DAZ Studio 4 (free)

DAZ Studio 4 has just been released.  It is a free 3D figure posing application and animation tool similar to Poser.  It is free, but if you want to have unique character models you need to buy them and they do have a extensive library just for that.  Now It does come with a default characters and a few props and poses, but is a bit  limited.  There is also a library of free models and props, still limited, selling them is where they make their money.   Now I  have not spent that much time with it yet, but it is fairly intuitive.  

This version seams to be free, but there is a buy button and they interchange ‘try’ and ‘free’ occasionally.   Version 3 was a free app but here are two versions, DAZ 3 and DAZ 3 Advanced.  Daz 3 is the core application which is FREE and basically the main differences with the advanced are rendering features and a few modeling features. 

  

The software can be found here: http://www.daz3d.com/i/software/daz_studio

Here is a link to the feature comparison. 
http://www.daz3d.com/i/software/daz_studio/comparison?_m=d

Pitch Party Contest

Animation Magazine’s Pitch Party is an opportunity for your students to pitch their ideas to the CG community.   Animation Magazine opens up an entire section of the publication to individual advertisements that pitch student’s ideas.  The deadline is coming up soon, so if you can’t get your students to pull it off this year,  you can plan for future publications.  It is $375 per pitch which can be pricy for students particularly in this economy, but some schools have sponsored the student teams and others have set up local contests submitted the winners.  It is worth checking out and the submission issue is great to share with your production classes. 

http://www.animationmagazine.net/pitch-party-2011/

SketchBook, Mudbox, & Maya Webcast

Autodesk offers tons of great resources and throughout the year host a number video webcasts demonstrating key skills and techniques.  They are awesome and worth checking out.  This session look very cool; it walks you through the design process from a sketch to final render.  See you there.  See you there.
– Cornell   

Entertainment Design with SketchBook, Mudbox, and Maya 2012

Wednesday, June 8, 2011, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. PDT

This webcast, presented by Autodesk Technical Specialist Marcel de Jong, illustrates how to realize concept designs from 2D sketch through 3D rendering. It entails the design and construction of a realistic sci-fi motorcycle of photographic quality using the latest tools and concepts in Autodesk^® SketchBook^®, Autodesk^® Mudbox™, mental ray^®, and Autodesk^® Maya^® 2012 software, also highlighting the interoperability between these products.

Some of the concepts discussed in this session are image plane construction in Sketchbook for Maya, base modeling in Maya for Mudbox, detailing in Mudbox, HDR lighting in Maya (IBL's), and rendering a design project with mental ray. This project speaks to both entertainment and design customers.

Registration is free, but you'll need to register to gain access to the webcast.

Register Now

Visual Effects Society Scholarship

VES is Proud To Announce New VES Scholarships In Honor Of: These scholarships may be used in conjunction with any other financial aid or scholarship, except for others offered by the Visual Effects Society. To be considered for these scholarships, applicants must provide a url to a digital portfolio of their work, completed application and supplemental materials as referenced in the application process. Visual Effects Society Peter Ellenshaw Scholarship The Peter Ellenshaw Scholarships will be awarded to one VES member and one student (either in high school or currently in college) who plan to attend two (2) or four (4) year accredited schools in pursuit of any type of graduate or post-graduate degrees or certificates in fine or graphic arts. Peter Ellenshaw’s contributions to the field of visual effects were primarily as a matte painter and his artistic talent is highly regarded in the world of fine art. For this reason, the education sought by the recipients of these scholarships is not required to have any relation to visual effects, per se; however, that education must focus on some type of visual art. Visual Effects Society Douglas Trumbull Scholarship The first of the Douglas Trumbull scholarships is available to VES members who wish to continue their education in all aspects of motion pictures in order to expand the scope of their careers, and the second is for students seeking degrees in film or television. Douglas Trumbull was an inventor and innovator in the field of visual effects. He has produced and directed several projects which included special venue projects and two feature films. The Douglas Trumbull Scholarships will be awarded to one VES member and one student (either in high school or currently in college) who plan to attend any type of industry-recognized school or training program in pursuit of broadening their skill set in the field of visual effects. Douglas Trumbull’s early contribution to visual effects was as the inventor of the slit-scan photographic technique. Later, he would break into directing, and finally settle into the production and creation of visual effects. For this reason, the education sought by the recipients of these scholarships is not required to be relevant to visual effects, per se; however, that education must focus on motion pictures. Visual Effects Society Albert Whitlock Scholarship The Albert Whitlock Scholarships will be awarded to one VES member and one student (either in high school or currently in college) who plan to attend any type of accredited schools in pursuit of certificates of completion in order to gain marketable skills in visual effects. Albert Whitlock’s contribution to the field of visual effects was as a matte painter on more than 500 projects. For this reason, the education sought by the recipients of these scholarships is required to be relevant to visual effects, per se; however, that education may focus on any type of visual art. Because Albert Whitlock was such a prolific matte painter, he focused on completing those paintings quickly. He always referred to himself as a craftsman rather than an artist; he continually tried to demystify his work, stating that his craft was something that could be learned by anybody willing to make the effort. For complete rules and to submit your application please click here. SCHOLARSHIP DEADLINE: Friday, June 17, 2011, 5:00PM (PDT)

ANIMAG TV: Behind the Scenes

Check out  the Animation Magazine's Animag TV.  It is a online video library for animations, trailers, and commercials.  This is nothing really new, but the really cool part . . . “The Making of” channel.  The collection is small, but it is still in its infancy.  I think over time it will be a great source for the classroom. 

On Animag TV, I came across the Genesis sequence" from 1982′s Star  Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.  I always knew of its importance, but I have never seen the making of this sequence.   It was the first completely computer-generated sequence in a feature film, created by the Lucasfilm division. It just beat Tron (1982) into release to take the honor of being the first film to use computer-generated images (CGI).  AND the team that created it eventually formed Pixar!  Check it out.

http://www.animationmagazine.net/animag-tv/

CGArena: April - May 11, FREE Digital Magazine Issue Now Available

CG Arena is a free downloadable CG Magazine with great articles and tutorials.

• Interview with Cris De Lara
• Photoshop: Painting Megaman
• 3ds Max: Making of the Dream Place
• Modo: Making of My Little Fishes
• Photoshop: Making of Sentinel
• Maya: Making of Turkish Butcher
• Gallery - Showcase of latest 3D inspiring art

http://www.cgarena.com/freestuff/ezine/apr11_issue.php

Free Software: trueSpace7.6

trueSpace7.6 Features - Full version available FREE

If you are a designer/illustrator, artist, animator, or creator of interactive entertainment, visualization solutions, or corporate training, then trueSpace7.6 is for you.  trueSpace7.6 is a fully-featured 3D authoring package that will let you model, texture, light, animate and render 3D content. As well as traditional images and movies, you can also make 3D content for online shared spaces, and for Virtual Earth.

 

 

Molecular Maya (mMaya) featured in 3D World magazine

http://www.3dworldmag.com/?p=32257

I found a really cool article in the latest issue of 3D World.  I have done a lot of micro molecular modeling and a handful animations and this is a really cool plugin for Maya.  AND it is really easy to use.  I tried it out today and it is straight forward.  The video series covers just the basics to get you started and is very well done.   The cool thing is, whether you are a scientist or an animator, MolecularMovies.org has a series of tutorials for beginners through advanced users.  The site has tons of other resources as well.   It is defiantly worth checking out.     

 

Here is Eric Keller’s four part video series on using the nMaya Plugin:

Autodesk Softimage 2012 - The Incredible Power of ICE - Webcast

Autodesk Softimage 2012 - The Incredible Power of ICE Webcast
Wednesday, May 11, 2011, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. PDT

In this webcast, Autodesk Technical Specialist Mark Schoennagel will take you through a comprehensive tour of the Autodesk® Softimage® Interactive Creative Environment, better known in the 3D industry as ICE. ICE is a powerful, node-based, multi-threaded visual programming language found only in Autodesk Softimage 2012. ICE is used by studios around the globe for creating stunning particle effects, deformations, character rigs, and now with 2012, procedural modeling effects. During the webcast Mark will take viewers through the basics of ICE, creating and deploying user created tools as well as dive into some of the more advanced capabilities of this amazing technology. If you are in to visual effects this will be one webcast you won't want to miss!

Registration is free, but you'll need to register to gain access to the webcast.
Register Now