Enhance your 3D animation by adding photographs that you've composed, lit, and shot specifically for use in your 3D projects. This practical and easy-to-follow book will show you how. Even if you have limited experience, the tips and ideas you'll find will soon have you creating quality photographs for use throughout the 3D workflow. From the mechanics of megapixels to the tricks of lighting to the art of finding the best images to shoot, you'll gain control and learn valuable professional techniques that will transform your designs.

• Explore camera angles, lighting, and more from a 3D perspective
• Create textures, backgrounds, and 3D image models with your photographs
• Notice details, find the right subjects, and learn photographic best practices
• Master the mechanics of f-stops, apertures, and lenses for 3D
• Apply digital photographic quality to your rendered 3D images
• Use high-dynamic-range (HDR) imaging for advanced 3D lighting

No special software required. The instructions in this book apply to most popular 3D applications.

• Recognize useful real-world scenes and photographs with 3D in mind
• Use stills more effectively for texture, background, and reference
• Shoot and assemble complete 3D environments

Companion DVD with Video Training!

See how to incorporate photographs into your 3D projects with more than two hours of video training provided on DVD. You'll also find valuable tools, including:

• Over a hundred digital images for your use, royalty-free, from the author
• Valuable software including LightWave 3D(r) demo version, Maya(r) 7 Personal Learning Edition, 3ds Max(r) 9 evaluation version, Adobe(r) Photoshop(r) CS2 tryout version, and photo-to-3D plug-ins