Photoshop 5 3D Textures f/x and design: The Premier Resource for Creating 3D Digital Realities by Producing Photorealistic Image Maps [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Geoffrey Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 4, 1998

Shows everything the reader needs to know to achieve undeniably realistic 3D images and animations. Covers intermediate through advanced 3D image creation with Photoshop. Uses spectacular image maps to create realistic images, showing how to develop multilayer image map surfaces.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This book provides plenty of hands-on guidance for creating and working with a variety of image maps in Adobe Photoshop 5. First, you get an overview of basic and advanced painting techniques. Next, you learn about acquiring good materials for maps by using scanned images and images from digital cameras. The book also discusses how to choose a scanner and fine-tune scanned images. Then the author covers image-map creation by explaining the importance of color-image, bump, specularity, diffusion, transparency, and luminosity maps; by teaching planar, cubic, cylindrical, and spherical image-mapping methods; and by showing you the utility of layered image maps. He gives you a lot of hands-on help in creating industrial, science fiction, organic-creature, natural, and displacement-map textures. You also learn how to create character accessories and light gels. A full-color section features images from the book's projects, and the companion CD-ROM contains images for working along with those projects. --Kathleen Caster

About the Author

Geoffrey Smith is lead artist and president of PixlSmith Productions in San Francisco, CA, which focuses on the creation of photorealistic surfacing for 3D creatures, characters, and objects.

Product Details

• Paperback: 350 pages
• Publisher: Coriolis Group Books (December 4, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576102742
• ISBN-13: 978-1576102749
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,789,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and intuitive, January 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Photoshop 5 3D Textures f/x and design: The Premier Resource for Creating 3D Digital Realities by Producing Photorealistic Image Maps (Paperback)

I am a Photoshop user who thought this book would be good for use solely within Photoshop, the truth is that this book is for use in conjunction with a 3D program - if you don't own such a program, then think twice before ordering this title. I am in the process of learning Strata Studio Pro, so eventually I will be able to put this book to some good use. The reason I gave 4 stars instead of 5 is that the ad./title for this book can be a little misleading, it should read: Photoshop 5 3D Textures f/x and design FOR USE WITH A 3D PROGRAM. Having said that, the book is well written, and I learned much from it. The tutorials are easy to follow, the results of which I will only be able to fully appreciate when I have finished learning my 3D program. The book covers creating the different texture maps within Photoshop to be used on your 3D models. Do not hesitate to purchase this book if you own both Photoshop and a 3D program.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good book for someone starting out., December 4, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Photoshop 5 3D Textures f/x and design: The Premier Resource for Creating 3D Digital Realities by Producing Photorealistic Image Maps (Paperback)

If you are looking to add more realism to the look of your 3-D, or to get oriented toward creating realistic 3-D, this book is a good start. If you are already familiar with the Photoshop tool set and want to enhance your knowledge, this book isn't going to help you because there are no tips or tricks that are beyond the basics. What the book demonstrates is how to use standard PS tools to make different kinds of image maps, though not always in the best and/or quickest ways. Some very useful concepts are presented in the book, however -- that is the important thing. If you already know how to implement various maps (diffusion, specular, transparency/opacity, clip, bump, etc.) in a surface material, know a thing or two about mapping coordinates/texture placement, and have used 3-D software for a while, I don't recommend buying this book. The book/author is also seemingly Macintosh and Lightwave-centric, leaving out terminology, or incorrectly stating things about other software and even PC Photoshop conventions.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful but limited, January 11, 2001

By 

arisen (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Photoshop 5 3D Textures f/x and design: The Premier Resource for Creating 3D Digital Realities by Producing Photorealistic Image Maps (Paperback)

Nice tips and tricks for someone that dosen't want to go that deep into Photoshop but still be able to produce decent textures for 3D. Being the only book on the subject I have to say it's the best =), but if you are seriuos about Photoshop as a 3D artist (which you should) you'll be better off getting one of those "in depth" Photoshop books. Like that you should be able to figure out what this book has to say by yourself.