Beginning Vfx With Autodesk Maya

Dive into the nuances of visual effects (VFX) design, from planning to execution, using Autodesk Maya. This book introduces the methods and techniques required for your first foray into 3D FX generation from scratch. You will start with the fundamentals of visual effects, including a history of VFX, tools and techniques for creating believable visual effects, and popular tools used in the industry. Next, you are introduced to Autodesk Maya and its various components that make it a favorite among professionals. You will learn how to create rigid body collisions and simulate realistic particles such as dust, fire, water, and more. This book also presents strategies for creating a vortex, rain, hair, fluids, and other soft body simulations and also demonstrates nature element simulations for computer-generated production. At the end of the book, there is a capstone project to make your own visual effects scene in a practical way. After going through this book, you will be able to start building computer-generated visual effects from your imagination through to production. What You Will Learn Understand the basic physics behind effect creation Create 3D visual effects scenes from scratch Know the details of dynamic simulation in the computer generation space using various functionalities available in Autodesk Maya Who This Book Is For Beginning-level users; students from the field of visual effects design, 3D modeling, and simulation; game designers; those creating computer graphics; FX artists and aspirants looking for a career in the field of 3D

This book also presents strategies for creating a vortex, rain, hair, fluids, and other soft body simulations and also demonstrates nature element simulations for computer-generated production. --

Produce mind-blowing visual effects with Autodesk Maya. Gain the practical skills and knowledge you need to recreate phenomena critical to visual effects work, including fire, water, smoke, explosions, and destruction, as well as their integration with real-world film and video. In Creating Visual Effects in Maya, Maya master Lee Lanier has combined the latest studio techniques with multi-chapter, hands-on projects and professionally-vetted workflows to bolster your CG toolkit. Engaging, full-color tutorials cover: Creating foliage, fire, and smoke with Paint Effects Growing Maya Fur and nHair on clothing, characters, and sets Replicating water, smoke, sparks, swarms, bubbles, and debris with nParticles and nCloth Controlling scenes and simulations with expressions and MEL, Python, and PyMEL scripting Adding dust, fog, smoke, rippling water, and fireballs with Fluid Effects containers Creating damage with Effects presets, deformers, and animated textures Matchmoving and motion tracking with Maya and MatchMover Creating complex destruction by combining rigid bodies, nParticles, nCloth, and Fluid Effects Setting up, rendering, and compositing mental ray render passes with Autodesk Composite, Adobe After Effects, and The Foundry Nuke The companion website (www.focalpress.com/cw/lanier) features a treasure trove of Maya, MatchMover, After Effects, and Nuke project files, image sequences, texture bitmaps, and MEL, Python, and PyMEL scripts, allowing you to immediately apply the techniques taught in the book.

A complete update to the popular Autodesk Official Training Guide for Maya Maya is the industry-leading 3D animation and effects software used in movies, visual effects, games, cartoons, and other animation. This bestselling, official guide is a must for 3D beginners who want a thorough grounding in this dynamic and complex software. Fully updated for the newest version of Maya, the book explains the interface and the basics of modeling, texturing, animating, dynamics, visualization, and visual effects. Fun and challenging tutorials lead you through the nuances of the software and offer plenty of chances to practice what you've learned. The Autodesk Official Training Guide for Maya, endorsed and promoted by Autodesk to its 2,500 Authorized Training Centers worldwide Maya is the 3D animation and effects software used in the film, game, and advertising industries; it's a complex program and this book gives beginners the knowledge and confidence they need Shows how to master the interface and the basics of modeling, texturing, animating, and visual effects Step-by-step tutorials offer realistic, professional challenges for those new to 3D and those switching from another 3D application Materials are available for instructors who want to use this guide with their students Introducing Autodesk Maya is the perfect guide to get you up and running on the world's most popular professional 3D application.

Create innovative CG solutions with Maya and this creative guide Professional Maya artists have to think on their feet. It's nothing for them to receive just vague sketches or incomplete ideas of what the studio wants and have to come up with something brilliant. If you're an intermediate to advanced Maya user, Maya Visual Effects: The Innovator's Guide, Second Edition is what you need to meet the challenge. Professional Maya artist Eric Keller offers inspired solutions and hands-on projects, as well as numerous practical shortcuts and deadlines, so you learn to produce innovative CG assets from scratch, using Maya, on a deadline. Shows intermediate to advanced Maya users new solutions, workarounds, and shortcuts for creating Maya visual effects on deadline Gives readers plenty of hands-on projects, so they come up with solutions that they can add to their Maya toolsets Offers workable ideas that can be applied, no matter which version of Maya software is being used Presents projects in an engaging style, with pages of full-color imagery to illustrate concepts Create amazing effects with the creative insights and fresh advice in this new edition of Maya Visual Effects: The Innovator's Guide.

Welcome to the world of Autodesk Maya 2018. Autodesk Maya 2018 is a powerful, integrated 3D modeling, animation, visual effects, and rendering software developed by Autodesk Inc. This integrated node based 3D software finds its application in the development of films, games, and design projects. A wide range of 3D visual effects, computer graphics, and character animation tools make it an ideal platform for 3D artists. The intuitive user interface and workflow tools of Maya 2018 have made the job of design visualization specialists a lot easier. Autodesk Maya 2018: A Comprehensive Guide book covers all features of Autodesk Maya 2018 in a simple, lucid, and comprehensive manner. It aims at harnessing the power of Autodesk Maya 2018 for 3D and visual effects artists, and designers. This book will help you transform your imagination into reality with ease. Also, it will unleash your creativity, thus helping you create realistic 3D models, animation, and visual effects. It caters to the needs of both the novice and advanced users of Maya 2018 and is ideally suited for learning at your convenience and at your pace. Salient Features Consists of 17 chapters that are organized in a pedagogical sequence covering a wide range of topics such as Maya interface, Polygon modeling, NURBS modeling, texturing, lighting, cameras, animation, Paint Effects, Rendering, nHair, Fur, Fluids, Particles, nParticles and Bullet Physics in Autodesk Maya 2018. The first page of every chapter summarizes the topics that are covered in it. Consists of hundreds of illustrations and a comprehensive coverage of Autodesk Maya 2018 concepts and commands. Real-world 3D models and examples focusing on industry experience. Step-by-step instructions that guide the user through the learning process. Additional information is provided throughout the book in the form of tips and notes. Self-Evaluation test, Review Questions, and Exercises are given at the end of each chapter so that the users can assess their knowledge. Additional learning resources at 'mayaexperts.blogspot.com'. Table of Contents Chapter 1: Exploring Maya Interface Chapter 2: Polygon Modeling Chapter 3: NURBS Curves and Surfaces Chapter 4: NURBS Modeling Chapter 5: UV Mapping Chapter 6: Shading and Texturing Chapter 7: Lighting Chapter 8: Animation Chapter 9: Rigging, Constraints, and Deformers Chapter 10: Paint Effects Chapter 11: Rendering Chapter 12: Particle System Chapter 13: Introduction to nParticles Chapter 14: Fluids Chapter 15: nHair Chapter 16: Maya Fur Chapter 17: Bullet Physics Index

Learn Autodesk Maya from an award-winning insider Best-selling author, visual effects supervisor, and technical educator Dariush Derakhshani brings you a newly-updated, step-by-step guide to the most popular and complex 3D application on the market, Autodesk Maya. Introducing Autodesk Maya 2015 includes straightforward lessons, real-world examples, detailed tutorials, and downloadable project files that get you modeling and animating your own digital models and scenes right away. The book starts you with the latest CG concepts and production workflows, and then shows you how to create a solar system to help get you acquainted with the basic tool set in Maya. From there, the books helps you: Learn the Maya user interface, including menus and plug-ins Build simple animations and 3D images right away Explore polygons, modeling, and NEX tools Get started with HDRI lighting, rendering, dynamics, simulations, and effects Whether you're new to 3D or migrating from another 3D application, Introducing Autodesk Maya 2015 will kick-start your creativity and get you up and running with Maya. Author Derakhshani has worked on movies such as The Fantastic Four and Pan's Labyrinth, the South Park TV series, and numerous commercials and music videos.

3D Animation for the Raw Beginner Using Autodesk Maya is a hands-on academic textbook as well as a do-it-yourself training manual for the individual animator. This second edition has been completely rewritten to take into account updates to Autodesk Maya, including Autodesk’s renderer, Arnold. It contains entirely new examples and tutorial lessons. All 612 images are in full color. The book directs the reader to the parts of Maya that must be mastered in order to create complete 3D projects, and thus it simplifies the process of taking on Maya’s vast and intricate interface, while giving the reader a firm foundation on which to build future knowledge of Maya. It also presents brief examples of other popular 3D applications and rendering engines. This principles-based, yet pragmatic book: Introduces the basic steps of the 3D modeling, materials, animation, lighting, and rendering processes. Presents clear and concise tutorials that link key concepts to practical techniques. Includes access to a webpage for the book: https://buzzking.com/AnimationTextbook/AnimationTextbook.html. On this webpage are videos that cover many of the lessons in the book, as well as video tutorials that present bonus material not included in the book. Frees instructors from the painstaking task of developing step-by-step examples to present Maya’s complex interface and basic capabilities. Boasts an easy-to-follow, tutorial-based learning style ideal for individual study by aspiring animators and do-it yourselfers. Roger "Buzz" King is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he teaches 3D Animation for the Computer Science Department and the Alliance for Technology, Learning, and Society (ATLAS), an institute dedicated to the application of technology to the arts. Buzz is an independent 3D animator who serves on the board of directors of a 3D animation startup. Buzz has a B.A. in Mathematics from Occidental College, an M.S. and Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Southern California, and an M.Div. from the Iliff School of Theology. Key Features Introduces critical aspects of the 3D animation process Presents clear and concise tutorials that link key concepts to practical techniques Includes access to a dedicated Web site, http://3dbybuzz.com, featuring useful videos, lessons, and updates Frees instructors from developing step-by-step examples to present Maya’s complex interface and basic Boasts an easy-to-follow, hands-on learning style ideal for individual study by aspiring animators and do-ityourselfers