Lock Vertex Normal
Description:
In Autodesk Maya, the vertex normal locking function allows the preservation of custom vertex normals even after face triangulation or move vertex away. In Blender, there is currently no equivalent functionality. When triangulating faces or move vertex, Blender recalculates the vertex normals, causing a loss of custom normal orientations. This results in shading inconsistencies and requires additional manual work to correct the normals, affecting production efficiency.
Impact on Studio Workflow:
Our studio is currently in the process of switching our asset production pipeline to Blender. However, the absence of a vertex normal locking feature is a critical concern for us. This feature is essential to our workflow, and its absence may cause us to reconsider the full transition to Blender.
Expected Behavior:
The ability to lock custom vertex normals, similar to Maya’s vertex normal lock. This would allow continuity in shading without manual correction.
We would be happy to provide example files or additional details to help with development. Thank you for your consideration and ongoing work to improve Blender.
Best regards,
Khoi Van Technical Artist, GlassEgg - a Virtuos Studio
2 Comments
There is a Set Mesh Normal node in Geometry Nodes. With the help of that, it would be possible to capture the original Normals and use them, for example, after triangulation.
It could also be possible to store the Normals of mesh as a Named Attribute and then, with Geometry Nodes modifier, retrieve those after, for example, moving vertices, etc. A simple Node Tool or script could be used for storing the normals.
In both situations you could use selections to retrieve only some of the normals, which might be useful in some cases.
There might be also simpler workflows that I'm not aware of.
Yes, I'm using Custom Triangulate geometry node which store the normal before triangulate then Set Mesh Normal after and that work.
Developing a custom script or Geometry Nodes solution is a possible workaround, the ideal approach would be to have a built-in vertex normal locking feature similar to Maya. This would eliminate the need for additional scripts or nodes, ensuring a more streamlined and reliable workflow.