intercol maps

2D and 3D maps

____________________________________________________________________________________

2D and 3D maps

There is a clear difference between 2D and 3D maps. 2D maps are defined by functions in the u and v domain, while 3D maps are defined by functions in the x, y, and z domain. A 2D map might be considered as a photograph that is glued onto an object. A 3D map might be considered as a volume of matter, and the 3D map on an object can be regarded as the object sculpted out of this volume of matter.

The following pictures show a clear difference between a 2D and a 3D map. 

Chessboard        A sphere sculpted out
shrink-wrapped    of a piece of
onto a sphere.    chess blocks.
Comments:
A 2D map depends on the coordinate system on the surface of an object (uv coordinate system). Transforming an object will always transform the 2D map with it.

A 3D map depends on the x-y-z coordinate system. Transforming an object will transform a 3D map only when it is assigned to the same tag or a lower tag in the GIG tree.

When a map is created in the Texture Editor the label of a Map Frame displays besides the map name also a text string such as "2D Map", "3D Map", or "2D - 3D Map". This tells the type of the map, whether it is a 2D map, 3D map, or a combination of both.

3D maps can be converted to 2D maps and vice versa. This might be done in GIG using the transform menu.

Related topics