Digital Character Animation

Rating:
Summary: A must for any character animator !!
Review: This book is a goldmine of information for anyone interested in character animation. I must say that Mr. Maestri has done a wonderful job with this book. The topics covered are not platform/software specific and so can easily be adapted to any 3D software. Renji Mathews,[e-mail], Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Rating:
Summary: Aged and poor CD, good layout, some good tips
Review: This book isn't as good as I thought it would be, it's one very difficult object to describe. It would have been better to write more on how to use easily a computer for animation; devices, shortcuts, tablets, rotoscoping and explaining how to use these techniques for modelling and animating characters. Great to see an explication of traditionnal animation techniques transfered to 3D, but it's far from complete. A good exercise on 'what's a function-curve and what can I do with it in all those packages is missing. Even that there's a big chapter trying to explain this. (most, simillary, typically, most, most, broadley etc...); (In SI, a motion-graph is called a Fcurve..., In lightwave, it is called a Motion Graph and looks like this). The CD coming with the book is not complete by what the book says, and very small of content. Positive: The staging and posing chapter is important and does need a lot of pictures. There aren't a lot of books covering digital character animation and as all the big packages are upgrading and even changing names now, I can't advise you this book, sorry

Rating:
Summary: indispensible for serious character animators (or wannabes).
Review: This platform independent book focuses on bringing objects or characters to life. With tips and tricks only a seasoned animator would know, DCA departs from mere theory into actual technique. As a semi-pro animator, this book alone has focused my talent and brougth me to the next level.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book, if you are a beginner in character animation
Review: When I bought this book one year ago, I was completely amazed of it because it gives you the very basics of Character Animation especially due to 3D Graphics. But dont expect George Maestri to tell you how to claim the highest jobs in the industry - to be a character animator requires hard training, work, endurance and - most important - enthusiasm. See this book as a guide but not as the key to be a good character animator. Apart of that George Maestri has done an exciting job - buy this book, if you want to understand how to start learning the "royal class" of animation.

Rating:
Summary: The definitive computer character animation book

Review: [digital] Character Animation is the first computer animation book that focuses strictly on animating and bringing 3D digital characters to life. The book is firmly grounded in the basics of animation that every animator must know. As any clay or pencil animator can attest, animation is an art, and character animation takes many years of study. The same goes for digital animators. Simply having a computer and an animation package does not make you an animator. Knowing the keystrokes is simply not enough, you must also understand motion, timing, and acting. Digital animators must also know how to build their characters in the computer so those characters will animate with a minimum of fuss. This book will definitely give you the knowledge you need to get started.

[digital] Character Animation is a computer animation book unlike most others. Instead of focusing on package specific keystrokes, the book addresses a broad base of software and features. This book is intended as a guide for anyone with a computer and a 3D package. Techniques include everything from modeling to animation, which are covered from all angles. There are many examples that will be of great value whether you model with polygons, metaballs, or splines - animate segmented or boned characters using forward or inverse kinematics - render on a SGI, PC, or MacIntosh