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The standard advice I give here that makes everyone real upset:
Don't tie your learning to a software application. Learn 3D from a general book on 3D, where you learn the concepts, as opposed to what the dials and buttons do in a particular application. Once you learn the basic concepts, you'll go into any new application knowing what to expect, so it becomes just a matter of "where's the button for this", rather than "hmm, what the heck does this do?"
Makes life a lot easier.
If, of course, that's what you want....
Besides making life easier, it can save you a ton of money on software since you will know the latest whiz bang feature in a program actually goes by another name in another program and does basically the same job. You'll get by all the hype more quickly.
I once asked you for some of the book titles that are sitting on your shelf...
Some of my newest bibliographic acquisitions appear to be software agnostic. "3D Art Essentials" by Ami Chopine. "Digital Modeling" by William Vaughan (learned his name from watching some LW tutorials on YouTube). "Polygonal Modeling: Basic And Advanced Techniques" by Mario Russo.
I also picked up some PhotoShop books...including one that is specific to 3D artists (creating textures, etc. rather than photo touch-ups).
My biggest problem is my day job. I don't have the time I'd like to invest during the week in all this reading and 3D experimentation. If only I could take that permanent vacation that Aerosmith sang about...
HI Garstor :)
Jeremy Birn
Digital Lighting and rendering.
Yep...got that one a few months ago. Speaking of which I need to add it to my pile beside the rendering boxes here.
What can I say? I really love books and I buy them so fast that I have no hope of reading them all! :)
Yep...got that one a few months ago. Speaking of which I need to add it to my pile beside the rendering boxes here.
What can I say? I really love books and I buy them so fast that I have no hope of reading them all! :)
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Concentrate on that one.
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Sometimes, learning from one really good source beats five okay sorces anyday.
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I do know what you mean about your job eating away most of your time. I have been trying to learn 3DSMax for years and never can get the time to just sit down and do it.
Duly noted Tsarist. Birn is back on top of the pile.
Another hindrence for me (I hope to finally resolve tomorrow) is that my rendering machine sits on a low coffee table. My "chair" actually a racing seat from my XBox system. "Uncomfortable" doesn't even begin to do justice to my attempts to work on scenes... :coolcheese:
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Yeah, I had a milk crate for a chair at one point.
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Go to a thrift store and you can get a used office chair for $5-$10. If you live near a university, you can often get a good office chair from their "property disposition" or whatever it's called department for $5-$15.
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Your back will thank you for it.
Did I not respond? Sorry...
Anyway, my suggestions for studying 3D are a bit different from what others might tell you. My first suggestion, which also makes people upset, is to turn off your computer, get up, and go outside with a camera. And just look at stuff. Look at shapes and textures, look how light interacts with objects, look at colors of objects and light.
And then try to figure out where the light is coming from, where and why it's bouncing, what color it assumes, etc.
And then look at shadows. Try to figure out why they are the way they are.
You can't model the real world if you don't really know what it looks like. Take reference photos and store them on your computer.
You can read all the books in the world on lighting or anything else, but if you can't relate it to what happens in real life then it's all just words.
Then I'd suggest starting with a comprehensive text on 3D concepts. I'm a bit biased :) , but I'd start with something like Isaac Kerlow's book "The Art of 3d: Computer Animation and Effects". The guy is really good, has a lot of experience in feature films, is one of the pioneers in this stuff, and knows what he's talking about.
Personally, I'd steer clear of specific books on modelling or lighting or whatever at the beginning, and just focus on the general basics, but spend a LOT of time out in the real world understanding what you're trying to model.
And when you learn a concept, go outside and look at real stuff to see what it all means.
And then, when you start to get a handle on the basics, try to reproduce something you've photographed using your 3D software. That will force you to break down all the aspects and figure them out. Why does the leaf seem to glow? What's causing that shadow? What color is sunlight? And on and on....
Try to match your reference photo EXACTLY. This is, IMO, one of the best ways to understand how the real world works. Guaranteed, every time you do it you'll learn a lot.
And then, when you get into the different areas, look for a book on lighting or modelling or whatever interests you.
Another book gets added to my ever-growing pile. I wish I was a speed-reader so that I could get through these. I should clear out some of my older, out-of-date computer books...
This is a very interesting idea.
I'll let you know when I give it a whirl.
That is another point of concern for me...my investment in various props and models from Daz. I'm sure that I can still use Carrara to put together a scene and then export the whole thing as an OBJ file...
You can use the content that way. The content has saved you hours and hours of modeling and tweaking so you can use more hours and hours setting things up and rendering. :)
As long as you have the program you will be able to do the basic stuff. It's the fancier stuff that gives some folks problems.
One thing I will never quite figure out about hobbyists is the apparent attitude that it's okay to spend 6 months, or a year, or two, or more banging their head against the wall trying to figure out how the software works. But it's NOT okay to spend a tiny fraction of that time learning what they're doing, especially if it doesn't involve playing with software.
Playing with software, not matter how long it takes and how little you improve, requires no justification for most hobbyists. But spending a couple hours outside learning what you're doing (and, BTW, enjoying and appreciating the beauty of the world around you) is just too much to even consider.
I'd rather sit at my computer for two weeks trying to figure out how to get the global illumination settings to work (even though I don't really know what they all mean) than to lift my head up and look at the lighting in the room I'm in and try to figure out what the lighting is really doing. And maybe in the process I'll save hours of render time and get a better result.
Yes, I'm exaggerating, and no, I'm not talking about anyone in particular, and yes, I know everyone will be offended and upset....
But it's true, no?
You can use the content that way. The content has saved you hours and hours of modeling and tweaking so you can use more hours and hours setting things up and rendering. :)
As long as you have the program you will be able to do the basic stuff. It's the fancier stuff that gives some folks problems.
I don't know about the rendering but it lets me get right to doing what I enjoy most, staging.
True. Real art is in technique, and that you only get from practice.... Definitely having periods of obsessive experimenting can really improve how you use the software....
There's that story about the rich man who paid an artist to paint a fish.... and after months the artist hadn't given him the painting. So the man goes to the artist's house and demands to see the painting and the artist opens a door and hundreds of fish paintings fall out...