Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
Last updated on
16 May 2021
Learn the basics of the Medium Scene Graph.
The Scene Graph lets you:
- Toggle visibility of nodes in your scene.
- Select one or more nodes on which you want to perform an action (for exampe, select layers to combine).
- Rename nodes in your scene.
- Delete nodes from your scene.
- View the contents of your scene.
- View the hierarchy of nodes in your scene (parent-child relationships).
- Modify the hierarchy of nodes in your scene, creating parent child relationships with multi-select and drag-and-drop.
The Scene Graph can be repositioned (like any other menu in Medium). To do this, aim your Tool hand trigger at its border, squeeze the grip button and move your controller.
Note:
The Scene Editing Mode consists of a trio of menus: The Add Node Menu, the Action Menu (Selected Node Menu) and the Scene Graph. For information on the Add Menu and Action Menu see the Scene Editing Mode section.
What’s in Your Scene?
The most basic use of the Scene Graph is to see a list of all the nodes in your scene. The Scene Graph includes both nodes that have been added by Medium and nodes you have created yourself:
You must to select one or more nodes in for the Action menu to appear.
Select a Single Node
To perform an action on an element, you must to select it. To select a single element in the Scene Graph:
- Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
- Aim your Tool hand directly at the node and squeeze the trigger, or aim at the check box next to the node.
- When you select an element, a check mark appears in the check box next to its node, and a thin blue box appears around its node in the hierarchy. The Actions menu (described below) opens, showing the available actions you can perform on the element.
Note:
The active layer is always highlighted in green. This is the layer into which any new clay is applied. Selecting a single layer in the Scene Graph makes it the active layer.
Select Multiple Nodes
Sometimes, you might want to select multiple nodes in the Scene Graph, either to perform a common action on them (such as duplicating or deleting), or to perform an action that requires multiple nodes (such as merging two layers into one). To select multiple nodes in the Scene Graph:
- Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
- Aim your Tool hand directly at the node and squeeze the trigger to select the first element.
- Squeeze and hold the Support hand grip button, then select additional nodes. Medium draws a thin blue box around each element as it is selected.
As you select additional nodes, the options available on the Action menu update dynamically to show only the options that can be performed on all the selected nodes.
For example, if you select multiple layers, the Action menu looks something like this:
When multiple nodes are selected on the Scene Graph, the one you chose first appears on the Action menu. In the example above, while both “Layer 1” and “Layer 2” were selected, “Layer 1” was selected first. For some operations (such as Subtract), the order is significant (see below).
Note:
- The active layer is always highlighted in green. This is the layer into which any new clay is applied. When selecting multiple layers, the first layer selected in the Scene Graph becomes the active layer.
- If you select multiple layers and choose the Settings icon to edit Materials attributes, only the attributes of the first selected layer are updated.
If you select multiple nodes of different types, only operations that can be performed on both nodes. For example, if you select both a light and a layer, the Actions menu displays the following options:
- Settings (edits primary selected node).
- Manipulate transforms (edits all selected nodes).
- Visibility (all selected nodes).
- Duplicate (all selected nodes).
- Delete (all selected nodes).
Select Nodes Directly in the Scene
In addition to selecting nodes in the Scene Graph, you can select them directly in the scene:
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Aim your Tool hand directly at the object in the scene and squeeze the trigger when it is highlighted.
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Squeeze and hold the Support hand grip button to select additional nodes.
Note:As you select nodes in the scene, your selection is reflected in the Scene Graph. Additionally, The Action menu updates dynamically whether you select nodes from the Scene Graph or from the scene itself.
Toggle Visibility of Nodes in Your Scene
To toggle visibility of individual nodes in your scene:
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Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
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Aim your Tool hand at the eye icon next to the node whose visibility you want to toggle and squeeze the trigger.
Both layers visible. Both layers visible. Visibility turned off for the sphere. Visibility turned off for the sphere.
Note:
- You can hide Medium nodes (such as the Mirror plane) without turning off their effect. Meaning, you can sculpt with the Mirror option enabled and not have to see the plane if you don’t want to.
- If you make the active layer invisible, you can still sculpt into it. If you hear the sounds effects of the tool but don’t see anything happening to your sculpt, make sure that you are sculpting in the correct layer.
Lock Nodes in Your Scene
Locked nodes cannot be manipulated, and locked layers cannot be manipulated or sculpted To lock a node:
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Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
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Aim your Tool hand at the lock icon next to the node whose visibility you want to lock and squeeze the trigger.
Select the lock icon to lock a layer. Select the lock icon to lock a layer. The locked layer glows red. The locked layer glows red.
Note:
- The node will glow with a reddish tint when it is locked.
- All scene nodes can be locked. Global manipulation and actions/ settings will still be possible.
Rename Nodes in Your Scene
To rename a node in your scene:
- Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
- Select the node you want to rename.
- Select the Rename button in the lower right corner of the menu.
- Enter the node’s new name on the keyboard.
Rearrange the Hierarchy of Your Scene Nodes
You can use the Scene Graph to change the hierarchy of your scene by using both drag-and-drop and multiple selections.
To reparent nodes in your scene:
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Pull your Support hand thumbstick backward to open the Scene Graph.
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Select the node or nodes you want to move.
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Squeeze and hold the Tool hand trigger and drag the selected nodes over the target location in the scene hierarchy. As you drag the selected nodes, different target locations in the tree are highlighted in blue; when you hover over the target, it turns yellow, and if you release the node, it will be moved to that location.
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Release the trigger when the correct target location is highlighted.
Nodes you want to move Nodes you want to move Drag the selected nodes under the parent. Drag the selected nodes under the parent. -
You can place multiple nodes under a single parent (below left) or nest them into a hierarchy as needed (below right).
Single parent node. Single parent node. Nested nodes. Nested nodes.
Note:
- To change the order of the node, select the shorter blue bar under the target node (to the left).
- To reparent the node being dragged, select the longer blue bar under the target node (to the right).
- The World node is the root level; you cannot restructure it under another node.
What's Next?
Now that you have learned about the Scene Graph in Medium, check out Scene Editing Mode next.
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