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Precision and Drawing Aids

3ds Max provides tools that give you control over the positioning and alignment of objects in 3D space.

With these tools, you can do the following:

  • Choose display units from the most common real-world measuring systems or define your own.
  • Use the home grid as a construction plane, or use grid objects to position custom construction planes.
  • Select different options to align objects with grids, points, and normals.
  • Use 3D object snaps on a modeless dialog as you build and move geometry in your scene. Grid points and lines are among the many snap options.
  • Use "helper objects" in your work. This category includes grid objects as well as objects used for positioning and measurement.

Various drawing aids:

Upper left: Aligning objects to grids

Upper right: Aligning objects to each other

Bottom: Using a Tape helper to measure distance

Topics in this section
  • Tools for Precision
    A set of interrelated tools in 3ds Max gives you precise control of the scale, placement, and movement of objects in your scene. These are especially important tools for those who build precise models in real-world units of measurement.
  • Using Units
    Units are the key to connecting the three-dimensional world of 3ds Max with the physical world. You define the units you want to use from the Units Setup dialog.
  • Using Grids
    Grids are two-dimensional arrays of lines similar to graph paper, except that you can adjust the spacing and other features of the grid to the needs of your work.
  • Alignment
    3ds Max provides a range of tools for aligning objects. This section includes a couple of brief introductory topics to alignment in 3ds Max; for specific information on the available alignment functions, see Align Flyout and Clone and Align Tool.
  • Using Snaps
    Standard snaps give you control in creating, moving, rotating, and scaling objects. You access the 3ds Max snap features from buttons on the main toolbar.
  • Helpers
    Helper objects play a supporting role, like stagehands or construction assistants.
  • Drawing Assistants
    The tools and utilities described in this section can help with drawing and precision. The xView toolset gives you visual feedback for a variety of mesh-object metrics. The Measure Distance tool lets you quickly calculate the distance between two points. The Measure utility returns the measurements of a selected shape or 3D object. And the Rescale World Units utility rescales either a selection or an entire scene.

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