3ds Max in 24h

Praise for Sams Teach Yourself
3ds Max in 24 Hours

Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours by Stewart Jones is the perfect book to start an artist
who has never used 3ds Max and is new to 3D. Stewart has put in enough detail and challenges
to give readers a solid grounding in techniques while leaving room to explore on your own.
Stewart writes with humor, making something that could be dry interesting and fun to read. I
enjoyed going through the book and even picked up a few tips along the way that I didnt know
in Max. I would recommend the book without hesitation to students and artists looking for a
great start to quickly feel accomplished instead of frustrated with all aspects of 3D production in
3ds Max 2014.
Brad Clark, Cofounder, Rigging Dojo.com
Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hourschallenge accepted! If you are looking for a textbook
to guide you through the intricacies of Autodesk 3ds Max, this is the 24 for you. Blending a
perfect balance of technical and demonstration, Stewarts witty, stylish, and pointed approach
to introducing 3D modeling, animation, and the 3D modeling production environment is well
worth staying up all day and night to read.
Dr. Tim J. Harrington, Teaching and Learning Applications Analyst
Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours is a great way to learn the basics of working in 3D on a
computer. This is a fantastic book for anyone who wants to start in this field.
Gregory Scott Johnson, Professor of Game Development, SCAD
For anyone looking to get a solid foot into the 3D industry, Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in
24 Hours is the perfect solution to get you started. Stewart Jones puts his years of experience
into 24 simple and concise hours that make learning the basics fun and then build into more
advanced steps as you work your way through. Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours is the
perfect guide to putting that first foot forward and opening the door to the exciting world of 3D.
Matthew Johnson, Principal 3D Artist
Sams Teach Yourself Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours not only gets the reader started with 3ds
Max, it gives a comprehensive survey of all aspects of 3D. Through clear and succinct tutorials,
readers will learn to model, rig, skin, animate, create particles, utilize dynamic, fur, and even
experience a little scripting. Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours has everything needed to
get the successful digital artist proficient in 3ds Max in a short 24 hours. Youll keep this on your
shelf as a go-to resource guide for 3ds Max.
Tina OHailey, Dean of Digital Media, SCAD
Stewart Jones
SamsTeachYourself
3ds Max
24
Hours
in
800 East 96th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46240 USA
Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours

Copyright 2014 by Pearson Education, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without written permission from the publisher. No patent liability is assumed with respect
to the use of the information contained herein. Although every precaution has been taken in
the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or
omissions. Nor is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of the information
contained herein.
3ds Max is a registered trademark or trademark of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and other
countries. This book is independent of Autodesk, Inc., and is not authorized by, endorsed by,
sponsored by, affiliated with, or otherwise approved by Autodesk, Inc.
ISBN-13: 978-0-672-33699-7
ISBN-10: 0-672-33699-5
Library of Congress Control Number: 2013916424
Printed in the United States of America
First Printing December 2013
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Contents at a Glance
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii
HOUR 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2 Exploring the Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3 Navigating the Viewports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
4 Primitives and Transforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
5 3ds Max Modifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
6 Sub-Object Exploration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
7 3D Modeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
8 Materials and Textures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
9 Computer Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
10 Illuminating Scenes Using Lights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
11 Adding and Editing 3D Cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
12 Rendering for Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
13 Combining Techniques to Create a Showcase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
14 Rigging Objects for Easier Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
15 Influencing Geometry Using Skinning Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
16 Character Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
17 Dynamic Simulations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
18 Particles and Effects
.....................................................................
269
19 Cloth, Hair, and Fur Creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

20 Mental Ray Rendering. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
21 3ds Max Project Management Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
22 Combining Advanced Techniques to Create a Showcase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
23 Scripting in 3ds Max Using MAXScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
24 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
Table of Contents
Preface
xvii
HOUR 1 Introduction
What This Book Covers
1
..............................................................................
This Books Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

What Is Autodesk 3ds Max? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Getting Autodesk 3ds Max . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Extra Stuff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Disclaimer and Disclosure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
HOUR 2 Exploring the Interface
11
The Interface Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Quad Menus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
HOUR 3 Navigating the Viewports
31
3D Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
The ViewCube. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
SteeringWheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Viewport Navigation Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Viewport Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
The Viewport Layout Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Contents
vii
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
HOUR 4 Primitives and Transforms
41
Primitive Creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Names and Colors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Types of Primitives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
More Than Primitives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Object Manipulation in 3D Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
HOUR 5 3ds Max Modifiers
61
The Modify Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

The Buttons Under the Modifier Stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
World Space Versus Local/Object Space. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
HOUR 6 Sub-Object Exploration
71
An Introduction to the Three Sub-Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Working with Sub-Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Vertex, Edge, and Polygon Sub-Object Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Editable Poly Sub-Object Rollouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Normals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
viii
HOUR 7 3D Modeling
85
Creating a Cartoon Face . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Creating a Spaceship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Creating a Futuristic City Planet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Additional Modeling Techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
HOUR 8 Materials and Textures
109
The Material Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Applying Textures to Objects
..................................................................
114
Assigning Multiple Materials
..................................................................
116
UVW Mapping. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
HOUR 9 Computer Animation
131
Basic Animation Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

The Animation Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
First Steps into Animation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Pivot Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
HOUR 10 Illuminating Scenes Using Lights
145
3ds Max Lighting Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Standard Lights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Photometric Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Adding Lights to a Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Contents
ix
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
HOUR 11 Adding and Editing 3D Cameras
157
Camera-Based Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

3ds Max Cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Animating Cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Cameras and Modifiers
..........................................................................
166
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
HOUR 12 Rendering for Production
169
An Overview of Rendering in 3ds Max . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Quick Rendering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Rendering Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Still Image Rendering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Animation Rendering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
HOUR 13 Combining Techniques to Create a Showcase
185
Stages Explained . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Stage 1: Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Stage 2: Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Stage 3: Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Stage 4: Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Stage 5: Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Stage 6: Final Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Stage 7: Rendering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
HOUR 14 Rigging Objects for Easier Animation
201
Hierarchies and Linking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

Bone Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Forward and Inverse Kinematics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Creating a Custom Rig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Using Character Studio (Biped). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Using CAT (Character Animation Toolkit) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
HOUR 15 Influencing Geometry Using Skinning Techniques
217
What Is Skinning? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Influence Area and Envelopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
The Skin Modifier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Manual Skin Weighting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Setting Up Characters for Animation Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
HOUR 16 Character Animation
233
The 12 Principles of Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

The Bouncing Ball. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Contents
HOUR 17 Dynamic Simulations
xi
255
The MassFX Toolset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Creating Keyframed Animation from
Dynamic Simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Causing Destruction with MassFX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
HOUR 18 Particles and Effects
269
Space Warps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

Non-Event-Driven Particle Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
Event-Driven Particle Systems: Particle Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
HOUR 19 Cloth, Hair, and Fur Creation
Simulating Cloth
...................................................................................
287
287
Simulating Hair and Fur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
HOUR 20 Mental Ray Rendering
301
Mental Ray Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Common Render Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
The Mental Ray Daylight System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
Daylight and Additional Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
xii
HOUR 21 3ds Max Project Management Techniques
315
Scene Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

Naming Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Project Setup and Folder Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Project Management in Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
HOUR 22 Combining Advanced Techniques to Create a Showcase
331
Stage 1: Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331

Stage 2: Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
Stage 3: Project Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332
Stage 4: Creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335
Stage 5: Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
Stage 6: Camera and Lensing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
Stage 7: Animation and Visual Effects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342
Stage 8: Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
Stage 9: Final Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345
Stage 10: Rendering and Output. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
HOUR 23 Scripting in 3ds Max Using MAXScript
351
Programming and Scripting Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351

The MAXScript Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Basic MAXScript Scripting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355
Using MAXScript to Create User Interfaces. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364
Contents
HOUR 24 Conclusion
xiii
365
Hour 24: The Final Hour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

Developing Your Skills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
One Piece of Advice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
Additional Help and Guidance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Workshop. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372
Exercise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
Index
377
About the Author

Stewart Jones started his visual journey in graphic and multimedia design. He has since
moved into the computer graphics industry, where his focus has been on animation and
visual effects. Now a company director and freelance VFX/CG/animation consultant for
the film, TV, and games industries, he has previously served in multiple roles in media and
entertainment, including mentor and course author, animator, technical animator, character technical director, and computer graphics supervisor. Stewart also wrote Digital Creature
Rigging.
Dedication
For the person who is always there for you. You know who that is.
Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the guidance and support of some amazing
people. I hope they all know how thankful I am for their help, and Id like to take a little
time here to mention a few of them as they totally deserve the recognition for their awesomeness!
Kirsty, I love you. Youre amazing. Thank you for always making everything better and my
life so fantastic; without you, Id be a wreckor even more of a wreck than I currently am!
Thanks to my parents, Carol and Keith. Your love and support mean everything to me; I
cant thank you enough for always being there for me.
Susan and Nana, thank you for all your support and being there to listen to my random
chats. Oh, and of course thank you so much for that first super-awesome computer you
bought me that allowed me to start my journey into 3D.
Nathan, although your face did not appear in this book (like it did in my last one), thank
you for being the one who introduced me to 3ds Max way back in the day. I know that an
older version of this series of books helped you start out on your own 3D journey, and I hope
my version will do the same for others. Thanks for being a great friend!
A big thank you to everyone in the CG industry, as well as all the friends Ive made at so
many places throughout the world. Your drive, determination, and incredible talents keep
pushing me forward. Keep up the great work, everyone; Im sure Ill see you around!
Thank you to my technical editors: Brad, Greg, Tim, and Matt. The feedback, notes, comments, critiques, and thoughts you shared with me made this book so much better than it
would have been without you.
We Want to Hear from You!

As the reader of this book, you are our most important critic and commentator. We value
your opinion and want to know what were doing right, what we could do better, what
areas youd like to see us publish in, and any other words of wisdom youre willing to pass
our way.
We welcome your comments. You can email or write to let us know what you did or didnt
like about this bookas well as what we can do to make our books better.
Please note that we cannot help you with technical problems related to the topic of
this book.
When you write, please be sure to include this books title and author as well as your
name and email address. We will carefully review your comments and share them with the
author and editors who worked on the book.
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Visit our website and register this book at informit.com/register for convenient access to any
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Preface
Welcome! Please sit down, make yourself comfortable, and relax. Before you get started on
your 24-hour-long journey into the world of 3D and Autodesk 3ds Max, lets take a bit of
time to get to know each other.
Ill start. My name is Stewart, and most people call me Stu. Ive been doing this kind of
thing for a while now.... Well, not typing creepy messages like this one, but you know
3D stuff. Like a lot of other folks, I started out my journey watching cartoons as a kid, and
through a series of twists and turns, I ended up in this creatively technically artistic (thats a
new term I just created right there) field of 3D and the entertainment industry.
All right, so Ive introduced myself. Who are you? This is probably much easier for you
to just tell me, but as there is no one else here, Im going to take a wild guess, and hopefully Im somewhere in the right area with it. Right, hang on while I channel my psychic
abilities.1
Youre human. Yes, most definitely. I see someone who is taking the first steps into the world
of 3D. I also notice that you want to learn more about Autodesk 3ds Max and what it has to
offer as a leading 3D software application. Yes, you are eager to start your adventure, and
youre a little bit sick of me rambling on. And youre starting to think that I might be actually a bit crazy. Or maybe you have picked up the wrong book completely!
Am I right? I am, arent I?
I knew it! Are you impressed?
Of course youre not! That was, obviously, a completely wild guess, and I may have hit a
home run, or I could be way off target, but only you and I know which it is! Well, that guy
behind you does as well. Just kidding! Or am I?
Enough with this babble! I do know that youre here to expand your mind and learn new
and wondrous techniques that will set you on the path to 3D excellence. Thank you for
choosing to take the first steps of your journey with me. Lets have some fun.
1I
have no actual psychic abilities, just so you know!
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HOUR 10
Illuminating Scenes
Using Lights
What Youll Learn in This Hour:

u
An introduction to lighting in 3ds Max
Lighting and shadow basics
Accessing and changing ambient light
Standard versus photometric lighting
Lighting scenes in 3ds Max
You are able to see an object because light reflects from the object into your eyes, which send
the data to your brain so it can process the data and form an image. You cant see without
lighthonest! Just as in nature, illumination in 3ds Max happens through a complex interaction of lights and objects.
Light can come from a number of sources, the most obvious being the sun, our source of natural
lighting, and from bulbs, which handle our real-world artificial lighting. It makes sense, then,
that 3ds Max also provides a number of lighting options that allow you to replicate both natural and artificial lighting within scenes.
This hour, you are going to take a look at the various lighting options available to you and how
you can use them to illuminate your 3D worlds and scenes.
3ds Max Lighting Introduction

Lights in the real world allow you to see things, and the lights in 3ds Max do exactly the same
thing. In addition, you can assign qualities to the lighting tools available in 3ds Max to enable
them to cast shadows, project images, and even manipulate the atmospheric lighting effects.
The basic lighting tools are located in the default creation area in 3ds Maxthe Create tab of
the Command Panel. The Lights category is the third icon from the left, which looks like a studio
spotlight; this category is home to the lighting tools.
146
HOUR 10: Illuminating Scenes Using Lights
Two main subcategories of lights are available: standard lights and photometric lights. You can
create lights just as you do any other objects, and you can also transform them by using the
Move, Rotate, and Scale tools.
Before you jump in and start creating lights, its important that you know that 3ds Max automatically provides a default lighting setup when you start the program. Read on to learn more.
Default Lighting
3ds Max provides you with default lighting if you have not specified (created) any lights yourself. This allows you to view any objects you create without having to worry about lighting the
scene first. The default lights disappear as soon as another light is created, and they magically
reappear if all other lights in the scene are deleted.
Shadows
Shadows are areas where light is obstructed by an object, causing a darker area than its surroundings. 3ds Max supports various types of shadow-casting options, and unlike in real life,
you have the ability to make only some lights cast shadows and others not. Work through the
following Try It Yourself to get a taste of this.
TRY IT YOURSELF
Casting Shadows Using Default Lighting
Follow these steps to see how the default lighting in 3ds Max casts shadows on objects you
create:
1. In a new scene, create a plane (a standard primitive, not an aircraft).
2. Create a sphere.
3. Move the sphere around to see how the default lighting in 3ds Max casts shadows onto
objects.
Ambient Light
Ambient light is general lighting that affects an entire scene; it is also called global ambient. It
has no source or direction but affects everything in a scene uniformly. Because ambient light has
an effect on everything, you can use it to your advantage to create a specific atmosphere or simply to adjust the overall color of a scene.
Figure 10.1 shows the Environment and Effects window, where you can manually adjust the ambient light for a scene.
3ds Max Lighting Introduction
147
FIGURE 10.1
The Environment and Effects window gives you access to the ambient light properties for each scene.
NOTE
Changing the Global Ambient Light Settings

You can press the 8 key to bring up the Environment and Effects window, where you can adjust the
Ambient setting. Alternatively, you can open this window by selecting Rendering, Environment from
the main menu.
TRY IT YOURSELF
Changing and Manipulating the Global Ambient Light Settings
It is incredibly simple to change the Global Lighting options in a 3ds Max scene, and these steps
show you how to do just that:
1. In a new scene, create some standard primitives or simply open a scene that you have
worked on previously that includes some geometry.
148
2. Open the Environment and Effects window by either pressing the 8 key on your keyboard
or selecting Rendering, Environment from the main menu. As shown in Figure 10.1, the
Environment and Effects window contains two tabs that separate the Environment and
Effects options. You need to worry about only the first tab (Environment) for now.
3. Ensure that the Environment tab is open and find the Common Parameters rollout, which
should be right at the top. The first section of this rollout contains options for changing and
affecting the background of the main scene.
4. Scroll down the Common Parameters rollout until you come to the Global Lighting options.
5. Find the Tint option under Global Lighting and click the white square to bring up a color
picker.
6. Manipulate and choose a color by using the color picker. Notice that your scene objects
are tinted in the color you are choosing. As you can see, changing this color can have a
dramatic effect on the visual look of a scene.
7. Change the Level option in this section to intensify or decrease the effect that the tint
has on the scene. Also try out the Ambient option, which behaves just like the Tint effect.
(The effect of the Ambient option is hard to see in your viewports, but you can see it in
renders quite easily. Youll learn about renders and rendering in Hour 12, Rendering for
Production, so make a note of where this ambient light setting is so you can find it again
in a few hours.)
Standard Lights
These standard lights are the standard lighting solution available for 3ds Max. Yeah, I know,
you kind of worked that one out for yourself, didnt you? These lights are truly 3D lightsthat
is, they are created in 3D (of course), but they have no comparison to real-world lighting solutions. Sure, a spotlight is something that you know from the real world, but the spotlight solution available in the Standard Lights list doesnt compare to any real-world parameters. This
might not seem like a big deal right now, but when you start having to think about realistic
lighting solutions and how the temperature of a light affects its color, youll see that these realworld parameters would come in pretty handy!
To create lights in 3ds Max, you have to head over to the Create tab, just as we usually do when
you want to create something. In the Create tab, under the Lights category, we see two subcategories, Standard and Photometric, as shown in Figure 10.2.
The Standard subcategory in 3ds Max give you a few good options to choose from:
u
Target Spot and Free SpotSpotlights cast a resizable beam of light either toward a target
or in a general direction.
Standard Lights
149
Target Direct and Free DirectDirect lights cast parallel rays of light in a single direction,
just like the sun. You can target these rays to a specific direction or simply rotate the Free
Direct version.
OmniOmni lights cast rays in all directions from a single source, just like a real-world
light bulb. In fact, the default lighting uses two of these omni lights in its setup.
SkylightThe skylight replicates daytime lighting for your scene.
mr Area Omni and mr Area SpotThese two lights are similar to the omni and spotlights
youve already seen; however, you use them specifically when youre using the Mental Ray
(mr) rendering system. If I were you, I would just forget about these lights for the moment,
until you dip your feet into Mental Ray rendering in Hour 20, Mental Ray Rendering.
FIGURE 10.2
Standard lighting is available in the Lights category on the Create tab. There are eight standard lights to
choose from!
150
Figure 10.3 shows the options available in the Standard subcategory.
FIGURE 10.3
The Standard subcategory offers a total of eight lighting options.
Photometric Lights
Choosing the Photometric subcategory limits the number of different lights you can create.
However, unlike the lights in the Standard subcategory, lights in the Photometric subcategory
behave like real-world lighting solutions.
The photometric lights have settings that relate directly to real-world light measurement values,
such as Intensity and Temperature. These values are often easiest to understand if youre used to
a bit of DIY or just general real-world lighting, although using them can take a little more time
to set up correctly than using the standard lighting options. However, 3ds Max comes with a
number of templates that can help you out, and they make it as easy as choosing 40W Bulb for a
40-watt bulb. Nice!
These are the options in the Photometric subcategory:
u
Target LightYou can aim a target light at a specified target, using the target sub-object
provided with this light.
Free LightYou can aim these lights by using the Move and Rotate tools.
mr Sky PortalOnce again, this is a Mental Rayspecific lighting option, and I advise you
to leave it alone for now as its a little too complex for your 3ds Max experience.
Figure 10.4 shows the few options you have available in the Photometric subcategory.
Adding Lights to a Scene
151
FIGURE 10.4
You have only three options available when you use the Photometric subcategory, but they allow you to use
real-world lighting measurements.

Now that you know about both the standard and photometric lighting solutions, as well as some
background on shadows and ambient light, you can start lighting your scenes. In fact, creating a
light is as simple as clicking the button for the light you want, clicking in the scene, and changing some options. Give it a go!
VIDEO 10.1
Creating a Flashlight Beam

This video shows you how to create a flashlight beam, using the Omni and Free Spot
standard lights.
TRY IT YOURSELF
Using Standard Lights to Create a Flashlight Beam
Creating standard lights is incredibly simple. In the following steps, you will use a spotlight to create a beam of light that is emitted from a flashlight:
1. Open the file SAMS_Hour10_TorchStart.max. In this scene, a battery-operated flashlight is
pointed directly at a gray wall. You need to add lights so that the flashlight illuminates the
wall as you would expect.
152
2. On the Create tab, click the Lights category, and then move to the Standard subcategory.
You will use a spotlight for the flashlight.
3. Click the Free Spot button and then click once in the scene to create it. Right-click to end
the creation process. (If you dont right-click, youll be creating spotlights.) By adding a
spotlight to the scene, you force 3ds Max to remove the default lighting setup that it usually uses. This leaves your scene completely dark. However, if you move and rotate the
spotlight around, you should notice that it now casts light. You need to position the spotlight correctly, but its going to be a little difficult to do that with the scene being in total
darkness.
4. Open the Create tab once again, and in the Lights category, stay in the Standard subcategory and click the Omni button. Click in the scene to create an omni light. Your scene
brightens up once again.
5. Position your spotlight as shown in Figure 10.5.
FIGURE 10.5
The spotlight is correctly positioned in the scene so that it illuminates from the flashlight beam.
153
6. With the lights in place, edit some of their parameters to improve the look of the scene.
Click the omni light in the scene and then open the Modify tab.
7. Scroll down and expand the Intensity/Color/Attenuation rollout so that you have access to
the Multiplier parameter. Change the Multiplier setting to 0.1. This makes the scene a little
darker than it was before.
8. In the viewport, click the spotlight and open the Modify tab.
9. Scroll down the Modify tab and expand the Intensity/Color/Attenuation rollout. Time change
the Multiplier parameter to 5.0. This should make the spotlight super bright.
10. Still in the Modify tab, find and expand the Spotlight Parameters rollout. Change the
Horspot/Beam parameter to 1.0. Also change the Falloff/Field parameter to 95.0. You
should now have something that looks a little like Figure 10.6.
FIGURE 10.6
By editing the lighting parameters, you have enhanced the look of the scene and the spotlight beam of
the flashlight.
154
11. As an optional step, use the Select and Link tool (the first button on the main toolbar) to
link the spotlight to the yellow section of the flashlight. To do this, you grab hold of the yellow flashlight section and use the Move and Rotate tools to manipulate the flashlight and
the light. Be sure to check out the final flashlight file, SAMS_Hour10_TorchEnd.max, for an
example.
CAUTION
Dont Go Lighting Crazy!

With each light you add to a scene, the computational costs of the scene increase. Got one or just
a few lights in your scene? No problem! Got way too many lights? At best, your scenes performance
will suffer. In a worst-case scenario, it could crash 3ds Max or possibly your whole computer system.
Adding another light to a scene increases the calculations 3ds Max has to do. Im not saying you
shouldnt use as many lights as you need. Just be aware that there are some limitations in terms of
performance at a system level.
Summary
Lighting can really impact the visual appeal of a scene you are working with. This hour covers
the lighting options in 3ds Max, and youve even tried out some lighting for yourself. You should
be armed with enough skills and information to be able to light your own scenes way better
than the default lighting does.
Q&A
Q. Why is lighting so important in 3D?
A. In 3D, just like in the real world, lighting can have a dramatic effect on both the look and
feel of a scene or environment. It can help set the tone and mood for a whole animation or
just a single still frame.
Q. Why are there two subcategories, Standard and Photometric, for lighting in 3ds Max?
A. Photometric lights contain real-world parameters, which can be a little daunting for those
new to lighting in 3d Max; however, using them is the preferred method for lighting more
realistic or explicitly lit scenes. Standard lights give you non-real-world parameters that are
easier to use and can still give great effect, but in a less-daunting way. In general, photometric lights are more complex but give more accuracy, and standard lights are simpler to
use but require more trial and error to get something to look exactly how you want it to.
Exercise
155
Q. How many lights can you add to a scene?

A. It depends on your computers hardware. Each light you add increases the calculations
that 3ds Max has to perform. The more lights you have in a scene, the longer it takes for
the calculations to complete. With better hardware, 3ds Max can do more calculations,
but there will always be a limit to the calculations a computer system can do. A good rule
of thumb is to use the lowest number of lights possible to achieve the results you are
looking for.
Workshop
Lighting can dramatically improve the look and feel of a scene. This workshop asks a few questions that you should now be able to answer, and it includes an exercise that challenges you to
create a lighting setup that requires the use of photometric lights.
Quiz
1. When is the 3ds Max default lighting available?
2. What does ambient light do?
3. What are shadows?
4. What two lighting subcategories are available in 3ds Max?
Answers
1. The default lighting is available in 3ds Max when the program starts or when no other lights
are in the scene.
2. Ambient light controls the overall lighting for a whole scene.
3. Shadows are areas where light is obstructed by an object, causing an area to be darker
than its surroundings.
4. 3ds Max provides standard and photometric lighting options.
Exercise
Getting used to photometric lights can take a little while, and the small number of creation
options may seem limiting at first. However, their real-world parameters can make the application
of these kinds of lights a better choice for more realistic or precise lighting simulations.
Open the file SAMS_Hour10_StreetLighting.max and light the scene using only photometric lights.
Try creating a day scene and a night scene, which both have different challenges. This will give
you a greater understanding of how lighting can dramatically affect the mood of a scene.
Index
Numbers
2D, 31
accessing
animation, 132
ambient light properties, 146
texture maps (UVW), 117-128
FKs (forward kinematics), 206
3D
layers, 320
animation, 132
MassFX tools, 255
applications, 7
Merge option, 187
cameras, 159-163. See also

cameras
modifiers, 65
modeling, 85
Object Properties dialog

box, 289
cartoon faces, creating,

85-93
Particle View dialog box,

276-277
futuristic city planets,

creating, 100-103
primitives, 50-51
spaceships, creating,
93-100
quick-access buttons, 66
techniques, 104-105
SteeringWheels, 34
object manipulation in 3D
space, 51-58
ViewCubes, 33
viewports, navigating, 31-32
quad menus, 27
rendering modes, 177
sub-objects, 73
Active Shade method, 177-178
378
adding
adding
animation, 131
cameras, 157
MassFX tools, 255-258
advanced showcase
techniques, 342-343
materials, 112
to scenes, 306
basic concepts, 131-133
skin, 221-222
systems (Mental Ray), 344
cameras, 164-165
Skin modifier, 219-222
CAT (Character Animation

Toolkit), 212-213
sub-objects, 73
daylight
free direct lighting, 194

lighting, 151, 345
modifiers to objects, 64
text to futuristic city
planets, 105
textures, 114-115
workspaces, 319
XRefs (external
references), 327
textures
characters, skinning
techniques, 225-231
maps, 125
to objects, 114-116
formatting, 135-141
three-point perspective, 166
keyframes, formatting,
258-261
keying controls, 27
pivot points, 138-142
Adobe Photoshop, creating

textures, 116
playback controls, 27
Advanced Parameters rollout, 220
rendering, 178-181
advanced showcase techniques,

331
rigging, 201. See also rigging

objects
animation/visual effects,
342-343
MAXScript, 351
two-point perspective, 166

Asset Tracking dialog box, 326
assigning
material IDs to geometry, 191
multiple materials, 116-122
principles of, 233-241
showcases, 193-194
cameras/lensing, 341
teeny car animation

video, 138
final changes, 345
tools, 132-134
unique names, 46
Assign Material to Selection
option, 112
Assign Renderer rollout, 305
Auto Key, 165
disabling, 138
enabling, 137
formatting, 331-332, 335-337
Application button, 19, 326
Automatic Update button, 338
layouts, 337-341
applications
Auto Smooth, 197
lighting, 344-345
3D, 7
preparation, 332
project management, 332-334
AVI videos, 181. See also videos
downloading, 7
applying
rendering/output, 346-347
Auto Smooth, 197
scene layouts, 339-341

Toolkit), 212-213
baking
videos, 346
advice, 368
aiming lights, 150
ambient lighting, 113, 146-148
angles, selecting camera, 341
Angle Snap Toggle tool, 86
Character Studio (Biped),

210-212
cloth, 287-288
Curve Editor, 138-141
from MassFX modifiers, 261

simulations to animation
keyframes, 258
Garment Maker modifier, 288
basic animation concepts,

131-133
hair and fur, 288-297
Bend modifier, 63
Command Panels
best practices, UVW

mapping, 128
Set Tangents to Auto, 140
chamferbox primitives, 50
chamfercyl primitives, 50
Bevel tool, 93
Show End Result (On/Off

toggle), 65
binding space warps, 269-272
Shrink, 77-78
Bind to Space Warp tool, 269
Simulate Local, 291
Character Animation Toolkit,

212-213
Biped (Character Studio), 210-212
Style Hair, 296
characters. See also objects
Chamfer tool, 87
Blizzard, 273
Bone tools, 204-206
blocking out spaceships, 96-98
concepts, 229
Bones: Add button, 222
modeling, 229
Bone tools, 204-206
rigging
borders, 74
Camera Correction modifier, 166
Border sub-object mode, 74
cameras
bouncing balls, creating,

242-252, 257
adding, 157
customizing, 210
objects, 229
skinning techniques, 217
advanced techniques
showcases, 341
animating, 225-231
formatting, 47
animation, 164-165
influence areas, 218
Material Editors, 114
formatting, 159
primitives, 48
modifiers, 166
manual skin weighting,

223-228
UVW maps, 124
options, modifying, 162-163
overview of, 217
overview of, 157
boxes
buttons
379
envelopes, 218
Application, 326
positioning, 159
Character Studio (Biped), 210-212
Automatic Update, 338
shortcuts, 163
cloth, 287-288
Bones: Add, 222
showcases, 192-193
colors, objects, 46-47
Configure Modifier Sets, 65
SteeringWheels, 34
combining techniques, 185
Edit Envelopes, 220
viewing, 159
animation, 193-194
Grow, 77-78
views, modifying, 161
cameras, 192-193
Loop, 77-78
capsule primitives, 50
final changes, 196-197
Make Unique, 65
cartoon faces, formatting, 85-93
lighting, 194-195
under modifier stacks, 64-65
casting shadows, 146
materials, 189-191
PF Source, 273
preparation, 186-189
Pin Stack, 65
CAT (Character Animation Toolkit),

212-213
quick-access, 66
categories of primitives, 51
stages, 185-186
Remove Modifier, 65
causing destruction from MassFX,

261-266
Ring, 77-78
Set Selected as Dynamic Rigid
Body, 259
rendering, 198
command line (MAXScript), 352

Command Panels, 23-26
central processing units, 170

c-ext primitives, 50
How can we make this index more useful? Email us at indexes@samspublishing.com
380
commands
commands
coordinate systems, 51
Move, 57
maps, 117
Rotate, 57
spaces, 67
depth of field, 157

destruction from MassFX, causing,
261-266
details, spaceship models, 96-98
Select, 57
CPUs (central processing

units), 170
Undo, 58
crashes, creating walls, 266
devices, demolition, 261-265
Common Parameters rollout, 305
Create menu, 42
dialog boxes
Common tab, 175, 304-305
Create tab, 273
Asset Tracking, 326
Compact Material Editor, 109
creating. See formatting
Duplicate Name, 186
companion website, 7
Curve Editor, 134, 138-141
Object Properties, 289
comparing frames to time,

132-133
customizing
Particle View, 274
Scale, 57
objects
computer animation, 131.

See also animation
developing skills, 366-368
Rendered Frame, 176
Material Editors, 109-114
Render Setup, 173, 303
rigging, 210
Select Bones, 222
cone primitives, 48
units, 53-54
Select Preset Categories, 303
Configure Modifier Sets button, 65
Viewport Layout tabs, 38
Units Setup, 54
configuring
workspaces, 315
XRef Scenes, 338
modifiers, 63
Cut tool, 87
diffuse textures, applying, 114
primitives, 41-45
cylinder primitives, 48
disabling Auto Key, 138
resolution, 192
disciplines, selecting, 367
units, 53-54
disclaimers, 8
viewports, 36-37, 38
Connect Edges tool, 96
connections, 202. See also linking
disclosures, 8
display layers, 319

daylight system (Mental Ray),
306-307, 344
Display rollout, 220
containers, 323
controls
default interfaces, 13
Dope Sheet, 134
default lighting setups, 146
Duplicate Name dialog box, 186
keying, 27
default names, 46
DVDs, 8
playback, 27
dynamic simulations, 255
status bars, 27
Default Scanline renderers,

170, 175
viewports, 27, 35-36
deforming
animation
conventions, naming, 323-324

converting standard primitives to
editable poly objects, 73
objects, 270
skin, 220
deleting workspaces, 319
demolition devices, formatting,
261-265
docking, Command Panels, 24
bouncing balls, 257-259

destruction from MassFX,
261-266
keyframed animation,
creating, 258-261
formatting
elements, 12-27, 74
381
Command Panels, 23-26

Edged Faces, 72, 86
lower toolbars, 25-27
fabrics, 288. See also cloth
edges, 73
main menus, 19
faces (cartoon), formatting, 85-93
Edge sub-object mode, 74
main toolbars, 20-21
field of view, 157
editable animation
keyframes, 259-260
quad menus, 27
files
title bars, 19
AVI, 180
editable poly objects, 73
viewports, 22-23
showcases, 186. See also

showcases
editable poly sub-object

rollouts, 76
Edit Envelopes button, 220
Element sub-object mode, 74

Email Notifications rollout, 305
enabling
Edit Geometry rollout, 80
Auto Key, 137
editing
stage, referencing, 338

final changes
Edged Faces, 72
advanced showcase
techniques, 345
cameras, 157
MassFX tools, 255
showcases, 196-197
envelopes, 221-222
SteeringWheels, 34-35
geometry, 75
keyframes, 138-141
engines
Material Editor, 109-114
Mental Ray rendering. See

Mental Ray rendering
objects, 47
rendering, 170
parameters, objects, 44
envelopes
spheres, 75
editing, 221-222
sub-objects, 73
views, 33
workspaces, 319
Environment and Effects window,

146, 311
Edit UVWs window, 126
event-driven particles, 274-299
effects, 269
extended primitives, 48-49.

See also primitives
event-driven particles,
274-278
lenses, 195
non-event-driven particles,
273-274
external references. See XRefs

extra lighting, adding, 345
Extrude tool, 87
FKs (forward kinematics), 201,

206-210
flashlight beams, 151-154.
See also lighting
flipping normals, 82
flow, particle, 274-278
flyout menus, 21
folder setup, 325
Set Project Folder option, 332
formatting
advanced showcase
techniques, 331-332,
335-337
animation, 135-141, 258-261
bones, 206-207
boxes, 47
cameras, 159
ripples, 270-272
cartoon faces, 85-93
space warps, 269-270
cloth, 288-291
texture maps, 125

VFX (visual effects), 342-343
382
formatting
daylight system (Mental Ray),

307-309
forward kinematics, 201, 206-210
geosphere primitives, 48
FOV (field of view), 157
Gizmos rollout, 220
default lighting setups, 146
FPS (frames per second),

132-133
global ambient light settings,

147-148
frames
Global Illumination tab, 306
demolition devices, 261-265

FKs (forward kinematics),
208-209
flashlight beams, 151-154
100-103
global ambient light settings,
147-148
hair, 293
IKs (inverse kinematics),
208-209
layers, 317-319
Show Safe Frames, 192
Global Lighting options, 148
time, comparing, 132-133

frames per second, 132-133
GPUs (graphics processing

units), 170
free cameras, 159
Graph Editor, 134
free direct lighting, 149, 194
graphics processing units, 170
free lights, 150
Graphite Modeling tools, 21, 104
free spot lighting, 147
groups, 197, 323
fur, 287-297
Group window, 323
futuristic city planets
Grow button, 77-78
formatting, 100-103
links, 202
text, adding, 105
materials, 111
MAXScript
interfaces, 359-361
objects, 358
Mental Ray rendering,
304-306
hair, 287
presets, 298
Garment Maker modifier, 288
simulations, 288-297
274-275
garments, 287. See also cloth

gengon primitives, 50
HD (History-Dependent)
solver, 210
objects, 47
geometry
hedra primitives, 50
primitives, 41-45, 49
Edit Geometry rollout, 80
Hello World, 355
Render Setup tool, 173-176
editing, 75
help, 369-371
rigs
material IDs, assigning, 191
hierarchies
with CAT, 212

with Character Studio, 212
Bone tools, 204

rigging objects, 201-205
ripples, 270-272
animating characters,
225-231
snowmen, 57
envelopes, 218
spaceships, 93-100
Home icon, 23
spheres, 42, 47

223-228
stages, 185-186
overview of, 217
UVW mapping, 125-127
human skin. See skinning

techniques
Viewport Layout tab, 37-38
Hierarchy tab, 134

HI (History-Independent)
solver, 210
hose primitives, 50
managing projects
J-K
383
overview of, 145-148

photometric lights, 150
icons, Home, 23
keyframes, 131
IDs, materials, 117
animation, formatting,
258-261
IKs (inverse kinematics), 142,

201, 206-210
illuminating scenes, 145
editing, 138-141
keys
adding, 151
showcases, 194-195
standard lights, 147-150
Limb solver (IK), 210
linking
Auto Key, 165
disabling, 138
enabling, 137
shadows, 146
controls, animation, 27
images
Bone tools, 204

rigging objects, 201-205
Link tool, 202
Listener (MAXScript), 353
loading
animation, 131. See also

animation
saving, 178
still, rendering, 178
influence areas, skinning
techniques, 218
InfoCenter toolbar, 19
Inset tool, 93
hair presets, 298
Mental Ray rendering

presets, 304
Loop button, 77-78
layers, 317-319
lower toolbars, 25-27
layouts
installation, 7
advanced showcase
techniques, 337-341
interfaces
scenes, 339-341
elements, 12-27
MAXScript, formatting,
359-361

lenses, 158. See also cameras
navigating, 11
advanced techniques
showcases, 341
quad menus, 27
effects, 195
workspaces, 316
l-ext primitives, 50
inverse kinematics, 142, 201,

206-210
Iterative Render mode, 177
predefined rigs, 213
languages, 351. See also

programming
lighting, 145
M
main menus, 19
main toolbar, 20-21
Make Unique button, 65
Manage Workspaces window, 317
managing projects, 315
advanced showcase
techniques, 332-334
adding, 151, 345
containers, 323
advanced showcase
techniques, 344-345
groups, 323
ambient, 146-148
materials, 113
layers, 317-319
naming conventions, 323-324
in production, 326-327
384
managing projects
project setup, 325

Scene Explorer, 322
programming/scripting,
351-352
modifiers, 61
scene workflow, 315-323
running, 361-362
Bend, 63
Schematic view, 322
scripting, 355-359
Camera Correction, 166
workspaces, 316-319
spheres, 359-360
cameras, 166
manual skin weighting, 223-228
tools, 352-354
Cloth, 288
maps
window, 354
Garment Maker, 288
accessing, 65
textures, 116
mCloth, 287
U (horizontal), V (vertical), and

W (depth), 117-128
measurements, 55
MassFX tools, baking

from, 261
mental.ray.daylighting option, 303
Mirror, 96
Mental Ray rendering, 301, 344
Modify tab, 61-64
mass, transforming, 339

daylight system, 306-307
objects, adding, 64
Physique, 217
mCloth, 287
Environment and Effects

window, 311
modifiers, baking from, 261
stacks, buttons under, 64-65
presets, 302
sub-objects, 73
Material Explorer tool, 172
settings, 304-306
Symmetry, 96
destruction, causing, 261-266
materials, 109
menus, 27
Skin, 217, 219-222
types of, 66-68
applying, 112
Create, 42
videos, 64
combining techniques,
189-191
flyout, 21
WSM (World-Space Modifiers),

288-297
main, 19
formatting, 111
Merge option, 187
IDs, 117
Mini-Listener (MAXScript),
352, 355
multiple, assigning, 116-122
Mirror modifier, 96
Multi/Sub-Object, 117, 190
Mirror Parameters rollout, 220
naming, 113
modeling
math, 357
MAXScript
applying, 351
interfaces, formatting,
359-361
Listener, 353
math, 357
Mini-Listener, 26, 352, 355
objects, formatting, 358
3D, 85
modifying
camera options, 162-163
208-209
208-209
materials, 111
cartoon faces, 85-93
objects in 3D space, 51-58

100-103
sub-objects, 74-76
spaceships, 93-100
viewports, 161
techniques, 104-105
units setup, 52
Modify tab, 61-64
characters, 229
Motion tab, 134
polygons, 75
Move tool, 137, 159
Modeling ribbons, testing, 104
object-space modifiers
moving
camera targets, 163
objects, 51, 53
mr area omni lighting, 149
navigation controls, 27
positioning, 51, 53, 189
references, 337
ViewCubes, 33
renaming, 188
rigging, 201
385
mr area spot lighting, 149
workspaces, 316-319
mr sky portal lighting, 150
273-274

Toolkit), 212-213
normals, 81-82

210-212
multiple materials, assigning,

116-122
multiple objects, selecting, 56
notebooks, 368
Bone tools, 204-206
multiple sub-objects, selecting, 76
customizing, 210
multiple-team-member
production, 327

206-210
Multi/Sub-Object material,
117, 190
hierarchies/linking,
201-205
Object Properties dialog box, 289

objects

206-210
3D, manipulation in, 51-58
rotating, 51, 53
colors, 46-47
scaling, 51, 53, 188
Name and Color rollout, 46, 62
deforming, 270
selecting, 51, 53, 62
naming
editable poly, 73
sub-objects, 71
conventions, 323-324
editing, 47
applying, 73
duplicate, 186
formatting, 47
materials, 113
groups, 323

rollouts, 76
objects, 46-47
modifying, 74-76
MAXScript, 358
normals, 81-82
modifiers, 61
overview of, 71-73
navigating
interfaces, 11
elements, 12-27
adding, 64
rollouts, 80-81
quad menus, 27
buttons under the stack,

64-65
shortcuts, 81

Scene Explorer, 322
Slate Material Editor, 111
ViewCube, 23
viewports, 31
3D space, 31-32
configuring, 36-37
Modify tab, 61-64
Soft Selection tool, 78-79

textures, applying, 114-116
moving, 51, 53
ViewCube, 33
multiple materials, assigning,

116-122
viewing, 22-23
naming, 46-47
parameters, editing, 44
XRefs (external references),

327, 339
object-space modifiers, 66
controls, 35-36
386
oiltank primitives
oiltank primitives, 50
omni lighting, 149
options
particles, 269
event-driven, 274-299
non-event-driven, 273-274
presets
hair, 298
Mental Ray rendering, 302
Assign Material to
Selection, 112
Particle View dialog box, 274,

276-277
cameras, modifying, 162-163
PCloud, 273
accessing, 50-51
Global Lighting, 148
personal notebooks, 368
formatting, 41-45, 49
perspective, applying, 166
prism, 50
mental.ray.daylighting, 303
Perspective viewport, 33, 163
snowmen, 57
Merge, 187
PF Source, 273, 276
types of, 47-49
Orthographic Projection, 163
photometric lights, 146, 150,

157, 311. See also lighting
principles of animation, 233-241
Set Project Folder, 332
Photoshop (Adobe), creating

textures in, 116
production. See also project

management
shadow-casting, 146
Physique modifier, 217
multiple-team-member, 327
orientation of viewports, 33
Pin Stack button, 65
Orthographic Projection
option, 163
rendering for, 169. See also

rendering
plane primitives, 48
animation, 178-181
orthographic viewports, 33
playback
Ray Traced Shadows, 194

rendering, 302-304
output
previewing rendering, 171

primitives, 41
Processing tab, 306
animation controls, 27
quick, 170-171
controls, 134
still image, 178
advanced showcase
techniques, 346-347
point of view, 157
resolution, configuring, 192
points, pivot, 138-142
Production Render mode, 177
saving, rendering, 178
Polygon: Material IDs rollout, 191
programming. See also MAXScript
overlapping envelopes, 218
polygons, 74-75
MAXScript tools, 352-354
Polygon sub-object mode, 74
positioning
cameras, 159
tools, 172-178
objects, 51, 53, 189
project management, 315

advanced showcase
techniques, 332-334
paint, 116
POV (point of view), 157
containers, 323
parameters
predefined rigs, loading, 213
groups, 323
preparation
layers, 317-319
materials, modifying, 111

Modify tab, 62
objects, editing, 44
Parameters rollout, 220
PArray, 273
advanced showcase
techniques, 332
naming conventions, 323-324
for showcases, 186-189
project setup, 325
pre-rendering, 170
in production, 326-327
Scene Explorer, 322
Scene Explorer
scene workflow, 315-323
ringwave primitives, 50
Schematic view, 322
presets, 302
ripples, 269-272
settings, 304-306
rollouts, 44
workspaces, 316-319
prompt lines, 27
Advanced Parameters, 220
pyramid primitives, 48
pre-rendering, 170
Assign Renderer, 305
quick, 170-171
Common Parameters, 305
real-time, 169
Display, 220
showcases, 198
editable poly sub-object, 76
still image, 178
Edit Geometry, 80
tools, 172-178
Email Notifications, 305
videos, 170
Gizmos, 220
Q-R
quad menus, 27
quick-access buttons, 66
Quick Access toolbar, 19
Render Iterative method, 177
Mirror Parameters, 220
quick rendering, 170-171
Render Preview window, 171
Name and Color, 46, 62
Ray Traced Shadows option, 194
Render Production method, 177
Parameters, 220
real-time rendering, 169
Render Setup dialog box, 303
Polygon: Material IDs, 191
references
Render Setup tool, 173-176, 192
Scripts, 305
advanced showcase
techniques, 337-340
resizing Command Panels, 23

resolution, configuring, 192
Rotate tool, 67, 137, 159
objects, 337
retirement phase, spaceships, 99
rotating

327
ribbons, Modeling, 104
sub-objects, 80-81
rigging objects, 201
objects, 51, 53
Remove Modifier button, 65
Bone tools, 204-206
renaming objects, 188

Rendered Frame window, 171

Toolkit), 212-213
Render Elements tab, 306
characters, 229
Renderer tab, 175, 305

210-212
Render Frame window, 176

rendering, 169
customizing, 210
saving
advanced showcase
techniques, 346-347

206-210
animation, 178-181
hierarchies, 201-205
engines, 170

206-210
Mental Ray, 301, 344

daylight system, 306-307
linking, 201-205
Environment and Effects

window, 311
predefined rigs, 213

Ring button, 77-78
387
running scripts (MAXScript),

361-362
hair presets, 298

images, 178
output, rendering, 178
techniques, 186
Scale tool, 137
scaling objects, 51, 53, 188
Scene Explorer, 322
388
scenes
scenes. See also project

management
viewports, 159
workspaces, 316
formatting, 331-332,
335-337
daylight, adding, 306
selection modifiers, 66
layouts, 337-341
layers, formatting, 317-319
Select Preset Categories dialog

box, 303
lighting, 344-345
layouts, 339-341
lighting, 145
Set Key Filters window, 165
project management,
332-334
preparation, 332
adding, 151
Set Project Folder option, 332
rendering/output, 346-347
Set Selected as Dynamic Rigid

Body button, 259
Set Tangents to Auto button, 140
videos, 346
workflow, 315-323
327, 339
Schematic view, 202, 322
screen resolution,
configuring, 192
scripting, 351. See also MAXScript
MAXScript, 355-359
running, 361-362
scene layouts, 339-341
settings. See also configuring
animation, 193-194
Mental Ray rendering,

304-306
cameras, 192-193
Sky Portal, 345
lighting, 194-195
setup
final changes, 196-197
materials, 189-191
projects, 325
preparation, 186-189
rendering, 303
rendering, 198
Render Setup tool,

173-176, 192
stages, 185-186
shaders, materials, 113
Show End Result (On/Off toggle)

button, 65
Show Safe Frames, 192
Scripts rollout, 305
shadows, 146, 194. See also

lighting
scrubbing
shortcuts
Shrink button, 77-78
tools, 352-354
Shrink, Grow, Ring, and Loop, 86
timelines, 133
cameras, 163
Simulate Local button, 291
time sliders, 165
Material Editor, 111
simulations
sections of interfaces, 13
Select Bones dialog box, 222
selecting
Assign Material to Selection
option, 112
camera angles, 341
disciplines, 367
multiple objects, 56
multiple sub-objects, 76
objects, 51, 53, 62
Move, Rotate, Scale, Select

commands, 57
sub-objects, 81
viewport navigation
keyboard, 36
showcases, 185
advanced techniques, 331
animation/visual effects,
342-343
cameras/lensing, 341
final changes, 345
cloth, 287-288
dynamic, 255
bouncing balls, 257-259
causing destruction from
MassFX, 261-266
creating keyframed
animation, 258-261
fur, 288-297
hair, 288-297
lighting, 311
teapot primitives
skeletons, 204-206. See also

skinning techniques
Spline IK solver, 210

splines, 105
sun, positioning, 307. See also

daylight system (Mental Ray)
skill development, 366-368
Spray, 273
Super Spray, 273
Skin modifier, 217, 219-222
stacks
support, 369-371

characters, animating,
225-231
modifiers, buttons under,

64-65
switching
Mental Ray rendering, 344
Pin Stack button, 65
rendering presets, 302-304
envelopes, 218
stage files, referencing, 338
spaces, 67
stages, 185-186
workspaces, 317-318

223-228
standard lights, 146-154, 311.

See also lighting
overview of, 217
standard primitives, 47, 49, 73.

See also primitives

Skin Weight table, 224
Symmetry modifier, 96
skylight, 149
starting advanced showcase

techniques, 331-332
Sky Portal setting, 345
status bars, controls, 27
Slate Material Editor, 109, 111
sliders, time, 25, 133, 165
still image rendering, 178
smoothing
Auto Smooth, 197
stock lenses, 158. See also

cameras
Style Hair button, 296
Global Illumination, 306
groups, 197
styles, hair, 293. See also hair
Hierarchy, 134
Snow, 273
subcategories of primitives, 51
Modify, 61-64
snowmen, formatting, 57
sub-objects, 71
Motion, 134
Soft Selection tool, 78-79, 87

solvers, IKs (inverse
kinematics), 210
spaces, switching, 67
spaceships, formatting, 93-100
tab, Common, 304-305

tables, Skin Weight, 224
tabs
Common, 175
Create, 42
applying, 73
Processing, 306

rollouts, 76
Render Elements, 306
geometry, editing, 75
Renderer, 175, 305

Viewport Layout, 37-38
targets
modifying, 74-76
sphere primitives, 48
multiple, selecting, 76
cameras, 159
spheres
normals, 81-82
direct lighting, 149
bouncing balls, creating,

257-259
overview of, 71-73
lights, 150
rollouts, 80-81
spot lighting, 147
editing, 75
shortcuts, 81
formatting, 42, 47
Soft Selection tool, 78-79
MAXScript, 359-360
spheres, editing, 75
teapot primitives, 48
spindle primitives, 50
389
390
techniques
techniques
Edged Faces, 86
types
3D modeling, 104-105
Extrude, 87
of Material Editors, 109
advanced showcase. See

advanced showcase
techniques
Graphite Modeling, 21, 104
of modifiers, 66-68
Inset, 93
of photometric lights, 150
Link, 202
of primitives, 47-49
MassFX, 255-258
of standard lights, 147
teeny car animation video, 138

testing Modeling ribbons, 104
text, adding, 105
textures, 109
maps, 116
baking from modifiers, 261

causing destruction from,
261-266
mCloth, 287
objects, 114-116
Material Explorer, 172
UVW mapping, 117-128
MAXScript, 352-354
U (horizontal), V (vertical), and

W (depth) maps, 117-128
three-dimensional. See 3D
Move, 137, 159
UIs (user interfaces), 11
three-point perspective, 166
rendering, 172-178
undocking Command Panels, 24
time
Render Setup, 173-176, 192
Undo command, 58
frames, comparing, 132-133
Rotate, 67, 137, 159
unique names, assigning, 46
scrubbing, 165
Scale, 137
units, configuring, 53-54
sliders, 25, 133
Scene Explorer, 322
Units Setup dialog box, 54
title bars, 19
Shrink, Grow, Ring, and

Loop, 86
unlinking object hierarchies,

204-205
toolbars
timelines, scrubbing, 133
Soft Selection, 78-79, 87
Unlink Selection tool, 202
InfoCenter, 19
Unlink Selection, 202
lower, 25-27
Viewport Canvas, 116
updating Automatic Update

button, 338
main, 20-21
Weight, 223
user interfaces, 11
Quick Access, 19
tools, 21
tooltips, 21
torus primitives, 48, 50
Angle Snap Toggle, 86
track bars, 25, 133
animation, 132-134
track view, 134
Bevel, 93
transforms, 41
Vertex sub-object mode, 74
Bind to Space Warp, 269
troubleshooting, 196-197,
369-371
vertices, 73

Toolkit), 212-213
tube primitives, 48
videos
Chamfer, 87
two-dimensional. See 2D
advanced showcase
techniques, 346
Connect Edges, 96
two-point perspective, 166
animation. See also animation
Bone, 204-206
Cut, 87
tutorial videos, 8
VFX (visual effects), 342-343
cameras in 3D, 164

rendering, 178
WSM (World-Space Modifiers)
baking simulations to
animation keyframes, 258
quick rendering, 170

rendering, 170
cameras, modifying, 161
basic animation, 135
showcase creation, 186
editing, 33
biped rigs, 212
skinning, 220
Schematic, 202, 322
camera basics, 159
spaceship modeling, 93
CAT rigging, 212
space warps, 269
visual effects, 342-343
causing destruction from

MassFX, 261
sub-objects
visual processing units, 170
cloth, 288
overview of, 71-73

Soft Selection tool, 78
daylight settings (Mental

Ray), 306
teeny car animation, 138
dynamic bouncing balls

creation, 257
viewports, configuring, 38

flashlight beams, 151
futuristic city planet
modeling, 100
391
views
track, 134
VPUs (visual processing

units), 170
tutorial, 8
workspaces, 316
ViewCubes, 23, 33
waves, 269
viewing
websites
cameras, 159
hair, 293
hierarchies, 202
hierarchies, 203
normals, 82
Autodesk, 7
companion, 7
IKs (inverse kinematics), 206
objects, 22-23
weighting skin, 218, 223-228.

See also skinning techniques
interfaces, navigating, 27
sub-objects, 72
Weight tool, 223

windows
layers, 319
Viewport Canvas, 116
manual skin weighting, 224
Edit UVWs, 126
Material Editors, 109
viewports, 22-23
material IDs, 117
3D space, 31-32
Environment and Effects,

146, 311
cameras, 159
Group, 323
MAXScript, 361
configuring, 36-38
Manage Workspaces, 317
modeling Franklin, 87
controls, 35-36
MAXScript, 354
modifiers, 64
modifying, 161
Rendered Frame, 171, 176
non-event-driven
particles, 274
navigating, 31
Render Preview, 171
objects, creating/editing, 47
navigation controls, 27
Set Key Filters, 165
Particle Flow, 278
Perspective, 163
workflow, scenes, 315-323
pivot points, 142
selecting, 159
workspaces, 316-319
primitives
World-Space Modifiers, 288-297
ViewCubes, 33
wrecking balls, 266
creating snowmen, 58
formatting, 49
WSM (World-Space Modifiers),

288-297
392
X coordinates
X-Y-Z
X coordinates, 52, 56
XRefs (external references), 327
objects, 339
scenes, 339
XRef Scenes dialog box, 338
Y coordinates, 52, 56
Z coordinates, 52, 56

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Praise for Sams Teach Yourself

3ds Max in 24 Hours

800 East 96th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, 46240 USA

Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours

Warning and Disclaimer

19 Cloth, Hair, and Fur Creation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

This Books Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

The Interface Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The Modify Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

An Introduction to the Three Sub-Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours

Creating a Cartoon Face . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

The Material Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Assigning Multiple Materials

UVW Mapping. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Basic Animation Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

3ds Max Lighting Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Camera-Based Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

An Overview of Rendering in 3ds Max . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Stages Explained . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours

Hierarchies and Linking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

What Is Skinning? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

The 12 Principles of Animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

HOUR 17 Dynamic Simulations

The MassFX Toolset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Space Warps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

Simulating Hair and Fur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

Mental Ray Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Sams Teach Yourself 3ds Max in 24 Hours

HOUR 21 3ds Max Project Management Techniques

Scene Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

Stage 1: Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331

Programming and Scripting Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351

Hour 24: The Final Hour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

About the Author

We Want to Hear from You!

have no actual psychic abilities, just so you know!

This page intentionally left blank

What Youll Learn in This Hour:

An introduction to lighting in 3ds Max

Lighting and shadow basics

Accessing and changing ambient light

Standard versus photometric lighting

Lighting scenes in 3ds Max

3ds Max Lighting Introduction

HOUR 10: Illuminating Scenes Using Lights

3ds Max Lighting Introduction

Changing the Global Ambient Light Settings

HOUR 10: Illuminating Scenes Using Lights

SkylightThe skylight replicates daytime lighting for your scene.

HOUR 10: Illuminating Scenes Using Lights

Figure 10.3 shows the options available in the Standard subcategory.

Adding Lights to a Scene

Adding Lights to a Scene

Creating a Flashlight Beam

HOUR 10: Illuminating Scenes Using Lights