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setting up an hdri using vray for maya
Edgar Mihailov in a Quick-tip tutorial shows artists new to Maya, and/or it’s relatively new Vray plugin, how to utilise High Dynamic Range Images (HDRIs) to illuminate your scenes, providing realistic reflections in the process. HDRI is now a standard across almost all rendering software and it’s an extremely useful thing to learn how to use!
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graffiti analysis 3 available for download
Graffiti Analysis is an extensive ongoing study in the motion of graffiti. Custom software designed for graffiti writers creates visualizations of the often unseen gestures involved in the creation of a tag. Motion data is recorded, analyzed and archived as Graffiti Markup Language (.gml) files, a specifically formatted XML file designed to be a common open structure for archiving gestural graffiti motion data. GML files are saved in an open online database, 000000book.com, where writers can share analytical representations of their hand styles. Graffiti Analysis is an open source project that is available online for free in OSX, Windows and Linux.
Graffiti Analysis 2.0 Playback Screencast from Evan Roth on Vimeo.
Graffiti Analysis 3.0 from Evan Roth on Vimeo.
Graffiti Analysis 3 features:
- Input from iPhone + anything you can strap the light onto.
- Audio input which affects particles generated from the tag – perfect for live events
- Keyword based RSS .gml player / search for a keyword and let the app play all the tags
- 3D Printing Integration – Print your tags!!
- ”Interactive Architecture” – allows interaction of projected graffiti with objects that receive the projection (buildings)..
- Laser Input – tag buildings from long distances.. (need big a** monster projector)
- Stereography..
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xfrog for maya updates to version 5
xFrog, the plant generation and animation software has recently released xFrog 5 for Autodesk Maya 2011. Xfrog adds six new procedural Objects to Maya and by combining these with Maya components/objects you can create a wide variety of organic models and animations using organic procedures (based on some of the building blocks of Nature). The xFrog tools behave exactly like Maya components, so you can keyframe them and combine them with PaintEffects or Particle animations or use MEL Scripts to drive them – the possibilities are nearly endless. xFrog retails for $399.00, available from xFrog Inc.
Xfrog 5.0 for Maya – Feature Tour from xfrog software on Vimeo.
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a look at new light types in houdini 11
Peter Quint takes a look at the new light types in Houdini 11 with this first part Peter looks at area lights, edge falloff, using environment and texture maps, as well as the new features of the Environment light. With the second part Peter looks at the Sky Light, the new photon workflows under the GI and Caustic lights, the portal light, and the new possibilities for outputing different light contributions separately, and using the results to adjust lighting in compositing.
Lighting in H11 from Peter Quint on Vimeo.
Lighting in H11 II from Peter Quint on Vimeo.
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enable autosave in maya 2011
Alex Villabon of GreenSoda with a quit tip for Maya 2011, using the autosave feature.
Enable the AutoSave option in Maya 2011. This has saved me a couple times, definitely worth taking the 10 seconds it takes to setup. Visit GreenSODA.tv for more tutorials and tips!
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matte renders using mr passes, mattePassMaker
David Johnson at djx blog has created mattePassMaker, a script for Maya to create black and white matte renders using mentalray’s pass system… which means that many matte passes will take the same time as running one matte! Check out the djx page for a lot more info!
“You can use this script to create black and white matte renders using mentalray’s pass system which means that it takes no longer to render 100 mattes than it does to render one. And since the script makes it so easy to set up these passes you can render a separate matte for every object in your scene, if thats what you want, or for combinations of objects that you select or based on the materials that are assigned.”
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what happens when you delete history in maya?
There are times when basic foundations fall by the wayside, and it is in this premise that the great David Schoneveld has created a great video on better understanding what Autodesk Maya is doing when you delete history, and what happens to the nodes behind the scenes… like open up the ascii file behind the scenes.
In order to become better at Maya we need to have a better understanding of what’s happening “behind the scenes” in Maya. How the node network functions and how Maya automatically connects, disconnects, deletes, etc nodes in your scene. This is a really quick look at a simple shape node network, and what is really happening when you delete history.
Delete History, Maya Nodes 1 from destruct007 on Vimeo.
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cgfx shader writing for maya part 3
CGBootcamp’s Leo Covarrubias with part 3 of the series on Maya CGFX Shader Writing which covers adding a Blinn specular highlight to the shader and breaking the code down into seperate functions for lambert and blinn components. If you have missed the first two of the series, check them out here.
Maya: CGFX Shader Writing 03: Blinn Specular Highlight from CG Bootcamp on Vimeo.
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3d animated wings in after effects
Iaenic demonstrates how to create animated wings in After Effects of the angel variety, using After Effects 3D layers, and Trapcode 3D Stroke. Also the tutorial covers using a compositing trick to have it look like the wings wrap around the character they are on.
Advanced 3D Wings in After Effects from Iaenic on Vimeo.
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parenting possibilities in after effects