352 Part III ✦ Modeling

Renderable splines appear as normal splines in the viewport unless the Display Render Mesh
option is selected. If this option is selected, the Use Viewport Settings option is enabled,
which lets you specify separate Thickness, Sides, and Angle values for the viewport. The Use
Viewport Settings option lets you render the object using the Viewport settings instead of the
Renderer settings.

Note The settings in the Rendering rollout apply to all new splines and shapes created in the scene.

Interpolation rollout
In the Interpolation rollout, you can define the number of interpolation steps or segments that
make up the shape. The Interpolation Steps value determines how many segments to include
between vertices. For example, a circle shape with a Steps value of 0 has only 4 segments and
looks like a diamond. Increasing the Steps value to 1 makes a circle out of eight segments. For
shapes composed of straight lines (like the Rectangle and simple NGons), the Steps value is set
to 0, but for a shape with many sides (like a Circle or Ellipse), the Steps value can have a big
effect. Larger step values result in smoother curves.
The Adaptive option automatically sets the number of steps to produce a smooth curve. When
the Adaptive option is enabled, the Steps and Optimize options become disabled. The Optimize
option attempts to reduce the number of steps to produce a simpler spline by eliminating all
the extra segments associated with the shape.

Note The Section and Helix shape primitives have no Interpolation rollout.

Figure 13-3 shows the number 5 drawn with the Line primitive in the Front viewport. The line has
been made renderable in order to see the cross sections. The images from left to right show the
line with Steps value of 0, 1, and 3. The fourth image has the Optimize option enabled. Notice
that it uses only one segment for the straight edges. The fifth image has the Adaptive option
enabled.

Figure 13-3: Using the Interpolation rollout, you can control the
number of segments that make up a line.

Creation Method and Keyboard Entry rollouts

Most shape primitives also include Creation Method and Keyboard Entry rollouts (Text, Section,
and Star are the exceptions). The Creation Method rollout offers options for specifying different
ways to create the spline by dragging in a viewport, such as from edge to edge or from the
center out. Table 13-1 lists the various creation method options for each of the shapes.
 Chapter 13 ✦ Drawing and Editing 2D Splines and Shapes 353

Table 13-1: Shape Primitive Creation Methods

Primitive Number of Viewport Default Creation
Object Clicks to Create Method Other Creation Method

Line 2 to Infinite Corner Initial, Bézier Smooth, Initial, Corner, or

Drag Smooth Drag

Circle 1 Center Edge

Arc 2 End-End-Middle Center-End-End

Gon 1 Center Edge

Text 1 none none

Section 1 none none

Rectangle 1 Edge Center

Ellipse 1 Edge Center

Donut 2 Center Edge

Star 2 none none

Helix 3 Center Edge

Some shape primitives such as Star, Text, and Section don’t have any creation methods because
Max offers only a single way to create these shapes.
The Keyboard Entry rollout offers a way to enter exact position and dimension values. After
you enter the values, click the Create button to create the spline or shape in the active view-
port. The settings are different for each shape.
The Parameters rollout includes such basic settings for the primitive as Radius, Length, and
Width. You can alter these settings immediately after an object is created. However, after you
deselect an object, the Parameters rollout moves to the Modify panel, and you must do any
alterations to the shape there.

Line
The Line primitive includes several creation method settings, enabling you to create hard,
sharp corners or smooth corners. You can set the Initial Type option to either Corner or
Smooth to create a sharp or smooth corner for the first point created.
354 Part III ✦ Modeling

After clicking where the initial point is located, you can add additional points by clicking in
the viewport. Dragging while creating a new point can make a point either a Corner, Smooth,
or Bézier based on the Drag Type option selected in the Creation Method rollout. The curva-
ture created by the Smooth option is determined by the distance between adjacent vertices,
whereas you can control the curvature created by the Bézier option by dragging with the
mouse a desired distance after the point is created. Bézier corners have control handles
associated with them, enabling you to change their curvature.

Tip Holding down the Shift key while clicking creates points that are vertically or horizontally at a
right angle with the previous point. Holding down the Ctrl key snaps new points at an angle
from the last segment, as determined by the Angle Snap setting.

After creating all the points, you exit line mode by clicking the right mouse button. If the last
point is on top of the first point, then a dialog box asks whether you want to close the spline.
Click Yes to create a closed spline or No to continue adding points. Even after creating a closed
spline, you can add more points to the current selection to create a compound shape if the
Start New Shape option isn’t selected. If the first and last points don’t correspond, then an
open spline is created.
Figure 13-4 shows several splines created using the various creation method settings. The left
spline was created with all the options set to Corner, and the second spline with all the
options set to Smooth. The third spline uses the Corner Initial type and shows where drag-
ging has smoothed many of the points. The last spline was created using the Bézier option.

Figure 13-4: The Line shape can create various combinations of

shapes with smooth and sharp corners.

In the Keyboard Entry rollout, you can add points by entering their X, Y, and Z dimensions
and clicking the Add Point button. You can close the spline at any time by clicking the Close
button or keep it open by clicking the Finish button.

Rectangle
The Rectangle shape produces simple rectangles. In the Parameters rollout, you can specify
the Length and Width and also a Corner Radius. Holding down the Ctrl key while dragging
creates a perfect square shape.

Circle
The Circle button creates — you guessed it — circles. The only adjustable parameter in the
Parameters rollout is the Radius. All other rollouts are the same, as explained earlier. Circles
created with the Circle button have only four vertices.
 Chapter 13 ✦ Drawing and Editing 2D Splines and Shapes 355

Ellipse
Ellipses are simple variations of the Circle shape. You define them by Length and Width val-
ues. Holding down the Ctrl key while dragging creates a perfect circle (or you can use the
Circle shape).

Arc
The Arc primitive has two creation methods. Use the End-End-Middle method to create an arc
shape by clicking and dragging to specify the two end points and then dragging to complete the
shape. Use the Center-End-End method to create an arc shape by clicking and dragging from the
center to one of the end points and then dragging the arc length to the second end point.
Other parameters include the Radius and the From and To settings, where you can enter the
value in degrees for the start and end of the arc. The Pie Slice option connects the end points
of the arc to its center to create a pie-sliced shape, as shown in Figure 13-5. The Reverse
option lets you reverse the arc’s direction.

Figure 13-5: Enabling the Pie Slice option

connects the arc ends with the center of the
circle.

Donut
As another variation of the Circle shape, the Donut shape consists of two concentric circles;
you can create it by dragging once to specify the outer circle and again to specify the inner
circle. The parameters for this object are simply two radii.

NGon
The NGon shape lets you create regular polygons by specifying the Number of Sides and the
Corner Radius. You can also specify whether the NGon is Inscribed or Circumscribed, as shown
in Figure 13-6. Inscribed polygons are positioned within a circle that touches all the outer poly-
gon’s vertices. Circumscribed polygons are positioned outside of a circle that touches the mid-
point of each polygon edge. The Circular option changes the polygon to a circle that inscribes
the polygon.

Figure 13-6: An inscribed pentagon and a

circumscribed pentagon
356 Part III ✦ Modeling

Star
The Star shape also includes two radii values — the larger Radius value defines the distance
of the outer points of the Star shape from its center, and the smaller Radius value is the dis-
tance from the center of the star to the inner points. The Point setting indicates the number
of points. This value can range from 3 to 100. The Distortion value causes the inner points to
rotate relative to the outer points and can be used to create some interesting new star types.
The Fillet Radius 1 and Fillet Radius 2 values adjust the Fillet for the inner and outer points.
Figure 13-7 shows a sampling of what is possible with the Star shapes.

Figure 13-7: The Star primitive can be changed to create some amazing shapes.

Text
You can use the Text primitive to add outlined text to the scene. In the Parameters rollout,
you can specify a Font by choosing one from the drop-down list at the top of the Parameters
rollout. Under the Font drop-down list are six icons, shown in Table 13-2. The left two icons
are for the Italic and Underline styles. Selecting either of these styles applies the style to all
the text. The right four icons are for aligning the text to the left, centered, right, or justified.

Table 13-2: Text Font Attributes

Icon Description

Italic

Underline

Left
 Chapter 13 ✦ Drawing and Editing 2D Splines and Shapes 357

Icon Description

Centered

Right

Justified

Note The list of available fonts includes only the Windows TrueType fonts and Type 1 PostScript fonts
installed on your system and any extra fonts located in the font path listed in the Configure
Paths dialog box. You need to restart Max before the fonts in the font path are recognized.

The size of the text is determined by the Size value. The Kerning (which is the space between
adjacent characters) and Leading (which is the space between adjacent lines of text) values can
actually be negative. Setting the Kerning value to a large negative number actually displays the
text backwards. Figure 13-8 shows an example of some text and an example of kerning values in
the Max interface.

Figure 13-8: The Text shape lets you control the space between letters, known as
kerning.
358 Part III ✦ Modeling

You can type the text to be created in the text area. You can cut, copy, and paste text into this
text area from an external application if you right-click on the text area. After setting the param-
eters and typing the text, the text appears as soon as you click in one of the viewports. The
Text is updated automatically when any of the parameters (including the text) is changed. To
turn off automatic updating, select the Manual Update toggle. You can then update with the
Update button.
To enter special characters into the text area, hold down the Alt key while typing the charac-
ter code using the numeric keypad. For example, type 0188 in the numeric keypad with the
Alt key held down and the 1/4 symbol appears. If you open the Character Map application, you
can see a complete list of special characters and the number combinations that make them
appear. The Character Map application, seen in Figure 13-9, can be opened in Windows by
selecting Start ➪ All Programs ➪ Accessories ➪ System Tools ➪ Character Map.

Figure 13-9: The Character Map

application shows all the special
characters that are available.

Helix
A Helix is like a spring coil shape, and it is the one shape of all the Shape primitives that exists
in 3D. Helix parameters include two radii for specifying the inner and outer radius. These two
values can be equal to create a coil or unequal to create a spiral. Parameters also exist for the
Height and number of Turns. The Bias parameter causes the Helix turns to be gathered all
together at the top or bottom of the shape. The CW and CCW options let you specify whether
the Helix turns clockwise or counterclockwise.
Figure 13-10 shows a sampling of Helix shapes: The first Helix has equal radii values, the sec-
ond one has a smaller second radius, the third Helix spirals to a second radius value of 0, and
the last two Helix objects have Bias values of 0.8 and –0.8.

Figure 13-10: The Helix shape can be straight or spiral shaped.

 Chapter 13 ✦ Drawing and Editing 2D Splines and Shapes 359

Section
Section stands for cross section. The Section shape is a cross section of the edges of any 3D
object through which the Section’s cutting plane passes. The process consists of dragging in
the viewport to create a cross-sectioning plane. You can then move, rotate, or scale the cross-
sectioning plane to obtain the desired cross section. In the Section Parameters rollout is a
Create Shape button. Clicking this button opens a dialog box where you can name the new
shape. You can use one Section object to create multiple shapes.

Note You can make sections only from intersecting a 3D object. If the cross-sectioning plane doesn’t
intersect the 3D object, then it won’t create a shape. You cannot use the Section primitive on
shapes, even if it is a renderable spline.

The Parameters rollout includes settings for updating the Section shape. You can update it
when the Section plane moves, when the Section is selected, or Manually (using the Update
Section button). You can also set the Section Extents to Infinite, Section Boundary, or Off. The
Infinite setting creates the cross-section spline as if the cross-sectioning plane were of infinite
size, whereas the Section Boundary limits the plane’s extents to the boundaries of the visible
plane. The color swatch determines the color of the intersecting shape.
To give you an idea of what the Section shape can produce, Figure 13-11 shows the shapes
resulting from sectioning two Cone objects, including a circle, an ellipse, a parabola, and a
hyperbole. The shapes have been moved to the sides to be more visible.

Figure 13-11: You can use the Section shape primitive to create the conic sections
(circle, ellipse, parabola, hyperbola) from a set of 3D cones.
360 Part III ✦ Modeling

Tutorial: Drawing a company logo

One of the early uses for 3D graphics was to animate corporate logos, and although Max can
still do this without any problems, it now has capabilities far beyond those available in the
early days. One can even use the Shape tools to help design the logo. In this example, we
design and create a simple logo using the Shape tools for the fictitious company named
Expeditions South.
To use the Shape tools to design and create a company logo, follow these steps:
1. Start by creating a four-pointed star. Click the Star button, and drag in the Top view to
create a shape. Change the parameters for this star as follows: Radius1 = 60, Radius2
= 20, and Points = 4.
2. Select and move the star shape to the left side of the viewport.
3. Now click the Text button. Change the font to Impact and the Size to 50. In the Text area,
type Expeditions South and include a line return and several spaces between the two
words so they are offset. Click in the Top viewport to place the text.
4. Use the Select and Move button (W) to reposition the text next to the Star shape.
5. Click the Line button, and create several short highlighting lines around the bottom
point of the star.
The finished logo is now ready to extrude and animate. Figure 13-12 shows the results.

Figure 13-12: A company logo created entirely in Max using shapes

 Chapter 13 ✦ Drawing and Editing 2D Splines and Shapes 361

Tutorial: Viewing the interior of a heart

As an example of the Section primitive, let’s explore a section of a Heart model. The model
was created by Viewpoint Datalabs and is very realistic — so realistic, in fact, that it could be
used to teach medical students the inner workings of the heart.
To create a spline from the cross section of the heart, follow these steps:
1. Open the Heart section.max file from the Chap 13 directory on the CD-ROM. This file
includes a physical model of a heart created by Viewpoint Datalabs.
2. Select Create ➪ Shapes ➪ Section and drag a plane in the Front viewport that is large
enough to cover the heart.
This plane is your cross-sectioning plane.
3. Select the Select and Rotate button on the main toolbar (or press the E key), and rotate
the cross-sectioning plane to cross the heart at the desired angle.
4. In the Parameters rollout, click the Create Shape button and give the new shape the
name Heart Section.
5. From the Select by Name dialog box (opened with the H key), select the section by
name, separate it from the model, and reposition it to be visible.
Figure 13-13 shows the resulting model and section.

Figure 13-13: You can use the Section shape to view the interior area of the heart.
362 Part III ✦ Modeling

Editing Splines
After you create a shape primitive, you can edit it by modifying its parameters, but the parame-
ters for shapes are fairly limited. For example, the only parameter for the Circle shape is
Radius. All shapes can be converted to Editable Splines, or they can have the Edit Spline modi-
fier applied to them. Doing either enables a host of editing features. Before you can use these
editing features, you must convert the shape primitive to an Editable Spline (except for the Line
shape). You can do so by right-clicking the spline shape in the viewport and choosing Convert
to ➪ Convert to Editable Spline from the pop-up quadmenu or by right-clicking on the Circle
base object in the Modifier Stack and selecting Convert To Editable Spline in the pop-up menu.
Another way to enable these features is to apply the Edit Spline modifier.

Editable Splines versus the Edit Spline modifier

After you convert the spline to an Editable Spline, you can edit individual subobjects within
the spline, including Vertices, Segments, and Splines. There is a subtle difference between
applying the Edit Spline modifier and converting the shape to an Editable Spline. Applying the
Edit Spline modifier maintains the shape parameters and enables the editing features found in
the Geometry rollout. However, an Editable Spline loses the ability to be able to change the
base parameters associated with the spline shape.

Note When you create an object that contains two or more splines (such as when you create
splines with the Start New Shape option disabled), all the splines in the object are automat-
ically converted into Editable Splines.

Another difference is that the shape primitive base name is listed along with the Edit Spline
modifier in the Modifier Stack. Selecting the shape primitive name makes the Rendering,
Interpolation, and Parameters rollouts visible, and the Selection, Soft Selection, and Geometry
rollouts are made visible by selecting the Edit Spline modifier in the Modifier Stack. For
Editable Splines, only a single base object name is visible in the Modifier Stack, and all rollouts
are accessible under it.

Note Another key difference is that subobjects for the Edit Spline modifier cannot be animated.

Making splines renderable

Splines normally do not show up in a rendered image, but using the Renderable option in the
Rendering rollout and assigning a thickness to the splines makes them appear in the rendered
image. Figure 13-14 shows a rendered image of the Expeditions South logo after all shapes
have been made renderable and assigned a Thickness of 3.0.

Cross- The settings in the Rendering and Interpolation rollouts are the same as those used for
Reference newly created shapes, which were covered earlier in the chapter.