Are NURBS a thing of the past?

Maya 2020 fundamentals - modelling the real world

Get halfway through a model and find it's an unworkable mess? Can't add edge loops where you need them? Can't subdivide a mesh properly? If any of this sounds familiar check this course out.

Watch

# 1 15-01-2004 , 03:03 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2004

Posts: 40

I am fairly new to Maya, and have been learning NURBS modeling the last few months. NURBS are not really hard to use, but things like trim and attach surface drive me up the wall. Maya keeps saying NO! after I trim or attach once or twice on a object. I never have figured out what the rules are, or why it limits my attachments and trims.

So the other day I read something about the fact that some 3d movie houses are going all Poly and sub-d modeling now. It seems that sub-d modeling is slowly filling the NURBs modeling needs.

So, does this mean NURBS are going out of use, and that a person should concentrate on modeling with polys and sub-ds? Maybe I should just start modeling in polys and sub-ds for my scenes and forget NURBS.

Kori

Quote

# 2 15-01-2004 , 03:05 AM

Registered User
Join Date: May 2002

Location: Niagara Falls, Canada

Posts: 5,310

I find it so much easier to acheive what i want in polys and sub-ds, but nurbs are still used a lot in the film industry.

I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination, knowledge is limited, imagination encircles the world. (Albert Einstein)

https://www.artstation.com/kurtb

Quote

# 3 15-01-2004 , 03:37 AM

The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002

Location: Seattle, WA

Posts: 8,245

I personally DO think Nurbs are becoming less and less a priority. In earilier days, when you smoothed a polygon character a time or two, it was literally impossible to work with the sucker, hence the importance of Nurbs.

These days, that's not necessarily so much a big deal. Of course, Nurbs always have their pros that go along with their cons. I usually use them for eyeballs and the like.

-Mike
The Maya Toolbelt

Quote

# 4 26-01-2004 , 04:05 AM

Simply Maya OG
Join Date: Dec 2002

Location: Queensbury NY, US A

Posts: 1,438

Everythings going polys. NURBS are too much of a hassle (IMO). Polys are simply. Plus, they are used in games. I started out using NURBs, and converted over to polys, cause its so much easier for me. Plus, I never could figure out how to texture nurbs all too great ne ways. Heh. user added image

- Hybrid

Quote

# 5 27-01-2004 , 03:57 AM

Subscriber
Join Date: Jul 2002

Location: Western Australia

Posts: 510

And sub-d is the best of both worlds - smooth like NURBS, and almost as user-friendly as poly's. However complex models are a bit of a strain on viewport performance.

Take a glance at my <a href="https://forums.simplymaya.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=9428"><b>Porsche 959</b></a> WIP

Quote

# 6 30-01-2004 , 01:15 PM

Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2002

Posts: 3

look at the article on alias.com.. weta basically ditched nurbs all together and went subD... Gollum in fact is a subD and right there says it all.

timothy

Quote

# 7 30-01-2004 , 01:18 PM

Moderator
Join Date: Sep 2002

Location: London, UK

Posts: 3,198

I find nurbs good for roughing out big shapes. Usually I convert to polys at some point though...

Kari
- My Website
- My IMDB

Do a lot, Fail a lot and Learn a lot!

Quote

# 8 31-01-2004 , 03:24 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2003

Location: New York, USA

Posts: 1,945

Whats Gollum?

Ive never used nurbs except for a mel that turns curves to tubes... but even then its rarely.

________________________
AIM: SublimeDragon33
Catch me if i'm on. Always up for a chat.
e-mail: sublimedragon33@gmail.com

Quote

# 9 01-02-2004 , 05:36 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2003

Location: 20 minutes from Bioware HQ

Posts: 110

ive never done much in theway of animations so far, but how would you lip sync gollum in polygons? wouldnt NURBS have the advantage there?

Quote

# 10 01-02-2004 , 05:40 AM

The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002

Location: Seattle, WA

Posts: 8,245

it'd work pretty much the same, really.

-Mike
The Maya Toolbelt

Quote

# 11 01-02-2004 , 05:56 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2003

Location: 20 minutes from Bioware HQ

Posts: 110

but with NURBS you can smoothly and easily warp, lets say, a pair of lips, but with polygons, how would you distort the lips smoothly?

Quote

# 12 01-02-2004 , 05:57 AM

The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002

Location: Seattle, WA

Posts: 8,245

polygons can smoothly and easily warp as well. It's just a matter of smoothing the model afterwards for rendering and the quality of the topology of the model.

-Mike
The Maya Toolbelt

Quote

# 13 01-02-2004 , 06:04 AM

Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2003

Location: 20 minutes from Bioware HQ

Posts: 110

will this work for key framing animations?

Quote

# 14 01-02-2004 , 06:22 AM

The Maya Mountain
Join Date: Aug 2002

Location: Seattle, WA

Posts: 8,245

wouldn't see why not. Literally, you can use either geometry type for any situation. One just might be easier than another, depending on the scenario.

-Mike
The Maya Toolbelt

Quote