Author Archives: Spot

time to learn python

no matter which 3d package you’re working with – it’s high time to get your hands dirty with python. while packages like blender, xsi and maya support this language natively, i’m pretty sure 3ds max will follow very soon, …

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automatic script sourcing on maya launch

if you have extended your maya with several mel scripts (if not, you certainly will one day!), it’s useful to source those automatically when launching maya, so you can access them right ahead instead of manually sourcing them whenever …

Posted in Maya, Plug-ins & Scripts, Tricks | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Target Weld Function In Maya

I was pretty surprised that Maya doesn’t offer the target weld function I was used to in 3ds Max, since this is a pretty basic feature for modelling. Luckily there’s a fine script extending Maya with exactly this functionality. …

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base your pivot

another little script that extends my personal collection of mel scripts i have permanently installed: base pivot. it centers and drops the pivot point of the selected object(s) to the bottom. works perfectly stable; worth adding to a hotkey …

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openexr rocks!

since i’ve tested some workflows for the post production of my upcoming short “border”, i came across the awesome openexr format. you can just save all your passes right into this image format and access them in post, if …

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renderman and the command line

i had to collect the renderman attributes i can access through the maya command line renderer in order to automate my rendering process using a batch file; it was like putting the pieces of a puzzle together, since the …

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occlusion pass with renderman

i was struggeling lately with renderman to get a nice occlusion pass rendered out separately. here are my exploration’s notes:

the most recent version (2.0.1) can not render out a separate pass without generating the final render pass at the …

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animator’s survival kit

i don’t have many books on my shelf that can stay there for a long time because they’re usually outdated very quickly as 3d software update cycle speeds are increasing more and more. but there are exceptions, one book …

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versatile maya outliner

some love the hypergraph, some the outliner in maya to access nodes, objects etc. i think both have their specific use and after using hypergraph for the longest time to do just everything, i recently discovered two neat features …

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compile your shader for renderman

i’m digging deeper into renderman and i started to create my own little shaders, first i had to get the shader compiler running, before i develop my own creations. this post will explain you how to easily compile a …

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