… my tank… so I figured I would post it here too.
yeah I know… I didn’t really do any material building manipulation… I hadn’t yet figured out how to edit sections of objects at this point. Next one will be better no doubt…
So I’m interested in understanding some things about 3dsMax. So if there are any users out there this question is for you.
My lathe function is shaded out… I can’t seem to use it on any shape I make.
Could this be because
A) It’s a plugin tool and it’s obviously not in my plugin’s section?
B) It’s only usable on certain objects and I haven’t found an object that it works on yet?
C) There is a bug in my program and I should reinstal it?
or
D) something else I haven’t thought of yet.
Any input would be very helpful.
On a lighter note I figured out how to manipulate vertices on a variety of levels today…
lol newbies =] i am a pro animator so i woudl suggest you hit me up on icq… forums take forever and AOL is ghey… 103257556…
i can tell you off the bat that lathe is for nurbs and spline modeling… and that just plain sucks =] i can also point you in the right direction… lemme whip up a copy of your tank real fast and add some features i woudl do myself… then u can at least some of teh more profession tactics to achieve rather eaily.
had some shiet to take care of sorry… ok got one done… i personally dont like it but it took me 5 minutes… just a test in rounding edges and chamferring corners… etc… it looks better smoother.
icq me if u got icq and i will up some phat tutorials… some of those have links to warez boards etc so i will not post them here… even if they arent warez related because they aren’t. buuuut ezboard is ghey sometimes… so icq me at 103257556
i can honeslty say that 3d is simple as hell if you don’t try to COPY anything… make it all original… nto off a drawing nothing… just start and go… and THOSE things rock. i make them all the time.
I’m not sure if I care for the smooth shape of the metal… but that’s just a genre thing… plus I’ve used some of those smoother shapes and they really are fun to work with. I don’t have ICQ, but you’re welcome to email me at [email protected]
Tutorials and links to places where I can get plugins would be appreciated.
aiight… if i get time i will just email you my **** favorites menu =]
teh smooth metal was just ebcause i was bored =] what i WOULD do however is take a cube… chamfer all edges. tehn rechamfer… then meshsmooth… it will create flat surfaces but round edges… and that looks kewl. the straight edge thing just isnt kewl in 3d at all =]
Well… I think it depends upon what you’re trying to make. A good scene with both smooth edged objects and some straight ones where the object would really have a straight edge seems logical. The universe has some sharp edges.
NO… man… trust me… u heard of steven stahlberg? he is a god at 3d… and he states that ANYthing has a smooth edge. look at walls… are they sharp? no… curved at a radius of about a millimeter… THAT detail makes all teh difference. tank? straight? NO… it has edges made out of rough metal plating which is really hard to form and takes some beating up to get final positioned. the edges are rounded … not on purpose but as any draftsman as myself knows… when creating a mold for a product you must LEAVE some faces rough and rounded and those that really matter are shaved off… BUT those parts are always inside, engine wise usually.
so… MOST things do not have sharp edges… SOME do… but as i said… it doesnt look good because in real life everythign is smooth. if you think of it as an inch is small then u are in the wrong business =] 3d is down to the smallest possible increment. just tryin to help… but here… lookie at these.
now if i made those with sharp edges they woudl look like sh1t. instead i rounded most everythign using fillets. it creates more realistic ligting effects. ever look over a window sill and see teh sun’s rays casting through it kinda? thats because of imperfections in the surface and its almsot NEVER smooth surfaced and sharp edged. =] this is all in real life… you cna make things with sharp edges ie, knives etc… but those objects that are sharp are almost NEVER seen. when you walk into your kitchen… 98 percent of what you see is rounded… mostly for safety but also for look. countertops… EVEN if you just have a simple countertop the edges are bevelled and shaven off before finishing the kitchen. well thats about it… little lesson in realism…
here is my referrence for my statements so i dont sound like a babbling fool =]
more thoughts… here look at this image… www.optidigit.com/stevens/badguy.jpg
it shows a dood standing up and he has a weird lookin belt thingy… notice the edges… look sharp? nah… they are smoothed to the finest possible increment… its just a detail thing… if u want shabby work make sharp [god knwos it takes hours less time to NOT fillet and chamfer all the edges in a scene] but those who do make the big bucks =]
that girl is fake =] but still… look at her gun … edges are filleted extremely small… if this was not done then when renderred even teh most complicated meshes or nurbs turn bumpy and look like total crap. even with modern day raytracers and full screen A/A its not perfect.
well thats pretty much it… dont get me wrong… you can have a tight as$ scene with sharp edges but making them all SLIGHTLY rounded makes it millions of times better.
No I believe you… I’m listening intently to your knowlege. I’m sure you’re correct about the inches thing… I’m just not going to spend 5 hours to three weeks making a 3D model right now… for now I have to stick to the simpler stuff, at least while I’m learning what all the tools are.
Thanks for the info though… and the graphics. Those are superb.
heh ur smarter than me =] i tried to make the most complicated shnit the first day i got it and in that failure i was depressed and turned away from it [much like flash] only to be guided by a friend and learning material properties… when i found that i could make some sweet materials i could make anythign look good =] so i started back up and SLOWLY learned it all. i am currently creating a porcupine for my girlfriend… she loved that snuggle comercial with the bear when the other animals fall onto the towels and the porcupine fell down and ‘looked all cute’ heh… gotta love dem girlz
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Next one will be better no doubt…
