Character Development in Blender 2.5, w. CD-ROM

Born in Kansas on January 12th, 1989, Jonathan Williamson has been dabbling in art ever since he could hold a crayon. He was always sketching but when he turned 14 and discovered 3D things became serious. Since 2003 he has been completely immersed in the digital arts and has never looked back. For the last four years his focus has been character modeling and design. He also actively works to pass on the skills he's learned by producing training materials for his software of choice, Blender. Jonathan has been very active in the Blender community over the years, helping to organize and present two Blender conferences in Montréal and one in New York, and returned two consecutive years to North Carolina to teach alongside fellow Blender artists at a summer camp for junior-high students hosted by Red Hat Linux.

CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT IN BLENDER 2.5 provides an introduction to both Blender and character modeling, explaining the various Blender tools and how to use them to create amazing, believable 3D characters. Providing both the how and why behind each new tool or skill presented, the book is written in a step-by-step format so you can easily follow along. Divided into five parts, the book covers box modeling, poly-by-poly modeling, sculpting, retopologizing, normal mapping, and more. You'll begin by learning the raw basics of Blender, giving you an understanding of how the Blender interface works and how you can manipulate objects in 3D space, as well as how to customize your Blender experience. You'll then get an introduction to some of the modeling features of Blender and how you can manipulate meshes with Blender's various modeling tools, modifiers, and sculpting functionality. In part three you'll move on to the real focus of the book, modeling the character, focusing on the workflow, and various modeling techniques. Part four provides a brief introduction to lighting and rendering characters before the final section of the book walks you through the process needed to prepare the character for complete texturing and how to bake and apply normal maps to a low-resolution version of the character. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT IN BLENDER 2.5 shows you everything you need to get started as a character modeler and Blender artist.

Written for experienced animators and game developers, CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT IN BLENDER 2.6 shows readers how to create believable characters using Blender, a free, open source 3d animation package. Covering the technical, artistic, and theoretical aspects of character development, the book provides an in-depth look at all of Blender's tools and includes information on modeling, textures, lighting, rendering, and more. Written in a tutorial style with step-by-step instructions the book also includes an accompanying CD-Rom that features the Blender 2.6 software and sample art.

Introduction.PART I: MAKING YOUR WAY AROUND BLENDER 2.5.
1. The Interface and Navigation.2. Objects.
3. Customizing Blender.
PART II: GETTING COMFORTABLE WITH MESHES.
4. Mesh Objects.
5. Modifiers.
6. Sculpting.
PART III: MODELING THE CHARACTER.
7. Introducing the Character, Preparing Your Workspace, and Using Background Images.
8. Box Modeling a Base Mesh.
9. Blocking in the Accessories and Hair.
10. Sculpting and Modeling the Body and Clothing Details.
11. Modeling the Accessory Details.
12. Retopologizing the Character.
PART IV: LIGHTING AND RENDERING THE CHARACTER AND ADDING MATERIALS.
13. Lighting and Rendering.
14. Materials.
PART V: UV MAPPING AND NORMAL MAPPING.
15. UV Mapping.
16. Normal Mapping.
Appendix A.