Maya - How to evenly distribute edges/vertices??
polycounter lvl 2
Sorry for the dumb question but I can't seem to find it on google.
I have a mesh and just need to evenly distribute its edge loops. I'm aware of some tools like insert edge loop set to multiple edge loops on equal multiplier will help to create meshes with equal edge distances. But I need to modify existing mesh edge loops so that they are evenly distributed.
Any ideas??
I have a mesh and just need to evenly distribute its edge loops. I'm aware of some tools like insert edge loop set to multiple edge loops on equal multiplier will help to create meshes with equal edge distances. But I need to modify existing mesh edge loops so that they are evenly distributed.
Any ideas??
Replies
Duplicate your mesh, and make the duplicate live. Select the original mesh, use quad draw tool, activate soft select, and use the smooth brush. Make the soft select pretty large to influence as big an area as you need.
Making the object live ensures you keep the same volume while you even out the topology. If you aren't familiar with the quad draw tool, look up some retopology tutorials with maya and those will get you up to speed pretty quick.
For instance, if you had a simple plane like the image attached. My goal would be to equally distance those edge loops across that plane.
There must be a simple way to do this that does not involve guessing by eye the distance between polys?
I don't know of any tools to modify your existing edge loops in a direct, precise numbers type of way. You could set your grid to whatever units you need, then grab the edges and snap them one by one to grid on just the axis you need. So if you want to snap a vert or an edge in just one axis, you grab thee manipulator handle for that axis, then hold x to snap to the next grid point along that axis. That may be a bit hard to understand -- I can make a quick video latere if you need. Snapping to grid is probably the highest level of precision you can get in maya as you can set the grid to whatever units of measurement you need.
You could also delete out the edge loops, and like you said in the beginning use the insert edge loop tool to put evenly spaced ones back in. Usually I just use the multi-cut tool. Hold ctrl to insert an edge loop, then middle mouse button to insert the loop perfectly centered between the closet two edges.
Back to my original suggestion though of using the quad draw tool, if you have a large enough soft selection to grab all the relevant vertices, it will bring them all to a perfect average. Probably not the precise feel you want and may not be appropriate for your needs, but its a tool worth knowing about.
I think Maya is not really set up for that kind of precision. You have to use the measure tool in kind of a round about way to make precise measurements most of the time. It's not really an application designed for the same type of work as you might do with fusion 360 -- or even 3ds max I believe is a little more oriented to that style of working.