All images from Maya 2008 Character Modeling and Animation: Principles and Practices by Tereza Flaxman.

VFXWorld continues excerpting a new series from the Thomson Course Technology book Maya 2008 Character Modeling and Animation. VFXWorld readers will take on the challenge of animating realistic and compelling characters using the latest version of Maya, the powerful 3D graphics and modeling software. Excerpts will show beginning to intermediate animation students and enthusiasts how to create professional quality characters, explaining the full character animation process from pre-production to final full body and facial animation.

In the prior excerpt, we discussed how to create NURBS curves, which are the basis of NURBS modeling. This excerpt shows how to edit NURBS curves, including attaching, snapping, cutting and rebuilding curve segments.

NURBS curves have a distinct beginning and end. The first CV is represented by a square box, and the second one is represented by the letter U, indicating the curve direction, as shown in Figure 1. Curve directions become very important when using curves to generate surface geometry, as will be described momentarily.

Attaching, Snapping and Detaching Curves
To conveniently create the profile of a complex object, it is sometimes necessary to use multiple NURBS curves. Fortunately, NURBS curves can be attached and detached as necessary.

[Figure 1] Letter U indicating the curve direction.

1. Press Ctrl+N to create a new scene.
2. Press F4 to go to the Surfaces menus.
3. Select Create > CV Curve Tool.
4. In Front view, click eight times anywhere on the screen to create a curve as shown in Figure 2.
5. Right-click the curve and select Edit Points.
6. Click the third EP to select it, as shown in Figure 3.
7. Select Edit Curves > Detach Curves Option Box.
8. In the option box, make sure Keep Original is not checked.
9. Click the Detach button. Notice that you have two curves now, as shown in Figure 4.