Advanced 3Ds Max 5[c] Modeling and Animating

Zooming commands are quite numerous in 3ds max, being used more frequently than other commands. Let's consider these commands in more detail.

The scaling mode, which allows you to re-scale the viewport view, can be selected by clicking the Zoom button on the navigation toolbar or by pressing the <Z> key. When using a three-button mouse, you can also perform this task by using the middle mouse button while simultaneously pressing the <Alt> and <Ctrl> keys. If you have an IntelliMouse, the mouse wheel can also be used. You may find the <[> and <]> keys most useful, however, which when pressed produce a twofold increase or decrease, respectively, in the viewport scale.

3ds max settings provide another particularly interesting feature — namely, the use of the cursor position as the center of viewport manipulation. The usefulness of this capability is a question of personal preference:

• Main menu à Customize à Preferences à Viewport à Zoom About Mouse Point

To zoom the view in all viewports, click the Zoom All button in the navigation panel.

To zoom a specific area, click an appropriate button on the Control panel, or press <Ctrl>+<W>.

Finally, the commands allowing you to zoom the current viewport or all viewports according to the size of all objects or the size of the selected objects/sub-objects (Zoom Extents, Zoom Extents Selected, Zoom Extents All) can be selected by clicking the appropriate buttons on the navigation panel or by pressing the following keyboard shortcuts, respectively: <Alt>+<Ctrl>+<Z>, <E>, <Shift>+<Ctrl>+<Z>.