3ds Max® 2012 Bible

BONUS CHAPTER 6

Using the Compact Material Editor

IN THIS CHAPTER

Working with the Compact Material Editor

Materials are used to dress, color, and paint objects. Just as materials in real life can be described as scaly, soft, smooth, opaque, or blue, materials applied to 3D objects can mimic properties such as color, texture, transparency, shininess, and so on. In this chapter, you learn the basics of working with materials and all the features of the Material Editor.

Cross-Reference

The Material Editor can be opened in two different modes: Slate and Compact. The Slate Material Editor is covered in Chapter 15, “Using the Slate Material Editor.” In this chapter, Material Editor refers to the Compact Material Editor.

Working with the Compact Material Editor

The Material Editor is the interface with which you define, create, and apply materials. You can access the Material Editor by choosing Rendering Material Editor Compact Material Editor, clicking the Material Editor button on the main toolbar, or using the M keyboard shortcut.

Note

The Material Editor toolbar button and the M keyboard shortcut open the Material Editor using the last version that was opened, either Slate or Compact.

Using the Material Editor controls

At the top of the default Material Editor window is a menu ...