Chapter 7
Materials and Mapping
Applying materials is the phrase used in 3ds Max to describe applying colors and textures to an object. A material defines an object’s look—its color, tactile texture, transparency, luminescence, glow, and so on. Mapping is the term used to describe how the textures are wrapped or projected onto the geometry (for example, adding wood grain to a wooden object). After you create your objects, 3ds Max assigns a simple color to them, as you’ve already seen. This allows them to render and display properly in your viewports.
How you see an object in real life depends on how that object transmits and/or reflects light back to you. Materials in 3ds Max simulate the natural physics of how we see things by regulating how ...
