One of the advantages of Polygon Modeling is the ability to interactively add and remove detail. In this case what I'd like to do is flatten out one side of this cylinder here, and I can do that by removing edges. I'll go to the Edge sub-object mode, and click on some of these edges with the Ctrl key held down. Once I've made my selection, I'll want to tumble around, or orbit around, to the other side of the model, to make sure I haven't accidentally selected any of the back edges.
There we go, I've got those edges selected. Now if I press the Delete key on the keyboard, I'll actually punch a hole in the model. If you delete an edge, you'll delete the associated polygons that are touching that edge. That's not what I want here. I'll use Ctrl+Z to undo that. Instead I want to remove the edges and leave the polygons there. I can do that from the Edges panel here and you'll see Remove. If I click that, then those edges are all deleted and the polygons are left.
However, if you orbit around and look carefully, you'll notice that the curvature there hasn't changed. And the reason is, that although the edges have been removed, the vertices are still there. If I go into Vertex sub-object mode, you'll see that those vertices are still there. Now I could select them and delete them in a second pass. But that's too much work, really I can do this in one step, because 3ds Max will allow me to remove edges and their connected vertices in one command. I'll undo that, go back to Edge Selection mode, back to Edges, and if I hold down Ctrl when I click on Remove, that will remove those edges and their associated vertices.
The keyboard shortcut for that is Ctrl+Backspace. That's a very useful one that you'll use quite a lot. Okay, so that's been cleaned up. But the tops and bottoms here still have curvature. What I'll want to do here is remove these vertices. I'll go to Vertex sub-object mode and select these vertices with the Ctrl key held down, and press the Backspace key, and now those vertices have been removed. However the surface isn't flat, as you can see, if you orbit around.
What I really want here is a flat quadrilateral polygon here and a flat triangular polygon up here. All I need to do here is use the Cut tool to create a new edge. The Cut tool is found in the Edit panel, and in fact, you can be in any sub-object, or even Object mode, to access the Cut tool, and it looks like a little scissor. I'll activate that. And then as I move my cursor around you'll see that the cursor icon will change, because the Cut tool actually has snaps built into it.
So I move my cursor over to one of these vertices until my cursor changes to a small crosshair. I'll click on that once. And then as I move my mouse around, you'll see I'm getting a preview. Then I'll go over to this other vertex and make sure that it's snapped, click again to complete that operation, and to exit the Cut tool, I'll right-click in the viewport. All right, so there it is, I have created a nice flat surface there. And I can repeat that process down here if I need to.
I'll right-click to exit the Cut tool completely, select these vertices with the Ctrl key held down, press Backspace to remove them, and then go back to the Cut tool and chop a new edge through there, and right-click a couple of times. And there you go! I've used Remove and Cut to change the structure of the model.
Author
Released
5/16/2012- Creating primitives
- Setting units and dimensions
- Modeling with splines
- Lofting objects
- Cloning and grouping objects
- Using the modifier stack
- Editing polygon meshes
- Working with subdivision surfaces
- Creating NURBS curves and surfaces
- Building materials
- Mapping textures
- Controlling lights and shadows
- Keyframing animations
- Rendering a sequence
Skill Level Beginner
Duration
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Introduction
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Welcome58s
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1. Getting Started
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Setting preferences2m 38s
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Using project folders3m 2s
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2. The 3ds Max Interface
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Navigating in the viewports2m 10s
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Using hotkeys3m 12s
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Transforming objects3m 42s
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Using axis constraints1m 54s
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Choosing shading modes3m 17s
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3. Modeling Basics
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Setting units5m 25s
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Understanding dependencies4m 30s
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Working with sub-objects3m 26s
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4. Modeling with Splines
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Creating shapes4m 35s
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Creating lines3m 10s
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Working with Editable Spline2m 13s
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Using different vertex types4m 34s
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5. Lofting
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Lofting a vase3m 56s
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Setting loft parameters3m 25s
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Editing a path3m 25s
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Adding a Shell modifier1m 49s
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Finishing the model3m 33s
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6. Modeling with Primitives
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Setting up the scene1m 25s
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Creating chamfer boxes3m 33s
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Cloning objects2m 35s
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Using the Array tool4m 17s
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Grouping objects1m 37s
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7. Using the Modifier Stack
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Laying out the scene2m 11s
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Working with Editable Spline4m 32s
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Applying a Sweep modifier1m 46s
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8. Polygon Modeling
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Selecting sub-objects2m 36s
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Bridging parts of a mesh2m 41s
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9. Subdivision Surface Modeling
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Using the Symmetry modifier1m 49s
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Working with TurboSmooth3m 5s
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Extruding polygons2m 8s
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Rounding out square corners3m 15s
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Choosing a transform center5m 55s
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Editing edge loops2m 34s
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Baking subdivisions5m 5s
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10. NURBS Modeling
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Understanding NURBS1m 1s
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Creating NURBS curves3m 9s
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Creating arcs and lines3m 36s
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Cloning sub-objects1m 50s
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Creating an offset curve2m 40s
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Creating a U loft surface3m 16s
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11. Modeling for Motion Graphics
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Setting up the scene2m 4s
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Creating text2m 2s
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Applying a Bevel modifier1m 14s
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Choosing bevel parameters2m 31s
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Deforming beveled objects1m 19s
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Importing Illustrator paths2m 44s
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12. Materials Basics
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Opening the Material Editor2m 29s
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13. Mapping Textures
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Applying procedural maps4m 10s
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Navigating shader trees1m 8s
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Tracking scene assets5m 48s
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Projecting UVW mapping4m 51s
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Mapping a bump channel1m 42s
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14. Camera Basics
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Working with Display layers6m 28s
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Creating a free camera2m 2s
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Using a target camera2m 18s
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Adjusting Field of View1m 30s
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Choosing an aspect ratio3m 55s
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15. Lighting Basics
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Understanding CG lighting7m 44s
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Creating a target spotlight2m 57s
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Choosing a shadow type2m 34s
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Optimizing shadow maps3m 25s
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Optimizing area shadows3m 27s
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Creating omni lights3m 53s
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Using the Light Lister1m 9s
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16. Keyframe Animation
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17. Hierarchies
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Understanding hierarchies1m 31s
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Controlling rotations6m 51s
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Locking transforms1m 28s
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Linking objects3m 13s
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Using Schematic View1m 48s
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Solving problems with scale7m 13s
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18. Controllers and Constraints
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Understanding controllers3m 22s
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Assigning a Link constraint1m 45s
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19. Rendering
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Specifying file output4m 46s
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Conclusion
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Goodbye34s
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Video: Controlling detail with Remove and Cut