digital sets 1 scene files

[Ehanson]

Hi Luka-

I am the author of that disk, and don't provide that file, as the value of the scene would far exceed the cost of the tutorial. That series simply uses that scene as a way to show many techniques along the way. All of the Gnomon DVD's should be seen as lectures primarily as opposed to content supply, some people have erroneous expectations about that..

Try turbosquid, as there are many cityscapes available there as buyout content..

Sorry!

[aonikoyi]

Eric, you despite your comments about them being lectures, the scene files would be nice. even if is not as elaborate as the one you used, you could have maybe provided something simpler for testing and playing around. I also think customers expectations are important after all they do help pay for the product you make. The more our expectations are made, the happier we are which means more money in your pocket. Now thats a good thing.

Whether this fella is a legit customer or not. I think maybe producers such as your self shoud be more sensitive to "Customer Expectations"

I hope you dont take this the wrong way, just wanted offer a different point of view.

[Ehanson]

Aonikoyi, no that is a good point, I appreciate it. We are currently trying to make buyers more aware of the content on the disks by providing sample clips and such so that expectations are not overblown. As for my disks, I do provide many sample models, just not that particular city version, for reasons as I mentioned. My disk 4 has a setup file that took months to properly assemble, and provides value way way above the cost of the disk if you ever have a need for such a thing. So, I believe we are always trying to provide a lot of good value for our customers, but the disks do need to be looked at as lectures first and foremost (some forget this I think). I think the value of hearing an experienced practitioner (regardless of their speaking ability BTW) talk about the subtleties of what they have learned in the field alone is well beyond the value of the price, and is something that is not found in any books or other intro DVD material. But, buyers expectations are always something to be aimed for, but is tricky as you are trying to span a wide range of user's experiences themselves. I think we will also try to catergorize the titles into levels also to help w/ this..

[Komarcic]

first of all, it's very nice to hear from you Eric. second of all, i do understand your reasons, one has to receive money for hours and hours of his work. but on the other hand, not all of us can afford to just pay 70$ for something we like. i hope you do understand this. if i had the money, i would buy whatever i seem to like from Gnomon. a reason more is that universities are so expensive that i cannot afford to spend my pocket money on things that i can't live without.
of course, this is not YOUR problem but mine. however, lower prices would help lots of people to decide and buy a tutorial. unfortunately, capitalism didn't bring any good to neither of us. :)

[Ehanson]

LOL.. Well, we are trying to pull prices down to the bare minimum of what it takes to make it a business as well as be an incentive for the author. There was a lowering of prices this summer, and there is always the student discount. DVD's are not a cheap proposition for many, but it is probably as low as it can meaningfully be.. And they are always optional to your core training anyway..

[Komarcic]

yea that's cool, i understand that, professionals need to be paid well of course, no argue about that.
hey Eric you really need to stop by at cgtalk more often, i think ppl are just dying to hear some tips from real pros.
hey what's new in "Maya 6 killer tips" if compared with version 5?

[DezFX]

Maya 6 Killer Tips (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0321278534/qid=1136151767/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-3829878-6472858?n=507846&s=books&v=glance) is pretty much all of what is in the version 5 book plus around 110 more pages. It's not a "new features" type of book. It's more of a "more cool stuff that wouldn't fit in the first book" update.

[Ehanson]

Thanks Mike, well put. There are 6.0 features represented in the book, though of course that is old news now w/ 7. Peachpit apparently has little interest in continuing 3d titles, but luckily the info in there is still meaningful w/ 7..

[popol]

just a question eric can we expect a digital set vol 5
And if yes can you tell us the content? :)

[Komarcic]

yea DS 5 would be great. too few advanced user tutorials out there.

[Ehanson]

Well, that is soon to be started. I plan on doing a title on creating natural landscapes in CG (vs the image based approach on DS4), for ex deserts, jungles, mtns. More shader-based, probably will include renderman. Also planning on a zbrush library of terrain displacements, and a collection of realworld camera reconstructions that will allow one to have very faithful physically-based camerawork. Should keep me busy for a while ;) We also have some great matte ptg titles underway on set extension and cam projection by some of the best in the biz. Thanks for the support guys, appreciate it-

[popol]

Good news !
:thumbsup:
cg Jungle and forest are a nightmare for me!

[olioli]

Hey Eric,

I have your disc's and I have a question reguarding using an .ai file for curves in maya.

I followed your technique going from photoshop (when you created basic shapes and tweaked them and finally exported path's to illustrator) to maya. It's working out great, however when I get them to maya, they show up as nurbs curves like they are supposed to, but how did you "extrude and fill" the curves so that it looks like your finished Polar Coordinate filtered model that you demonstrated.

Thanks.

[Ehanson]

Olioli, just use your usual surfacing technique such as extrudealong a line or loft between curve copies. Then pull vertices or cv's up to randomize heights. Cap it w/ a planar face or convert to polys as an output option in the tool..

HIH,

[olioli]

thanks Eric :beer:

[aonikoyi]

Aonikoyi, no that is a good point, I appreciate it. We are currently trying to make buyers more aware of the content on the disks by providing sample clips and such so that expectations are not overblown. As for my disks, I do provide many sample models, just not that particular city version, for reasons as I mentioned. My disk 4 has a setup file that took months to properly assemble, and provides value way way above the cost of the disk if you ever have a need for such a thing. So, I believe we are always trying to provide a lot of good value for our customers, but the disks do need to be looked at as lectures first and foremost (some forget this I think). I think the value of hearing an experienced practitioner (regardless of their speaking ability BTW) talk about the subtleties of what they have learned in the field alone is well beyond the value of the price, and is something that is not found in any books or other intro DVD material. But, buyers expectations are always something to be aimed for, but is tricky as you are trying to span a wide range of user's experiences themselves. I think we will also try to catergorize the titles into levels also to help w/ this..

Thanks Eric for the reply. Much Respect. Keep up the great work

[mike0006]

Eric,

Just out of curiousity, what would a digital set, like the one you used as an example, run in terms of money. If it's improper to answer, I understand. But as my grandmother always used to say, "It doesn't hurt to ask."

Also, much respect, keep up the great work! The Gnomon titles have really come up in quality ever since you came onboard. (and that's really saying something when you look at the great quality that Gnomon had achieved before) Great artists and solid lectures on more advanced topics, you really can't go wrong with that.

[Ehanson]

Mike, sure appreciate the kudos. We are still just scratching the surface of many cool titles to come ;) As for pricing, that is a pretty abstract question, as it hinges on what you are trying to accomplish in terms of the shot or sequence. As per my earlier comment, the city model used in the Dsets series was assembled from many generic buildings built over the years for different things, so it would account for more hours of labor than the selling price of the disk. Pricing of a dig set would typically be comparable to any other fx task, as it is just another facet of the field now. However, I am considering offering a digital set library of high resolution raster and associated geometry for commercial work, offering an alternative to commonly used locations involving crews. In that case, it would be priced at what the market would bear against production costs. Similar to u-data.com's Mahhattan model, which is used extensively in film to alleviate a tremendous amount of modeling.. Just a thought.

thx again!

[mike0006]

Thanks for the reply Eric. I'm looking forward to the upcoming titles, they sound pretty intruiging. (sp?) I'm espescially looking forward to Kevin's DVD's, whenever they come up. (getting a little lazy on updating the coming soon page) I could've really used those during class last simester, he goes pretty fast while in class. Oh well, that's just how things go.

Actually, I plan on getting the new analog DVDs (mabey a few digital) as soon as the school gets them in stock. (hopefully before class starts next week...)

Edit: just checked the Gnomon website. Of course NOW you update it. (pulls foot out of mouth)

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