COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course introduces aspects and methods for achieving high-quality 3D models both organic and inorganic. Major emphasis of this class will be put on the creative output of the student via the tools learned and projects assigned. Moreover, the course aims toward the comprehensive use of techniques in Maya to create meaningful 3D sculptures and environments with expressive content. The class will be structured around increasingly challenging projects around practical topics, and a final focusing on the human head. Lectures will focus on the tools and principles of surface construction as well as characteristics involving materials, textures, lighting, and more. Related topics may include intro to rendering: HDRI rendering, Final Gather, ambient occlusion, radiocity, and 2D rendering techniques

PREREQUISITES

ART 380, Computer Graphics I

INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS

Class lectures, in-class assignments, and project related demonstrations will be provided from original or researched content. Supplemental homework assignments, specific tutorials from published sources will be given. Most of these assignments are, of course, to be done exclusively outside the hours of class time.

The expecation is 3 to 6 hours per week working outside of class on project assignments and homework. Lab hours will be posted.
There are numerous books and online tutorials on 3D modeling. I have listed recommendations of texts and URLs for further study. I will also distribute, handouts, images, and other reference materials to supplement your studies.

TEXTBOOK (s)

URL(s)

Assignments may be given out of these selected items

BASIC MODELING texturing, and lighting

Exploring 3D Modeling with Maya 7 , by P. Beckman and S. Wells Thompson Delmar LearningISBN 1-4180-1612-8-

Learning Maya 7, The Modeling & Animation Handbook, Alias Systems Corp.ISBN: 1-894893-873-

Digital Lighting and Rendering, by Jeremy Birn New Riders Press ISBN: 0-321-31631-2

NOTE: some links below might not work, please Google them yourself if so

ANIMATION TEXTS

-Timing for Animation, by Harold Whitaker and John Halas, Focal Press ISBN 0-240-51714-8

-The Illusion of Life, Disney Animation Walt Disney Productions ISBN 0-7868-6070-7

-The Animator’s Reference Book , Les Pardew & Ross WolfleyThompson Course Technology, USBN 1-59200-675-2

-The Animators Survival Kit, by Richard Williams, Faber, ISBN 0-571-20228-4

-Cartoon Animation, by Preston Blair, Walter Foster, ISBN 1-56010-084-2

-Understanding Comics, Scott McCould, ISBN 0-06-097625-X

-Character Animation in 3D, Steve Roberts, Focal Press Visual Effects and Animation ISBN 0-240-51665-6

MUDBOX and ZBRUSH: brush-based displacement map sculpting (digital clay)

MUDBOX	ZBRUSH
brush sculpting, super easy learning curve. Runs on WINxp	bursh sculpting, more tools, z-spheres, more to learn. very powerful. runs on PC and Mac.

HEAD AND BODY MODELING

RYAN KITTLESON's method	JOAN OF ARC tutorial:	Another Head Tutorial	DIGITAL TUTORS	SPLINE CAGE Method	BOX MODELING Method	MODELING THE EAR
simplified poly cage construction, head only NOTE: does not cover the ear.	strategic poly cage construction, head and body	step by step Polygon/SubD, with Acrobat files, and tutorial files	strategic anatomically correct construction, whole body	using NURB splines to form face	Quicktime, (also called "blocking")	create Poly and append tools used to make an ear

STOP STARING : Facial Modeling and Animation done Right, by Jason Osipa

SURFACING:

NORMAL MAPPING:

Ben Cloward, Cody Sargent, BAAAAM! tutorial,

Game-Artists.net

TEXTURES

some texture

more textures

MUDBOX:what is Mudbox?

MudboxandMaya?, MudboxBasicsAndWacomPen, NORMALMAPSinMudbox, MUDBOX_1of_4, MUDBOX_2_of4, MUDBOX_3_of_4, MUDBOX_4_of_4, RETOPPINGdetailinMUDBOX

3D MODEL DATABASES:

http://www.meshfactory.com, http://www.turbosquid.com, http://www.3dcafe.com, http://www.linefour.com

ie: McCainModel.zip, McCainMode.mb

PROFESSIONAL CG SITES

http://highend3d.com

http://www.awn.com

www.cgchannel.com

Anzovin Setup Machine:

http://www.anzovin.com/products/tsm2maya.html

basic MEL and expressions:

basic MEL

OTHER URLS

and TEXTS

click for extended resources and links

click for animation related texts (Word File)

EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES

upon completing this course the student should be able to:

-be able to think, plan and work creatively and comfortably with 3D modeling tools, and display expressive choices and technical proficiency.

-apply industry standard modeling techniques of correct quad-based topology

-posses a versatility in different modeling strategies including Polygon, NURBS, and Subdivisional

-create high quality texture maps with UV layout coordinates with precision on models

-create both high quality inorganic and organic referenced models, including the ability to create anatomical models based on reference which are "on-model".

-predict and build the topology (muscle)flow for characters which anticipate future pipeline events such as blend shape animation.

-obtain a comfort with the node-based structure and inter-dependancy in Maya; and have a strong knowledge of its context and workflow for creating models.

PHYSICAL SUPPLIES

USB Flash Drive (1 GIG recommended)

External Hard Drive, (mac formatted). At least 80 gigs

Large Sketchbook, graph paper, pencils, markers, and other drawing materials,

Sculpting material (optional) may include: formable wire, clay or "sculpy"

Maya Basics

· Interface layout, and logic (images here are not latest Maya version):

grid, interface, channel box, attribute editor, commandline, helpline, modules , hotbox, layer editor, manipulators, outliner, panel layout, pivot, quicklayout, shelf, statusline, toolbox, move tools, shortcuts,

·See through the 3D camera space and the orthogonal views.

· Cartesian properties (xyz)

· Navigating around the virtual world and camera control

· Manipulating objects. (move, rotate, scale)

· Displaying object wire, shadeModeling basics

· Primitive geometry and pre-defined content

· Moving an object’s pivot

· Polygon intro

· Selecting order, and duplicationHierarchy

· Understanding hierarchy, dependency and the workflow of Maya

· grouping, parenting, and the Hypergraph

· Class Exercise: Model and Navigate

· Class Exercise: Create a Tree, Extrude face/edge of a box, Extrusion on a curve

Modeling basics (cont.)

· Object and component mode

· Manipulating polygon surface components (vertex, edge, face)

· Extruding a face, edge, etc. (keep faces together, or not)

· NURBS objects and their components (hulls, lines, CVs)

· NURBS and Polygon comparison, show tesselation differences.

· Trimming NURBS, and use of Make Live

· Pick masks: prioritizing and masking· The Outliner:

· Drawing and manipulating NURBS curves

· Using simple curves to create custom objects (extrude, loft, etc)Rendering Basics

· Lighting intro (point, directional, spotlight, etc)

lighting explained

tpyes of lighting

low key/high key

three point lighting

shader examples

· Hypershade and Shading intro

MIDTERM PROJECT : VIRTUAL MOBILE is assigned

DUE: Tuesday, MAY 3rd

(image on left, for definition purposes only)

mo·bile
a piece of kinetic sculpture having delicately balanced units constructed of rods and sheets of metal or other material suspended in midair by wire or twine so that the individual parts can move independently, as when stirred by a breeze.Compare to stabile.

I want you to start with a collection of FOUND OBJECTS, model them individually, then desgin them into a virtual hanging mobile sculpture. You can use lights if you wish to create a chandelier-like piece as well, it's up to you. Moreover, in the tradition of Alexander Calder, create a piece that looks like it could actually balance itself in gravity. (more info on kinetic sculpture)

found objects

HERE ARE THE STEPS FOR THIS PROJECT

1) Spend at least one full day collecting small objects..you could go on a nature walk and collect leaves, rocks, stones, bark, pine or seedling cones, shells, broad grass samples, etc. Then you could go and search for junk items, metal, wood, simple toys, harwares, stuff in a junk drawer...

..all items you can fit easily into your hand...make sure you have a large amount of diversity of items. You may if you want collect any manmade items, dicarded or trashed, but again, only if it looks completely safe, and permitted. DO NOT go to anyplace dangerous, CSULA holds no liability.

2) Collect all a wide variety of portable found items, that you can put in a bag and bring back to lab or home to begin to make organic models.

3) choose at least eight of the most interesting forms among the object and make sketches of them in front and side views. Take these drawings and scan them into Maya and use as building plans for you model.

4) You may also DIRECTLY SCAN some of the flat surface and texture of your object. You are to not only to model these objects as faithfully as possible, you will contribute color, bump, tranparency, and any other texture maps needed to give full richest and similitude to your objects. Using efficient quad-polygon and/or NURBs techniques, you are expected to make professinal level models as well as believable textures and High quality lighting. (using global illumination / mental ray)

5) After all eight of you objects are modeled and textured, you are to arrange these mutiple objects into a MOBILE, or VIRTUAL HANGING SCULPTURE that connects all the peices together. you can incorporate lights as well to make you piece like a chandelier or any creative interpretation

Your project can have a social message as well if you wish, warning against overconsuption, but the content, message, and the creativity is up to you.

6) SPECS: this project (following the file tree below) as instructed, and render at least 3 different views, at a resolution size of at least 3K each.

Modeling and Materials

· Intro to 3D typology: Further surface construction via curves to create NURBS surfaces

· shading and lighting continued: materials, different types of lights, and aspects of surface appearance.

· Lighting and the properties of rendering, tesselation, raytracing. Depthmap and raytraced shadows. Emulating realistic lighting without using Raytracing.

· More Poly tools: split polygon, split edge ring, cut faces, merging, etc.

· Polygons, Collapse edges, Merging Verticies

· Subdivision modeling· Polys to subD conversions

· New features since 2008: when you hit 1,2,3 on a selected polygon, acts like a SubD.

· Materials further: 2D and 3D textures

· texture maps further: color, bump, displace, transparency, etc.

HOMEWORK: modeling and lighting a variety of simple forms.

other assigments similar to this one

UV texture creation and placement

Laying out UVs on polygon figure

· Box modeling techniques: begin with half of a Poly cube (open).

· Outputting UV maps· Mapping methods for geometryPaint EffectsCamera Properties

box modeling, (subdiv Proxy) instance setup

· Box model a basic head, using edge loops, and Instance duplicate; upon finish Mirror Geometry and merge both parts. (all edge verts. flush to the "0" line, before mirror,) (trans tools settings set to WORLD, retain component spacing OFF, discreet move OFF)

· Basic approaches to customized Photoshop textures for Polygonal Models

· Film format/aspect ratio, composing the camera

· Film format/aspect ratio, composing the camera· Changing lenses, focal length, and Action Safe/Title safe areas· Depth of field

· basic projection/normal mapping, 2D/3D placement node. 2D/3D map descriptions

MIDTERM PROJECT (Virtual Mobile) is DUE (Tues, May 3rd)

Other modeling methods:

Duplicate Special for quick complexity, but be careful..

bump/displacement mapping

normal mapping:

Ben Cloward, Cody Sargent, BAAAAM! tutorial,Game-Artists.net

MUDBOX and NORMAL MAPPING: what is Mudbox?

MudboxandMaya?, MudboxBasicsAndWacomPen, NORMALMAPSinMudbox, MUDBOX_1of_4, MUDBOX_2_of4, MUDBOX_3_of_4, MUDBOX_4_of_4, RETOPPINGdetailinMUDBOX

TEXTURES

some texture

more textures

-in Animation Menu, try using Deformers

-Animation>Deform>Non-Linear Deformers: bend, flare, sine, squash, twist, wave, etc.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

use front/side/top view images for accuracy, i.e:

revisiting TEXTURES and their placement:

-Projection, Normal, Procedural: a 2D or 3D placement node is created.

-the variety of maps you can create: color, transparency, bump, displacement, diffuse, specular, incandescent, normal map, and on and on..

FINAL PROJECT : SELF PORTRAIT / ALTER EGO is assigned

DUE: on Finals Day

-More on UV texture mapping, redo the demo once again of facial layout.

· Lighting: realistic sources, multiple sources, soft shadows

· Raytracing, reflection, and refraction· Qualities of light, mental ray materials and photons: Cuastics

· Basic Special Effects on surfaces, Paint Effects, particles,

· more on Box Modeling, modeling to reference.

· basic demo of the "Soft Modification Tool"

· importing and using image planes for reference

· setting up and using refererence, the importants of good flat reference, good line-art often is the most useful, ie: line art example, but you can use photos too if you manipulate them well in PS.

· setting up "plumb lines" of the front and side view in Photoshop in a layer. Or, if you draw or trace your image, use Graph Paper.

· basic intro to "Poly-to-Poly" modeling method, using front and side reference, · Point layout

· Organic Modeling Concepts: Muscle Flow, Uniformity, Quad Topology

· Customize your Marking Menu

· UV Texture Editor, very basic intro

· Simple demo of painting a face in Photoshop to follow UVoutput.

· Use of Photoshop in texture map creation, import UVout into a layer in PS, painting on above layers with less% of Fill.

-Modeling demo, starting again with Poly-toPoly sconstruction of the eye, building in edge rings, showing strategy of point layout

-converting the eyes and surrounds to SudDiv, using tools to sculpt, and back to Polys again, (make sure to set to "Verts" in conversion Options)

-benefits in modeling in SudDivs,: slect edge(s) under eye, and inset crease (SubdivSurf>full crease edge)

-show kinds of errors one can get with converting Polys to SubDivs: what are nonmanifold geometry? and lamina faces? you can correct these in Mesh>Polygon Cleanup

-show the usefulness of Mesh>Sculpt Geometry Tool (works with Poly or SubDivs)

-show the SOFT MODIFICATION, red feedack shows influence: *also in: Modify>Transformation Tools>Soft Modification Tool, OR, Animation>Deform>Soft Modification

· Building a Face (Poly-to-Poly method), online tutorial

· Building a Face (another step by step), tutorial

· point layout with Z-brush

· Making Normals Soft or Hard: Edit Polygons>Normals>Soften/Harden*

*also can "conform" Normals if the are not homogenous

· Ear layout, Ear Model Tutorial, Modeling a Hand

FINAL PROJECT is assigned: CREATE A 3D MODEL OF YOUR OWN HEAD.. create a 3D head closely based on photo-references to match as closely as possible to refererce. They modify the head, style, look, or appearance of the head that provides an alter-ego or a much different yet perhaps hidden side of yourself. (due Finals Week)Proposal and sketches for FINAL PROJECT assigned (due Week 6)

Look Over Midterm Projects, Class Critique

BELOW IS THE CRITERIA FOR THE Final Project

1)The standard and quality of model, textures, lighting must be very high (matching the most rigorous evaluation grading cirteria (in blue below) the "head" must have proper topology, and UV texutre maps of color, bump, specularity maps, etc, where necessary.

2)The film should reflect a SINCERE ATTEMPT BY THE STUDENT TO COMMUNICATE an imaginative new identity(potential)through the model, whether that be a specialized object, environment, world or character.

3)The piece must have an idea of what target viewer, group, or audience would this piece be produced for.

4)You must have at least FOUR, 3K renders of your final model, with high-end texture, lighting, etc. UV texture mapping is expected on at least one or more of your surfaces. Either realistic or specialized lighting is expected in your scene which clearly defines a strategic lighting situation.

5)You must show efficient level of modeling skill in Polygon, NURBS and/or SubDs

6)The model should give the impression of STYLE, a graphic or aesthetic strategy used by the artist. The design/sketch approval phase will dictate most of this.

7)You must follow the file tree specifications when turning in all of the Final Project Content

----------------------------------------------------------------------

this special topic will by demonstrated for interested students

· Caustics and Global Illumination · mental ray lights

· Proposal and sketches for FINAL PROJECT are due

this special topic will by demonstrated for interested students:

· NURBS patch modeling (facial model), direct conversion to SubD’s

image lighting, ambient occlussion, mental ray

HDRshop

shader examples

this special topic will by demonstrated for interested students:

· Toon Shaders, Ramp Shaders, vector Renders, and otherwise 2D-shaders

· Basic Character Rigging: getting your model into different poses

· Consultation on last leg of production: proper format, media, specs and content delivery

FINAL PROJECT to be completed and turned in on designated due date on Finals Day of the 11th week. Student presentations will be prepared for Finals, where classmate critique and discussion will end the course.

Homework assignments will be given points based on accurate completion of assigned readings, assignments and tutorials.

The Midterm and the Final project will graded based on these criteria:

*Quality and Technical Competency the Model

*Staging and Strength of the Design

*Quality of Lighting

*Appeal and treatment of Surfaces

*Creativity and Content

Each given an equal weight of 20%, to compose your grade for each project

It is, of course, the responsibility of each to ensure his/her work in completed an handed in on due dates (see below)

Critical review of your work will provide the source most assessments. Participation grade includes the extent and quality of the participation in the critiques, presentation of projects and positive interaction with classmates and professional approach toward the class. Students requiring any kind of special assistance should speak with the instructor at their earliest convenience.

Attendance % 5

Attendance % 5

Homework %10

Midterm Project (Cornucopia) %30

Final Project % 50

GRADE SCALE: A 90%-100%B 80%-89%C 70%-79%D 60%-69%F Below 60%

The learning curve in Maya is steep, missing even one class is enough to put you significantly behind. Regular class attendance in mandatory. Class attendance is also part of your class participation grade. Arriving on time is equally important. You would be fired in a job you do not show up on time for. The expectation here is similar. You will be considered absent one class period for every three tardies. (more than five minutes late)

Missing 5 classes, consecutively or not) is an AUTOMATIC FAILURE for the class.

Expect to spend from three to six hours a week on your working outside of class. Lab hours will be available and posted by the end of the first week.

Students are responsible for any material missed due to tardiness or absence. Readings, and assignments, and projects are expected at the beginning of class on their due dates.

Late submissions will be lowered one grade per class day late.

student may be able to re-submit any assignment for an improvement grade. The policies are specific to each assignment. Check specific project descriptions for more details.

Late assignments, or absences due only to emergency or illness may be granted leniency only per the instructor's discretion.

Extra Credit:

Students may be able to re-submit any assignment for an improvement points as long as that assignment was turned in the original due date. The policies are specific to each assignment. Check specific project descriptions for more details.

Other opportunities for extra credit are possible involving visiting realted exhibits, films, museums, specific research, attending relevant shows or conferences, or related study, etc. Such points are limited and per the instructor's discretion