Amazon Exclusive: Eric Keller?s Top 10 Cool Uses for ZBrush

1. Blendshape Facial Targets: Create blendshape facial targets for characters for animation in Maya using ZBrush - it’s fast and easy!

2. Tiling Textures: Use ZBrush to create tiling textures for 3D objects.

3. Normal and Displacement Maps: Use ZBrush to create normal and displacement maps - it’s superior to Maya’s native difference map generator.

4. Texture Maps: Paint texture maps directly on characters and 3D objects.

5. Illustrations: Craft amazing illustrations with ZBrush’s 2.5D painting tools.

6. Compositing: Render separate passes of an object from ZBrush with different materials applied for compositing in Photoshop.

7. Sculpting: Add ZApplink to ZBrushes’ sculpting power with Photoshop and Painter brushes.

8. Material Capture: Design specialized materials based on objects in photographs with ZBrush’s Material Capture tool.

9. Modeling: Build digital models for 3D printing and fabrication.

10. Character Creation: Shape the most amazing characters and creatures possible using ZBrush’s revolutionary digital sculpting tools.

---

If you want to take advantage of one of the hottest CGI tools available, Introducing ZBrush is the perfect place to start. Professional Hollywood animator and ZBrush artist Eric Keller dispels any anxieties beginners might have by offering the careful, step-by-step instruction you need to soon feel right at home with this revolutionary software. Each chapter explains core concepts, then reinforces them with fun, hands-on tutorials that will amaze you with your growing ability to create hyper-detailed, realistic, organic sculptures on your computer.

Learn to sculpt detailed, lush, organic models with the hottest tool on the 3D market - ZBrush - and this step-by-step guide. Introducing ZBrush is the ideal initiation to this revolutionary software. Starting with the basics, it builds from the ground up, combining straightforward text with practical examples that make it fun to learn ZBrush’s core tools and concepts. Professional animator and ZBrush artist Eric Keller walks you through the hands-on tutorials and teaches you the skills you need to create hyper-realistic digital models like a pro. From creating illustrations in 2.5 dimensions to sculpting with digital clay, you’ll master ZBrush’s powerful tools for creating fantastic images and 3D models for use in animation programs like 3ds Max and Maya. Whether your new to the ZBrush interface or a CG veteran looking for the latest techniques, Introducing ZBrush will help you fulfill your artistic potential by giving you the power to create stunning digital art with a distinctively fine art feel.

Amazing book

This is a great book for beginners in 3d, specifically modeling. I’ve had my share of video tutorials but having a physical book that i can take with me anywhere is priceless, anywhere i go i can keep on reading any particular subject i want to learn further.

The explanations are clear for beginners and intermediate users of Zbrush, might be simple stuff for advanced users but there’s never too much information in any book, it comes with a CD which includes a 30 day trial of Zrbush 3.0 and the exercise files for the whole book.

Great product, recommended.

Excellent book!!

As a fifteen year veteran of the 3D art world, I can say that ZBrush is the revolution I’ve been waiting for, and the Introducing ZBrush book is fantastic!! I was able to complete projects within minutes of opening this book that would have taken hours, if not days using other apps. My wife was so impressed with what I created in so short a time, she asked to try...so, with absolutely no experience, she started the book, and in a few hours had an excellent understanding of the app, and was creating some very nice mesh. I read in another review that the CD didn’t work, but I had no trouble with it at all, running XP Pro. I would recommend this guide to all.

Awesome!!

Great book. I couldn’t wait for it. I found it at a bookstore and after looking through it I bought it. It did not bother one bit paying the cover price. Great book.

A good book to have

This book is a great reference book even for someone that is familiar to Z brush. There are so many features in the program that his book goes into detail describing. The step by step tutorials will help you get started with Z brush. It also touches on the 2D capabilities of the program, something that is often over looked.

Bored to the end

First of all this book is so boringly non-visual. Black and White except for the small insert in the middle. The projects need a better step-by-step approach. I found myself having to reread the wordy steps most of the time to find the "key" word I was missing to complete a step. It didn’t help that the first tutorial was so incredible boaring and goes on for 139 pages. By the time it was over I lost most interest in continuing. Shorter projects to the point please. YAWN...wake me when this is over. It was nice to have something written down for a change but that was its only benefit for me. I am looking for a book to tell me where things area and what they do period. A Zbrush manual needs to happen.

Useful Book, No Matter The Skill Level

This is a solid book for anyone using Zbrush. I’m an intermediate user mainly bringing in models from another program and exporting them back out. I’ve rarely had a chance to play with the 2.5D or a lot of Zbrush’s little nuances. Eric has written a book that gets down to the basics is and simple to understand. It’s setup in a linear fashion but is still very easy to look up what you are having trouble with and get right to the info you want. I’ve found that it’s a much better source than looking for help or using the Zbrush help. This book is essential for beginners. Straight forward, easy to read and well worth the money no matter what skill level you are with Zbrush, Introducing Zbrush is a worthy choice.

Finally... the missing link!!!

I’ve been wanting to get into Zbrush for a very long time. I even downloaded the trial version and surfed the web for tutorials. However, the lack of results were frustrating. Not only this book has helped me with the learning curve but also opened my eyes to zbrush REAL potential... it’s very exciting. Now I can enjoy this wonderful piece of software.

very comprehensive

This book really helped to open me up to all that ZBrush has to offer. Iv’e been working in motion graphics, and now gaming for the last few years, and really only came into contact with ZBrush as a sort of
appendage to Maya. Not really realizing how much it stood on it’s own two feet. I really didn’t bother to learn much past what it could do for my Maya models, so I’m really glad I picked up this book. Because I only knew a very narrow vision of Zbrush, it was interesting and informative right from the get go. The first tutorial alone touching on aspects I hadn’t ever dealt with. I must asume it would be great for beginners as well, as the tutorial are very detailed, and progressively build on each other. Anyhow, it’s a great investment for someone who wants to learn ZBrush, and has never used it. Or for someone who uses it as a "plug in", but has never really gotten to know it. It’s also worth the price just to get your hands on the great harryhausen Medusa head that’s on the DVD. Oh, that’s another thing, the DVD is more then a bunch of Zbrush scenes saved at various stages. There are movie files that actually show the sculpting process, macros that play back within ZBrush, as well as a trial version of Zbrush.