Creating a Hotkey to Hide Part of Your Model

Hello. In this tutorial we will look at how you can use a macro to create a hotkey for hiding part of your model.

We will use topological masking instead of polygroups because they are fast and easy to use on the fly. I can quickly create a mask that represents the area I want to hide by pressing R, then CTRL + click and drag on the surface.

You can learn more about topological masks here.

In this tutorial we will use a macro to do the following:

• Invert the mask
• Hide the unmasked parts of the model
• Return us to Draw mode

Creating the Macro

1. First, start off with a mask on your model. For a humanoid character, press R for rotate and then hold CTRL down and click and drag from the pectorial muscle to the bicep. This should leave the arms unmasked
2. Start the macro recording by pressing Macro: New Macro
3. Press Tool: Masking: Inverse
4. Press Tool: Masking: HidePt
5. Press Transform: Draw Pointer or Draw on the top shelf
6. Finish the macro by pressing Macro: End Macro
7. Save it in the ZBrush root directories ZStartup/Macros/Misc folder

Creating the Hotkey

1. Hold CTRL and click on the macro in the Macro palette
2. Immediately press the hotkey or combo you want assigned. In my case, I pressed CTRL and “H” to assign CTRL+H to it
3. Store the hotkeys for later use by pressing Preference: Hotkeys: Store

And there you have it. You know have a hotkey that will take the mask you have created and use it to hide part of your model. I find this very useful when working on the torso of my models or the insides of individual legs.

Happy ZBrushing!

Ryan