Bezier curves are a subset of NURBS curves that are composed of two types of control vertices, anchors and tangents. Anchors lie on the curve and determine the origin of tangents. Tangents determine the shape of the curve leading to an adjacent anchor.
Add/Remove anchors
To add an anchor on an existing curve
- Select the Bezier curve.
- Right-click on the curve and select Curve Point from the marking menu.
- Click the curve where you want to insert an anchor.
- Select
.
Maya inserts an anchor into the curve with a pair of tangents.
To append anchors to the end of an existing curve
- Select the curve you want to append to.
- Select
or click the
Bezier Curve Tool icon (
) in the
Curves/Surfaces shelf.
- Click the last anchor in the curve.
The last anchor is always the end point of the curve that is not yellow.
- Click (or click-drag) anywhere in the scene.
An anchor appears and is connected to the curve.
To remove an anchor
- Right-click on the curve and select Control Vertex from the marking menu.
- Select the anchor.
- Press Delete.
The anchor is deleted.
Note: You cannot remove tangents the same way as removing an anchor. For more information, see the Add/Remove tangents section, below.
Add/Remove Tangents
If you created an anchor by clicking (rather than click-dragging) the scene, the anchor does not have any tangents by default. However, you can add a pair of tangents manually.
To add tangents to an anchor
- Select the anchor that you want to add tangents to.
- Shift + right-click and select either
Bezier or
Bezier Corner from the
Marking Menu.
- To create an unbroken pair of tangents, select Bezier.
- To create a broken pair of tangents, select Bezier Corner.
A pair of tangents appear attached to the selected anchor.
You can also remove tangents to create sharp corners.
To remove tangents
- Select the anchor that you want to remove tangents from.
- Shift + right-click.
-
A pair of tangents appear attached to the selected anchor.
- Select
Corner from the
Marking Menu.
The tangents are removed.