Welcome to my third tutorial in this series as a beginner we have covered basic texturing and modelling plus some other key features such as keyboard short cuts and some tools that you will use often.
The next step is to teach you how to import a file as a texture, also in this scene we will use pre built textures to create a floor.
Firstly you need to have completed both of my last tutorials for this one to work so if you haven't please find them on here (tutorial 1) and here (tutorial 2). There are two before this one to complete search for the key word maya.
Above is the image of the scene we will complete at the end of this tutorial, so lets get started please open up maya 7.
Now we have opened the trash can scene we need to make some changes, firstly move the camera view in the perspective view so its something like above, don't worry if your polygon plane floor doesn't fit in the view we will be making this bigger next.
Now we need to select the sky polygon plane in the front view, press R in the front or side view and with the green scale box make the sky bigger so it fits perfectly in our resolution gate (if you cant see your resolution gate in your perspective view go view > camera settings > resolution gate. In the perspective view menu). This will make the sky fill the screen for our render, then go to the top view select the polygon plane floor and press R and with the blue scale tool make the floor big enough to cover the resolution gate.
You should have something looking like the image above, now we have the sky and floor plus the camera in the right place its time to move on.
Its time to begin naming our objects, technically you should have done this at the beginning but back then I thought I was doing the one tutorial it didn't matter but now it does, open up your outliner window > outliner and lets begin naming the objects, click on a object or a group in the outliner and look in the perspective view to see what the object is, double click the name in the outliner type in a new one and press enter, do this with all the objects and groups until you have named them all, then using CTRL and LEFT mouse button click on all the objects associated with the trash can and press CTRL and G to group them, then rename the group trash can object.
Now we have everything named it will make everything a lot easier now, right moving on I believe the floor is way to boring for this scene and it needs something to make it more interesting so I decided to add paving slabs, so go create > polygon primitives > cube.
With the cube go into the outliner and name it paving slab, then in the top view press R and using the yellow scale tool box in the middle of the cube scale the cube until its just bigger then the width of the trash can aaround all sides. Then in the front or side view press R and with the green scale tool box scale the cube so its thin enough to look like a paving slab, this is your own personal choice of size.
Now we have one paving stone in the top view port press W and click the yellow box in the centre of the object and move it into the one of the corners of the scene so its got a tiny gap between the sky and the edge of the scene, then press CTRL and D to duplicate and then with the blue move arrow tool move it just above the last one with a tiny gap, repeat this until you have done a full row of paving slabs.
Now select all the paving slabs in the outliner and press CTRL and G to group them name the group paving slabs row, then go modify > centre pivot now press CTRL and D this will duplicate the entire row, press W and with the red move arrow move the paving slab row across from the last row you created but leave a small gap between them, then with the blue move arrow tool move them downwards so that the centre of the paving slabs is inline with the gap between the other row.
Now select both rows in your outliner press CTRL and D and in your top view press E and with the red tool shift them across so that there across from the others but with a little gap between, repeat this until you have covered the floor in paving slabs, in the outliner select all the groups of paving slabs rows and CTRL and G them name he group pavement and there is the floor it will look something like this below.
