Maya Vs Blender - Unwrapping

Haytch

Hey guys! long time since i've posted here, got a question for you all, Currently managed to get a job at a new studio! and they didn't like the fact I used blender (more preferred me to use maya) so i've been using maya now for about a month, (not really allowed to setup hotkeys etc) i've set up a few hotkeys just to make it quicker for me to model, and i've been allowed to keep them, but one thing I've now came across is UV's in maya is HORRIBLE! absolutely shocking!! in blender it'd be pretty easy to just 'Mark Seams' and then select all my mesh and select 'Unwrap' which would unwrap the whole mesh based on the UV seams, Really nifty tool, and not only that but it's pretty good at editing UV's to fix any issues with curved edges on a straight edged object Etc...
 
My question here is i've slowly after painful hours figured out how maya unwraps etc, but its still a pain in the arse to remember... how do you guys unwrap etc? is it a big issue for you or is it ok? are there any plugins that'd replicated blender's unwrap tools in maya?

monster

What version of Maya are you using? 2015 they added Unfold3D tech into the mix, and there were a lot of UI changes in 2017 Update 3.

Mark Seams = Cut Seams
Unwrap command = Unfold command

Also, why just just unwrap in blender and bring it back into Maya. No one will be the wiser.

oglu

i use the 3dcut uv tool in maya... its really fast this way... but only available in update3...

throttlekitty

For organic shapes, the Bonus Tools addon has a nice auto unfold that works similar to the blender workflow (set seams then unfold while projecting).

Nightshade UV is a great addition too many features to mention, check that out if they'll allow it where you work. One of my favorites from this will straighten shells, like if you have a ring but need a strip.

I typically work on mechanical/hard surface models, and find it easiest to do an automatic projection and stitch edges afterward. I also use the legacy unfold options often for the vertical/horizontal unwraps- Maya has a bad tendency to skew and angle the hell out of something that should be straight and would unwrap straight but doesn't for whatever reason.

oglu

nightshade is now integrated in maya... no need for the plugin..

Haytch

I'm using 2015 But I've figured out the unwrap is a little tricky, basically I'm used to a pelt unwrap where it just unwraps from the seams but maya doesn't seem to work that way! so instead what I've figured out is to unwrap everything and then Unitize it all, then take the seams I don't want, then I can do a move and sew and it works pretty good! 

I did try Bonus tools but I felt there was not enough documentation on it to do any good! Sorry for late reply guys, busy commutes haha!

gnoop

I am in the same boat.    Only with Max.     Even having 3d max as my primary 3d soft  which I started to learn and use more than a decade before Blender    I now , with every new 3d max release  have same thing in my mind :    oh boy,  have they even bothered  to look at how things are done  in Blender ?    

Based on many programmers  I know  all they have something  in common . A lack  of  elegance and simplicity and  in their thinking . While artists are generally being told to think and see  from simple terms to more complex ones, programmers do it other way around   imo.   Kind of  deduction vs induction.

  Thus we get all those "pro" soft which is nothing more than a huge, crazy,   pile of features, cryptically interconnected  into a Gordian knot,  people spend years to unwind.   While in ideal world it should be same simple and efficient as brush,  palette and paint tubes .  Only with extra ways to go deeper and replace each brush hair when necessary.

Sage

Unwrapping in Max is pretty easy, and ditto with Maya 2017, especially with update 3. Unwrapping in blender can be a pain because of how poorly the constant update in the viewport function works. I hope they fix that in version 2.8.
All software has it's quirks, but Maya UV tools are easy to pick up. Select edge loops you want, insert uv cut, unfold. Similar to Blender, select edges you want the seams it, mark seams, unwrap.

here is a tutorial for unwrapping in Maya 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBdxW6hrDDc

gnoop

Well,  it's easier now in Max since they borrowed  pretty same unwrapping concept based on seams .  Took them 10 years to notice how good it is in Blender.     Still as usual you should check in this and   uncheck that .   Half of the time you are  trying to figure out why   it's nothing  you expected and  where is that extra button  or checkbox  you used last time when it worked.         In a word an utter mess 3d max has always been since very beginning.   With necessary tools hidden among  gazillion of buttons you would never use and still have to memorize.

Blender also has very same symptoms but  still is a step in right direction. I bet it's because of natural selection an open source tool has to come through before introducing something new  and not just  someone  idea of what would be good for everyone and "flexible"

Viewport updates in real time if you use  Cycles node network to drop and connect textures.    

Haytch

Well the one thing I've noticed is that people model 'slower' in the studio's are they're all expected to work the same, no hotkeys etc, but I prefer to use advanced mode with no windows and use hotkeys to model, it allows for movement and freedom and just feels more natural, not to mention much much easier to be artistic and not robotic and click etc.

I've found some OK ways to make do with what I have and I will try and post some videos and sheets of how moving from blender to maya doesn't have to be scary if you know what to look for