Have you ever placed objects in quite casual in a scene? Coins on a table, marbles in a container, even the rocks along the beach… it’s a quite boring and hard work.

In such cases, you first – reaching best results – using the physical simulation. The Physical simulations are weapon every day under the eyes of all: smoke, water, electricity and even actual physical contact between objects.

Concerning the simulation of physical objects in 3ds Max we have a plugin (for years now incorporated) which is Reactor. Powerful and complex tool that I can not describe a single post!

The best thing is to see him in action now! So to give you an idea of how quickly you set a scene with objects physical collision, I did a quick video. I created some inclined planes and 4 / 5 balls. So I gave it mass=0 to the plans (if no weight is not moving!) and mass=1.0 to the balls and … it’s done:

• RB Collection (Reactor) setting  -  Video / 3mins

In conclusion I link you a tutorial from Evermotion.org that explains how to simulate coins falling on a floor, with the same principle as the previous video:

• Coins – Tutorial Evermotiong.org

The concept is very simple: Just put an RB Collection object in the scene, involve the various items, get the “weights” and just run the simulation. Truly instant! 

Have fun!

If you open the material editor (shortcut = M) you’ll see just 6 slots to create materials. Of course you can creare more than 6!

At first, if we you on a slot and and click the right button, you can select options like “5×3” and “6X4“: try to select them. The available slots will be 15 or 24, depending on your choose.

But.. Is 24 the maximum number of materials you can have? Certainly not.

I admit that the system is not very intuitive! In fact the material editor is a limited space to create, refine and assign materials, and there’s no limit to do that! Let’s take a simple test.

Building a box / create a “stupid” material / Assign material.

Now, click the “X” (reset map to default setting): A window will appear with 2 choices!

1) if we choose the 1st option:

• you reset all the material parameters
• the object in the scene continues to be connected to this material
  (Just note that the box in the viewport suddenly turn gray)

2) If we choose the 2nd option:

• object and material will be “disconnected”
• the material in the slot will resetted and associated with nothing
• the object in the scene will preserve the material that was before the cancellation 

NOW THE QUESTION IS 

How could I edit a material removed from the material editor, but it is still associated with an object in the scene? 

Just go to the material editor and bring it back in the Material Editor as follows: 
Get Material -> Scene -> Double-click the material you want back

CONCLUSION 

The material editor is a sort of  ”palette” where temporary support materials to create and associate them easily.

If you want to to create a new material and the slots are all occupated, click “X” and choose the option 2… don’t be afraid!! You don’t loose anything! Your material will be safe among the material scene (-: 

* NEWS *

• Tutorial to create different glasses with photoshop (best of)
• Get the related Videotutorial (PayPal – just 2.50$)

Do you like this image above? Do you like the realistic lighting?

I made this rendering using 3ds Max 9 and Vray render… and I want to give you that scene as a present for you readers!

3d model to add nice ditails in bathroom scenes type. Toothpaste, toothbrush, liquid soap, box and something else with V-ray 1.5 high photorealistic setted scene. Just Clic render button and get a photorealistic shot!

I hope you’ll like my 3d files! It’s a good opportunity to investigate my V-ray settings, to compare my setting with yours… to help each other about settings and lighting concept.

Tell in your 3d forum, tell your friends…. Download and enjoy it.

• 3d models for bathroom | 3ds max9 + Vray 1.5
• Don’t forget my Vray Template scene!

(The file is for 3ds max9 and V-ray 1.5 – Please don’t ask me about other format)

My first tutorial to start learning 3d modeling was Joan d’Arc!! almost 10 years ago!

Actually Joan d’Arc is the most famous tutorial for poligonal modeling in the world. But during these years many users added to the web their own contents about 3d modeling.

One of the last tutorials I liked is Head Modeling by Hatice Bayramoglu. Very detailed tutorial that start from a sketch and conclude with a finished 3d head model. Here the link:

• Cg Arena – Head Modeling

Reading on the Hatice Bayramoglu site you can understand that this tutorial start with “head tutorial” but the idea is a complete tutorial about an human body!! Eye, hand, foot, lip and 3d nose.

Enjoy this fantastic tutorial and tell me… How many tutorials about human 3d modeling do you know?

Recently I rendered a lot of 6m x 3m Posters for Buildings under construction… and I want to share with you my idea to choose how many pixels I need setting my rendering panel.

Everyone knows that a book is printed in 300dpi: that’s the best standard resolution.

But if I see this book to 5 meters I don’t need to increse the resolution, I’m not Superman!!! I just need to increase the format. That means I’m reducing the resolution!

Ok.. look at this file: it will explain my idea in a look!

• The Visual field – 3d sketch – Formats: File for 3d studio 9 / *.3DS
• If you don’t use 3ds > Images 1 – 2

Considering the Visual Field: looking a book (21cm x 29,9cm) to 30 centimeters is the same thing than looking an imaginery Big Book (574cm x 395cm) to 5 meters!

So, this imaginery book is 19 times bigger than an ordinary book: that means I can print a big poster with a resolution 19 times smaller: 300 dpi / 19 = 16 dpi!!!It will be a good resolution.

Checking resolution

If you want to check your rendering resolution, print a little part (20dpi!).

The quality image is not so good, but just see the printed paper to 2 meters: Perfect!

This is the method I use to verify the quality image.

Concluding

To print a 6m x 3m rendering:

• Set rendering out to 4724 x 2362 pixel
• Create a new document with Photoshop (6m x 3m / 16dpi)
• Put your rendering into new photoshop document

Last suggestions

• I prefer 20dpi that 16dpi… it’s my safety margin
• You can render 80% and increase up to 100% with Photoshop: Render time will be cutted and nobody will notice that
• If you have problem with memory errors, render your image in 2 parts

Et-voilà, Les jeux sont faits!

Neox, an user from Treddi.com (italian forum), realized a videotutorial showing step by step how to model a tiled roof with 3ds max.
Modeling this kind of Roof is a very annoying thing, becouse in order to abtain a beautiful model you have to model tile by tile and you can’t use bump mapping or Displacement to obtain a good result.

In these 2 videotutorial you can see how to model one single tile (with a simple box + ben modifier) and how to put the tiles in a roof (Array function).

In the 2° brief videotutorial, you can see how to use Multires modifier to control polygon reduction without lose a good quality model.

Even if the forum is italian the videoturial are international… without speaker, just enjoy seeing it!

• Videotutorial: Modellazione tegole – riduzione poligoni