Re: Flat-shading Faces

Perfect, that is actually a Normals' issue. You should definetely go and read
about edge normals.

Anyway, it's pretty simple.

Start considering a simple polygon made of two square faces, they share an edge
and those faces form and angle.
Maya renders that edge considering it a sharp one only if the angle between the
two faces is more than a specific value, otherwise renders it as a soft edge.
You set that edge Normal angle threshold with:
- select the edge (or an entire object);
- Nor
mals -> Set Normal Angle -> Enter an angle value.

By setting that angle threshold to 0 you make the edge hard (no matter which
angle the two faces form, because it will always be greater than 0).
By setting it to a positive value (e.g. 30), you make the edge hard only if the
angle between the two faces is greater than 30.

See picture plane_normals.jpg
Both polygons have identical geometry but the middle edge of polygon A has been
given a normal angle of 90, while the middle edge of polygo
n B has been given a Normal angle of 0.