Chapter 9. Subdiv Surfaces

Subdivision surface modeling—also known as subdiv modeling or sub-Ds—combines NURBS and polygons and has two modeling modes: standard and polygon. In polygon mode, you can use all of the polygon tools on the surface. In standard mode, you work primarily with vertices, which act similarly to NURBS control vertices (CVs). But subdiv surfaces in standard mode also have edges and faces, similar to a polygon. Standard mode gives you the unique capability of moving between display levels—that is, different levels of detail. This allows you to move back and forth between low and high levels of detail on an object (Figure 9.1).

Figure 9.1. This odd creature is called a Huffer. It was designed by Roy Miles and modeled by Andrew ...

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