Learning Lightwave 9

A complete training to master Lightwave v.9 with Olivier Michon, the first certified NewTek Europe trainer. This product is translated by Ben VOST, the Newtek Europe Lightwave expert, this product exists also in French version edited by Elephorm. After a general presentation of this impressive application from NewTek, you will learn the Modeler : the interface, the views and the selection modes furthermore the subdivision surfaces, the basis of modelling tools with practical examples and modelling methods used by professionals. The tutorial then explains the Layout : after a handling, you will use different Editors (Scene, Graph, Surface, Node), create skeletons of animation for mechanical and organic objects and use different kind of lights and cameras with several practical examples to test yourself.

Learning LightWave 9 - 3D - Global Video tutorial

Program Philosophy – Modeler | Layout
The Hub – bridging the two programs
General workflow: The Content Directory

Introduction and general presentation
Interface and menu configuration
Adding a plug-in to the interface
Configuration of viewports and OpenGL options
Keyboard shortcuts
OpenGL viewport navigation
Point / Edge / Polygon selection
Objects and layers

Layer hierarchy, foreground and background layers, subdivision surfaces
Subpatch and Catmull-Clark
Edge Weighting
Modelling tools
Surfaces
Action centres
Deformation tools
Rounder
Multishift
Symmetry mode
Vmaps

Modelling methods
Making complex objects from primitives
Optimising polygon flow for Sub-Ds
Using demonstrated tools for a polygonal modelling example
Modelling a chair
Modelling a character
Using demonstrated tools for an organic modelling example
Weight maps, UV Texture maps, Morph maps, Vertex Color maps, Point Selection Sets

LAYOUT
Introduction and general presentation
Interface and menu configuration
Configuration of viewports and OpenGL options
Keyboard shortcuts

About Scenes
Cameras, Lights, Objects, Bones
How the grid works
About keyframing and using Auto Key
The Pivot Point
Hierarchies: parenting, targetting

Scene Editor
Overview of the scene and global parameter editing
The Dope Sheet

Graph Editor
Introduction and general presentation
Interface and menu configuration
About envelopes and channels
Spline manipulation
About expressions

Rigging
Rigging a mechanical object
Forward Kinematics (FK) and Inverse Kinematics (IK)
Using expressions
Using Targets

Rigging an organic object
Using Skelegons
Using Skelegons part 2
Weight maps for Skelegons
Converting Skelegons to Bones
Forward Kinematics (FK)
Inverse Kinematics (IK)
Inverse Kinematics (IK)
Controlling Goal objects
Titre

Surface Editor
“Classic” Surface Editor overview
OpenGL display and VIPER
Layers in the Texture Editor
Presets
Saving options

Practical: Defining a different surface for either side of a polygon
Introduction to the Node Editor
Interface Presentation
Exemple
Regarding Shaders and Materials
Animation of a gradient

Displacement maps on subpatch objects
Using the Node Editor to deform geometry
Subdivision order
APS – Adaptive Pixel Subdivision

Standard lighting
The different light types

Radiosity
Introduction
Backdrop only
Monte Carlo et Final Gather

Cameras
The different camera types
Perspective v. Classic cameras
The “Use Global” button

Antialiasing
How adaptive sampling works

Conclusion

System Requirements :

Win 2000-XP-Vista or MAC OS X

Resolution : 1024x768

Processor : 1,2 GHZ

Sound card required

Specifications sheet

Total running time : More than 7-hour video course available with an interactive menu.

Software version used for this training : LightWave 3D v.9.2 (fit to the v.9.3)

Release date : April 2008

Level : Intermediary. You need to be at ease with a PC or MAC environment.

Trainer : Olivier Michon

Language : English, translation by Ben Vost

Editor : NewTek