Autodesk 3ds Max 2019: A Comprehensive Guide, 19th Edition

Introduction to Autodesk 3ds Max 2019

Welcome to the world of Autodesk 3ds Max, an advanced application that is used to create still or animated 3D models and objects. With the help of this application, you can create realistic scenes by modifying objects, applying maps and materials to a scene, assigning environment to a scene, adding lights and cameras, and so on. Before working with Autodesk 3ds Max, you should have the basic knowledge of various tools and commands available in this software. In this chapter, you will learn the basic features of Autodesk 3ds Max.

Getting Started With Autodesk 3ds Max

First, you need to install Autodesk 3ds Max 2019 on your computer. On installing the software, the 3ds Max 2019 shortcut icon will be created automatically on the desktop. Double-click on this icon to start Autodesk 3ds Max. Alternatively, you can start Autodesk 3ds Max from the Start menu. To do so, click the Start button from the taskbar to display the Start menu and then choose Autodesk > 3ds Max 2019, refer to Figure 1-1.

When you first time start 3ds Max, the Welcome Screen is displayed, as shown in Figure 1-2. The Welcome Screen consists of a set of slides that contains information for new users to inspire and get them started. If you do not want see the Welcome Screen the next time you start 3ds Max, clear the Show this Welcome Screen at startup check box located in the bottom-left corner of the screen. You can bring back the Welcome Screen anytime by choosing Help > Welcome Screen from the menubar.

Starting a New File in Autodesk 3ds Max

To start a new file in Autodesk 3ds Max, choose the File > New from the menu bar; a new file will be displayed in the 3ds Max interface. The new file will clear all the contents of the current file. Alternatively, press the CTRL+N keys; the New Scene dialog box will be displayed, as shown in Figure 1-3. By default, the New All radio button is selected in this dialog box. Choose the OK button; a new file will be displayed.

You can also reuse the objects from the current scene in the new scene. Select the Keep Objects radio button in the New Scene dialog box to keep only the objects from the current scene for the new file. However, on selecting this radio button, all the animation keys and links between the objects will be cleared. To keep the objects and the links between them, select the Keep Objects and Hierarchy radio button. However, in this case, the animation keys will be deleted.

Before starting a new scene in Autodesk 3ds Max, it is recommended to reset Autodesk 3ds Max and start afresh. By doing so, you will be able to reset all settings for the new scene. To reset Autodesk 3ds Max, choose Reset from the File menu; the 3ds Max message box will be displayed, as shown in Figure 1-4. The message box will ask if you really want to reset 3ds Max. Choose the Yes button; the 3ds Max will be reset.

Autodesk 3ds Max INTERFACE Components

The 3ds Max interface consists of different components, as shown in Figure 1-5.

You can customize the interface in a variety of ways by adding toolbars, moving toolbars and Command Panel, and so on. The interface in 3ds Max is high DPI aware that ensures that the interface scales correctly to the latest high DPI displays.

You can easily customize the workspace by floating and docking elements of a scene such as panels, windows, menu, and so on. You can dock or float any element that has the handle. A handle is denoted by the double dotted line. A handle can be on the top or left of the element, refer to Figure 1-6.

To float an element, click-drag the handle. As you drag around the element over the interface, valid docking areas are highlighted in blue. If you want to dock the element, drop it on the blue highlighted area. Keep in mind that the toolbars can only be docked on the outer edge of the interface. When you move around the elements over the interface, not all elements will resize automatically. Sometimes, manual adjustment might be required.

The 3ds Max’s interface components are discussed next.

Menu Bar

The menu bar is located just below the title bar, refer to Figure 1-5 and contains various pull-down menus. Some of the pull-down menus are standard window menus such as File, Edit, Help, and so on while others are 3ds Max pull-down menus such as Create, Modifiers, Animation, Graph Editors, Rendering, Customize, and so on. The title of each pull-down menu indicates the purpose of commands in the menu. When you choose one of the menu titles, Autodesk 3ds Max displays the corresponding pull-down menu. Each menu consists of a collection of commands. In a pull-down menu, the dots after a command indicate that a dialog box will be displayed on choosing that command. An arrow next to a command indicates that a cascading menu will be displayed on placing the cursor on that command. For some of the commands in the pull-down menus, the keyboard shortcuts are displayed on their right side, as shown in Figure 1-7.