Mathieson Facer - Technical Director
StretchTM is a useful property found on nodes, but it is somewhat hidden. It is particularly useful for bones.
In this video I cover two uses of the StretchTM matrix. I show how you can set up bones to stretch along with another bone, as well as how to change the wirecolor of a bone based on how far it has been stretched.
Max does not allow you to copy/paste parameter wires, as it does with most other controller types. This is still capable, however, through MAXScript.
This video shows you how to go about creating an instance (cake walk) and unique copy. When creating a unique copy, it copies the controller but the wire no longer updates along with it’s targeted track. Really, all the copy needs is a kick in the butt to get it to start working again.
This can really help improve workflow, as it allows you to set up instances of wires throughout your rig and easily copy from one track to the next rather than manually connecting each time.
I’ve always found mirroring FFD Spacewarps to be a real pain. I finally decided to play a bit earlier today to try to find a good way of doing it rather than settling for a negative scale in the x-axis or roughing out a “mirrored” version.
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This tutorial will show you how to get Z-Depth and fog in compositing out of the same render pass. It will also show you how to tweak your fog without having to go back and re-render from your 3d package. The tutorial is aimed at beginner to intermediate level compositors. The technique for getting Z-Depth and fog from the same render pass is not recommended for all situations but is definitely helpful if you have limited resources and cannot afford to render passes for both.
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Many character rigs require both stretchy limbs and twist bones in the same appendage. It can be tricky to get these two things working in unicen, and there are many different methods. I am going to show you the technique I have been using as of late. I prefer this method because it is very straight forward, easy to set up and easy to maintain.
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