CD-ROM contains: Examples for text -- Toon3DCreator 1.7 with full source code.

Improve your 3D animation by understanding the key traditional 2D skills. Learn the basics for producing original and exciting animation.

Learn animation programming from first principles and implement modern animation techniques that can be integrated into any game development workflow Key FeaturesBuild a functional and production-ready modern animation system with complete features using C++Learn basic, advanced, and skinned animation programming with this step-by-step guideDiscover the math required to implement cutting edge animation techniques such as inverse kinematics and dual quaternionsBook Description Animation is one of the most important parts of any game. Modern animation systems work directly with track-driven animation and provide support for advanced techniques such as inverse kinematics (IK), blend trees, and dual quaternion skinning. This book will walk you through everything you need to get an optimized, production-ready animation system up and running, and contains all the code required to build the animation system. You’ll start by learning the basic principles, and then delve into the core topics of animation programming by building a curve-based skinned animation system. You’ll implement different skinning techniques and explore advanced animation topics such as IK, animation blending, dual quaternion skinning, and crowd rendering. The animation system you will build following this book can be easily integrated into your next game development project. The book is intended to be read from start to finish, although each chapter is self-contained and can be read independently as well. By the end of this book, you’ll have implemented a modern animation system and got to grips with optimization concepts and advanced animation techniques. What you will learnGet the hang of 3D vectors, matrices, and transforms, and their use in game developmentDiscover various techniques to smoothly blend animationsGet to grips with GLTF file format and its design decisions and data structuresDesign an animation system by using animation tracks and implementing skinningOptimize various aspects of animation systems such as skinned meshes, clip sampling, and pose palettesImplement the IK technique for your game characters using CCD and FABRIK solversUnderstand dual quaternion skinning and how to render large instanced crowdsWho this book is for This book is for professional, independent, and hobbyist developers interested in building a robust animation system from the ground up. Some knowledge of the C++ programming language will be helpful.

The computer entertainment industry drives many of the advances in computing technology, and the second volume of "3D Games" shows how to use advanced techniques in games technology and how these techniques can also be applied in other areas. The book concentrates on three main areas: generic processes - the build process, real-time processes and software design real-time rendering processes character animation The treatment of these topics is built around a specific games system, Fly3D SDK 2.0 (included on the accompanying CD-ROM). By rooting as many as possible of the techniques described within the book in a practical games system, the book is able to balance theory and practice. As well as proving invaluable for professionals in the games industry, the book can be used for courses in games programming and development, animation, advanced graphics, and multimedia. The potential of games to embrace other applications within computing is strong, with the advent of techniques for high scene complexity at low processing costs. The Fly3D engine is not only a vehicle for game creation, but has already been used to develop 3D Internet applications, architectural walkthroughs for CAAD and generic 3D visualisation. Workers in these areas will find the techniques described and accompanying software extremely useful. Alan Watt, based at the University of Sheffield, is the author of many successful books including "3D Computer Graphics," "Advanced Animation and Rendering Techniques," "The Computer Image" and "3D Games Volume 1," Fabio Policarpo is a software developer and founder of the company ParaleloComputac(c)o based in Rio de Janeiro. He co-authored "The Computer Image" and "3D Games Volume I" and currently works on new applications for real-time rendering and gaming technologies. CD includes: Full Fly3D SDK including source code for engine, front-ends, plug-ins and utilities; Demo levels; Engine Guide and Reference Manual and tutorials. http: //www.fly3d.com.br for Fly3D SDK documentation, updates, new demos, FAQs and message board. The included software runs on any Microsoft Windows computer system and requires a 3D video card with full OpenGL support. For making changes to the source code, Microsoft Visual C++ 6.0 is required. For scene geometry creation, 3DStudio Max 3.x and 4.x plug-ins are included.

Expand your animation toolkit and remain competitive in the industry with this leading resource for 2D and 3D character animation techniques. Apply the industry's best practices to your own workflows and develop 2D, 3D and hybrid characters with ease. With side by side comparisons of 2D and 3D character design, improve your character animation and master traditional principles and processes including weight and balance, timing and walks. Develop characters inspired by humans, birds, fish, snakes and four legged animals. Breathe life into your character and develop a characters personality with chapters on acting, voice-synching and facial expressions. Expertly integrate core animation techniques with your software of choice featuring step-by-step tutorials, highlighting 3ds Max, Maya and Blender workflows. Adapt the tips, tricks and techniques for unique projects like character design for rotoscoping and motion capture. Advance beyond the fundamentals of 2D and 3D character animation with the companion website which includes short demonstration movies, 2D and 3D exercises and fully rigged character models.

3D Studio MAX 3 Professional Animation is the only book that take you extensively through the 3D Studio MAX 3 animation process, showing you the techniques that professional animators use to create everything from simple animated particle effects to complex character animation for Web sites, video, film, and other multimedia formats. Written by a group of top-flight 3D animation professionals, this book features the real deal--real-world applications and advanced tutorials: make bipedal, quadra-pedal, and multipedal characters walk; use Cstudio's Biped and Physique; build and animate a realistic human skeleton using MAX Bones IK; create complex scripting with MAXscript to enhance MAX's capabilities; produce muscle-based, multi-layered facial expressions and lip syncs; create deformable objects and fine-tune them with space warps; display and edit trajectories; and animate cameras, lights, and atmosphere.

The essential fundamentals of 3D animation for aspiring 3D artists 3D is everywhere--video games, movie and television special effects, mobile devices, etc. Many aspiring artists and animators have grown up with 3D and computers, and naturally gravitate to this field as their area of interest. Bringing a blend of studio and classroom experience to offer you thorough coverage of the 3D animation industry, this must-have book shows you what it takes to create compelling and realistic 3D imagery. Serves as the first step to understanding the language of 3D and computer graphics (CG) Covers 3D animation basics: pre-production, modeling, animation, rendering, and post-production Dissects core 3D concepts including design, film, video, and games Examines what artistic and technical skills are needed to succeed in the industry Offers helpful real-world scenarios and informative interviews with key educators and studio and industry professionals Whether you're considering a career in as a 3D artist or simply wish to expand your understanding of general CG principles, this book will give you a great overview and knowledge of core 3D Animation concepts and the industry.