Charles River Media

Advanced PhotoShop CS3 trickery & FX. (CD-ROM included)

Burns, a corporate instructor in digital art and design, takes readers beyond the basics in this book/CD-ROM package for both Mac and PC Photoshop users. He gives step-by-step directions for projects that use special effects to transform ordinary photos into digital creations, and also provides real-world projects to illustrate practical uses of Photoshop's tools. Color-photos and screenshots illustrate techniques on every page. The companion CD-ROM contains all of the book's images, files needed for the book's projects, and software demos. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The Cinema 4D R10 handbook. (CD-ROM included)

Cinema 4D is a high end commercial 3D graphics application from MAXON. This guide for beginners uses a project based tutorial approach as it teaches them how to use C4D's many tools and functions. Contained on the CD-ROM are full color images from the book as well as all of the files necessary for completing the tutorials plus demo versions of C4D for Macintosh and Windows. Call teaches 3D modeling, animation, and rendering at Iowa State U. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Complete digital photography, 4th ed. (CD-ROM included)

This update of the 2004 edition incorporates the latest trends in digital cameras, e.g., increasingly affordable digital SLRs. Long, a San Francisco-based freelance photographer/writer, offers photographers of all skill levels a primer on basic photography concepts and hardware selection; technical information (e.g., the difference between shooting JPEG and raw data images); and illustrated examples and tutorials focusing largely on post-shoot Adobe Photoshop applications. The bundled CD-ROM contains tutorial videos, articles, and sample images. The guide also includes a glossary. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Complete Photoshop CS3 for digital photographers. (CD-ROM included)

This guide explains the features of Photoshop CS3 for amateur and professional digital photographers. The authors cover file formats, resolution, USI, and other shooting considerations, then move on to Adobe Bridge and a discussion of photographic files. Subsequent chapters describe cropping, tonal and color correction and enhancement, selections and masks, sharpening and noise reduction, sizing and printing, retouching, frame and color effects, and combining images for collages and animations. The CD contains image files for the tutorials, nine video clips, and Nik, Alien Skin, and AutoFX software. Smith has written many books on Photoshop and is a regular columnist in Photoshop User magazine. Cooper is a photographer and teaches at the Rocky Mountain School of Photography. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Introduction to 3D graphics & animation using Maya. (CD-ROM included)

Watkins (computer arts, U. of the Incarnate Word) explains the fundamentals of 3D using Maya, for students, designers, modelers, animators, texture artists, and those new to 3D graphics. He discusses modeling, UV mapping, texturing, rendering, and animation. Each chapter explains the theory behind the concept and walks through step-by-step tutorials and demonstrations. The CD-ROM contains full-color images of those in the book in addition to project files. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Maya character modeling and animation; principles and practices. (CD-ROM included)

Flaxman (Film and Animation School of the Rochester Institute of Technology) instructs beginning- to intermediate-level designers and 3D artists in the principles of 3D character modeling and animation using Maya software. The first part of each chapter discusses "software-independent" animation principles. This is followed by one or more Maya tutorials which lead the reader through the steps for a specific task, and a challenge assignment concludes each lesson. The nine chapters, supported by b&w images, cover topics including: understanding preproduction and the fundamentals of computer animation; modeling, texturing, rigging, and animating a simple character; NURBS modeling and path animation with dynamics; and working with facial expression, among others. The appendix challenges readers to create their first Maya scene, and the CD-ROM contains further tutorials. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Practical Poser 7. (CD-ROM included)

In this updated reference for intermediate and advanced Poser users, Tyler describes features such as creating and customizing clothing, characters, and textures; lights and cameras; preparing photographs; custom faces; adding hair; and deciphering and building materials. Added to this edition are topics such as joint parameters, animation, new morphing features, and enhanced texture creation. The book assumes that users have read the Poser 7 Reference Manual and Tutorial Manual. The CD-ROM contains images and files for the tutorials, and some of the beginning material from the previous edition is also present. Tyler is the author of several books on computer graphics and web development, including Practical Poser 6. (Annotation ©2008 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)