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Modeling > Creating Surfaces > Creating spheres, cubes, cylinders, cones, planes

Creating spheres, cubes, cylinders, cones, planes


Preset surfaces are available for six commonly used shapes: sphere, cube, cylinder, cone, vertical plane, and horizontal plane.

To create a sphere, cube, cylinder, cone, or plane:
  1. Choose Modeling > Preset Surfaces, then select the type of surface you want to create.
  2. The surface appears in the center of the World.

  3. Translate, scale, or rotate the surface as needed. See Selections and manipulations.
  4. In the Parameter Editor, adjust its parameters. For information on common parameters, see Surface parameters. The following tables describe the parameters that are specific to the different preset surfaces.

Sphere Geometry Parameters

Radius

Determines the size of the sphere.

Subdivisions

A low number of subdivisions creates a very boxy shape (and a light model), whereas a high number of subdivisions creates a much smoother model (thus more points).

The horizontal subdivisions define the number of facets in longitude; the results will be most apparent in top view.

The vertical subdivisions define the number of facets in latitude; the results will be most apparent in front or right view.

Cube Geometry Parameters

Width

The size of the cube along the X axis.

Height

The size of the cube along the Y axis.

Depth

The size of the cube along the Z axis.

Cone Geometry Parameters

Height

Determines the height of the cone.

Width

Determines the diameter of the cone at its base.

Subdivisions

A low number of subdivisions creates a very boxy shape (and a light model), whereas a high number of subdivisions creates a much smoother model (thus more points).

The horizontal subdivisions define the number of facets in longitude; the results will be most apparent in top view.

The vertical subdivisions define the number of facets in latitude; the results will be most apparent in front or right view.

Cylinder Geometry Parameters

Height

Height of the cylinder.

Width

Diameter of the cylinder.

Top capping

Closes the top of the cylinder.

End capping

Closes the bottom of the cylinder.

Horizontal subdivisions

Number of facets along the cylinder's circumference. A low number of subdivisions creates a boxy shape, whereas a high number of subdivisions creates a smoother model. Increasing subdivisions increases the weight of the model
.

Vertical
subdivisions

Number of facets on the cylinder's Y axis. Increasing vertical subdivisions is useful if you want to bend the cylinder.

Plane Geometry Parameters (Horizontal and Vertical)

Subdivisions

The number of subdivisions along each axis. Increasing the number of subdivisions is useful if you plan to deform the plane or to improve the lighting on the surface. For more information, see Increasing subdivisions to improve lighting effect.


See also:

Modifying surfaces

Animating parameters

Copying parameters

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