Glossary

Maya Texturing
Glossary Maya Texturing

A
Axis
A hypothetical linear path around which an object can be rotated, or across which it can be mirrored.
In the Cartesian co-ordinate system, the three world axes, X, Y and Z (width, height and depth) define
directionality within the 3D universe. Hence, a co-ordinate of (0,0,0) defines the origin of the world.

B
Boolean
An object created by combining two objects using mathematical operators. The two objects may be
subtracted from one other, merged, or intersected to form the new object.
Bit
In computer science, the smallest amount of information possible: a binary value of either zero or one.
Each bit multiplies the amount of information stored by a factor of two.
One bit can express a decimal value from zero to one: 21 = 2 possible values.
Two bits can express a decimal value from zero to three: 22 = 4 possible values.
Eight bits can express a decimal value from zero to 255: 28 = 256 possible values.
24 bits can express a decimal value from zero to 16,777,215: 224 = over 16 million possible values.
Bitmap
A still image produced by a fixed matrix of pixels. Examples of bitmap file formats: .BMP (Microsoft
Bitmap), .GIF (Compuserve Graphics Interchange Format), .JPG (Joint Photographic Experts Group),
.TIFF (Tagged Image File Format), .TGA (Truevision Targa), .PNG (Portable Network Graphics).

C
CV
Control Vertex. A control point used to manipulate the shape of a NURBS curve.

D
Displacement Map
A recent advance on Bump Mapping. Like a Bump Map, a Displacement Map is a black-and-white
image that a 3D software package projects over the surface of a model to generate surface detail.
Unlike a bump map, however, a Displacement Map modifies the actual underlying geometry and is
not merely a rendering effect.

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Glossary Maya Texturing

E
Edge
The boundary between two faces of a mesh model. An edge is a straight line connecting two vertices,
and bounded by a face on either side.
Extrusion
A modelling technique in which a two-dimensional outline or profile is duplicated outwards along a
linear path, and the set of duplicated profiles joined to create a continuous three-dimensional surface.

F
Face
The front or back of an extruded object. The shape from which a 3D object has been extruded.

H
Hull
A series of straight lines connecting the CVs of a NURBS surface.
HDRI
Acronym for High Dynamic Range Imaging. HDRI provides a more realistic simulation of lighting
than previous techniques. It stores a much wider range of values to describe the brightness of pixels.
Standard bitmap images can typically reproduce a contrast ratio of about 1000 to 1. HDR images can
reproduce the full range of real-world light intensities, for contrast ratios in the range of 100,000 to 1.

L
Lofting
A modelling technique in which a continuous three-dimensional surface is created by selecting and
joining multiple two-dimensional cross sections or profiles.
Low-Poly Modelling
The process of creating simplified models with low polygon counts, usually for use in videogames,
where scenes must be rendered in real time, by software with a limited ability to handle complex models.

M
Morph
To transform from one state to another. Morphing is commonly used in lip-synching, in order to transform
the head model of a character between a variety of preset states (or ‘morph targets’), corresponding
to common facial expressions, in order to create the illusion of speech.

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Glossary Maya Texturing

Mesh
The surface geometry of a 3D model, made up of a series of linked geometry elements such as
polygons, patches or NURBS surfaces.

N
NURBS
Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines. NURBS curves are two-dimensional curves whose shape is determined
by a series of control points or CVs between which they pass. When a series of such curves are joined
together, they form a threedimensional NURBS surface. Such surfaces have a separate co-ordinate
space (known as UV co-ordinate space) to that of the 3D scene in which they are situated. NURBS
are commonly used to model organic curved-surface objects.
Normal
An imaginary line drawn from the centre of a polygon (or other geometry object) at right angles to the
surface.

P
Polygon
A geometry element formed by connecting three or more points. A triangle, or three-point polygon, is
the simplest form of polygonal geometry. Polygonal modelling is a fast, intuitive method of creating
3D objects, but does not easily generate smooth curved surfaces.
Patch
A deformable parametric surface, useful for creating curved objects. It can be based on Bezier or
NURBS mathematics. The curvature is controlled by the position of control vertices.
Perspective
Representation of a scene in which parallel lines are depicted as converging, in order to give the
illusion of depth and distance. Like an orthographic view, a perspective view is a projection of a 3D
scene onto a 2D screen. However, in a perspective view, the lines of projection converge on a virtual
camera, which is the simulated point of view.
Pivot Point
The center of an object’s transforms, and the center of its local coordinate system. An object moves,
rotates, and scales relative to the location and orientation of its pivot point. Also known as “anchor
point” in some computer applications.

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Pixel
Abbreviation of picture element: the smallest possible element of a picture. A digital image is defined
by a discrete number of pixels arranged in a 2D grid or mosaic. Many very small pixels blend together
in the human eye and brain to give the illusion of a continuous, unbroken image.

R
Resolution
The size of the final image in pixels when rendering out a scene. Higher resolution renders contain
more detail, but take longer to complete.
Reflection
Map An environment map used to simulate real-world reflection effects on the surface of a 3D object.
Reflection maps render more quickly than methods that generate true surface reflections, such as
raytracing.

S
Scene
A set of 3D objects, including the models themselves and the lights and camera that will be used when
rendering them out.
Specularity
is a surface property of an object that determines the way in which highlights appear on that surface.

T
Texture
A bitmap image that is applied to the surface of 3D object to give it detail. Texture maps may be either
photographic images or procedural textures, and may be applied in each of the material channels of
an object using a variety of mapping or projection methods.
Tiling
The process of duplicating a texture across the surface of an object. Tiling textures must be created
so that the edge of one aligns perfectly with that of its neighbor, otherwise the result is a series of ugly
seams. High frequency textures are those in which patterns repeat at short intervals over an object’s
surface; low-frequency textures are those in which the intervals are larger.

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Glossary Maya Texturing

U
UV Texture Co-ordinates
The co-ordinate system used for assigning textures to polygonal models. Since UV co-ordinate space is
two-dimensional, one of several projection methods must be used to ‘unwrap’ the UVs from the model
and lay them flat on a plane. Once unwrapped, the UV map may be screen grabbed and exported to
a paint package for texture painting

W
Wireframe
A shading method in which a simple grid of lines is used to represent the basic contours of the underlying
model. For many 3D artists, this is a favoured mode to work in, since it permits them to see faces and
surfaces that would otherwise be hidden by overlying geometry.

3D
Three-dimensional. Descriptive of a region of space that has width, height and depth.

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