Ready to learn from a seasoned visual effects veteran? Then sit down and pay attention! In Maya 5 Killer Tips, effects wizard Eric Hanson lets the genie out of the bottle, revealing all of the Maya tricks, techniques, and shortcuts he's employed to create visual marvels for films like The Day After Tomorrow, Cast Away, Fifth Element, and more. By focusing on concise tips, informative nuggets, and seasoned productivity secrets that are rarely found in other volumes, this book takes you straight to the heart of the matter: the productivity enhancers that you usually only acquire after working with a program in an intensive professional environment. In this case, Eric reveals many of these road-tested Maya secrets: efficient modeling with NURBS and polygons; creating rich rendering results with shader networks; conveying professional camera techniques; using particle systems, dynamics; and more. Along the way he explores Maya 5's new features as well, including improved rendering and character setup options.
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Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Eric Hanson is a visual effects artist specializing in digital environments and effects for feature films. Originally an architect, he established early 3D visualization studios for some of the country's largest architectural firms, including The Callison Partnership in Seattle and Gensler in Los Angeles. An expanding interest in film led to a move into visual effects work, resulting in senior CG artist positions with leading visual effects houses Digital Domain, Sony Imageworks, Dream Quest Images, Walt Disney Feature Animation, and SimEx Digital Studios. His work can be seen in Spider-Man, Cast Away, Hollow Man, Mission to Mars, Bicentennial Man, Fantasia 2000, Atlantis, and The Fifth Element, as well as many large-format special-venue films worldwide.
Eric specializes in 3D work with Maya, RenderMan, and Shake, and is an active teacher of those packages. He has taught for several years, having instructed courses on advanced 3D techniques at SGI's Silicon Studio and Gnomon School of Visual Effects, and is currently leading a curriculum on visual effects at the University of Southern California's School of Cinema-TV. He frequently speaks and holds workshops at various trade shows and schools domestically, as well as in Japan, even though he is not sure what to eat while there.
Eric is a member of ACM/Siggraph and the Visual Effects Society and holds a professional degree in Architecture from the University of Texas at Austin. He is currently contributing to a remarkable upcoming summer blockbuster at Digital Domain in Los Angeles. He wishes he could sleep more.
Eric can be reached at his web site, http://www.visuraimaging.com.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Introduction
Not for the Faint of Heart
3D artists have it tough. They have to wade through seemingly endless amounts of technical minutia from dreary manuals, off-the-shelf books thicker than the yellow pages in a grimy Manhattan phone booth, and well-intentioned but often awkward online tutorials. Then they navigate bleary-eyed through the endless layers of cryptic commands in their applications, wrestling such terms as "Directed Acyclic Graph," "Non-Rational Uniform B-Spline," and "Non-Manifold Topology." If you can recite the meaning of these terms without forethought, you have already been there! We endure this toil just to satisfy our implacable creative urges to muster up fascinating imagery out of the deep well of technology. 3D animation and rendering is certainly the high ground of computer graphics, pushing one's capacity for technical concepts and jargon to the limit. And, like your grandfather in his youth, mythically trudging through miles of snow making his way to school, we actually LIKE it that way! So, what better reason than to create a book that assembles concise technical tips to speed understanding of the terms, accelerate your workflow to superhuman speeds, and peer into techniques professionals use daily in the visual effects field? When I learned of Scott Kelby's Killer Tips series, I recognized that it would be an instant fit in the 3D CGI* world, like beer and pretzels, or in our case, hot pockets and programmers.
Why Maya?
Maya has had an interesting ride into the annals of CGI history in the last few years. It has pounded its way like Mike Tyson into the forefront of professional 3D, and is now considered the standard for 3D work at most of the major visual effects facilities, such as Acme Animagraphics and Industrial FX R Us. Seriously though, it has swept the field, and if there is anything good about that, it is that artists can now carry their expertise and well-earned training with them as they drift from project to project, like the best migrant beanfield workers.
Maya began life as three competing products (Alias, Wavefront, and TDI) that Silicon Graphics had the good sense to purchase and then fuse, Frankenstein-like, into the ultimate über-3D software. Think of it as Einstein's Grand Unification Theory applied to 3D. Or dogs and cats happily romping together. Or Steve Jobs and Bill Gates taking a buddy road trip through the southwestern desert together. In any case, it consolidated many of the separately evolved features that 3D artists had grown envious of. It reduced the prevalent 3D application "camp" mentality somewhat and joined the tribes.
But what secured the success of Maya in the high-end world was that it was the first 3D package to "open the hood" for standard users, allowing amateur weekend mechanics (non-programmers) to rummage around in the engine and transmission. So rather than offering an ultimately dead-end tunnel of predetermined GUI* commands, Maya reveals all command structure in text format, allowing clever custom tools to be created (or bumbling stupid ones). Some hardcore Maya users balk at using a GUI at all and type everything. The same crowd would probably prefer punch cards if they were still around, but the option does exist.
Maya also delivers cutting-edge performance in most of the areas it is known for, such as extensive modeling, rich character animation, highly developed dynamic simulation, and a multitude of deformations, as well as offering unique technology like fluid effects, cloth simulation, 3D paint effects, and non-linear animation. Ultimately, Maya has become the "Swiss army knife" of visual effects. Of course, Swiss army knives are not exactly sleek and are fairly cumbersome, and Maya can be seen similarly. Thus, a good understanding is needed to "tame the beast" and coax it into doing your bidding. Alias's early advertising campaign involving a circus lion tamer is not too far off in that regard.
Is This Book for Me?
Absolutely. This book is designed for the advancing intermediate Maya artist, but it will offer gems to all levels. It is amazing how many Maya techniques fall through the cracks for even the most seasoned, jaded 3D guru. The fact is, no one artist can know ALL there is in Maya, so most hunker down into one area or another. Therefore, beginners will find it valuable to clear up some of the arcane mystery of the program, intermediates will use it to add to their growing bevy of techniques, and old dogs will learn a few new tricks to polish off their expertise. Some power users say it is ALL about the tricks and guard them ferociously. So, if you use Maya at all, breathe air, have ten fingers, ten toes, and one head, it probably is a book for you. Not that you HAVE to have those requirements, of course.
Can I Get a Job Working with Steven Spielberg or Jim Cameron After I Read It?
Sure, why not? Stranger things have happened in Hollywood. Steven Spielberg started as a squatter in a studio lot, and Jim Cameron was a truck driver. I would say with that in mind, you could certainly make your mark in Hollywood, armed with the aid of Maya Killer Tips. One of the truly great aspects of the visual effects field is that ultimately it is only about your talent. Well, sure, there are SOME power lunches involved, but mastering a difficult package like Maya is a surefire and road-tested route to contribute to the history of the silver screen, and not a bad 8–5 gig if you ask me. Or there's always the beanfield....
* First "TLA," or three-letter acronym, that 3D artists seem to prefer for basic conversation to each other; in this case, "computer graphics imagery."
* Another TLA; in this case, "graphic user interface," affectionately known as "gooey."
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Book Review Maya 5 Killer Tips!,
By Weyert de Boer (Veghel, NB, The Netherlands) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Maya 5 Killer Tips (Paperback)
Book Review "Maya 5 Killer Tips!" BY WEYERT DE BOERIn most books you can find little boxes with Tips and Truces, in my opinion it is the most interesting subtexts available in books. The book consists of several chapters who are: 1. Deciphering the Hieroglyphics; Maya 5 Killer Tips! Is a great book of resources to enhance and pepper up your knowledge about Alias|Wavefront Maya in general, a book from the beginner and the experts.The book includes tips and trucks you might never have found, if you had to find it yourself. It's a great resource for saving time when working with Maya 5. Especially the tips about (speeding) rendering and modelling were of big value for me. This book should be on every desk who is serious Maya 5 user. The Killer Tips! Editions for other 3d applications are also in the works for example Lightwave Killer Tips!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A good book for both experts and beginners,
By
This review is from: Maya 5 Killer Tips (Paperback)
This book has something for everyone. As an animation supervisor I was of course particularly interested in the sections on Character Animation and Rigging, but I was able to glean good information from the books other sections as well. Its written in a clear, concise (and sometimes witty) manner, and the book walks you through each tip and trick in a economical but thorough way. The great thing about this book IMHO is that because of its approach to each problem, it is able to fit a *lot* of different tips between the covers of its relatively slim profile. This makes it an ideal companion to larger, more pedestrian tomes on Maya, while keeping one step ahead with its insightful and often invaluable professional instruction. I recommend it for both the novice and seasoned user alike.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A must for any Maya artist.,
By A Customer
This review is from: Maya 5 Killer Tips (Paperback)
This book is great for unleashing new ideas on how to use Maya. Great at showing easier ways to accomplish common task. Best all around book ever on Maya with a catch. These are tips only, without detailed explanations. But that's okay, because once you can look online or in reference manuals for more details on the tools. This book is must for any Maya artist. One other negative is there is no CD. It was frustrating when you wanted to see for yourself how the steps were all put together.
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