Modeling preferences

You can set the following preferences in the Modeling category of the Preferences window.

To return to the default factory settings, choose Edit > Restore Default Settings in this window. Note that this resets the preferences in every category in the Preferences window.

Output Geometry Type

Output geometry as

These settings determine the type of geometry created from modeling actions such as Revolve, Loft, Extrude, Fillet Blend, and so forth. Setting it here affects all applicable modeling actions. Otherwise, select Mixed to use the individual settings of each modeling action.

NURBS Interaction

Interaction mode

Specify whether you want certain NURBS modeling commands to behave like actions or tools. An action performs a discrete function on selected objects. A tool lets you manipulate objects until you complete the operation. You may want to change actions to tools as you become proficient at Maya’s NURBS modeling.

To globally change the applicable modeling tools, select Everything is a Tool or Everything is an Action. To individually set each command, select Mixed.

Polygons

Convert component selection

Turn on Convert component selection to have Maya automatically convert an object selection to the appropriate component selection mode if an action works only on components.

For example, if you select a polygonal object and try to extrude faces, Maya automatically selects all the faces on the object and proceed.

Create meshes single sided

When this is turned on, new polygonal meshes (for example, created by the polygon primitive tools or by polygonal operations) automatically have their Render Stats > Double Sided attribute turned off.

Smart command settings

Modifies polygon settings based on the kind of action being performed:

You have the following options:

• Sets display attributes to show polygon components relevant to the action (for instance, displaying normals or border edges).
• Sets the selection mask to objects/components appropriate for the action.
• Sets selection constraints that make sense for the action.

Automatic vertex color display

When enabled, Maya automatically modifies the following settings to make vertex colors visible:

• Viewport shading mode is set to Smooth Shade All.
• The active object's Mesh Component Display > Display Colors attribute is turned on.

Automatic vertex color display is enabled by default.

Keep faces together

Specifies whether you want to retain the edge of each individual face or only those faces along the border edges of the selection. See Keep Faces Together.

Vertex Normal Method

Lets you set a default vertex normal method for polygon meshes.

Unweighted

This method takes the normal from each connected face and adds them together. This was Maya's default method pre-2013. Select this preference if you want to match files from older versions of Maya.

Angle Weighted

This method calculates the angle of the corners of the polygons, and uses that as weight.

Area Weighted

This method uses the surface area of each adjacent face as weight. As a result, small polygons have little influence on the result and large polygons have a great influence on the result.

Angle and Area Weighted

This method combines the Angle Weighted and Area Weighted methods of evaluation. This is the default method.

Subdivision Method

Sets the global subdivision method for all existing and new objects in smooth mesh preview mode. See Smooth mesh preview overview.

Maya Catmull-Clark

Smooths the faces of a mesh using Maya LT's implementation of the Catmull-Clark algorithm.

For more information see Maya Catmull-Clark Controls.

OpenSubdiv Catmull-Clark

(Default) Applies a uniform refinement scheme to the faces of a mesh, subdividing the entire mesh by the same amount. See OpenSubdiv overview.

For more information on the OpenSubdiv Catmull-Clark options, see OpenSubdiv Controls.

OpenSubdiv Catmull-Clark Adaptive

Applies a progressive refinement scheme to irregular parts of your mesh, like extraordinary points and semi-sharp creases, subdividing only those areas where detail is needed.

Adaptive subdivision is evaluated entirely on the GPU, giving you performance gains and providing you with a WYSIWYG experience. For example, animators can now work with a visually rich mesh instead of a simple polygonal approximation, and visual feedback, like displacements, eliminates guess work during the creative process.

Note: OpenSubdiv Catmull-Clark Adaptive is only supported by OpenGL 4 and DirectX11 compatible graphics cards.

Polygon Tangent Space

Allows you to control how Maya sets tangent space for all the meshes in your scenes. For more information on Polygon Tangent Space, see Tangent Space.

Quad Draw

Lists the hotkey mappings for the Quad Draw tool. For a list of the default mappings, see Quad Draw hotkeys.

Presets

Default

Maya uses the default Quad Draw hotkey mappings.

Note: Select this option to reset the mappings to the default settings.

Custom

Maya uses a customized set of Quad Draw hotkey mappings.

3D Paint

Rename Textures

When on, Maya creates a new subdirectory in the sourceimages folder of the set Maya project. The subdirectory takes the name of the current Maya scene file. Maya copies existing file textures to the new subdirectory and these become the working 3D painted textures The scene must be saved before textures can be saved. File nodes are re-pathed to the active 3D painted textures while the originals are preserved and no longer used in the scene.

When off, the original file node textures are updated when 3D Paint saves.