Wordware Publishing Announces LightWave v9 Lighting available

[gerardo]

Excellent news! Congratulations to Nicholas! :beer:



Gerardo

[mlynch]

Sweet! :buttrock:

Another LW book for my shelf. :D

[skritter]

* free freight is limited to the continental U.S. only.


$70US frieght to Australia is a bit rich for me

...I could get it cheper from amazon at full price and pay their freight and still be way ahead.

[Wordware]

I certainly understand your comment on overseas freight. The rates in our shopping cart are for UPS Worldwide services and they are expensive. If you would like to email me directly, I will give you some other options. Amazon is an excellent alternative and we have a distributor in Australia as well.

tmcevoy@wordware.com (http://forums.cgsociety.org/tmcevoy@wordware.com)

Have a good one!

- Tim
Wordware Publishing, Inc.

[Signal2Noise]

How much new content in this one versus the previous issues?

[Wordware]

Thank you for the question, it's a good one and important for readers who have bought from us before. The goal of this book is to teach readers all the light and lighting they need to professionally light their scenes for the maximum affect. All of the theory and lessons on light and lighting are the same as in the version 8 book. The updates/changes for this title concern how to apply that information using LightWave v9 and the latest tools added to the program.

Hopefully that answers your question. If not, please feel free to contact me directly.

Tim McEvoy
Wordware Publishing, Inc.

[SockMonkey]

Tim,
Is it OK to contact you directly regarding a few problems with the content of a different book Wordware published?
Out of respect for this forum and the author, I don't want to say what book, but there was missing content, and attempts to communicate with the author went ignored.

[abudabi]

Sorry to say, but these books realy suck!
If you read one of them, you read them all.
Also, for user thats been working with Lw for 1 month, I realy dont see any purpose of it.
Maybe for ultra begineers that dont have absolute no knowledge at all in CG, or those lazy people not experimenting at all!

[proton]

I cant speak for the new Lighting book but I can definitely say that Nick's LightWave 8 book has a wealth of information and I've yet to find another book that covers LightWave Lighting as well as this one.


It will be interesting to see what the new information is in the updated book. Nick has a talent of explaining things in a way that helps the information stick! Of all the people that I know that have read it I have never heard anyone say anything but great things about it. Nick's book has helped to raise the quality of renders within the LW community IMHO.



Is there a table of contents online that we can take a peek at?

[Netvudu]

I own one of these lighting books and they are very good. It looks like later versions have some similar info so maybe it´s not worth to buy the whole thing again, but for anyone not having any copy of them, it´s undoubtly a great resource and very pro-oriented...


...which is probably the reason why someone thinks they suck. You can quite quickly tell from posts here who´s a pro working at this every day and who´s just a kid pushing buttons and pretending to be someone. Someone clearly falls into this later category and in the weird case he/she keeps at CG, which I doubt, will soon discover why it´s a bad idea to be a smart ass with everybody else, specially respected members of the sector such as Nick or Taron, and how small the CG world can get when you have the special ability to come out as a jerk everytime.

[SockMonkey]

Well I just checked it out at Amazon and it says,

"Availability: This title has not yet been released. You may order it now and we will ship it to you when it arrives. Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available."

Maybe they're just a little behind in their info. *shrug*
In any event, it looks like a fine book, and I'm just gonna go ahead and preorder it now from them.

I have one other LW book from Wordware - the one I alluded to above, and I would say it's quite the opposite of "sucks"; I found it tremendously helpful, actually, and I still go through it from time to time, and continue to learn new things.
Anyone who thinks he's going to learn only from experimenting is a fool, as is anyone who thinks he's learned everything there is to on *any* subject.

I'm very much looking forward to seeing what this book has to teach me. :)

[LeeStringer]

This is simply a must have book for anyone that uses the F9 and F10 keys :-)
Seriously, no matter what you use Lightwave (or ANY application really) for you'll learn something new.

Lee

[freshdb]

I own Lightwave 8 Lighting and it has been invaluable to me, I definitely plan on upgrading to Nicks new book. I can't wait to see what he talks about in the new one with all the new goodies in LW9.

[gardnerwatts]

Put me down in the cateogry of 'owns and loves Lightwave 8 Lighting.'

Anyone know for sure what is new in this book? Will it blow me away or is it gonna be like an update to Madden - a new cover and the same content? I'll wait until I can find it in a store or read some reviews of it online.

LW8 Lighting is a great book though, so for those who dont already own that, this should be a no brainer.

[LOR]

Hey, thanks everyone for all the great positive remarks. I've been teaching lighting for alot of years, and it's great once in a while to hear that the teachings come in useful.

If anybody thinks this book sucks, please, please contact me and let me know what your specific issues with it are, and what you think would make it better.

Anybody who writes these books knows the royalties will never, ever pay for the time and effort put into writing the thing. That's OK, I knew that before I started. I wrote it, and keep it updated to the software because I have some unique experience that I want to share with the LW community...because I want to see really kickass LW renders that compete with anything done anywhere....and I believe alot of that has to do with being a great lighting artist. And, I absolutely know that LightWave has the tools to do it.

For this version, I updated items to conform with LW9, and as usual corrected mistakes, added new wisdoms I have discovered. The basic lessons remain the same. Why wouldn't they? For the most part, the lighting tools are the same as they were 5 years ago. That's pretty much the same across the industry. And "real" light hasn't changed...well.....ever as far as I know.

I'm absolutely open to criticisms about any aspect of the book, because it's supposed to be a teaching tool that helps you be a better artist. If you read the book, and go through the tutorials, and come out the other end no better than when you started....well then there's definitely something wrong there--but I doubt it's the book.

As to generalized remarks about all Wordware's books sucking....well one has to wonder if there's a marketting intention there..... It's also quite a disservice to all the authors who have given immensely of their time and effort to provide a good learning tool. I wouldn't believe a remark like that would come from someone who has actually read them, as I have.

A Big Thank You to all the artists who have contacted me personally over the years to let me know the book has been helpful in their artistic endeavours. When I stop getting those, I'll stop updating the book, I promise. :)

EDIT: Of special note, this book went to the publisher before LW9.2 was available, so some panels and a few tools are slightly different. Don't forget to check out these items in LW9.2 as they're EXTREMELY useful and/or awesome:
-Photoreal motion blur
-new motion blur preview
-new DOF and DOF Preview
-Final Gather
-All radiosity modes now interpolated
-Adaptive Sampling (same old name, new awesome tool)
-Material nodes!!
-Real Lens Cameras
-Oh, and they've turned down area lights by 50% to match better with the other lights.



Nicholas Boughen
Author LW9 Lighting

[LOR]

Put me down in the cateogry of 'owns and loves Lightwave 8 Lighting.'

Anyone know for sure what is new in this book? Will it blow me away or is it gonna be like an update to Madden - a new cover and the same content? I'll wait until I can find it in a store or read some reviews of it online.

LW8 Lighting is a great book though, so for those who dont already own that, this should be a no brainer.

It's more than the same book with a new cover, but if you've already read LW8 Lighting, it's not going to blow you away. First they have to blow me away with amazing new lighting tools, or I have to acquire awesome new lighting wisdom....or I have to expand the book to include material editing.....which maybe I should do for the next version, since lighting and materials are so closely connected...... hmmmm......

Nicholas Boughen
Author LW9 Lighting

[angel]

or I have to expand the book to include material editing.....which maybe I should do for the next version, since lighting and materials are so closely connected...... hmmmm......

Nicholas Boughen
Author LW9 Lighting

Hey hey, stop it right there buddy! are you trying to steal my gig? LOL! I wish you great success with this edition as well Nick. Some people trully do not understand all the work that goes behind one of these books. I completely agree with you, I also knew I wasn't going to get rich writting LW9 Texturing but I tought that maybe the LightWave community would benefit learning the different things that I have leared (and continue to learn) throughout my career.

So, cheers! I can't wait to get my copy.

[Helix44]

Awesome!!! I'll definitely be getting a copy.

[LOR]

Hey hey, stop it right there buddy! are you trying to steal my gig?

Heh. Not to worry...I'd be covering it from a lighting standpoint, definitely not repeating material from the Texturing book. But anyway, there's no time for a rewrite like that now anyway.

I'm looking forward to seeing what you've done with the texturing book. :)

[SockMonkey]

Does the texturing book have a detailed section on nodes?

Interesting - Type in "Wordware LightWave 9 Texturing" in Amazon's search box, and you get LightWave 3D 8 Texturing, by Leigh van der Byle, but if you add the "v", as in "Wordware LightWave v9 Texturing", you get the new one.

Oh well, gotta order this one, too...
You know, y'all don't have to wait for a new version of LW to come out to put new material out there - if I don't buy at least one software book per month, I start to get fidgety. ;)

[Steve Warner]

You know, y'all don't have to wait for a new version of LW to come out to put new material out there. ;)
LOL! If it were only that easy! Kevin and I started working on the newest Essentials book back in 2005. We've been working on it for more than a year and a half. (It's done now and is getting ready to go to the printer.) Trust me. If we could have gotten it done sooner we definitely would have!

Part of the reason it takes so long is that the financial return on training books is rarely equal to the time invested. You have to have a full-time job to pay the bills just so you can spend your free time writing. It's definitley a labor of love.

As for the issue of new content in books (mentioned in this thread and elsewhere), there seems to be the notion that just because NewTek releases a new version of LightWave, the available books on the subject should be re-written from the ground up. But that doesn't make sense. That's not how it works with the software. Each version of LightWave brings a handful of new tools but the vast majority of the software remains the same. Few would refuse to upgrade simply because the software didn't receive a total overhaul. On the contrary, existing users look at the new features and determine whether they are important enough to justify the cost of upgrading.

The same is true with books. You shouldn't expect a book to be rewritten just because a few new features are added to the software. In many cases, existing books are not updated for those who currently own a copy. (Dan's Inside LW series is a notable exception as each Inside book seems to be a brand new animal.) More often than not, they're updated to bring the text in line with the the most recent version of the software so that new readers will have an up-to-date resource. If you own the previous version of a book, it's up to you to determine whether the new information is worth the purchase price.

I wish it were possible to charge an upgrade fee for books so that people who already own a copy wouldn't have to spend as much to get the new information. Unfortunately there are material costs in printing (paper = expensive) so it's not feasible.

I know that my copy of Nick's book is well worn and has been pulled off the shelf more times than I can say. I think those who purchase Nick's book will benefit from the wisdom of an exceptionally talented artist whose skills have been tested on a number of high-profile film and television shows. Congrats on the new book, Nick! I'm sure it will continue a stellar tradition of excellent information and tutorials. :thumbsup:

[angel]

Steve, I couldn't have said it better myself, dead on.
SockMonkey, yes the book has a chapter dedicated to Nodes but you can find nodes information in other areas of the book.

I don't want to steal Nick's thunder so, feel free to email me or send me a private message; I'll be happy to answer any of your questions.

[LOR]

I know that my copy of Nick's book is well worn and has been pulled off the shelf more times than I can say. I think those who purchase Nick's book will benefit from the wisdom of an exceptionally talented artist whose skills have been tested on a number of high-profile film and television shows. Congrats on the new book, Nick! I'm sure it will continue a stellar tradition of excellent information and tutorials. :thumbsup:

Thanks alot Steve! I always endeavour to teach as well as I can, as I know, do you.

Nick

(lor)

[gardnerwatts]

Thanks for responding to my questions about the new content. And for being honest and not just trying to push the book by saying you totally rewrote it.

After thinking about it, I think I will pick it up to see whats new. Even if I only learn one or two new tricks, its worth it. You dont get better without striving to learn new tecniques.

[kevman3d]

LOL! If it were only that easy! Kevin and I started working on the newest Essentials book back in 2005. We've been working on it for more than a year and a half. (It's done now and is getting ready to go to the printer.) Trust me. If we could have gotten it done sooner we definitely would have!

lol! You said it Steve... I want my life back - Pretty please! lol! :scream:

Anyway, congrat's Angel on your book (and also to Nick who's LW8 Lighting book is also sitting right in front of my LW workstation all the time!).

Its always great to see more resources available for LightWave artists - At one point there were almost none... I think the first commercial book for LW was probably Todd Payne's "Exploring LightWave 3D!" (Though I could be (or likely am) wrong) - I still have that in mint condition on my bookshelf, next to Alan Chan's handy little books that were hugely popular way back... Other then those, there wasn't much to choose from many years ago!

it's much different now! :)

[SockMonkey]

I got my copy of Lightwave v9 Lighting via UPS from Books A Million's website 2 weeks ago.

I have to say, I am highly impressed. I've always thought I was a pretty observant guy, but there's apparently so much about light in the real world that I never even noticed or considered, apparently, but this book has got me looking at things in a whole new...errm.. light. ;)

Very intereting, very well-written, and very informative, Nicholas. Already my scenes are looking considerably better. I am very happy I bought this book! :)

I haven't gotten the texturing book for LW 9 yet, but that'll come soon, as well as the new Essentials book, when it gets released. Am looking forward to both of them - after I thoroughly absorb this one.

[LOR]

Great!

There's nothing better for an author/teacher to hear than that the work has been useful in improving the reader's art. Kinda makes me feel like it was worth ignoring my family for a year---well, almost ;D

lor

[SockMonkey]

Hopefully you didn't relegate them to the shadows for too long. ;)

Sorry, couldn't resist. :D

[bobakabob]

Looking forward to reading these books, guys. Thanks for putting so much time in for the benefit of us Lightwavers :)

[Cageman]

Hahaha... what a great thread!

Coincidence? Mr.Boughen and Mr.Nieves in the same thread and I got both books (LW9 Lighting, LW9 Texturing) the same day. :) :) :)

What more can one ask for? ;)

I didn't pay more than around $65 for both books including shipping here in Sweden (ordered from Adlibris). I say: Buy both!! :)

[LOR]

Hey you know....if any of you guys are REALLY happy with the new book, you could always say thanks with a nice Amazon review. ;D


lor

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