Freeform Modelling in 3Ds Max for Sculpting Object Surface – Part 1
Published on 10 January 2025
Introduction
Learning Animation has a steep curve. But a methodical and systematic approach can reduce the pain.
Like most of the popular 3d programs, the Autodesk 3Ds Max, perhaps the oldest among its peers and with one of the largest user bases, requires studying and understanding the techniques of Modelling first.
Whenever someone start learning 3D animation, h/she starts with modelling. Then comes texture and material creation over the surface of the models. Techniques involving the use of different mapping channels come into play at this point.
Finally, a person can pick up animation. Remember here, by animation, I refer to the core of animation and its techniques. Camera animation techniques like architectural walk through is certainly not considered as a deep dive into the animation.
Back into modelling, there is something called Freefom modelling in 3Ds Max with a set of tools that lets you manipulate an object surface to bring out details essential to wrap material upon.
This Freefrom tools are mainly used for sculpting the surfaces and in this article I’ll walk you through different functions of this tool set while creating a terrain. I assume you have a basic and operational knowledge of modelling in 3ds Max.
Like you know you have to convert an object to an editable poly before using certain modifiers or accessing this Freeform panel. So let’s now delve deeper into the topic in steps.
Just two things before you take the plunge. I am assuming you are familiar with 3Ds Max with a beginner’s know how. And I am referring to 3Ds Max 2019 here.
Table of Contents
1. Setting the Units before Modelling in 3ds Max
Go to Customize > Unit Setup > Display Unit Scale – Select Metric
1.1 Display Unit Scale to display measurement for modelling in 3ds Max
There is also the imperial system right beneath the Metric System. Just in case you’re willing to use Feet and Inches, you select that. What this Display Unit does is, it makes the value of a quantity displayed either in metric or in imperial system.
If the Metric system with Meters is selected and the value of a quantity you want to assign to (length, width or height) is in Centimeters, then you would have to use the decimal after due conversion e.g. 0.01 Meter in place of 100 CMs and so on.
Remember the default Metric system is in Meter and I changed that to Centimeters and now I am again changing this back to Meters.
Under the US system, you could choose Feet or Inches and the values will be assigned accordingly. Keep in mind that 12 inches equal to 1 Feet and do the math for conversion accordingly.
Also, the Display Unit Scale is the unit of measurement in the world. But there is another thing such as System Unit Setup.
1.2 System Unit Setup – Related to the accuracy of the World Scale
Click on the System Unit Setup in the same dialogue box and another will pop up.
It’s related to the size of the world or environment. So it’s pertinent to the accuracy of the calculations. System Unit setup relates to the scale of the world and you must not tweak this in the middle of a project. Set it right at the beginning of a project.
Most of the time the 3Ds Max users don’t have to tweak this and leave it the way it is. For the projects, ranging from quite a few miles on the upper side to down to a tenth of a millimeter to the smallest possible extent, you don’t need to change this at all.
So you can imagine, within that range your models won’t compromise in terms of accuracy. Beyond that range you may have to adjust this System Unit Setup to compensate for the accuracy. We’re leaving it as it is.
1.3 Grid Settings for Modelling in 3ds Max – Creates the impression of scale of an object
Right Click on any one of the snapping tools in the icon bar below menu and you’ll get the Grid & Snap Settings dialogue popped up. I have opened the Home Grid Tab and quite a few things are there. Grid spacing is showing 25.4 cm.
This is because the System Unit Setup is set to 1 Unit = 1.0 and in in Inches and 1 inch is 2.54 cm. So here the each unit grid box is 10 inch long and 10 inch wide. And the total area of the Grid in the perspective view is set to 7. If we crank this value up, the grid area will be larger.
You can change the Grid spacing to conform to the Metric system. But I prefer to leave it that way too, because larger dimensions often go well with Feet and Inches instead of Meter. A 6 ft high wall gives us an easy impression instead of a mention of 1.83 Meter. Both are same though.
So every grid line is 10 inches apart with this Grid spacing. There is another thing in the Home Grid Tab i.e. Major Lines every Nth Grid Lines.
For understanding this, let’s switch over to the Front view. If you now zoom out, you can see that the grid is made up of many squares, each of which is a made up of 10 unit square, since the ‘Major Lines every Nth Grid Lines’ is set to 10.
This is much more essential a grid spacing or setting for accurate architectural plan that the engineers draw. Since we don’t have the ‘Rulers’ as in Photoshop or After Effects, modelling in 3ds Max often requires such adjustments and the program has the options for use.
So you get the idea. Let’s now move on and start working on Freeform modelling in 3ds Max.
2. Working on the Freeform Panel for Modelling in 3Ds Max
2.1 Access the Panel – Set it under the Main Toolbar
Let’s move on by accessing the Freeform panel first. If you can’t find this, just right click on the area right beneath the Main Toolbar.
Quite a few panels are there and you want to check the Freeform on. Also click open the triangle right to the ‘Populate’ (see the bottom section of the above image). Select Minimize to Panel Buttons.
2.2 Draw a Plane – Why the size is kept at a miniature level?
Freeform modelling in 3Ds Max extensively use brush tool and that doesn’t work well at a large scale. What we’re doing here is create a plane of say 800 CMs and 800 CMs in length and width. It’s rather counterintuitive if we got to create a terrain quite few Kilometers long and wide. But we can always scale the plane to actual size when we’re through.
Also, at a dimension Kilometers long and wide, you would require huge system resources. We can safely scale the magnitude because 3Ds Max is a vector based program. That means there will be no loss of quality of the models for scaling them up.
- Length & Width are 800 centimeters each, with Length and Width segments 80 each too. It will create 6400 polygons and the brush tool is capable enough to work on these much of polygons.
- Change the Color to a neutral grey.
- Select the Move Tool and center it to the view port by putting 0 to the X, Y and Z all.
- Things are perfectly set for freeform modelling and all you have to do for this plane is Convert it to an Editable poly.
2.3 Convert To Editable Poly activates Freeform Panel for Modelling
Remember, if you don’t convert the plane to an editable poly, the Freeform panel with its all tool sets won’t activate. If you see the panel or the tools greyed out, get into the Modify section of the command panel.
Broadly, there are two sections of the tools in the panel for Freeform modelling in 3Ds Max. Let’s start with the one in the right, the Paint deform. Within Paint Deform, there are quite a few and we’ll start with the Push/ Pull button.
2.4 Using Paint Deform Brushes for Freeform modelling in 3ds Max
In the Paint options, Size controls the size of the brush, while strength controls how fast the the brush is painting over the surface.
2.4.2 How the ‘Offset’ in the Paint Options of Push/ Pull button works?
The ‘Offset’ controls the amount of deformation while painting. The lower the value, shorter the peaks while taller the peaks for a higher value. By default, it’s 4. I have created two paintings, one with a value of 2 and another with a value of 10.
Clearly, a higher Offset value results in a much more jagged push ups, while a lower value yields a shallower and smoother formation with almost no sharp change. This lets you have an immense control for surface painting.
I have changed the color to make the changes more evident.
2.5 Understanding the Commit, Cancel & Revert Button – For saving, erasing or getting back to a previous version while Painting
You see three button on the far right of the Paint Deform panel? They’re Commit, Cancel & Revert button from top to bottom respectively. I am stating their functions here, but leaving to you for practicing as they’re much more related to editing while painting with the brush.
Commit: It bakes you mesh, once you finalize you sculpting of a section. So make sure you finalize before baking. Because you can’t get back to a version prior once you baked it.
Cancel: It removes anything you sculpted, in entirety. Except the segment you have baked or committed. The ‘Cancel’ button removes an entire portion.
Revert: It makes you selectively remove a section that you want. Both Cancel and Revert button can delete portion up to stage immediately after Committing or Baking.
Before delving deeper in to other types of brushes, it’s important to know how you could save a certain brush type for future use. There are Paint options and Brush Options in the Freeform Modelling in 3Ds Max.
3. How to use the ‘Paint Options’ features for Freeform Modelling in 3ds Max?
Remember, we’re back with the Push/ Pull button selected, else the Paint Options with its parameters Size, Strength & Offset won’t show up. Also click on the Paint Options right at the bottom to make it remained fixed over the view port.
3.2 Cap Offset to limit the extent of deformation while sculpting in 3Ds Max
I find this Cap Offset extremely helpful. Why? The ‘Offset’ let you control the extent of deformation while sculpting. But by default, it infinitely creates deformity while using the paint brush as long as you keep drawing in the same location and that’s kind of inconvenient.
So what make checking the ‘Cap Offset’ button on is it caps the influence or stops deforming unless you lift your mouse up and start drawing again.
If you want to make the influence more pronounce, if have to release the mouse and rub the brush again. It certainly adds more control during 3D terrain creation.
To left left, I used the brush 4-5 times and then released. To the right, I used the brush more than the previous occasion, yet it produced a shallower with no more deformation. If I use the brush after releasing once, then it would create more deformation over the last session.
3.3 What is the Normal Direction in Paint Options for Freeform Modelling in 3Ds Max?
When you use a brush, rubbing over an object surface, it produces deformation in the direction of polygons if the Normal Direction in the Paint Options is set at Original, which is by default.
Apparently, you may think what is the big deal in the direction of deformation for these polygons. But it’s very important for material creation and modelling in 3Ds Max is not absolutely independent a procedure. You have to consider several factors while sculpting an object surface.
If the Normal Direction is set to Original, the deformation of the polygons may create artifacts which you can see the left side of the mountain. The polygons look quite jagged with sharp ups and downs here and there, leading to the geometries collapsing to each other.
This is because during the procedure of Paint Deformation the direction of Displacement is, by default, set to the object surface itself. So when you use the brush, by default with Normal Direction set to Original, the polygons of the surface tend to push into the surface too and that creates some anomalies.
And the good news is, you can control this function of the Normal Direction or distribution to different axis.
If you change this Normal Direction to the Transform Z, the deformation will result upward i.e. perpendicular to the terrain surface. These features in the Paint Options lets have finer control during Freeform Modelling in 3Ds Max, especially in the event of a detailed 3D terrain creation.
You may need to put some time to master this distribution of Normal in different direction during Freeform modelling in 3Ds Max.
4. Using the ‘Brush Options’ Freeform Modelling in 3ds Max
For a professional sculpting artist, it’s important to save brush preset, inside 3Ds Max’s Freeform Modelling tool set, for future use and to save time.
As before Pin down the Paint Options by clicking left to it. That way, the dialogue will remain fixed on the view port. Click on the Brush options and it will pop up a dialogue with many features we’ll discuss in the next segment.
When you’re through with all the settings and adjustment, you want the values or parameters to be saved. At this point you would click on the default section, marked above, and save the settings. There, you’ll see a default setting, reverting to that will bring you back the settings by default.
4.1 Painter Options or the Dialogue for finer control over the Brush Settings -Change the Shape of the Brush
With a Size 80, Strength 1 and Offset 10, I have produced a bulge on the surface. Look how the curve represents the bulge. The slope reflects half of the bulge, from center to the edge. That means when you change the curve in the brush options, it will change the brush shape, in one half. The other half will be the mirror on the other side.
4.2 Change the Curve for a steeper slope of the Brush Stroke
If you now change the curve, drawing its bezier or handle, you may get a new shape for the brush which can produce sharper peaks, instead of softer and wider bulge. But with the change in the curve slope, we have lost the Offset to an extent which we can compensate by cranking it up.
From an Offset of 10 to 50, you have got a much sharper peaks, in the left of the scene.
5. Save a Brush Setting, Load or Reset to the Default Brush Settings of Freeform Modelling in 3Ds Max
If you click on the Default button, it will pop up a window, where you can save your brush. This helps you during surface sculpting without having to test and create different types of brushes again and again. You can always comeback to the default brush settings. There is a text file, Default.txt inside the folder.
This folder is hidden somewhere in the Program folder.
Conclusion
Modelling in 3Ds Max offers hell lot of controls and we have just started scratching the surface. With so many controls and features, you like to have some time to practice and master the techniques of Freeform modelling for sculpting an object surface.
Using so many types of brushes, being able to adjust and tweak the brush settings and saving different brush of various size and shapes give you best possible combinations for 3D terrain creation and surface modelling in 3Ds Max.
In the next piece of this series, we’ll discuss other types of brushes of the Paint Deformation panel. More Functions mean a greater control over 3D sculpting.