The Gnomon Workshop now offers two new DVDs by CG supervisor Tim Jones. The creation of digital environments for the highest caliber game cinematics and short films has been Jones area of expertise at Blur Studios. In these DVDs, he shares his techniques for modeling, texturing, lighting, rendering and compositing highly realistic digital sets in 3ds Max.
ENVIRONMENT CREATION FOR PRODUCTION: 3DS MAX MODELING AND TEXTURING WITH TIM JONES.In this DVD, Jones takes you through the entire process of creating an environment with 3ds Max starting with the analysis of reference photographs and determining real world object dimensions, all the way through the 3D modeling and texturing pipeline. Jones will teach you how to spot the visual cues that will allow you to quickly and accurately determine dimensions from set photographs. You will also learn how to build quick layout files for modeling and animation and how to model and texture an entire environment from photographic reference. Many artistic and technical challenges are addressed such as understanding perspective, modeling architecture, tile roofs, stone pathways as well as decay and general destruction. Topics include Understanding Perspective, Layout Modeling Preplanning, Environment Modeling, UV Mapping, Texture Painting and Modeling Destruction.
ENVIRONMENT LIGHTING FOR PRODUCTION: 3DS MAX RENDERING TECHNIQUES WITH TIM JONES In this DVD, after setting up various production lighting rigs, Jones discusses the pros and cons of each solution. You will learn when to use one type of rig over another based on the goals of the project, as well as how to deal with the challenges that different scene elements create for your lighting setups. He will also show you how to render passes out of 3ds Max, composite them using Digital Fusion and set up your lighting in realtime using floating point image formats. Finally, you will learn how to set up a scene for multiple lighting scenarios including day, sunset and night shots.
Since 2000, The Gnomon Workshop (www.thegnomonworkshop.com) has provided artists and students with the educational resources they need to succeed as artists in the entertainment industries. Whether they're interested in design, modeling, effects, animation, storytelling or matte painting, these DVDs provide a valuable educational resource for students around the world. The Gnomon Workshop is the sister company of The Gnomon School of Visual Effects, which provides professional caliber visual effects instruction to students and professionals in Los Angeles.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
