Week 4: Story Pitches, Advanced Modeling, & Lighting, Rendering a Scene

Here are links and discussion from this weeks class or related to the subjects we discussed in class.

The Pitch:
Each team is pitching their animation idea to the class. Some helpful advice:

1. Use visuals from your web logs if you want via the projector computer in the front of class.

2. Don't throw background or technical information in when you are pitching your idea -- do that before or after. Pitch your idea straight through without technical anecdotes. Make the class feel the story or mood.

3. You can use Inspirational sketches, cartoon studies, thumbnail story boards, animatics, whatever helps you convey your ideas.

See additional details in the assignment page.

See the article The reel deal or how artists pitching their SHREK story boards.

Lighting your scene. Some Links:

Don't forget Max's own reference and tutorials on Lighting.

A good tutorial on 3 point lighting for portraits and characters.

From film set to 3d lighting tutorial.

Lighting and Textures in 3D Max by Shawn Lewis.

Advanced 3D lighting techniques from Computer Arts Magazine.

Natural Lighting by Michael Scholz.

Sub-Division Surfaces

We showed Pixar's Geri's Game and discussed sub-division surfaces as a new modeling technique which gives you both control (via the polygon cage) and smoothness ( via it's cloned object). See last week for more details about the origin of sub-d surfaces.

Now we will use them for modeling your object (if appropriate for your work). Here is step by step instructions to use sub-d surfaces in 3ds max from last years class. Step 1 create the starting mirrored sub-d capsule which then can be used to make any symmetrical object we used it for making a body - starfish (wo)man) by dividing, moving and extruding the cage with simple polygon manipulations.

Follow the instructions here to use it for your own modeling exercise. You can skip step 1 by starting with this pre made capsule max file. Download and bring it into Max, then follow the rest of the instructions. The instructions also includes information on how to make a simple box scene, lighting the scene and creating a image. Use only what you need and feel free to experiment.

This capsule can create a number of models, see the tutorials to make a character:

Link - tutorial modeling a character using another sub-d method.

Other sub-d tutorials:

Link - tutorial subdivision surfaces in 3ds max to make a face

Link - tutorial new sub-d tools in 3ds max 4


Use the sub-d technique,only if it make sense for your models. If not stick with other techniques we have shown you:


More Modeling techniques

links (from last week) We might go over how to Light your scene

Basic Modeling concepts from 3dreference

Lathe in 3DS MAX

Extrude in 3DS MAX and Lofts

Modifiers in 3DS MAX

Poly Modeling in 3DS MAX 4

more Box modeling in 3DS MAX and more box modeling and poly modeling

Max tutorials (from last week)

www.3dluvr.com Max tutorials - more advanced 3d max tutorials

3d cafe tutorials

3dlinks Max tutorials

cglearn tutorials

Tutorials from bergen

from maxhelp.com

from webreference