| I've
been reading a pre-release of this book so it
may not be exactly like the finished product but
I doubt that there will any differences. I
received this on a CD rom but it may be an
actual published book - I'm not sure about that,
I will have to get back to you.
The book is some 250 pages in 12
chapters. There is a lot of simple but
very effective 2d cartoon-like illustrations
throughout the book that visually explains
various concepts. And the illustrations do
an excellent job. The book is a very easy
read and after each chapter there are exercises
to do in various 3D programs. LightWave,
3DS Max, Softimage XSI and MAYA are covered so
the book will appeal to everyone who wants to
get into Character Animation no matter what
program is used.
NOTE: This book does not really get involved
in rigging though so if you buy this book to
learn how how to place bones, create weight
maps, or finese a morph you will be
dissappointed. The aim of this book is to
create the motion and make it look believable so
if you want your character to look happy
well then this book will help you achieve this.
Perhaps this book should have been titled
Character Animation in 2D and 3D because the
author uses 2D very effectively to get the
points across. Characters are not simply
human forms either. The book covers
everything from snakes to birds to dogs to
people and a whole lot in-between. Each
chapter touches on basic character animation
moves such as how a snake slithers (I never
realized how many different forms of slithering
a snake, depending on the type of snake, can
move). Basic bird flapping and flying, dog
and horse walk cycles and basic human walk
cycles are covered but then the book
delves into human emotion and how to create that
motion through character animation of various
types.
By taking 2D cartoon-like illustrations the
author shows us the basics of how a character
can become expressive and move. By using
these he then breaks down the movement into
keyframe timing charts and through the exercises
at the end of each chapter gets the reader to
create 3D animations using these same timing
charts. The text and illustrations are
easy to read and easy to follow.
What at first may seem like a very simple
book is actually a great reference guide that a
character animator will be able to go back to
again and again.
If you want to try out a few chapters and get
a feel for the book try the Character
Animation in 3D website and do some of the
tutorials that are posted.
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