3D Animation for the Raw Beginner Using Autodesk Maya Second Edition 3D Animation for the Raw Beginner Using Autodesk Maya Second Edition Roger King CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group 6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300 Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742 © 2019 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business No claim to original U.S. Government works Printed on acid-free paper International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-8153-8878-4 (Paperback) 978-0-8153-8879-1 (Hardback) This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reason- able efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and pub- lisher cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. 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CCC is a not-for-profit organi- zation that provides licenses and registration for a variety of users. For organizations that have been granted a photocopy license by the CCC, a separate system of payment has been arranged. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: King, Roger (Roger Alan), author. Title: 3D animation for the raw beginner using Autodesk Maya 2nd edition / Roger King. Description: Second edition. | Boca Raton, FL : CRC Press/Taylor & Francis Group, 2019. Identifiers: LCCN 2018044705| ISBN 9780815388784 (pbk. : acid-free paper) | ISBN 9780815388791 (hardback : acid-free paper) Subjects: LCSH: Computer animation--Amateurs’ manuals. | Three-dimensional display systems--Amateurs’ manuals. | Maya (Computer file)--Amateurs’ manuals. Classification: LCC TR897.72.M39 K56 2019 | DDC 777/.7--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018044705 Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at http://www.taylorandfrancis.com and the CRC Press Web site at http://www.crcpress.com To my family – Wendy, Martina, Isabelle, and Julien – and to Alan Apt, technical book publisher and avid outdoorsman, who set me on the path of writing this book. Contents Preface: Anyone can do this, xiii Acknowledgments, xv Author, xvii Chapter 1 ◾ A n Introduction to 3D Modeling, Animation, and Rendering with a Focus on Autodesk Maya 1 THREE-DIMENSIONAL WORKFLOW OVERVIEW 1 WIREFRAME MODELS AND PIXEL-BASED RENDERING 2 WIREFRAME MODELS 2 A QUICK OVERVIEW OF THE MODELING AND ANIMATION WORKFLOW 4 A QUICK OVERVIEW OF IMAGES, AUDIO, AND VIDEO 6 AN OVERVIEW OF THE MAYA INTERFACE: THE MAIN WINDOW 8 THE HYPERSHADE 10 PUTTING OBJECTS IN HIERARCHIES 13 THE RENDER WINDOW AND RENDER SETTINGS 14 SCRIPTS 19 THE GRAPH EDITOR 20 THE UV EDITOR AND THE 2-SPACE OF MATERIAL PLACEMENT 21 A NOTE ON THE MAYA INTERFACE 22 A NOTE ON NAVIGATING THE MAYA INTERFACE 24 A FOCUS ON POLYGON VERSUS CURVED LINE MODELING 24 vii viii ◾ Contents TRANSLATE, ROTATE, AND SCALE 28 LOW-POLY MODELS 31 THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL WORKFLOW 34 SOME ADVICE 36 Chapter 2 ◾ T he Gold Standard of Polygon Modeling and the NURBS Alternative 39 THE SIMPLICITY OF POLYGON MODELING 39 COMPONENT DESIGN 42 POLYGON MODELING IN MAYA 43 THE POLYGON MODELING PROCESS IN MAYA 47 ADDING DETAIL ONLY WHEN NEEDED 48 SMOOTHING ONLY WHEN NEEDED 53 DYNAMICS AND CLOTH 55 NONUNIFORM RATIONAL BASIS SPLINE MODELING WITH NONUNIFORM RATIONAL BASIS SPLINE CURVES 58 CREATING NONUNIFORM RATIONAL BASIS SPLINE SURFACES 60 A FOCUS ON CONTROL VERTICES 61 LOFTING 62 EXTRUSION 64 A CLOSER LOOK AT CURVED LINE MATHEMATICS 67 A SWEEP 71 CONNECTING NONUNIFORM RATIONAL BASIS SPLINE SURFACES 72 ISOPARMS 75 ANOTHER EXTRUSION 76 Chapter 3 ◾ A Focus on Simplicity: A Core Set of Modeling Tools in an Overwhelming App 85 THE IMPORTANT POLYGON MODELING MAIN MENU DROPDOWNS 85 ADDING DETAIL TO A MODEL 91 Contents   ◾   ix THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING A PLAN 94 USING REFERENCE IMAGES 95 SMOOTH SHADING IN THE VIEWPORT AND A BOOLEAN OPERATION 97 USING A BOOLEAN TOOL 98 PUSHING AND PULLING IN POLYGON MODELING: MAKING THE MOAI’S (HUMAN) FACE 100 SMOOTHING, THEN SCULPTING HIS FACE 102 USING THE BRIDGE TOOL TO MAKE AN ARCH 105 THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING PRECISE 110 IMAGE PLANES 115 A FINAL EXTRUSION EXAMPLE 118 Chapter 4 ◾ U sing the New(er) Sculpting Toolset in Maya in a Polygon Modeling Workflow 121 ADVANCED SCULPTING IN MAYA 121 USING A LATTICE DEFORMER TO SET UP THE SCULPTING TASK 123 SCULPTING THE MOAI HEAD 126 WORKING WITH AN ARNOLD MATERIAL 135 MAYA MATERIALS AND ARNOLD MATERIALS 136 AN ARNOLD STANDARD MATERIAL 138 BUMP MAPPING AN ARNOLD MATERIAL 141 TEST RENDERING 145 CHANGING THE TILING OF A MATERIAL 145 ANOTHER POLYGON MODELING AND SCULPTING EXAMPLE 149 BOOLEAN DIFFERENCE, THE COMBINE TOOL, AND SMOOTHING 151 SPECIALIZED SCULPTING 156 A STAMPED FACE 159 A ROCK 160