Digital Fantasy Painting

Rating:
Summary: Very Well Done
Review: Despite the other reviews, I found this book a worthwhile buy as a beginning digital artist. It does not provide an in depth explanation of every program in it, however, it shows a wide variety of artwork from various fantasy artists and gives basic tutorial steps and multiple tips. The work can be found online with some of the tutorials admittedly, but I found it very handy to have good examples and techniques for work sitting in front of me rather than clicking back and forth between multiple online tutorials and whatever program I was working on.

I am not familiar with 3d programs yet but this book gives examples of many different programs and gave me an idea of what programs I might like to try later. The tutorials were comprehensible and easy to follow as well as showcasing a variety of styles. They were not just sketch-detail sketch-end product the way that I've found many other tutoral books to be. Instead it shows the layering and painting process with each of the pieces, which is exactly what I was looking for. If you want nitty-gritty details, I suggest buying the "bible" for whatever program you want to find out more about. There's only so much you can do in a 160 page book, especially if you want an index and title page and whatnot ^.~

Rating:
Summary: Good for beginners
Review: How this book slipped under my nose for so long is amazing. I just recently found it and the book contains some amazing artwork. True, a lot of the book is just gallery work and the "step-by-step" section is more of a step-by-step overview of how certain effects were created. If someone is looking for a how-to book, this isn't the one. The interesting part is that the book fails to focus on any singular 3D app. One masterpiece may be done with poser, another with Lightwave, another with 3D max, another done strictly with photoshop, and yet another may use multiple application.

It truly opens your eyes on the quality available with soem of the apps. This book belongs on your shelf alongside the other non-app specific titles like Digital Lighting and Rendering and Digital Texturing and Painting.

Rating:
Summary: A must have for any digital artist's collection
Review: How this book slipped under my nose for so long is amazing. I just recently found it and the book contains some amazing artwork. True, a lot of the book is just gallery work and the "step-by-step" section is more of a step-by-step overview of how certain effects were created. If someone is looking for a how-to book, this isn't the one. The interesting part is that the book fails to focus on any singular 3D app. One masterpiece may be done with poser, another with Lightwave, another with 3D max, another done strictly with photoshop, and yet another may use multiple application.

It truly opens your eyes on the quality available with soem of the apps. This book belongs on your shelf alongside the other non-app specific titles like Digital Lighting and Rendering and Digital Texturing and Painting.

Rating:
Summary: Very Well Done
Review: I was kind of rushed when I bought this book so I chanced it figuring I could return it later.

This book has no substance to it beyond what you can already find on the web. It just goes through basic "I did this, then that, then the other thing." No indepth look at any creation. I've found crap tutorials on the web with more information.

The gallery at the back is available on the web pretty much. One of the featured artists in it posts his work on forums I happen to moderate. I can see other works of similar caliber on the various community web sites.

One editorial note is I saw WAY too much Poser and Bryce work in this book which took away a LOT of credibility with me. I am sorry but those programs are not artist tools but cookie cutters. Tools would be Alias|Wavefront Maya, discreet 3ds max, and so forth. I think artists who take the time to learn those high-end programs deserve placement in books. Not someone who clicked a few presets and got an instant human.

Rating:
Summary: A Mediocre Book of Pretty Pictures No Substance
Review: This book is full of nice images, if I can say so it is more a gallery of Digital Fantasy Art then a training book, the editorial review is a little misleading. It is not a training nor lesson book, it is a Tip book only. For instance there will be a picture on the page and the author will explain 1-2 tips on how they created the light for that particular piece, nothing extraordinary. Not only that, but most of the images and "tutorials/tips" can be found on the internet. All you have to do is do a search on Epilouge or search other digital art sites etc. and you will find many of the images that are in the book.

The author's details about hardware and computers are mundane and "filler up" material. The target of this book is for beginners only. Other skill levels will want something of more substance.

If you are wanting a book that will learn you how to digital paint try Don Seegimiller's book, create compositions, image effects you will not receive this from this book, only a smattering of tips, which are good, but not detailed enough. Books like these should be giving tips that are rare and unknown, not re-hashing tips the reader already knows.

Rating:
Summary: Good for beginners
Review: This book mostly contains some step by step screen shots. The book talks mostly about using photoshop as a tool for texturing, and painting. It goes a little bit in other 3d programs such as Maya, 3d max, and Poser. But only covers a few modifiers or special effects. There is no real indepth explanation. As someone who works with 3d max and photoshop, I only recommend it if you are a beginner. The instruction are more like tips here and there.