Build from curves in Alias

00:03

The curve tool we use most is the Edit Point Curve.

00:06

So I'm going to switch to a side view and then simply click a start point

00:11

and an end point.

00:12

And then do a Pick Nothing,

00:14

Pick Control Vertex,

00:16

and then use move to start shaping the curve.

00:19

And I'm using the left mouse button to just click and drag.

00:24

And if I want an extra CV,

00:26

I would typically stick with a single span for smoothness

00:30

and instead increase the degree by one

00:33

and then hit accept.

00:35

And then Pick Nothing,

00:37

Pick CV, move again,

00:39

and keep going until I'm happy with the shape.

00:46

For this straight line, I'll use the Edit Point Curve tool again

00:50

and hold down Ctrl to do a point snap

00:53

and then just click and drag to the other end.

00:56

And I don't need these middle CVs,

00:57

so I'll reduce the degree down to one and hit accept again.

01:03

Now I'm going to need to move these curves out to the side.

01:06

So I'm gonna use a two screen layout so that I see the side and top views together.

01:13

And first, I'll pick the curves and do a move using the right mouse to move only in Y.

01:19

And you can see that I'm not losing any of the XZ shape I created in this view.

01:25

So then I can use Pick CV and do the same for the CVs to get the 3D shape.

01:31

But you don't have to use these 2D views,

01:33

you can always use the XYZ mouse directions in the perspective view.

01:40

So now I can build from these curves

01:42

and I'll start by double-clicking on the MS draft surface as an example.

01:47

And I'll select the curves

01:49

and then choose the direction and give it some length

01:53

and then click on build.

01:55

And I'll just shade that.

01:58

I can modify the direction or add some crown and

02:02

use the space bar as a shortcut for Update.

02:05

But if I delete that,

02:06

this time I can create the subdivision extrusion.

02:10

And again, I'll open the settings and select the curves,

02:14

and I can use the manipulator to just bring this out.

02:19

And if I use the box shading,

02:20

you can see here that my curve is recalculated into segments

02:25

and I can just adjust it to the complexity I need.

02:29

And then keep using the space bar for Extrude Again

02:32

and start to build up the sub-d.

Video transcript

00:03

The curve tool we use most is the Edit Point Curve.

00:06

So I'm going to switch to a side view and then simply click a start point

00:11

and an end point.

00:12

And then do a Pick Nothing,

00:14

Pick Control Vertex,

00:16

and then use move to start shaping the curve.

00:19

And I'm using the left mouse button to just click and drag.

00:24

And if I want an extra CV,

00:26

I would typically stick with a single span for smoothness

00:30

and instead increase the degree by one

00:33

and then hit accept.

00:35

And then Pick Nothing,

00:37

Pick CV, move again,

00:39

and keep going until I'm happy with the shape.

00:46

For this straight line, I'll use the Edit Point Curve tool again

00:50

and hold down Ctrl to do a point snap

00:53

and then just click and drag to the other end.

00:56

And I don't need these middle CVs,

00:57

so I'll reduce the degree down to one and hit accept again.

01:03

Now I'm going to need to move these curves out to the side.

01:06

So I'm gonna use a two screen layout so that I see the side and top views together.

01:13

And first, I'll pick the curves and do a move using the right mouse to move only in Y.

01:19

And you can see that I'm not losing any of the XZ shape I created in this view.

01:25

So then I can use Pick CV and do the same for the CVs to get the 3D shape.

01:31

But you don't have to use these 2D views,

01:33

you can always use the XYZ mouse directions in the perspective view.

01:40

So now I can build from these curves

01:42

and I'll start by double-clicking on the MS draft surface as an example.

01:47

And I'll select the curves

01:49

and then choose the direction and give it some length

01:53

and then click on build.

01:55

And I'll just shade that.

01:58

I can modify the direction or add some crown and

02:02

use the space bar as a shortcut for Update.

02:05

But if I delete that,

02:06

this time I can create the subdivision extrusion.

02:10

And again, I'll open the settings and select the curves,

02:14

and I can use the manipulator to just bring this out.

02:19

And if I use the box shading,

02:20

you can see here that my curve is recalculated into segments

02:25

and I can just adjust it to the complexity I need.

02:29

And then keep using the space bar for Extrude Again

02:32

and start to build up the sub-d.

Video quiz

Required for course completion

When shaping curves in Alias, you can increase the number of CVs by adjusting which value?

(Select one)
Select an answer

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