Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
you can select it in a wireframe view. To add to a selection, hold the Shift key and click or lasso-select.
To remove something from the selection, hold the Ctrl/Control key and click on the elements you wish to
remove. These two options are mutually exclusive, so you can add or subtract from your selection without
fear of doing the opposite. Two additional keys that are helpful with general selections are the bracket keys.
The [ key inverts your selection, and the ] key selects everything connected to your current selection.
Selecting Loops
Selecting loops can be an important part of a good modeling workflow. Selection of edge loops is simple. As
previously mentioned, a double-click selects the loop. With points and polys, you have an additional step.
The L key selects a loop based on your current polygon or vertex selection. To define the direction in Vertex
mode, select two vertices. This defines the direction of the loop. Pressing the L key selects the loop. Loops
of polygons can also be selected in the same manner. Setting the direction by selecting two adjacent poly-
gons will enable you to invoke the loop selection with the L key. This also works with edges, but because an
edge is made up of two vertices, the direction is already defined. The left- and right-arrow keys will select
the next or previous loop of vertices, edges, or polygons on the object surface. Pressing and holding Shift
along with the left- or right-arrow key will add those loops to your current selection.
Pattern Selections
Modo can also select in patterns to speed up the modeling and editing process. For example, you can select
a polygon on a surface, skip a polygon, and then select the next polygon to
set the pattern. The up-arrow key adds to the pattern, and the down-arrow key subtracts from the pattern.
This works in instances where there is a simple, recognizable pattern. These patterns work with all compon-
ents (vertex, edge, and polygon). Holding Shift along with the up- or down-arrow key expands or shrinks
your selection, respectively. Expanding and shrinking the selections is done either by adding all of the adja-
cent elements to the outer edge of the selection or by removing the outer edge itself.
Another type of pattern is defined by two selected components. By choosing one polygon and then se-
lecting another polygon that is a few polygons away, you can select everything between those polygons by
using the Between command (from the Select menu) or with the Shift+G key shortcut. This works in a linear
fashion for vertices, edges, and polygons, but polygon selection also has additional functionality. By allow-
ing the two selected polygons to serve as maximum and minimum locations, the Between command will
create a selection grid between those polygons in two dimensions along the surface (see Figure 2-15 ).
Selection Sets
Sometimes you will spend a great deal of time precisely selecting groups of polygons, edges, or vertices.
In a dense mesh, this is a process that you would likely want to avoid repeating if possible. This is where
selection sets come in extraordinarily handy!
Figure 2-15: Two initial selections (left) and the resulting selection after running the Between command
(right)
 
 
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