Modeling Tips

Working with Vertices

Josh Andersen, josh@itsnet.com

Creating New Vertices

1. Click the Point Edit tool.
2. Hold down CTRL+SHIFT and left-click on an edge at the location you wish to place the new vertex.

Creating New Edges Between Vertices

1. Left-click on the first point.
2. Holding the shift key, left-click on the second point.

Adam Glassman, pixelboy@ix.netcom.com

Deleting Vertices

1. Click on the Point Edit tool.
2. Select the faces surrounding the target vertex.
3. Detach (using slice) and delete the resulting "amputated" section. of the object.

Note that this technique only works on "solid" objects.

Shane Davison, daviso@cs.uregina.ca

De-selecting Vertices

To deselect an incorrectly picked vertex while editing multiple points, click on the UNDO button while still holding down the SHIFT key.

Hiding Objects

David Campbell, dcampbel@bga.com

Truespace doesn't have a hide object function, unfortunately. However, there is an extremely useful work-around. The object information panel (displayed by right-clicking on the object-selection tool) has several fields for entering numeric values for object location, size and rotation. These fields will accept numeric expressions as well as constant values. So if you want to move an object out of the way quickly, just append a "+100" to the end of whatever value is in the Z location field and hit . To get the object back, just append a "-100". This also works for quickly resizing an object to, say, twice its original size.

Object Simplification

Shane Davison, daviso@cs.uregina.ca

Here's a handy way to remove unnecessary faces, edges, and points from an object:

1. Create another object; say, a cube.
2. Place the cube so that it does not intersect in any dimension with your original object.
3. Right-click on the Boolean Subtraction tool, bringing up the Boolean Properties Panel.
4. Enable the "Delete Edges" option.
5. Boolean subtract the cube from the original object.

Your original object will be unchanged except that any unnecessary faces, edges and points will be removed. This is especially useful when you've heavily quad-divided an object for sculpting and after doing so, you want to simplify the object for efficiency.

Stars

Shane Davison, daviso@cs.uregina.ca

An easy way to create a star object:

• Start trueSpace (if it isn't already).
• Left-click the 'Primitives Panel' icon.
• Right-click the 'Add Torus' icon.
• Set the values to 6 (lat), 3 (long), and 0.5 (rad). Note: You can experiment with the rad to get the desired result (but the default looks fine).
• Left-click the 'Add Torus' icon twice.
• Right-click the 'Object Tool' icon (the arrow).
• Change the Z rotation to 60.
• Left-click the 'Glue as sibling' icon and click on the other 'torus'.
• Left-click the 'Object Tool' to complete your object.
• Rotate your object as necessary.

Splatters and Puddles

Shane Davison, daviso@cs.uregina.ca

To quickly create paint splatters, puddles, rain/snow (maybe not), or similar items:

• Select the regular polygon tool and set the side count high enough to create satisfactory circles.
• Create one circle.
• Switch the "poly modes" to "union".
• Now, go crazy and quickly draw circles all over the workspace in random sizes and random locations (depending on the desired look).
• This should create one object that looks sufficiently realistic (some circles will join with each other producing irregular shapes) which can then be positioned, rotated, and textured.

It works quite well for 2D objects with characteristics similar to puddles. A good application of this method is for easily creating those little bubbles in cartoons when a character is thinking - just move the mouse across the workspace holding the button a little longer each time and then end with one big bubble.

Fancy Text (TS2 only)

Shane Davison, daviso@cs.uregina.ca

Use TS2, the text function, and deform object to create fancy text art. You can make some wild looking text effects using the deform feature (especially when used on 2D (ie. non-swept) text - but be careful that the geometry isn't too messy or letters will disappear when rendered). Scripty fonts (or italicized ones) seem to work best.

Neon Text

Peter Plantec, thenar@cinenet.net

Try making letters with the text tool, but don't extrude them. Duplicate each one and enlarge it. Put the enlarged letters behind the originals and then extrude the originals. Try filling the extruded letters with a transparent marble proceedural (fool with the values using high ambient light). Then, using a similar color, create the glow by using the Paint Verices tool on the second, larger set of letters (see the section entitled "Glows and Visible Lights" on the Special Effects Tips Page). It won't be perfect, but not bad. An easier was is to use PhotoShop with the alienskin glow filter and put a glow behind rounded letters.

Modeling Humans

Eric Knisley, knisley@kells.vmedia.com

A real good idea is to do some character sketches before you start. I find that the real challenge is not always finishing the project, but not getting distracted down some creative byway. Doing a model sheet as for an animated cartoon character -- with various views to maintain consistency -- will save you a lot of time in the long run. As for your modelling concerns, I'd use the surface sculpting tools, and lots of constraints. I've found the surface sculpting tool to be fairly intuitive, but you might need to experiment a bit. Hope this helps and good luck!

Peter Plantec, thenar@cinenet.net

A few suggestions: first, take your time, start with a sphere and open all three windows. Experiment with volume deformation and make a character head by pulling out a nose, keeping it lined up by looking in all the windows. Next, push in eye depressions, pull a chin out and crease a mouth. Good. Model some teeth using the spine poly tool and extrude them. Put them carefully in the mouth cavity... not easy, and glue them in place. Fiddle with deforming the mouth with letter sounds. Put in a tongue. Make two tiny spheres for eyes. Play with it. Make big eyebrows and such. Model ears and put them on, flesh out the chin and put holes in his nose using boolean drills. You could do the mouth this way too. Play with various expressions. The point is not to make your final piece, but to get used to the tools. I'd make about ten random characters before tring to make one to order. You can add detail with bump maps you make in PhotoShop, etc.

Sweeping a keyboard

Bjorn-Kare Nilssen, bjoernk@oslonett.no

I had to make a computer keyboard. I looked at a 3ds file on Avalon, but it was far too complicated, with 6000 faces :-( So I had to make my own in tS, which I probably would have done anyway....

To make all the keys, I made a rectangle, with the y size of it set at the y value of a key (seen from above): 0.5 units. I rotated the rectangle 90 degrees around the world y axis and made 4 copies which I distributed evenly along the y axis.

I then swept the first rectangle with 13 segments and a length of 6.5, and then another sweep with 1 segment and the length set at 1 (the backspace key). Then I selected every second face, seen from the Top view, bevelled them all at the same time until they 'looked right'. Then I selected the face tool again, with the same faces still selected, and moved them along their z-axis until they had the right height above the 'source strip' + a little. I repeated the same procedure with the rest of the faces.

Now I had a strip with the top row of keys, the numbers, but still as one object. I wanted them as separate objects, so I selected one of the bottom faces of the object, sliced it upwards until it was above the strip, and the selected the lower part with the Shift key, and then detached and deleted the lower part. Now I had a number of separate keys, but still as one object. To make them really separate, I used the 'Decompose into surfaces' tool.

The other rectangles were swept in the same way, varying the length and number of similar sized segments.

When all the keys were finished, I glued them together in one big group, and used the 'Deform Object' tool to give them a nice concave curvature around the x-axis like a real keyboard. Then the whole key set was rotated into place on the rest of the keyboard.

Then every top face of each key were selected and rotated slightly around the objects x axis, to tilt each key towards horizontal, just like a real keyboard (mine anyway..).

The whole operation, with a lot of rounded corners and cutouts for the keys in the keyboard, took less than 2 hours, and it ended up with an object with 1100 vertices and 750 faces...

This sweeping technique is very useful also if you change the path parameters, to get a lot of different sized objects, but still along a path, and with full control of the size and location. You don't have to use every segment, and you can also use two or more adjacent segments, to get a larger or more iregular shape of the 'mushroom'? You could make more elaborate forms on the top of each segment.

There' a lot of possible uses of this, and it's also one of my favourites :-)

Diamonds

Bjorn-Kare Nilssen, bjoernk@oslonett.no

One easy way to make a diamond, or similar faceted gemstone is:

• Make a 8 sided cone (or more/less).
• Rotate 180 degrees around the x or y axis.
• Right click the Point Edit: Faces button, and set DynDiv=Triangles
• Select the top face and sweep.
• Rotate the top face around its z axis 'til it 'looks right'.
• Voila, a diamond.

Use a very high refraction, like 2.5, and raytrace!

Rope

Bjorn-Kare Nilssen, bjoernk@oslonett.no

To make a detailed 3d rope, I'd suggest:

• Make a circle using the spline polygon tool and copy it twice. Let the circles overlap so they resemble a clover.
• Union them to one shape.
• Sweep with 5-10 segments between each floor.
• Rotate the floor around the z-axis.
• Continue clicking the Sweep button until your rope is long enough.
• Use a simple bump map with diagonal stripes.
• Bend it into shape with the Deform Object tool afterwards.
• Save your path in the Path library after sweeping, and you can easily make a 'rope' from any shape later.

Bending Text On A Circular Path

Ian Firth, IanFirthDS@aol.com

Build a freeform deformation lattice in the shape you want, and slide your text through it.

Ulrich Kliegis, UK@ruebe.mdc.netuse.de

Move the characters separately, so, TEXT would not be TEXT, but a T, an E, and so on.

Creating Bent Poles

PROBLEM: I've been trying to create some bent rods (cynlinders) using Truespace. The desired effect is to create some decorative rod iron for an object I am working on. Now, I can create the shapes I want by sweeping the end of a cylinder and gradually creating the curve with successive sweeps and slight movements perpendicular to the sweep direction. However, one problem seems to occur. When the sweeped section is moved, the size of the cylinder for that section of the sweep is flattened resulting in a non-circular cross-section.

Shane Davison, daviso@cs.uregina.ca

Try creating a curved spline-path and macro-sweeping a circle polygon to form your rod. There's a 'bend' setting you can enable/disable depending on the desired effect.

Michael Mills, Michael.Mills@B.GP.CS.CMU.EDU

Create your desired curve as a 2d spline, save it in the path library, then use the macro/sweep tool with "bend" on, and this will sweep across the path whilst retaining the shape of the cross-section.

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