Book Description
LightWave 3D is one of the most powerful and popular tools for creating computer graphic imagery, animation, and visual effects for film and television. Industry veteran Timothy Albee outlines essential techniques for those who have not yet used LightWave 3D within a studios production environment and, through easy-to-follow, step-by-step exercises, imparts the "secrets," shortcuts, and theories used by professionals. With a combination of in-depth instructions and nearly 700 illustrations, Essential LightWave simplifies even the most complex concepts and teaches you the "tricks" industry professionals use to get their jobs done fast and done right.
* Demystify the myriad controls and tools available in the Modeler and Layout interfaces.
* Learn the secrets of lighting, layering, and surfacing like a pro.
* Expand your modeling skills with exercises that walk you through the fastest ways of modeling a human head, character body, spaceship, interior set, and more.
* Explore the particle, cloth, and fur simulations that ship free with LightWave.
* Discover how the pros composite explosions, how to create your own realistic explosions with HyperVoxels, and how to seamlessly composite LightWave imagery into live-action backgrounds.
ON THE CD:
* LightWave 7.5 Discovery Edition for both Macintosh and PC
* All scenes, objects, and images referenced in the exercises
* Completed scenes and models from the exercises
* Over 150 MB worth of plug-ins and other programs for modeling, painting, surfacing, and animating including CinePaint, Xfrog, and Lightnet
About the author
Timothy Albee has worked in the entertainment industry since 1990 as a writer, director, animator, concept artist, producer, and studio owner/executive, and has used LightWave 3D since 1991. His credits include Walt Disney Feature Animation, Warner Brothers/Infogrames, Babylon 5, and numerous commercials and video game titles. He is also the author of LightWave 7 Character Animation from Wordware Publishing.