Centering a viewport in Maya can refer to several things, depending on what you want to center it on. Here are a few common scenarios and how to accomplish them:
Centering on the Origin (0,0,0)
This is often what people mean when they ask about centering the viewport. Maya doesn't have a direct "center viewport on origin" button, but here's how you can easily achieve it:
- Create something at the origin: A simple way is to create a primitive object (e.g., a cube) and ensure its Translate X, Y, and Z values are all set to 0 in the Channel Box.
- Frame the object: Select the object you just created (or any object at the origin).
- Press 'A' key: Pressing the 'A' key ("Frame All") will automatically adjust the camera view in the active viewport to encompass all objects in the scene, effectively centering the view around the origin if that's where your object is. You can also go to View > Frame All from the viewport menu.
- Delete the object (optional): If you only created the object for centering purposes, you can now delete it. The view will remain centered until you navigate away.
Centering on a Selected Object
If you want to center the viewport's focus on a specific object, use the following:
- Select the object: Click on the object in your scene you want to focus on.
- Press 'F' key: Pressing the 'F' key ("Frame Selected") will adjust the camera view to focus on the selected object. You can also go to View > Frame Selection from the viewport menu. This centers the view on the selected object.
Recentering After Orbiting
Sometimes you might orbit around an object and want to quickly return to a centered view:
- Frame the selection again: Select the object (or something close to it) and press 'F' again to re-center your view.
Using the Camera's Center of Interest
Maya cameras have a "Center of Interest" attribute. This is the point the camera orbits around.
- Select the camera: In the Outliner, select the camera you're using in your viewport.
- Adjust Center of Interest: In the Attribute Editor, find the "Center of Interest" attribute under the camera's shape node. You can numerically change the X, Y, and Z values to position it where you want the camera to orbit around. Moving the Center of Interest directly affects the camera's position. It's effectively changing the pivot point for the camera's orbital motion. The point is represented by a small "plus" symbol in the scene.
These methods should cover the most common scenarios for centering your viewport in Maya. Remember to use the "Frame All" ('A' key) and "Frame Selected" ('F' key) commands frequently for efficient navigation.
