![3DTeacher-Icon[1]](http://lh6.ggpht.com/-VvcrsLrMxW4/UuvvaBmariI/AAAAAAAAIkU/7ygGrMYfC0E/s1600-h/3DTeacher-Icon%25255B1%25255D%25255B4%25255D.jpg "3DTeacher-Icon[1]")
Here is another cool 3d printing video to share. It focuses more on non-traditional uses like medicine and weapons. Great for initiating discussion. ~Cornell
January 25, 2013: Imagine a world where you can make anything you want, just by pressing "print". 3D printers have arrived and they promise a fascinating future, depending on what we make. For more info, please go to http://www.globalnews.ca/3d+printing/...
Science alone isn’t enough to solve the world’s problems
“But to be truly effective, we must start much earlier. What we really need is a much broader humanistic education for scientists (and nonscientists), beginning in K–12 education and continuing through the undergraduate/graduate and professional years. It is through the study of art, music, literature, history and other humanities and social sciences that we gain a greater understanding of the human condition than biological or physical science alone can provide.” ~ David J. Skorton is president of Cornell University
If you read the comments below the article, it is definitely a controversial topic. In my opinion, one could say that the Renaissance was the most innovative epoch, and this is a period in history when the arts truly blend with the sciences . To me, the sciences are to driven by rules that are not to be broken, but one must sometimes look past them, break, or bend them to find new original thought and ideas. I want to clarify, that the sciences are equally important; the more knowledge one has to work with, the more diverse one thoughts can be . . .
I teach a Photoshop course, which covers the basics for the most part, a little bit of painting, photo manipulation, matte painting, and skills that can be used for texturing in the 3D world. My first assignment is to take a simple portrait and edit it so that it would be a close relative of that person. Meaning a completely different person, but still look like it could be an actual photograph. I show them that even first day of class that can use a very simple and easy tool with amazing results. I start by showing them the Dove commercial and then going over the tool.
I love Sunday Morning on CBS, I have been watching as long as I can remember. Today, I came across this episode from 2010 and it is great for initiating the conversation about Photoshop and ethics. Definitely worth watching with your 2D or 3D class.
The Mask of Divine Proportion
Dr Stephen Marquartdt developed a facial mask as a measurement of classic beauty to help plastic surgeons align facial features for more symmetrical accuracy based on a series of rectangles, triangles and decagons. [More]
http://facethis.blogspot.com/2012/01/perfect-face-golden-ratio-beauty.html
Check out this program that will automatically change a person to make them more “beautiful” ??? Portrait Pro http://www.portraitprofessional.com/gallery/
Dove Commercial – Ethics
Nolan’s Cheddar Commercial - director: John Nolan with a run time of a minute and half.
I want to start by saying no animals were hurt during the production of the commercial. A mouse was used, but the mouse in the trap was CG.
OK, now I thought this was funny and cute, my wife thought it was a bit morbid.
At first I, assumed it was CG, but after researching, I realized it was an animatronic mouse. With that said . . . there are a lot of videos that I assumed were CG and were actually animatronic puppets. Make sure you check out John Nolan’s demo reel. ~Cornell
John Nolan - Animatronics Reel
Now that I have an iPad and have become an addict, I am have come across a bunch a very cool apps and tools related to digital arts, particularly 3D. I am seriously considering get one of these and seeing what we can do with it. My only concern is the scan quality, I have used a number of scanners and have found the scans to be sub par. I have also used the Kinect as a 3d scanner and although thought it was very cool, was disappointed in the quality of the scan. *The people who design the Kinect also also has designed the technology for this device. Either Way . . . Very Cool and I still want one . . . ~Cornell
Also Check this interview out – THIS IS SO COOL!!!
I do not remember when, but a while back at either the MET art Museum or the DAM (Denver) I saw what is called a ‘hollow faced’ sculpture of a head. It was really cool . As I walked around it, a number of times, it seemed to track my movement. It is hard to explain, but the second video will give you an idea of how it works. It was basically in a negative of a sculpture or the mold, but as you move around, it gave the illusion that it was a ‘typical’ sculpture .
I just came across this video and had to share it, it works on the same ‘hollow face’ principle. It is the Amazing T-Rex Illusion! Check it out. ~Cornell
Amazing T-Rex Illusion!
How it Actually Works. . . It will make you laugh.
I love light & shadow AND I love sculpture. I have experimented a bunch with creating sculptures where the subject was the actual shadow not the sculpture. Man, I love Yamashita work, make sure you check out his gallery too.
I also came across this software that plays with shadow in a similar way. The design examples that are used are a bit on the simple side, but it has potential. Imagine what you could do with 3d modeling software and a 3d printer; it could be a lot of fun. ~Cornell
Niloy J. Mitra, Mark Pauly
ACM SIGGRAPH Asia 2009
Abstract:
To them, I said, the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images. - Plato, The Republic
Shadow art is a unique form of sculptural art where the 2D shadows cast by a 3D sculpture are essential for the artistic effect. We introduce computational tools for the creation of shadow art and propose a design process where the user can directly specify the desired shadows by providing a set of binary images and corresponding projection information. Since multiple shadow images often contradict each other, we present a geometric optimization that computes a 3D shadow volume whose shadows best approximate the provided input images. Our analysis shows that this optimization is essential for obtaining physically realizable 3D sculptures. The resulting shadow volume can then be modified with a set of interactive editing tools that automatically respect the often intricate shadow constraints. We demonstrate the potential of our system with a number of complex 3D shadow art sculptures that go beyond what is seen in contemporary art pieces.
http://graphics.stanford.edu/~niloy/research/shadowArt/shadowArt_sigA_09.html
You also need to check out this movie produced with the Shadow Art tool.
One side of rendering that is rarely talked about is composition. And since many of the schools have been dropping or lessening the traditional skills being taught, a big bummer, is the quality of student renders are falling? Technically they are getting better, but so is the technology. Schools are becoming and have been “profiteering”. That might be a little harsh, but they are more attune to profits and less to educating. I went to a session at SIGGRAPH where this exact topic was under debate. The bulk of the students (paying majority) want to jump right in to 3d skipping the foundation courses. AND this has impacted enrolment leading schools to change program requirements. I think this is a shame, but just like Mac Donald's in France, despite the the anti-Mac Donald's sentiment, they are still selling millions of burgers.
With that rant over, I love Chase Jarvis. He is a commercial photographer and is creating exceptional images. I heard him speak a couple of years ago and then went to diner with him afterwards. He is a dynamic speaker and has a unorthodox approach to his art form. Also he has a 21st century outlook on marking. Basically, he’s got some skills. Check out his work and share it with your students. http://www.chasejarvis.com
And here is a play-by-play of this shot: http://blog.chasejarvis.com/blog/2010/08/scotts-guest-post-play-by-play-post-production-on-this-popular-photo/#more-1903.
Photography is a great “homework” assignment to supplement your rendering curriculum. It doesn’t have to be with a fancy SLR, just a simple digital camera. With that said, it should be with a manual SLR, all the skills transfer. It should even be a weekly assignment; composition is a skill and can’t not be taught over night. The most important thing is to be able to “see” and unless you are looking, you will not see anything. Not to sound too philosophical, but it all comes to practice and the more one looks for or thinks about composition, the better their work gets. ~Cornell
Also check out his book . . . The Best Camera Is The One That's With You: iPhone Photography by Chase Jarvis
| Latest Reads | [−] |
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| The Animator's Survival Kit by Richard Williams | |||||
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| The Illusion of Life by Ollie Johnston, Frank Thomas | |||||
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| To Infinity and Beyond! by Karen Paik | |||||
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