Quick Tip – Alpha Cut in 3ds Max
This is a really nice method to quickly cut an alpha hole into your CG scene so you can then easily composite any image into the alpha area. This technique can be used in many different situations, and I have personally used it in TV commercials and many of my personal projects for fun. Hopefully you will find this trick useful too!
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Note: click the ‘Monitor’ icon to view tutorial in full-screen HD.
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By Georgi Zahariev
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Nice tut
Thanks! for this tutorial. (3dMax Rules xD)
Nice tut, but I don´t understand right now why this is so important?! I mean if I delete these polygons I´ll get the same result?! Or am I wrong?
You would not get the same result with deleting. With Georgi’s way you would have shadows on the cut out areas.
If you only delete the polys the background will still be there and it won’t affect the alpha channel and you’ll have no transparency
Ah of course… Thanks
Good that it’s HD tutorial
Thanks.
Can this same affect be done with “matte/shadow” material using Mental Ray render instead of Vray?
I would like to know this aswell.
i wonder how this can be done with mental ray?
p.s. nice tut
nice tutorial, but please take out your drops next time;-)
Good Tip, it is very importan for some 3D works, Thanks!!
great tut, too bad i don’t have vray could be realy usefull
It’s even easier if you use a VrayMtlWrapper, alpha contribution -1 and just a default material for base material.
is there a way to do this with the mental ray render engine???
Yes, this technique will work with Mental Ray and also with the Scanline renderer. Just apply a Matte/shadow material to the polygons you want to have an transparent alpha. ake sure the matee/shadow material is set to receive shadows.