Advanced Maya Texturing and Lighting

Wednesday, May 23, 2007
By: Todd Sheridan Perry

Lee Lanier, the author of the more general Maya Professional Tips and Techniques (also reviewed this month), has focused his knowledge into the realm of digital lighting in Maya, which is a topic in need of a full book. Keep in mind that a lot of these techniques can migrate to other 3D programs with a little innovation and smarts. So, even though you may be working in something else, I would still recommend investigating Lanier’s book, simply because most of these techniques are universal.

I’m more biased toward these kinds of books than more general ones because lighting and rendering is usually my business specialty. So, I have a greater insight and a larger investment into this stage of the pipeline. I feel that Lanier has a lot to offer in this book. Like his Tips and Techniques book, I was happy to find that he has stuck with his way of focusing on “why” a technique is used along with the method of using it. This makes a lot of things clear even really simple ideas—such as when to use particular lights or shadows. I’ve seen plenty of artists just throw in lights everywhere without much forethought on why they are putting them there. I think this might help with this problem—that’s if lighters would be open to learning new things.

The largest section of the book focuses on the utilities available in the shader creation process. This is an amazing bit of info, as not many sources really focus on or explain the many different tools and how to use them. Shadertree development is an art unto itself, and without knowledge of the brushes and paints in your toolbox, you are resigned to painting by numbers, and not really tapping the full potential of the program or yourself as an artist.

Lanier also takes a full chapter in the oft-ignored technique of prepping for UV mapping and UV mapping itself. This is such an important part of the texturing and rendering pipeline, that it’s mindboggling that more people don’t focus on it. You may think ‘Well, this is about lighting,’ but really, lighting is completely dependent on the materials and surfaces, because after all, if you have lights and nothing to light, then what’s the point? And vice versa!

In addition, Mental Ray rendering techniques such final gather and global illumination are touched on, but Mental Ray requires a book unto itself. Nevertheless, Lanier gets you enough to get some good results out of it. Overall, a great addition to the Autodesk Maya library of training manuals in which I really haven’t seen anything sub-par.

Reader Comments

• jafer mp : graphic design : pan arabian

  Saturday, November 10, 2007

  i want some tutorials in maya texturing

• rakesh : student : home

  Tuesday, November 27, 2007

  very good

• Basit saleem : student : No

  Thursday, January 24, 2008

  Learning

• Basit saleem : student : No

  Thursday, January 24, 2008

  learning

• sojan : Graphic Designer : BVPL

  Sunday, March 16, 2008

  Thanks

• sathiyaraj : tu : cadd

  Sunday, March 23, 2008

  Advanced Maya Texturing and Lighting

• Atef : Architect : architecture

  Wednesday, April 09, 2008

  thanks for this book

• Atef : Architect : architecture

  Wednesday, April 09, 2008

  thanks for this book ,

• anand : designer : graphics

  Saturday, June 21, 2008

  i am learning maya i want some tutorials about texturing

• prabaharan : animation : Animatrix

  Sunday, July 06, 2008

  No comments

• sandeep : texturing : -

  Monday, July 14, 2008

  a good book

• pramod : student : ARENA

  Friday, July 18, 2008

  THANKS

• meer amaan : lighting artist : prana

  Monday, August 11, 2008

  hello! i had this book ..but not so use full .in this book lighting is different .but vry nice .in my production this type of lighting is not use full .but ur tips is nice ,may be i will try ur tips in my future .thanks for ur bookl

• shubham : student : maac

  Saturday, August 23, 2008

  i want some tutorials in maya texturing&lighting

• mallika : student : icat

  Tuesday, August 26, 2008

  i like this book

• Sudheerp : Maya : Maya

  Friday, September 05, 2008

  I want learn for Maya.Kindly,thank you so mcuh God bless you.

• GIap : teacher :

  Thursday, October 02, 2008

  thank you verry much