Computer Arts (Christmas 2003)

Citation preview

0870 333 0919

QTFGTQPNKPG GOCKNWU [email protected] www.webfusion.co.uk

AFTER EFFECTS 6

New tutorial • 3 full plug-ins

THE WORLD’S BEST–SELLING CREATIVE MAGAZINE

FIRST EVER ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CS TUTORIAL!

THE CREATIVE SUITE REVEALED Get to grips with Photoshop CS and create this cover image with our expert tutorial

ILLUSTRATOR CS

Explore the new features in our exclusive tutorial

FLASH MX 2004

Master this powerful tool

21 PAGES OF REVIEWS Vue 4 Pro, combustion, Studio MX and Panther Printed in the UK

No CD? Please see your newsagent

Outside the UK and Éire £6 C$ 19.95

CHRISTMAS 2003

£6

1 3 9 771360 537024

INTRO W ILLUSTRATORS RAY SMITH AND JASON ARBER PUT PHOTOSHOP AND ILLUSTRATOR CS THROUGH THEIR PACES

ILLUSTRATORS We take our illustrations seriously here at Computer Arts, and this month showcase some superb, award-winning illustrators from both the USA and Britain. We’re always on the lookout for new talent – so if you’re interested in contributing, contact [email protected] ROSS MAWDSLEY Well known as the designer of www.simian.nu, we asked Ross, currently based in New York, to design the illustration for our laptop Group Test on page 102. WWW.SIMIAN.NU JASON ARBER Pixelsurgeon pioneer and Computer Arts regular Jason Arber wields the power of Illustrator CS and finds out just what it’s capable of… on page 64. WWW.PIXELSURGEON.COM ROB CHIU Rob Chiu is at home with both 2D illustration and video. This month, he goes to town with After Effects (page 74), and we take a look at his new movie in News (page 16). WWW.THERONIN.CO.UK (E) [email protected] TADO In the concluding part of our Flash MX 2004 tutorial, Mike Doney and Katie Tang wrap up an illustration that incorporates both video and Web applications (page 38). WWW.TADO.CO.UK

e can’t hide the fact that at Computer Arts we’re suckers for upgrades. Getting the new products in for review, testing out the features and getting our illustrator contributors to put the packages through their paces is great. The market is so competitive right now that almost all upgrades we’ve seen over the last couple of years are worth considering, especially where companies have listened to user wish-lists. The Adobe Creative Suite appeared in shops sooner than announced. We still expected to be twiddling our Healing brushes with version 7, but now the products have appeared, we can provide our first ever Photoshop and Illustrator CS tutorials. Many of the new features are superb, the integration is a huge boon and, hey, even the new box art got our creative taste buds going. So we asked illustrators Ray Smith and Jason Arber to put these new products through their paces, trying out the new features along the way. Witness their fantastic and diverse efforts on pages 24 and 64. We’ve also got the second part of our Flash MX 2004 series, looking at the

COVER ILLUSTRATOR RAY SMITH Thick, woolly jumpers, snow and the Adobe Creative Suite inspired illustrator Ray Smith to create our cover image, plus the first ever Photoshop CS tutorial. Smith’s clients include The Telegraph, The Observer and C4. We wanted something in his distinctive style that represented the integration of the Creative Suite. The finished image is fantastic, detailed and colourful, and Ray demonstrates exactly how he did it in our exclusive tutorial, starting on page 24. WWW.RAYSMITH.BZ

improved functionality of the Professional version on page 38. Plus, to accompany the PC and Mac demo of After Effects 6, we ask pro film-maker Chris Kenworthy to show us exactly what it’s capable of in our six-page tutorial, starting on page 74. And that’s not all. We talk to Digital Vision about its new illustration catalogue, and interview the artists involved about their styles, techniques, and whether stock illustration is a real money-spinner for both young and experienced artists alike. And with Christmas almost upon us, we interview a handful of design studios about what seasonal magic they’ve got planned for their clients and users this coming Yule – hopefully giving you some great ideas in the process. It’s going to be a busy couple of months, but don’t forget that we’re always interested in what you think and what you want to see in the pages of Computer Arts, so drop us a line at [email protected]. VICKI ATKINSON Editor, THE WORLD’S BEST-SELLING CREATIVE MAGAZINE

EDITORIAL THE CA TEAM VICKI ATKINSON EDITOR [email protected] RODDY LLEWELLYN ART EDITOR [email protected] ROB CARNEY DEPUTY EDITOR [email protected] RACHEL ELLIOTT OPERATIONS EDITOR [email protected] JON ALONGI CD EDITOR [email protected]

CONTACT Computer Arts magazine, Future Publishing, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath, BA1 2BW PHONE 01225 442 244 EMAIL [email protected] SUBS 0870 444 8455

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

3

Contents SUBSCRIBE

FULL LIST OF CONTENTS

NEWS

12 State of play 14 New G4 iBooks 16 The Ronin’s Dimensions 22 Guest font showcase

TUTORIALS 24 Photoshop CS 38 Flash MX Pro 2004 64 Illustrator CS 74 After Effects 6

FEATURES

34 Fiona Hewitt profile 44 Cosgrove Hall Films 52 Taking stock 58 Season’s e-greetings 80 Clarissa Tossin profile

SHORTCUTS 50 Cinema 4D CE 56 FreeHand 63 Photoshop 73 Dreamweaver

REVIEWS

83 Full listing 84 combustion 3 88 Studio MX 2004 96 G5 Dual 2GHz

TODAY AND SAVE 40 PE R CENT MAKE A NEW YE RESOLUTION… AR’S NEVER MISS AN OTHER ISSUE –TURN TO PAGE 70

REGULARS

10 Your letters 33 Win one of six copies of the brand new DVD Workshop 2 70 Save 40 per cent on the price you pay in the shops when you subscribe 108 Back issues 116 Exposure 122 Retrospective

ON THE COVER 24 THE CREATIVE SUITE REVEALED

Top illustrator Ray Smith reveals his expert Photoshop CS techniques, guiding you through the process of creating our fantastic cover image

64 ILLUSTRATOR CS

Pixelsurgeon’s Jason Arber shows you the brand new features in Adobe’s vector graphics tool, creating a stunning illustration in the process

38 FLASH MX PROFESSIONAL 2004 Master one of Flash’s most powerful features – Forms-based development

24

83 21 PAGES OF NEW REVIEWS

Tried and tested: brand new version of combustion, Studio MX 2004, Panther, and five of the best widescreen laptops

74 AFTER EFFECTS 6

64

38

AE expert Christopher Kenworthy shares his secrets: create an epic sci-fi scene in Adobe’s compositing tool, just using ordinary footage!

Illustration by Clarissa Tossin Turn to page 80 Have your work featured here – email [email protected]

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS

44

58 44 COSGROVE HALL FILMS

It’s amazing, it’s fantastic! We talk to the creators of Dangermouse about their latest projects – including the new, animated Doctor Who

102 36

102 WIDESCREEN LAPTOPS Five of the latest widescreen laptops from Apple, Fujitsu and Toshiba, put to the test

50 SHORTCUTS

Take a ten-minute tutorial with our Shortcuts – quick techniques on all the major creative apps

50

58 SEASON’S E-GREETINGS

It’s Christmas time, and there’s no need to be afraid of promoting yourself. Here’s how to do it

FULL LIST OF CD CONTENTS

^

ESSENTIAL RESOURCES PC + MAC

MASSIVE CREATIVE RESOURCE

W

e’ve got a bumper CD for you this month! First off, exclusive full Text Anarchy plug-ins for After Effects. Courtesy of our friends at Digital Anarchy, these excellent tools enable you to create outstanding text effects in Adobe’s top motion graphics app. For details, see page 8. We also cram in a plethora of useful resources, from 99 Director Behaviours to 600 Photoshop brushes… Enjoy!

CD91 CONTENTS TEXT ANARCHY (PC + MAC)

We bring you a CD bursting with essential creative materials – from Director Xtras to Photoshop filters

T

his issue, Computer Arts has teamed up with some of the best developers in the business to bring you hundreds of creative resources. Whether you’re into Director, typography or the omnipresent Photoshop, there’s something here for everyone. First up, there’s a huge number of Director Behaviours, Xtras and sample Lingo files. These resources will make your multimedia creations run even more smoothly – we’ve even provided you with a Director movie to create an MP3

player. See the CD interface for contributors. We’ve also included 600 Photoshop brushes from Cybia, great filters from Andrews Plug-ins and 18 free Mac and PC plug-ins from Hydro74. INFO www.mediamacros.com, www.mods.com.au, www.d5games.net, www.cybia.co.uk, www.sapphire-innovations.com, www.hydro74.com

FULL PRODUCT: Three full After Effects and Final Cut Pro plug-ins from the Text Anarchy set. See page 7 for details; page 74 for our AE tutorial

ANDREWS PLUG-INS (PC + MAC) FULL PRODUCT: Add gradient and colour effects with these superb Photoshop- compatible filters

600 CYBIA BRUSHES (PC + MAC) PHOTOSHOP PLUG-IN: Ready-made custom brushes for Photoshop, courtesy of Cybia

Check out Cybia’s 600 customised Photoshop brushes.

IMAGESOURCE

FLASH AND DIRECTOR NEW VIDEO TUTORIALS: Exclusive video training tutorials from Quixel Video and MediaMacros

^

STOCK IMAGERY: A collection of royalty-free imagery, worth over £1000, from ImageSource. See page 7 for details

VIDEO TUTORIALS

VIDEO TRAINING Become an expert in Flash MX 2004 and Director MX with Quixel and MediaMacros’ excellent video tutorials

AFTER EFFECTS 6 (PC + MAC) NEW DEMO: Take Adobe’s fantastic motion graphics tool for a test drive. See page 74

DIRECTOR RESOURCES (PC + MAC) EXCLUSIVE: Check out these fantastic Director resources, ideal for multimedia designers

HYDRO74 TYPEFACES (PC + MAC) This month, 18 free Mac and PC fonts from our friends at Hydro74 (www.hydro74.com)

TUTORIAL FILES You’ll find all the files you need to complete this month’s tutorials on Flash MX 2004 and After Effects 6 in the Software/Tutorials folder on the CD

BOOK CHAPTERS Free sample chapters from the latest Friends of Ed titles: Flash 3D Cheats Most Wanted and Photoshop Most Wanted 2

6 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

T

hese exclusive video tutorials from Quixel and MediaMacros provide valuable insight into two of Macromedia’s most popular creative tools: Flash MX Professional 2004 and Director MX. The subjects covered include Flash MX 2004 components, Behaviours and Timeline Effects, plus an overview of the Flash MX’s new features, and how to use video. Our Director video tutorials concentrate on Director MX’s imaging Lingo ability, showing you the code and techniques required to create a game in Macromedia’s application. INFO www.quixelvideo.com, www.mediamacros.com

Watch and learn: the ideal way to master Flash MX Professional 2004.

On the CD

^

PC & MAC PLUG-INS

DIGITAL ANARCHY PLUG-INS Free on this month’s coverdisc: three full plug-ins from the acclaimed Text Anarchy set for After Effects and Final Cut Pro – worth $59 (£35). Here’s your chance to go text crazy…

The exhilarating Font Changer tool in action – create your own Matrix intros here…

Add whirling and spinning text effects to your video and animations with the help of Text Spiral.

T

THE THREE EFFECTS ARE SCREEN TEXT, FONT CHANGER AND TEXT SPIRAL, AND THEY’LL WORK WITH BOTH AFTER EFFECTS AND FINAL CUT PRO

o accompany After Effects 6 on our coverdisc, leading plug-in maker Digital Anarchy has kindly provided us with three full plug-ins from the Text Anarchy set, for use on both PC and Mac. The three effects are Screen Text, Font Changer and Text Spiral, and they’ll work with both After Effects and Final Cut Pro. Working with text is an important but often overlooked aspect of video editing and compositing, and these three filters provide some original and pro effects to video and animations. First up, Screen Text imitates text scrolling up a screen – Matrix-style, or however you want it. Screen Text can be set to generate random numbers, characters or words, or scroll your own text by setting up a simple text scroll; set down a solid, supply the text either

Experiment with some new ideas for text effects using the excellent Screen Text flyer.

by inputting or importing a .txt file, set the scroll speed, and you’re good to go. Second, Font Changer is an easy-touse plug-in that enables you to create a string of text and then animate the font. You can select up to five different fonts, and set the text string change from one to the other either in order or randomly. Finally, Text Spiral enables you to set up text on a path – we’ve used this plug-in as part of our After Effects tutorial, starting on page 74, so you can see just what it’s capable of. You can set the attributes at either end of the path

to have different values – change the start and end font sizes, colour, and rotation values for fast and interesting animation. Try animating text that trails off into space or flows down a drain, and other pseudo-3D effects, without multiple layers or keyframing. You’ll find these three plug-ins on your disc in the Digital Anarchy folder,

plus demos of the full range of Digital Anarchy products, including Psunami, Aurora and Text Anarchy 2.0 – plus an in-depth tutorial on Text Anarchy by Jim Tierney, head honcho at Digital Anarchy. If you like what you see, why not upgrade to the full version of Text Anarchy 2.0 – details below. INFO www.digitalanarchy.com

UPGRADE TO TEXT ANARCHY 2.0 Save £30 on your upgrade with this exclusive offer! Digital Anarchy is offering Computer Arts readers the chance to upgrade to the full Text Anarchy plug-in set for just $99 (approx £59), instead of the usual $149 (approx £89). Text Anarchy 2.0 is a set of eight filters for After Effects and Final Cut Pro – and includes Cool Text, Type On, Text Matrix and Text Hacker, each of which provides a range of ways to animate text in motion. The filters can use almost any TrueType or PostScript

Type 1 font, including Dingbats. Visit the Digital Anarchy Website to find out more about the full Text Anarchy set, and gain access to sample movies and other free resources. To take advantage of this special offer, exclusive to Computer Arts readers, please use the following coupon code when purchasing Text Anarchy 2.0 via Digital Anarchy’s online store: CA50. Offer ends Thursday 15 January 2004.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

7

^

ESSENTIAL RESOURCES

ROYALTY-FREE IMAGERY £1000-worth of images, courtesy of Image Source – free on this month’s CD! You’ll find these four royalty-free photographs and one more on your coverdisc this month, in the Stock Image Library folder.

O

n your CD this month you’ll find a selection of royaltyfree images for your own commercial or personal use, worth over £1000. These five images are courtesy of stock photography group, Image Source, and they can be used for illustrations, Websites, compositions, video, or just practising with your favourite image editor. Four of the images are pictured here, and can be used creatively as backgrounds and textures, converted to vectors, or used as buttons on a Website. Visit the Image Source Website to see its full photography range and selection of themed CDs. Categories include lifestyle, children, animals and technology, and prices range from £49 for 72dpi to £249 for super hi-res (A3 plus). The company also offers a free image search by its own staff, to save you the effort. INFO www.imagesource.com

8 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Visit the Website www.imagesource.com to see the full range of stock photography, starting at £49.

LETTERS ADOBE FOUR-CITY TOUR I attended the first stop of the Adobe Four-City Tour in Manchester – and was impressed. A lot of ground was covered on the Adobe Creative Suite, including Photoshop, GoLive, Illustrator and InDesign, and if you buy the complete suite, Version Cue is included. It was a good taster of the products, but I came away wanting to learn more, and thinking I will be on a steep learning curve if I want the material I produce to be up to what the market accepts as standard! Don Williams

ADOBE FOUR-CITY TOUR II I was at the Manchester launch and attended the special Photoshop seminar in the evening. There are so many new features to the

HAVE YOU GOT A POINT TO MAKE ABOUT THE MAGAZINE, A CREATIVE PRODUCT, A SHOW OR THE INDUSTRY AT LARGE? EMAIL YOUR THOUGHTS TO THE TEAM AT [email protected], OR JOIN US ONLINE AT FORUM.COMPUTERARTS.CO.UK

Creative Suite, all directed at making life easier. Colour matching, RAW file compatibility and the new Colour Replacement tool – all great additions to Photoshop. The presentation was up to Adobe’s usual standard, but are the benefits worth the price? RD We asked for Adobe Four-City Tour feedback in Artstream, our weekly newsletter, and these are just two of the replies we had. The event toured the UK and Eire, and provided users with a great opportunity to make an upgrade decision and enjoy a free lunch. It was also great for CA to meet up with our subscribers and find many new ones. Hello to everyone we met last month – don’t forget to keep us posted on what you think.

CHOICES Your magazine is great – your Photoshop and 3ds max tutorials have inspired me to bigger and better things, which leads me to my question. Have you ever made a direct comparison between many of the programs, eventually stating which one is the best? I’m starting out as a designer and want to know the best program for each sector. I have Photoshop and was looking into Illustrator, InDesign and the rest of the Creative Suite. For Web design, I’m looking at buying Studio MX 2004 – is this the best? Also, I’m using 3ds max 4.2 – is it worth upgrading to v6, and is getting plasma a good idea as a tool for Web design? William Acen We can help you get to grips with new programs, but take it one step at a time – think of your wallet… Learning creative software isn‘t instant and it’s best to develop an understanding of your aims, what each product is capable of, and how best to create the material. We’re gradually building up our Website archives to include hundreds of product reviews from past issues which should help you out – see www.computerarts.co.uk If you’re already looking at the Creative Suite, you might want to consider GoLive, the Adobe Web authoring application. This compares to Macromedia Dreamweaver, which also integrates with Flash, the industry-standard Web package. To make an

★ LETTER OF THE MONTH CREATIVE SUITE INSTALLATION I thought I’d give Computer Arts readers some advice that I think they should be aware of if they’re going to buy Adobe Creative Suite. I had previous versions of all the products in the package, but reading the licence agreement for the Creative Suite, it appears that you cannot separate the software components – so, for example, I use Photoshop on a machine that I use for video-editing, while I use Acrobat and InDesign on another machine that I use for DTP – but not any more, because the licence forbids it. I’d sold all the previous versions of the products, except for Photoshop, which is required for qualification of the upgrade, but the ‘full’ products I was expecting are not quite as full as I thought, and can only be installed

10 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

on the same machine. Considering that the product overview page says, “Adobe Creative Suite Premium Edition includes: Photoshop CS, Illustrator CS, GoLive CS, Acrobat 6 Professional and Version Cue,” and considering that all of these packages are available unbundled, as full individual applications, I find it very misleading when they list them as being included, as if they are individual licences, when they then say that “it’s a suite, and they are meant to be installed together.” If this is the case, why do they sell Creative Suite components separately? I’m a little disappointed, because I’d sold my previous versions, except for Photoshop, and now find that I’m not allowed to split these components across two machines. Are you aware

of this limitation? I hope you can shed some light on the situation… Jason Sheldon The Creative Suite represents a massive saving for people who want two or more of the included products. We’ve talked to Adobe about this, and it seems that a new licence was launched with the Creative Suite which enables the user to install the Suite on two machines, but only one of these should be in use at the same time. Nick Peart from Adobe says, “You can choose not to install all of the components of the Suite in order to save disk space on the machine you’re installing it on. If you want to have different products on different machines, you should buy point products.” So there you have it.

informed decision, you need to download the demos of these products, try them out, read our tutorials and reviews and work out what’s best for your workflow. Deciding on your ideal 3D product is even less clearcut. Price is usually a deciding factor – you can pay anything between £65 and £4000. Computer Arts covers some of these desktop 3D packages, but our sister magazine 3D World (www.3dworldmag.com) devotes all its pages to 3D apps and can provide you with excellent info on what each product is capable of.

LOVELY COVER I’ve just received November and December Issues for Computer Arts. While I’m only an occasional reader of the magazine, I must congratulate you on your exquisite choice of cover art for the November issue. It’s gorgeous and certainly the best magazine cover I’ve seen for ages. What makes it even better is the lack of price and bar code. Or maybe I’ve missed something here? Whatever the reason, it’s fantastic. Also enjoyed the articles on Büro Destruct and Airside. Stuart Ledger Thanks for the praise. The issues you’re looking at are special subscriber issues – stripped of cover furniture and words. To find out more, turn to page 70. ■

WRITE IN AND WIN! Letter of the month wins a Contech Photoshop Logickeyboard, worth £75 Each issue, the writer of our star letter receives a Photoshop logickeyboard from Contech. Worth £75, the keyboard features colour-coded keys that enable you to edit in Photoshop like a pro. The keyboard helps you to work efficiently in Adobe’s app, providing handy tool references and keyboard shortcuts – you’ll never forget a key command again. Contech also offers

upgrade keycap sets to transform your Mac Pro keyboard into a fully fledged Photoshop tool. The company currently offers keyboards for Adobe Premiere and Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, Avid XPress DV, Pinnacle Edition and more. Mac and PC boards are available – you choose. For more info, go to www.contech.co.uk, [email protected], or call 01438 315 757.

NEXT MONTH COMPUTER ARTS 92 FREE MX 2004 MAGAZINE* Macromedia Masterclass MX 2004 magazine – the first in our series of four, free with issues 92-95 of Computer Arts. We talk to leading Web designers and show you how to get the most from Studio MX 2004 *This supplement is only available to UK and subscribers. To ensure you don’t miss out on any future supplements, call +44 (0)870 4448 455 or visit www.computerarts.co.uk today

SUBLIMINAL ASSOCIATES IN PROFILE This small studio has come a long way, from James’ album covers to highly memorable Channel 4 idents. We talk to them about small teams, big ideas and even bigger projects

PHOTOSHOP BLENDING MODES Get to grips with Blending modes, using this in-depth guide to what each one does and how it can bring new effects to your workflow

DREAMWEAVER TYPOGRAPHY Make the most of Cascading Style Sheets and you’ll find that Dreamweaver has as much typographic functionality as InDesign

GROUP TEST: AFFORDABLE DV CAMERAS We put five leading mid-range DV cameras, perfectly suited to Web and multimedia projects, put to the test

REVIEWED SOON Adobe Creative Suite 3ds max 6 Carrara Studio 3 Adobe Encore DVD

MotionBuilder 5 SketchUp 3 EditStudio 4 DAZ|Studio

New digital cameras from Canon and Sony New Wacom tablets 17-inch PowerBook G4

New Iomega hard drives Radeon 9800 Pro Mac Edition

ON SALE 18 DECEMBER All contents correct at time of going to press

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

11

NEWS

SEND ALL NEWS, COMMENTS AND LINKS TO MARK PENFOLD AT [email protected]

NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

G4 IBOOK Apple reveals

reconfigured iBook range p14

ANIMATION The Ronin’s work debuts on Channel 4 p16

Nexus Production’s recent work for Goldfrapp. Chris O’Reilly attributes the industry growth to a competitive climate.

STATE OF PLAY INDUSTRY Top design houses claim confidence is returning, albeit slowly OPINION Fold7’s Simon Packer gets controversial p18

ANIMEX 2004 Animation festival hits the UK p20

WEEKLY UPDATES

www.computerarts.co.uk

12 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

T

he design industry may have been through some tough times of late, but confidence is returning – and with it bigger budgets. Professional Web designer by day and Pixelsurgeon.com pioneer by night, Jason Arber, speaks from experience: “The news of redundancies stopped at some point and we started hearing of people getting new jobs. On the odd occasion, pay rises have even been dished out…” Such cautious optimism has also been matched by a surge in creativity. Chris O’Reilly of award-winning Nexus Productions

comments: “The digital creative industry is relentlessly competitive, but this is raising the standards and with it the profile of the industry as a whole.”

AT THE SHARP END “We’ve taken on two extra designers recently, so that’s some indication of

The Designers Republic’s recent work for Hutchison 3G. According to the Sheffield design giants, mobile technology is where it’s at.

how things are going for us,” adds Dan Moore of Nottingham’s Studio Output, another company upbeat about the future. Attik’s Gary Horton agrees: “It was looking shaky for a while, but it’s picked up in recent months and the future’s definitely looking brighter.” Which is great news for studios, agencies, freelancers and, of course, the thousands of design students who graduated this summer. “UK clients have been very conservative and safe in what they’re looking for, though,” comments Airside’s Nat Hunter. “I don’t know if that’s a symptom of the war or just economics.” However, the Japanese

News

TDR ORANGE ADS ADVERTISING Orange builds brand cool

M

other, the grandee of advertising cool, has called upon the styling capabilities of The Designers Republic to produce something special for the latest Orange mobile phone campaign. True to form, the work has a cool ease about it which fits the Orange image perfectly. According to the designers, the ads aim to “promote a unified message, greater than the sum of its parts.” As such, this work forms part of a longterm creative strategy to enhance the credibility of the telecoms company. The Design Republic wanted its images not only to get across the simple statistics of the campaign, but also to build on the idea that “Orange is still the coolest, most in touch, credible option for its target audience.” Centring on patterned renderings of the numbers ‘60’ and ‘6’, the ads are being used at street level and point of sale to reinforce the fashionable image already cultivated by Orange. This is echoed by The Designers Republic itself: “By commissioning currently popular designers, Mother is attempting to suggest, by association, that Orange is a cool company and that its products are the cool option.” The Orange commission adds further kudos to an already impressive resumé for tDR. Previous clients include Bambino Casino, Gatecrasher, Powergen, Supergrass, Supernoodles, Swatch, Moshi Moshi Sushi and Warp Records. INFO www.orange.co.uk, www.thedesignersrepublic.com

market appears to be bucking that trend. “Creatively-speaking,” says Hunter, “Sony has given us totally free rein. Our Dot Com Refugees concept was taken on wholesale by them.” Nick Bax of The Designers Republic highlighted another area of interest: “Content for the latest generation of mobile phones has really started to take off,” he enthuses. “Companies, particularly in the music business, are finally starting to see the potential of this format.”

BACK TO BASICS But one particular shift in style has been noted by many, including Nick Hayes of design outfit Identikal. “There’s a definite back-to-basics movement,” he says. “It’s not just about the machines any more. People are using their hands and a pencil instead of the mouse.” These sentiments are echoed by Gary Horton: “There’s a real trend towards handdrawn work at the moment. Lots of designers and illustrators are getting back to basics and even big clients are using this type of work.” Sketching isn’t the only revolution. “There’s also a lot of fashion-influenced imagery out there, which is more

feminine and organic,” explains Dan Moore. Names currently influencing this style include Vault49, Laurent Fétis and Evaq. Conversely, according to Jason Arber, the Internet has been going in quite the opposite direction. “Web interfaces have been very clean and simple lately; even design-orientated sites are just one step away from corporate really.” This appears to stem from the inherently global culture of the Web and the usability movement – anyone from any country should be able to access your Website armed with just a mouse and Babel Fish. So evidence suggests that the UK design industry is finally emerging from the doldrums and returning to form, albeit slowly. The rate of improvement varies from studio to studio, but there is a consensus that 2004 could see a marked improvement in the range and quantity of work available. This is indeed promising news for freelancers and studios, on both a local, national and international level, providing the overall economic picture remains stable. INFO www.attik.com, www.identikal.com, www.studio-output.com, www.pixelsurgeon.com, www.airside.co.uk, www.nexuslondon.com, www.thedesignersrepublic.com

The latest releases, updates and software news EASY FLASH SITES FAICO’s A4Desk v3.15 is a Windows package geared towards helping non-technical PC users build their own interactive Flash Websites. A4Desk provides a diverse range of template pages, which you can then customise at will. A free trial is currently available for download; the full package costs £30. www.a4desk.com DIGIMATION 3D USA COLLECTION Digimation has released a series of 48 highly detailed 3D terrain models of the continental United States, based on TruEarthT 1km satellite imagery. Elevation-coloured and greyscaleshaded relief maps are included for use as textures. The full collection costs around £2350. www.digimation.com INDESIGN UPSWING According to top training firm Corps Business, students are demanding more training courses for InDesign than its arch rival Quark XPress. Traditionally the underdog, InDesign is proving so popular that Corps has already begun retraining its staff in a bid to satisfy students’ needs. www.corps.co.uk CREO TOKENS FILE TRANSFER Canadian software giant Creo recently launched a clever emailbased file-sharing package called Tokens. Users send a small ‘token’ to the intended recipient that then enables them to download files as if across a peer-to-peer network. The basic package starts at £30. www.creo.com/tokens

Attik’s portfolio is expanding faster than before. Here’s its recent work for Scion.

Studio Output’s designs for Black History Week. The studio has been hiring more designers to handle an increasing workload.

SHEERVIDEO PRO V1.2 BitJazz has just released the very latest version of its powerful, nondestructive software video codec. According to BitJazz, SheerVideo doubles both the capacity and speed of storage and transmission devices while encoding and decoding on the fly with perfect fidelity. Currently OS X only, SheerVideo Pro costs $149 (around £89). www.bitjazz.com LINOTYPE SITE The Linotype font library has radically reconfigured its Website to help customers buy and select fonts more easily. Of particular interest is the much-improved searching facility, the ‘Font Explorer’, which enables you to specify font attributes via a Flash interface, then search through a range of suitable types. www.linotype.com

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

13

Stay abreast of the latest art-enhancing technology PANTHER FIREWIRE ALERT Installations of Apple’s latest operating system have thrown up a problem relating to external FireWire drives. It seems that following installation of OS 10.3, connected FireWire 800 external drives have been unrecognised or blanked. Until patches become available, backing up is recommended. www.apple.com FINEPIX F420 ZOOM This new Finepix is the smallest camera so far to incorporate the trademark Fujifilm Super CCD. It can capture 30fps video and provides a 3x optical zoom lens. No price as yet, but the device will be available in the UK from February 2004. www.fujifilm.co.uk RT.X PREMIERE PRO DRIVERS Matrox has announced driver certification for Adobe Premiere Pro on its RT.X100 and RT.X10 hardware video boards. In addition, Matrox is offering a series of upgrade bundles to current Pinnacle users. Drivers are now available for download from the Matrox Website. www.matrox.com/video EPSON PHOTO PRINTER Epson America has unveiled its latest advance in desktop photo printing. The R800 features Epson’s eightcartridge UltraChrome Hi-Gloss pigment inks for archival prints on matte and glossy media, making it suitable as an archival printing machine. It should ship in February 2004 and cost $399 (£236). www.epson.com GAMEBOXX Boxx Technologies, well known for its 3D graphics workstations, has introduced a crossover product aimed at bringing workstation performance to ‘extreme’ gamers. GameBOXX FX machines are built around the AMD Athlon 64 FX-51 processor, while the GameBOXX EX is powered by the newest Intel Pentium 4 processors. Prices start at £2000. www.boxxtech.com GOLDEN SAMPLE Gainward’s 1800 XP ‘Golden Sample’ uses water-cooling to run the GeForce FX 5950 almost 100MHz faster than standard. 256MB of 1GHz DDR RAM means it can shift more than 360 million vertices per second. It should set you back around £615. www.gainward.com

14 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

G4 IBOOK REVAMPED LAPTOP Apple gives its top-flight iBooks a serious make-over

2

003 was the ‘year of the notebook’, according to Apple, and to round off a year of exciting releases, it’s just unveiled an updated range of three new G4 iBooks. This surprise announcement puts Apple in a very strong position within the laptop market, and leaves pundits speculating eagerly on the arrival of a G5 notebook sometime in 2004. The newly configured iBook range, on sale now, starts off with the £850 12-inch model, running at 800MHz, and scales up to a full 1GHz 14-inch notebook for just under £1200. News that every model boasts a 32MB ATI mobility graphics chip, plus 256MB of DDR RAM as standard, will certainly please graphics specialists and gamers alike. The new laptops will also be the first Apple product to ship with the latest version of its Mac OS, Panther. Version 10.3 boasts around 150 breakthrough enhancements – most importantly, an entirely new finder system called Exposé, which offers rapid window control, and FileVault, 128-bit encryption for your home directory. (Turn to page 94 for a full review.) But it’s not just the hardware that’s been tinkered with. Apple has also forged a sleek new visual identity for its latest iBooks. They

now weigh as little as 2.2kg, and boast a battery life of up to six hours, making them perfect for designing on the move (and catching the odd DVD flick or two). Not only do these machines look good, they’re supremely portable, too. INFO www.apple.com/uk

EIZO RELEASES 20-INCH LCD MONITOR Eizo’s software-driven LCD comes with a five-year guarantee

E

izo has released a new 20-inch LCD with an array of handy extras. The L885, with its £1056 price-tag, has native 1600x1200 resolution, wide-angle viewing and good contrast ratios. What makes it exceptional is its fiveyear warranty, 10-bit gamma correction and independent six-colour picture control. Of particular interest is the L885’s ability to emulate the colour behaviour of individual CRT displays and other LCD panels using the bundled software Screen Manager

Pro. This enables you to adjust screen settings without having to rely on built-in buttons, even for the independent six-colour picture control. Hue and saturation can be adjusted individually for each primary and each secondary colour. Since adjustments are done individually, changes to one colour should not affect the others. Head to the Eizo Website for the full specs. INFO www.eizo.co.uk

The hottest sites and services on the Web… ECSTATIC www.iamecstatic.com An understated site for Ecstatic, the ultra-successful New York design agency founded by Garland Lyn and Ting Ting Lee. You can view much of its outstanding work here – look out in particular for the Stussy mural and Superb artwork. LOMO www.lomography.com The Lomo camera was a product of Soviet Russia’s desire to democratise photography. Today, there’s still an army of people around the world taking images from the hip with these sturdy machines, then posting them to this huge archive. A community feel and spectacular images make this site well worth a visit. PAN CHAN www.panism.com Art director, designer and photographer Pan Chan displays some of his best work here. A wide range of photographic subjects, text experiments and motion graphics come together to make a Website that is both strangely fascinating and very intimate. Pay a visit and you’ll see what we mean. KERRY ROPER www.youarebeautiful.co.uk Kerry Roper’s portfolio is truly diverse: at one extreme he mixes crunched-up type with distressed images to give a grungy, overexposed feel; at the other, he creates crisp photographic work for clients like Thorntons. The highlight of the site, though, has to be his stunning typographic work. SICK GRAFFITI www.sickboy.uk.com Sickboy’s graffiti is complex and lyrical. A lot closer to art than vandalism, it must have taken forever to complete some of these pieces. Collected here are some of his best works, alongside interiors and other bits and bobs. The site is beautifully fashioned by Bristol’s ClearDesign. EVAQ www.evaq.com Evaq’s work is uniformly cool without being pretentious. His lines are always spot on and his imagery carefully chosen to unnerve on every level. Motion graphics is another area in which this New York designer is making his mark, and to great effect. This is design, art and motion at its best.

WANT YOUR NEW SITE FEATURED? Send the link to [email protected] with the subject header ‘Websites’.

16 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

THE RONIN ON TV TV Rob Chiu’s Dimensions debuts on Channel 4

C

omputer Arts contributor Rob Chiu’s latest work, entitled Dimensions, has been broadcast on C4 as part of a short series of animations dealing with the experiences of mental illness. The three-minute short by Chiu, founder of multimedia outfit The Ronin, details the experiences of a recovering schizophrenic called Chas, and is the first piece of work by the animator to be broadcast on national television. Chiu approached the project with sensitivity: “I try to put emotion into my work,” he explains. “I want people to come away feeling different.” Shot

entirely on DV, the film was edited in Final Cut Pro at The Ronin’s Huddersfield studio. The project took just four weeks to complete from storyboard to final edit, and was fashioned and composited using After Effects and Photoshop. Long-time Ronin collaborator Diagram, of US Suburban Chaos fame, created the audio effects. To aid workflow, Chiu relied on MSN Messenger and Apple’s iDisk facility – a virtual ‘hard drive’ accessible via the Web – to speedily transfer edits between The Ronin, Diagram and APT Films, the film’s producers. INFO www.theronin.co.uk

ALIAS 3DECEMBER EVENT Acclaimed 3D show returns to London for 2003

A POINTLESS PROGRESS SUBJECT Simon Packer, Creative Director of Fold7, gets controversial about upgrades. Have versions ‘peaked’? Do we need so much functionality, or are many upgrades simply ‘this season’s software’?

As more and more updates, version changes and operating systems are thrown at us, is it becoming a given that we need that next upgrade to stay on top our game? Is the game where we actually think it is, or should we give it some time, think about it – and see how everybody plays? When Fold7 started eight years ago, there were just two of us sharing a 7100 – a new PowerPC running new, faster native applications. Desktop machines were just becoming a viable option for high-end retouching, and Fold7 offered high-end image creation at a fraction of the cost of a dedicated system such as a Quantel box. As the work increased, so did the need for speed – like everyone else, we hungrily awaited every update that delivered faster workflow or performance for the Mac. Recently, though, something odd happened. I upgraded from OS 9 to X and performance slowed. The same thing happened when we upgraded from Illustrator 8 to 10. For the first time in eight years, we actually considered not upgrading, and even considered downgrading to revisit the snappy performance of apps and systems past. While I understand the need for OS X, for me the transition has been a disappointing one. Strangely, my designers want G4s with OS 9, running older apps. The guys in the studio are good, they want to learn, change and evolve their work, and how they produce it. But seeing the wood for the trees can be difficult, and much current new software does a good job at hiding that wood. A classic example is QuarkXPress 6. In our opinion, you’d do better to learn InDesign than upgrade XPress. V6 has no backward file compatibility to version 4, which the world still wisely uses, so half my studio now can’t exchange Quark files. Creating good graphic design is all about ideas and how those ideas are applied, not about the app that created it. Using software for us is about using a trusted tool that’s lasted for years and never lets you down. Software has become so versatile that the new functions of each update seem more about marketing and selling a new version than helping the end user. For me, most software has already peaked. It does all I need it to do and quicker than most of us can think. Thought and experience are what make great design, and when we forget to think, question or push ourselves, we’re letting our design work down. So slow down, think about it and don’t worry about upgrading if you can’t see good reason to. Time is precious. INFO Find more out about Fold7 at www.fold7.com

18 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

fter enjoying massive success in 2002 with its 3December event, Alias is all set to do the same again this year. Set in London, the event-packed Alias animation day gives 3D professionals and enthusiasts alike the chance to hear from the leading lights of the industry, examine the very latest technology, and network in a ‘3D pub’… The day is scheduled to kick off with a series of Maya Masterclasses, before moving on to ‘The Bridge’, where hardware and software developers wait for the crowds and the 3D pub beckons. There will be industry speakers, such as Moving Picture Company’s Lars Johansson and Alias’ own technical experts on flagship products Maya and StudioTools. This year, Alias is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and joining the party will be sponsors HP, Intel and NVIDIA, all of whom will be showing their latest 3D breakthroughs.

Last year’s 3December event proved very popular register early to avoid disappointment.

Registration is free via the Alias Website, where you’ll also find a full list of speakers and seminars. Registration closes on 2 December, though, so be quick. ■ INFO www.alias.com/events

LEARNING CURVE

WHETHER YOU’RE INTERESTED IN ILLUSTRATION, 3D, WEB DESIGN OR VIDEO, YOU’LL FIND A COURSE HERE TO SUIT CLEAR THINKING Southampton Training for Maxon, Adobe, Discreet and Macromedia graphics applications from Clear Thinking’s secluded Hampshire base. Maxon Cinema 4D 15-16 December, £735 Macromedia Director 4-5 December, £735 www.goclearthinking.co.uk CORPS BUSINESS Corps runs courses covering most of the creative digital disciplines including Web, video, 3D and illustration. Most major applications are covered from-well equipped studios. Advanced ActionScript for Applications 17-19 December, £760 Photoshop Advanced 5 December, £265 www.corps.co.uk MERIDIAN Henley-on-Thames, Kidlington, Basingstoke Meridian runs a range of courses covering graphics and Internet technologies, alongside more technical subjects such as C++ and XML. Bespoke classes can be arranged.

Fireworks MX Introduction 5 December, £580 Illustrator 10 Advanced 5 December, £465 www.meridiantraining.com PARITY TRAINING Leeds Parity runs courses in almost every IT discipline, including creative design. Class sizes are limited and every student is guaranteed his or her own machine. Illustrator 10 2 February 2004, £700 Design Techniques with Flash MX 26 January 2004, £700 www.paritytraining.co.uk SYMBIOSIS Leamington Spa Symbiosis runs courses in Macromedia, Adobe and Media 100 graphics applications from its studios in Leamington Spa. Classes limited to six can be run on Mac or PC. Illustrator Advanced 4 December, £410 Dreamweaver MX 1-3 December, £1050 www.symbiosis.com

LIGHTWAVE 8

ANIMEX 2004 EVENT

2004 kicks off with five-day UK animation festival

B

etween 26-30 January, Middlesborough will be inundated with animation workshops, seminars and screenings as Animex 2004 gets underway. The roster of events will even extend into the town’s pubs, clubs and cinemas, giving visitors of all ages the chance to explore animation across a range of venues. Teesside University’s annual five-day animation extravaganza continues to grow in size. This year, it includes the International Student Animation Competition and a day dedicated to the art of computer gaming. Alongside a range of international animation work, the festival will also screen all of Pixar’s big-screen animations. One of the most popular aspects of the festival is the chance to watch and learn from some of animation’s leading lights. Past guests have included Ray Harryhausen, the pioneer behind the special effects in Jason And The Argonauts; Phil Tippett, Oscar-winning animator on the original Star Wars films; and Jason Schleifer, lead animator for The Lord Of The Rings films, Already confirmed for this year are The Moving

Picture Company’s Ben Shepherd and worldrespected ‘3D guru’ Ed Harriss. More than 350 hopefuls have entered the festival’s student awards, which will be judged during the event. The awards ceremony takes place on 30 January. INFO www.animex.org.uk

Animex 2004 will show every one of Pixar’s groundbreaking animations, including Finding Nemo.

UK PREVIEW Be one of the first

to see NewTek’s app in action On Tuesday 9 December, NewTek and Computers Unlimited are running a special preview event for the forthcoming release of LightWave 3D 8. Attendees of the half-day show, held at Computers Unlimited’s offices in London, will not just see the next generation of NewTek’s Emmy Award-winning app put through its paces, but also receive a 10 per cent discount on any subsequent LightWave order. LightWave is a firm favourite with Mac and PC users alike, and a strong player in the highly competitive 3D effects industry. Major improvements to this latest, muchanticipated iteration include hard body dynamics, faster forward and inverse kinematics, improved modelling workflow, and a rack of new texturing tools. To register, email [email protected] with the following details: your name, address, contact telephone number, payment details, the number of tickets required, and whether you’d prefer a morning or afternoon session. Tickets cost £20 each. INFO www.newtek.com, www.unlimited.com

Be one of the first to see LightWave 8 in action – apply for preview tickets today.

A CALENDAR OF ESSENTIAL RELEASES, EVENTS (AND WISHFUL THINKING) FOR DIGITAL CREATIVES

DECEMBER The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King The final instalment of Peter Jackson’s CG-filled Tolkien adaptation hits cinemas on 17 December Computer Arts 92 On sale 16 December Final Cut Pro 4.5 Apple’s NLE now optimised for the G5 Halo 2 Xbox sequel arrives on 20 December – in time for X(box)mas Computer Arts Projects 53 On sale 9 December

20 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

JANUARY 2004

Apple Announces mid-range imageediting application and office suite? Computer Arts 93 On sale 22 January ATI and NVIDIA Both ship new pro workstation graphics cards Nikon or Olympus? Which company will follow Canon’s EOS 300D lead with its own affordable SLR digital camera? Photoshop Elements 3 Adobe reveals latest Elements iteration, with tools borrowed from Photoshop CS

FEBRUARY 2004

The Haunted Mansion Disney’s Eddie Murphy flick should hit UK cinemas on 13 February combustion 3 Discreet finally ships its premier app for the Mac FreeHand MX 2005 Will Macromedia update its much-loved illustrating tool? Computer Arts 94 On sale 19 February CorelDRAW Corel ships a new version incorporating Kai’s Vector Tools

MARCH 2004

Computer Arts 95 On sale 18 March Softimage|XSI Major update? Cinema 4D R9 Maxon announces version 9 of its acclaimed 3D tool Maya 6 Should be here by now. Or at least version 5.5… Computer Arts Projects 56 On sale from 4 March DVD Studio Pro 2.5 Apple’s .5 upgrade 19-inch widescreen laptops Due to hit the shelves now

GUEST FONT SHOWCASE

Nick Hayes, the designer of this month’s guest font, Emporio, reveals the thinking behind Identikal’s fifth collection typeface

Identikal’s Emporio typeface is based on the type masonry and text structures of the Roman Empire. “This ancient civilisation always amazed us,” explains Nick Hayes, “so we took a ten-day trip to get a closer look at Rome and its history. We were in such awe of the city that we simply had to create something inspired by it… “We began by taking photos of ancient texts and Roman buildings. Then, when we got back,

22 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

we began compiling a sketchbook of Roman type structures. This led us on to evolving ‘style trends’ in Roman alphabet forms – and fusing them with our own letter construction style.” Hayes and his team are delighted with the results: “We’re very pleased that we produced a font that is completely different from our 'usual' ; it’s a great addition to our Type collection.” INFO www.identikal.com

ILLUSTRATION BY RAY SMITH

www.raysmith.bz

24

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Tutorial

CREATE OUR COVER

photoshop Cs

Be a fly on the wall of illustrator Ray Smith’s studio, as we follow him through the creation of this month’s cover – all using the brand new version of Photoshop Regular readers of Computer Arts will recognise Ray Smith’s name from issue 85, when he produced our stunning cover image. This time round, we’ve persuaded him to show us how he produces his illustrations, taking us through the making of our Christmas issue cover – all using the new release, Adobe Photoshop CS. If you missed issue 85, think back to Channel 4’s Faking It series – Smith generated the ad campaign with an array of illustrations. His other clients include the BBC, The Times, The Observer, TIME magazine, Wall Street Journal and Nissan. Now he’s turned his hand to an in-depth tutorial, looking at colour, contrast and detail; at perfecting composition, faces and figures; and using textures and reference materials. Smith’s sources for this illustration include photos taken on a train, a picture of bees, a Victorian stencil and some nanotechnology diagrams… Whether you’ve just installed Photoshop CS or you simply want to see what it can do, you’ll find the program’s functionality broken down into 32 steps from page 28. Before you get started, though, turn the page for our Photoshop CS interface guide. INFO You can contact Ray Smith by emailing [email protected], and see his portfolio online at www.raysmith.bz

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

25

photoshop Cs explored

Before you get stuck into our cover tutorial, check out the new Photoshop CS interface in all its glory 6

5 11 12

2

7 8

IMAGEREADY CS Photoshop’s Web partner gets a host of new features – here’s a selection of the best 3 LAYERS TO FILES You can now optimise and export separate layers to individual files (just like in Photoshop CS), and ImageReady now produces cleaner HTML code.

2 SMART GUIDES One of the handiest additions to ImageReady CS is Smart Guides. These, just like in Illustrator, give you visual references to precisely position elements. Great for constructing navigation devices.

4 INTERFACE The new ImageReady interface contains a new group of palettes – Slice, Table and Image Map. These give you easy and quick access to common Web editing functions.

3 WELCOME SCREEN

The only addition to the main Photoshop toolbox in this latest iteration is the Colour Replacement Brush, found in the same tool flyout as the Healing Brush and Patch tool. This tool enables you to selectively replace colours in your image using brushes, and options in the Tool Options bar help you to define edges with great accuracy.

A feature becoming common in almost all professional design applications (and borrowed from consumer tools) is the ‘welcome screen’. Photoshop CS’ incarnation of this points you to tutorials, tips and tricks, and gives you an overview of what’s new in the app.

The new Layer Comps palette, docked by default in the palette well, enables you to quickly create and jump between iterations of your image by turning layers on and off in the Layers palette.

3

26 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

1 THE TOOLBOX

2 LAYER COMPS

2

1

4

9

1

1 EXPORT TO FLASH Much to everyone’s surprise, ImageReady now enables you to export directly to the Flash SWF file format. The export preserves vectors and dynamic text, as well as embedded fonts. You can also export each ImageReady layer to its own SWF file.

10

4

4 HISTOGRAM The Histogram palette, found under the Window>Histogram menu, generates a live histogram and enables you to see the changes you make as you work.

Reviews

5 MATCH COLOUR

9 PHOTO FILTER

The Match Colour feature, under the Image>Adjustments menu, enables you to match the colour scheme of one image to another, helping you to achieve consistency between shots taken at different times of the day.

The Photo Filter tool isn’t actually a filter, more an image-adjustment tool. Residing in the Image>Adjustments menu, it replicates the effect of a traditional photographic lens filter. Again, digital photographers will find this feature particularly useful.

6 FILTER GALLERY The Filter menu has been updated in Photoshop CS and now features a Filter Gallery in which you can apply filters on top of one another using a layer-esque stacking dialog. You can rearrange the order as you see fit, and the live preview updates accordingly.

10 FILE BROWSER The heavily tweaked File Browser is now more of an all-out imagemanagement tool. New features include the ability to customise thumbnail sizes, add searchable keywords and perform batch operations from the File Browser.

7 PIXEL ASPECT RATIO 11 CROP AND One for DV artists and DVD authors, the STRAIGHTEN Pixel Aspect ratio correction tool under the Image menu enables you to view non-square pixel documents as they’d appear on an external video monitor. In addition, you can now preview titlesafe areas in Photoshop – handy for creating DVD menus and so on.

Found in the File>Automate menu, the Crop and Straighten tool is great for those often scanning in more than one image at a time. It automatically detects the edges of your image and places them in individual documents.

Photoshop CS’ keyboard shortcuts are now completely user-definable. But, if you want to stick with the default, here’s the essential key commands. Remember, if you’re on a PC, use Ctrl instead of Cmd, and Alt instead of Opt COMMANDS AND DIALOGS Free Transform Cmd+T Transform Again Shift+Cmd+T Levels Cmd+L Auto Levels Shift+Cmd+L Auto Contrast Opt+Shift+Cmd+L Auto Color Shift+Cmd+B Curves Cmd+M Color Balance Cmd+B Hue/Saturation Cmd+U Desaturate Shift+Cmd+U Invert Cmd+I New Layer Shift+Cmd+N New Layer via Copy Cmd+J New Layer via Cut Shift+Cmd+J Last Filter Cmd+F Extract Opt+Cmd+X Liquify Shift+Cmd+X Pattern Maker Opt+Shift+Cmd+X Proof Colours Cmd+Y Gamut Warning Shift+Cmd+Y Zoom In Cmd++ Zoom Out Cmd+Fit on Screen Cmd+0 Actual Pixels Opt+Cmd+0 Rulers Cmd+R Snap Shift+Cmd+R Lock Guides Opt+Cmd+; TOOLS Rectangular Marquee Tool M Elliptical Marquee Tool M Move Tool V Lasso Tool L Polygonal Lasso Tool L Magnetic Lasso Tool L Magic Wand Tool W Crop Tool C Slice Tool K Slice Select Tool K Healing Brush Tool J Patch Tool J Color Replacement Tool J Brush Tool B Pencil Tool B Clone Stamp Tool S Pattern Stamp Tool S History Brush Tool Y

Art History Brush Eraser Tool Background Eraser Tool Magic Eraser Tool Gradient Tool Paint Bucket Tool Blur Tool Sharpen Tool Smudge Tool Dodge Tool Burn Tool Sponge Tool Path Selection Tool Direct Selection Tool Horizontal Type Tool Vertical Type Tool Horizontal Type Mask Tool Vertical Type Mask Tool Pen Tool Freeform Pen Tool Rectangle Tool Rounded Rectangle Tool Ellipse Tool Polygon Tool Line Tool Custom Shape Tool Notes Tool Audio Annotation Tool Eyedropper Tool Color Sampler Tool Measure Tool Hand Tool Zoom Tool Default Foreground/Background Colors Switch Foreground/Background Colors Toggle Standard/Quick Mask Modes Toggle Screen Modes Toggle Preserve Transparency Decrease Brush Size Increase Brush Size Decrease Brush Hardness Increase Brush Hardness Previous Brush Next Brush First Brush Last Brush

Y E E E G G R R R O O O A A T T T T P P U U U U U U N N I I I H Z D X Q F / [ ] { } , . < >

ILLUSTRATOR CS

8 SHADOW/HIGHLIGHT Found under the Image>Adjustments menu, the new Shadow/Highlight tool enables you to quickly correct under or overexposed images.

ESSENTIAL SHORTCUTS

12 PHOTOMERGE Photomerge is Photoshop’s new tool for creating panoramic images. Found in the Automate menu, it features a simple and easy-to-see dialog that enables you to stitch images together.

We give you the essential tool keyboard shortcuts for Photoshop’s vector friend. Like Photoshop, all the shortcuts are editable Selection V Direct Selection A Magic Wand Y Lasso Q Pen P Add Anchor Point = Delete Anchor Point Convert Anchor Point Shift+C Type Line Segment

T \

Rectangle Ellipse Paintbrush Pencil Rotate Reflect Scale Warp Free Transform Symbol Sprayer Column Graph

M L B N R O S Shift+R E Shift+S J

Mesh U Gradient G Eyedropper I Paint Bucket K Slice Shift+K Scissors C Hand H Zoom Z Toggle Fill/Stroke X Swap Fill/Stroke Shift+X

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

27

^

PART 1 THE FIGURE Using a photo as the basis of the illo, set up a grid, base colours and basic facial features to construct the face

INSIGHT COPYRIGHT

The bees are based loosely on a photograph found in a really old natural history book. These sort of books are great, as the alternative is catching a bee and making it pose for you! A good stock of reference material is essential for any illustrator, but should always be used carefully, paying attention to copyright – if in doubt, go to www.dacs.co.uk.

3

The original photograph is a bit dark, so use curves to perk it up a bit; they’re really useful in situations like this. By carefully adjusting your work (Image> Adjustments> Curves), you can lighten photographs without bleaching them out completely.

1

Set up your canvas in Photoshop CS via the File menu, making sure the resolution is set at 300dpi RGB. Mark the boundaries of your canvas with guides. It’s useful to then increase you canvas size and use the guides to set up a white frame on a new layer. Divide a canvas into thirds using the guides; you can use this basic grid to judge the size a figure should be within a format. This tutorial starts with reference shot, which will be the basis of the main figure in the image.

6 4

Once the reference is usable, create a new layer and fill the path you’ve just made (using the Path palette) to give a basic flesh tone. This colour may change along the way, but it gives you a base colour to work with for the moment.

Use the same method to construct the rest of the face. Creating a different layer for every component means you can easily add or take away an element if needed. The most important tool here is the opacity adjustment in the Layers menu. It’s worth spending some time experimenting with the intensity of each layer to get the desired combination. You are basically building the face in shadow and midtones, using grey and the Multiply filter to blend.

2

First off, eliminate the background to isolate the model. Making a path using the Pen tool will give you an accurate tracing. This can be time-consuming but it’s worth it, because this layer will be used to inform the rest of the work you do on the figure. You can then make the path a selection using the Paths palette and make a separate layer (Layer Via Copy). By choosing Copy rather than Cut, your original reference shot is left untouched. You will need to refer back to this layer as you construct the figure.

5 ^

INSIGHT CHARITY SHOPS

“I’ve found that the more I collect, the more varied my work becomes,” says Ray Smith. “Inspiration can be gained from a variety of sources, and the fun comes from combining very different influences within one image. I’m glad to say that years trawling through charity shops do begin to pay off eventually.” This charity shop obsession is echoed by Fiona Hewitt in her profile on page 34 – there’s obviously something to be said for it when it comes to illustration…

28 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Having established your base colour, start incorporating basic features on the face. Have your reference either showing or as a top layer you can easily turn on and off. At such an early stage, this original reference is essential. A fairly small brush size is a good idea – you need a high degree of accuracy in your drawing. Working in a dark grey for these main shadows gives you a strong starting point on which to build, and applying the Multiply filter to the layer will blend the line with the base colour.

7

Use a pure white for highlights, and again adjust intensity with the master opacity adjustment in the Layer palette. Around 10 per cent is sufficient.

Tutorial

8

Now you can add further facial details, adjusting opacity along the way. At this stage, you can generally be a little looser in your brushwork – this will help add movement to the face.

9

Use a pink/red, adding warm areas to the mouth, ears and nose. A fairly large brush size is a good idea here. Accuracy is not important; you just need to lay down the main areas of colour. You’ll find the Colourburn filter is useful to blend the brighter tones with the base flesh tone. The colour will be too intense at 100 per cent, so again adjust the opacity until the areas sit nicely on the face.

10

To create a base colour on which to grow some hair, you’ll need to return to your reference shot. From this layer, use the Magic Wand to select the basic shape of the model’s hair.

14

Although the figure will be wearing a hooded top in the final illustration, still block in the main bulk of his T-shirt (as part of it is still seen). The shape will be useful as a guide when creating said top. On the layer containing the original reference, use the Magic Wand to select the T-shirt and fill the selection with the Brush tool on a new layer.

12

On a separate layer, fill the selection with the Brush tool or Paint Bucket. Now fill in the remaining section of hair in the same way. The light source in the reference is above the model, so use a lighter brown. It’s not important that this is overly neat; this is just a foundation to use when you add more hair and want to exaggerate/alter the style.

15

The hooded top is made using various shades of the green shown above. Keeping a certain degree of freeness here can contrast nicely with other, tighter areas within the figure. Use a large brush to block in the main areas on the hooded top – add details such as stripes, strings and pockets in much that same way, but with a smaller brush. You may need to use your original reference as a guide here, particularly with regards to light.

13

On a separate layer, use a small brush to draw the rest of the hair with pretty random brushwork. To create depth, use various opacity settings within the Brush menu. You might find it easier to create this sort of brushwork slightly larger than you need it to be. Making random marks is easier on a larger scale – you get a better idea of what you’re doing and it can be physically easier when using a mouse. You can then simply reduce the hair to fit the head when you’re done. Use multiple layers when creating the hair to create a little depth.

^

Still using grey and white at various opacities, you can now build up the remaining features. Feel free to add details such as freckles. Use bold brush work to illustrate large, light areas on the face.

11

INSIGHT DYNAMIC BRUSHES

You can use the Brushes palette to great effect when creating such elements as hair. Use the Shape and Color Dynamics settings (located down the right-hand side of the Brushes palette) to add jitter and so on to your brush strokes for an appropriately erratic, hair-like effect.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

29

^

PART 2 THE DETAILS Creating texture and contrast, adding the cone structures, flowers and bees

17 16

You can add the finer detail of the stitching using Illustrator. However, before leaving Photoshop, use the Pen tool to create a path following the hooded top’s pocket. You can then export this to Illustrator (File>Export>Paths To Illustrator). Within Illustrator, set the path at 2pt in the Stroke palette. You can now check the Dashed Line option and set it at 4pt. Saved within Illustrator, import the stroked path back into Photoshop via File>place. As the file is based on your original Photoshop path, it should just lay itself over that path on its own layer. Using Illustrator CS, it creates a copy of your original Photoshop path, so you get to keep the path as a separate file, which is useful.

Creating a variety of textures in your figure is essential. The hooded top has a fairly soft feel to it, which can be contrasted in other areas. The figure’s jeans are a good example. Select the layer containing the original reference photograph and, using the Rectangular Marquee tool, isolate the model’s jeans. Create a new layer via CopyCreate Layer Via Copy. Desaturate this layer using Image>Adjustments>Desaturate. Apply maximum brightness and contrast (Image>Adjust>Brightness and Contrast) to the layer. Select a suitable blue, using the Colorise option to add colour. Select Image>Adjustment> Hue and Saturation, then check the Colorise box. Experiment with the sliders until you get the desired intensity. Venture too high on the brightness control, though, and you could lose the nice texture you’ve just created, so be prudent. Use the original path to create a selection (Path palette) and delete the unwanted areas outside the figure’s boundary.

19

The pattern on the figure’s hooded top is based on a Victorian stencil. Combining various patterns and textures can add richness to your images. Using the Magic Wand, select the pattern and then, on a new layer, stroke the selection. The stroke thickness is up to you, and using Photoshop CS you can now stroke higher than the previous limit of 16 pixels. We created the lettering in much the same way, using a font as a source.

20

Flat colour is often all that’s needed here. The figure holds a lot of detail, as will the rest of the image, so it’s a good idea to offset this with a simple background. However, you can create a dynamic within the image using diagonal strips of colour.

^

INSIGHT THE RIGHT PATH

Paths are by far the most accurate and flexible way to draw within Photoshop, as Ray Smith explains: “I often use paths to isolate figure from backgrounds, because you can be sure you are starting with a cut-out that’s as accurate as possible. Using this as a strong foundation, I can then incorporate free brush work and pattern into my illustration. Because they’re vectorbased, paths are pretty versatile – with obvious applications in Illustrator. The Creative Suite has made their use across applications easier still.”

30 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

18

Keep the detail on the rest of the body to a minimum to focus the viewer’s attention on the figure’s face. Use the same combination of grey brushstrokes and the Multiply filter as on the face to add detail to the arms. By using the original path as a selection, you can make sure that your brushwork remains inside the boundaries of the figure.

21

Now to contrast the image’s natural and ornate elements with rougher, graphic elements – like these tower blocks and a crane. The scene is built from two photos taken on a train. The originals were pretty blurred on account of motion and a mucky train window. However, by desaturating the original photographs and applying maximum brightness and contrast (Image>Adjust>Brightness and Contrast), you get a nice gritty effect.

Tutorial

22

By applying dark grey to areas of the image using a large brush and fairly random brush strokes, you begin to add more depth to the image. Linear or Color Burn filters give a deep, rich effect. Use the master opacity to lighten these areas if they become too dark. Horizontal lines can also be added to help the sense of perspective.

25

The flowers are constructed from the existing cone structures in the background. In a separate file, arrange the cone structures in a cross formation on one layer. You can then duplicate and transform this layer in size by 70 per cent (Edit>Transform>Scale).

26

Now you need to rotate the resulting formation (Edit>Transform). Note that by simultaneously holding down the Shift key, the rotation occurs in 15-degree increments. Confirm the transformation after one 15-degree turn. You can complete the flowers by repeating the process. In theory, you could go on forever, but the flowers here consist of five rotated duplicates.

28

The bees are based on a photograph from an ancient natural history book. It’s often a good idea to slightly blur any scanned images, because the print methods used can cause trouble when applying contrast. You can do this in the Filters menu (Filter>Blur>Gaussian Blur). Zoom right in on the preview; the idea is to blur just enough to get rid of the dots that make up the printed image.

29

Using the Pen tool, draw the outline of half of the bee using the original as a simple guide, then turn the resulting path into a selection using the Path palette. Right-clicking the selection, you can now make a new layer (Via Copy).

30

Duplicate this layer (right-click the layer and select Duplicate Layer), then flip the result horizontally (Edit>Transform>Flip Horizontal) and join the halves. In the Layers menu, link the two layers and merge (Layers>Merge Linked) to create a single layer.

31

Use brightness and contrast to reduce the bee to its most graphic form. Then, using the Magic Wand with the Contiguous box ticked, select the bee. You can now easily delete the Victorian pattern from unwanted areas. Add colour and pattern on separate layers; it’s sensible to use guides for symmetrical creations like this, so you can place features centrally.

23

To create these cone structures – they’re actually based on some nanotechnology diagrams – use paths. To create the rainbows, use the Stroke feature (Edit>Stroke) on several circular selections. Keep your options open using different layers for each colour.

27

Drag and drop the flower formation into the main document. Duplicate the layer and size each flower. Use the Colorise option within Hue and Saturation to give each flower a different colour (Image>Adjustments>Hue and Saturation).

FINAL STEP

B

efore flattening the image, delete the white frame. Now flatten the image, use the Rectangular Marquee and crop your guides (Image>Crop). You can now convert your image to CMYK.

24

To add a little more excitement to the background’s flat colour, bring in contrasting patterns and textures. The cloud formations here are traced from Japanese decorative patterns, scanned and imported into the main document by dragging and dropping. You can add colour to the clouds using the Colorise option within Hue and Saturation. Use the blue featured in the main image as a basis for this, but leave some clouds greyscale. As the drawings are being used as background elements, use them at low opacities so they don’t dominate. Control this via the Layers palette. Use the same process for the blue swirl placed in the top-left of the image; this was also sourced from Japanese decorative art.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

31

THE IN-DEPTH GUIDE FOR DIGITAL CREATIVES

ON SALE

TUES 9 R BE M E C E D 2003

CREATIVE SUITE

• See it in action, in depth • A comprehensive 45-page step-by-step guide exploring all the new features in all four CS applications

Learn how to: • Use the new tools in Photoshop CS and Illustrator CS • Output for print and interactive PDF using InDesign CS • Integrate your workflow, from design to layout to Web • Incorporate alternative ideas right into your files as layers

Plus: • Top designers reveal how CS will transform their work • Why one major publisher is switching from QuarkXPress

ON SALE TUES 9 DECEMBER 2003

Competition

PRIZES WORTH £1800!

WIN DVD WORKSHOP 2.0

Get your hands on one of six copies of the brand new DVD authoring tool, worth £300, for absolutely nothing!

T

his month’s competition is your chance to be one of the first in the world to get your hands on version 2 of Ulead’s excellent DVD Workshop. Due to be launched in January 2004, the tool offers a full gamut of professional DVD authoring features. DVD Workshop 2 enables you to have eight multiple audio and 32 subtitle tracks – for creating DVDs with different languages, music tracks, commentaries, programming and other functionality. Enhanced audio features include the ability to define user-controllable menu and audio track volume, as well as new Dolby digital support. The tool enables you to capture footage directly from your DV camera using the built-in MPEG-Direct capturing technology, and works with all DVD and CD formats. The program also has a user-focused interface, giving you precise control over each aspect of the DVD creation process. New interface features include the ability to preview motion menus and chapter thumbnails without rendering, and a host of customisable templates and effects will help you get started right away. To be in with a chance of winning this superb tool, and having it shipped to you as soon as it’s released, answer the simple question below and enter at either www.computerarts.co.uk/competitions or by dropping us a postcard at the usual address.

INFO For more on DVD Workshop 2 and Ulead’s other products, check out www.ulead.com

QUESTION WHAT IS THE NAME OF DVD WORKSHOP 2’S BUILT-IN CAPTURING TECHNOLOGY? TO ENTER Try the easy way, via our Website. 1) Put the Computer Arts CD into your CD drive. 2) On the Contents screen, click Compo. 3) Enter DVD Workshop as the competition name, fill in the rest of the form, then click Submit Entry. If you don’t have Web access, you can still enter by sending us your answer on a postcard to: DVD Workshop competition, Computer Arts, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath, BA1 2BW. Please include your address and a telephone number so we can contact you if you win.

THE RULES The closing date is 5 January 2004. Employees of Ulead and Future Publishing, their agents and families are not permitted to enter. Multiple entries are not accepted. The editor’s decision is final and there are no cash alternatives. No other correspondence will be entered into. If you are entering by post and do not wish any of the companies involved in this competition to contact you with further offers, please indicate this on your entry. We will not pass your details on to third parties. ■

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

33

NAME Fiona Hewitt PHONE 07811 205 238 EMAIL [email protected] WEBSITE www.fionahewitt.com

We talk to Fiona Hewitt about lambs and ladies, American illustration and high-heeled wellington boots…

34 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Profile

1

2

4

F

iona Hewitt lives high on the outskirts of Bath, in a house full of matchboxes, Russian architectural books, old stamps and labels; 1950s adverts, Japanese wood-block prints and high-heeled wellies (more about them later) – all manner of visually interesting ephemera that she collects from around the world. “If you walk through my house you see all the objects that I’ve brought to life,” she says. “The pattern from this teapot – the beautiful colours from this oriental illustration.” By ‘brought to life’, Hewitt is referring to the hours she spends at her G4 working in Illustrator, a program she started using after her degree in Drawing and Painting at Edinburgh College of Art. She graduated in 1990, then went to live in Hong Kong, working as a freelance illustrator, trying to find the right style and medium for her art. By 2000 she was back in the UK, graduating from the Royal College of Art with an MA

3

5

in Illustration, describing her two years at the RCA as “total indulgence – of Letraset, type, clean lines and characters.” Hewitt’s CV is impressive. She has produced illustrations for all the broadsheets, from The Times to The Observer; book covers and posters; clothing ad campaigns for Nike; a corporate Christmas card for Passion Pictures, animated by Siri Melchior; an animated promo for Lambchop, created with Shynola, who recently produced Blur’s Good Song video. This is just the start of the list. But what’s more impressive is the personal work that feeds these projects – and vice versa.

VISUAL OBSESSIONS Hewitt’s commercial work funds periods when, in her words, she’ll “be a recluse”, indulging in a visual obsession of the moment, developing sketchbooks

OPPOSITE PAGE: This is one of Hewitt’s most recent illustrations. It appeared in The Observer (OM magazine) on 26 October, accompanying an article about the current craze for self-help books. 1 & 2. These two images are part of an on-going project for US company BlueQ. Fiona Hewitt was commissioned to create the packaging for a new range of BlueQ cosmetics – here, you can see the artwork for the body wash (left) and the soap (right). 3. Regular readers of The Observer will recognise this image from Neil Spencer’s weekly horoscope page – one of Fiona Hewitt’s regular illustration jobs. 4. This is Hewitt’s self-promotional mousemat, sent out as a gift pack. As with a lot of her work, the style is reminiscent of retro packaging. 5. Commissioned for a spread in an OXO novelty cookbook, Hewitt was asked to create this 1950s diner-style image for Rank Publishing.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

35

This space-age illustration was commissioned to accompany a feature on space tourism in Newsweek magazine.

This exhibition poster shows the branding theme that runs through a lot of Hewitt’s artwork, with characters marketing brands like ‘cherry mud’.

of characters and figures. “You have to play, to create exotic detail – it really feeds the commercial work.” In a way, her portfolio is one long storybook, with hares and foxes, moustached men in silver suits, bears that look like traditional wooden toys – all of whom pop up in various intricate environments. Her work isn’t repetitive: it’s an evolving world that she’s working on all the time, creating more characters and rooms. Each illustration is a snapshot into that world. In this sense, while Hewitt does work to briefs it’s not in the traditional way – her briefs are more like chapters in a story. Take an illustration that appeared in The Observer on 26 October (see our opening image on page 34), accompanying a feature about the rise of self-help publishing. “The bear is working an anguish-extracting machine here,” she explains. “Extracting people’s fears.” The bear and silversuited men have stepped out to illustrate a point – it’s another phase of their travels. “I love building figures and characters,” she says. “Tinkering with them, drawing them well, so they’re not just vector pieces of colour.” Hewitt works from sketches – there’s no scanner in this process. She draws the pattern from the teapot or the Russian building, perfects it in her sketchbook, then sits at her Mac and looks from the sketch to her screen, drawing from eye in Illustrator 8 with a mouse. “The process I use is similar to what you’d achieve with an airbrush – that smoothness of contour and form. But that would take forever! My all-time greatest tool is Gradient Mesh. This is what enables me to draw a moped so it looks like it’s been taken into a shop and resprayed. You can really build up form. The characters and objects look almost 3D, because I set them against flat backgrounds and colours that lift them – the contrast works.”

AMERICAN ILLUSTRATION For Hewitt, good illustration is about imagination, whatever the medium. “The best illustration is happening in the States. They exhibit so regularly –

Welcome To the Dog and Bone Club – one of Hewitt’s self-promotional pieces.

Hewitt was commissioned to produce this birthday card for Redwood publishing.

36 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

the attitude is totally different to Britain. There’s a bigger market for the craziest of visions, more individualism. In the States you’re treated as an artist, rather than ‘just an illustrator’.” She’s a bit tired of vector fashion illustration: “I’m not so keen on work in which people haven’t stepped out to explore something that inspires them. With anyone who’s really good at something, whatever their field, you usually see that they’ve honed in on something obsessively – they’ve gone against the grain.” Her influences fit this description, such as Chris Ware – the US artist known best for his comic-book Jimmy Corrigan. Ware’s ironic drawings, in his words, “portray the grimness of human ambition.” Next up is Mark Ryden (www.markryden.com), a Californian painter with a cult following, currently exhibiting his ‘Miniature Paintings of Sorrow and Fear’ in NY. Hewitt also talks emphatically about US illustrator Gary Taxali (www.garytaxali.com), the brilliant Paula Rego, anything Japanese, the American Illustration Annual, and beer labels. Her own work is in popular demand. Right now she’s working with US manufacturer BlueQ, designing packaging artwork for a new range of cosmetics. Then there are new characters in the making – a lamb for an upcoming Lenor ad (expect to see him on a TV screen or billboard soon), and some ladies… These ladies have attitude – they’re mouthy and buxom, and they’ll be wearing her current obsession: high-heeled wellies. As we leave Hewitt’s house she turns to make her way upstairs, where she plans to put Moloko on the stereo and continue sketching the pair of high-heeled wellies she picked up in Oxfam. “They really should be all the rage,” she says. The three images below are work in progress from this project – an early sketch and two Illustrator drawings, showing the Gradient Mesh on the character’s leg. Expect to see the finished thing being strutted around a Fiona Hewitt illustration in 2004. INFO Words by Rachel Elliott

“WITH ANYONE WHO’S REALLY GOOD AT SOMETHING, WHATEVER THEIR FIELD, YOU USUALLY SEE THAT THEY’VE HONED IN ON SOMETHING OBSESSIVELY”

These three images are work in progress, and part of Fiona Hewitt’s current ‘High-heeled Welly Project’. Left to right: a wellywearing lady from Hewitt’s sketchbook, then two Illustrator images showing a close-up of the Gradient Mesh on the model’s leg.

Tutorial

NEW RELEASE

FLASH MX 2004 PROFESSIONAL One of Flash MX 2004 Pro’s most powerful new features is Forms-based Development. We take a look at an example that will start you on the road to powerful Flash applications Flash MX 2004 Pro has a new feature that will have traditional developers salivating, and it’s called Formsbased Development (also known as Screens-based Development). This new offering will also prove valuable to those of you who have never set foot into the wild world of traditional development… So what is it? Simply put, it will enable you to structure complex applications in Flash without using multiple frames or layers on the main timeline. Instead of basing your applications on traditional timelines, you’ll be able to visually lay out your application as a series of screens. But don’t worry – you’ll still have the choice to use the timeline or a mix of forms and timelines if you want to.

ILLUSTRATION BY TADO www.tado.co.uk

If you’re already comfortable with using the timeline in Flash, why learn another method? Well, this is more intuitive, it will help you clear away unnecessary code, and enable you to jump between frames more easily. Many traditional designers are finding themselves drawn into Web development, and the new features in Flash MX Pro will make this switch easier than ever. In this tutorial, we show you how to create a simple Website that displays two different T-shirts for customers to browse. Please note that we use the term ‘Screen’ interchangeably with ‘Form’.

ON THE CD Look on our coverdisc for the Tutorial\Flash folder, where you’ll find everything you need to complete this Flash MX Pro tutorial.

INFO Tutorial by Ryan Carson, co-founder of the Creative Fight Club known as BD4D (www.bd4d.com). Contact him on 07976 734 702 or [email protected]

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

39

^

INSIGHT INVISIBLE BUTTONS IN FLASH MX 2004

PART 1 SETTING UP YOUR SCREENS

Create a 100x100 square. Click on the square, then Modify>Convert to Symbol. Name it ‘btnInvisible’ and click Button. In your library, double-click on the new btnInvisible symbol and drag the keyframe to the Hit state, leaving the Up, Over and Down states blank.

We’ll start by setting up our Forms-based Application

3

Click Window>Timeline, then on form1, then click Layer 1 and place siteHome.gif. This will be the first form the user views. Add an invisible button on each shirt – see the insight above for how to do this.

1

As soon as you launch Flash MX Pro 2004, you’ll be faced with plenty of choices. We’re going to create a Flash Form Application, so choose the Flash Form Application option under Create New.

7 4

Right-click on the application form and click Insert Screen. A new form (‘form2’) appears as a child to ‘application’. This form will be used to view a close-up of the red shirt when the user clicks on it.

Next, set up the final form by adding the ‘siteGreyShirt.gif’ to Layer 1 on the form3 form. Again, you’ll be needing an invisible button on top of the graphic, to enable the user to navigate between forms. Before we add behaviours to the invisible buttons, we need to make form2 and form3 invisible when the app starts.

2

Start by creating the basic backdrop for the Website – a very simple GIF that is placed on the ‘application’ form on the first layer. Because this is the parent form to the others, its graphics appear as the background of its child forms.

^

INSIGHT UNUSED ITEMS

Though not new, one of the most useful features of Flash is the Select Unused Items in the Library panel dropdown menu. Clicking this will highlight all unused items in your library; deleting this will make your SWF nice and lean. Warning! Make sure to create a back-up of the FLA before doing this, as the deletion is not reversible.

5

As in step 3, add the graphic siteRedShirt.gif to Layer 1 on the form2 form. Make sure to include the invisible button over the graphic – this will be used to let the user return to the homepage.

Click on the application form and expand the timeline window. Add a new layer called ‘actions’. On this layer, add the following code which will hide form2 and 3 when the app starts: if ((_root.application.form2 != undefined) && (_root.application.form2 != null)) { _root.application.form2.setVisible(false); } if ((_root.application.form3 != undefined) && (_root.application.form3 != null)) { _root.application.form3.setVisible(false); }

6

As in step 4, right-click on the application form and click Insert Screen. A new form (‘form3’) appears as a child to ‘application’. This is used to view a close-up of the grey shirt when the user clicks on it.

40 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

8

This code is on your CD as a Text file in the Tutorial\Flash folder (in its own ‘Step 8 code’ folder), so you can simply cut and paste it into Flash.

^

PART 2 NAVIGATING BETWEEN SCREENS How to use Form behaviours

Tutorial

INSIGHT PINNING SCRIPTS

Ever wished you could keep multiple sections of code on the clipboard? Flash MX Pro 2004 enables you to do just that by using ‘Pin Script’. In the Actions panel, go to the frame that has the code you want to copy. In the Action panel’s dropdown menu, click Pin Script or hit Ctr+=. You can pin as many scripts as you like.

15

We’ve told form2 to hide itself; now form1 needs to be told to show itself. Select the invisible button on form2. In the Behaviours panel, click +>Screen>Show Screen. Choose form1 and OK.

9

Click on form1, then on the button over the red T-shirt. Now open up the Behaviour panel. This is a new addition to the Flash MX 2004 suite. Click +>Screen>Show Screen.

12

Now let’s test our movie. Hit Ctrl+Enter (Command+Enter for Macs). Make sure that when you click the red shirt, the larger view of the red shirt appears and the two smaller shirts disappear.

16

One last detail to be checked in the Show and Hide behaviours: the order of execution. Make sure the Hide behaviour is above the Show behaviour. To change the order, select one and move it with the arrow button in the Behaviours panel.

PART 3 SCREEN TRANSITIONS Ready-made transitions between Flash Screens

10

In the window that pops up, navigate to form2, keep Absolute checked and hit OK. Flash has now written the ActionScript needed to take us to form2 when that button is clicked.

13

To view the code that Flash is writing for us, click on form1 and then the invisible button over the red shirt. Hit F9 to bring up the code for that button. As you can see, there was quite a bit of code to knock out, so one of the advantages to using Forms-based Development with Flash behaviours, is that it’ll save you time.

17

Flash MX Pro 2004 has another interesting capability: ready-made transitions between Screens. As with any pre-packaged animations, there is big potential for cheesiness, but if used carefully these will be useful, and will also save you time.

11

Now that we’ve set up the behaviour to show form2, we need to add a behaviour to hide form1 (our current form). Click on the invisible button over the red shirt again. In the Behaviours panel, click the +>Screen>Hide Screen. Choose form1 and hit OK. Make sure Absolute is ticked.

14

Now we’ll add the behaviours on form2 that will take us back to form1. Click form2 and then select the large invisible button. In the Behaviours panel, click +>Screen>Hide Screen. Choose form2 and hit OK. Make sure Absolute is ticked.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

41

^

INSIGHT WHAT’S IN A NAME?

One of the best ways to guard against overwriting valuable work, whilst also allowing you to backtrack, is Configuration Management. It’s really just a fancy word for saving your FLA as a new name each day you work on it. Start with flashFileV001.fla, then flashFileV002.fla and so on. Once your directory starts filling with old versions, create a versions Backup directory and put the old versions there.

18

We’ll now add a transition that will fade in form2 when it is shown and fade out form2 when it is hidden. Click form2 and then +>Screen> Transition. You’ll notice that we simply attached this behaviour to form2, instead of a button.

21

Again, you’ll see the Transitions window pop-up. Select Fade in the list and Out for the direction. Choose a Duration (we used 1 second) and None for Easing. Now click OK.

19

Now you’ll see the Transitions window pop-up. Select Fade in the list and In for the direction. Choose a Duration (we used 1 second) and None for Easing. Note the handy preview on the bottom left. Finally, click OK.

22

The default value for Transition behaviours is ‘reveal’. Since we want this to happen when form2 is hidden, we need to change the event to ‘Hide’. In the Behaviours panel, select the event dropdown in the fade-out Transition behaviour and select Hide.

24

Now let’s add the behaviour to form1 to make the grey T-shirt button go to form3. Click on form1 and then on the invisible button over the grey T-shirt. As in steps 9 and 10, add a Hide Screen behaviour to the button, choosing form1.

20

If you look at the Behaviours panel, you’ll see a Transition behaviour attached to a ‘reveal’ event, making our fade-in transition play when form2 is shown. We’ll add a fade-out Behaviour when the form is hidden. Click form2, and +>Screen>Transition.

^

INSIGHT FLASH MX DEVELOPER CENTRE

There is an abundance of tutorials and samples to be found at the Development Centre (www.macromedia.com/devnet/mx/flash). Everything from ‘Building a Tip of the Day Application: Working with Web Services’ to ‘Building a Streaming Video Presentation with Flash MX 2004 Media Components.’

25

To complete the navigation to form3 from form1, add a Show Screen behaviour to the button, choosing form3 in the Select Screen pop-up window (You create the Hide Screen behaviour first.)

23

Now test your movie to make sure that the new fade-in and fade-out transitions are working. We could’ve done all of these transitions with traditional timeline tweens and masks, but using behaviours is much simpler.

26

While we’re on form1, let’s add transitions when it is being hidden or shown. The process is the same as 18 and 19 in this section. This time, however, let’s choose Wipe for the Transition Style, and Top Left for the Start Location.

42 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Tutorial

Create streamline movies that load external elements

INSIGHT MACROMEDIA ON DEMAND

Macromedia has launched an online training resource that’s free for Macromedia Account holders. If you don’t have a Macromedia Account, it’s free to register. On Demand seminars range from ‘Flash MX 2004 Family: Using Behaviours’ to ‘Using Dreamweaver Templates within Contribute’. All seminars have video and audio. Head to the Website www.macromedia.com/macromedia/events/ online/ondemand/index.html.

27

Now for the transition when form1 is being hidden. For an interesting effect, let’s choose Wipe again, Bottom Right for the Start Location, and Out for Direction. After you’ve added the transition, don’t forget to change the Event to Hide. Repeat steps 26 and 27 for form3.

30

28

31

Click on the invisible button over the large grey T-shirt on form3. In the Behaviours panel, click + >Screen>Hide Screen. Choose form3 and hit OK. Make sure Absolute is ticked.

^

PART 4 FINISHING UP

It’s important to choose the names of your forms wisely when you create them. If you decide to change the name after you have created behaviours that apply to that form, they won’t work.

To record the file’s history, click the ‘application’ form, go to Window>Timeline and add a new layer. Call it ‘fileHistory’. Open up the Actions panel (F9) and add your comments.

FINAL STEP

W

e’re done. From here, you could continue to add more forms to extend the functionality of your Forms-based Application. Carry on exploring Flash MX 2004 Pro’s new Form-based features – you’ll find that there’s plenty on offer in terms of functionality.

29

The final navigation behaviour we’ll assign is to show form1. In the Behaviours panel, click +>Screen>Show Screen. Choose form1 and hit OK. Make sure Absolute is ticked. Now you can navigate between all three forms in our application.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

43

44 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Profile

COsgROVe COsgrOVe hALL FILMs hALL FILMS Cosgrove Hall has seen the animation industry undergo a revolution. We head to Manchester to talk about the transition from Dangermouse to an online series of Doctor Who ‘Webisodes’

F

or an entire generation brought up on the exploits of Dangermouse, the theatrics of Count Duckula, or perhaps on Chorlton and the Wheelies or Jamie and the Magic Torch, one name is synonymous with British animation, and that’s Cosgrove Hall Films. Founded in 1976 by Brian Cosgrove and Mark Hall, the studio has sold series to over 100 countries and still resides in Chorlton, South Manchester, in a modern 25,000-square foot studio housing the three elements of Cosgrove Hall’s output: 2D drawn animation, stop motion, and the recently opened digital division. Walking around the buildings, spying such familiar work as the new series of Postman Pat, you’ll also come across the Hullabaloo studios, which combine the latest digital recording technology and traditional radio skills to complete complex audio post-production. And it isn’t all that surprising that the studio has been dipping its toe into Internet waters, most notably with an animated revival of that BBC sci-fi classic, Doctor Who.

ONLINE ANIMATION The recent Doctor Who project is the second time the animation studio has ventured into online animation – it rides on the success of the spooky BBCi/Cosgrove co-production, Ghosts of Albion. Set in London 1838, Ghosts was BBCi’s third attempt at a Webcast drama; it was written by Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Amber Benson and Christopher Golden, and starred such cult names as Anthony Daniels and Leslie Philips. This fittingly gothic tale of demon hunters and spectres demanded an

The animated Doctor Who meets his new travelling companion in Cosgrove Hall’s epic online venture.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

45

IN DEVELopMENT

Wobbly Horse is a blend of model and CG animation, aimed at pre-school kids.

1

atmospheric look and feel; understandably, the Beeb headed straight for Cosgrove Hall. “The entire thing started when the BBC sent us some of the kit parts from one of its earlier Cyberman Webcasts in late 2002,” explains Jon Doyle, Senior Producer at Cosgrove Hall. “We looked at these images and said right away that we could give them proper lip-sync and acting, whereas before all they had was moving stills.” The results of these early texts – created in Flash – are impressive enough, let alone the

2

Maher’s presence at the recording, where he offered suggestions for making the animation easier. But the biggest challenge occurred back in the animation studio, where the team had to work with the constraints of streaming media. According to Maher, it was vital that they didn’t produce another series or flat, lifeless illustrations. “I approached the project as if it were an online graphic novel. We want to have movement in there, to bring the characters to life. Of course, there are restrictions, of time as

THE BBC SENT US SOME OF THE KIT PARTS FROM ONE OF ITS EARLIER CYBERMAN WEBCASTS IN LATE 2002… WE LOOKED AT THESE IMAGES AND SAID RIGHT AWAY THAT WE COULD GIVE THEM PROPER LIP-SYNC AND ACTING… BEFORE, ALL THEY HAD WAS MOVING STILLS

3 1, 2 and 3. Blog, a proposed CG animation series aimed at pre-school children, is currently in development with Granada. 4 (opposite page). The Oddsons – a virtual football-loving family created for the official Manchester United Website.

the ghosts of albion Things that go bump in the night… This spooky BBCi Webcast was Cosgrove Hall’s first foray into animation for an online audience. The project proved such a hit, it helped pave the way for the company’s Doctor Who project.

46 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

material that was eventually produced for Ghosts. Steve Maher, Director of Animation, was placed in charge of the project – his distinct style was ideal for such spooky goings-on in Victorian London. “Ghosts was a new way of working for us,” says Maher. “The guys at BBCi recorded it as a radio play, which we then used as a basis for the animation. It’s an unusual way of working. We certainly work to a dialogue track normally, but we add all the sound and music later. Here, they were on the soundtrack from the start.” The departure from Cosgrove Hall’s usual methods was at least controlled in part by

well as technology. We had to work out a new way of telling the story, because there are things you just can’t do in this format from a directorial perspective - camera moves, zooms, the stuff everyone knows from movies. “Most importantly, you have to restrict the number of elements you use in each episode, or people will spend three weeks downloading a three-minute show. In broadcast, you can do anything you want – including as many elements as the story demands, but with this I was suddenly left asking, ‘How do I do this?’” To get the job done, Maher broke down the process into key stages. First and foremost

Profile

4

came the Blueprint, an in-depth animatic – in effect, an animated storyboard. But no rough sketch; the animatic was extremely detailed, solving editing problems before the proper animation began. Scene cuts and movements were worked out to the nearest second. As Maher succinctly puts it, “You don’t animate anything you don’t need.” Meanwhile, artists designed characters in Photoshop, creating and storing libraries of expressions, body movements and gestures, ready to be dropped into the sequences. As Cosgrove Hall’s Animation Director Mike Whaite explains, this isn’t that different from how Cosgrove brought Chorlton and Dangermouse to life some 20 years earlier. “When Cosgrove Hall first started, it was all simple stuff, with shows like Jamie and the Magic Torch reusing the same shots over and over again due to limitations in the technology, time and cost. The same things come to the fore as we move into Webcasts, with new challenges forcing us to push the boundaries.” Once the animatic and libraries were complete, Maher’s small team of animators began to work on the lip-sync, body work and background before Maher picked up the reins again to complete special effects and lighting. On 27 March this year, just four months after Cosgrove Hall received the first kit parts from the BBC, the first episode of Ghosts of Albion

was released on the BBCi site. The uncanny series soon picked up a healthy following, and plans area already afoot to return to its dark world of phantasms and ghouls. While the studio works on illustrations for a soon-to-be released ebook to keep the ghosts alive, hopes are high that another animated feature will appear. The trouble, as with all projects of this nature, is the cold reality of the bottom line. “It’s easier to raise a budget for a known property like Doctor Who,” admits Maher, “than it is for something like Ghosts. You have to build an audience first. Hopefully, it will continue.”

ENTER THE DOCTOR Which brings us back to that oh-so-famous time traveller. As soon as Ghosts was underway, Jon Doyle, a self-confessed fan, began badgering the BBC to make an animated Doctor Who series. Even Mike Whaite, by no means a tank-top-wearing sci-fi geek, could see the attraction. “It just seems right to bring Cosgrove Hall and Doctor Who together,” he enthuses. “They are both so British.” Whaite’s wish came true in June of this year, when Richard E. Grant stepped behind the microphone to record Scream of the Shalka by Casualty scriptwriter Paul Cornell, alongside Sir Derek Jacobi as the villainous Master. “Doctor Who was recorded in a similar way to a radio play,” says Maher, “but I took more of

he’s AmAZing, he’s fAntAstiC 3D or not 3D? That is the question Earlier this year, news broke that Cosgrove Hall was working on a computer-animated 3D movie based on the eye-patch-wearing secret agent of the rodent world, Dangermouse. Unfortunately, the story turned out to be only half-true. While a 3D rendering of DM was produced, there are no plans to launch him into a new dimension, although the animated model can be spotted on an upcoming remix of the theme tune by US rapper Red Rat. “We see Dangermouse as a 2D drawn character,” says Mike Whaite, dashing the hopes of DM fans everywhere. “It’s inevitable that we’d try him as a 3D character.” While the studio admits that current technology enables it to produce movies at a fraction of the cost of traditional animation, there’s the added problem that the character was sold to Freemantle Media years ago. However, the tease is still there. Whaite and Doyle look at each other before adding: “Of course, if he were to come back, and if we did want to make a movie, we wouldn’t tell you about it anyway, would we?”

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

47

IN DEVELopMENT

Thunder Pilots – CG designs for another hush-hush project at Cosgrove HQ.

The short film Blink shows just where Cosgrove Hall is heading in terms of its animation techniques. The main characters were shot on glass, using stop-frame animation, then added to vibrant CG backgrounds to brilliant effect.

a role at the recordings and the subsequent edit. My biggest input was saying that there were things they didn’t have to describe in the script, because the audience will see them on screen. On radio, you’d have to say, ‘Ooh look, there’s a monster with green eyes wearing a hat,’ but here we’re going to show it, so there’s no need to say it. I don’t actually think this would work as purely an audio play, because WE WANT TO MAKE THE SHOW LOOK AS DETAILED AS POSSIBLE, BUT IT’S A LOT EASIER TO HAVE A MODEL THAN TO DRAW THE TARDIS LABORIOUSLY EVERY TIME. WE’D LOVE TO DO IT, BUT WE HAVEN’T GOT THAT KIND OF TIME

(Above) Storyboards for a yet-to-be-animated episode of Albie, the award-winning series by Cosgrove Hall and Andy Cutbill which follows the surreal antics of a six-year-old whose world is filled with talking animals and a variety of bizarre happenings.

doctoR who Cosgrove’s first online Who adventure Cosgrove Hall made use of emerging 3D technology to bring the good doctor’s first animated adventures to life. Techniques developed for Ghosts of Albion also came in very handy.

48 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

there’s too little description, but from our point of view it’s much better.” Many of the techniques coined in Ghosts have found their way into Doctor Who, along with one major step forward – the use of 3D technology. This time the animation team is using 3ds max to build three-dimensional

constructs such as the world-famous police box. This doesn’t mean that the final result would itself look 3D; more crucially, it’s yet another time-saving tool. “We want to make the show look as detailed as possible,” says Maher. “But it’s a lot easier to have a model, than to draw the TARDIS laboriously every time. We’d love to do it, but we’d need five years to complete the project and we just haven’t got that kind of time.” Once the model of the TARDIS is manipulated into the position, it’s run through the output program Swift 3D, which imports the 3ds model into Flash, rendering it as a flat 2D image in keeping with the rest of the show. If there’s one thing that Cosgrove Hall is almost evangelical about with this and its other projects – such as the adult-orientated Inbreds pilot (see boxout page 49) – it’s the flexibility of Flash, as Maher enthusiastically demonstrates. “No matter what people say, there’s no look for Flash. Flash will look as different and exciting as the people who are using it. It doesn’t have any

Profile

THE LAST TEN YEARS HAVE BEEN A VERY WEIRD TIME FOR US. WHEN CG ANIMATION FIRST KICKED OFF, WE THOUGHT, ‘THAT’S IT. THIS IS THE DEATH OF ORIGINAL ANIMATION.’ BUT IT HASN’T REPLACED IT AT ALL. WHAT IT DID WAS PRICE TRADITIONALLY PRICED ANIMATION OUT THE MARKET

The INBREDs

Cosgrove Hall takes on South Park

A far cry from the traditional cel work of Jamie and the Magic Torch or the stop-motion animation of Chorlton and The Wheelies, Cosgrove Hall’s recent work relies on computers to generate new and exciting kinds of animation.

restrictions, and outside of Web broadcast, you can do anything in it as you can with any other 2D program.” To prove his point, a DVD release of Doctor Who is planned for 2004 featuring an enhanced mix of the animation.

THE FUTURE OF ANIMATION The newly animated Ninth Doctor is set to make his debut this November, with future outings very much dependent on how the fans warm to this new take on their beloved character – plus, of course, the BBC’s plans for a live-action series due to hit screens in 2005. “It’s a pretty shrewd move by BBCi,” claims Whaite, “because, let’s face it, if it doesn’t take off, then the Beeb will just say, ‘Well, Doctor Who didn’t go that way.’” But what of Cosgrove Hall themselves? Even if the Doctor flies off into the sunset, how will the new technologies that have appeared in recent years affect its future? Whaite is in a buoyant mood when thinking of tomorrow. “The last ten years have been a very weird time for us. When CG animation first

kicked off, we thought, ‘That’s it. This is the death of original animation.’ But it hasn’t replaced it at all. What it did was price traditionally drawn animation out the market. “We now have students applying to work here from actual animation courses. The training’s better now. There’s a worry that we’re going to lose out and end up with computer operators, rather than animators who can operate software, but with the new software and ways of working, we believe we can bring animators from the model side of the industry, and get them into computers – using their animation skills in that new arena.” Cosgrove Hall doesn’t view technology as a problem, but as a way of opening up a thousand new doors, expanding possibilities. As Whaite concludes: “Each time we use Flash, we try something different, and so far it’s coped with everything we’ve thrown at it.” INFO Words by Cavan Scott, [email protected]. Contact Cosgrove Hall Films on 0161 882 2500, [email protected], or head to www.chf.co.uk

Projectile vomiting, venereal disease, bestiality… Hardly words you’d associate with Cosgrove Hall. The Inbreds, however, will change all that. A simple story of rednecks who take family love a little too far, this short pilot is a reaction to the more adult animated material coming over the Atlantic. It’s the studio’s first major project using Flash, even pre-dating Cosgrove Hall’s work on The Ghosts of Albion and Doctor Who. “We wanted a show we could sell back across to the States, and so I created these bunch of hillbillies in Photoshop,” explains Animation Director Mike Whaite. “However, when we came to animate it, we wondered how we could get the same look in 2D art.” Flash was the answer. “At the end of the day, the techniques in traditional animation aren’t all that different,” adds Jon Doyle, Senior Producer. “So when people see the final effect, they can’t believe it’s done in Flash.”

Cosgrove Hall is currently pitching the incredibly vile adventures of the socially unacceptable Inbreds.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

49

Quick Tutorial

SHORTCUTS

www.studio-output.com

CINEMA 4D Using some of the lesser-known polygon-modelling tools in Cinema 4D 4E (covermounted with issues 88 and 89 of CA) will help you streamline scenes and improve the precision of your model work. Here, we look at Disconnect and Optimize…

C

inema 4D CE provides excellent polygon-modelling tools. Combine these with Subdivision Surfaces, called HyperNURBS in Cinema, and you really do have a powerful organic and mechanical modelling system at your fingertips. However, when building HyperNURBS cages, you’ll often run into difficulties that aren’t particularly easy to overcome. In such cases, it’s often the lesser-known tools, such as Disconnect and Split, that can help you out.

Here’s a typical problem. Let’s say you’d like to have a hard edge around the depression in this HyperNURBS cage, but the smoothing algorithm wants to round off the edges. You can always use the Extrude or Extrude Inner command to add extra geometry to the model at this point, using a minuscule offset value, but by doing this you make the cage unnecessarily complex – and this has implications if you want to deform or point-edit the model later. Plus, the extra geometry only makes the rounding tighter – it’ll never be totally sharp. In some situations, though, Extruding isn’t even an option, because a tiny offset can vary around the perimeter of the selected polygons, resulting in an uneven edge. Fortunately, there is a workaround. Select the polygons whose perimeter you want to sharpen and choose Structure> Edit Surface>Disconnect. Keep the

50 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Preserve Groups option checked or each polygon will separate individually, creating a faceted look (sometimes desirable). The selected polygons are now disconnected from the rest of the mesh, leaving a break in the Subdivision Surface where no smoothing can occur. Cinema 4D CE’s Subdivision Smoothing algorithm is designed so that the smoothed mesh contacts any open edges, preventing any gaps where disconnected faces meet.

THE OPTIMIZE COMMAND IS ALSO NEEDED ON SOME OF THE PRIMITIVES IF THEY’VE BEEN CONVERTED TO POLYGONS AND USED WITH A HYPERNURBS GENERATOR

Using Disconnect is great as a springboard for other modelling techniques. It doesn’t have to result in a hard edge, because you can continue to model with the disconnected polygons and they’re subsequently smoothed by the HyperNURBS generator. In this example, we selected, deselected (middle), then extruded the polygons on one side of the object. The disconnection operation creates a more man-made, less organic look, but the objects still follow the lines of the original design. It’s a useful way to build detail into your work. If you’ve disconnected some polygons in a HyperNURBS object, but decided you want to reconnect them, you may think you need to weld the points back together. In fact, it’s as easy reconnecting objects as disconnecting them, so long as you haven’t moved the polygons. Deselect all the polygons or points and choose Structure>Optimize, and click OK to the defaults. This welds any coincident points

(or points within the distance set in the tolerance field). Your disconnected polygons are now welded back in place. Note that the Optimize command is also needed on some of the Primitives if they’ve been converted to polygons and used with a HyperNURBS generator. The Cylinder is a good example. Its caps are disconnected by default, so running Optimize on the polygon mesh (after it’s converted; before will have no effect) will join the caps to the rest of the mesh. There’s a variation on this theme – using the Split command rather than Disconnect. While Disconnect makes separate polygon groups within the same object, Split tears off a copy of the selected polygons to create a totally independent polygon object. Use Split when modelling with HyperNURBS and you’ll notice the selected polygons become faceted. This is because the HyperNURBS smoothing only acts on continuous hierarchies; the new polygon object is on the same level as the old object, and in this case it’s only the uppermost one that’s smoothed. You can get around this by adding another HyperNURBS and drag-and-dropping the new object into it. A more efficient way is to drop the new polygon object into the old one, making it a child. Smoothing is now applied to both items, because they’re in a continuous hierarchy. This is particularly useful to know when you want to apply different materials to parts of objects – when modelling an eye, for instance. You can Split off the cornea section and give it a transparent, refractive material, then model the original selected polygons to create the iris and pupil. Keeping the items in a single HyperNURBS object makes subsequent animation and scene management much easier. To upgrade your copy of C4D CE to CE+, visit www.cinema4d.com/ca. INFO Expertise supplied by Simon Danaher, [email protected]

tAking stoCk Stock illustration has a two-sided reputation in the creative industry – does it benefit or hinder the professional illustrator? We talk to Digital Vision’s Art Director Maria Teijeiro and six of the artists involved in their all-new Illustration catalogue

A

steady flow of cash just for a few images? Sounds too good to be true, but this is one reason many illustrators and designers submit their work to stock companies. Of course, the cashflow isn’t guaranteed, but it’s a tempting option all the same. It all started with the stock photography market. While it too was originally condemned by photographers, there are currently thousands of professionals making a career solely from work for stock catalogues. That concept now applies to illustration, with thousands of specifically designed images, instantly accessible for use in editorial pieces, book covers, advertisements and more. Today, art directors and commissioners can go to the Websites of stock giants such as Digital Vision and Getty Images, find a relevant illustration or style and pay a one-off fee for immediate use, with royalties extended to the artist. In issue 76 of Computer Arts, Richard May was quoted as saying this practice was damaging the illustration business by reducing the need for original commissions. But that hasn’t stopped Computer Arts regular Magictorch launching

52 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

its own smaller catalogue, Stock-Cube (www.stockcube.co.uk), which offers a larger rate to contributors. But despite the cons, many young and experienced professionals are making money out of the lucrative stock business.

ILLUSTRATION VISION Digital Vision recently released its new catalogue, Illustration, approaching over 40 illustrators to produce a range of themed work for the collection. The result is hundreds of images, featuring fashion, technology, futuristic scenes and transport. Maria Teijeiro, Digital Vision’s Art Director and Commissioner, reveals what she looks for when commissioning work: “I normally want to get a strong and defined style, with pleasant characters, a nice composition and colour palette, and a clear meaning to the image.” Fashion, Manga, retro and comic-book styles are currently in vogue, claims Teijeiro: “The most common clients for this catalogue will be from youth products, advertising, fashion and beauty industries, book and magazine publishing, clothes shops,

financial services – basically, anyone wanting to show a fresh and different image,” she says. So how much control does she have over the finished submission? “Most of the illustration work we publish has been tailored to a specific brief and idea. However, we always give the artist enough freedom to represent those ideas in the way they think is best. However, we will normally review the pencil sketch for feedback and amendments, and receive the fully coloured artwork for final approval.” Teijeiro is constantly on the lookout for new talent – and most illustrators are selected for their style and suitability to the subject, rather than experience. “I’d advise people looking for stock work to develop a unique, contemporary look, concentrating on attractive characters. They should also approach their subject in a clear, positive way.” Still not convinced? Says Teijeiro: “Some artists make more profit from work with us than with any other work they do.” Over the next few pages, we talk to the illustrators involved in the new catalogue and discover the techniques and ideas behind their imagery. INFO Words by Vicki Atkinson. Thanks to Sam Bruce of Digital Vision

Feature

NiCholA CArtwright OCCUPATION Fashion designer/illustrator SOFTWARE Photoshop HARDWARE PC

Nichola Cartwright’s move into illustration is relatively recent, despite a long and professional career in fashion, designing women’s wear for design houses and suppliers to the UK high street. Her contribution to the Illustration collection features young, funky and, of course, fashionable characters. “This is my first venture into stock work,” she says, “so I ’ve not yet experienced the benefits! I’m looking forward to the worldwide exposure, it’s also a way of gaining more experience within the field of illustration.” Clearly influenced by her fashion career, Cartwright places a strong emphasis on style. “I try to give most of my images an upbeat feel. The girl character is model-like, with long limbs and a slightly stylised face. I think it’s important that you create your own style which will then be instantly recognisable.” Cartwright’s techniques start with rough sketches on a drawing board: “I draw in pencil first, to get the perspective right, then go on to black ink pen. I then scan the image into Photoshop for manipulation and colouring. I also play around with effects to add depth and shadow.”

steve And ghy sAmpson OCCUPATION Computer games artist (Steve) and artist (Ghy) SOFTWARE Illustrator, Photoshop HARDWARE AMD Athlon

This international husband-and-wife team, based in Brighton, has been collaborating on design projects for just over a 12 months. British-born Steve Sampson has spent almost ten years as a comic illustrator and computer games artist, while Brazilian Ghy Sampson has been a graphic designer for seven years. A healthy affection for Japanese art and their own diverse cultures, rich in very different design traditions, has resulted in a fantastic Manga style that features more than once in the Illustration catalogue. We asked them about the benefits of such experienced designers doing stock illustration. “It’s two-fold,” says Steve. “We get to work together and our work is seen by a wide range of potential clients.” Two of the images they created for the catalogue are featured here. ”We followed a series of themes, including technology, communication, the future, The Matrix, transportation and colour.” Steve and Ghy’s techniques are based on creating the image concepts on paper before scanning them in. All the elements for each image are then built in Illustrator before being put together in Photoshop and given the depth, movement and effects that bring them to life.

OPPOSITE PAGE: “The idea behind this was to concentrate on something in close-up,” explains Cartwright. “I wanted to create an image that was rich in colour, pretty – and a little surreal.” LEFT: “This picture of two cropped figures was to give a different focal point, as some fashion shoots focus on just an aspect of the whole picture. I then gave it a 50s feel, with clashing colours and OTT dresses. It’s a bit twee and girlie, but fun.”

“The idea behind this image is a not too distant future, featuring a girl accessing a building against a futuristic backdrop,” says Steve Sampson, co-creator.

“This second image is set in a nightclub and features a cool DJ and cute girl dancer,” explains Steve.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

53

“The idea with this collection was to depict a wide range of characters and socialites dining together and chilling out,” explains Saint Paul. “Which in my experience is a common theme within editorial, hence the reason to create it.”

Dillon SAint PAul OCCUPATION Graphic designer/illustrator CLIENTS More! magazine, Coca-Cola, Impulse Fabergé SOFTWARE Illustrator, Photoshop HARDWARE Apple Mac G4, Mac OS X/9.2

After a successful career in editorial design, Dillon Saint Paul has spent the last four years developing a style he describes as “consumer-friendly eye candy with a dash of attitude.” Saint Paul cites, “exposure to a larger client base and the obvious financial gain,” as the main benefits of stock work. “It also provides the opportunity to create a portfolio of focused commercial work based on a theme without being restrained by a particular brief,” he adds. He heartily recommends this path to others: “There’s no reason why one project can’t be earning you revenue while you embark on another!” The images featured here depict a group of socialites, designed as a potential editorial piece. Saint Paul shares his techniques: “First, I sketched both images in graphite pencil, before scanning them into Photoshop. After adjusting curves and so on to get the best contrast in greyscale, I export the image to Illustrator. There I work over the sketch in layers, drawing vectors and filling them with colour. Sometimes I import it back into Photoshop for lighting effects.”

“Again a trendy scene but in a more urban hip way – this time aiming at a younger audience – the scene is basically to appeal to a very different target market.“

Rob heAsley OCCUPATION Creative Director of Naked Penguin Boy CLIENTS Universal Pictures International, Ladbrokes SOFTWARE Photoshop HARDWARE Mac G4

Despite finding success with new media outfit Naked Penguin Boy, Rob Heasley still finds time to pursue his passion for illustration, and sees stock illustration as a great way to get his work into the industry. “Plus the same images get sold over and over again - and you get to collect the royalties on them,” he says. But it’s the PR that gets him going the most; published images are credited with the artist, including a short bio, and he’s already attracted new commissions based on exposure from Digital Vision. “I’d definitely recommend stock work to

other illustrators and designers. To the new guys in the industry, it’s a great way to get a solid portfolio of published images. To the more experienced guys, it’s really about getting people to see your work.” Heasley starts off with a rough sketch of his characters before, tracing over it with a tight black line in marker pen. “Once I’ve got a clean black and white illustration, I’ll scan it straight into Photoshop and drop my colours in. The only tricky bit is when using photographs, making sure the illustration works seamlessly with the photographic image.”

JAn MeininghAus OCCUPATION Illustrator CLIENTS Sony, EMI, BMG SOFTWARE FreeHand, Photoshop, Streamline HARDWARE G4 Cube

54 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Jan Meininghaus has been drawing fanatically since childhood, with his first commercial work for a German metal band appearing in 1989. Since then, he’s produced CD covers, books, T-shirts and comics. He describes his style as “loco”, adding, “I like images that are ‘in your face.’” This is his first foray into stock illustration work, but already he admits to enjoying the freedom: “There’s no messing around with leagues of ‘stylish’ art directors…” The Germany-based Web designer and illustrator has contributed 50 images to the

Illustration collection, mostly featuring sexy, curvy women in a music, beach or nightclub setting. Meininghaus begins with a pencil sketch, which he then transforms into a black and white illustration using an ink-brush. He then scans in the resulting image and adjusts it in Photoshop, before applying vectors to the line art. The colours are finished off in FreeHand for Flash animations or Photoshop for more complex illustrations. Take a look at Meininghaus’ stunning online portfolio – head to www.loco-style.com.

“I was walking along London’s South Bank one weekend, taking pictures with my digital camera,” Heasley explains. “I was looking at the architecture of a building when I found myself staring at this CCTV camera and the camera stared back at me. It made me laugh and I thought it’d make a good illustration.”

All of Jan Meininghaus’ illustrations aim to tell a short story, and this one’s no exception.

SHORTCUTS FREEHAND

hose your shape onto an invisible grid layout. This can be set to whatever size you desire – for this piece, we need a grid that’s tight rather than spacious.

Identikal reveals one of its often-used techniques with FreeHand’s Graphic Hose tool. Discover how to use it creatively with your own logos and shapes, to create a pattern or illustration that really works

W

hen Freehand launched the Graphic Hose tool, not many designers took notice of the benefits of this clever little device. Many regard it as nothing more than a gimmick, but Nick Hayes at Identikal disagrees – the Graphic Hose tool not only saves time creating patterns, but can also be fantastic for producing striking and innovative illustrations. The design duo at Identikal use their own logos and shapes to create many of their images with the Graphic Hose, and for this shortcut we demonstrate how they used it to create a stunning image of their logo. This patterned illustration was used for Identikal’s fourth type collection, released with AtomicType.

First of all, you need some kind of graphic shape or logo that you’ll be using in your Graphic Hose. Preferably, use something that fits into a square shape and isn’t too detailed. We’ve used the Identikal logo because it’s simple yet recognisable. Now copy it into the Graphic Hose tool window – hit Command+C, and Paste it inside the Hose window. The Graphic Hose enables you to have many different logos or shapes in each hose you create, but for this illustration you only need the one. Once you’ve placed your shape in the hose, it’s time to set the tool up. Click Options on the Hose window to bring up a host of settings. Because we’re creating a pattern, you’ll need to select the ‘loop’ hose. This should also be set to a Grid, which enables you to

56 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Now your hose is set, you need some kind of image or shape to create a pattern to ‘hose’. Here, we’ve set up a layer, inside which is a more detailed Identikal logo; we’ll use this as a guide for our Hose (and delete it once we finish tracing around it with the tool). Now you’ve chosen your desired image, select the Hose tool and

www.studio-output.com

begin tracing around the contours of your image. Note that you can ‘feel’ the grid as you spray your icon onto the pasteboard, and that you can make the grid of your hose tighter if you prefer.

Once you’re happy with the shape of your image, you’ll have completed a detailed patterned illustration that has depth as well as simplicity. It should only take a few minutes to create. INFO Expertise supplied by Nick Hayes of Identikal: [email protected], www.identikal.com

A REAL-LIFE JOB

THE GRAPHIC HOSE ENABLES YOU TO HAVE MANY DIFFERENT LOGOS OR SHAPES IN EACH HOSE YOU CREATE, BUT FOR THIS PARTICULAR ILLUSTRATION YOU ONLY NEED ONE

1

To create this more complex illustration (for a specialist optician), Identikal relied heavily on the Graphic Hose, using it to ‘paint’ a much larger illustration using the optician’s logo.

2

Identikal then added corporate colours to the image, highlighting the shapes of the face and glasses, and adding detail only where necessary.

4

3

The idea was to create a woman with glasses, using the optician’s logo as a basis for the Hose tool. Each area of the girl’s image was ‘traced’ to produce the desired effect.

And this is the result. Identikal’s image was displayed inside the optician’s shop on a wall as vinyl cut graphics. Close up, you can see just how it’s been created.

season’s e-greetings From Flash presentations to e-cards, Christmas hampers to Yule-inspired games, here’s how to shamelessly promote you and your company’s interests with tinsel, snowmen and barrows of holly Large Design created these promo cards for clients YO! Sushi and Scalable Networks (below) – in fact, it created three designs for the latter. “We designed them using their products, i.e. cables and with reference to networks,” recalls Lars Hemming Jorgensen, Large Design’s Creative Director. “They went for the dullest one – the Christmas tree lights.”

C

hristmas is coming and the goose is getting fat. Or so you’d hope if you’re a design company. Not that most designers would liken their clients to a festive meal-in-waiting – but, let’s face it, they do lay golden eggs as far as work’s concerned. So, to really stretch a metaphor, are Christmas promos the best way to butter up clients, prospects and suppliers while also advertising your design skills? We asked several top agencies and designers what they get up to when the festive spirit takes them… “We always try to do something, whether it be a simple promo e-card for the site or a full-blown Christmas party,” says Tim Spear, Director of NOWWASHYOURHANDS, a design company which last year created some tongue-in-cheek wrapping paper. “The rewards for a memorable Christmas message or

CAse study I - THE LARGE XMAS CARD ITEM: Large Belly Card DESIGN COMPANY: Large Design (www.largedesign.com) DEVELOPMENT TIME: 5 days LAUNCH DATE: 1 Dec 2001 SIZE OF DEVELOPMENT TEAM: 2 TECHNOLOGY USED: HTML and printed card Large Design’s bloated belly covershot clearly refers to what happens to most of us over Christmas – we pile on the pounds. “The 36 > 42 represents your increase in waistline, but also plays on our address, which is 36-42 New Inn Yard,” explains Creative Director Lars Hemming Jorgensen. Inside, the card reads: “Have a large Christmas and look forward to seeing more of you in the New Year.” “We wanted to give a shocking image a go, because we’re normally seen as very professional and this would show our cheeky side,” explains Jorgensen. “We found a belly on Getty Images, but then decided to shoot a belly ourselves to make it more in your face.” Jorgensen says the biggest problem was Photoshop-ing out the belly button fluff,

58 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

although the card hit the mark “It was in really bad taste and leaped out at people when sitting next to all the normal, cheesy and corporate cards,” he says. “It got a lot of feedback, even from old contacts that we hadn’t heard from in years. People still remember it and we could actually attribute one job to the mail-out.” Jorgensen adds that the thing he enjoyed most about the process was picturing people opening the card; it certainly prompted unexpected reactions. “Some people see a nipple rather than a belly button,” he explains. “By a complete fluke, we’d created an optical illusion.”

campaign can last for a long time, because you can guarantee people will still be talking about the best pieces of work every year. The challenge comes in designing something that sticks in people’s minds, and that usually involves subjects that are both nostalgic and risqué.” At the moment, Spear’s team is working on a printed booklet called ‘The Office Party Survival Guide’, which features essential tips on how to get through some of the more cringe-worthy moments that only wine-fuelled office party nightmares can provide. “We always do something festive, but being fickle creative people, it seems to change every year,” says Tom Adams, Communications Director at Mook. “Christmas promotions have ranged from printed cards to interactive games and animated messages. We’ve bought lavish presents for very special clients and

Feature

CAse study II-

FLASH E-CARD ITEM: ‘Seasonings Greet’ e-card This online and printed invite was created for the NOWWASHYOURHANDS’ festive party using Flash, Photoshop and Illustrator. “It’s a subversive image, playing on the notion of Christmas as an idyllic happy time, when in truth most people are nursing enormous hangovers,” says NWYH’s Tim Spear.

organised turkey-based lunches for large groups. Ultimately, we want to remind people we’re here and create something that reflects the spirit of the company.” This Christmas, it seems, is no different… “We’re planning an interactive card that will be emailed to our database of contacts,” continues Adams. “There are also plans to create a Mook T-shirt and organise bijoux novelty gifts for clients.” However, according to Nick Wills, Creative Director at Egovision, even a Christmas promo campaign needs a solid strategy. “There’ll be an awful lot of noise at this time of year; Christmas becomes a huge focus point for many organisations,” says Wills. “There’s even more emphasis for campaigns to be creative and memorable while adhering to goals and being on brand.”

relevant argument that questions the extent to which Christmas should be exploited for self-publicity.” Given that some might consider it a drain on resources, particularly in these lean times, what sort of budgets and time do designers devote to such promos? “In terms of design and printing costs, it’s usually under £1000,” says Lars Hemming Jorgensen,

CHRISTMAS PUDDINGS

Creative Director of Large Design. “As for time taken, it depends on the project. We normally spend quite a long time on our own cards, because we’re so picky when in comes to our collateral. It’s probably five to six days before we have a final version.” “As a creative agency, you feel the need to produce some kind of trade Christmas card or execution, but the reality is if you’re small and you’re busy, it’s a drain on resources,” counters Louis Clement, Content Director at Skive Creative. “At best, we’ll spend a few days ‘knocking something up’ that will make us laugh.” “We try to spend no more than a week of a designer’s time at most,” says Chris Clarke, Creative Account

Others debate the ‘ethical’ implications of such blatant self-promotion… “How environmentally friendly is it to send cards?” asks Gareth Andrew-Jones, Director of Strategy at brand design consultancy Lewis Moberly, which has created and sent out traditional Christmas cards for the last 20 years. “Also, does supporting a particular charity do more for your company than not doing so? I’ve received e-cards in recent years where the sender makes the point that they’re donating the money they’d otherwise spend on cards and postage to charity. I think there’s an argument for doing something different. I also think there’s a somewhat old-fashioned but still

DESIGN COMPANY: Thoughtbubble (www.thoughtbubble.com) DEVELOPMENT TIME: One day LAUNCH DATE: 19 December 2001 SIZE OF DEVELOPMENT TEAM: Five – creative, designer and three developers TECHNOLOGY USED: Photoshop, Flash, SoundEdit, Exchange email server, IIS Web server, ColdFusion, MSSQL database, scanner The idea behind this e-card was an amusing play on words to reflect the design agency’s brand. To festive music, a salt pot walks across a turkey-laden dinner table. It’s followed by pepper pot who says: “Hello, salt.” “Hello, pepper,” replies the pot. The scene then cuts to the words “Seasonings’ Greet from Thoughtbubble.” “We thought of the idea in the morning, then drew the storyboard, figures and background,” explains James Maltby, Managing Director of Thoughtbubble. “While the sketches were scanned, digitised and animated, the voiceovers were recorded. During animation, we built the tracking system and sourced recipients. We then built the e-card and created a tracking server to supply unique IDs for each email sent – linking back to the Thoughtbubble Website, where a Flash file was held. Visitors were tracked arriving and we could see how many people they then forwarded the card to.” The team realised firewalls might cause problems, so used an emailed link rather than an attached file. Maltby says the most enjoyable experience was seeing the e-card go viral. “It was originally sent out to less than 50 email addresses, and then viewed over 1000 times,” he reveals. “The tracking system showed how successful the e-card was.”

HOW ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY IS IT TO SEND CARDS? ALSO, DOES SUPPORTING A PARTICULAR CHARITY DO MORE FOR YOUR COMPANY THAN NOT DOING SO?

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

59

Case study III - FLASH GAME ITEM: Santa game DESIGN COMPANIES: The Visual Works (www.visualworks.co.uk) and MyDesign (www.mydesign.co.uk) DEVELOPMENT TIME: 1 week LAUNCH DATE: Just before Christmas 2001 SIZE OF DEVELOPMENT TEAM: 1 TECHNOLOGY USED: Poser 4 and Flash

Wheel: Group’s Flash-based Christmas promotion, ‘Yule Idol’, had agency friends, clients and staff singing ‘Silent Night’ in a popular genre (hard rock, hip hop, crooner) over the phone for charity. The calls were recorded, and visitors to the site could hear and vote for their favourite. It proved fun and very popular.

Director at Wheel: Group’s Abel and Baker. “And it would be one of many things they’d have to do.” Others think differently. “We don’t put a limit on studio time when it comes to creating something interactive,” says Tom Adams. “So the budget is flexible according to our ideas and resources.”

REINDEER JERKY So are there tangible benefits creating such promotional Christmas fare? “It brings a smile to your contact’s face,” says Lars Hemming Jorgensen.

THE LEVEL OF INTEREST GAMES CREATE IS FAR HIGHER THAN SENDING OUT CHRISTMAS CARDS, AND CHEAPER THAN SENDING OUT A BOTTLE OF SCOTCH

Kerb believes so passionately in online marketing, it sends all its Christmas cards to clients online. “Interestingly, although our Christmas card list features only about 200 people,” says Kerb’s Jim McNiven, “this card got forwarded over 25,000 times.”

60 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

“It’s not a hard sell, but an ‘innocent’ reason to contact them and say, ‘Remember us?’” “Internally, it’s a way of letting off steam at the end of the year for the team,” explains James Maltby, Managing Director of Thoughtbubble. “Externally, it’s a way of showcasing some of the stuff we could offer our clients in the new year.” “It’s a nice showcase of our skills for those people that know us well,” agrees Tom Adams. “We have free rein creatively and can experiment or use ideas that weren’t quite right for client work. If you’re lucky, an interactive idea will go viral.” Design consultancy The Visual Works, aided by its new media partner MyDesign, annually sends out Flash player games via email to its database of clients and prospects. “The level of interest games like these create is far higher than sending out Christmas cards and far cheaper than sending out a bottle of Scotch to each of our clients,” says Ben Stone, Senior Partner at The Visual Works. But sometimes you need to be careful that your Yule-flavoured media is in keeping with your brand. “We tend to avoid mouse mats or ‘Chateaux Mook’ wine,” says Tom Adams. “Not because there’s anything wrong with this approach, but because it wouldn’t suit us. Similarly, it doesn’t pay to rush a creative idea or execute it badly. Otherwise, you can actually do more harm than good. However, novelty reindeer jerky gift boxes might be on the list this year. So it’s a delicate balance.” INFO Words by Michael Burns, [email protected]

This shoot-’em-up was based on the old arcade classic Scramble. “We used to follow the traditional path of sending out Christmas cards,” says Ben Stone, Senior Partner at Visual Works. “MyDesign always wanted to produce a Flash-based game and this was the ideal starting point. You play Father Christmas on a sledge and blast away at nasty snowmen who are trying to get in your way.” “We built the game using blank blocks as sprites, creating the characters as 3D models in Poser before exporting them into a Flashfriendly file format,” explains Colin Yellowley, Director of MyDesign. “This was three years ago and not many people were using this sort of solution. We used Flash because we could create a projector file so that no-one would need to download a Flash plugin or player. Also, the content could be constrained to vectors, so download times were manageable.’ But the project wasn’t without its problems. ‘The Flash projector file was bounced back by many email servers

CONTACTS Large Design www.largedesign.com Mook www.mook.co.uk Skive Creative www.skivecreative.co.uk

until we used a compression utility to get round this,” remembers Yellowley. The game prompted a lot of positive feedback from clients. “The high-score competition works well in the few days before the Christmas break,” says Stone. “Most people aren’t fully focused on work and spend a lot of time on the Internet – we’d rather they were interacting with something that put our name and skills in front of them. We ran an informal high-score competition with the game, which produced a lot of interaction with our clients. Another bonus was that some of our clients saw the benefits of sending out something similar, so we were able to sell versions of the game to our clients, branded with their logo and contact details for a low cost.” “We had many people sending in screen grabs, including a few rather unbelievable high scores,” Stone recalls. “We worked out that you’d have to play continuously for a few weeks to get the sort of scores people were claiming. Or spend five minutes doctoring the grab in Photoshop!”

MyDesign www.mydesign.co.uk Abel and Baker www.abelbaker.co.uk Thoughtbubble www.thoughtbubble.net

Lewis Moberly www.lewismoberly.com

NOWWASHYOURHANDS www.nowwashyourhands.com Adventi www.adventi.com

The Visual Works www.visualworks.co.uk

Kerb www.kerb.co.uk

Egovision www.egovision.com

It combines full, new CS versions of Photoshop,® Illustrator,® InDesign,® and GoLive® with Version Cue,™ an innovative tool to help you manage and keep track of your files. Plus, it’s got Acrobat ® Professional. So now you can think, play and tinker around all you want, without holding yourself back. www.adobe.co.uk/therapy

THERAPY

©2003 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved. Adobe, the Adobe logo, Acrobat, GoLive, Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop, “Tools for the New Work” and Version Cue are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective o wners.

Tools for the New Work™

Introducing the Adobe ® Creative Suite.

®

It’s a creative support group.

Adobe Creative Suite

It ’s more than creative software.

Photoshop, Flash, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, FreeHand, Cinema 4D, After Effects

3

Creative Collection

On sale 6 November, £12.99

An exclusive collection of Computer Arts’ best tutorials. Get to grips with image manipulation, illustration, Web and graphic design, typography, digital video and 3D techniques

OVER 200

PAGERSIAOLFS TUTO

PLUS DVD

FROM THE MAKERS OF

Quick Tutorial

SHORTCUTS PHOTOSHOP

can begin with a fairly low-resolution image, enlarge it by around three or four times, and then set the new image as the source for the History brush in the History palette. When you paint, you generally won’t notice the low quality of the original photograph.

In this month’s Photoshop shortcut, we look at creating natural media images using the Art History brush, and show you the trick to using this often-overlooked tool successfully

T

here are many ways to transform a photo (or a 3D render for that matter) and make it look handdrawn or painted. Photoshop has a large number of tools fit for the job; you’ll find most of these under the Filter menu. However, the process can be a bit hit and miss – you need to experiment a lot and use many different filters in combination, and what works on one image won’t necessarily work on another. Fortunately, there is a sure-fire way to create natural media images, and that’s by using using the Art History brush. On first inspection, this tool may seem like a waste of time; it does what it says it does, but the results are often uniformly clichéd and samey. The trick to using the Art History brush is to add the variation manually, paying close attention to focus and the dynamics of the strokes. You can also use it in tandem with Photoshop’s other tools to generate some extremely realistic natural media effects.

Above is a typical experiment with the Art History brush. You end up with a uniform splotchy image that looks like it’s been ruthlessly hand-painted by a robot. In fact, that pretty much describes what’s happened – all you did was waggle your mouse a bit. The reason it fails to look interesting? The detail is all smudged out and there’s no variation in the brush strokes. You need to put this back in – it’s vital for a decent hand-painted look.

THE TRICK TO USING THE ART HISTORY BRUSH IS TO ADD VARIATION MANUALLY, PAYING CLOSE ATTENTION TO FOCUS AND THE DYNAMICS OF THE STROKES

We also created this image using just the Art History brush – but see how much better it looks. Notice that the focus has more detail than the background and other elements. The technique involves building up the effect in stages, and because the Art History brush always references the original unaltered image, you can easily control what, where and how much detail is revealed. First, splatter the image all over with a large radius brush, perhaps using the Dab or Loose Medium setting of the Art History brush. This is like an all-over wash; areas or general colour and shape are picked out, providing a background over which you start the real work of painting, revealing all that essential texture. Next, reduce the brush radius and pick out the main objects in the image, perhaps by only painting their outlines. Now reduce the radius some more and start filling in the details within so that the shapes become more recognisable. At this stage, you can fill in the details, but do so sparingly. Reduce the brush so that the details appear quite distinct from the rest of the paintwork, and then pick out certain details, such as edges, highlights and areas of high contrast and detail in the original. Leave low contrast areas with less distinct strokes. You may need to reduce the Area setting of the brush at this point, too. Something like 10 or 20 pixels should do, although this will depend on the size of the image. A brush of just a few pixels can be used to add a few of the finest details, but at this point you have to be careful not to make the image look like a photo again. The small brush radius will tend to look quite harsh, but you can dampen and smudge this effect by using a larger brush set to a very low opacity – say 10 or 20 per cent. This helps blend in the strokes and stops them from looking out of place. Because the brush generates new pixels as it moves across the canvas, you

You can vary the effect by applying numerous filters, such as Lighting Effects to create a striking oil-painted sheen, or Texturize to make it look as if it’s been painted on canvas.

The results of the Art History brush on their own can be very good, but if you use the finished paintwork as a base for further filtering, you can achieve a wide range of looks. Here, we’ve applied the Watercolour filter, resulting in a much better image than if we’d simply applied the effect directly to the original photo. Reducing the opacity of the filter and applying it in Linear Dodge mode helps to improve things even further. INFO Expertise supplied by Simon Danaher, [email protected]

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

63

ILLUSTRATION BY JASON ARBER

www.pixelsurgeon.com

64 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Tutorial

NEW RELEASE!

ILLUSTRATOR CS EXPLORED Pixelsurgeon’s Jason Arber gets his hands on the brand new version of Illustrator. Discover how to combine techniques you’ve already perfected with its new and exciting feature-set Illustrator 10 was one of the first major applications out of the door when Apple released OS X, so it wasn’t surprising to find a few bugs here and there, the biggest being its lack of speed (something experienced by Fold7’s Simon Packer in our opinion column this month – page 18). As a result, designers and illustrators were keen to get their hands on the latest version to see how it fares, and illustrator Jason Arber is glad to report that it’s satisfyingly nippy when performing complex pathfinder operations – tasks that previously gave you time to make a cup of tea and skim through the Sunday papers. So with that major issue out of the way, creative types have now turned to the application’s new features. Many of these, such as the ability to save for Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, are very handy, but they don’t have a direct bearing on creating artwork. For artists and designers, the really exciting new feature is Illustrator CS’s ability to create basic 3D shapes, including mapped artwork, based on Adobe’s fondly remembered Dimensions application. The beauty of Dimensions and Illustrator’s new 3D capabilities is their simplicity and seamless integration into the vector world. But the ability to extrude, revolve and rotate isn’t just aimed at packaging designers; with a bit of thought, it’s also possible to use Illustrator’s new features to add extra levels to your tried-and-trusted techniques – something that Jason Arber discovered shortly after his copy of Illustrator CS arrived in the post… INFO Words and pictures from Jason Arber, [email protected], www.pixelsurgeon.com

ON THE CD Look on your coverdisc in the Tutorial\Illustrator folder for the two files you’ll need to follow this tutorial.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

65

^

PART 1 WHAT’S NEW? Get started in Illustrator CS by crafting the basic shapes

INSIGHT LEGACY TEXT

When opening files saved from previous versions of Illustrator, you’ll get the following dialog box if the file contains live text: “This file contains text that was created in a previous version of Illustrator. This legacy text must be updated before you can edit it.” Clicking Update will change the text to Illustrator’s new CS format, based on InDesign’s text handling. Choosing to update later treats the text like a placed graphic, and you’re then unable to edit it or select it.

7

Hide the hair and body layers and create a new layer for the face outline. Using the Pen tool, draw around the edge of the face. Include any strands of hair that might be straying across the forehead.

1

The new welcome screen that greets you when you first open Illustrator CS is, to quote Jason Arber, “sexy” – which is a good start. As well as enabling you to create a new document or open a previous one, you can now open a Template – one of Illustrator CS’s new features.

4

Lock the layer and create a new one. With the Pen tool selected, set the Fill to None and the Stroke to a colour you’ll easily see on the photograph. Trace the outline of the body, clicking and dragging to create the appropriate Bézier curves.

8

Create a layer for the mouth. Use the Eyedropper to sample the photograph for colours. For the inside of the mouth and the lips, create gradients using the Gradient palette. Click and drag with the Gradient tool to define the gradient direction.

2

Clicking on New shows that not much has changed with the New Document dialog box. On the Artboard Setup, make sure the units are set to Millimetres and choose a custom width of 485mm and a height of 290mm. Because this is for print, make sure the Colour Mode is CMYK.

PART 2 ADDING DETAIL Next, time to add subtlety to the image – and a monkey…

5

Once you’ve finished tracing the main figure, hide the layer and then create a new layer for the hair. Use the Pathfinder palette’s Exclude function to remove areas of no hair from inside the hair layer. When you’re finished, click the Expand button.

3

With the new document open, drag a guide from the ruler to define the spread’s gutter and place rina.tif – a scene of domestic bliss at Pixelsurgeon Mansions (www.pixelsurgeon.com) that’s on your CD in the Tutorial\Illustrator folder – by selecting Edit>Place. Scale the image by dragging the corners with the Shift key held down.

9

Hide the face and hair layers so you can see more clearly what you’re doing – then, on new layers, create paths for the facial highlights and shadows using the Pen tool. Don’t be afraid to guess where the graduated tones from the photograph should end.

6

Use the Pathfinder palette’s Add To Shape Area function to add strands of hair that were too fiddly to include when drawing the initial path. As before, click the Expand button to unite all the paths.

66 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

^

Tutorial

INSIGHT INSERTING GLYPHS

Illustrator CS’s Glyphs palette (Type>Glyphs) is based on InDesign 2.0’s Insert Glyphs palette (Type>Insert Glyphs) and is a godsend when you can’t remember the keyboard combination to find that obscure accented character. It displays all the characters in a font, and really comes into its own with Adobe and Microsoft’s new Unicode-based OpenType format, which can contain huge character sets, including Chinese, Japanese and Korean.

10

On another layer, with the facial and hair layers hidden, use the Pen tool to draw the outlines of the eyes. Again, use the Eyedropper tool to sample colours to drag into the Swatches palette. Use these for the eyes and as a basis for gradients.

TIME-SAVING TEMPLATES

An interesting new feature of Adobe Illustrator CS that has yet to make waves – but which is bound to be useful for designers and illustrators – is the new .ait format for saving templates. This enables you to use finished designs as the basis for new artwork. Pasteboard dimensions, character and paragraph styles and guides are all preserved, which is great if you want to, say, create CD inlays based on a standard design.

16

With the individual circles filled with rainbow colours, draw a rectangle over the bottom-half of the circles. With the circles and the rectangle selected, use the Pathfinder palette’s Divide function to separate the lower half so that you can delete it.

PART 3 GOING 3D On to Illustrator CS’s new 3D tools

11

The naturalistic eyes and lips look a little too harsh with the blue face, so use colours from the photograph for the midtone, highlight and shadow. Using the Transparency palette, select the shadow and change the mode to Multiply. Change the highlight to Screen and adjust the opacities.

14

Draw a circle with a stroke of 100pts, then copy and paste it in front (Edit>Paste In Front). Change the colour and the stroke to 60pts. Paste another copy in front, then change the colour and the stroke to 20pts. With all the circles selected, expand the stroke (Object>Expand Appearance).

17

Using Illustrator’s new 3D Extrude tool (Effect>3D>Extrude & Bevel) with the preview turned on, set the Extrude depth to zero and the Surface to No Shading. Set the perspective to 122 degrees and use the cube to rotate the rainbow so that it appears to be emerging from the figure.

12

Open the image monkey.ai from the CD and paste it into the main document. Use the Pucker & Bloat filter (Filter>Distort>Pucker & Bloat…) with the preview turned on to bloat the shape into an explosive flower shape. Click OK.

15

With the strokes expanded into filled shapes, use the Pathfinder palette’s Divide function to split the shapes into five distinct filled circles, which you can then fill with rainbow colours.

18

Hide the rainbow layer, and with a small random shape, use the 3D revolve function (Effect>3D>Revolve) to create a wireframe model. Set the perspective to 140 degrees, the angle to 231 degrees and the surface to Wireframe, then click OK. Note that high perspective values may not work.

13

Change the colour to orange and the mode to Screen in the Transparency palette dropdown menu. Drag the flower over the body and Option-drag (Mac) or Alt-drag (PC) new instances from the original and layer them. Randomly resize/rotate some of these.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

67

^

INSIGHT WHAT’S NEXT FOR ILLUSTRATOR?

Those hoping for world-shattering improvements to Illustrator’s Flash exporting will be disappointed with this release. The Export command does give you more control over bitmap compression options, but that’s really about it. Perhaps the next release will give us proper animations from blends and better symbol handling. And now that Dimensions has been resurrected, it can only be a matter of time before the designer’s friend, Streamline, is incorporated with Illustrator.

19

Option-click (Mac) or Alt-click (Windows) with the Rectangle and Ellipse tools to create a square and circle of equal size, perfectly overlaid using the Align palette. Add extra anchor points to the square (Object>Path>Add Anchor Points) and delete all the square’s points apart from the top-right corner.

22 20

Delete the circle’s top-right segment, then join the remains of the square and circle together by selecting overlapping control points and using the Join command (Object>Path>Join).

Give the body shape a nice gradient and duplicate the layer (by dragging the layer to the new document icon at the bottom of the Layers palette), moving the monkey, shapes and wireframe layers below the duplicate body.

23

Lock all the layers except the duplicate body, monkey, shapes and wireframe layer and, ensuring the duplicate body is above the other, select everything (Select>All). From this selection, make a clipping mask (Object>Clipping Mask>Make). The top object becomes the mask for the objects underneath.

24

Illustrator CS’s handling of text has been vastly improved. Typefaces in the font menu are now displayed visually, which speeds up font choices. In addition, small icons indicate if typefaces are PostScript, TrueType or the new OpenType format. There are more options for Japanese text as well.

FINAL STEP

T

he finished illustration mixes techniques from previous versions of Illustrator with effects only possible with the latest version. Now Adobe has opened the gates to creative experimentation for those who thought they’d never dabble in 3D…

21

Copy the new shape, paste in front, and resize with the Option (Mac) or Alt (PC) key and Shift held down. Group the two shapes (Object>Group), select a transparency of Multiply and copy and paste over the figure repeatedly to create a complex pattern. Set Rainbow transparency to Hard Light.

68 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Leader in External Hard Drives and CD / DVD - RW Drives

www.lacie.com/uk

External Firewire / USB 2.0 Drives offer: Easy ‘plug & play’ connection - Portable storage and data exchange Convienient and fast backup (fully compatible with the Windows backup utility) - Easy hard disk expansion

LaCie PocketDrives & MobileDrives

LaCie External Hard Drives Drives Hard d2 MODEL

HDD

DVD+/-RW & CD-RW

-

Sleek, robust case, portable and stackable 7200rpm ideal for DV Video without dropping frames Fast Firewire up to 55MB/s, USB2 34MB/s sustained Firewire, USB2, or new FireWire 800 versions (cables incl.)

- Ultra portable and bus-powered via Firewire or USB (HDD) - no need for separate power cable - Firewire and USB2 (U&I) or FireWire or USB2 only versions - cables included, plus recording software with CD/DVD

Available from: 40GB srp £69 (£81.08 inc VAT), 80GB srp £89 (£104.58 inc VAT), 120GB srp £109 (£128.08 inc VAT),160GB srp £129 (£151.58 inc VAT), 200GB srp £169 (£198.58 inc VAT), 250GB srp £195 (£229.13 inc VAT), 320GB srp £244 (£286.70 inc VAT), 400GB srp £359 (£421.83 inc VAT), 500GB srp £459 (£539.33 inc VAT)

Available from: 20GB srp £84 (£98.70 inc VAT), 40GB srp £114 (£133.95 inc VAT), 60GB srp £199 (£233.83 inc VAT), 80GB srp £214 (£251.45 inc VAT)), 24x24x24x CD-RW/8x DVD Combo srp £97.86 (£114.99 inc VAT), DVD+/-RW multidrive srp £219 (£257.33 inc VAT)

LaCie External CD & DVD+/-RW’s

LaCie Ethernet Ethernet Disk Disk LaCie (Network Storage) Storage) (Network

‘D2’ model ‘P5’ model

-

Sleek, robust case, portable and stackable CD-RW super fast write and rewrite speeds Dual format DVD+/- RW high 4.7GB capacity Bundle includes CD/DVD recording software Firewire or USB2 versions (cables included)

LACIE PCI FIREWIRE OR USB2 CARDS (srp £19)

- Share data among as many as 25 users - Backup function with integrated scheduling feature - Easily administered via any web browser and accessible through any computer on the network or remotely via http/ftp - Increase the capacity through the USB & FireWire interfaces - Quick and simple installation - up and running in 10 minutes

Available from:

Available from:

CD-RW 52x32x52x srp £55.31 (£64.99 inc VAT), DVD+/-RW4x2x12x +CDRW multidrive srp £144 (£169.20 inc VAT)

80GB srp £329 (£386.58 inc VAT),160GB srp £499 (£586.33 inc VAT) 250GB srp £649 (£762.58 inc VAT), 500GB srp £999 (£1173.83 inc VAT)

LaCie products available from leading resellers:

www.dabs.com/lacie

www.macwarehouse.co.uk

www.simply.co.uk

www.pcwb.com

www.jigsaw24.com

www.microwarehouse.co.uk

E&O E, November 2003

www.technomatic.co.uk

www.cwonline.co.uk

www.inmac.co.uk

www.microanvika.co.uk

www.cancomuk.com

www.misco.co.uk

www.microdirect.co.uk

www.ghc.co.uk

www.insight.com/uk

LaCie UK Ltd, 46 Gillingham Street, London, SW1V 1HU - Email: [email protected] www.lacie.com/uk

SUBSCRIPTION FORM 3 EASY WAYS TO ORDER: 2. Post: UK readers – Christmas Orders, Future Publishing Ltd, Freepost BS4900, Somerton, Somerset, TA11 6BR Overseas readers – Christmas Orders, Future Publishing Ltd, Cary Court, Somerton, Somerset, TA11 6TB, UK 3. Fax this completed form to: +44 (0)1458 271 146

✁

1. Phone : 0870 444 8455

STUCK FOR IDEAS THIS CHRISTMAS? Buy a gift that lasts all year

■ I would like to subscribe/renew to

Computer Arts using this special Christmas offer (delete as appropriate):

■ UK (Cheque/credit card) £46.80 (save £31.20!) ■ Europe £73.53 ■ Rest of the world £86.53 For residents in N.America see page 68 for our special subscriptions offer ■

I would like to send a Gift subscription of Computer Arts

*Gift subscription copies will not arrive until the first issue after 25 December 2003

YOUR DETAILS Title ___________Initials __________Surname ________________________ Address ____________________________________________________________ Postcode ________________________Country _________________________ Daytime telephone number _________________________________________ Email address_______________________________________________________

GIFT RECIPIENT’S DETAILS Title ___________Initials __________Surname ________________________ Address ____________________________________________________________ Postcode ________________________Country _________________________ Daytime telephone number _________________________________________ Email address_______________________________________________________

PAYMENT METHODS I understand I will receive 13 Issues over 12 months Please choose your method of payment

1.

Cheque Payable to Computer Arts. Sterling cheques drawn on a UK account

2. 3. Card no

Visa

MasterCard

AMEX

Switch Issue no

■■■■ ■■■■ ■■■■ ■■■■ ■■■■

Expires_____________________________________________________________ Signature ________________________________________________________Date ______________ Your subscription will start with the next available issue Offer code: COAXP91

Offer ends 31 January 2004 Please tick here if you do not wish to receive mail from carefully selected companies Please tick here if you do not wish to receive mail from Future Publishing

COMPUTER ARTS SUBSCRIBERS GET: New and exclusive reviews, demos, interviews and news – keep your skills and creative knowledge up to date ● A special subscriber-only cover, free of coverlines ● Expert techniques and insight for image-manipulation, illustration, Web and graphic design, 3D and digital video ● Dual-format CD-ROM with new content every issue: full programs, stock images, video tutorials and demos ● Full products – previous issues have included Cinema 4D, FreeHand, Poser, Fireworks, trueSpace, AXEL and more ●

Subscribe

SPECIAL CHRISTMAS OFFER SAVE 40% ON THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS GIFT

CHRISTMAS GIFT!

That’s a saving of over £31 on the cover price

• • • •

A Subscription to Computer Arts makes the perfect Christmas gift fo a friend, relative,r or even yourself

FREE delivery direct to your door Never miss an issue Save 40%* on the price you’d pay in the shops FREE** gift card for you to give on Christmas day

*40% Saving is based on 13 issues bought on the UK newsstand. This offer is only available to delivery addresses within the UK. **Gift cards – we recommend that you order your gift subscription before 1 December 2003 as we cannot guarantee your gift card will arrive before 25 December. While orders can still be processed until 15 December, gift cards are unlikely to reach you before Christmas day.

GIVING A GIFT SUBSCRIPTION IS EASY! SIMPLY CALL

0870 444 8455

OVERSEAS +44 870 444 8455

(PLEASE QUOTE CODE COAXP90) *40% Saving is based on 13 issues bought on the UK newsstand. This offer is only available to delivery addresses within the UK.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

71

New and Improved Paint Shop Pro 8 Zero to Hero S. Beacham & R. Lacey

Photoshop Most Wanted 2: More Effects & Design Tips C. Smith & A. Ward “Both Al and Colin have a lot to share with Photoshop users and I can tell you this: you’re going to have a lot of fun, you’re going to learn an awful lot, and you’re going to meet two of the nicest, most sincere guys in the business along the way. Enjoy!” Scott Kelby, editor-in-chief, Photoshop User magazine and president, NAPP

Designed to help you progress from a Paint Shop Pro beginner to a master in the blink of an eye... Paint Shop Pro 8 is a feature-packed graphics tool that enables you to edit and enhance your photos, as well as use its powerful drawing and text tools to create artwork from scratch. Comprehensively illustrated in full color throughout, Paint Shop Pro 8 Zero to Hero answers all these questions and enables you to create professional looking graphics for your home and business projects. Oct-03

FREE SAMPLE CHAPTER ON THE COVER CD ‘THE DIGITAL DARKROOM’ PLUS APPENDIX OF RESOURCES FOR THE WEB

290 pp

Softcover

ISBN: 1-59059-238-7

RRP: £18.00

FREE SAMPLE CHAPTERS ON THE COVER CD ‘LAYER STYLES PLUS ACTIONS FOR COOL EFFECTS’ and ‘FROM CLIP ART TO 3D’

SPECIAL PRICE FOR COMPUTER ARTS READERS £14.40 plus p&p

Jam-packed with great effects and design tips to achieve these in Adobe Photoshop, this book teaches you how to create a whole range of textures, use Masks, Gradients, and Filters, and also uncovers some of the most sophisticated effects possible in Photoshop including realistic 3D objects. In this book, you will • Create your own actions and amazing layer styles • Discover basic and advanced techniques to jazz up your images • Push Photoshop to the edge • Use the most popular effects and stunning variations • See designers working and playing in tandem • Get creative inspiration and great ideas Oct-03

288 pp

Softcover with CD Rom ISBN: 1-59059-262-X

SPECIAL PRICE FOR COMPUTER ARTS READERS

Flash 3D Cheats Most Wanted A. Balkan, J. Dura, A. Eden, B. Monnone, J.D. Palmer, J. Tarbell & T. Yard

RRP: £35.50

£28.40 plus p&p

Early Bird – SAVE 25% WHEN YOU ORDER EITHER ONE OR BOTH OF THESE

Loaded with the most wanted tips, tricks, and techniques to enable you to create impressive 3D art for the web.

A SAMPLE OF 10 READY TO CUSTOMIZE WORKING EXAMPLES PLUS DETAILED STEP-BY-STEP TUTORIALS ARE AVAILABLE ON THE COVER CD

Foundation Flash MX 2004 K. Besley & S. Bhangal

Flash 3D Cheats Most Wanted is the first Flash book to focus entirely on 3D design without the need for secondary 3D-specific software. Comprehensively illustrated in full colour, each chapter is packed full of the most wanted tips, tricks, and techniques to demonstrate exactly how to achieve stunning, professional 3D art for the Web. In a series of clear and concise demonstrations, the authors show you exactly what can be achieved in Web 3D. This is not, a tutorial book from start to finish – it includes an aspiring collection of over 100 working examples and demonstrations that professional Web 3D designers are using today, ready to customize and incorporate within the reader’s own designs, along with detailed step-by-step tutorials. Sep-03

264 pp

Softcover

ISBN: 1-59059-221-2

Nov-03 600 pp Softcover ISBN: 1-59059-303-0 RRP: £21.50 Special EARLY BIRD RATE: £16.12 plus p&p

Foundation ActionScript for Flash MX 2004 S. Bhangal Nov-03 504 pp Softcover ISBN: 1-59059-305-7 RRP: £25.00 Special EARLY BIRD RATE: £18.75 plus p&p

RRP: £28.50

SPECIAL PRICE FOR COMPUTER ARTS READERS £22.80 plus p&p

All Computer Arts readers can claim

20% discount on friends of ED books

MAKE OUR BOOKS YOUR FIRST CHOICE To order, please visit

Distributed by

www.friendsofed.com/computerarts

springeronline.com

Alternatively, you can choose a book from the FREE catalogue available on the cover CD and email: [email protected] to order. Offer ends February 1st 2004

Quick Tutorial Q&A

SHORTCUTS DREAMWEAVER Problems with Netscape 4 can discourage designers from using CSS properly. We explain how you give NN4 a simple style sheet, while allowing more recent browsers to use CSS to the full, and give you the lowdown on advanced selectors

I

f you’re not using CSS to format your pages, our view is that you probably should be. Why? Well, for a start CSS enables you to format the text on your pages with a far more precise and comprehensive range of options than that available with the FONT tag, and it also offers control over colour, layout, background images, borders, margins, positioning and even cursor icons. A useful tip to begin with, is to always save the basic formatting for your site in an external CSS file that you then attach to all your pages; this way, you can keep the formatting for your site consistent by just editing the shared styles from within one of the documents that use them. The main problem with using CSS, is that Netscape 4 has very weak support for most attributes. Not only do many simple things just fail to work, but using some attributes such as Line Height may make your document unusable in Netscape 4. This has meant that many designers habitually use just the tiny subset of CSS that’s compatible between NN4 and other CSS-aware browsers. It’s an unfortunate approach, since the browsers used by around 95 per cent of the audience (Explorer 5 and 6, Opera 7.0, Mozilla, Safari and so forth) support almost all of the available CSS options in Dreamweaver in a reasonably consistent manner (IE Win’s interpretation of the CSS box model aside, that is). But there’s a better way: work in two external style sheet files instead of one, and save the basic formatting that Netscape is happy with in one and the more advanced formatting in the other. Then, stop Netscape 4 from seeing the advanced styles by using Import instead of Link to attach the advanced style sheet. Netscape 4 doesn’t understand the @import rule, which means that the advanced formatting is safely hidden from this geriatric browser. All other CSSsavvy browsers will correctly use both.

While Netscape 4 users will not see the page as you intend, bear in mind that this is a decreasing audience (on average in mid 2003, only around one per cent of the audience are now using NN4) – the important issue, is at the very least you must be able to ensure that pages are readable for these users. There is another option for applying CSS formatting to selected parts of the page, and that’s making use of ID selectors. Most Dreamweaver users don’t

NN4 USERS ARE A DECREASING AUDIENCE, ON AVERAGE ONLY AROUND ONE PER CENT – THE IMPORTANT ISSUE, IS AT THE VERY LEAST YOU MUST BE ABLE TO ENSURE THAT PAGES ARE READABLE FOR THESE USERS

know about them because there’s little interface to create them, and the only way to apply them is through the Contextual menu on the tag selector. ID selectors enable you to name specific parts of the page – such as navigation, content, header and so on – and define styles that will affect only that part of the page using selectors such as “#nav”. In addition, you can use CSS descendant selectors such as “#nav a” or “#nav td” to define rules for certain tags, but only instances of them that occur as descendants of the element with that ID. Using these works fairly well even in NN4, and removes much of the need for using classes. INFO Expertise supplied by Ian Anderson of zStudio: [email protected], www.zstudio.co.uk

CREATING ID SELECTIONS

1

Start by using the Attach Style Sheet command in the CSS Styles panel to attach two style sheets, choosing Link for the basic one and Import for the advanced one to hide it from Netscape 4.

2

As you can see here, Dreamweaver gives you the option in the Properties palette to set the ID for some elements, such as tables and form elements.

4

3

Create advanced selectors by typing the ID name and descendant tag selectors so you can format the contents of each area specifically.

Dreamweaver also offers the chance to apply an ID rule that you’ve defined in your CSS to any element by right-clicking or Ctrl-clicking a tag in the tag selector and using the Contextual menu.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

73

ILLUSTRATION BY ROB CHIU

www.theronin.co.uk

74 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Tutorial

3D COMPOSITING

AFTER EFFECTS 6 This month, we have a complete AE6 package on the CD: a 30-day demo, three plug-ins, plus a tutorial by AE6 expert Chris Kenworthy, who’ll help you create an epic sci-fi scene using just ordinary footage After Effects 6 is a powerful package, and one of its most improved features is Motion Tracking. By tracking points in a clip, you can add artificial backgrounds and elements to your footage without them looking stuck-on. It’s even possible to use handheld footage, as you will in this tutorial, and still integrate all the elements seamlessly. This tutorial guides you through the steps required to create a realistic background, and a 3D Lighting Wall, which the car bursts through. By the time you’ve worked through this step-by-step guide, you’ll have discovered how to get the most from 3D compositing. A couple of alternative versions of the final result are included on the CD, and you’re free to have a go with your own footage. If ever you’re uncertain about which tool to use, or which window you’re in, remember that AE can always guide you. Just roll your mouse over the tools or items you’re interested in and a brief explanation will pop up. To get started, install your demo of AE6 from the CD, along with the free Digital Anarchy plug-ins. We’ll be using the Text Spiral filter towards the end of the tutorial; this enables you to uncurl text along a path, which gives you intuitive control over every character and parameter. INFO Tutorial by Chris Kenworthy, [email protected]

ON THE CD On the cover CD, you’ll find a 30-day demo of After Effects 6 for PC and Mac, plus all the files you need to complete the project, in the Tutorial\After Effects folder. You’ll find the three free Text Anarchy plug-ins for AE6 from Digital Anarchy (www.digitalanarchy.com) in the Digital Anarchy folder.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

75

^

PART 1 SETTING UP THE PROJECT Watch the Escape.mov clip (on the cover CD) before you start

INSIGHT FEATHERY MATTE

If you have the time and the patience, you can draw a highly exact matte around the trees and the horizon. The better solution, however, is to feather the matte, making it transparent at the edges. If you study photographs of cities behind dark backgrounds and in foggy light, you’ll see that the horizon glow is quite common. This won’t work for every matte, but it’s ideal for bright, distant backgrounds.

Next, tracking the city, Your Motion target 7 will be CityBG.tif, so you don’t need to Edit Target yet. Ensure the Rotation box is unchecked, and click the Analyze Forward arrow. The track box should track accurately until near the very end. Manual correction will be need later for these last few frames. For now, click Apply.

shows you what we hope to 1andEscape.mov achieve – so, to get going, create a New project New Composition, then call it CarCity. From the CD, import the clips Car.wide, CarClose.mov and the City.tif. Drag CarWide.mov to the timeline. Now drag the Current Time Indicator to the far left (the beginning of the composition).

Now onto adjusting the matte. Set CityBG.tif 4 to Layer>Blending Mode>Normal. Click the triangle next to CityBG to expand the layer’s parameters; expand the parameters for Mask 1. Now drag the Feather setting to about 35. This flare at the base of the matte makes accuracy less important, and the glow brings a surprising level of realism to the matte.

Click back to the Composite window. The city 8 is currently misaligned, so drag Anchor Point settings to correct. Watch the results, then expand the city layer’s parameters. Drag the Current Time Marker to the point where the track becomes inaccurate. Drag around the last few incorrect Position keyframes and delete.

Drag CityBG.tif to the timeline (above the 2 car movie), setting Layer>Blending Mode> Darken. Adjust the city’s position so that it’s in roughly the right place for the final movie. Click the Motion Blur box (beneath the M to the left of the timeline); do this for all layers in the tutorial.

With CityBG selected, choose Effects>Keying> 5 Luma Key set to Key Out Brighter and set Threshold to 220. Finally, choose Effects>Blurs> Gaussian Blur, with Blurriness set to 1.0. This removes the white background, and eases the towering city into the distance.

Drag the Current Time Marker a few frames 9 forward, then drag the city into the correct place visually. Move to the very end of the footage, and drag the city to the right, out of sight. Review your work, using the same keyframe points, to make any adjustments. Single-click the CarWide.mov layer, and 6 choose Animation>Track Motion. You are taken out of the Composite window into the Using the Pen tool, click around the base of 3 the city, cutting out the shape of the trees, the line and horizon. Don’t click and drag – just click, then move. When you’ve marked the lower edge, click several around the whole city. This creates a suitable matte around the image.

76 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

CarWide.mov layer itself. Click inside the inner track box, without clicking the cross-hair, and drag the cross-hair and box to a distinctive point in the image which will remain the same throughout.

^

PART 2 BUILDING A LIGHTNING WALL Now to create a ‘lightning’ wall, make it 3D, and add some vital motion

INSIGHT

Tutorial

MOTION TRACKING

Although the Motion Tracker in After Effects is powerful, it takes skill to use it well. You should always select a point that remains constant throughout; for instance, don’t pick a point on the horizon that will be covered by the car. Ideally, pick a point of high contrast and low movement, such as a kink in the tree line.

SHADOWS

Whenever you add a 3D element to an image, bear in mind how a real 3D object would look in that position. Do you need to adjust Optical Compensation, to make it look like it was shot with the same lens as the background footage? Is a shadow required? Would it interact with the footage in any other way?

To start adding motion to the wall, go to 16 the beginning of the clip and fine-tune the wall’s position, if required. Click the Track Motion button to Create Tracker 2 in the CarWide layer. Choose a distinctive point with the cross-hairs (somewhere on the road) and click the Analyze Forward button. When you’re done, click Apply.

Create a New Composition called CarLight, 10 and drag your CarCity Composition into its timeline. Go to New>Solid, create a black solid at your Composite’s size. Name it ‘lightning’ and Apply Effect>Render>Advanced Lightning.

Now we’ll make the wall 3D. Drag to the 13 middle of the car footage, and use the Rotate tool to drag the coloured arrows in the 3D Lightning layer. By rotating the layer in 3D space, you can position it accurately on the road so it sits better in the scene. In the Transform properties, click the keyframe clock for all the properties.

Drag the Anchor Points to position the 17 Lightning layer on the road; its movement should be correct throughout. If the layer intersects with your car layer, make sure you use all three Anchor settings to drag the layer forward. Resize if required, but don’t manually adjust position – only tweak the Anchor Points.

Check the Composite on Original box and 11 use the cross-hairs and colour settings to create yellow lighting as shown above, and set to Strike. Click all the keyframe clocks, drag to the end of the clip, and change the origin and end points. You now have animated lighting.

Go to Effect>Perspective>Bevel Edges to 14 give the layer some edge definition. Shrink the edge slightly from the default, and rotate the light source so it comes in from the right. At the very beginning of the clip, set the 18 Lightning layer’s opacity to zero and check the keyframe clock. Now go a second or so in and set the same layer’s opacity to 100, so that the Lightning wall fades into view. For a stronger effect, add more Advanced 12 Lighting. Check the 3D box for both layers (it’s a box to the left of the timeline, indicated by a cube). Drag the corner-point of the Lightning Layer to shrink it to the correct size for the effect (or use Scale in the parameters). Go to Effect>Distort>Optics Compensation 15 to add some realistic lens curvature. Exaggerating this a little makes the wall really feel like it’s in the environment, rather than a stuck-on layer. Set View Centre to the middle of the entire frame and the Field of View to 20.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

77

^

PART 3 CASTING SHADOWS Next, we’ll work on shadows and light

INSIGHT KEYFRAMES

When you expand a layer’s transform properties (by clicking the triangle next to the layer’s name), you can see each keyframe marked by a small diamond. This means that if your motion tracking data is incorrect, you can select the guilty keyframes and delete them.

Paste (Edit>Paste) the Lighting Layer 25 into this composition, drag-select all its Transform properties and delete them. Now adjust the Scale and Rotation so that it fills the screen, as shown. Set Opacity to 60 and the Blending mode to Multiply.

Go to Layer>New>Light (Ambient) to create 19 an effective 3D light source. To evoke a rusty desert feeling, set the colour by clicking the colour box and clicking in the colour wheel. Choose Effect>Render>Colour Gradient. 22 Set the colours so that points close to the wall are dark, those furthest away more like the road’s. Set the layer’s Blending mode to Multiply and Opacity to 60. Add a Gaussian blur of 40.

Apply Effect>Simulation>Shatter, and 26 set Shape to Glass. Although you could place this layer with tracking data, manual adjustments work well. Place the origin point cross-hair at the car’s nose, click the keyframe clock, move on a second or so and repeat.

20

Duplicate the Lightning Layer with Edit>Duplicate. Rename the new layer ‘Shadow’ (press Return to rename). An exact copy of the layer carries the correct tracking data. You could use the layer’s detail in the shadow, but here you’ll only create a simple shadow. First, make it a 3D layer, as shown.

Check that the shadow’s animation 23 matches that of the wall throughout. If there are problems, check through to make sure you haven’t added unnecessary anchor point changes (as keyframes) or made manual position changes.

Set the Shatter Effect View to Render and 27 watch through. You could adjust the 3D rotation of this layer to make the shatter more realistic, but as the pieces fall away, they’ll show reasonable depth without further adjustment. Now go To Effect>Distort>Corner Pin and 21 use the cross-hairs to arrange the shadow as though it’s flowing out and away from the wall. If a false intersection occurs, change the anchor settings to bring the layer forward. Check tracking throughout, and adjust if required.

78 Computer Arts_Christmas2003

Copy the Lightning layer pasteboard 24 (Edit>Copy). Create a New Composition called Final. Drag the CarLight Composite into the new timeline, then drag the CarClose clip into place at the end of the CarLight composite. Make the layer 3D and apply a New Light (Ambient) with a similar colour to before.

Tutorial

^

PART 4 ADDING TITLES

INSIGHT MANUAL ADJUSTMENT When making manual change to motion, remember that the power of keyframes work best when used sparingly. You could adjust the city’s position for every frame, but this would lack accuracy, and the city would wobble. By shifting the city at a couple of keyframe points, its position is guessed accurately across an entire range of points.

With the free Text Anarchy plug-ins installed (on your CD), use the Text Spiral filter to uncurl your text

Set beginning Tracking to –45, and set 31 Rotation for beginning and end to about 100. This curls the text up. You can use the Text Position to set the origin point in the top left.

Create a New Black Solid called titles, 28 above all the other layers, and position its start point about three seconds from the end

Move to end of the clip, set Tracking back 33 to Zero and reset the rotation to O. This uncurls the text as it moves along the path,

of the sequence we’ve been working on. Apply Effect>Digit Anarchy>Text Spiral.

with the colours changing at the same rate. Expanding the Path Start/End point can give you extra control over the text’s movement.

Set Opacity to 0, click the keyframe clock 32 and move halfway to the end of the clip, then set opacity to 100. Change the colours to white for Beginning, End and Alternate, so that all the text becomes white after the effect is applied.

Enter the word ‘Escapist’ in a font of your 29 choosing. Click the eye icons for the other clips, to make them invisible while you work on

FINAL STEP

ake the eye icons visible again and change M Blending mode to Add. You can fade the text out for a smoother ending. Check through, then choose Make Movie from the Composition Menu and you’re done. All that’s left now is to compare your results with that on the CD in the Tutorial\After Effects folder.

the text. Set beginning and end Font Sizes to 60, and click the keyframe clocks.

Set Path to Wave, the Path Size to 138, and 30 click the keyframe clocks for both. Use the colour pickers to choose varied colours for the beginning and end points, and set Alt Colour Tolerance to 30 per cent. Keyframe all settings.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

79

pRoFILE

CLARISSA TOSSIN EMAIL [email protected] WEBSITE www.a-linha.org

Brazilian artist Clarissa Tossin is just one of the design talents showcased in Worldwide.Designers.2007, a new publication featuring over 140 international designers. Her work shines out from the pages for its fresh, contemporary feel that has attracted clients such as MTV, Vogue and Die Gestalten Verlag. The self-titled ‘one-woman design studio’, based in São Paulo, began as a photographic outfit, and now incorporates work for print, Web and animation. Tossin’s creative tools include Illustrator, Photoshop, FreeHand, Fontographer and Flash. To see more of her work alongside other international talent, get your hands on the superb new book Worldwide.Designers.2007 at www.wwd07.com. What image is on your desktop?

I exchange it often – usually for something new I’ve just done. Which Websites do you visit most?

Friends’ sites, news sites, my bank site and Google. What are you obsessed by?

Pink. Still. I hope it’ll change soon… Name one brilliant illustrator/designer

John Warwicker from Tomato for his attitude and creative concepts. I thank him so much for encouraging my production. What are you working on now?

I have recently completed some animations for the Austrian telecommunications company Hutchison 3G. I was commissioned by Liquid Frontiers to curate an ‘experimental content piece’, to be part of the local 3G services. It will be presented to the public in a special exhibition at the Kunsthalle Wien in Austria this autumn. I’ve also designed a typeface for Die Gestalten Verlag’s online font shop, a pair of posters – The Man and The City – for the Tekko.03_Future Beautiful exhibition that takes place in Toronto next February, and a whole visual identity, including Website, logo and tags for new Brazilian fashion designer, Karlla Girotto.

1

What do you read in bed?

Clarice Lispector, newspapers, medicine directions for use… Favourite city?

Brasília – where I spent my adolescence. How do you celebrate completing a project?

With a bottle of Serra Malte, the best traditional Brazilian beer at the bar on the corner of my street. But sometimes I run out of energy and all I can do is dash to bed. Best album to work to?

It depends on my mood – from SND to Flaming Lips. Without forgetting how essential silence can be, I like to listen to the daily urban sound. If you weren’t busy being a designer, what would you be doing now?

I don’t think there’s a way out! But I’d probably be doing something far removed from the image-making world – maybe cooking. What keeps you awake at night?

The chime of my neighbour’s grandmother clock downstairs. 2

80 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Profile

5

3 4 1. Tossin illustrated the children’s tale Ms Holle by the Brothers Grimm, for a book by Die Gestalten Verlag. 2. This is CD and brochure artwork that Tossin produced for São Paulo Fashion Week in 2002, for its vol.03 CD with Trama Records. 3. An iIlustration for the cover of the experimental and electronic US music magazine, Grooves. 4. Tossin was asked to reinterpret a poster by famous 60s cuban designer, Alfredo Gonzáles Rostgaard. The poster illustrates El Cielo Amenaza, a film by French director Yves Ciampi. 5. This illustration and font collection entitled Saudade featured in the new book, Brasil Inspired. 6. Tossin also designed a brochure cover and CD artwork for São Paulo Fashion Week this year. “The inspiration for this was the different skin colour of the Brazilian population, and how our blood is a melted racial pot,” she explains. 7. Female Controller is an interactive animation inspired by pinball machines from the 80s.

6

7

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

81

Adobe

Photoshop FocusGuide From the makers of Computer Arts

132 INFORMATION-PACKED PAGES PLUS FREE CD-ROM

ON SALE 20 NOVEMBER

ON SALE 18 DECEMBER

The world’s best image editing program isn’t just for the pros! We’ll help you master Photoshop’s essential tools and features

GET YOUR COPY NOW Available from

and other retailers CONTENTS SUBJECT TO CHANGE

REVIEWS

★★★★★

SOFTWARE

OUR FIVE-STAR RATING EXPLAINED

combustion 3 p84 Vue 4 Professional p86

For a piece of software or hardware to make it into Computer Arts’ reviews section, it has to reach a certain standard. Truly dire products will be ignored, which is why you’ll rarely see one-star ratings. Our reviewers are experts in their own fields. We assess tools from the viewpoint of the professional designer. Does the product do what it’s meant to do? Is the interface clean? Is it quick, reliable and useful? And is it good value? Computer Arts Recommended awards are only given to products that are particularly good value, or truly excel in what they do.

Studio MX 2004 p88 Avid Xpress Pro p90 KPT Collection p92 OS X 10.3 Panther p94 Soundtrack p95 HARDWARE

Power Mac G5 Dual 2GHz p96 Creative Stuff p98 GROUP TEST

WIDESCREEN LAPTOPS p102

Toshiba P20 Fujitsu-Siemens D1840 ACI Inspiration Apple PowerBook 15-inch Rock DTS

My, my… Discreet has been busy. Over the last month, it’s shipped latest versions of two of its most celebrated applications – 3ds max 6 and combustion 3. This issue, we get our hands on combustion 3, Discreet’s compositing and motion graphics tool, and it’s a prime example of just how minor tweaks can transform a package into something really special. (We’ll cover 3ds max 6 next month.) Also on test this issue is Vue D'Esprit 4 Professional, a tool that promises to bridge the divide between landscape generation and pro 3D design. In addition, we thoroughly test Avid Xpress Pro, an NLE that proves a little too pricey for its feature-set. KPT Collection from Corel also rears its head, with a nostalgic set of filters that graphic designers will remember fondly. And a first for Computer Arts: we review an operating system – in the form of OS X 10.3 Panther. The latest OS from Apple really does introduce new features that designers will love – Exposé being the most useful. In addition, we look at Soundtrack, the new dual 2GHz G5 Power Mac, and Group Test five of the best widescreen laptops. Enjoy! Rob Carney Deputy Editor [email protected]

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

83

COMBUSTION 3

PC

£852

COMPOSITING Discreet unveils version 3 of its mid-range tool – is this competition for After Effects? CONTACT Discreet 020 8200 8282 www.discreet.com

SYSTEM PC Pentium III 850MHZ • 256MB RAM • 2GB HD with120MB space • Video display card with 4MB of VRAM (1024x768 display with 24-bit colour minimum required) MAC combustion 3 for the Mac is due to ship early 2004

FOR Excellent particle system Very responsive ● Clear interface ●

F

or a long time, Discreet has been at the top of the tree when it comes to high-end compositing and effects work. Compositors like flame and flint are used by the best post-production houses to create effects for Hollywood movies, adverts and anyone else who can pay the massive hourly costs of hiring them. With combustion, the company brings the same look and feel, the same workflow, and many of the same highquality tools to the desktop, at a price which competes (well, almost) with Adobe After Effects. Admittedly, v3 is more update than full rewrite. Improved cacheing enables you to save different tool setups for different users, and useful extra information markers are positioned on the timeline. This release also consolidates tools, adds neat functions and brings in a Warping tool previously only available as an add-on.

●

AGAINST A bit expensive Limited text tools ● Not a massive leap from v2 ● ●

VERDICT

★★★★ The basic tools of combustion – the tracker, the keyer, the masking tools, the colour corrector, the text generator and so on – are all of excellent quality, and the workflows are flexible and intuitive. Its particle system and connectivity with 3ds max are better than the competition. Version 3 isn’t a massive step forward, but it does bring in morphing and greatly extends video painting.

THE TOOLSET combustion’s strengths are mainly features borrowed from its high-end stablemates. The superb interface keeps all the tools to the bottom-third of the screen in well-organised tabs, freeing up the rest of the screen for the video frame itself. This helps you focus on the job in hand, rather than the tools you’re using to achieve it, and compares well with rival products that often boast a confusion of windows, toolbars and palettes. The tool area is divided into two sections. To the left, you’ll find a set of general navigation tools for moving

around your composite. These enable you to configure the monitor section of the screen any way you like. A flowchart view, for those who like this way of working, provides an overview of your work. There are also navigation tools for the stack, where footage and any modifying effects you’ve added are kept in a hierarchical order. To the right of the tool area is a selection of contextsensitive panels which provide access to combustion’s various effects, be they keyers, trackers, text tools, colour correctors or morphing functions. Above the tools are controls which you can use to scrub the timeline. It’s a system that works well, and keeps the desktop tidy. combustion 3 takes tools from Discreet’s other top-flight packages, and includes an excellent colour corrector, keying tools, and a robust set of tracking and masking functions. It also provides a particle system that’s flexible, versatile and a joy to use. Right from the start, you can drop in a range of realistic smoke, flame and explosions, add some twinkling fairy dust, or open up a warp gate with a few simple clicks of the mouse. The technology is identical to Wondertouch’s Particle Illusion plug-in, but when combined with combustion’s other masking and tracking tools, it becomes a lot more powerful than your typical standalone package.

EDITING FUNCTIONS Whatever you do in combustion, you can watch the results pretty much as they’re created. This means that even when

The keyer offers strong compositing tools. Here, semi-transparent objects are being superimposed, but combustion still preserves their subtlety.

84 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Review

FEATURES Fully featured 3D compositor ● Range of masking tools ● 2D particle system ● Full text generator ● Video Paint tools ● Shockwave export ● OpenGL rendering of effects ● Basic video-editing tools ● DV capture ● Image distortion/ morphing tools ● Full range of effects and colour filters ●

The colour corrector is simple to use, but still enables you to produce some surprisingly subtle effects, like this calm dinosaur scene.

you’re working on a very complex effect, you can expect a responsive and interactive experience. Sometimes you don’t just want to create an effect on one shot in isolation; sometimes, an effect spans a number of shots, and the exact cut point is determined by the way your effect manifests itself. For these reasons, compositors have now begun to include basic editing functions. You wouldn’t want to use combustion as an editor, but if you’re cutting a few shots together with an effect as part of them, or if the editing of a sequence contains effects as an integral part of the cut, you can work very finely with your sequence within the package. With v3, you can now slip a layer, moving it in time, and choose whether its effect keyframes move with it or not. You can also split a layer – the equivalent of the razor tool in an editing package. This creates two separate layers – one containing each section of the cut clip. You can then add effects to one or both of the cut sections. Like most compositors, but unlike editors, combustion treats each cut as a separate layer – so if, for example, you have an explosion, shot from two different angles, and you cut back and forth during the effect from one angle to the other, you’ll end up with lots of layers. Each layer will contain substantially the same shot, so it can get tricky to keep a track of things.

NEW ADDITIONS combustion 3 offers Flash output, so you can also use the program to create Web graphics. With combustion’s great compositing tools, a whole different world opens up to

RE:FLEX combustion 3 enjoys a $600 add-on One of the most interesting new additions to combustion is Re:Flex. This add-on – previously available separately at $600 – is now part of the combustion package. It’s a powerful warping and morphing tool, enabling you to intuitively create distortion effects that are either static or that develop over time. The inclusion of RE:Flex is probably a reaction to

Adobe’s addition of Photoshop’s Liquify tool in the latest iteration of After Effects, but it goes a step further than this. It uses the package’s own masking and painting tools, enabling you to tie the distortion to the motion tracker – so you can now make a character’s bulging-eye effect follow their eyes, even when they’re moving their head around.

The particle system provides o “ne-click”access to common particle effects such as pyrotechnics and sparkles. It’s also very flexible.

Text can be set up easily and generally looks pretty good – although the new text tools in Adobe After Effects will take some beating.

Flash designers. However, it’s worth noting that the package isn’t designed for making Flash movies. It’s very easy to end up introducing effects that are needlessly uneconomical with bandwidth. Expressions are another new addition. Using a JavaScript-based language, you can automate your animations. Expressions can be written, saved, and then used over and over in different projects. A range of pre-written Expressions are supplied with the package, easily accessed via the Expressions Browser. You don’t need to know how they work to create sine motion, random vibrations, or various circular and curving motions. You simply add them to any animated function to create vastly different effects. For example, adding a sine wave to the vertical position of an object makes it bounce up and down, while adding the same Expression to its scale makes an object grow and shrink. Video Painting is one of combustion’s specialities. Different brush strokes can be made using a variety of brushes, as well as manipulated over time and tracked to follow objects on-screen. In addition, you can use a range of extra custom brushes or create brushes from video layers, particles or geometric shapes. Cloning and tracking combine easily with the brush strokes for added flexibility, enabling you to perform vital touch-up work, wire removal or rotoscoping effects relatively quickly – even on moving shots. So what’s our final take on combustion 3? Although not a major leap for the program, it’s certainly evolved in the right direction. New users will find the app intuitive to use, and the tools are superb; combustion 2 users upgrading for £159 will be impressed by the new additions, particularly morphing and the enhancements to Video Painting.

Custom Brushes are a strong addition to combustion 3, offering extended tools for rotoscoping, video painting and cloning.

Editing isn’t known as the preserve of the compositor, but sometimes it’s useful to put in a few cuts and transitions as part of an effect. Version 3 gives you some decent cutting tools.

The ability to export Flash files makes combustion accessible to a new range of users, and provides a host of exciting new options.

Expressions now enable you to write JavaScript-style code for automating animations. Useful presets are provided.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

85

VUE 4 PROFESSIONAL

PC AND MAC

£492

3D Is the latest iteration of e-on’s excellent landscaper generator really good enough for pros? CONTACT e-on Software Buy online www.e-onsoftware.com

SYSTEM PC 1GHz Pentium III • 256MB RAM • 250MB HD space • Win NT4/2000/XP MAC 1.25GHz G4 • 256MB RAM • 250MB HD space • OS X 10.2

FOR Unparalleled rendering quality at this level ● Extensive import and export options ● Excellent attention to detail throughout

F

or a program that originally came on a couple of floppies when it was launched six years ago, Vue d’Esprit has travelled pretty far, pretty fast. Earlier versions may have been little more than an almost slavish homage to Bryce, but Vue has long surpassed that ageing toy, and is now one of the major players in the field of natural landscape generators. While similar to the excellent Vue d’Esprit 4, Vue 4 Professional is a direct response to the call for more proorientated features: this iteration expands on object and scene export options, adds synchronisation with major 3D apps, provides easier compositing, and much, much more.

●

AGAINST Some stability problems with our version ● Depth of field and soft shadows can look grainy ● Huge leap in price ●

VERDICT

★★★★ Vue 4 was always a cut above other c‘ onsumer’ 3D packages, and this latest release makes it even more attractive to the jobbing artist. There’s still room for improvement, of course, but Vue is rapidly becoming the leader in its genre.

VUE VEGETATION Vue’s main focus remains the same: to create convincing naturalistic scenery. Terrain can be created with familiar fractal means using a heightmap, which is then clothed with complex multi-layered textures that can respond to height and altitude. You can then add water, clouds and other atmospheric phenomena, such as moons, along with a good variety of randomly grown vegetation types. Then it’s time to animate using either a ‘fly-through’ wizard, which simulates a variety of vehicles, or a more advanced spline-based animation system. You can also animate objects, skies, plants and the terrain itself. Like Bryce, Vue can in theory be used as a more generalpurpose 3D package, although its modelling capabilities are limited to primitives and Boolean operations. Still, you can import more complex forms from other apps – and it’s this connectivity that really characterises Vue 4 Pro. Vue’s vegetation has always been among the most realistic in any landscape package. Although each plant and

tree species of the 30-odd available are essentially pre-set 3D objects with elegant texture mapping, each is randomly ‘grown’ to ensure some variety. The Plant Editor enables you to alter such features as trunk and branch length, droop, curl and randomness, as well as add new texture maps to branches and leaves. Unlike many dedicated vegetation plug-ins, controls are kept to a minimum, while the real-time OpenGL preview means tweaking a particular species is a relatively simple process. Plants now benefit from another subtle addition: wind. By default, all vegetation is set to flutter gently in the breeze during an animation; the Atmosphere Editor provides a comprehensive set of controls to alter turbulence, intensity, and so on. While Breeze settings are global, you can also apply per-plant Wind settings for more exaggerated effects, such as bending during a strong gust. Get it right and the results can be spectacular. The Wind Editor provides an animated OpenGL preview for instant feedback, as indeed do most of the editors and main display in Vue 4 Pro. These previews have been tweaked for speed and now include a lot more detail, including texture maps, automatic colouring of objects based on their materials, and even lens flares. We did have a few problems with the display freezing in high-polygon scenes, but in its defence, the app did report that the display driver for the card (an ATI Radeon 9700 Pro) hadn’t been verified for compatibility.

PROFESSIONAL TOOLS Vue 4 Pro’s rendering system hasn’t changed radically; it still uses the same excellent raytracing algorithms, and is remarkably fast considering the number of polys it has to

Vue 4 Pro can handle millions of polygons’ worth of vegetation and still not choke. There are 2820 coconut trees in this image…

86 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Review

DOWN ON THE FARM Put those wasted CPU cycles to use Vue d’Esprit 4 already featured support for multiple processors, but Vue 4 Pro naturally takes this a step further with the introduction of network rendering. HyperVue, as e-on likes to call it, can render across a hybrid network of both Mac and Windows machines, for both single frames and animations. Each machine simply has to be supplied with a RenderCow node (render farm – geddit?), and the whole caboodle is controlled with a straightforward interface built into the renderer.

As well as a v ‘ ehicle simulator’ animation wizard for roving cameras, there’s plenty of scope to get down and dirty with animation curves.

churn through. However, there are a slew of handy additions. You can now speed up soft and volumetric shadows by using shadow maps instead of raytracing, for instance. You can also tweak anti-aliasing settings down to the last pixel, while a bunch of camera post-processing options add further flexibility. More importantly from an integration point of view, you can save renders with full G-Buffer info and as RPF files, for use within combustion, 3ds max, After Effects, et al. The render window gives you access to all G-Buffer layers such as Z-Depth, and there’s a facility to render behind opaque objects to help with comping. Other smaller but useful options, such as being able to control a light’s diffuse and highlight components independently, show that e-on has truly listened to pro users. Continuing the integration theme, all objects – including, at last, vegetation – can now be exported complete with texture maps. Most major file formats are covered and UV co-ordinates for each object are generated internally by a flattening algorithm, while procedural materials can be rendered and exported as flat bitmaps. In fact, you can now

simple but effective tools enable you to automatically match up camera and light movements from your usual 3D app to Vue’s equivalents, for ease of compositing. Other small but useful changes ensure this iteration of Vue 4 is the most flexible yet. Indeed, the only area which hasn’t really altered in the last few versions is perhaps the oldest: terrain modelling. Compared to the other features, the Terrain Editor is now looking somewhat dated and clunky. We can only imagine how powerful Vue would be if it boasted, say, the advanced fractal maths of MojoWorld…

YOU CAN NOW SPEED UP SOFT AND VOLUMETRIC SHADOWS BY USING SHADOW MAPS INSTEAD OF RAYTRACING export entire scenes as 3ds max or LightWave files. Results vary, but in general Vue 4 Pro makes a decent fist of dealing with high-poly terrains. Import options remain unchanged. Missing from the release CD but available with the first patch are a bunch of synchronisation plug-ins for 3ds max, Maya, LightWave, Cinema 4D and Softimage|XSI. These

Under Mac OS X, new nodes are automatically detected and used as they’re connected, and you can also add or remove nodes during a render. Five RenderCow nodes are supplied with the basic package. When a new version of the rendering software is available, each node automatically updates itself from the Internet without interrupting a render – as does Vue 4 Pro itself when a patch is released. It’s attention to details such as these that truly bring the app into the pro arena.

TOP OF THE TREE

Vue 4 Pro certainly succeeds in appealing to a pro user. Already the best landscape tool available for the price, it’s easier to use than WorldBuilder or World Construction Set, capable of generating some outstanding images, and now it can talk directly to your other day-to-day apps. True, you could achieve much the same results in a good 3D package using dedicated plug-ins, but doing so would be more expensive and time-consuming. If you’ve always considered Vue a lowend irrelevance, think again – this will surprise you…

FEATURES •Full object and scene export •Synchronisation with major 3D applications •New compositing options •Plant editing and animation •Advanced network rendering •Rendering efficiency optimisations •Advanced rendering options •Advanced OpenGL previewing •Python Scripting

Although not quite as fully featured as some plug-ins, the Plant Editor enables you to tweak vegetation even further – both in form and materials.

OpenGL previews are available for just about everything, and detail in the main displays has been beefed up considerably.

Rendering with the G-Buffer enables you to examine your project via its numerous layers and then export to a compositing app that supports these layers.

Visual feedback is everywhere, either in the form of an OpenGL preview or a mini-render of your current settings.

Synchronisation plug-ins for the likes of 3ds max and Maya mean you can now choreograph complex camera movements from another app.

Importing and exporting objects is a lot easier in Vue 4 Pro. This terrain was originally created in MojoWorld and opened in Vue.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

87

STUDIO MX 2004

PC AND MAC

£821

WEB We test-drive Macromedia’s freshly upgraded Web suite – is it a must-have for pro users? PRICING Studio MX 2004 £821 Studio MX 2004 Pro £938

CONTACT Macromedia 0131 458 6766 www.macromedia.com

SYSTEM PC 600MHz PIII or higher ● 256MB RAM ● 800MB HD ● Windows 98/SE/2000 or XP MAC 500MHz G3 or higher ● 256MB RAM ● 500MB HD ● Mac OS 10.2.6 or higher

FOR Two biggest Web tools in one package ● Improved workflow ● Strongest coding toolset ever ●

AGAINST Performance problems reported on some Macs ● FreeHand not upgraded yet ● ColdFusion server only available on Windows ●

VERDICT

M

acromedia’s latest collection of upgraded Web tools is being touted as a fully integrated Web development solution. And with good reason. The previous version of Studio MX has been a phenomenal success – and now Macromedia wants to consolidate its position with an even more tightly integrated package. Again, the main elements are Website authoring tool Dreamweaver, vector app Flash and Fireworks, Macromedia’s Web graphics workhorse. At the heart of the suite lies Dreamweaver MX 2004, whose hottest new feature is improved support for

SO HAS MACROMEDIA SUCCEEDED IN CREATING A UNIFIED, INTEGRATED PACKAGE? THE ANSWER HAS TO BE YES Cascading Style Sheets. Once just a formatting option, these are now the default for both formatting and layout. In addition to a much-improved CSS panel, the revamped app also boasts an in-line CSS Rule Inspector and pop-up hints in Code View. Tighter integration with companion tools in the Studio MX 2004 suite is also much in evidence. As well as a shared cosmetic overhaul, Dreamweaver MX 2004 boasts enhanced roundtrip code connectivity with Fireworks and Flash. Flash SWF files are now associated directly with their source files for quick editing, while Flash elements are special components whose parameters you can edit

directly within Dreamweaver. The program ships with a ready-to-use Flash-powered image viewer application, and other utilities should be available for download from the Macromedia Exchange. You can also use Dreamweaver as an ActionScript editor for Flash, complete with colour coding, code hints and inline reference materials. Dreamweaver MX 2004’s editor also borrows several features from Fireworks. You can now resize and resample an image entirely within a Dreamweaver document, and you don’t need to launch Fireworks to optimise a picture. Choosing ‘Optimise in Fireworks’ from the Properties panel simply launches the Export Preview dialogue from the Fireworks engine, not the whole package.

FLASH FORWARD Flash MX 2004 has undoubtedly had the biggest overhaul of all the apps. Split into two versions, it now comes in a developer-friendly Professional edition that adopts a ‘screens’-based approach to movie development and a Standard edition aimed at designers. Similarly, Studio MX 2004 ships in Professional or Standard flavours, depending on the version of Flash MX 2004 you require. Although the Standard edition of Flash MX 2004 lacks the Professional version’s new authoring features, it’s far from being Flash ‘Lite’. It’s still packed with features that make the tool faster and easier to work with. It also brings the tool’s workflow more in line with Dreamweaver’s. Macromedia introduced Dreamweaver-like Templates in the last version of Flash, but this latest release makes them

★★★★ This bundle brings together Macromedia’s heaviest hitters. Dreamweaver and Flash have few legitimate challengers in their field, while Fireworks remains an underrated but powerful imaging package. In combination, with this level of integration, the toolset proves even more impressive. Owners of lower end Macs may encounter performance problems, but everyone else should add this to their shopping list.

Dreamweaver MX 2004, Macromedia’s site-authoring app, benefits from enhanced code-editing tools and an emphasis on Cascading Style Sheets.

88 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Review

easier to build, use and configure. Flash Components, now Dreamweaver-compatible with the introduction of Flash Elements, are also much improved, easier to build and configure, using the Components Inspector panel. Another function borrowed from Dreamweaver is Flash Behaviours – building blocks of ActionScript interactivity that you can quickly drop into movies. These enable you to quickly program buttons, swap movie clips, trigger streaming sounds – all without recourse to the Actions Editor. One area of integration that’s poorly documented is the program’s new support for CSS styles within textfields. This is surprising considering the way Dreamweaver extols the virtues of its Cascading Style Sheets. It’s there as a new ActionScript object, too, enabling you to manually script new CSS formatting within HTML-formatted textfields. Unfortunately, there’s no ‘roundtrip’ button to connect you to Dreamweaver and no menu-driven formatting options.

FIREWORKS CODE While Fireworks MX 2004 has had the same interface overhaul as its companion programs, it’s the least altered app of Studio MX 2004, with enhancements to the drawing tools (Smart Shapes) and the same Check In/Check Out functions as you’ll find in Dreamweaver’s Site panel. You can also move Web optimised files direct to your Web server from within the program. In common with Dreamweaver and Flash, Fireworks MX 2004 is aimed as much at teams of users as single developers. Macromedia claims it’s made significant tweaks to the Fireworks graphics engine to improve speed, but these increases don’t seem to apply to all platforms. The company has quietly acknowledged rumours that both Dreamweaver MX 2004 and Fireworks MX 2004 run slowly on G3 and G4 Macs, for instance. In a Tech Note on the MX support site, it’s flagged as an ‘emerging issue’, although Macromedia says it’s unable to reproduce the problem. With so much emphasis on shared features, roundtrip code and integrated workflows, it’s disappointing to find that the version of Freehand MX in the box is the same one released in April this year, and reviewed back in Computer Arts 82. It remains a five-star release, though, and slots together well with its partners. This is the version that introduced a Flash-style Symbol library and enables you to attach ActionScript to FreeHand objects. Flash MX 2004 boasts improved import capabilities for FreeHand files, including support for Symbols in FreeHand documents. Elsewhere, PC users will find a Developers edition of the ColdFusion 6.1 MX server, which enables you to test Dreamweaver-generated ColdFusion apps on a local machine. There’s a distinct emphasis within Dreamweaver MX 2004 on ColdFusion development, but the company

FEATURES

CENTRAL PERK Macromedia prepares the way… For Flash developers with a design background, the introduction of Screensbased authoring in Flash Professional may not seem like exciting news – but it does demonstrate just how Macromedia expects the tool to develop in future. It also brings Flash in line with other application programming and

Flash MX 2004 mini-apps, complete with live data connectivity, will introduce a host of new services once Macromedia’s Central technology is launched.

authoring tools – software such as Microsoft’s Visual Studio and Borland’s Delphi Studio. In these environments, application development is presented in a linear way – as it now is in Flash MX 2004 Professional. These environments are aimed at developing standalone applications or applets with Internet connectivity. There’s a big clue to how significant this will become on Macromedia’s own Website. Go to www.macromedia.com/ go/central and you’ll be able to read about Central, a Macromedia initiative set to rival Microsoft’s distributed application technology .NET. Flash MX 2004 as a development environment for offline as well as offline applications? Watch this space...

has been wise not to skimp on support for other server-side technologies. ColdFusion is a robust environment for developing Web applications, but it doesn’t have as much support on the Web as ASP or PHP. It’s not necessary to install ColdFusion to enjoy the rest of the suite. So has Macromedia succeeded in creating a unified, integrated package? The answer has to be yes – with some reservations. There’s no denying that the component programs are industry standards, particularly Flash and Dreamweaver, but this release comes just before Adobe’s Creative Suite – a bundle that really shows how well integrated a set of tools can be. Even in the face of such stiff competition, however, Studio MX 2004 boasts enough innovation to make it a must-have suite for all Web pros.

•New H ‘ alo’ interface extends across the range •Optimise images within Dreamweaver • Flash Elements in Dreamweaver •ActionScript editing in Dreamweaver •Screens-based authoring in Flash • Dreamweaver-style Behaviours in Flash •CSS support in Flash Textfields •Improved r‘ oundtrip’ code in Flash and Fireworks •Improved import options in Flash and Fireworks •Check In/Check Out feature in Fireworks

Now that browser technology has finally caught up with Web standards, Dreamweaver has been able to refocus its layout and formatting capabilities around CSS 2.0.

Now you can add interaction and animation to Flash objects using a point-and-click technique. New ActionScript Behaviours and Timeline Effects significantly speed up movie development.

Flash video comes of age in the Professional version of Flash MX 2004. Tighter quality control enables you to edit sequences before importing them.

From Web animation package to app-development environment, Flash enjoys the most comprehensive overhaul found in the MX 2004 range.

With Flash MX 2004 Professional aimed at developers, the Standard version showcases animation/movie-creation workflow features.

Fireworks’ Smart Shapes arrive with relatively little fanfare. Combined with Contour Gradient fills, they’ll help you say goodbye to boxy page layouts forever.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

89

AVID XPRESS PRO

PC AND MAC

£1527

DV It’ll cost you more than Premiere and Final Cut Pro, so is this video-editing tool worth the price? CONTACT Avid 020 7534 2800 www.avid.com/xpresspro

SYSTEM PC 1.8GHz Pentium 4 ● 512MB RAM ● Win XP Pro with SP1 MAC 867MHz G4 ● 512MB RAM ● OS X 10.2.4+

FOR Good real-time playback Capture compression ● Good range of external packages ● ●

AGAINST Tool windows can be fiddly Limited file import formats ● Expensive ● ●

VERDICT

★★★★ Xpress Pro delivers a great toolset, and the fact that much of it is borrowed from high-end editors certainly gives it a professional feel. The package is twice as expensive as Premiere (£616), though, and while you can feel Xpress’ quality in the workflow, a stark comparison of features doesn’t reveal a huge gulf between the two. However, this version does add a good range of external programs, which will make Xpress Pro appeal specifically to celluloid film-makers, and those who aspire to or work with higher-end Avid suites.

A

lready known by many as a leading tool for professional video-editors, Avid is now competing for users on a more modest budget with Xpress Pro, which throws it into a ferocious marketplace where it isn’t the dominant player. The big question for Xpress Pro is why should anyone pay £1500 for a package whose strongest competitors – Final Cut Pro, Premiere and Pinnacle Edition – are less than half the price. Avid Xpress Pro, of course, has one major advantage over the competition – its inheritance. Being produced by the market leaders in high-end editing means two things. First, it can easily slot into the production process of any company – a director can hash together a rough cut of

presents a strong and clear interface which responds well, works intuitively, and sensibly hides away unused functions where they won’t get in your way. You have to overcome some of the idiosyncrasies of the Avid environment which won’t be to everyone’s taste, and there are certainly editors who prefer the clarity of Pinnacle Edition, or the mouse-centred, hands-on responsiveness of Premiere. However, Avid’s tools are driven by the experience of editors who do nothing all day but edit, so at least they’re highly refined. Xpress Pro is designed to work with or without the hardware acceleration provided by Avid’s Mojo product. This box (costing an extra £1527) gives you real-time DV quality output for all your effects, overlays and transitions, and also adds its own analogue and ONCE INSTALLED, XPRESS PRO PRESENTS digital capture and output. If you choose to use A STRONG AND CLEAR INTERFACE, WHICH Xpress Pro without it, you won’t get real-time DV quality effects on an external monitor. What you RESPONDS WELL AND WORKS INTUITIVELY will get is a choice between real-time effects in the the day’s shooting on a laptop, and post it through to the preview window or non-real-time DV output. You can easily online suite for cleaning up without worrying about toggle between the two via a button on the timeline. compatibility. Second, Avid can take a whole range of tools Working on the preview window uses your computer’s and industry-proven workflows, and transplant them hardware to attempt real-time rendering, so what you get directly from high-end systems into Xpress Pro. here will obviously depend on the quality of your particular All this means that a student who’s learned their trade on machine. You should get a pretty good result from most Xpress Pro should be able to sit down on their first day on modern desktops or laptops, and the software offers five Avid Media Composer, and start working immediately. real-time video streams. With the number of other edit suites moving ever upIf you can play back your effect in real time, a green dot market towards Avid, the company is taking the new appears over it on the timeline – this makes it easy to see generation of editors seriously – even to the extent of what you’re going to get when you hit the Play button. Even introducing a freely dowloadable editor, Avid Free DV, if you reach the stage where your work is so complex you designed to familiarise new users with the Avid workflow. can’t get real-time playback, you can adjust the image quality manually to give your system a better chance. QUALITY PRODUCT Xpress Pro slightly improves on the basic functionality Opening the box, you might be forgiven for thinking that of Xpress DV, but basically the interface and most of the Xpress Pro is taking itself a little seriously. Two heavy user features remain the same. Avid has added image guides is fair enough, but the package also includes no less stabilisation for cleaning up those dodgy handheld shots, than nine CDs – as well as a set of keyboard stickers. You’re and Timewarp effects are now also included. These are given the impression that you’re getting your money’s presets that change the speed of a clip over time, moving worth with this tool from the very outset. Once installed, it from a freeze frame to full speed, for example. You can’t

You can configure the main interface in a range of ways to suit your workflow requirements. Although the tools are a little small, they are well organised.

90 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

The capture utility provides batch-capture, as well as automatic compression – ideal for offline editing.

Review

FEATURES

A huge range of effects comes with Avid Xpress Pro as standard, and each one has its own control panel. Most of them work in real time.

Colour correction is comprehensive and easy to use. There’s even an automatic matching function for one-button simplicity.

change Timewarp effects, but there are enough of them to provide you with some decent basic effects. The program’s handling of colour manipulation is a real strength, and one of the most striking new features is automatic colour correction. You can now take any two shots – even if they’re taken under completely different lighting conditions – and match the look of the colour so they appear perfectly balanced. It’s pretty much instant and virtually a one-button job, and it works well on most footage. It’s not perfect, and the fussier editor will still want to tweak, but most people will be more than satisfied with the instant results on footage.

process any more difficult than it needs to be. Sonic DVD uses a flowchart view rather than the more common timeline approach, and this seems to work very well, enabling you to quickly build up an easily understandable map of your production. For media compression, Sorenson Squeeze is included. It’s not as well known as Discreet’s cleaner, but it’s none the worse for that. It provides a range of useful presets, but if these aren’t enough, you can fine-tune them to your own needs. It also supports batch processing, includes watch folders (where footage is automatically compressed if it’s placed in a certain location) and works quickly and cleanly with most footage. There’s even a capture function so you can capture and compress without having to mess about in separate packages. On top of that, there’s the Avid Film-makers Toolkit (a specialist toolset for film editing), Avid Pan and Zoom (primarily for animating a virtual rostrum camera around high-resolution images to make still shots look more interesting), and Avid Illusion FX (effects filters like lens flare, motion blur and lightening). Finally, the Electric Gasket utility is included; this enables you to use After Effects filters (of which there are an awful lot on the market) within Xpress Pro. This program has a professional feel and a price-tag at the higher end of the mid-range market, and while it doesn’t tower above the likes of Premiere in terms of features, its range of bundled external apps do up the stakes, making it an attractive option for professional users.

EXTRA PROGRAMS The fact that Xpress Pro comes as a nine-disc set hints at the presence of a few extra freebies, and indeed the editor itself is simply the centre of what adds up to quite a significant suite of programs. For a start, there’s Boris Graffiti and Avid Title Tool. Together these enable you to quickly create 2D and 3D title sequences, captions and text screens. Animation is easy enough, and there’s sufficient integration with Xpress Pro itself for you to feel as though you’re working with a connected system. Next up there’s Sonic ReelDVD LE. Not surprisingly, this is a DVD authoring package from Sonic. You can put together quite sophisticated DVD presentations with this tool, adding buttons, links and movies. It’s a big step up from the heavily preset-based DVD authoring programs usually found bundled with editors, but it doesn’t make the

Use Xpress Pro while on the move the project file and the batch-capture list (files small enough to send in minutes with any email connection) to anyone else who is working with your footage, wherever they happen to be. As long as they have access to the internet or an email account, you’re sorted. Once you’re happy with your edit, you then only have to re-capture what you need to produce the final composite.

Sorenson Squeeze is to Xpress Pro what cleaner is to Adobe Premiere. It’s a package for compressing and rendering video in pretty much any format you like, for DVD, CD or the internet.

Boris Graffiti comes free with Xpress Pro, and enables you to put together titles and captions with plenty of impact.

ReelDVD offers flowchart-based authoring, giving you a clear map of how the menus in your productions are linked together.

OFFLINE EDITING Because it’s intended at least partially as an offline step in a larger production process, Xpress Pro makes working with lowerquality clips very easy. You can set up a batchcapture list to import your footage, and then ask the app to import it at 15:1 compression, so you can squeeze far more onto your hard drive. After working with this material on your laptop in Xpress Pro, you can then email

•Full set of basic editing tools •Advanced video capture •Keyframable effects •Real-time preview •2D and 3D titling •Film editing tools •Advanced colour correction • Sorenson Squeeze video compression •DVD authoring •Fully compatible with other Avid products

The titling utility is simple but basic. If you want more than just a simple scroll or overlay, you’ll have to bring up Boris Graffiti.

Mojo is a big part of Avid’s new approach. Buy this extra piece of hardware for £1527, and Xpress becomes a full-resolution, realtime suite with its own analogue and digital capture and output.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

91

KPT COLLECTION

PC AND MAC £75

PHOTOSHOP PLUG-IN The latest offering from Corel delivers several blasts from the past CONTACT Corel Buy online www.corel.co.uk

FEATURES • KPT 5 • KPT 6 • KPT Effects •Warping •Goo •Psychedelic effects

SYSTEM PC Pentium 200 • 25MB HD • 128MB RAM • Win 98/2000/NT/ ME/XP • Photoshop 5+ MAC G3 180MHz+ • 25MB HD • 128MB RAM • OS 8.6-OS X • Photoshop 5+

FOR •Huge range of filter effects •Relatively easy to use •Cheap

AGAINST •No upgrade path

VERDICT

★★★★★ This is a truly excellent set of plug-ins that designers and illustrators everywhere will love. A great addition to anyone’s Photoshop toolkit. Shame there’s no upgrade path, though.

A

s far as Photoshop plug-ins go, KPT’s are possibly the most famous. Originally developed by Kai Krause and published by the now defunct MetaCreations, they’ve become a favourite among digital artists – even the most filter-resistant will have played around with them at some time or other. So now, after a good few years with the awesome range of KPT tools in its possession, Corel has finally decided to do something with the older tools – namely, release them for OS X and Windows XP (as well as older operating systems) and consolidate some of the best ever filters in one package. The new KPT Collection includes filter effects from KPT 5, 6 and KPT Effects – the latter being Corel’s own KPT effort released a couple of years ago. The 24-strong collection is certainly great value for money – and anyone remotely fascinated by Photoshop will immediately recognise such favourites as KPT Goo, Noize and Channel Surfing. Goo is pretty much what you’d expect, if somewhat pointless – enabling you to splodge translucent goo on top of your images. Noize is a similarly impractical – a fun filter that enables you to overlay your images with random cloud-like noise. To get the best from KPT filters, you should treat most of them as effect generators rather than filters. Use FiberOptix on a layer above your image with a Multiply Blending mode, for instance, and you can produce some truly stunning effects. It’s not long before you realise that KPT Collection (if you’ve never used KPT before, that is) is all about experimentation. Indeed, you’ll have most fun with KPT when you’re tweaking and tinkering with no specific goal in mind – results are always interesting and varied, and often you stumble across a striking effect purely by accident… Fluid

is a great example. This literally turns your image into a pool of liquid, which you distort as you see fit. It’s similar to Photoshop’s Liquify tool, but a hundred times more fun, and the results are less controlled and much more varied. Another favourite of ours is RadWarp, which enables you to interactively apply a radial warp to your image. Half of this package is good old design nostalgia; many will love it because now they’ll be able to run some of their fave filters on the latest operating systems and versions of Photoshop. Newcomers to KPT, meanwhile, can appreciate the filters’ superb engineering. The only thing that stops this tool getting five stars is the lack of an upgrade path from earlier versions – with this, KPT Collection would no doubt become one of the best-selling filters of all time. ■

THE FULL LIST All the KPT filters you get in the box KPT Fluid KPT FraxFlame II KPT Gel KPT Goo KPT Ink Dropper KPT Lightning KPT Materializer KPT Scatter KPT ShapeShifter KPT Blurr KPT Channel Surfing KPT Equalizer

KPT FiberOptix KPT Frax4D KPT FraxPlorer KPT Gradient Lab KPT Hyper Tiling KPT LensFlare KPT Noize KPT Projector KPT Pyramid Paint KPT RadWarp KPT Reaction KPT Turbulence

KPT FraxFlame II generates flame fractals that resemble coloured light. Choose from several presets or customise your own from scratch.

92 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

MAC OS X 10.3 PANTHER

MAC

£99

OS What tools can benefit the digital creative in Apple’s revamped operating system? CONTACT Apple Buy online www.apple.com/ukstore

FEATURES •Exposé •Labels •New Finder •Font Book •FileVault •Fast user switching

SYSTEM MAC G3/G4/G5/iMac/eMac/ PowerBook G3 or G4/iBook with 128MB RAM • USB

FOR •Faster performance •Exposéworks excellently •Labels are back!

AGAINST •No upgrade price

VERDICT

★★★★★ OS X 10.3 should be considered by anyone using any previous version of OS X. Revolutionary features like Exposéeasily make this the best iteration of the OS by a long way.

94 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Exposéis a brilliantly simple idea: tap F9 to display all your open windows, then click on the relevant document to bring it t o full size.

F

rom the moment you install Panther, Apple’s latest iteration of OS X, you know it’s going to benefit digital creatives in a big way… Apple has really pushed the launch of OS X 10.3 Panther, promoting it for what seems like an eternity. Well, now we’ve finally got our hands on a copy, and just have time to bring you an idea of what you get for your £99. Yes, we know, £99 does seem a lot for a .1 upgrade, but Panther is more like making the transition from Windows ME to Windows XP – there‘s a world of difference between this and its predecessor… The first thing that strikes you is the invaluable feature Apple calls Exposé, which gives you access to any window you have open in any app at one time. How? Well, by hitting F9 (or programming another key in System Preferences), Exposé reduces all your windows so that they fit on-screen at once. Simply hover your mouse over a document and the OS tells you its name. Then, when you click on it, the selected document is foregrounded at its proper size. That’s not the end of it, though. F10 reveals all the windows open in the app you’re currently running in the same way – great for those of you with many docs open in Photoshop at once – and reveal your desktop when you hit F11. The latter provides an easy way of finding files and performing other desktop operations without hiding applications. When you let go of the F11 key, your apps and document windows snap back into their original position. Talking of desktop operations, designers will be pleased to hear that labels are back in OS X 10.3. Many couldn’t fathom the omission when moving over from OS 9, but they’re back and they work just like before. Folder Actions are also included, enabling you to attach AppleScript to a folder – if you want an alert to appear when a new item is added to a folder, that’s not a problem, either. The Finder has also been revamped. Now with a brushed-metal interface, it gives you access to your drives, with important

folders running down the left-hand side and their contents on the right. It feels much like the iTunes interface. Font Book is another important addition, giving you finer control over typefaces and enabling you to activate and deactivate fonts at will. FileVault is also fantastic, enabling you to quickly secure documents. Faster user-switching (see boxout) is equally impressive. If you’re still on OS 9, Panther provides an easier way to make the transition to X, and if you’re thinking that Jaguar (OS X 10.2) may suffice, check out a demo now – features like Exposé will utterly transform your workflow. ■

SHARING A MAC? OS X 10.3 offers faster user-switching When many people are using one Mac, OS X 10.2 Jaguar can be a right pain. You have to close down all of your applications, save out your work and log out. Then the new user logs in, starts up their apps, opens the documents and so on. OS X 10.3 changes all that, catching up with Windows XP to facilitate much faster user-switching. The process of switching between users in Panther is simple. When you log in as usual, your name appears at the top-right of the interface in the Mac OS X menubar. Any users installed on your machine are now in a dropdown list here. To switch between users, use the dropdown to open up a log-in window. Type the new password and the entire screen rotates using a cube-spin transition to reveal the new user’s desktop. All your apps are left running in the background, ready for when you return to your working space. It’s a brilliant solution.

Review

SOUNDTRACK

MAC £249

MUSIC Apple delivers an audio application aimed at those who know nothing about audio CONTACT Apple Buy online www.apple.com/ukstore

FEATURES Royalty-free audio Music building blocks ● Import AIFF, WAV and ACID files ● Import QuickTime movies for synching ● Automatic key/tempo ● Loop utility ● Drag-and-drop audio ● Everything royalty-free (including creations) ● ●

SYSTEM MAC G4 500MHz/Dual 450MHz • 384MB RAM • 5GB HD • OS X 10.2.5+ • QuickTime 6.1

FOR Easy to use Everything royalty-free ● Inexpensive ● ●

AGAINST ●

R

arely does a tool for creating music appear on the review pages of CA, but Apple Soundtrack really made us stop and think. Why? Turns out this extremely capable app isn’t your typical audio tool. In fact, the intention is that you need no audio knowledge to use it. The idea behind Apple’s offering is a simple one: to help the musically ungifted (and gifted alike) to create royalty-free tracks to complement their Web, DVD, broadcast or film projects. On the basis of the last few months’ Apple reviews in CA, it may appear that the company can do no wrong in our eyes, and in the pro (or serious enthusiast) creative Mac market this is probably true. Apple has been making great tools for creative pros everywhere, from DVD Studio Pro 2 and Final Cut Pro 4 to the new G5 and G4 PowerBooks. Soundtrack is no exception. It’s a similar tool to Sony’s ACID software (previously Sonic Foundry’s) – sharing the ‘arrangement of loops’ take on audio creation. Soundtrack immediately impresses with its ease of use. While today’s digital artists and designers have to be adept in a number of disciplines, knowledge of pro audio tools cannot be acquired overnight. Which is why Soundtrack is the perfect tool for creative professionals involved in the visual genres – you need no audio knowledge whatsoever to make the most of it. On opening the tool, the interface is kind of a cross between DVD Studio Pro 2 and Final Cut Pro 4. To the left is

No MP3 export

VERDICT

★★★★★ Soundtrack is a tool that brings pro royalty-free audio tools to even the most audio-inept designer. Web designers and video editors will love this, and it will save them thousands in stock or licensed audio.

MEDIA MANAGER The musical key to Soundtrack’s interface Soundtrack relies on loops, which you use as building blocks for your finished track. Lying at the heart of Soundtrack is the Media Manager, which is where you’ll find all the loops from the Apple media DVD (or on your

hard drive if you’ve installed the loops there). The great thing about the Media Manager is how it organises the loops into logical categories, such as Acoustic, Clean, Relaxed, and so on. It’s extremely easy to find the kind of loop you’re looking for. You can choose to display instruments, genres, descriptors and custom, making it easy to narrow down your selection. The Media Manager also acts as a file browser, enabling you to search your HD for custom AIFF, WAV or ACID files, and provides a comprehensive search facility in case you forget the category of a particular loop. Apple really has these interfaces sussed – as demonstrated in Final Cut Pro 4 and DVD Studio Pro 2.

Soundtrack sports an easy-to-navigate interface and provides audio novices with an easy way of creating royalty-free music.

a huge browser, enabling you to search for specific loops and drag them onto the main timeline. Although the installation of all the supplied Soundtrack loops (over 4000 of them) will take up around 4GB on your hard drive, you can browse for and run them from the DVD if space on your Mac is at a premium. The variety of loops included is truly incredible. Everything from electro-funk to jazz piano to hip-hop vocals is included, and you can begin assembling loops immediately, creating tracks that sound almost saleable pretty much straightaway. This is because Soundtrack cleverly matches music loops by key and tempo (you can adjust these manually as well). It’s so straightforward, even a child could whip up a catchy tune in minutes. Soundtrack works by intelligently building your tune from the audio ‘blocks’ you present it with – you arrange the loops, the app takes care of the rest. For finer control, you can open up pan and volume envelopes to adjust specific timing and mixing with keyframes. Video editors will appreciate the NLE-like way this works; they’ll also like the fact that you can import a QuickTime movie into Soundtrack to sync a track up correctly. The program supports the import of ACID, AIFF and WAV. You can export your creation to AIFF or WAV (either entire mix or individual tracks) or, if you have video in your Soundtrack project, export the entire project to QuickTime. It would’ve been nice to see MP3 export, but it’s likely that Web designers wanting this format will already have the means to convert the file. This app does everything in real time – when you add a new loop, shorten or lengthen it, or add an effect (Soundtrack includes effects from both Apple and Emagic, and supports Audio Units effects plug-ins), no rendering is required, making the process of creating royalty-free tracks much quicker than you might think. From the perspective of the audio novice – those who want to add soundtracks to their Flash movies, DVDs, film projects, and so on, without expensive development costs, buying costly royalty-free music or even more expensive commercial tracks – Soundtrack is a truly fantastic tool, and one that DV artists and Web designers simply can’t afford to ignore.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

95

DUAL 2GHZ POWER MAC G5

MAC

£2299

MAC Apple’s fastest computer blows the competition clean away with its revamped architecture

Apple 0800 039 1010 www.apple.com

FEATURES 64-bit processor 8x AGP Pro Graphics Bus ● Gigabit Ethernet ● FireWire 400 & 800 ● USB 2.0 ● Serial ATA hard drive ● AirPort Extreme wireless ● Optical digital audio ● Twin 1GHz frontside bus ● PCI-X slots ● ●

FOR Superbly built Awesomely fast ● Exceptionally quiet ● ●

AGAINST The price tag Bit on the large side ● Won’t take old hard drives ● ●

VERDICT

★★★★★ On paper, the G5 Dual 2GHz looks like a winner. In the flesh, it’s a stunner, with the highest build quality of any computer we’ve ever seen. As far as performance is concerned, there’s nothing to touch it. Boost your productivity with one – you’ll be glad you did.

A

pple’s launch of the new G5 Power Macintosh ushers in a new era of supercomputing, putting raw power in the hands of everyday users and promising to significantly boost the performance of Photoshop, Final Cut Pro and 3D packages. However, just for a moment, try to forget that this is probably the world’s fastest desktop computer. Attempt to turn a blind eye to the fact that the G5 contains the first 64bit chip to harness Apple’s solid UNIX-based operating system, because, no matter what you’re expecting, nothing can possibly prepare you for the beauty of this machine. Wrought from a single piece of thick aluminium plate, the G5 is built to an incredibly high standard. The attention to detail, both inside and out, is breathtaking. Cables are hidden and components slot in place without so much as a screw or a bolt. The interior is cooled by nine computercontrolled fans that tick over very slowly, providing superbly quiet operation that enables you to get on with designing without that constant thrub of fans and motors. By employing a new 64-bit chip from IBM and giving each of the two processors a full 1GHz of frontside bus, Apple has made the G5 run applications like Photoshop at a real lick… and then some. Everything is snappier, even when using OS X 10.2.6. However, load up with Panther and the G5 flies like no other Mac. It’s not just a little bit faster; it’s way faster. The G5 positively rips its way through Photoshop filters and leaves the old G4 eating dust. Just about everything you could want is included. The G5’s 64-bit architecture means you can install up to 8GB of RAM, which makes it ideal for complex 3D rendering. Apple

has adopted many new standards such as the fast serial ATA hard drive interface. Adding a second drive is easy; you don’t even need a screwdriver. When it comes to graphics, there’s ATI’s new Radeon 9800 Pro card with both Dvi and ADV outputs. The fact that Apple has finally reached 8x AGP opens up the possibility of fitting even more advanced graphics cards in the future. Other extras include FireWire 800 ports for digital video, built-in Bluetooth and highspeed wireless. USB 2.0 ports are also standard. It’s fair to say that with the G5 Apple has leapfrogged the competition. The new G5 processor will carry on increasing in speed – by the middle of next year we could see a 3GHz chip, and there are plans to take the speeds even higher.

ON TEST Dual 2GHz G5

1.8GHz G5

Dual 1.42 G4

50%

100%

150%

200%

250% 300%

50%

100%

150%

200%

250% 300%

PHOTOSHOP Dust & Scratches Filter Gaussian Blur – 25 pixels Gaussian Blur – 1 pixel Unsharp Mask * Convert RGB to CMYK Rotate 90°

FRAMERATES Quake 3 Framerate Unreal Tournament

2003 – Botmatch

Unreal Tournament 2003 - Flyby

OTHER iTunes AAC Rip QuickTime Export InDesign PDF Export

We ran a battery of tests on the Power Macintosh Dual 2GHz G5, all of which show that the two processors can beat the next G5 model down into a veritable pulp. Remember that the current version of Photoshop is not optimised for the G5 chip and neither is the operating system. Even Panther (the next OS from Apple) isn’t 64-bit. However, as software catches up with the technology, we should see serious speed gains and the full power of the G5

96 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

100% = Dual 800MHz Quicksilver Power Mac G4

CONTACT

being harnessed. It’s likely that an optimised version of Photoshop and a 64-bit OS will be developed in the future, and that this will provide as effective an upgrade path as any potential hardware upgrades. When you consider that the G5 is such a solidly built computer, it looks like being a very good long-term investment that will speed up your workflow and reduce those tiresome Photoshop progress bars.

ESSENTIAL KIT FOR THE MODERN DESIGNER

2

1 4

5

3 6

98 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Review

IPOD ACCESSORIES

CLIÉ PEGA-VR100K

PRICE £39-89 COMPANY Belkin WEBSITE www.belkin.co.uk

PRICE $300 (£176) COMPANY Sony WEBSITE www.sony.co.uk

SIEMENS MC60 PRICE £170 COMPANY Siemens WEBSITE www.my-siemens.co.uk

3 1

The iPod has become the MP3 player of choice for many (although this particular Deputy Editor is without his, due to its rather untimely hard drive failure) and now Belkin, with the support of Apple, is helping to fulfil the player’s potential. Announced last month, the Belkin Voice Recorder and Media Reader bring a huge amount of functionality to the device, adding the ability to take voice notes, record interviews and download images (although not view them on your iPod) from your digital camera’s memory card. Great for those days when you run out of room on your camera and see a great shot.

2

This snappily named gadget is a fantastic addition to anyone’s Cliécollection. Enabling you to record television onto a Memory Stick Pro card and then watch it on your PDA, this device should fly off the shelves when (and, indeed, if) it’s finally released in the UK. Just think of all those train journeys when you could be watching Trisha or Kilroy or Lorraine Kelly… Morning television fans may get their dose a day late, but, hey, who’s complaining?

Siemens’ latest mobile offering continues to impress – in terms of both ergonomics and features. The MC60 sports an interesting ‘X’ design, with the keypad taking a circular form, and packs in a host of great features. Stand-out is the integrated high-sensitivity camera, which delivers superb snapshot and instant-send functionality, so you can snap and send images immediately. In addition, the MC60 enables you to record voice snippets and send them with messages, and you can take a closer look at your images using the handy playback zoom function. Siemens even finds room on the device to squeeze in a photoediting app, giving you the chance to add cheesy warping effects, frames or text before you send your pictures. Naturally, you also get a host of games to play with. Not bad for £170.

DUOCAM SCD5000

LAPTOP BAGS

WIRELESS MOUSE

PRICE £1000 COMPANY Samsung WEBSITE www.samsungelectronics.co.uk

PRICE £79-£119 COMPANY Brenthaven WEBSITE www.apple.com/ukstore

PRICE £59 COMPANY Apple WEBSITE www.apple.com/ukstore

5 4

Sometimes, just sometimes, a company comes up with a great idea and you think, ‘Why hasn’t someone done this before?’ The Duocam from Samsung is a case in point: it’s a device that doubles as both DVcam and digital camera. Unlike many other DVcams, which just feature a still image function, the DuoCam actually has a 4.1-megapixel digital camera built in. Thanks to Samsung’s ingenious design, the lens swivels around, and one acts as the DVcam, the other as the digital camera. It’s not exactly gorgeous – and it costs a grand – but no doubt this convenient gadget is the shape of things to come.

It’s not often that we sing the praises of rucksacks, but these Brenthaven backpacks have to be commended. Available custom-fit for the 12, 15 and 17-inch PowerBooks, as well as regular generic 14-inch models, these fashion accessories are tough to say the least. Coming complete with a well-padded sleeve to neatly tuck your machine into, with ample space for clothes, notepads, iPods, PDAs, and so on, the Brenthaven laptop bags are light and durable enough to take your laptop wherever you go. Only dropping the pack from waist height onto concrete (containing our new 15-inch PowerBook) confirmed the protection that these cases offer. Add a lifetime guarantee and you’re laughing. A little pricey for a backpack, admittedly, but then you don’t need us to tell you you get what you pay for.

6

Wireless keyboards and mice are nothing new, but Apple’s first foray into this arena genuinely made us sit up and take notice. It’s the sheer simplicity of the set-up that appeals. Connecting to your Mac via BlueTooth couldn’t be simpler; there’s nothing fancy about these tools – they just work. It doesn’t matter that there’s no second button on the mouse (only Mac purists will appreciate this) or that the keyboard is literally just keys on a board (so don’t expect any extra functionality). It all functions so smoothly. Both devices would look great with your Mac, too, particularly if you own a PowerBook.

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

99

BOOKS

CHARACTER CULTURE AUTHOR Peter Thaler PRICE £28 PUBLISHER Die Gestalten Verlag ISBN 3899550218

P

ictoplasma 2 is the sequel to Peter Thaler’s original and highly popular visual chronicle of character design. This latest edition hopes to build on that success, and meet the growing interest in figure iconography throughout the world. The first section offers background and theory on character design from leading figures, before launching into over 200 pages of engaging, diverse and entertaining visuals from designers, Animé artists, illustrators, toy makers and street artists. Featured artists include Computer Arts contributor TADO, plus former profilees Airside, Nathan Jurevicius and Bü ro Destruct, among many other international designers both new and well known. Character design may not be core to these creatives’ work, but ‘character work’ was the brief for

this book – taken as a loose term so as to include a range of artwork. The sheer range of details, styles and media is fascinating, and is bound to inspire anyone’s own designs or just provide some eye candy on a cold winter night. Pictoplasma 2’s format is quite regulated, with characters printed at up to 20 per page. Occasionally you arrive upon a spread featuring toys photographed on location in hospitals or parks – fantastic stuff. Some rough sketches are included which also successfully break the format. One of the best sections, though, is the street art, where you can see these characters on billboards and buildings. This large, shiny and beautifully bound book will appeal to two levels of reader: those who want the background, theory and industry comment, and those who just love to look at rows upon rows of cool, weird, cute and clever characters. If you fall into neither of these categories you’ll probably be quickly bored, as very little information or insight into the featured designers is provided. It’s a decent price for such a large book and it’s definitely worth a browse – it is nearly Christmas after all.

TYPE DESIGN

PROBLEM SOLVING

AUTHOR Tea Triggs PRICE £24.95 PUBLISHER Thames and Hudson ISBN 0500511438

AUTHOR Michael Johnson PRICE £21 PUBLISHER Phaidon ISBN 0714841749

ypography must be one of the designer’s favourite disciplines, and typefaces are an integral part of virtually any design job. The Typographic Experiment: Radical Innovation in Contemporary Type Design explores 37 industry-renowned designers, giving an insight into their

P

T

100 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

working practice, influences and of course, typefaces. The book is neatly divided into sections, each of which features a different style of typographer – beginning with The Medium Is The Message by influential designer David Carson. The title goes on to feature such typographical artists as Johnathon Barnbrook, Rian Hughes and Nick Bell; all in such categories as Mapping Meaning and Defining Spaces, Visual Poetry and Small Screen (Bigger Picture). All of the case studies are visually striking and well written, with inspiration aplenty. All of the individual chapter intros are extremely well thought out, and paint a picture for the artists that follow. Any creative interested in typography – students, professionals and anyone in the field of digital design – must at least cast their gaze upon this book once.

roblem Solved by Michael Johnson aims to be a primer in design and communication. Like The Typographic Experiment it’s made up of case studies, this time looking at how designers and corporations have solved brand-orientated problems. The bulk of this title is advertising solutions, and at least one image per page is immediately recognisable. The author gives us dilemmas such as ‘The Cargo Pants in Middle Age’ problem – referring to established brands who perhaps lost their grip on who their audience were. This includes the infamous re-branding of Tango (think ‘You’ve been Tango’d’); ‘The Nothing Shocks Me’ problem – in which the author goes into detail about such ad campaigns as United Colors of Benetton’s ‘Aids victim ad (1992); and more light-hearted ads such as Heinz’s ‘Any food tastes supreme’ Salad Cream campaign (2000).

This title really is an eye-opener into the thought processes involved when re-branding or positioning a company. Any designer involved in this sector will find it invaluable, and designers working in other genres will find it a cracking read.

w

SS RO BY N u O TI n.n RA ia ST sim LU . IL ww

Y LE DS AW M

102 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

WIDESCREEN LAPTOPS Are modern laptops ready to replace your desktop computer? This month, we rank five widescreen models that reckon they’ve got what it takes… There are many reasons why serious computer users have been unable to throw away their desktop machines in favour of portables. Until relatively recently, laptops were rightly considered the desktop’s poorer relative. They were slow and more expensive, difficult to upgrade, with inferior graphics capabilities and minuscule screens… But now all that’s changing – and rapidly. The latest generation of desktop replacements are on a par with their clunkier rivals, yet with all the flexibility of a take-anywhere platform. At one time, a portable was considered a lightweight, light-performing version of a ‘proper’ computer that enabled you to work even away from power outlets, a machine that enabled you to take all your files and programs with you wherever you went… Now, however, laptops are aiming higher – they’re genuinely compact, self-contained substitutes for your desktop machine. Convenience is a key feature. In the past, laptop processors were a half or even a full generation behind desktop models, issues such as power usage and cooling ensuring they always followed a slower development cycle. Now, however,

mobile processors can rival any single-CPU desktop system – new generation Pentium M processors, for example, provide Pentium 4thrashing performance, but consume less power. With flat-screen LCD technology so affordable, it’s also become feasible for manufacturers to incorporate large screen sizes into their laptops. Just take a look at our review models – they come in sizes from 15 to 17 inches, and all rely on the widescreen WXGA or WXGA+ format, which provides a better working space for all kinds of media, from photographs to Web pages. Most modern laptops include USB 2 ports, too. These enable you to hook your laptop up to multiple high-speed devices such as hard drives, DVD-writers, video capture and audio sampling devices, ensuring your machine is much easier to upgrade and accessorise. For this month’s Group Test, we’ve selected a bevy of the most exciting, forward-looking, designconscious laptops currently on the market. Turn the page to discover how they coped with the desktop-orientated tasks we threw at them – you may be pleasantly surprised…

Computer Arts_December 2003

103

TOSHIBA P20 PC

£1899

This chunky laptop proves that it’s not only Macs than can combine style with usability

W

ith its 17-inch screen running at a native resolution of 1440x900, you’d think the P20 was already plenty big enough. Unfortunately, the wide bezel surrounding the display adds unnecessary bulk – and weight – to this muscle-building 4.4kg device. Suffice to say, the P20 isn’t a laptop you’d want to carry around on foot for any great distance. That said, the extra bulk does add to the laptop’s ergonomics, giving you a substantial platform on which to rest your hands or use a mouse. Inside, the P20 sports a 60GB hard drive and a Pentium 4 processor, running at a slightly disappointing 2.8GHz. The processor is the second slowest in our tests, alongside the ACI machine, but does support Hyperthreading, which can boost performance with apps that support it. Connections-wise, there are four USB 2.0 ports for hooking up such essentials as ADSL modems or hard drives, plus a FireWire port, for linking up camcorders and other video devices. Graphics-wise, the P20 boasts an NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 graphics chip, a highly competent 3D performer that sports its own dedicated 32MB RAM, unlike most 14- and 15-inch laptops, which rely on graphics CONTACT accelerators that share system memory. Toshiba However, Toshiba is playing with the 0870 444 8943 big boys here, and good though the www.toshiba.co.uk processor may be compared to normalpriced models, it still delivers the worst VERDICT OpenGL performance of all the machines in our Group Test. More The Toshiba P20 is a true worryingly, in common with other desktop replacement, both Toshiba laptops, we were unable to in terms of size and weight. benchmark its Direct X, battery life or Its abysmal battery life is hard drive capabilities. like going back to the laptop Management software is included, Dark Ages, though, which supposedly to enhance the P20’s means you can’t use it away performance, but in practice it proves from a power source for intrusive, restricting to some degree long. Still, at home or the the way you can use the machine.

★★★

office, it’s a pleasure to use.

FUJITSU-SIEMENS AMILO D1840 PC £1500

3D enthusiasts’ interest may be piqued by this lively Fujitsu-Siemens model

F

antastic though 17-inch models may be, their huge screens can really drain the batteries, so opting for a machine with a slightly smaller display – such as this 15.4-inch model – is one way to ensure your laptop stays active for longer. Fujitsu-Siemens claims the Amilo D1840 will last 2.5 hours between charges, but it tested an hour less in our benchmark, in which we disabled all power management features. Our tests reflect continuous usage performance and, unlike official figures, do not factor in idle time. A 3.06GHz Pentium 4 processor, complete with Hyperthreading technology for increased performance, makes this the fastest laptop in our Group Test, alongside the Rock DTS. However, the Amilo scores over the latter by incorporating a Mobility Radeon 9600 graphics processor, which is significantly better than the Radeon 9000 used by both the Rock and ACI. Indeed, with a massive 128MB of dedicated video memory at its disposal, the processor is comparable with many professional graphics cards. The benchmarks confirm the numbers; its Direct X performance is a good 30 per cent faster than its nearest rival. OpenGL performance is less dramatic, but still better in all but the multiple light source test. But economies have been made. This is the only PC laptop in our line-up that CONTACT doesn’t come with either a CD or DVD Fujitsu-Siemens writer as standard. The hard drive config 0870 606 6677 (40GB) is paltry, too. More worryingly, www.fujitsu-siemens.co.uk its WXGA native screen resolution of 1280x800 is the lowest spec of all the VERDICT widescreen models in our Group Test. Expandability isn’t a problem, Thanks to its superb however, thanks to the inclusion of three 3D performance and high-speed USB 2.0 ports and FireWire practical Hyperthreading connectivity. There’s also a Cardbus capabilities, the Amilo memory slot for plugging in cards from proves ideal for CAD or 3D suitably equipped cameras, camcorders design work. It’s not a bad and other storage devices. machine at a reasonable Although it’s smaller than the Rock price – and doesn’t fare and ACI models, the Amilo hardly badly with 2D work, either. weighs any less – a fact not helped by A capable all-rounder. the clunky 1kg power supply.

★★★

104 Computer Arts_Christmas2003

Group Test

ACI INSPIRATION PC £1526

This desktop replacement packs a punch, but its curious architecture disappoints

W

hile big manufacturers such as Sony, Toshiba and HP can afford to manufacture their own laptops from scratch, smaller companies, such as ACI, buy all their components in and build to order. The Inspiration, for instance, uses the same chassis and motherboard as the acclaimed Rock DTS, although it relies on different components. Thing is, this has a serious impact on the laptop’s performance… The 2.8GHz Pentium 4 may only be ten per cent slower than the Rock’s, but when we put it through one of our Photoshop tests, the Rock outpaced ACI’s laptop by over 20 per cent. And why opt for Windows XP Pro? It adds measurably to the laptop’s build cost, but adds little to its usefulness. It’s also rather ironic that a device tailor-made for large-scale video editing (three USB 2.0 ports; one FireWire port) should come with a paltry 60GB hard drive as standard. Battery life is another issue. Largely thanks to the energy-draining 17-inch screen (running at WXGA+ resolution of 1440x900), the machine expired after just 95 minutes in our tests, CONTACT a good 11 minutes earlier than the Rock ACI DTS (a fact we attribute to the latter’s 0208 830 1958 more efficient processor). www.aciplc.com Both Rock and ACI models rely on the ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 graphics VERDICT processor, which offers good 3D ★★★★ performance. Unfortunately, the ACI chip The Inspiration comes with resisted our efforts to benchmark its a few nice options, such as DirectX performance by crashing life-time free labour on any repeatedly during tests. The DTS yielded repairs, free corporate results that were 30 per cent slower than branding on large orders, the Fujitsu-Siemens model, so for the and even a TV tuner. purposes of this Group Test, we However, these benefits assumed the Inspiration would perform don’t quite compensate for the same. This model benchmarked fine the Rock’s superior power under OpenGL, exceeding the Toshiba, and hard drive capacity. but losing out to the Amilo.

APPLE POWERBOOK 15-INCH MAC £1999

Apple’s recently updated 15-inch portable is more powerful and desirable than ever

T

he long-awaited aluminium overhaul of the 15-inch PowerBook brings some interesting features to the designer’s favourite laptop. The model we’re looking at is the top-end PowerBook, featuring a 1.25GHz G4 and one of the best mobile graphics cards around, the ATI Radeon 9600 Mobility. Features include a 2x slot-loading SuperDrive, 512MB RAM, a FireWire port, a FireWire 800 port, two USB 2.0 ports, 1GB Ethernet, plus DVI-out, S-Video out and a PCMCIA slot. All this connectivity makes the PowerBook an ideal desktop replacement for all but the most demanding of tasks, and with BlueTooth built-in, you can pair and sync a number of devices, including Apple’s recently announced wireless keyboard and mouse, with ease. Wireless networking is provided in the form of a built-in Airport Extreme card. One thing that worries us is the noticeable gap between keyboard and display when the laptop is closed (presumably Apple’s way of preventing damage to the screen). But at least this model provides the same backlight system as the 17-inch PowerBook. It may sound gimmicky, but if you’re showing a client a presentation in a darkened room, it proves a godsend. The laptop runs silently, it won’t burn your legs if it’s sitting on your lap, and the instant-on sleep feature makes shutting down a thing of the past. One niggle, though: the model we reviewed featured a 4200rpm 80GB hard drive, and boot-up times were slow to CONTACT say the least. It took around a minute and Apple a half for the Mac to boot – making the 0800 039 1010 instant-on feature all the more useful. www.apple.com/ukstore This is a fantastically designed and engineered laptop that has enough VERDICT power for day-to-day Photoshop, Web and layout work. More portable than For Mac-based designers, the 17-inch model, a better size for the 15-inch PowerBook designers than the 12-incher, it only is a fantastic buy. More loses out to the Rock’s offering for portable than the 17-inch, sheer processing power and value for better specs and bigger money. It looks great, though, and is than the 12-inch, it’s just a much lighter and thinner than the little pricey, that’s all. rest of the laptops on offer.

★★★★

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

105

WINNER

ROCK DTS PC £1645

Looking for a versatile, powerful and portable desktop solution for all your digital design and video editing needs? Then look no further – here’s a laptop that’s as hard as its name CONTACT Rock 08709 90 90 90 www.rockdirect.com

VERDICT

★★★★★ It’s amazing that you can get a laptop this attractive, this powerful and this big for under £2000. You literally could throw your desktop PC in the bin and do everything on the Rock DTS.

106 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

W

hile its rivals may boast bigger or better individual features – be it nicer cases, faster 3D cards or built-in TV tuners – the Rock DTS, wrapped up in its pleasing silver livery, still manages to outstrip them all. Here, at last, is a laptop that truly earns the moniker ‘desktop replacement’. First off, there’s the impressive processor, a 3.06GHz Pentium 4, which uses Hyperthreading technology with supported apps to significantly improve performance. Hypethreading enables the CPU to act as two ‘virtual’ processors, each of which can then act independently. This technology proves invaluable when running multiple apps, enabling you to, say, render video or a 3D model in the background while simultaneously working on another app. The hard drive, too, proves to be a winner. The fastest on test, its speed was only bettered by its counterpart on the otherwise lacklustre P20. The DTS also provided the fastest 2D benchmark performance, while the raw CPU tests rated it top of all the Pentium-based laptops. Of course, if you plan to use a laptop for any 3D work, a decent 3D accelerator is a must. Here, too, the DTS has the advantage, using the Mobility Radeon 9000 accelerator, a powerful high-end card that significantly outperforms the P20’s already nippy NVIDIA processor. And by carrying its

own dedicated graphics memory, it avoids consuming RAM vital for running your apps, unlike lower-end chips. Sadly, the gorgeous 17-inch screen, running at a WXGA+ resolution of 1440x900, has a predictable impact on battery life – in this case, we squeezed out just one hour 24 minutes with no power management. Turn all power management features on and the screen brightness down, though, and you could extend that figure significantly. Mind you, this is only fine for working on non-creative projects. If you’re designing, editing video or 3D modelling, you’ll want full brightness to maintain good colour fidelity. In terms of RAM capacity, 512MB from the off seems rather mean – 1GB would’ve been better. Still, the generous 80GB hard drive more than makes up for it; if you’re doing video editing, you’re going to have plenty of room to spare. A complete creative and entertainment solution, the Rock DTS also comes with a built-in Webcam, DVD/CD writer and great sound – it’s the only laptop in our Group Test that boasts its own five-speaker system, complete with sub-woofer! For us, though, the icing on the cake has to be Rock’s three-year collect-and-return warranty. Considering the fact that new screens can cost around £500, this service adds several hundred pounds to the value of the laptop and makes it considerably good value for money.

Group Test

MANUFACTURER

TOSHIBA

FUJITSU-SIEMENS

ACI

APPLE

ROCK

MODEL

P20

Amilo D1840

Inspiration

PowerBook

DTS

£ INC VAT

£1899

£1500

£1526

£1999

£1645

WEIGHT

4.4kg

3.5kg

3.6kg

2.5kg

3.6kg

SCREEN SIZE

17 inches

15.4 inches

17 inches

15.2 inches

17 inches

DISPLAY RESOLUTION

1440x900

1280x800

1440x900

1280x854

1440x900

AVERAGE BATTERY LIFE

1h 16m

1h 36m

1h 35m

2h 30m

1h 24m

P4 2.8 HT

P4 3.06GHz HT

P4 2.8GHz HT

1.25GHz G4

P4 3.06GHz HT

INSTALLED/MAX MEMORY 512/2048MB

1024/1024MB

512MB/1024MB

512MB/2048MB

512/1024MB

HD CAPACITY

60GB

40GB

60GB

80GB

80GB

CD/DVD

CD/DVD/RW

DVD-R

CD/DVD-RW

DVD-R/CD-RW

DVD-RW/CD-RW

PC CARD TYPE II/III (NUMBER OF EACH)

2 x Type II or 1 Type III

1 x Type I/II

1 x Type II

1 x Type II

1 x Type II

FIREWIRE (Y/N)

Y

Y

Y

Y (1 x 400, 1 x 800)

Y

USB (NUMBER, TYPE)

4 x USB 2.0

3 x USB 2.0

3 x USB 2.0

2 x USB 2.0

3 x USB 2.0

W/LAN (Y/N TYPE)

Optional

Optional

Optional

Standard

Optional

GRAPHICS CARD

NVIDIA GeForce FX Go 5200 ATI Radeon 9600

ATI Radeon 9000

ATI Radeon 9600

ATI Radeon 9000

MAX VIDEO RAM

32MB dedicated

128MB

64MB dedicated

64MB dedicated

64MB dedicated

BUNDLED OPERATING SYSTEM

Windows XP Home

Windows XP Home

Windows XP Pro

OS X 10.3

Windows XP Home

NOTABLE EXTRAS

None

●

(NO POWER MANAGEMENT)

PROCESSOR

●

Memory card slot Works 2003

5 speakers, including sub ● Free corporate imaging for quantity ● Webcam ● TV tuner ●

●

iLife software

5 speakers, including sub ● 5.1 DTS output ● Webcam ●

WARRANTY (YEAR.TYPE)

1 year international

Variable

1 year collect and return, life-time free labour and no fix, no fee

1 year limited

3 year collect and return

VERDICT

★★★

★★★

★★★★

★★★★

★★★★★

CONCLUSION

Why the Rock DTS pipped its competitors to the post First off, all these machines would look the part on any desktop. But even the best need pushing, and we pushed these laptops to the limit to see how they’d cope in a typical desktop situation. While we really like the P20’s styling and colour scheme, we still feel the machine’s profile is too bulky. It comes with a huge black leather doctor’s bag that even Dr Finlay would struggle with. Ultimately, though, it’s the Toshiba’s lack of power and its resistance to our benchmarking that puts it out of the running. The Amilo certainly packs a punch, both in terms of processor speed and 3D hardware. The generous 1GB of RAM is nice, too. However, it’s the only PC laptop in our round-up that lacks a DVD writer. And with its relatively small, lower resolution screen, we feel it lacks the all-round benefits to earn a higher rating.

So that leaves just the Inspiration, DTS and Apple PowerBook. ACI’s laptop uses a nicer contrasting dark grey and silver colour scheme, comes with a TV tuner, free corporate branding and a life-time of free labour charges on any repairs, but the Rock boasts a faster 3.06GHz P4 processor, a larger drive and a three-year warranty. While the extra power and storage capacity are impressive in their own right, it’s the three-year warranty that ultimately swings it for Rock’s laptop. The Apple comes a close second. It offers superb battery life and, as always, is a joy to use. If you prefer Macs, it’s definitely the best portable in terms of power and portability. However, it is expensive, and if you’re after a machine for 3D work some of the higher-end software still isn’t available for the platform. ■

Did you know you can get Computer Arts in electronic format? See www.zinio.com

*CD contents not included

BACK ISSUES IF YOU SPOT A BACK ISSUE YOU WANT, CALL THE HOTLINE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE BECAUSE ALL BACK ISSUES ARE SELLING OUT QUICKLY

Issue 90 – Code C0A90 Giant Photoshop feature, DW and Flash MX 2004 tutorials, plus £2410-worth of images!

Issue 89 – Code C0A89 3D figures special! Full version of Maya PLE 5, two DAZ models, plus superb Photoshop tutorial.

Issue 88 – SOLD OUT Full version of Cinema 4D CD 6, plus tutorials on Flash cartoons, typography and InDesign 2.

Issue 87 – Code C0A87 Massive Photoshop special FX tutorial, graphic novel design, plus XPress 6 demo and tutorial.

Issue 86 – SOLD OUT Full version of Realsoft 3D Special Edition, plus combustion, cleaner XL and Canon’s 3D SOM demos.

Issue 85 – SOLD OUT Full versions of trueSpace 3.2 and iCorrect Entrée, 30-day Painter 8 trial, plus Flaming Pear plug-ins.

PAINTING Special – COSB0052 Create convincing natural media effects with help from the experts.

OTHER WORLDS Special – COSB0051 How to create fantasy worlds and amazing scenes using Photoshop.

HOW TO ORDER BACK ISSUES CALL THE HOTLINE ON 0870 444 8455 OR VIA EMAIL [email protected] Please quote relevant code

ADD OUR WEBSITE TO YOUR BOOKMARKS OR FAVOURITES: www.computerarts.co.uk SUBSCRIBE TO COMPUTER ARTS: www.computerarts.co.uk/subscribe

FORMERLY KNOWN AS COMPUTER ARTS SPECIAL, EACH ISSUE TAKES YOU THROUGH A FULL PROJECT, WITH TIPS, TRICKS, TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES…

108 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

PHOTOSHOP Special – COSB0050 Using professional techniques to transform your photographs.

Links

LINKS

MAKE THE CONNECTION

Check out the links section on the covermounted CD

Creative

a s Directory Community Products

In association with computer arts

online exposure special offers competitions freeware articles reviews tools & more!

www.ablestable.com

Xmas cards 350gsm Silk/Gloss Print /Crease/Fold

x50 x100 x200

A6 4pp Cards

full colour front, black inside

£90

£105 £135

A5 4pp Cards

full colour front, black inside

£95

£125 £175

SWITCH

The above prices are subject to sight of copy or file. Carriage charged extra. VAT will be charge where applicable. WP reserve the right to amend prices at anytime.

www.wpdigital.co.uk Be noticed this Christmas. Send your customers, clients and friends personalised Christmas greetings. Christmas cards printed to your own design, incorporating your own photographs, images, logos and message. We can design your cards for you or print directly from your mac or PC files. We also have a selection of Christmas images and illustrations you can use. Please see our website for further details.

0800 783 3241 • [email protected] Isdn: 020 8558 8315 • Fax: 020 8558 3722

dreamweaver, photoshop, illustrator, final cut pro, 3ds max, quark, indesign, flash, ms office mcsa, mcse, and many many more ...

OUR NEW MULTIMEDIA CITY & GUILDS QUALIFICATION IS AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE (FREE TO THE UNEMPLOYED). UCNGUJQVNKPG

ANIMATION IMAGE EDITING VIDEO PRODUCTION WEB SITE & CD/DVD AUTHORING AUDIO RECORDING INTERACTION ETC

0870 333 9712 QTFGTQPNKPG

www.webfusion.co.uk GOCKNWU

[email protected]

THE INSTITUTE of MUSIC & TECHNOLOGY at HURRICANE STUDIOS

KPHQ"KOVJWTTKECPGQTIYYYKOVJWTTKECPGQTI

† 3WCTM:RTGUU  †#ETQDCV  † 2JQVQUJQR  † /CE 15 :  † /CETQOGFKC /: † OQTG

JCTNGSWKP

 $G VTCKPGF KP VJG XGT[ NCVGUV UQHVYCTG CV

*CTNGSWKP 5QNWVKQPU YYY UQNWVKQPU EQ WMVTCKPKPI From introductory to advanced levels. HTML, CSS, Javascript, XML, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, Flash, Actionscript, Director, Lingo, Photoshop, ImageReady, Illustrator, InDesign and others. New Flash MX courses: Courses delivered by industry professionals. •Games development Maximum group size is three people per course. •Data-driven applications Visit our website for the latest special offers.

#WVJQTKUGF /CETQOGFKC3WCTM CPF#FQDG VTCKPKPI EQWTUGU

3

3D YQTNF C O M P U T E R A RT S T R A I N I N G #GV KP VJG K.[NNK- +V+NK+P RTQXKP-G QH $WU-+P[  9QTN. QHHGTU RTQHGUUKQP+N VT+KPKPI ,[ +Y+T. YKPPKPI VG+-JGTUWT OGVJQ.U +TG H+UV +P. GHHG-VKXG9G VT+KP UVW.GPVU HQT + -+TGGT KP  +PKO+VKQP YG, .GUKIPIT+RJK- .GUKIP QT KPVGT+-VKXG OWNVKOG.K+WTU KU QPG QH VJG OQUV +.X+P-G. VG+-JKPI GPXKTQPOGPVU KP WTQRG YKVJ + YGNN GSWKRRG. +P. RQYGTHWN UVW.KQ$T+KPKPI KU QPGVQQPG /G+NU +P. +--QOOQ.+VKQP +TG KP-NW.G.

creative training and development

CREATIVE TRAINING

+44 (0)20 77377523 [email protected] www.ubiq.co.uk

XSI Maya

Metro New Media

3DS Max

Creative Multimedia Training

Flash

Accredited Training Centre

Dreamweaver GoLive

• • • • • • • • • •

FormZ After Effects Premiere Director

Phone : +39.0575.690.060 E-mail : [email protected]

9G QHHGT QPG YGGM #V+P.+T. -N+UUGUHQWT YGGM /+UVGT-N+UUGU KP  +PKO+VKQPYG, .GUKIP +P. OWNVKOG.K+ +P. GKIJV YGGM .X+P-G. /+UVGT-N+UUGU KP  +PKO+VKQP $JKU #GRVGO,GT YG +TG QHHGTKPI URG-K+N VYQ YGGM KPVTQ.W-VQT[ -QWTUGU KP #QHV+O+IG :#+ JG-M VJG YG, UKVG HQT .GV+KNU

www.3D3world.com

3DS Max V5 Combustion After Effects DVD Studio Photoshop Flash MX Java XML Web Design Project Management & much more

Metro New Media 35 Kingsland Road, Shoreditch, London E2 8AA tel: 020 7729 9992 www.metronewmedia.com

Intensive scheduled & customised courses taught by experienced industry professionals

email: [email protected]

Thames Valley University supports mass participation in higher education

MA Computer Arts At the London College of Music & Media (LCMM) we serve three different types of students: those who want to upgrade their skills, those who want to specialise in Digital Arts and those who want to pursue original research. We have created a flexible and efficient studio environment for the emergence of a new breed of professional, an information specialist who is equally at home with both creative and analytical styles of thinking. Philosophy and Rationale The MA in Computer Arts develops your understanding of relevant technological, cultural and aesthetic perspectives on digital arts and provides a studio environment where you can explore, examine and experience this unique meeting of art and technology. Course Content • Computing Principles for Artists and Designers • Creative Applications for Audio and Video • Interactive and Immersive Virtual Artworks • Experimental Digital Media • Contemporary Cultural Theory • Major Project e-mail: [email protected] web: http://mercury.tvu.ac.uk/ca

Tel: 020 8231 2779 London College of Music & Media Thames Valley University St Mary’s Road, Ealing, London W5 5RF

Find Your Focus... MA Digital Games Design

Full-time, one-year

This new Masters programme enables designers to combine creativity with an understanding of gaming issues such as game theory, play mechanics and interactivity. With core modules that build academic knowledge and vocational competencies, the programme provides:

• • • •

an understanding of the professional context of digital games design in-depth knowledge of relevant research methods the opportunity to produce a comprehensive, specialist body of work access to purpose-built studios containing G4 Emacs with graphics,

new media and 3D software. For further information please call our Registry on 01252 722441 or visit www.surrart.ac.uk

◗CD DUPLICATION Complete Digital Solutions Fast short run CDR Duplication with superb full colour on CD Face, from 1-500 without glass master - free example on request. Call Simon Hughes for competitive prices for CD-ROM REPLICATION for quantities of 500 upwards. Tel. 01923 261 269 Fax: 01923 261 267 Email: [email protected] ISDN: 01923 291 040

tuning techniques to offer leading-edge performance for the 3D enthusiast, 3D gaming and professional applications such as CAD, DTP, animation or video editing. Tel: +44 (0) 1635 524949 Fax:+44 (0) 1635 524948 Email: [email protected] Website: www.gainward.net

◗ILLUSTRATION, 3D ANIMATION & VISUALISATION ARCANA DIGITAL

DB Masters •Short and long runs •Competitive prices •Fast turn-around •A-Grade CDR •Thermal or screen print Tel: 01795 597 755 Fax: 01795 597 766 Email: [email protected] Website: www.dbmasters.co.uk

◗FONTS FACES LTD Whether you are looking for a single font, a complete library or a custom designed font, Faces offers you knowledgeable and friendly service. Fonts from the major foundries as well as new designers. Free confidential consultation for font licensing. Call for info and catalogues. Tel: 01276 38888 Fax: 01276 38111 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.faces.co.uk Contact: John, Carolyn, Melanie FONTWARE™ The Custom Font Specialists • customisation & conversions • digital branding solutions • individual fonts & collections • licensing • language • buy on-line Fontware Ltd Katana house Fort Fareham Newgate Lane Fareham Hants PO14 1AH Tel: 01329 221121 Fax: 01329 281145 Email: [email protected] Website: www.fontware.com

◗GRAPHICS CARDS GAINWARD Gainward’s "Golden Sample" products guarantee outstanding stability and performance at enhanced clock settings using hand selected graphics processors, carefully qualified Ultra-DDR memory chips, and advanced, proprietary hardware

Animation, imaging and post production for broadcast, interactive and print. Folio available on line or call for CD sampler. Studio 15 minutes from Victoria. Clients include:- Bray Leino, Citigate.A.F, DDB, Grey, JWT, Lowe, Masius, Ogilvy, OWN&P, Proximity, Publicis, RKCRY&R, Saatchi, TBWA, WTCS, WWAV. Tel: 020 8466 0655 Email: [email protected] Website: www.arcanadigital.com Contact: John Fox

◗RECRUITMENT CHANGE LTD Change is an agency with a difference. We have been providing a bespoke service to our customers for over three years and recruit exclusively for the Interactive Entertainment Industry. Change provides a friendly effective service to all sectors concentrating on the Gaming world. Our customers are loyal, which speaks for itself! Tel: 020 7241 4545 Mobile:07973 413060 Website: www.change-job.com

◗TRAINING SERVICES CORPS BUSINESS Recruitment and Training solutions since 1989. Training available in tailored & scheduled format. Authorised by Adobe, Extensis, Macromedia, Media 100, Maxon and Quark. Recruitment supplies staff on a temporary, permanent, contract and freelance basis. Tel: 020 7222 8484 Email: [email protected] Web: www.corps.co.uk ESCAPE STUDIOS – VISUAL EFFECTS TRAINING As Europe’s only dedicated school of Visual Effects Escape Studios courses provide the necessary skills to enter the Visual Effects and Games Development industries. Escape offer intensive day, evening and weekend courses in Maya, XSI, Shake, Combustion, Photoshop and RenderMan. Escape is a

certified training centre for Alias Wavefront, Discreet and Softimage. Tel: +44 (0)20 524 7570 Fax: +44 (0)20 524 7571 Email: [email protected] Website: www.escapestudios.co.uk METRO NEW MEDIA • London’s leading training Centre for web-design, 3D, Animation, Multi-media, Project Management and Programming • All trainers are professionals in their field • State of the art studios • All levels from beginner to advanced • Specialists in customised training • Discreet Accredited Tel : 020 7729 9992 Email: [email protected]

Web: www.metronewmedia.com

◗WEB DESIGN AZ*TECH GRAPHIC DESIGN Az*Tech Graphic Design is a Midlands based Web design agency. Specialising in Custom built software solutions for all of your online or multimedia requirements. Az*Tech has its own reasonably priced E-commerce and Auction solutions that can be attached to a site easily and add real power to your web presence. Tel: 07931 554073 Mobile: 07930 396444 Email: [email protected] Website: www.az-tech.co.uk

◗WEB HOSTING

◗FORTHCOMING CATEGORIES:-

◗ACCOUNTANCY ◗ADVERTISING DESIGN

◗BOARD AND PAPER

◗COPYWRITING ◗DESIGN STUDIOS

◗EXHIBITION DESIGNERS

◗FREELANCERS

DEDICATED SERVERS The UK's leading hosting company • FREE and UNLIMITED phone & email support (24/7/365) • Service level agreement • State-of-the-art data centres • Dedicated Control Panel • Partner Programme • Windows, Linux, Sun, Cobalt and Co-location available • Host up to 200 websites per server from £74.99 per month Tel: 0870 333 9738 Fax: 0115 919 5514 Email: [email protected]

◗IMAGE GALLERIES

◗LEGAL ADVICE ◗MULTIMEDIA

Website: www.dedicated-servers.co.uk

NETCETERA Formed in 1996, Netcetera is one of Europe's leading Web Hosting service providers. Our services are biased towards Microsoft based Internet Technologies - Microsoft Certified Partner since 1999. Netcetera provides complete solutions for Web Hosting, Domain Name Registration, eCommerce, E-mail, Dedicated Server Hosting, Server-based Applications Hosting (ASP) and .NETpplaince. www.inetc.net Tel: +44 (0)1624 612948 Fax: +44 (0)1624 623385 Email: [email protected] Website: www.inetc.net

◗POINT OF SALE PROMOTIONS

◗PRINTING SERVICES

◗REPRO ◗SOFTWARE

TO F E AT U R E I N T H E C R E AT I V E D I R E C TO RY T E L E P H O N E B RY O N Y WAT T S O N 0 1 2 2 5 4 4 2 2 4 4

Sybex Maya titles ®

Published in partnership with Alias® and written by the most respected professionals in the industry. From introductory level and complete reference to exclusive tools exploring complex tools, Sybex brings you an exceptional library of striking books.

Maya Press™ titles Introducing Maya® 5: 3D for Beginners

Alias Approved Titles Maya® 5 Savvy™

Dariush Derakhshani • £22.99 • 0-7821-4239-7

John Kundert-Gibbs and al £37.99 • 0-7821-4230-3 Dec-03

Learning Maya® 5: Character Rigging and Animation

Maya® 4.5 Savvy™

Alias • £45.99 • 1-894893-41-7

John Kundert-Gibbs and al £37.99 • 0-7821-4109-9

DVD

Learning Maya 5®: Dynamics Alias • £45.99 • 1-894893-42-5 DVD

Learning Maya® 5: Foundation Alias • £49.99 • 1-894893-34-4

DVD

Learning Maya® 5: MEL Fundamentals

“The book is well thought out and organised. The content is well structured, and it is easy to dive into at any page and glean some useful information rather than have to wade through waffle.” 3D World magazine

Stop Staring: Facial Modeling and Animation Done Right™ Jason Osipa £37.99 • 0-7821-4129-3

Alias • £45.99 • 1-894893-44-1

Other Maya/3D titles DVD

Learning Maya® 5: Rendering Alias • £45.99 • 1-894893-43-3

Maya™ Character Animation Jae-jin Choi £47.99 • 0-7821-4171-4

DVD

The Art of Maya™ Alias 2nd Edition • £45.99 • 1-894893-13-1

Maya®: Secrets of the Pros™ John Kundert-Gibbs, et al £37.99 • 0-7821-4055-6

Available in all good bookshops and online retailers For further information: Sybex International Corp. T: +44 (0)20 7604 3769 F: +44 (0)20 7604 4105 E [email protected] Sybex, sponsor of the 2003 Ridley Scott Awards - www.escapestudios.co.uk/awards

www.sybex.co.uk

EXPOSURE SUBMISSIONS: Exposure, Computer Arts, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath, BA1 2BW, United Kingdom Turn to page 120 for full details

1 NAME Robin Chaphekar JOB Photographer & Illustrator CONTACT 07939 187 675, [email protected] SOFTWARE Illustrator, Painter, Poser IMAGE TITLES 1. George, 2. Snakeskin, 3. Barbie, 4. Madtimax, 5. Pen, 6. Laser

1 2

116 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

3

Exposure

4

“I started out in graphics and photography when there was no digital technology – I guess I’m old-school, but I’m loving every minute of being able to do things that would otherwise have been prohibitive in both cost and time using traditional methods. It’s fantastic.”

5

6

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003 117

1

2 NAME Eric Hageman JOB Illustrator CONTACT [email protected], www.digitalabsinthe.com SOFTWARE Painter 7, Illustrator 10, Photoshop 7 IMAGE TITLES 1. The Liar, 2. Museum, 3. Bear “I’m in my final year at Ringling School of Art & Design in Florida, and also studied Fine Art at The Museum School in Boston. I block in large colours in Illustrator, then export to Painter, where I mess it up with brushes, then return to Illustrator to trace more shapes.”

3

118 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

2

Exposure

3 NAME Shaun Fitzsimmons JOB Illustrator CONTACT 0115 928 2672 SOFTWARE Photoshop, Illustrator, Cinema 4D IMAGE TITLES 1. Cat, 2. JapaniBoy

1

“I start an image with a sketch, then scan into Photoshop and outline with the Pen tool. By then, selecting each part with the Magic Wand, I build up the colours on separate layers, shading where necessary. I’ve just started using Cinema 4D to convert my characters into 3D models for animation. I’m influenced by Animé, and hope to work as a character designer and illustrator.”

1

2

2

3

4 NAME Mark Houlden JOB Illustrator CONTACT 07949 564 681, [email protected], www.markhoulden.com SOFTWARE Illustrator, Photoshop IMAGE TITLES 1. Hannah, 2. Crate, 3. Who is 4. Bang 5. Delf “I do what I do because I love it and couldn’t imagine doing anything else. My earliest memories are of drawing for hours. Most of my work is created using drawn images scanned into Photoshop. My style is quite tight and clean, but this is just where I’m at right now. I feel I’m constantly developing as a person and as an artist and that’s one of the great aspects of being a freelance illustrator, the freedom it allows for progression in your work.”

4

5 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003 119

GET EXPOSED Send your work to us, along with an explanation of your techniques and software, the titles of each piece, your telephone number and email. Images should be sent as PC or Mac TIFF or JPEG files, on CD-ROM or Zip disks. A hard copy is a great help. We will endeavour to return all entries that provide an SAE. All contributions are submitted on the basis of a non-exclusive worldwide licence to publish, both in printed and electronic form. Post hi-res files for print to: Exposure, Computer Arts, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BA1 2BW.

1

3 4

2 5 NAME Graham Hutchings JOB Designer CONTACT 01495 200849, [email protected] SOFTWARE Photoshop, Fireworks, Illustrator IMAGE TITLES 1. NY5, 2. NY2, 3. NY1, 4. Subway 5. NY3ii “I studied graphic design at the University of Wales College, Newport, and during the final year of my degree I won a Royal Society of Arts award in the interactive section. The award enabled me to travel to America and meet various designers and artists, which gave me the inspiration for these images. I’m currently working for Blacksheep, a design consultancy in Cardiff Bay.”

5

120 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

Exposure

1

2

6 NAME Justin Amphlett JOB Illustrator CONTACT [email protected] SOFTWARE Cinema 4D, Photoshop IMAGE TITLES 1. print 7, 2. Print 2, 3. Print 9, 4. Print 6 “I’m inspired by science fiction, Manga, and Japan in general. I have found Cinema 4D to be a godsend, making 3D modelling possible to more conventional 2D designers like myself who don’t have the discipline (or budget) to master packages like 3ds max or Maya.”

3

2

4

Computer Arts_Christmas 2003 121

RETROSPECTIVE ISSUE 26 WINTER 1998 Pixelsurgeon were fresh out of college, and OS 8.5 was exciting news…

EDITORIAL 01225 442 244 VICKI ATKINSON EDITOR [email protected] RODDY LLEWELLYN ART EDITOR [email protected] ROB CARNEY DEPUTY EDITOR [email protected] RACHEL ELLIOTT OPERATIONS EDITOR [email protected] JON ALONGI CD EDITOR [email protected] MATT GALLIMORE SENIOR CD EDITOR [email protected]

CD PROBLEMS 01225 822 743 [email protected]

Contributions from Jason Arber, Mat Broomfield, Ryan Carson, Rob Chiu, Simon Danaher, Christian Darkin, Dan Goodleff, Nick Hayes, Karl Hodge, Christopher Kenworthy, Ross Mawdsley, Vicky Mitchard, Mark Penfold, Ed Ricketts, Cavan Scott, Ray Smith, Mark Sparrow, TADO

E

ffortlessly jumping the gun by several years, issue 26 confidently declared that digital cameras had come of age. With Fuji’s 1.3megapixel cam costing nigh on £1200, this could in retro(spect) be described as ‘foolish’. Director 7 and Mac OS 8.5 were bubbling under in the news section, along with a new video package from Eidos codenamed Judgement – which never came to anything in the end. A bit like the FlashPix format, which we included in a Web file format roundup, commenting that it looked like having ‘staying power.’ Erm. Ah. At least we were right when we explained ‘why you’ll be using PDF more in 1999.’ ‘Who is Public Art?’ we asked rather redundantly, in our eight-page profile of design outfit Public Art. Why, it’s none other than that Jason Arber bloke from out of PixelSurgeon, innit? Not to mention Rina Cheung. What’s more, by some act of serendipity, a few pages on lurks the profile of that cheeky little iconoclast Richard May – all freshly scrubbed and innocent, long before PixelSurgeon snapped him up. We like to think that in some tiny way we were responsible for this meeting of minds. (We weren’t, though.) ■

PHOTOGRAPHY James Wilson PRINT TPL Printers (UK) Ltd REPRO Radstock Reproductions Ltd

CONTACT Computer Arts magazine, Future Publishing, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath, BA1 2BW 01225 732 361 ISDN 01225 789 293 Overseas subscriptions +44 870 4448 455

ADVERTISING 01225 442244 LEE HAINES key account manager [email protected] GEORGE LUCAS sales executive [email protected] MELISSA WATKINS classified sales executive [email protected]

DIGITAL DIVISION JOHN WEIR publishing director SHEENA PITTAWAY publisher FIONA TULLY marketing manager CLARE TOVEY production manager PAUL MCINTYRE group art editor STEVE JARRATT group senior editor SARAH WILLIAMS software copyright coordinator

PRODUCTION DAVID MATHEWS ad design point of contact KATTY PIGOTT production coordinator MIKE THORNE commercial print buyer

CIRCULATION & LICENSING RICHARD JEFFERIES circulation manager RICHARD BEAN overseas licensing manager SIMON WEAR overseas licensing director Computer Arts has licences in China, France, Italy, Poland, and Spain

UK DISTRIBUTION Seymour Distribution 020 7396 8000 86 Newman Street, London, W1T 3EX

THE FUTURE NETWORK ROGER PARRY non-executive chairman GREG INGHAM chief executive COLIN MORRISON chief operating officer & managing director UK JOHN BOWMAN group finance director Tel +44 1225 442244 www.thefuturenetwork.plc.uk Computer Arts is a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations Jan-Dec 2002: 30,024

FLASHBACK

ABOVE Jason

Arber (writer of our Illustrator CS tutorial on p64) when he was a young whippersnapper. RIGHT Finally,

a picture of Pac-Man with a bowtie. Hurrah.

122 Computer Arts_Christmas 2003

It’s no less than eight years since a small team of digital art enthusiasts at Future Publishing kicked off what we now know and love as Computer Arts, and it’s now the leading title in its field. That field has changed massively in those eight years – DVD is no longer a mystery, and Photoshop is now a household name. We continue our look back with 1998’s issue 26…

Computer Arts is the registered trademark of Future Publishing Ltd. All Rights Reserved. All trademarks and copyrights in this issue are recognised, and are acknowledged where possible. If we have failed to credit your copyright please contact us – we’re happy to correct any oversight. Material submitted is accepted on the basis of a worldwide right to publish in printed or electronic form. All contents © Future Publishing 2003. Future Publishing is part of The Future Network PLC. The Future Network produces carefully targeted specialist magazines for people who share a passion. We aim to satisfy that passion by creating titles offering value for money, reliable information, smart buying advice, and which are a pleasure to read. Today we publish more than 90 magazines in the UK, US, France and Italy. Over 80 international editions of our magazines are also published in 28 other countries across the world. The Future Network PLC is a public company quoted on the London Stock Exchange (symbol: FNET).

Life’s an open Book.

The most affordable iBook G4 ever, designed for your digital lifestyle. Introducing the new iBook G4

All under one roof

The world’s best-loved consumer portable gets an impressive makeover with a superfast PowerPC G4 processor, a new architecture, a slot-loading optical drive and enhanced wireless networking capabilities. Plus with its extra-long battery life, compact size and ultralight weight, the iBook G4 can accompany you everywhere. And you have a choice of 12.1-inch or 14.1-inch displays, turbocharged 800MHz, 933MHz or 1GHz PowerPC G4 processors.

John Lewis department stores stock the complete range of Apple products including the brand new and faster iBook, iMac, PowerBook and Power Mac G5 series. You’ll also find a huge choice of software, monitors, compatible printers, scanners and other accessories.

You’ll never run out of cool things to do with your iBook. Pop open the lid and you’ll find everything you need to surf the Internet1, create cool Web sites, share photos, build a music library, edit video movies, send and receive emails, solve maths problems, write reports and more. Since all retail iBook models come with a Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW), you can burn your own music and photography CDs.

John Lewis – Peace of mind In addition to the quality and value that’s part of the package when you buy at John Lewis, a free two-year guarantee is included too.2

Knowledgeable service Customers return to John Lewis time and again because they know the sales assistants are fully trained by Apple. This means that you, the customer, can rest assured that you will get the best product to suit your needs.

Buying made easy Buying Apple equipment from John Lewis is one thing. But the story doesn’t end there. Not only will your Apple be delivered free but installation professionals can help you set up your computer for a small charge. All in all, John Lewis offers a service that is designed to make buying and using your Apple easier than ever.

Want to know more? Visit your nearest John Lewis.

1. Compatible ISP and telephone services required. Your ISP may not support all v.92 features. Modem will function according to v.90 standards if v.92 services are not available. Actual modem speeds lower; speed depends on connection rate and other factors. 2. See in store for details.

iBook G4 comes with Mac OS X version 10.3 “Panther” Panther is Apple’s easy-to-use, next-generation operating system with over 150 new features, iron clad security and solid operation.