Using primitive objects to model 3D forms is a great place to continue learning about Maya. You can create many types of 3D objects using Maya and then move, scale, and rotate them to create more complex forms in your scene.  In this lesson, you begin to construct a classic temple using the primitive object creation tools in Maya. The project is not very complex and provides you with experience in using some of the important object manipulation and viewing tools.

Primitive Objects

Maya provides many types of primitive types and shapes such as cubes, spheres, cylinders, and planes.  Primitive objects can be used as a starting point for a wide variety of shapes and forms.

In this section, you construct the base for the temple using a polygonal cylinder primitive. The octagonal shape is created by modifying the creation options for the cylinder tool before you create the object. If you did not modify the cylinder options you would create a default round cylinder.

To create a polygonal cylinder for the base

Use the Move Tool to adjust the position of the base

• Select the cylinder base and press <4> on the keyboard to switch to wireframe.

• Select the Move Tool from the Toolbox.
  A move manipulator icon appears over the primitive cylinder in the scene view.  The Move Tool Manipulator has handles that point in the direction of the three fundamental axis directions of 3D space: X, Y, Z. The handles are colored red, green, and blue based on their function related to the X, Y, Z axes and control the direction of the movement along an axis.  When you click a specific handle, it indicates that the move is constrained to that particular axis direction.
  
  

• In the side view, drag the green Y manipulator handle to move the primitive cylinder upwards in the Y direction.  Move it upwards enough so that the bottom of the base cylinder is aligned with the X axis (the thick dark line of the grid)
  
  

In the top view, drag the green Y manipulator ring to rotate the primitive cylinder so that one of the facets of the base cylinder is aligned with the grid as shown in the image below.   You are rotating the cylinder around its Y axis.

You may be asking yourself the question “How do I know if I’ve rotated the base exactly 22.5 degrees?”  You can check the accuracy of the rotation by viewing the Channel Box.  Rotate Y should be close to 22.5 degrees.
           
To undo an action select, Edit > Undo or press < Ctrl > + < Z >.  Maya allows you to perform multiple undos.

Duplicating objects

Duplicating an existing object is a useful way to make an exact copy of it without having to start over. When you duplicate an item the copy takes on the characteristics of the original. Using the Duplicate Tool you can additionally apply transformations to the copy (move, rotate, scale).

The base for the temple is constructed of two levels and appears stepped. You  will need to duplicate and scale the templeBase object using the duplicate tool.

To duplicate the temple base

• In the four view layout, click in the perspective view and tap the < spacebar > to display the base in this view.

• With templeBase selected, choose Edit > Duplicate Special > ❏ 

•  The Duplicate Special Options window appears.

Making the Column

The columns are made up of multiple primitives that are moved, scaled, and rotated into position. Once the first column is created, with each component named and accurately positioned, you will group and duplicate it to create others.

NOTE: If the Polygon Cube Options window does not appear, ensure that the Interactive Creation option for primitives is turned off by first selecting Create > Polygon Primitives > Interactive Creation so that a check mark does not appear beside this menu item.

• In the Polygon Cube Options window, click Create.   Maya creates a cube primitive and positions it at the origin.   

• In the side view, move the cube upwards (Y axis) so it rests on the top surface of the temple base.  You can do this using the Move Tool or with the Channel Box. If you use the Channel Box, enter a Translate Y value of 2.3.  You may find it useful to dolly or tumble the scene view to obtain a better viewpoint.  

• In the Polygon Cylinder Options window, click Create.  Maya creates the cylinder primitive at the origin.

• In side view, move the cylinder upwards (Y axis) so it rests on the top surface of columnPedestal.  You can do this using the Move Tool or with the Channel Box. If you use the Channel Box, enter a Translate Y value of 5.6.  

In the Channel Box, rename the cylinder columnShaft.

The capital for the column rests on top of the column and is very similar to the pedestal. You duplicate the pedestal and position the duplicate at the top of the column.

To duplicate the pedestal to create the capital

With only columnPedestal selected, select Edit > Duplicate Special > ❏ 

• In the Duplicate Special Options window, select Edit > Reset Settings and then set the following options:

  • Translate:  0  6.6  0

  • Scale:       0.8  1.0  0.8

• Leave the other options at their default settings.

• In the Duplicate Special Options window, click Duplicate Special.
  Maya creates a duplicate of the columnPedestal object and moves and scales it based on the options you set.
  
  
  NOTE: If you positioned the geometry for the column using the Transform Tools and your mouse, the Y translate values may be incorrect for your particular model. You may want to continue positioning the objects by visual reference using your mouse.  Using the duplicate options is an alternate method for positioning and scaling duplicated objects when you can anticipate its final location.

• In the Channel Box, rename the duplicated cube columnCapital.

• The base for the column rests on top of the pedestal. You will create the base using one half of a NURBS sphere primitive and then move and rotate it into position. You will do this by modifying the creation options for the sphere primitive.

• To create a NURBS sphere for the column base

• Select Create > NURBS Primitives > Sphere >❏   

Move  the sphere so it rests on the top surface of columnPedestal (Translate Y = 2.6, if you have been inputting values into the Channel Box).

Using the Scale Tool, scale the sphere along its Z axis (blue manipulator handle) so that the sphere becomes slightly squashed in appearance.    When you scale an object non-uniformly along one of its axes, you are scaling it non-proportionally.

Toggle objects in shaded mode and Wireframe

Up to this point, you have been viewing your objects in the default wireframe mode. In wireframe mode, objects appear transparent except for the simple wire outline that indicates their position and general shape. Maya provides several options for displaying objects in a shaded manner.

Change the display of your scene so that the objects display as shaded objects.

To display the objects in smooth shaded mode

• Enlarge your perspective view, and dolly and tumble the scene so you can easily view what you’ve completed so far.

• From the panel menu, select Shading > Smooth Shade All or press < 4 > on the keyboard for wireframe or < 5 > on the keyboard for Solid.
  The objects in your scene display in an opaque dark gray color. You can work with objects in either shaded or unshaded mode for the balance of this lesson.
  
  

Grouping objects

When you need to move, scale or rotate multiple objects as one unit it is easier if they have been grouped together so that they transform as one unit. Many primitive objects in Maya are grouped objects.  When the plane objects are grouped together they create a hierarchy.  A hierarchy is a collection of nodes or objects that are connected together to form a unit for some purpose. Hierarchies are useful for describing how the objects within them share similar characteristics or attributes; move, scale, rotate for example.

To group the objects for the column

• Select the four objects that comprise the column simultaneously by doing one of the following:

  • With your left mouse button, shift-click each object in turn until the four column objects in the scene view OR

  • In the Side View, With your left mouse button, drag one large bounding box around the column objects in an orthographic view.

• It is important that you do not select any of the templeBase objects as part of your selection. If you accidentally select any of the base objects, deselect them. 

• From the main menu, select Edit > Group.  Maya groups the objects together in a hierarchy. You will learn more about hierarchies in the steps that follow.

The Hypergraph

The Hypergraph is a window that shows how the nodes and their connections are organized in your scene. You view object hierarchies and dependencies in the Hypergraph. Use the Hypergraph to view what happens when you group an object.

To view the Hypergraph

• From the main menu, select Windows > General Editors > Hypergraph Hierarchy. 

•  Hypergraph panel, select View > Frame All.
  
  
  The Hypergraph displays the hierarchy for all of the objects in the scene. This approach to viewing the entities in the scene provides a very graphical approach to viewing all of the various nodes in your scene.   In the Hypergraph, each node is represented as a rectangle labelled with an icon that denotes the type of information it represents (for example, surface, shading, and so on). Each node has a unique name assigned to it when it is first created. When you rename your objects, you are actually renaming the node associated with that object.  Some nodes display with a line connecting them. This denotes that they are in a hierarchy and have a dependency structure based on how they were originally grouped.
  
  For the temple’s column objects, the hierarchy displays each of the named objects under a node labelled group1. Group1 is the parent node for this hierarchy of objects.  In Maya, when the parent node (sometimes referred to as the root node) is moved, rotated, or scaled in any way, the child nodes (sometimes referred to as the leaf nodes) underneath are also affected.   When you select objects at the top level of a hierarchy and move them, the objects within the hierarchy or group follow.
  
  
  NOTE: This system of nodes, attributes, and hierarchies may initially appear somewhat complex, but it is one of the most powerful features of Maya. The node based architecture provides flexibility and power to create complex models, shaders, and animations.
  
  

To rename the parent node in the Hypergraph

• In the Hypergraph, click on the group1 node so it becomes active.  In the scene view, all of the objects in the column group become selected as a result of selecting the group at the top (parent) level of the hierarchy.

• In the Hypergraph, right-click the top node representing group1 and select Rename from the pop-up menu.

• A small text box appears in the node. Enter Column as the new name.  Rename the group to column1 and select OK.

t the column is grouped, you need to position it at one corner of the temple base.

NOTE: If you accidentally deselect the column, you can either select the group in the Hypergraph or select one part of the group and hit the < ↑ > on the Keyboard until you are at the top of the group.

To position the column on the temple base

• Change the display of objects to wireframe mode by tapping the < 4 > on your keyboard.  This is a keyboard shortcut. Instead of selecting the item from the menu you can use a single key to implement the command.  
  
  TIP:  Many of the tools and features in Maya can be accessed using keyboard shortcuts. In Maya, these shortcuts are called Hotkeys. Some Hotkeys are displayed directly beside the menu item, others are listed in the Hotkey Editor. For a complete listing of available hotkeys, go to Window > Settings/Preferences > Hotkey Editor.
  
  

• In the Hypergraph, select the Column1 at the top node so that Column1 becomes active in the scene view.

• In the Top scene view, use the Move Tool to position Column1 at the front corner of the temple base as shown below.

With your first column in position, you can now create a copy of the column and position it on the adjacent corner of the base.

To create a duplicate copy of the column

• With Column1 still selected in the Hypergraph, select Edit > Duplicate from the main menu.  The Duplicate Special Options window appears.

• In the Duplicate Special Options window, select Edit > Reset Settings.  Leave the other options at their default settings.

• The Hypergraph view updates to show an additional column object in the scene. The copy also takes on the prefix name of the original group and is now labelled Column2. In the scene view it appears that nothing was actually duplicated. When an object is duplicated without any transformations the copy is positioned in the same position as the original. The two objects are on top of each other.

You need to move the column into position on the adjacent corner of the temple base.

To move the duplicate column into position on the base

• In the Hypergraph, ensure Column2 is selected by clicking on its top node so it becomes selected in the scene view.

• In the scene view, use the Move Tool to position Column2 on the adjacent corner of the temple base as shown below.      

Pivot points

A pivot point is a specific position in 3D space that is used as a reference for the transformations of objects. All objects (curves, surfaces, groups) have pivot points.

When you group objects in Maya, a new node called a parent node is created for the group of objects. The pivot point for the group’s parent node is placed at the origin (0, 0, 0). This is useful if you later want to duplicate and rotate the objects radially (that is, in a circular fashion around the pivot).

To group the two columns

• Ensure Column1 and Column2 are selected.

• From the main menu, select Edit > Group.

• Maya groups the objects together in a hierarchy and the pivot point is positioned at the origin. (When the pivot point is relocated to the origin the Move Tool manipulator for the selected group appears at the origin.)

• In the Hypergraph rename the group of the groups of column1 and column2.  Right-click on the group1 an choose rename and then change it to columnGroup1.

With the two columns grouped, you then duplicate the columns with a rotation option, the groups will duplicate and rotate around the pivot point at the origin (0, 0, 0).

To duplicate and rotate the group

1. With columnGroup1 selected, select Edit > Duplicate Special > ❏  

• From the main menu.

• In the Duplicate Special Options window, select Edit > Reset Settings and then set the following options:

  • Rotate: 0  90  0

  • Number of Copies: 3

• In the Duplicate Special Options window, click Duplicate Special.
   

For your classic temple, you need to create the entablature using a torus primitive. An entablature is a structure that lies horizontally upon the columns of a temple and supports the roof.

To create and position a torus primitive for the entablature

• From the main menu, select Create > NURBS Primitives > Torus >❏ 

In the NURBS Torus option window, click Create.

 NOTE:  If the NURBS Primitives Options window does not appear, ensure that a check mark does not appear beside the Interactive Creation menu item before selecting Create > NURBS Primitives > Torus > ❏

ents

All objects in Maya have a transform and a shape node. Geometric shapes, like the primitives in this tutorial, have smaller parts called components. A few examples of components in Maya are control vertices, faces, and hulls. Components allow you to work with objects at a finer level and allow you to edit them in creative ways.

In order to change the shape of the entablature beyond the basic scale transformations, you need to modify its component information.

To select components of the entablature

1. In the side view, dolly in for a closer view of Entablature.

2. Hold down right-click on the In the Entablature and switch to Control Vertex mode.

3. Right-click (and hold the right-click button) the wireframe of Entablature and select Control Vertex from the pop-up menu.
   
   The me

1. nu that pops up is a marking menu for quickly selecting operations relevant to the object where you right-click the mouse. In this case, the choices pertain to the display of the entablature’s components.
   
   A set of small pink squares appear on Entablature called control vertices. Control Vertices (CVs) describe the shape of an object based on their position in space. If you move any combination of these vertices, you change the shape of the object.
   
   
   
   
   

2. Drag a

Using the Move Tool, move the vertices up vertically as shown below to change the shape of Entablature.  Select the top vertices. 

To cancel the display of the CVs, hold right-click over the wireframe of Entablature once again and select Object Mode from the pop-up menu.

The roof for the temple rests on top of the entablature. The roof for the temple is created using one half of a sphere primitive.

To create a roof for the temple

In the side view, in the NURBS Sphere Options window, click Create.

Rename the half-sphere templeRoof.

The roof needs to be rotated -90 degrees about the X axis and positioned on top of the entablature.   In side view, rotate the roof so that the dome part is pointing up.

the roof so that the sphere becomes slightly squashed in appearance.

Using the Scale tool, adjust the Z axis (yellow manipulator handle) so that the sphere becomes slightly squashed in appearance

The

 Attribute Editor

The Attribute Editor provides information about the various nodes and attributes for the objects and materials in your scene. Like the Channel Box, you can view and edit the basic transform information and many other keyable attributes. However, the Attribute Editor provides a more detailed display of all attributes for a selected object.

To view object attributes using the Attribute Editor

1. In the scene view, select templeRoof.

2. To view the Attribute Editor, click the Show/Hide icon on the Status Line.
   
   
   The A

1. the templeRoof tab to see its attributes.
   This tab is known as the transform node, because the most important attributes on this tab control templeRoof’s transformation. Every visible object in Maya has a transform node, including cameras and lights.
   
   

2. Click the templeRoofShape tab to see its attributes.
   This tab is called the shape node because the attributes establish the object’s geometric shape or physical properties when the object is first created. Most objects have shape nodes, some do not, such as the group for the column objects. The shape node also includes other types of attributes, such as object display attributes.
   
   

3. Click the makeNurbSphere tab to see its attributes.
   This is an input node that includes attributes related to the object’s construction history. The attributes of an input node are passed to another node subsequent in the construction history for the object—in this case, to the templeRoofShape node.
   
   

4. The last two nodes are initialShadingGroup and lambert1. If you can’t see them, click the display arrow.
   The initialShadingGroup and lambert1 nodes are default nodes that relate to the default shading material for an object. Maya uses them to establish the initial color of objects and other settings related to shading. If you create your own shading materials for the temple, as you will in the following steps, these nodes are replaced by the new shading nodes you create.
   
   

Surface materials

The color, shininess, and reflectivity attributes of an object are controlled by its surface material (sometimes referred to as a shader, or shading material). Material attributes relate to how the object simulates a natural reaction to light in Maya’s 3D computer world.

Maya assigns a default shading material to all objects when they are first created. In this section, you learn how to assign a new material to your objects.

To assign a new material to the temple objects

1. Right-click the Entablature and select Object Mode from the pop-up menu.
   
   This c

1. hanges the selection mask back to objects so you can select objects in the scene. It is a shortcut to access this feature.
   
   

2. Drag a selection box around all the objects in your scene to select them.
   
   TIP:  If objects won’t select in the Maya scene, check that your selection mask is set correctly on the Status Line.
   
   

3. With the temple still selected, right-click on the temple parts and choose Assign New Materials . . .

   [

The As

1. ttribute Editor, rename the aiStandardSurface1 shading material to templeShader.  With a shading material assigned to all the objects, you need to edit the color attributes of the templeShader material.

To edit the shading material’s attributes

1. In the Attribute Editor, click in the light gray box to the right of the word Color.
   
   The min

1. i Color Chooser appears.
   
   
   
   

2. Click the ring between yellow and orange (or any other light color) to achieve a sand color. You can further refine this color by clicking a shade in the square palette.
   The exact color is unimportant for this lesson. However, if you’d like more options for choosing your color, you can double-click the the gray box to display the full Color Chooser.   In either case, as you adjust the color wheel indicator, the temple objects become the same color you select in the Color Chooser.
   
   
   
   
   
   

3. If you h

1. utes for templeBase display in the Attribute Editor.
   
   

2. Click the templeShader node tab to see its attributes.  If you can’t see this tab, click the display arrow to the right of the tabs. These are the same attributes you edited when you assigned the templeShader shader to all the objects in the scene. When you first create an object, you see two default nodes for shading, initialShadingGroup and lambert1. When you assign a shading material, the two default nodes are replaced by the attribute node for the assigned shading material.  
   
      

3. Close the

1.  Attribute Editor using the Show/Hide icon.

Light: Physical Sky

Setup a simple Physical sky using Arnold.  In the Main Menu select Arnold > Lights > Physical Sky.  The background turns black.  Maya creates a large sphere that surrounds you scene.

Rendering:

1. Temple within the Resolution Gate.

In the Main Menu, choose Arnold > Render and the render window pop up.

NOTE:

• The red square toggles the render on/off.

• The second dropdown menu allows you to change the camera to be rendered.

Create a p

 so that you cannot see it in the final render.

Render the scene again.

Move the camera so that the temple is on the left side of the render window.  Select the Physical Sky sphere and rotate it so that the shadow reaches across the scene.

If your s

hadow does not reach across the scene, you will need to change the time of day by changing the angle of the sun.  Select the Physical Sky sphere and Press < Ctrl > + < A > to toggle the Attribute Editor

Save your final image: File > Save Image

Give you 

image a name and save.

What am I looking for?

Temple Requirements.

• Temple Finished – all parts correctly modeled

• Assign the aiStandardSurface shader and change the color

• Render using Arnold and use the Physical Sky light

• Rotate and change the the Physical Sky sun’s Elevation so that the shadow reaches from the lower corner to the upper corner

Temple Pa

rt 2

Temple Part 2 Requirements.

• Assign a complex shader preset and make adjustments.  (Gold, Orange Juice, Balloon, etc.)

• Assign a new material to the ground

• Sculpt the ground into an interesting  form

Newer Pos