In this new series from Aaron Sims, he reveals his process for building the 3D world of his project Tethered Islands. In this lecture, Aaron demonstrates his techniques for sculpting character textures using ZBrush. Aaron shows the basics of using sculpting tools, and covers how to use alpha textures for applying detail to a character. This DVD contains a library of over 150 pre-made alpha textures which are available for your own projects. Aaron also illustrates how to make your own custom alphas using Adobe Photoshop.

In this demonstration the instructor creates the high res version of a complex modular fountain from scratch with 3ds Max 2010. The sculpting portions of the video are done twice, once in Mudbox 2009 and again in Zbrush 3.1.
This is a 2-Disc Release with over 8 hours of demonstration and has something for everyone.

Modo from Luxology is a wolf in sheep’s clothing - nice and gentle to look at and use, but with fearsome and powerful capabilities. This wolf that comes with a distinguished pedigree, enjoys being scratched behind the ears and will obviously be a faithful companion to anybody that cares to adopt it. Modo is one software package that is like a breath of fresh air in a stuffy, digital office.

Modo is an innovative 3D modeling, painting and rendering software designed to accelerate the creation of world-class models, associated color and normal maps, and ultra high-quality renderings. Modo delivers the next evolution of 3D modeling, painting and rendering in a single integrated and accelerated package for the Mac and PC. And now, modo is a true end-to-end solution that includes true 3D sculpting tools, animation and network rendering! More than just features, modo is a truly elegant integration of technology, raw horsepower and refined workflow.

Brush is a digital sculpting and painting program that has revolutionized the 3D industry with its powerful features and intuitive workflows. Built within an elegant interface, ZBrush offers the world’s most advanced tools for today’s digital artists. With an arsenal of features that have been developed with usability in mind, ZBrush creates a user experience that feels incredibly natural while simultaneously inspiring the artist within. With the ability to sculpt up to a billion polygons, ZBrush allows you to create limited only by your imagination.

The Next Generation of Modeling. Power NURBS [PRO]. Power NURBS unique hybrid approach fuses the next generation NURBS surface construction technology with the industry’s leading Solids Modeling technology bringing an unparalleled modeling experience tothe 3ds Max Platform.

Program for texture and detail of 3D-objects, designed specifically for 3D-artists and designers, but is initially focused on computer games developers.
The program combines layers of texture and detail in one simple and intuitive interface. There is full support and compatibility of such packages as the Light Wave 3D, Modo format *. lwo, Maya, 3ds Max, Carrara format *. fbx and *. obj. 3D-Coat supports 3D SpaceNavigator of 3DCONNEXION for more intuitive navigation. The program can work in a strong bond with Adobe Photoshop and other 2D editor, working with PSD files. Performance program has increased significantly through the use of normal maps.

A convenient and useful program for the texturing and detail of 3D-objects, designed specifically for 3D-artists and designers, but primarily focuses on the development of computer games.
The program combines layers of texture and detail in one easy, simple interface. There was complete support and compatibility of such packages as the Light Wave 3D, Modo format *. lwo, Maya, 3ds Max, Carrara format *. fbx and *. obj. 3D-Coat supports 3D SpaceNavigator of 3DCONNEXION for more intuitive navigation. The program can work in a sound bundle with Adobe Photoshop and other 2D editor, working with PSD files. Performance program has increased significantly through the use of normal maps.

What’s New
Innovative Graphite Modeling Toolset
Create models quickly and efficiently with the new Graphite modeling toolset. Graphite takes 3ds Max polygon modeling to a new level by delivering over 100 tools for advanced polygonal modeling and freeform design. Because the Graphite tools are displayed in one central location, it‘s easy to find the tools you need for the job. With Graphite you can customize the tool display or hide the command panel and model in Expert Mode.

Material Explorer
Easily manage complex scenes using the new Material Explorer, a productivity-enhancing toolset that simplifies the way users interact with objects and materials. Use it to quickly browse and replace materials in your scene, and to view material properties and relationships.

FaceSwapper makes it easy to cut and paste faces from one picture into another without precision selections or manual color adjustments. The cutting and pasting occurs in 3D space, allowing you to easily match the angle and direction of the target face. No need to use complicated 3D modeling applications or expensive graphical packages. Create high-quality collages in just minutes.

Automatic Face Selection
No lengthy manual selections and no complicated color adjustments are required – just click the two faces with a mouse, and FaceSwapper will create a smooth, natural-looking collage right away!

Jagged-Free Edges
The automatic face detection and selection tool ensures jagged-free selection of the original face, which makes the source and target faces blend seamlessly to produce smooth, natural images.

Automatic Color Adjustment
No two pictures are exactly alike. Variations in background and lighting conditions produce images that differ significantly in their gamma and colors. FaceSwapper recognizes the difference and adjusts the face being transplanted to match the exact color and gamma of the destination image to produce photo collages that as natural as the original.

Adaptive subdivision. The main difference between 3D-Coat and other sculpting software is its adaptive subdivision algorithm. Usually sculpting programs divide every edge in 2 parts, so it is very difficult to work with long polygons. 3D-Coat however subdivides every edge in the source mesh depending on its length. So long polygons may be subdivided in a proportion of for example 9:147. You can change mesh resolution multiple times (like other software usually does), but also ina percentage, for example 50%. You paint in 3D-Coat on the vertices, but the adaptive subdivision makes the subdivided mesh very uniform. It is preferable that the mesh has no overlapping UVs, but 3d brush can generate its own UVs if neccesary.

Advantages of 3D-Coat:

- Usual workflow. At input you provide an OBJ file of 1-100 thousand polygons, preferrably with UV-mapping in place, at output you get either an object of 1-10 million polygons or textures of normals, displacement, color, transparency and specular. Maximal texture size is 4096 per 4096. Fully seamless texturing provided!

- Relief, color, specular. Possibility to draw relief detailing, color, specular and transparency on model's surface.

- Copy/Paste. All you previously did in 2D now can be done in 3D – editing with layers, cloning surface areas, image transforming on surface, Copy/Paste, filling sealed areas, gradient filling, filling area inside contour, darkening, lightening, smoothening, sharping and so on.

- Technology of 3D-Coat. Small geometry details get automatically added onto normal map, while large ones modify the geometry. As a result, the object of 40 to 80 thousand polygons displayed on screen looks as of 5 to 10 million polygons owing to detailed normal map.

Designed by professional artists in the film, games, and design industries, Autodesk® Mudbox™ digital sculpting and texture painting software gives 3D modelers and texture artists the freedom to create without worrying about the technical details.

Autodesk Mudbox 2009 combines a highly intuitive user interface with a powerful creative toolset for creating ultra-realistic high-poly 3D models. Breaking the mold of traditional 3D modeling applications, Mudbox 2009 provides an organic brush-based 3D modeling experience that ignites the creative process.

Combining an intuitive user interface with a suite of high-performance, creative tools, Autodesk® Mudbox™ digital sculpting and texture painting software offers 3D modeling professionals the ability to quickly and easily create highly detailed organic and inorganic 3D assets.

Productivity at Your Fingertips
The creativity-enhancing Mudbox feature set is easily accessible to traditional sculptors and to both new and experienced digital artists, enabling users to become productive in hours rather than weeks. Digital sculpting tools mimic the behavior of their real-world counterparts: if you can pinch clay, you can use the tools in Mudbox.

Zbrush is an innovative, powerful, 3d model manipulation tool. You are able to sculpt a model as if it were clay, import and export objects between other 3d modeling software. Zbrush is best for modeling orgainc forms; humans, animals, plants, but of course you could do a lot more. In general the main method of manipulating the mesh is by use of a brush which displaces the mesh smoothly, as if adding clay or removing clay with a brush stroke.

Minimum System Requirements
OS: Windows 2000
CPU: PIII
RAM: 512MB (1024 MB recommended)
Monitor: 1024x768 monitor resolution (32 bits)

With ArtCAM Pro you can design and manufacture 3D models or 3D sculpted reliefs quickly and easily. You can create highly in5tricate personalized or custom 3D models from 2D sketches or photographs. Unique software tools guide you through the entire process, from conceptual sketch to the finished piece or mold. Whether you are using ArtCAM Pro for woodworking, signmaking, metal cutting, engraving or embossing, ArtCAM Pro will give you and your business the competitive edge.

“ArtCAM Pro is an incredibly powerful software package we use it for a variety of product lines. The software has never limited what we can achieve with toolpaths. The limitations have become the ready available tooling and our imagination" - Doug Sealy - Designer, Heritage Creations Inc. New York, USA

CGArena is a much appreciated free bi-monthly magazine on animation which includes lots of useful information. It offers instruction, interviews and publishes some of the best CG Artworks.

Argile is a new artistic studio dedicated to visualize, sculpt and retouch 3D models. Its flexibility and ergonomics will turn Argile into the indispensable companion to create morphs, to sculpt a model and paint it in real time. Along with the complete set of classic features (automatic detection and selection of points/vertices/faces, rotation, dilatation, displacement, constraints...) etc. In a couple of minutes you will get used to this powerful and intuitive original toolbox.

Sculpt
Argile's core, the Sculpture Studio invites you to explore shapes.
Along with the complete set of classic features (automatic detection and selection of points/vertices/faces, rotation, dilatation, displacement, constraints...), Argile offers a palette of unique brushes to manipulate a model as if it is clay, to add fine details, to shape the model as you want. These natural and intuitive brushes let you literally feel the volume of the models through the mouse. Other original tools help you soften or accent the relief as if you were drawing.
In a blink you will be able to refine your model to the last details and sculpt it according to your imagination!

Paint
Does your model need to be enriched with colors and materials?
The 3D Paint palette lets you paint on the mesh as easily and naturally as drawing on a canvas. In real time, add textures, colors, transparency, bump, normal mapping... to your 3D models
A complete and very innovative 3D paint module that widely opens the gates to your creativity.

Origami is created by folding small squares of paper into various shapes. 3D Origami takes that tradition to the next level by combining smaller origami projects into three-dimensional structures. These impressive and seemingly difficult sculptures are deceptively easy to make. Each solid object is formed from simple folded units. The works include cranes, swans, turtles, owls, penguins, pineapples, sunflowers, baskets, hats, urns, kittens, rabbits, and others. Most of the processes are illustrated with photographs and step-by-step illustrations. 3D Origami is sure to engage fans of the craft and open up a new world of delight to origami devotees.

AKVIS Sketch
AKVIS Sketch is software for conversion of photos into pencil sketches and watercolor drawings. Now you do not need to handle a pencil to feel like an artist. All you need to create your original work of art is good taste and AKVIS Sketch. Our efficient method allows creating realistic color and B&W drawings that imitate the technique of graphite and color pencil, charcoal and watercolor painting.
In contrast to the similar standard filters (like the built-in filters in Photoshop or PSP) that offer an approximate sketch, AKVIS Sketch provides a convincing result; it comes very close to hand-drawn works of a human artist. Getting a similar result with the standard tools would require expertise in image editing and extensive manipulation with layers, masks, brushes and applying filters.
AKVIS Sketch has a neat interface with a few sliders. At first you can process the image with the default settings and then touch up the photo adding color, or trying different techniques - from pencil to charcoal or watercolor. You can make the hatching denser or finer and change the pitch angle of strokes.
Home users will be delighted by the neat result of the photo-to-sketch conversion. AKVIS Sketch can bring a lot of fun: a pencil portrait can be a good present for your relatives and friends, a watercolor drawing obtained from your last nature shooting can decorate your room, you can convert any photo to an original drawing to print on a T-Shirt.

3D-Brush
Key features of 3D-Brush:
1) At input you provide an OBJ file of 1-100 thousand polygons, preferrably with UV-mapping in place, at output you get either an object of 1-10 million polygons or textures of normals, displacement, color, transparency and specular. Maximal texture size is 4096 per 4096. Fully seamless texturing provided!
2) Possibility to draw relief detailing, color, specular and transparency on model's surface.
3) All you previously did in 2D now can be done in 3D ?? editing with layers, cloning surface areas, image transforming on surface, Copy/Paste, filling sealed areas, gradient filling, filling area inside contour, darkening, lightening, smoothening, sharping and so on.