LightWave IO.1 What s New

LightWave IO.1 What s New

Contents Introduction........................................ 01 1) Stereoscopic Rendering About Stereoscopic Rendering........................ 02 Enhancements in LightWave 10.1..................... 03 2) Viewport Preview Renderer (VPR) About VPR.......................................... 04 Enhancements in LightWave 10.1..................... 05 3) Virtual Studio Tools About Virtual Studio Tools............................ 06 4) Data Interchange Tools - FBX About FBX.......................................... 07 Enhancements in LightWave 10.1..................... 07 5) Data Interchange Tools - Geometry Cache / MDD About Autodesk Geometry Cache / MDD................ 08 6) Mesh Handling Optimizations Multi-Threaded Mesh Evaluation Optimization........... 09 Sub-D Mesh Freezing Optimizations.................... 09 7) Skin Subsurface Scattering Shader Node About the Skin SSS Shader Node....................... 10 8) Linear Colorspace Workflow About Linear Colorspace Workflow..................... 11 Enhancements in LightWave 10.1..................... 11 9) FiberFX Improvements About FiberFX....................................... 13 Enhancements in LightWave 10.1..................... 13 10) User Interface Enhancements Enhancements in LightWave 10.1..................... 14 11) Modeling Tool Enhancements Edge Tools.......................................... 17 12) Additional Enhancements and Optimizations Additional Enhancements and Optimizations............ 24

Introduction With advanced modeling and animation tools built to integrate into any production pipeline, LightWave 10.1 delivers the features artists count on such as a new off-axis stereoscopic camera rig option, an improved Viewport Preview Renderer (VPR), more powerful import and export capabilities with FBX, MDD, and integrated Autodesk Geometry Cache support, a new Skin material node, and more. As the demand for stereoscopic 3D content continues to grow, artists need simple but powerful tools to help streamline 3D content creation for film, television and the gaming industries. LightWave 10.1 delivers with access to all major stereo camera rigs parallel, toe-in, and off-axis, which allows artists to dynamically correct for toe-in distortion in the animation pipeline. Other enhancements include interactive OpenGL off-axis adjustment of the right and left camera planes, user-friendly click-and-drag convergence point adjustment in the viewport, and the ability to disable the anaglyph representation of the stereo camera in OpenGL. Also in LightWave 10.1 interocular and convergence point can both be dynamically animated over time to track stereo changes within a shot. Using the LightWave VPR, artists can directly interact and easily adjust lights, textures, volumetrics and more within the viewport. Artists can also use the VPR to view updates to quickly deliver realistic environmental walkthroughs and perform virtual location scouts. LightWave 10.1 extends the functionality of VPR with the support of clip maps in the VPR render, the addition of object and distance dissolve, improved nodal shaders like the new Skin material node that works with the VPR. The Skin material node uses a proprietary subsurface shading model for a simple connect-and-go way to create realistic looking skin. Additionally, the FiberFX hair and fur shader has been enhanced and now supports VPR and includes improved speed, stability and displacement handling. LightWave 10.1 also offers improved import and export capabilities with FBX, MDD, and integrated Autodesk Geometry Cache Support, including the option to include or exclude models, morphs, animations, cameras and lights upon export. Other workflow features in LightWave 10.1 offer the ability to import joints as LightWave bones for greater compatibility with other programs, multithreaded mesh evaluation optimization and sub-d mesh freezing acceleration, linear color space workflow improvements including new support for.icc /.ICM monitor profiles, and more. Page 1

1) Stereoscopic Rendering About Stereoscopic Rendering Stereoscopic rendering gives you the familiar two-image set seen from slightly different perspectives that can be combined in a variety of ways to produce a 3D image. When rendering using the Stereoscopic Rendering function you will get two images for each frame of your animation suffixed with either an L or R for Left and Right eye images respectively. Page 2

1) Stereoscopic Rendering Enhancements in LightWave 10.1 New support for Off-Axis Camera rig type has been added which means that LightWave 10.1 now supports all three of the major stereoscopic camera rig types used in live action and animation rendering. Parallel Toe-in Off-axis Left Eye Camera Original Camera Right Eye Camera The ability to click on and interactively drag the convergence point adjustment right in the viewport. The ability to disable the anaglyph representation of the stereo camera in OpenGL so users can use it when they need it and turn it off when it s not needed. Page 3

2) Viewport Preview Renderer About VPR VPR (Viewport Preview Renderer) is an interactive renderer that enables artists to experiment with lighting, textures, volumetrics, and shading right in the LightWave viewport. VPR produces results which are similar to a final rendered image and often at a fraction of the time. VPR also has the advantage of being able to render in any viewport and with any view type, which demonstrates the versatility of the renderer. Enhancements in LightWave 10.1 Support for Clip Maps in the VPR render. Allows you to cut away portions of an object using a texture without having to model them. Support for Object Dissolve and Distance Dissolve in VPR. To allow objects to fade in or out as they move to and from the camera view. As well as enveloped controlled fading. Page 4

2) Viewport Preview Renderer Enhanced support for Nodal Shaders. Support for the nodal shading systems has been enhanced so that VPR will render things like double-sided refraction and colored shadows accurately. Limited Region Enhancements - Limited region in VPR now will save just the selected render area. Limited region rendering is an important feature when the artist would like to focus rendering on a specific area of the view. Simply activate Limited Region then grab and move the handles to specify a rendering region. VPR Limited Region also supports the with borders / no borders in the Render Globals panel. (Note that limited region is only available from a camera view). Page 5

LightWave IO.1 What s New 3) Virtual Studio Tools About Virtual Studio Tools The Virtual Studio Tools in LightWave 10 add virtual camera input device support for easy setup of immersive fly-throughs and virtual location scouting. Whether you re doing a handheld camera move, or interactively placing lights in your 3D scene or an architectural walk-through, the fluid nature of these input tools will change the way you interact with your models and scenes in LightWave. Currently the InterSense VCAM system and plug and play support for 3DConnexion SpaceNavigator input devices is integrated. Interactive control of Camera, Lights, Items, and the Timeline Multiple Camera motions takes can be recorded and recalled Viewport can be stored for easy display reset Page 6

4) Data Interchange Tools - FBX About FBX FBX is one of the standards for 3D file interchange. LightWave 10.1 offers solid FBX support through the use of our Valkyrie interchange tools based on our CORE technology. FBX files can be imported and exported with a few button clicks with support for bones, weights, geometry, textures, UV s, Camera, and Lights. Our FBX support makes it even easier to integrate LightWave content into a variety of pipelines including motion capture and games. Improvements in LightWave 10.1 Filter options added to FBX Export. This give users the option to include or exclude Models, Morphs (Blend shapes), Animations, Cameras, and Lights upon export so they can filter just the items that they want to send out. FBX settings are stored persistently across sessions. FBX now imports joints as LightWave bones for more stability and better compatibility with Motionbuilder and Maya. Rotate Pivot and PreRotation attributes now supported properly in FBX export. Users doing character rigging in LightWave for export will be able to export the rigs with rotate pivot applied properly and Rotate Pivot export to respects that LightWave XYZ is Maya/FBX ZYX. Page 7

LightWave IO.1 What s New 5) Data Interchange Tools About MDD and the Autodesk Geometry Cache file formats MDD is a proprietary format developed by NewTek and was the first commercially available geometry and deformation caching file format available. MDD is widely used in many 3D packages and provides an easy way to move animated characters, dynamic simulations, and geometry deformations between packages. The MD Multi Baker allows users to select multiple objects at once to bake and allows the user to export the geometry to.obj in one step. LightWave 10.1 also includes integrated support for Autodesk Geometry Cache files as an alternative for geometry and deformation baking. This makes it extremely simple to transfer files to and from Autodesk Maya or any other major 3D software package supporting the formats. This allows LightWave s efficient production proven workflow and exceptional renderer to be integrated easily within any pipeline setup to help studios meet demanding budgets and schedules. Page 8

6) Mesh Handling Optimizations Multi-Threaded Mesh Evaluation Optimizations This enhancement allows animators to work with geometry mesh objects much more interactively by speeding up the evaluations on highly subdivided (sub-d) objects like those used in high end character / creature rigs and with complex geometry deformations overall. Sub-D Mesh Freezing Optimizations Layout has been greatly optimized for subdivision surface mesh freezing. This will save significant time for users that are working with sub-d objects and on scene load time for scenes that contain sub-d objects. In general another great speed up for the sub-d workflow. Page 9

7) Skin Subsurface Scattering Node About the Skin Subsurface Scattering Shader node The powerful new Skin subsurface scattering shader node works fully with the VPR and gives artists a physically accurate setup for realistic skin and includes a proprietary subsurface scattering shader model. Although being named Skin, it is not only for that purpose. It can be used to simulate other subsurface scattering effects such as wax etc. Model Courtesy of Lee Perry-Smith, www.ir-ltd.net Page 10

8) Linear Colorspace Workflow About Linear Colorspace Workflow Linear Colorspace Workflow is the process of keeping all your data (images, colors etc.) within LightWave in the same linear colorspace. Often texture maps, light and surface colors have color profiles embedded within them, but the LightWave render engine expects the data to be linear. If left uncorrected, the data being fed to the rendering algorithms is incorrect, and your resulting render will also be incorrect. Keeping the data linear is a two stage process. First all the data going into the render engine need stripping of their color profiles, and once the rendering process is complete, the rendered images need to have color profiles applied to them so that conventional monitors can display them correctly (this can be done within LightWave or the renders left in linear colorspace and corrected in a compositing or tone-mapping application. Convert Inputs Linear Space Linear Internally Linear Image Apply Color Space Profile TIF Render Render JPG TGA Enhancements in LightWave 10 The much improved Linear Color Workflow tools in LightWave 10 make it very simple for artists to utilize this technique in their projects. By default everything is automatically set up. This has been made even easier with the inclusion of presets. Page 11

8) Linear Colorspace Workflow Linear Colorspace Workflow now supports.icc /.ICM monitor profiles (supporting: XYZ, Lab, RGB and CMYK data) as well as more robust 3D LUT import. So you can now load in the actual profile your monitor is using. This is especially important for anyone who has calibrated their display. Other improvements include: Enhanced Image Render Viewer display color space to be per-image. The display color space is remembered per-image, and can be changed in Image Render Viewer. Implemented color space correction for HyperVoxels, color picker and gradient editors. Page 12

9) FiberFX Improvements About FiberFX FiberFX is an addition to LightWave 3D that allows you to create hair and fur effects on your models. Whether it s grass for architectural exteriors, flowing hair on a character, fur on a teddy bear or any other effect which is largely fibrous looking; FiberFX offers you the flexibility to create many different looking styles. Enhancements in LightWave 10.1 Speed improvements, especially with volumetric fibers. Redesign FiberFX displacement handling to allow for brushed fibers to track displacements. Revised the methods for edge limiting to provide a much more pleasing appearance. Luminous fiber render optimizations for radiosity renders. Overall stability improvements. Page 13

10) User Interface Enhancements Sporting a neutral palette to allow artists to focus more on their content, and a fresh design, make LightWave 10 a more professional looking application, and more comfortable to work in over long periods of time. Camaro Model Courtesy of Elvis Lewis Blazencic, www.lewis.tomsoft.hr Page 14

10) User Interface Enhancements Improved Graph Editor The Graph Editor has received attention based on user feedback and collaboration to improve the visibility of selected curves. Other enhancements include a larger graph area and more usable zooming control sensitivity. Other related areas of the interface have also been cleaned up making LightWave 10 less visually busy, such as the refined Dope Track. Other enhancements include seemingly small, but useful changes that make working in LightWave 10 faster than before. Such as keyframe highlighting on the timeline slider, which better shows the artist when the timeline slider is over a keyframe. Page 15

10) User Interface Enhancements Much Improved Backup Handling Auto-backups of projects in LightWave needed improving. Even finding the files on your hard drive was tedious, and they were all placed in one folder. In LightWave 10 this is now much easier. The backup preferences are now found within the application you re working in, and not the Hub. You can set the backup directory (in Layout) to one of your choosing and the structure of the backup folder is more intuitive to find the files you re after. Auto-backups are now stored with the following structure for Layout and Modeler: SCENE-NAME_layout OBJECT-NAME_modeler REVERSE-DATE_TIME-24HR_layout REVERSE-DATE_TIME-24HR_modeler Scene Name.lws Object Name.lwo Object Name.lwo Small Stuff Matters Better organization of frequently used menu items, such as Recent Scenes and the addition of a Save All option, something missing from LightWave until now, means saving your entire project is much easier! Define Your Workspace Whilst the new color scheme in LightWave 10 was designed to aid working for long periods of time, not everyone likes the same colors. In LightWave 10 the user now has more control over the interface colors than ever before, so they can tune their workspace to their own liking. Page 16

11) Modelling Enhancements About Edge Tools These are a set of modelling tools specifically designed for enhancing working with edges in LightWave Modeler. They offer fast ways to select and manipulate edges for detailing of geometry to really help speed up modelling workflow. Split Ring When you have an edge selected, Split Ring will take the mid-point of the selected edge(s) and create a new edge loop perpendicular to the edge(s) around the mesh. Copy Edges Copies the selected edges, which can be pasted into the current layer or any other layer. Page 17

11) Modelling Enhancements Dissolve Loop When you have an edge selected, Dissolve Loop will dissolve the edge loop the selected edges are part of, leaving a new set of polygons. Edge 2 Poly Creates a polygon based on the edges selected. Page 18

LightWave IO.1 What s New 11) Modelling Enhancements Weld Edges When activated WeldEdges will merge the selected edges into a single edge at the midpoint of the originally selected edges. Weld Ring When an edge is selected and WeldRing is activated this tool will dissolve all edges in the ring associated with the selected edge. Page 19

LightWave IO.1 What s New 11) Modelling Enhancements Sel Open Edge When activated, Sel Open Edge will select any edge on a polygon which does not have another polygon associated with that edge. Sel Edge Border When polygons are selected, running SelEdgeBorder will select the outer edges of the selected polygons. This will deselect the polygons in the process but will add to any edges already selected. Page 20

LightWave IO.1 What s New 11) Modelling Enhancements Border Slice Border Slice will create a new edge loop around the edges you had selected. It will split the polygons surrounding the selected edges at the midpoint. Using this tool can result in tri-polygons and n-gons in the resulting mesh. Border Slice Quad Border Slice Quad works the same way as Border Slice but maintains quad polygons in the resulting loop. Page 21

LightWave IO.1 What s New 11) Modelling Enhancements Edge Walk When two contiguous edges are selected, EdgeWalk will create a new polygon from the selected edges. EdgeWalk works best with edges that are at an angle. Repeating the operation will walk along the open edges and create polygons along them. Page 22

11) Modelling Enhancements Extend Edges ExtendEdges will extend the selected edges to a polygon you have selected, with the length of the edges matching the rotation of the selected polygon. If no polygon is selected, the edges will match the ground plane. The selection of the edges is important. Loop 2 Poly Selecting two edges to define the direction of the loop and running Loop2Poly will select the loop and create a polygon. Page 23

12) Additional Enhancements & Optimizations Multi-Threaded Image Handling Huge speed gains have been made to the image handling engine within LightWave. Editing and adjusting large images in the Image Editor is now in order of magnitude faster than in previous versions, due to the use of multiple cores. The more cores your PC has, the larger the gains. Normal Map Editing Enhancements Vertex Normals have been added to the VMap Panel in Modeler. They can now be renamed/removed/copied. We have also added an LScript to flip the normals in a normal map in Modeler which helps adjust Vertex Normal Maps that don t explicitly save them out in LightWave s format. Multi-Selection Awareness Additions to bones and volumetric lights - This allows users to select multiple bones and change the rest length or assign weight maps to those multiple bones at once. New ClothFX Calculation Mode Added new calculation mode for ClothFX ( Velocity, found under the Etc. tab) which can help resolve issues where ClothFX could get stuck doing very small timesteps in some cases. If the default of Frequency is taking too long to calculate, try using the new Velocity mode. Windows 7 Menu Workflow Improvements Work on Windows 7 menu interaction has Improved the workflow with popup menus. This will give LightWave users on Windows 7 workstations an even better experience than before and eliminate any popup menu annoyances. And much more! Page 24

Our long-standing relationships with leading studios and our user community inspire the innovation of our LightWave software - this certainly rings true with LightWave 10.1. As a 3D artist myself, I m excited about the 10.1 enhancements like the new off-axis stereoscopic camera rig and our powerful interchange tools, which make it even easier for LightWave to bring value to any pipeline. Rob Powers, VP of 3D Development NewTek Copyright and Trademarks LightWave and LightWave 3D are registered trademarks of NewTek, Inc. Maya, MotionBuilder and FBX are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders.