a little help from my friends

[alx]

there is a really good book imo is called compuetr animation.. expest advice on preaking into the business

by dale k myers...

rally helps u to see the profetional aspect of the 3d business world. and it has coments by most of the leading artists at some of the leading companies in 3d... like R & H, Blue sky, ilm, pdi pixar etc... it gives u demo reel guidelines, how to get the foot in the door, if u should or not take 3d classes... over all it covers all the non 3d aspects of the 3d world... really good book..

hope that helps a bit..

sincerely

alx

[wedge]

Exploring Maya 4: 30 Studies in 3D
by Maximilian Schoenherr

I returned this book the same day I bought it because none of the 30 problems that this book solved were very difficult. I don't think there were any that couldn't be solved by using Maya Help (f1). Problems included putting a poncho on a model, making rigid bodies fall onto a passive rigid body, and making volcano (which, to be honest, didn't even look very good). I had previously heard that Maximilian Schoenherr was known for writing excellent books on Maya, but I was not impressed by this particular one. At $30, I expected more than this sub-200 page book. For the experienced, or even intermediate Maya user like me, this book is unneccesary. I don't think anyone besides complete novices should really invest in this, but even complete novices can get help just as easily online or through Maya's own help file.

I have Maya 4 Fundamentals coming in the mail... i'll give you a heads up later.

[svenip]

thats funny wgeddes :)

this book is stealing my nerves and i'm in flame wars with this book. my amazon book review which wasn't posted by them is about this book.

you're right. it is definitly the worst ever seen. i don't know , should i lough out loud or go into the corner and cry. absolutely every little thing in this book is under every niveau. not even a novice can get some usefull infos out of that.

and it's absolutely amazing how good the reviews by users are at amazon up to 5 stars and full of good comments. this must be a different book then i have here.

[wedge]

Maya 4 Fundamentals
by Jim Lammers with Lee Gooding

I just got this book today and I have been browsing through it. After only a few hours of browsing I have decided that this book is a very solid purchase. It is well organized, and each step prepares you well for what is to come. It has detailed explanations and instructions for each tool, and good pictures for most. The tools, including trim, loft, etc., are explained in great detail. The chapter on lighting explains what each light does and what each of their attributes does. The book begins with a tour of maya and then procedes into modeling, animation, lighting, rendering, etc., and includes the major areas you need to know: NURBS, Polys, materials, camera control... towards the end there are sections on Paint Effects and Compositing, but I haven't read those yet. After reading through the shoddy text Exploring Maya 4: 30 Studies in 3D, this book is a welcome addition to my library!

[lowkey]

alright gonna add some personal opinion to what wgeddes said about maya 4 fundamentals ...

one thing I really don't like about that book is that most of the tools are not described in a very detailed manner, which makes it a little uncomfortable for absolute beginners, who'll have to look up further explanations on functionalities first ! :thumbsdow

sure, goin' into detail is part of the shipped manuals, but a little explanation on basic principles on most occasions would have done in ...

another thing to mention is the video tutorials included on CD-R.
those are just too lame ... i found it very hard not to fall asleep when listening to the authors' phlegmatic comments on what he's actually doin', getting stuck every now and then and sometimes i also got the impression that this guy was nearly lost ... :wip:

not too smart, but "hey" those are bonus material ! and quality is just nice ! ;)

despite of that, it's still very recommendable for the tutorial just rocks ... i really got the feeling of doin' something usable beyond modeling a stupid hammer ...

:thumbsup:

[graphiouz]

ok, does anybody know if there are a book for experianced maya users on, mel, advanced shading networks, dynamics, advanced rigging,???? i´ll guess not:thumbsdow

why does it have to be just for non experianced users?
if i want to relearn something that i havent worked with, or just
want to keep me updated, i´ll just browse thrue the web tuts, or read the manual.

I want to travel up to another level, not by taking expensive classes,.

gnomon should write a book:thumbsup: because the Videos he produse is fiuking awsome.

.

[Jhonus]

i guess because there are more unexperienced maya users than experts. most people want to write a book for the majority i guess.

The only maya book I have is The Art of Maya.

I don't know if its that good. It seems to be perpetually stuck in no-mans land. Somewhere between tutorials, theory and real-life examples.

It seems most of the content is an introduction to a deeper concept. For example the section on NURBs modelling is three pages long. It introduces you to most of the tools without explaining what all the settings do. I guess what it aims to do is introduce you to the concepts involved in modelling. And that seems to be true for the whole book. Its like one big fat introduction to the introduction of concepts in Maya. (no, that isn't a typo :D)

Unfortunately you are often left wanting more information throughout the chapters. Furthermore most of what the book covers is found in the help files of Maya - and in more detail.

Its a very pretty book to look at, and is moderately helpful and very expensive for what it is.

[wedge]

at the end of this year there is a book called The Maya 4 Handbook that should be just what you want - an advanced user's guide to the program.

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