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For those of you who are unaware, and I'm sure there are more than a few, OpenSubDiv (OSD) graphics.pixar.com/opensubdiv/ is about to become the new subdivision standard (there really wasn't one before) in the 3D Industry.
It's being pushed by three giants: Pixar, AutoDesk and Microsoft. AutoDesk owns and produceds AutoCAD, 3DStudioMax (3dsmacks), SoftImage (XSI) and Maya. In other words, it owns a huge chunk of the high end 3D application industry, the other two need no introduction from me. So don't bother to argue with me: OpenSubDiv is about to become the standard, and any software that does not implement it will be rendered obsolete
Neil Blevins www.neilblevins.com/ is a professional 3D and 2D artist who has worked for Blur Studios as a jack of all trades artist and a Modeller/Animator for Pixar Studios. He is proficient in 3DSmacks, Maya, Mudbox, ZBrush and other 3D Aplications and Pixar chose to publish his blog on OpenSubDiv on the official OpenSubDiv website: graphics.pixar.com/opensubdiv/
The following blog is by Neil Blevins, who graciously allowed me to re-publish it.
________________________________________
Pixar's OpenSubdiv Initiative, And How It Can Help You
By Neil Blevins
Aug 26th 2012
Back in 1978, Ed Catmull (now president of Pixar animation studios) and Jim Clark (founder of SGI and Netscape) came up with the Catmull-Clark subdivision method. This was a method for subdividing polygonal geometry (and subdividing any associated Uv sets) into smooth surfaces. Later, in 1998, Tony DeRose (now Director of R&D at Pixar) created a method for defining crease values on edges and vertexes as a way to allow for hard edges on a smooth surface. The method has in many ways revolutionized our way of modeling over the last decade, replacing nurbs as the go to method for modeling in the film industry.
The problem was this. While the base subdivision method from 1978 was freely available, the creasing, texture evaluation, and some other aspects were patented and available for license. But instead of licensing the technology, every major 3d package decided instead to either avoid these features or create their own versions when implementing subdiv surfaces, versions that were incompatible with everyone else's subdivision method. This wasn't a huge deal at the beginning, since maya folk tended to stay in maya, and 3dsmax folk tended to stay in max. But in today's modern pipeline, there's a lot more asset swapping between packages, especially between sculpting packages such as mudbox and zbrush and the major 3d apps. All of a sudden, all of those incompatible subdivision methods weren't talking to each other, and moving an asset became an exercise in frustration (and artifacts).
(Image Examples on the Neil Blevin's Original Blog: graphics.pixar.com/opensubdiv/… )
In the last few years, Pixar has worked with a number of major 3d packages to adopt the full catmull clark method, and programs like maya, mudbox and modo have become completely compliant, and hence, it's far easier to move assets between those 3 packages.
At this year's Siggraph, Pixar has announced the "OpenSubdiv" initiative. This will release to the public in open source fashion, a subdiv library that can be integrated into any 3d package. This is the actual code that Pixar uses, all of it, and the license terms include a free license to all the patents. So if adopted, this free subdivision method can be implemented by all of the major 3d packages, sculpting packages and renderers, and we'll finally be able to move our assets between any of these packages without worrying about subdiv incompatibility. In some cases, it will even let people use subdivs where they couldn't before, because their package's implementation wasn't up to snuff.
If you're a programmer, then the actual Open source may be of use to you here: github.com/PixarAnimationStudi…
But if you're an artist, there's an important way for your to participate as well. The ability to seamlessly move subdivs between 3d apps will only happen if those applications implement OpenSubdiv. And that will only happen if the community demands it from their software. So I highly recommend to contact the people behind your favorite applications and ask them to incorporate this method in their software. And I mean everyone: 3dsmax, maya, xsi, houdini, zbrush, mudbox, vray, arnold, etc. Make sure that everyone knows that the public wants this, and having compatible subdivision surfaces will allow more people to use their software, and will allow their software to be used in facilities that could never use it before.
With your help, we can finally put these days of incompatibility behind us, stop worrying about fighting our software, and worry about making great art instead. A huge thanks to all those at Pixar who helped make this happen. Now it's your turn to take the next step.
(Copyright 2012 to Neil Blevins)
________________________________________
After having read this blog, I managed to contact Neil and quite giddily emailed him a gushing note about how those of us who use D|S are getting OpenSubDiv implemented and those of us using the DAZ Studio 4.5.2.40 Beta get to play with it.
Neil's idea is clear: we need this for a more transparent pipeline and a smoother work flow. Geometries should be predictable from the first polygon to the last, and OSD will give us this.
For my part, there is no doubt in my mind that OSD is about to become the goto standard in the 3D industry, it's just a matter of how long it will take. Thank goodnes MY favourite platform is well on its way to getting that done! Is yours? I'll just leave you with two words from Neil Blevins: "Demand It!"
Keep and eye on that same blog on Neil's Website as he has indicated that any news he has on this topic will be updated there: www.neilblevins.com/cg_educati…
Discussion on OSD as implemented in DAZ Studio: www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthrea…
UPDATE: Neil asked me to pass along these articles he wrote about PTEX:
Explanation of Working with PTEX: www.neilblevins.com/cg_educati…
PTEX in Mudbox: www.neilblevins.com/cg_educati…
It's being pushed by three giants: Pixar, AutoDesk and Microsoft. AutoDesk owns and produceds AutoCAD, 3DStudioMax (3dsmacks), SoftImage (XSI) and Maya. In other words, it owns a huge chunk of the high end 3D application industry, the other two need no introduction from me. So don't bother to argue with me: OpenSubDiv is about to become the standard, and any software that does not implement it will be rendered obsolete
Neil Blevins www.neilblevins.com/ is a professional 3D and 2D artist who has worked for Blur Studios as a jack of all trades artist and a Modeller/Animator for Pixar Studios. He is proficient in 3DSmacks, Maya, Mudbox, ZBrush and other 3D Aplications and Pixar chose to publish his blog on OpenSubDiv on the official OpenSubDiv website: graphics.pixar.com/opensubdiv/
The following blog is by Neil Blevins, who graciously allowed me to re-publish it.
________________________________________
Pixar's OpenSubdiv Initiative, And How It Can Help You
By Neil Blevins
Aug 26th 2012
Back in 1978, Ed Catmull (now president of Pixar animation studios) and Jim Clark (founder of SGI and Netscape) came up with the Catmull-Clark subdivision method. This was a method for subdividing polygonal geometry (and subdividing any associated Uv sets) into smooth surfaces. Later, in 1998, Tony DeRose (now Director of R&D at Pixar) created a method for defining crease values on edges and vertexes as a way to allow for hard edges on a smooth surface. The method has in many ways revolutionized our way of modeling over the last decade, replacing nurbs as the go to method for modeling in the film industry.
The problem was this. While the base subdivision method from 1978 was freely available, the creasing, texture evaluation, and some other aspects were patented and available for license. But instead of licensing the technology, every major 3d package decided instead to either avoid these features or create their own versions when implementing subdiv surfaces, versions that were incompatible with everyone else's subdivision method. This wasn't a huge deal at the beginning, since maya folk tended to stay in maya, and 3dsmax folk tended to stay in max. But in today's modern pipeline, there's a lot more asset swapping between packages, especially between sculpting packages such as mudbox and zbrush and the major 3d apps. All of a sudden, all of those incompatible subdivision methods weren't talking to each other, and moving an asset became an exercise in frustration (and artifacts).
(Image Examples on the Neil Blevin's Original Blog: graphics.pixar.com/opensubdiv/… )
In the last few years, Pixar has worked with a number of major 3d packages to adopt the full catmull clark method, and programs like maya, mudbox and modo have become completely compliant, and hence, it's far easier to move assets between those 3 packages.
At this year's Siggraph, Pixar has announced the "OpenSubdiv" initiative. This will release to the public in open source fashion, a subdiv library that can be integrated into any 3d package. This is the actual code that Pixar uses, all of it, and the license terms include a free license to all the patents. So if adopted, this free subdivision method can be implemented by all of the major 3d packages, sculpting packages and renderers, and we'll finally be able to move our assets between any of these packages without worrying about subdiv incompatibility. In some cases, it will even let people use subdivs where they couldn't before, because their package's implementation wasn't up to snuff.
If you're a programmer, then the actual Open source may be of use to you here: github.com/PixarAnimationStudi…
But if you're an artist, there's an important way for your to participate as well. The ability to seamlessly move subdivs between 3d apps will only happen if those applications implement OpenSubdiv. And that will only happen if the community demands it from their software. So I highly recommend to contact the people behind your favorite applications and ask them to incorporate this method in their software. And I mean everyone: 3dsmax, maya, xsi, houdini, zbrush, mudbox, vray, arnold, etc. Make sure that everyone knows that the public wants this, and having compatible subdivision surfaces will allow more people to use their software, and will allow their software to be used in facilities that could never use it before.
With your help, we can finally put these days of incompatibility behind us, stop worrying about fighting our software, and worry about making great art instead. A huge thanks to all those at Pixar who helped make this happen. Now it's your turn to take the next step.
(Copyright 2012 to Neil Blevins)
________________________________________
After having read this blog, I managed to contact Neil and quite giddily emailed him a gushing note about how those of us who use D|S are getting OpenSubDiv implemented and those of us using the DAZ Studio 4.5.2.40 Beta get to play with it.
Neil's idea is clear: we need this for a more transparent pipeline and a smoother work flow. Geometries should be predictable from the first polygon to the last, and OSD will give us this.
For my part, there is no doubt in my mind that OSD is about to become the goto standard in the 3D industry, it's just a matter of how long it will take. Thank goodnes MY favourite platform is well on its way to getting that done! Is yours? I'll just leave you with two words from Neil Blevins: "Demand It!"
Keep and eye on that same blog on Neil's Website as he has indicated that any news he has on this topic will be updated there: www.neilblevins.com/cg_educati…
Discussion on OSD as implemented in DAZ Studio: www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthrea…
UPDATE: Neil asked me to pass along these articles he wrote about PTEX:
Explanation of Working with PTEX: www.neilblevins.com/cg_educati…
PTEX in Mudbox: www.neilblevins.com/cg_educati…
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
What do Superman Returns, The Last few Harry Potter Movies, Twilight Eclipse and District 9 all have in common?
The render engine used for all the 3D Graphics in those movies was 3Delight.
Paying attention now? 3Delight is second only to Renderman in Hollywood. Yes, Renderman is still king. That's great. You can get your license for the bargain basement price of... drumroll pleeze: ONLY Nineteen Ninety Nine and Ninety Nine Cents!... (that's $2,000 for those of you in Port St. Lucie www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03… )
Whereas, you can pick up a copy of 3Delight for, beware of sticker shock: FWEEE!
Yes, folks, free, as in it costs you nada. You can get it two ways: you can use it in DAZ Studio, which at the moment is given away by DAZ 3D. Or you can download a copy from 3Delight.com And you can render your D|S stuff in it very surprisingly easily!
Personally, I have both. Every single render I have posted on my DA account was done with 3Delight.
Now, I'm not claiming I'm any kind of great artist, but my skin is getting better, and one of the things I do for fun is play with skin shaders, because I want that quality of skin that Poser users benefit from... well, it seems to me that they benefit from a lot of people doing a lot of work to get those skin shaders in the Firefly Render Engine... something those of us who use 3Delight still have to go through....
And, frankly, the challenges for 3Delight users are stiff. WE have to deal with RSL! The Renderman Shader Language. Or, if we don't know that language (which I do not, but I hope to learn something of it by the end of the year), we have to rely on those that do.
But do not let anyone anywhere sit there and tell you that you have a crappy render engine if you're using 3Delight! You do not!
Yes, DAZ Studio users, you have access to Octane and Lux Render (via Reality or Luxus), but I'm telling you, the vast majority of you will eventually come back to 3Delight. Why? Because, folks, we have not begun to see its true power at our finger tips... it's just a little out of reach at the moment, but there are more than a few people doing a lot of work to get at that power!
I'll keep doing my experiments. I've done a few with Area Lights and Sub Surface Scattering, and I like to share my shaders and lights in hopes that others can pull them apart, get a better idea and make those available. I've been playing with PW Surface 2 Lately (which I recommend, by the way)... and our good friend MattyManx has made some of his PW Shaders available to those who have PW Surface 2.
In any event, you DAZ Studio users have a bloody good render engine. To those of you who are dedicated to improving our ability to use it, I'd just like to say "thank you!"
The render engine used for all the 3D Graphics in those movies was 3Delight.
Paying attention now? 3Delight is second only to Renderman in Hollywood. Yes, Renderman is still king. That's great. You can get your license for the bargain basement price of... drumroll pleeze: ONLY Nineteen Ninety Nine and Ninety Nine Cents!... (that's $2,000 for those of you in Port St. Lucie www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03… )
Whereas, you can pick up a copy of 3Delight for, beware of sticker shock: FWEEE!
Yes, folks, free, as in it costs you nada. You can get it two ways: you can use it in DAZ Studio, which at the moment is given away by DAZ 3D. Or you can download a copy from 3Delight.com And you can render your D|S stuff in it very surprisingly easily!
Personally, I have both. Every single render I have posted on my DA account was done with 3Delight.
Now, I'm not claiming I'm any kind of great artist, but my skin is getting better, and one of the things I do for fun is play with skin shaders, because I want that quality of skin that Poser users benefit from... well, it seems to me that they benefit from a lot of people doing a lot of work to get those skin shaders in the Firefly Render Engine... something those of us who use 3Delight still have to go through....
And, frankly, the challenges for 3Delight users are stiff. WE have to deal with RSL! The Renderman Shader Language. Or, if we don't know that language (which I do not, but I hope to learn something of it by the end of the year), we have to rely on those that do.
But do not let anyone anywhere sit there and tell you that you have a crappy render engine if you're using 3Delight! You do not!
Yes, DAZ Studio users, you have access to Octane and Lux Render (via Reality or Luxus), but I'm telling you, the vast majority of you will eventually come back to 3Delight. Why? Because, folks, we have not begun to see its true power at our finger tips... it's just a little out of reach at the moment, but there are more than a few people doing a lot of work to get at that power!
I'll keep doing my experiments. I've done a few with Area Lights and Sub Surface Scattering, and I like to share my shaders and lights in hopes that others can pull them apart, get a better idea and make those available. I've been playing with PW Surface 2 Lately (which I recommend, by the way)... and our good friend MattyManx has made some of his PW Shaders available to those who have PW Surface 2.
In any event, you DAZ Studio users have a bloody good render engine. To those of you who are dedicated to improving our ability to use it, I'd just like to say "thank you!"
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Circle Jerk...
1 min read
Well...
I'm over on the DAZ Forums and I just found out, Damn It, that DAZ has a DA Account??? WHO KNEW????
I sure didn't.... so we have a thread going on that, but I decided to post another on WHO is on DA in the first place?
www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthrea…
I mean, really... R.Com has THEIR Gallery, but we have DA, which is non-exclusive, and we get to see a whole lot of stuff we wouldn't otherwise see, and get inspiration from a whole lot of sources, and why the hell not?
What I'm hoping for is to have a whole lot of people on my watch list... that's all. Maybe get DAZ to be a tad more involved here on DA and just forget about reviving their old gallery. This is far more producutive (IMHO).
So hit that link (above), and go add your gallery link to that thread and hopefully we'll end up with a good sized circle of circular... uhm... I was about to type something vaguely obscene... so nevermind... just go post your link!
I'm over on the DAZ Forums and I just found out, Damn It, that DAZ has a DA Account??? WHO KNEW????
I sure didn't.... so we have a thread going on that, but I decided to post another on WHO is on DA in the first place?
www.daz3d.com/forums/viewthrea…
I mean, really... R.Com has THEIR Gallery, but we have DA, which is non-exclusive, and we get to see a whole lot of stuff we wouldn't otherwise see, and get inspiration from a whole lot of sources, and why the hell not?
What I'm hoping for is to have a whole lot of people on my watch list... that's all. Maybe get DAZ to be a tad more involved here on DA and just forget about reviving their old gallery. This is far more producutive (IMHO).
So hit that link (above), and go add your gallery link to that thread and hopefully we'll end up with a good sized circle of circular... uhm... I was about to type something vaguely obscene... so nevermind... just go post your link!
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SKIN and LIGHT
2 min read
For a lot of us using DAZ Studio, we look on Poser Firefly renders with envy. The skin seems so incredibly soft when you see it, at least from those who know what their doing.
So, the quest is to get skin looking its absolute best out of DAZ Studio using 3Delight. Considering that 3Delight is not only a RenderMan compliant render engine, it also happens to be the second most popular render engine used by Hollywood Studios behind RenderMan! It should be a simple thing with that kind of power, right???
WRONG!
What they don't tell the uninitiated is that you need to be a programmer to get to the power of 3Delight. Could we get 3Delight to mimic Firefly? I've no doubt we could... IF we could write RSL and understood every single aspect of how 3Delight treats light and subsurface scattering... but few, if any, in the community really do.
Well, I can't mimic Firefly, but I can get my skin to look good! And I found it in an unlikely place, using Area Lights... now, Area lights are going to present certain problems if that's all I'm uisng to light a scene... (well, that and Uber Environment 2)... but is it not so that limitations breed artistic excellence? Remember the sweater girls of the 1950s? Heh, The Motion Picture Production Code said "cover up" soo... we got Sweater girls!!! Artistic Excellence, my friends...
My latest test renders are all about good skin... I hope you'll take a look, grab the light sets www.sharecg.com/v/68286/browse… and render!!! Then pull those apart, remake them, and render!
Who knows, maybe you'll get us to the point where we can render hyper-realistic skin...
So, the quest is to get skin looking its absolute best out of DAZ Studio using 3Delight. Considering that 3Delight is not only a RenderMan compliant render engine, it also happens to be the second most popular render engine used by Hollywood Studios behind RenderMan! It should be a simple thing with that kind of power, right???
WRONG!
What they don't tell the uninitiated is that you need to be a programmer to get to the power of 3Delight. Could we get 3Delight to mimic Firefly? I've no doubt we could... IF we could write RSL and understood every single aspect of how 3Delight treats light and subsurface scattering... but few, if any, in the community really do.
Well, I can't mimic Firefly, but I can get my skin to look good! And I found it in an unlikely place, using Area Lights... now, Area lights are going to present certain problems if that's all I'm uisng to light a scene... (well, that and Uber Environment 2)... but is it not so that limitations breed artistic excellence? Remember the sweater girls of the 1950s? Heh, The Motion Picture Production Code said "cover up" soo... we got Sweater girls!!! Artistic Excellence, my friends...
My latest test renders are all about good skin... I hope you'll take a look, grab the light sets www.sharecg.com/v/68286/browse… and render!!! Then pull those apart, remake them, and render!
Who knows, maybe you'll get us to the point where we can render hyper-realistic skin...
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WHAT? Me, Worry?
2 min read
Yah... I'm just hunkered down with my toys: DAZ Studio, Hexagon, GIMP... a few others... not one of them costing me one red cent, thank goodness, because if it did, I couldn't afford it.
I've learned to love DA. It took me a while, but I've learned to. My main focus right now is my Genesis based characters in DAZ Studio. I don't create much in the way of art worth anyone's time or glances. I simply enjoy getting that right skin shader to look good. Or shaping the most beautiful girl I can imagine. Sometimes I'll play with Trek or Conan stuff... but mostly I'm a 3DGeek... have been for a long time, and still am.
I see work I adore, and I mean LOVE, I'll fave it so I can easily find it again. I don't fave something I don't absolutely love. I'm not out to make a lot of friends on DA, it's just a place to help me connect with others who want to learn more 3DGeekystuff to help me learn more 3DGeekystuff...
Anyway, so if you see me fave your picture, it's because It's something I'd be proud to hang on my wall... if I had a wall...
I've learned to love DA. It took me a while, but I've learned to. My main focus right now is my Genesis based characters in DAZ Studio. I don't create much in the way of art worth anyone's time or glances. I simply enjoy getting that right skin shader to look good. Or shaping the most beautiful girl I can imagine. Sometimes I'll play with Trek or Conan stuff... but mostly I'm a 3DGeek... have been for a long time, and still am.
I see work I adore, and I mean LOVE, I'll fave it so I can easily find it again. I don't fave something I don't absolutely love. I'm not out to make a lot of friends on DA, it's just a place to help me connect with others who want to learn more 3DGeekystuff to help me learn more 3DGeekystuff...
Anyway, so if you see me fave your picture, it's because It's something I'd be proud to hang on my wall... if I had a wall...
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