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WORLD NO.1 FOR CG ARTISTS
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Rendering secrets
Harness digital nature in Maya with Alex Alvarez
PLUS! Six inspirational matte painting projects
H di it l t i M ith Al Al
MASTER CG
LANDSCAPES
24-PAGE SPECIAL!
CHRISTMAS 2013
ANATOMY
PRO SKILLS
ANAAAATTTTO
10
ANATOMY
PRO SKILLS
On the cover
Acclaimed artist Alex Alvarez created our bustling
CG landscape for this issues stunning cover
READ THE
WORKFLOW
Turn to page 58 to
read Alexs tutorial
in this issues
Training section
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ALEX ALVAREZ
Country US
Software Maya, mental ray, Photoshop, ZBrush
Alex is the founder and president of
Gnomon, which includes the Gnomon
School of Visual Effects, the Gnomon
Workshop, Gnomon Studios, Gnomon
Gallery, SketchTheatre and CG Channel. Founded
in 1997, Gnomon trains students for the lm,
broadcast and game industries.
Despite his hectic schedule, Alex still nds
time to develop his personal work and, in the
past two years, has focused on workows for
creating natural environments, rening his
techniques for developing plants, trees, forests,
rocks and terrains making Alex the ideal artist
to create this issues landscape cover.
My workow continues to evolve, he says.
I use a variety of tools as Im always eager
to learn new methods that will save time, but
Maya, mental ray, Photoshop and ZBrush are
the foundations of my work critical tools.
This image is part of Alexs workow for his
tutorial project this issue, which he created
exclusively for 3D World. He says: I was asked to
create this image by 3D Worlds editor Ian Dean,
with the concept being a stone head in a jungle
setting. Knowing my available time and deadline
(three weeks at about 40 hours per week), I
created concept sketches that I felt were realistic
in the timeframe. To discover Alexs workow and
the nished scene, turn to his tutorial on page 58.
www.gnomonschool.com
Issue 176 Christmas 2013
LANDSCAPE
SPECIAL
When you see this icon,
the article is part of
our 24-page special
Christmas 2013 | | 3 www.3dworldmag.com
The 3D World advisory board
Our panel of leading gures from across the
CG industry give us their advice and help
Writers
Mike Griggs, Antony Ward, Renee Dunlop, James
Cutler, Chris Chui, Alex Alvarez, Steve Jarratt, Rodrigo
Sria, Andrew Eksner, Alex Thiesen, Vladimir Chopine,
Conrad Allan, Milan Schere, Tim Spanjer, David Luong
Welcome
Meet the team and our panel of experts
Issue 176 Christmas 2013
Broaden your
skills and
learn how to
model nature
Its a great pleasure this issue to
work with Alex Alvarez as he shares
his knowledge of creating beautiful
landscapes lled with vibrant and
delicate natural elements. Plus, theres
more great environment tips in our
matte painting projects feature.

Ian Dean, editor
ian.dean@futurenet.com
Tell us what you think!
3dworld@futurenet.com
www.3dworldmag.com
www.facebook.com/3dworldmagazine
@3DWorldMag
Alex Alvarez
President of Gnomon
The Gnomon Workshop
www.gnomonschool.com
This issues cover artist, is not only a massively
experienced 3D artist in his own right but also
founded The Gnomon Workshop, the training
company for digital artists, based in Hollywood.
Shelley Page
Head of International Outreach
DreamWorks Animation
www.dreamworksanimation.com
Shelley Page is head of international outreach at
DreamWorks Animation. She has worked in feature
animations since 1986, with credits on films such as
Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon.
Lee Danskin
Director of technology
Escape Technology
www.escape-technology.com
Rob Redman
Technical editor
rob.redman@futurenet.com
Kulsoom Middleton
Operations editor
kulsoom.middleton@futurenet.com
Darren Phillips
Art editor
darren.phillips@futurenet.com
With over 25 years industry experience, Lee has
been awarded Maya Master status, worked at the
Film Factory, was head of 3D at Smoke + Mirrors
and is now technical director at Escape.
Adam Valdez
VFX Supervisor
MPC
www.moving-picture.com
Adam Valdez began his career in practical miniature
and camera work, and has since worked on projects
including Jurassic Park and The Lord of the Rings.
Adam has led teams on a string of major projects.
Andrew Gordon
Directing animator
Pixar
www.pixar.com
Andrew Gordon is a supervising animator at Pixar
Animation Studios. He has been animating
characters for 15 years, where he has worked on
Monsters Inc and Gill from Finding Nemo.
Rob Powers
Group President
Lightwave 3D
www.robpowers.com
Rob Powers not only worked with James Cameron
on Avatar, then on Spielberg/Jacksons Tintin, but
now heads up Newteks LightWave 3D Group, as a
president with vast industry experience.
The 3D World team
Christmas 2013 | | 5 www.3dworldmag.com
Contents
Our complete line-up for this issue
Issue 176 Christmas 2013
COMMUNITY
10 Showcase
We look at some of the most outstanding new
creative CG projects from artists and studios
22 Short Cuts
Kulsoom Middleton talks to the directors about
blending CG elements and live action in Runaway
26 In Focus
Rodrigo Srias version of Hellboy challenged
him to perfect rendering hair and lighting
30 Inbox
We respond to readers letters on sharing your
work with your peers and anatomy reference
FEATURES
32 Explore better matte painting
Some of the best artists in the business share
their work, advice and insights into the artform
46 The End Game
Renee Dunlop reports on how Digital Domain
put 100 million ships on screen in Enders Game
52 Model behaviour
Anatomy is hard to master, but Ian Dean finds
that reference can improve your modelling
Digital subscription
Buy the latest magazine
and back issues for iPad
and iPhone today!
www.bit.ly/3dworld-app
Achieve anatomical
perfection with expert
artist Dan Crosslands
10 must-read tips
12 Ryse trailer Explosion 32 Matte painting
ZBrush gave us
precise control over the
surface and the level of
detail that we needed
6 | | Christmas 2013 dworldmag.com www.3d
TRAINING
58 Create a natural scene in Maya
Follow cover artist Alex Alvarezs workflow for
creating realistic-looking environment scenes
64 Compositing with Cineware
Mike Griggs investigates how to use the new
Cineware tool in After Effects CC and Cinema 4D
70 Build convincing landscapes
The advances in landscape creation software
make the world your oyster, says Mike Griggs
72 Speed up your workflow
Antony Ward shares his tips and tricks to keep
you ahead of schedule on your next animation
78 Tailor an astronaut suit
From sketching patterns to adding fine details,
Chris Chui creates authentic digital clothing
84 Q&A
Some of the best experts in the industry get
to grips with your CG software questions
REVIEWS
88 Cinema 4D R15
This latest update is solid, but you cant please
all the people all the time, says Steve Jarratt
91 DEM Earth
This handy plug-in solves the problem of using
map data for C4D users, says Mike Griggs
93 dArtiste: Matte Painting 3
Does Ballistics third volume live up to the series
high reputation? Rob Redman turns the pages
POST PRODUCTION
94 Debrief
Brewster Parsons reveals the challenges
of creating a new generation of ocean liners
Inspirational art features
in Ballistics glossy new
matte painting book
REGULARS
3 On the cover
44 Print subscription offer
97 Competition
98 Next Issue
www.3dworldmag.com Christmas 2013 | | 7
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78 Digital cloth creation
58 Natural environments 88 Cinema 4D R15
How one FX studio
envisioned a new wave
of luxury cruising
10 Showcase
We look at some of the most outstanding new
creative CG projects including works from...
Giovanni Dossena
Inspired by Light
Ntropic
Ryse trailer Explosion
Triada Studio
Shoghakat TV idents
Pascal Blanch
Orchid
Mirada
Roar
Alex Velazquez
Dr Frankenstein 90210
Artur Szygulski
Mouflon
Pedro Conti
The Pirate
Greg Strasz
Grey
Akama Studio
Fighter Within
22 Short Cuts
Kulsoom Middleton talks to the directors about
blending CG elements and live action in Runaway
26 In Focus
Rodrigo Srias take on Hellboy challenged him
to perfect rendering hair, lighting and textures
30 Inbox
How to share your work with your peers and
the advantages of anatomy reference
Community
Mingle with the worlds greatest CG artists and
experience the best that the industry has to offer
portfolio@
3dworldmag.
com
Send in
your work
Email your images to
14 Orchid
26 In Focus 22 Short Cuts
www.3dworldmag.com Christmas 2013 | | 9
Showcase
This issues pick includes explosive sculptures,
aglistening alien and an awesome CG tree
Community
The best new creative
work from the worlds
top CG artists
10 | | Christmas 2013 www.3dworldmag.com