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Blender for Dummies®

So you’ve heard about Blender, the free 3D animation software. You really want to know more about the features of Blender, where to get it, and how to use it. You’re in luck! It’s all in Blender For Dummies, including Blender software on the bonus DVD.

Because there’s a lot to learn about Blender, you’ll be glad this book takes it step by step. First, you’ll learn to install Blender 2.48 and think the Blender way. Then you’ll start creating 3D objects and setting them in motion with animations and rigging. Soon you’ll be texturing with Blender, rendering with Blender, and sharing your creations. You’ll learn how to:

  • Create almost anything with meshes, save time with the Mirror modifier, and use Blender’s secret weapon, Dupliverts
  • Understand texture mapping, know when to use which type of lamp, and use radiosity in animation
  • Work with curves and surfaces, and add color, shades, texture, and reflections
  • Rig your characters for animation with shape keys, hooks, and armatures, and understand kinematics
  • Navigate in three dimensions
  • Make your animations more believable, and let Blender do the animating for you
  • Use the video sequence editor
  • Export, render, composite, and edit for output

You’ll even get tips on common problems new Blender users face and how to avoid them. Blender For Dummies will have you creating eye-popping 3D animations before you know it!

Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

Biography

Jason van Gumster has produced a variety of animations and visualeffects for television and film as producer/animator for Hand TurkeyStudios. A Blender user since 1998, he's given numerous Blender workshops and blogs for Blender Nation, the primary news Web site for Blender users.

Table of Contents

Introduction.

Part I: Wrapping Your Brain Around Blender.

Chapter 1: Discovering Blender.

Chapter 2: Understanding How Blender Thinks.

Chapter 3: Getting Your Hands Dirty Working in Blender.

Chapter 4: Working in Edit Mode and Object Mode.

Part II: Creating Detailed 3D Scenes.

Chapter 5: Creating Anything You Can Imagine with Meshes.

Chapter 6: Using Blender’s Non-Mesh Primitives.

Chapter 7: Changing that Boring Gray Default Material.

Chapter 8: Giving Models Texture.

Chapter 9: Lighting and Environment.

Part III: Get Animated!

Chapter 10: Animating Objects.

Chapter 11: Rigging: The Art of Building an Animatable Puppet.

Chapter 12: Animating Object Deformations.

Chapter 13: Letting Blender Do the Work for You.

Part IV: Sharing Your Work with the World.

Chapter 14: Exporting and Rendering Scenes.

Chapter 15: Compositing and Editing.

Part V: The Part of Tens.

Chapter 16: Ten Problems for New Users in Blender (and Ways around Them).

Chapter 17: Ten Tips for Working More Effectively in Blender.

Appendix: About the CD.

Bonus Chapter: Ten Excellent Community Resources.

Index.

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