Maya to 3ds Max tutorials/transition help?
polycounter lvl 9
Hey everyone, so I started using XSI about 5 years ago then made the switch to maya about 4 years ago... I've never touched max except maybe twice. I have no idea how to use it at all and was wondering if anyone knew of any good basic tutorials to get me started or a website that could walk me through a transition or something.
I just got an art test from a company who wants me to do the entire thing in Max and while there isn't a time limit, I'd like to submit it sooner rather than later if you know what I mean.
Thanks!
Edit: Forgot to mention I'll primarily be using Max to Model and Texture objects. I'll also need to know a little bit about lighting... like lightmaps and vertex color. I'm familiar with both from an Unreal engine point of view but now Max.
I just got an art test from a company who wants me to do the entire thing in Max and while there isn't a time limit, I'd like to submit it sooner rather than later if you know what I mean.
Thanks!
Edit: Forgot to mention I'll primarily be using Max to Model and Texture objects. I'll also need to know a little bit about lighting... like lightmaps and vertex color. I'm familiar with both from an Unreal engine point of view but now Max.
Replies
To start you can take a look at this site: http://cg.tutsplus.com/tag/basix/
and actually the first tut walks you through the basics.
Good luck! :thumbup:
Learn how max does things and you will find it at least as good.
I highly recommend the tutorials of max!!!!
I think these are enough to get you started.
check them both as one has what the other one doesn't
this is old.. but it is pretty much still valid and has almost everything you might need.
http://www.megalune.com/mega/wp-content/content/shortcuts_3dsmax.pdf
this has less but with images.
http://projects.cbe.ab.ca/western/harker-desanim/Animation/3DStudioMAX-hotkeys.pdf
ofc if you need to find equivalents for workflows you can always ask here.
it will possibly result to a little flame-war but you will get lots of tips as a result
a few videos that might help
http://cg.tutsplus.com/tutorials/autodesk-3ds-max/beginner-modeling-methods-and-techniques-in-3ds-max-basix/
http://cg.tutsplus.com/tutorials/autodesk-3ds-max/an-introduction-to-3ds-max-polygonal-modeling-tools-day-1/
http://cg.tutsplus.com/tutorials/autodesk-3ds-max/an-introduction-to-3ds-max-polygonal-modeling-tools-day-2/
and here for a lot more of them and more advanced topics.
http://cg.tutsplus.com/category/tutorials/autodesk-3ds-max/
audio is not all that great in some.
http://images.autodesk.com/adsk/files/3dmax_to_maya.pdf
A bit out of date, but still helpful.
http://lounge.ego-farms.com/
constrain edge is the awesomeness
learn or re-assign hotkeys to something you are familiar with from Maya.
I recently have been making the switch and there are things i love and things i miss. Having become OCD on marking menus in Maya, mouse navigation has increased a lot, but quads are still extremly useful.
Play around with some stacking and really dedicate some time to a few good tests. It's just another tool and for modeling you will make the switch very easily.
I still use it to this day and will never uninstall it.
~t
It might create a connection with ways you used to work in the other software and lead you to try work in the same way you used to, by natural inclination, (brain goes immediately to the easy way of what is used to) in a tool which has a different philosophy in modeling and design. This could be frustrating. While they both can do the same things, they do them a bit differently in some cases. i.e. a discussion about selecting UV shells some time ago. something that is not necessary for max and is out of its philosophy was implied to be a shortcoming. Selecting UV shells might have been very useful and fast in maya for lack of other options in the past, but not for max.
I strongly recommend to learn max as it is. This way you will really see what is faster or not in its workflow. After you experience its workflow as it is, then you could use this tool and shortcuts to compliment it if you wish to. And that would be truly beneficiary.
Doing the opposite might actually keep you away from discovering some very beneficial workflow aspects max has to offer and slow down your progress.
On top of that, embrace graphite tools. Regardless what old users of max might say, (many hate it) graphite tools is a VERY powerful toolset that only takes some time for us to get used to but eventually is a much faster and better approach always combined with the stack! For a new user it wouldn't be so difficult. Personally i love them and i use graphite tools very often by snapping out and keeping afloat tabs that i use most. After you get used to this workflow more then also put it on expert mode for maximum screen space usage.
- Creating geometry : on the right part of the layout, first tab 'create'. Polygonal spheres, cubes, and so on.
- To start modifying this : right-click on the primitive you just created, convert to > edit poly (bottom right of the popup menu aka 'quad')
- Now the panel on the right side should be switched to edit mode. You can go through components by clicking on the red icons, or pressing 1 2 3 4 5 6
- All the modeling tools are in this panel (at this stage the modifier stack should display 'edit poly' ). Just look around, you'll find everything in buttons and spinners form (extrude, bevel, cut ...). You'll assign shortcuts to them later.
- If you need to make procedural changes to the overall shape, click in the dropdown at the top of the edit panel. It will open a huge list of 'modifiers'. Simply type the first letter of what you want to do ('b' for bend) to go through the list. Click on the want you want. (useful ones : symmetry, bend, ffd3, ffd4, UVmap, UnwrapUVs, STLcheck, pathdeform, editpoly)
-The 'stack' piles up with the added modifiers. You can toggle them on and off (bend your object on or off) by clicking the little lightbulb. If you go to the bottom of the stack, but still want to display the final result while working on lower level stuff, click the little chemistry tube to display end result.
-either keep the non destructive modifier on and keep working, or, right click your object again to convert it back to raw edit polygon and keep working. Rinse and repeat.
-You can very well add an 'edit poly' modifier on top of an ... editable poly. Lets say you have a cylinder primitive. Apply a bend modifier on it. Then lets say you want to extrude one face on the bent shape, or modify some loops. For this, stack up : Bend, and Edit Poly modifiers. The Edit poly modifier on top of the stack will give you back access to the components, in a non destructive way. You can delete a face at this level, or make double edges for sharp subd - you can still go back down to the bend below this, to change the angle. Your changes will carry over in a non destructive manner.
-editing the pivot : hierarchy panel, 'affect pivot only'
-transform type-in : f12
-freeze transformations : in the Utilities panel (just like modifiers, only hmmm different), in the drop down : reset x form. Click it 3 times. Then right click on your object, convert to edit poly.
-Axis and coordinates controls : on the top bar, near the move/scale/rotate icons. Also most of the top bar icons are dropdowns, and sensitive to right click for options. (try it on the snap icon).
You're good to go!!!
I was even told by Paul Neale exactly what you said in this first paragraph, I just don't like Max nav controls, Pior said it best
And as far as I know, it hasn't harmed me in the last 3 years of using it.