3ds Max 2012 Bible - Kelly L. Murdock [113]
To mirror a robot's leg, follow these steps:
1. Open the Robot mech.max file from the Chap 08 directory on the CD.
This file includes a robot with one of its legs deleted.
2. Select all objects that make up the robot's leg in the Left viewport, and open the Mirror dialog box with the Tools⇒Mirror menu command.
3. In the Mirror dialog box, select X as the Mirror Axis and Instance as the Clone Selection. Change the Offset value until the cloned leg is in position, which should be at around –2.55.
Note
The mirror axis depends on the viewport, so make sure that the Left viewport is selected. •
Any changes made to the dialog box are immediately shown in the viewports.
4. Click OK to close the dialog box.
Note
By making the clone selection an instance, you can ensure that any future modifications to the right half of the figure are automatically applied to the left half. •
Figure 8.6 shows the resulting robot, which won't be falling over now.
FIGURE 8.6
A perfectly symmetrical robot, compliments of the Mirror tool
Cloning over Time
Another useful way to create multiple copies of an object is to have an object be created based on its position during a specific frame of an animation. This cloning at specific times is accomplished with the Snapshot feature.
Using the Snapshot command
The Snapshot command creates static copies, instances, references, or even meshes of a selected object as it moves along an animation path. For example, you could create a series of footprints by animating a set of footprints moving across the screen from frame 1 to frame 100, and then choose Tools⇒Snapshot and enter the number of steps to appear over this range of frames in the Snapshot dialog box. The designated number of steps is created at regular intervals for the animation range. Be aware that the Snapshot command works only with objects that have an animation path defined.
You can open the Snapshot dialog box by choosing Tools⇒Snapshot or by clicking the Snapshot button (under the Array flyout on the Extras toolbar). Snapshot is the second button in the flyout. In the Snapshot dialog box, shown in Figure 8.7, you can choose to produce a single clone or a range of clones over a given number of frames. Selecting Single creates a single clone at the current frame.
Note
When you enter the number of Copies in the Snapshot dialog box, a copy is placed at both the beginning and end of the specified range, so if your animation path is a closed path, two objects are stacked on top of each other. For example, if you have a square animation path and you want to place a copy at each corner, you need to enter a value of 5. •
FIGURE 8.7
The Snapshot dialog box lets you clone a Copy, Instance, Reference, or Mesh.
Tip
The Snapshot tool can also be used with particle systems. •
Tutorial: Creating a path through a maze
The Snapshot tool can be used to create objects as a model is moved along an animated path. In this example, you create a series of footsteps through a maze.
To create a set of footprints through a maze with the Snapshot tool, follow these steps:
1. Open the Path through a maze.max file from the Chap 08 directory on the CD. This file includes a set of animated footprints that travel to the exit of a maze.
2. Select both footprint objects at the entrance to the maze.
3. Choose the Tools⇒Snapshot menu to open the Snapshot dialog box. Select the Range option, set the number of Copies to 20, and select the Instance option. Then click OK.
Figure 8.8 shows the path of footsteps leading the way through the maze, which are easier to follow than breadcrumbs.
FIGURE 8.8
The Snapshot tool helps to build a set of footprints through a maze.
Spacing Cloned Objects
The Snapshot tool offers a convenient way to clone objects along an animation path, but what if you want to clone objects along a path that isn't animated? The answer is the Spacing tool. The Spacing tool can position clones at regular intervals along a path by either selecting a path and the number of cloned objects