Knot Theory

Everything you need to know about 3D lighting is covered in this comprehensive handbook. You'll learn how lighting really works by studying the nature of light, both its interactive properties and history. You'll also gain new insights into the physiology of seeing, the fundamentals of photography and cinematography, and the principles of color and materials. From there you'll explore various ways to apply lighting effectively through detailed tutorials using Lightwave, trueSpace, or 3D Studio Max. All of the techniques covered in the tutorials can also be applied to various other 3D applications. Whether you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced 3D artist, you'll find new ideas and techniques for enhancing the quality of your own models and characters. This is one lighting resource you definitely need in your graphics' library. Covers the placement of lights in a variety of situations including figurative, architectural, and CG-characters Explores important principles behind placing lights in photography/cinematography, controlling tonality, shadow generation, and light presence replication Covers the ins and out of radiosity and ray tracing Bridges the gap between traditional lighting and computer graphics Demonstrates specialized lighting situations such as a car and characters in motion Color insert illustrates many of the lighting techniques covered A must-have reference filled with insights and techniques for lighting everything from portraits, reflective surfaces, and various textures to indoor and outdoor scenes Detailed tutorials use the popular 3D programs Lightwave, 3D Studio Max, or trueSpace Companion CD-ROM is filled with demos, tutorial files, and color images A variety of programs and plug-ins demos are included for use with the tutorials in the book. The demos are either save disabled or time limited. Darkling Simulations: Darktree Simbiont (Win) Right Hemisphere: Deep Paint 3D (Win) Credo Interactive: LifeForms 3.9 (Win/Mac) Motional Realms: Reel Motion (Win/Mac) Caligari: trueSpace 4.2 (Win) tS Logic: 3D Light Array Generator (Win) Windmill Fraser Multimedia: Sphereglo(Win) Is there something missing from your 3D images? Do they lack vibrancy and realism? If so, the problem may not be with your images, but with the lighting behind them. Mastering the art of lighting in 3D graphics is a challenge facing even the most experienced professionals. With the hands-on techniques and guidelines provided in these pages, however, you'll learn to illuminate your work and add new depth and detail to your images. From the history of lighting, to the detailed fundamentals of 3D graphics, all of the concepts needed to improve or refresh your lighting skills are covered. The general lighting techniques and information provided will serve as an indispensable and timeless resource. Mastering the art of lighting in 3D graphics is a challenge facing even the most experienced professionals. The hands-on techniques and guidelines provided in these pages, show how to illuminate your work and add new depth and detail to your images. Examines 3D lighting techniques in relation to computer graphics, photography and cinematography