Creating Striking Graphics with Maya and Photoshop


Book Description

Add Another Dimension to Your Portfolio—And Move to the Top of Your Craft Professional artists who strive to bring a new look to their illustrations are using Alias' premier 3D software in tandem with Adobe's prominent digital imaging program to create cutting-edge graphics. Now, with Maya 6, this remarkable combo is even better integrated than before. Creating Striking Graphics with Maya and Photoshop—brought to you from Maya Press, a publishing partnership between Sybex and Alias—is a dazzling introduction to the vibrant world of 3D and Maya. Graphics wiz Daniel Gray, with help from an elite group of pros, will inspire you to incorporate 3D into your graphics and think more artistically when approaching your creations. And if you're already familiar with Maya, you'll learn how Maya 6 makes it even easier to work between both applications. First you'll get the essential Photoshop user's introduction to Maya and learn how to make the leap from 2D to 3D. Then, you'll discover how high-profile artists use Maya and Photoshop together in real-world scenarios where 2D and 3D collide in a burst of creativity. Through a series of interviews that address a variety of 3D applications, you'll discover how: Maya Master Meats Meier depicts Mother Nature with otherworldly success Michael Elins combines photography and classical painting with the 3D world Damon Riesberg cranks out a daily comic strip by posing and rendering his cast of characters guru studios crafts beautiful 3D cartoons with a cool retro feel for TELETOON Meteor Studios brings ultra-realistic prehistoric creatures to life for the Discovery Channel's Dinosaur Planet IBM painstakingly re-creates ancient artifacts, such as the Sphinx, for the Egyptian Museum in Cairo Meshwerks digitizes automobiles for use in movies, advertising, and video games and creates the ultra-cool chopped and channeled Honda EleMENTAL Woodie! Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.




Avid Made Easy


Book Description

Create impressive effects with free DV and XPress Pro Capture, edit, and output digital media Import and export images, movies, and audio Master the Tools and Techniques Used by Professional Editors Avid made non-linear video editing possible. This book makes it easy, even if you have no experience at all. In as little as a week, its clear instruction and realistic, practical tutorials will help you master every aspect of video editing with Avid: Capturing from DV or other source footage Creating and organizing storage bins Customizing settings to suit your specific needs Navigating and selecting clips for editing Editing clips into sequences Trimming sequences for more precise and flexible editing Importing graphics, audio, and movies Exporting edited sequences to a variety of formats Creating transitional and segment effects Know where all the tools are, and quickly find the easiest way to access any Avid function. Easily manage all your video sources, multiple audio tracks, and transitions and trims! Get just the right amount of information for the task at hand, such as keyframing audio. But Avid Made Easy is more than a comprehensive introduction to the capabilities of Avid Xpress and Free DV products. Author Jaime Fowler brings every bit of his vast experience to bear, helping you choose the right approach for every situation. He even teaches advanced techniques that you won't find covered in any Avid manual. The enclosed DVD contains your personal copy of Free DV, all the files you need to complete the book's tutorials, and a collection of the hottest Avid plug-ins. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.







The Hidden Power of Photoshop Elements 3


Book Description

Clear Instruction + Custom Power Tools = Supercharged Results from Photoshop Elements Thanks to release 3, which offers RAW support and 16-bit image editing for digital photographers, Photoshop Elements is more powerful than ever. But here's the real news: this popular application already contains a huge stash of hidden power that anyone with the right knowledge and tools can put to work. In this thorough update of his award-winning best-seller, Richard Lynch supplies those tools, plus the in-depth background and detailed instruction you need to apply them effectively. In no time, you'll be using Photoshop Elements to get results you never thought possible. For example: Get better color by using channels, custom separations, and image luminosity Create photo-realistic objects and incorporate them into existing images Use animation and rollovers to make images dynamic Correct image tone and color with Curves, Color Balance, and custom layer-blending tools Target your corrections by using advanced masks and selections Use vectors to create scalable line art for logos




Learning Maya 6


Book Description

Learning Maya 6 Modeling is your solution to creating convincing and effective characters and props in Maya"--Back cover.




Learning Maya 7


Book Description

This exceptional, full-color Maya Press title -- produced by Alias, the software's creators -- offers a brand-new approach to teaching modeling and animation using the characters from the Academy Award-winning short film The ChubbChubbs. You'll find instructor-led tutorials, scene files, artist interviews, and Maya Personal Learning Edition on the enclosed DVD.







Forthcoming Books


Book Description




Biomedical Visualisation


Book Description

This edited book explores the use of technology to enable us to visualise the life sciences in a more meaningful and engaging way. It will enable those interested in visualisation techniques to gain a better understanding of the applications that can be used in visualisation, imaging and analysis, education, engagement and training. The reader will also be able to learn about the use of visualisation techniques and technologies for the historical and forensic settings. The chapters presented in this volume cover such a diverse range of topics, with something for everyone. We present here chapters on 3D visualising novel stent grafts to aid treatment of aortic aneuryms; confocal microscopy constructed vascular models in patient education; 3D patient specific virtual reconstructions in surgery; virtual reality in upper limb rehabilitation in patients with multiple sclerosis and virtual clinical wards. In addition, we present chapters in artificial intelligence in ultrasound guided regional anaesthesia; carpal tunnel release visualisation techniques; visualising for embryology education and artificial intelligence data on bone mechanics. Finally we conclude with chapters on visualising patient communication in a general practice setting; digital facial depictions of people from the past; instructor made cadaveric videos, novel cadaveric techniques for enhancing visualisation of the human body and finally interactive educational videos and screencasts. This book explores the use of technologies from a range of fields to provide engaging and meaningful visual representations of the biomedical sciences. It is therefore an interesting read for researchers, developers and educators who want to learn how visualisation techniques can be used successfully for a variety of purposes, such as educating students or training staff, interacting with patients and biomedical procedures in general.




Software Takes Command


Book Description

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Software has replaced a diverse array of physical, mechanical, and electronic technologies used before 21st century to create, store, distribute and interact with cultural artifacts. It has become our interface to the world, to others, to our memory and our imagination - a universal language through which the world speaks, and a universal engine on which the world runs. What electricity and combustion engine were to the early 20th century, software is to the early 21st century. Offering the the first theoretical and historical account of software for media authoring and its effects on the practice and the very concept of 'media,' the author of The Language of New Media (2001) develops his own theory for this rapidly-growing, always-changing field. What was the thinking and motivations of people who in the 1960 and 1970s created concepts and practical techniques that underlie contemporary media software such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Maya, Final Cut and After Effects? How do their interfaces and tools shape the visual aesthetics of contemporary media and design? What happens to the idea of a 'medium' after previously media-specific tools have been simulated and extended in software? Is it still meaningful to talk about different mediums at all? Lev Manovich answers these questions and supports his theoretical arguments by detailed analysis of key media applications such as Photoshop and After Effects, popular web services such as Google Earth, and the projects in motion graphics, interactive environments, graphic design and architecture. Software Takes Command is a must for all practicing designers and media artists and scholars concerned with contemporary media.