3ds Max® 2008 Bible

Chapter 25. Deforming Surfaces and Using the Mesh Modifiers

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Using the Paint Deformation brush

• Maintaining primitive objects with the Edit Mesh and Edit Poly modifiers

• Changing mesh geometry with modifiers

• Editing mesh normals

• Working with Subdivision Surfaces

When an Editable Poly object is selected, three specific deformation brushes may be selected in the Paint Deformation rollout. Using these brushes, you can deform the surface of an object by dragging over the surface with the selected brush.

In addition to the editing features available for Editable Mesh and Editable Poly objects and the Paint Deformation brushes, you also can modify mesh geometries using modifiers. The Modifiers menu includes a submenu of modifiers that are specific to mesh (and poly) objects. These modifiers are found in the Mesh Editing submenu and can be used to enhance the features available for these objects.

Another set of modifiers that apply specifically to mesh objects are the Subdivision Surface modifiers. These modifiers are also covered in this chapter.

The Basics of Deformation Painting

The first thing to remember about the Paint Deformation feature is that it is available only for Editable Poly objects (or objects with the Edit Poly modifier applied). When an Editable Poly object is selected, the Paint Deformation rollout appears at the very bottom of the Command Panel.

Painting deformations

At the top of the Paint Deformation rollout are three buttons used to select the type of deformation ...