Confused Newbie

stanlogan · 10th April 2007, 11:48 PM

Hi,

I didn't see a forum specifically for help, so I'm posting here. Hope that's ok.

I am trying out the demo. I know almost nothing about 3d modeling. [problem identified

]

I created a shape (one day might be a bat-like spaceship) by turning on real-time mirroring in Z, and using the line tool to outline half of the shape. Then I actually mirrored the outline, then extruded the whole thing a little bit to give it some depth. I managed to get everything skinned, and it seems to be what I thought I wanted. (The outline of the wings and body are made up of a number of surfaces, whereas the upper and lower wing/body surfaces are just one surface)

I am now trying to select the whole model and subdivide it, in the hope of obtaining a smoother shape. But the subdivide command isn't giving me what I expect - things seem to twist up in a way I don't think I can describe.

I checked the normals on my surfaces - they all seem to point outward.

It's probably obvious to someone that I've taken the wrong approach - but it's not obvious to me. Any ideas on what I should be doing to smooth my shape more correctly? Or how to start over and get what I want?

Thanks in advance,
Stan

10th April 2007, 11:48 PM	#1
stanlogan Junior Member Junior member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Southwestern Ohio, USA Posts: 6	Confused Newbie Hi, I didn't see a forum specifically for help, so I'm posting here. Hope that's ok. I am trying out the demo. I know almost nothing about 3d modeling. [problem identified ] I created a shape (one day might be a bat-like spaceship) by turning on real-time mirroring in Z, and using the line tool to outline half of the shape. Then I actually mirrored the outline, then extruded the whole thing a little bit to give it some depth. I managed to get everything skinned, and it seems to be what I thought I wanted. (The outline of the wings and body are made up of a number of surfaces, whereas the upper and lower wing/body surfaces are just one surface) I am now trying to select the whole model and subdivide it, in the hope of obtaining a smoother shape. But the subdivide command isn't giving me what I expect - things seem to twist up in a way I don't think I can describe. I checked the normals on my surfaces - they all seem to point outward. It's probably obvious to someone that I've taken the wrong approach - but it's not obvious to me. Any ideas on what I should be doing to smooth my shape more correctly? Or how to start over and get what I want? Thanks in advance, Stan