Mapping the Pants

Autodesk 3ds Max Tutorials > Materials and Mapping Tutorials > Mapping a Character >

Mapping the Pants

In this lesson, you use the Unwrap UVW modifier to map the pants of the helicopter pilot using a camouflage pattern. The pants would be difficult to map using conventional mapping methods, especially when you use a pattern like camouflage, without getting smearing and stretching of pixels. Using multiple planar and cylindrical maps might work to keep the pattern equal but may give you problems with stitching. It is best to use Pelt Mapping in such a situation.

An added constraint is the belt, which is part of the pants object. Since the belt will be using a different material than the rest of the pants, you need to apply a Multi/Sub-Object Material and map the two elements differently, using pelt mapping for the pants and a simpler cylindrical mapping for the belt.

Adjust material IDs:

Continue working on your file from the previous exercise or load the file pilot03.max found under \tutorials\unwrap_uvw.
Zoom in on the pilot’s pants in all viewports.
Select the Pants object and go to the Modify panel.
Expand the Edit Poly modifier in the stack and go to Polygon sub-object level.
Activate the Front viewport then press Ctrl+A to select all the faces that make up the pants object (pants + belt).
Scroll down to the Polygon Properties rollout at the bottom of the Modify panel. Set the Set ID value to 1.
This sets all the faces to be applied with the first material in a multi/sub-object material definition.
Using a window selection, drag to select all the faces that make the belt.
On the Polygon Properties rollout, set the Set ID value to 2.
The faces representing the belt will receive the second material in a multi/sub-object material definition.
Click an empty area of the viewport to deselect all polygons.
Exit Sub-object selection level, and then go to the top of the stack by clicking the Smooth modifier entry.

Apply the material to the pants:

In the Perspective viewport, zoom in on the pilot’s pants.
Press M to open the Material Editor.
Find the material named Pilot_Pants and select it.
This is a Multi/Sub-Object material with two defined sub-materials.
Drag this material to on the pants in the Perspective viewport.
Close the Material Editor.

Create pelt seams:

When you use Pelt mapping, it is best to start by defining pelt seams. Pelt seams are like virtual “cut” lines that the UVW Map modifier uses to unfold the Pelt map.

Select the Pants object then go to the Modify panel.
From the Modifier list, choose Unwrap UVW.
Maximize the Perspective view and press F4 to turn Edged Faces mode on if it is not on already.
Press F3 to display the view in wireframe.
Expand the Unwrap UVW modifier and in the modifier stack, go to Edge sub-object level.
On the Parameters rollout > Display group, turn off Show Map Seam. The green map seams will make the blue Pelt seams difficult to see.
Select the vertical edge at the back center of the belt.
On the Selection Parameters rollout, click the Loop button.
The edges are now selected in a loop from the back to the front passing between the legs.

At this point, you can convert this edge selection to a Pelt Seam, but you really only need the selected edges at the back of the pants. You can deselect the edges you do not want or use a different approach called Point To Point Seam.
Click a blank area of the viewport to deselect the edges. At the very bottom of the command panel, click the Point To Point Seam button.
Click a point on the belt where you want the pelt seam to start.
Arc Rotate to view the pants from a lower angle and click a point in the middle between the pants legs.
Right-click to accept the seam. You now have a pelt seam running along the buttocks.
Repeat the Point To Point procedure to create a pelt seam running along the inside of a leg.
Create a pelt seam for the inside of the other leg.
Press F3 to restore the view to shaded mode.
In the modifier stack, set the sub-object level to Face.
On the Selection Parameters rollout, turn off Ignore Backfacing.
Press Ctrl+A to select all the faces that make up the pants.
They turn red in the viewport.
On the Map Parameters rollout, click the Pelt button.
A planar mapping gizmo appears in the viewport.
Click the Align Y button to align the gizmo with the world XZ plane (that is, perpendicular to the Y axis).
At the bottom of the rollout, click the Edit Pelt Map button.
The Edit UVWs dialog appears along with the Pelt Map Parameters dialog.

NoteThe display of the geometry in the Edit UVWs dialog is slightly different from what you have seen so far. A circular Stretcher is displayed. you'll use this to simulate Pelt mapping by stretching the geometry. You need to adjust it slightly so that it works properly.
From the Maps drop-down, choose the map that was defined in the Multi/Sub-Object material for the pants.
The camouflage texture appears in the background.

NoteBecause the material applied to the pants is a Multi/Sub-Object material, all maps used in the material definition are automatically displayed in the map drop-down menu; in this case the camouflage and the belt map.
On the Edit UVWs main toolbar, choose the Scale tool.
Position the cursor on one of the Stretcher control points. Scale the stretcher up slightly until it reaches the boundaries of the camouflage map.
On the Edit UVWs toolbar, choose the Rotate tool.
Make sure Angle snap is off. Position the cursor on one of the stretcher’s control point, and rotate the stretcher to get a more symmetrical layout.
In the Pelt Map Parameters floating dialog, click the Simulate Pelt Pulling button.
The faces are stretched out based on the pelt seams you created.
Click the Simulate Pelt Pulling button two more times for additional stretching.
The end results are getting better in the viewport, but the mapping can be made better with a bit of “relaxing.”
On the Pelt Map Parameters floating dialog, click the Relax (Light) button three times. Keep an eye on the viewport to compare the results.

Map the belt:

Unlike the pants, the belt uses a simple cylindrical mapping, much like the one you used on the helmet in the previous exercise.

In the modifier stack, switch the Unwrap UVW sub-object level to Face.
In the Map Parameters rollout, click the Pelt button to exit this mode.
Click a blank area of the viewport to deselect the faces.
On the Edit UVWs dialog, open the face ID dropdown list.
Choose 2:Pilot_Belt (Standard) from that list. Only the faces that make out the belt are selected.

NoteThe background automatically switches to reflect the map associated with the faces that use that Material ID.
In the Edit UVWs window, drag to region-select all the faces representing the belt.
The corresponding faces are selected in the viewport.
Press F3 to switch to wireframe display mode.
On the Map Parameters rollout, click Cylindrical, then click Align Z to align the cylindrical gizmo to the belt.
Make sure Angle Snap is on and rotate the gizmo 90 degrees on the Z axis (blue axis) so that the green seam is at the back.
On the Map Parameters rollout, click the Fit button to fit the gizmo to the belt.
Click the Cylindrical button to turn it off.
At the bottom-right corner of the Edit UVWs dialog, click the Options button.
In the extended group that appears, set the Brightness value to 1 to get a better view of the background.
On the Edit UVWs toolbar, click the Freeform mode tool.
Make a preliminary adjustment using Scale (cursor on the corner control points) and Move (cursor inside the selection) to position the selected faces over the belt in the background image.
Press F3 to return to shaded display mode.
On the Edit UVWs dialog, switch the selection mode to Vertex.
Select all the bottom vertices on the belt line.
From the Edit UVWs window’s main toolbar, open the Scale flyout and choose the Scale Vertical tool.
Place your cursor on one of the selected vertices then click and drag down to straighten the belt line.
Select the upper belt line and straighten it as well.
Select the vertices around the buckle.
Using Scale Horizontal and Move, adjust the vertices to get a better-looking buckle in the viewport.
Close the Edit UVWs dialog when done.
In the modifier stack, exit the sub-object level.
Save your file as my_pilot_pants.max.

Summary

This tutorial has introduced you to several mapping methods using the Unwrap UVW modifier. You have used simple mapping techniques such as planar and cylindrical, as well as more elaborate techniques such as pelt mapping to seamlessly wrap textures around objects. These tools can be adapted to the task of mapping any object in 3ds Max.