LightWave 3D 8 Cartoon Character Creation, Volume 1: Modeling & Texturing

LightWave 3D 8 Cartoon Character Creation, Volume 1: Modeling & Texturing Review

Character design, modeling, and texturing are the fundamental building blocks of character animation. LightWave 3D [8] Cartoon Character Creation Volume 1: Modeling & Texturing includes both general theory and comprehensive tutorials for every aspect of modeling and texturing 3D characters. Learn how, why, and when to use the most efficient techniques so you can have fun creating your own fantastic 3D characters. Find out how to configure LightWave 3D for character creation, and learn the necessary steps of the character concept, design, and planning stages. Discover multiple methods for modeling characters and clothing using subdivision patches. Understand the techniques for creating complex UV mapping. Learn about surface attributes and surfacing characters. Enhance the appearance of your characters through the use of gradients and procedural textures. Explore a variety of techniques for creating image maps and applying them to your characters.

ZBrush Character Creation: Advanced Digital Sculpting

ZBrush Character Creation: Advanced Digital Sculpting Review

A stunning, content-rich update to this top-selling ZBrush guide!

This second edition of ZBrush Character Creation has been fully updated for ZBrush 4, the newest version of this fascinating and popular 3D sculpting software. ZBrush enables users to create detailed organic models using a brush-based toolset and tablet. The startling results look as though they've been painted with real brushes and oils, and ZBrush is increasingly popular for use in film, game, and broadcast pipelines.

Author Scott Spencer is embedded in the ZBrush community and his movie credits include Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix and the upcoming The Hobbit. Learn Spencer's invaluable techniques for texturing, chiseling, posing, costuming, and more with his newest ZBrush guide.

• Explains ZBrush 4, the newest version of the revolutionary software tool for creating 3D organic models in a way that appears to be traditionally painted or sculpted
• Shows you how get the most out of ZBrush, from the fundamentals to new tools for texturing, chiseling, and costuming
• Offers plenty of insights and professional techniques for creating characters for films and games, drawing from the author's own experience on such films as Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix and The Hobbit
• Demonstrates the author's own techniques of using traditional sculpting and painting concepts and applying them to digital art for greater artistry

Discover the beauty of ZBrush with this colorful, in-depth guide.

Maya Character Creation: Modeling and Animation Controls

Maya Character Creation: Modeling and Animation Controls Review

A unique, in-depth approach to creating realistic characters in Maya. Maya Character Creation: Modeling and Animation Controls' author, Chris Maraffi, has expertise in the field and in the classroom that translates to the knowledge and solid teaching skills needed to make this book a "must-have"!

The current trend in computer graphics is greater organic realism. Many of the top-grossing movies today, such as Spiderman, Lord of the Rings, Jurassic Park 3 , and Star Wars Episode 2, all feature realistic 3D characters. There is a major need in the 3D community for educational material that demonstrates detailed techniques for achieving this organic reality. Maya is one of the main packages used on such cutting-edge films, and has an established toolset for creating believable 3D characters. Maya Character Creation: Modeling and Animation Controls is designed to take you through the process of designing, modeling, and setting up animation controls for complex 3D characters. The concepts, techniques, and Maya tools used for each step in the process are presented in each chapter, followed by many hands-on exercises. NURBS, polygon, and subdivision surface modeling techniques are shown for creating the character's skin, and skeleton-based animation controls are covered in detail. You will learn how a character's skin should deform when the skeletal joints and muscles move. Advanced MEL scripted animation controls are also covered extensively.