Select Background Image Dialog

The Select Background Image dialog allows you to choose a file or sequence of files for a viewport background.

Cityscape model with a sky image used as the viewport background

You can also convert a set of sequentially numbered files to an Image File List (IFL). This is the same process used by the IFL Manager Utility.

Procedures

To select a background image for a viewport:

  1. Activate the viewport where you want the image.
  2. Choose Views menu Viewport Background Viewport Background.
  3. Under Background Source in the dialog that displays, click Files.
  4. In the Look In field, navigate to the directory containing the file you want to use for the background.
    Note: The Select Background Image File dialog uses the last location where a bitmap was chosen, rather than the default bitmap path defined on the Configure User Paths dialog.
  5. Highlight the file name in the file list window.
  6. Click Open to select the image and close the dialog.
  7. Click OK to close the Viewport Background dialog and display the background image.

To select a set of still images as a viewport background:

  1. Activate the viewport where you want the image.
  2. Choose Views menu Viewport Background Viewport Background.
  3. Under Background Source, click Files.
  4. In the Look In field, navigate to the directory containing the sequence of files.

    The files must be sequentially numbered (for example, image01.bmp, image02.bmp, image03.bmp).

    Tip: If necessary, change Files Of Type to match the file extension of the sequence, or choose All Formats.
  5. Turn on Sequence, and choose the name of the first sequential file (for example, image01.bmp).
    Tip: Click the Setup button to display the Image File List Control dialog.
  6. In the Image File List Control dialog, use the Browse button to set the Target Path to a directory on your hard disk. Do not set this path to a CD-ROM drive, because you cannot save the file there.
  7. Choose the options you want, and then click OK.

    The Image File List (IFL) file is saved to the target directory.

Interface

History
Displays a list of the directories most recently searched.
Look In
Opens a navigation window to move to other directories or drives.
Go to Last Folder Visited
Click to return to the folder you previously browsed to.
Up One Level
Move up a level in the directory structure.
Create New Folder
Lets you create a new folder while in this dialog.
View Menu
Lets you choose the level of detail to display in the file list.
[list window]
When Details is on, the contents of the directory are displayed with Name, Size, Type, Date Modified, and Attributes. You can sort the files by clicking the label of each parameter.
File Name
Displays the name of the file selected in the list.
Files of Type
Displays all the file types that can be displayed. This serves as a filter for the list.
Name template
This is unavailable in Select Background Image.
Open
Selects the highlighted file and closes the dialog.
Cancel
Cancels the selection and closes the dialog.
Devices
Lets you select a background image from a digital device. (No device is supported by the default 3ds Max installation.)
Setup
Displays the Image File List Control dialog to create an IFL file. Available only when Sequence is on and there are sequentially numbered files in the displayed directory.
Info
Displays expanded information about the file, such as frame rate, compression quality, file size, and resolution. The information here is dependent on the type of information that is saved with the file type.

If the file has an embedded value, this dialog displays that value. Otherwise, it displays "N/A".

View
Displays the file at its actual resolution. If the file is a movie, the Media Player is opened to play the file.

Gamma group

To set up gamma options for the output file, Enable Gamma Correction must be on in the Gamma panel of the Preferences dialog (Customize Preferences Gamma). Otherwise, the Gamma controls are unavailable on the Select Background Image dialog.

Gamma
Specifies how to handle gamma with the bitmap image.
  • Automatic (Recommended) (The default.) Uses the gamma value embedded in the incoming bitmap. If there is no embedded gamma value, 3ds Max makes an intelligent decision based on the image's bit depth. Low-dynamic-range images (8- or 16-bit) are assumed to have the standard sRGB gamma of 2.2, and high-dynamic-range (floating-point or logarithmic) images are assumed to be linear and use a gamma of 1.0 (no correction).

    For most scenes, you should leave the gamma-handling set to Automatic.

  • Override Sets a user-defined gamma value as an override.
    Note: Use override only if your scene uses bitmaps created (or edited) by a variety of other programs, and you need to adjust the gamma differently for each program.

[Sequence and Preview group]

Sequence
Creates an "Image File List" to your specifications. Each selected image is checked to see if a valid IFL sequence can be created. If the selected image doesn’t yield a list, this option is still available, but doesn’t do anything.
Preview
Displays the image as a thumbnail in the Image Window.
Image Window
Displays a thumbnail of the selected file if Preview is on.
Statistics
Displays the resolution, color depth, file type and number of frames of the selected file.
Location
Displays the full path for the file. With this information at the bottom of the dialog, you always know exactly where you are.
Parent topic: Background Panel