such, you must decide what types of
materials to create. In addition, you must determine whether
surfaces will share assignments. After material assignments
have been made, you can adjust the materials’ Color and
Transparency attributes.
Choosing Material Types
Generally, it’s best to match the Maya material type to the real-world material the surface
is emulating. For example, if a material needs a specular highlight, a Lambert material
Figure 1.10
Selection buttons on the Status Line include the (A) Select
By Hierarchy And Combinations button, (B) Select By Object
Type button, (C) Select By Component Type button, and (D)
object type/component type option buttons.
ABCD
Figure 1.11
A shading network revealed in the Hypershade work area
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