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Maya 2018 Fundamentals

By Eddie Russell, Justin Marshall and Kyle Green
In this course, you'll get an in-depth look at how to work in the different areas of Maya using a project-based approach.
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Course info
Rating
(72)
Level
Beginner
Updated
Feb 7, 2018
Duration
11h 21m
Table of contents
Course Overview
Course Overview 1m
Getting Started with Maya
Interface Tour 7m Navigating the Viewport 5m Creating a Maya Project 5m Selecting and Transforming Objects 7m Using Component Mode 7m Accessing Scene Objects 4m Grouping and Parenting 6m
Basic Modeling
Adding Reference Images 6m Building the Body Core 6m Adding the Sides 6m Building the Top 5m Creating the Rough Cockpit 6m Adding the Front Vent 4m Starting the Engine Area 7m
Model Detailing
Detailing the Cockpit 8m Modeling the Main Engine 11m Placing the Engine 3m Finishing the Engine Pieces 8m Adding the Grill 5m Building the Front Sail 8m Creating the Sail Frame 7m Building the Large Connector 5m Modeling the Back Sail 3m Creating the Back Frame 4m
Model Finishing and Delivery
Mirroring and Organizing Geometry 9m Building the Upper Rudder 5m Building the Rudder Pivot 4m Building the Mast 5m Building the Lower Rudder 4m Finishing the Lower Rudder 4m Adding Cables 7m
Laying out UVs
Introduction to UVs 12m Understanding Planar and Cylindrical UV Projections 11m Understanding Spherical and Automatic UV Projections 14m Using Planar Projections for the Wings 9m Using Automatic Projections for Small Body Pieces 13m Approaching UVs for More Complex Geometry 13m
Materials and Textures
Applying and Manipulating Simple Materials 15m Creating Glass and Transparent Materials 11m Working with Ramp Textures 10m Using a Ramp to Create Engine Flames 11m Using File Textures with Materials 14m Understanding Color Space and Linear Workflow 9m Understanding Maya's Color Management System 11m Using Bump and Normal Maps 12m
Rigging for Animation
Creating Control Shapes 6m Hierarchy Setup 4m Adding Bones 3m Setting up IK 6m Skinning the Sails 5m Setting up the Cables 6m Adding Attributes 5m Using Set Driven Keys 8m Final Cleanup 7m
Animation in Maya
Working with Animation Controls 9m Setting Keyframes in Maya 10m The Graph Editor 10m Creating Motion Paths 9m Adding the Background Geometry 9m Creating a New Camera for Animation 8m Setting the Clipping Planes of the Camera 3m Animating the Camera 15m Adding Secondary Motion 9m Playblasting the Animation Sequence 8m
Dynamics in Maya
Setting up an Emitter 6m Rules of Working with Dynamics 4m Common Particle Attributes 12m Setting up the Ground Plane 5m Animating the Emitter 8m Setting the Speed and Emission of Our Particles 12m Changing the Particle Type 9m Setting up Particle Shading 10m Finalizing the Particle Shading 10m Caching Simulation Data in Maya 8m
Lighting and Rendering
Understanding Basic Light Types 13m Controlling Light Color and Intensity 10m Adjusting the Look and Quality of Shadows 13m Adjusting the Render Stats of Maya Objects 13m Creating a Material to Catch Shadows from the Particles 12m Creating Lighting to Match the Environment 13m Adjusting Render Stats and ray Visibility for the Scene 8m Controlling Sampling and Render Quality for Arnold 14m Configuring Output Settings and Rendering the Final Sequence 14m
Description
Course info
Rating
(72)
Level
Beginner
Updated
Feb 7, 2018
Duration
11h 21m
Description

This in-depth Maya tutorial is designed to help you get a solid understanding of the core features found in Maya, and help you to ease your transition into this very powerful program. In this course, Maya 2018 Fundamentals, you'll have a chance to learn about different aspects of Maya from three experts. In the first portion of this tutorial, you'll get familiar with some of the vocabulary and foundational skills that you'll need to begin moving around and working in Maya. From there, you'll move into exploring some of the modeling features found in Maya and begin building a flying sail-ship, which will be your central project for the remainder of this course. Then, you'll go through the entire process of adding textures and materials to the ship. Next, you'll see the process of adding animation controls, animated movement, and dynamics. Finally, you'll discover how to add lights, shadows, and how to output your final animated sequence. This course is designed for new Maya users, so the goal is not to weigh you down with a lot of technical information. Instead, its goal is to help you form some good habits and workflows, allowing you to see the entire start-to-finish pipeline for this project, and by the end of this Maya course, you'll be at point where you can feel very comfortable using the software. Software required: Maya 2018.

Course FAQ
Course FAQ
What is Maya 2018 used for?

Maya is a pro-level 3D Modeling, Animating, and Redering software by Autodesk.

Who is this course for?

This course is great for hobbyists and future pros alike.

What will I learn in this course?

This Maya 2018 beginners course will get you familiar with the vocabulary and foundational skills you'll need, as well as building a new 3D animated model from scratch.

What prerequisites do I need?

If you're not yet familiar with Maya 2018 basics, this course is perfect for you.

What version is required?

This course is specifically applicable to Maya 2018.

About the author
Eddie Russell
About the author

Eddie is a content producer for Unity as well as a seasoned shading, texturing, lighting and rendering artist. He takes pride in helping creative professionals reach their learning goals.

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Justin Marshall
About the author

Justin thrives as a lead modeling author at Pluralsight. Growing up, Justin found a deep interest for the computer graphics industry after watching movies like Jurassic Park, Toy Story and The Abyss. His ambition would lead him to work at Sony Imageworks in Los Angeles on movies like Monster House and Surf's Up. Justin has also had numerous articles, tutorials and images published in 3D World and 3D Artist.

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Kyle Green
About the author

Kyle was one of the first authors for Digital-Tutors (now a Pluralsight company) and has been a part of the team for over 10 years. Kyle began his career in computer graphics education as a college instructor and worked as a Digital-Tutors rendering tutor and curriculum manager since 2002.

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Section Introduction Transcripts
Section Introduction Transcripts

Course Overview
Hi, I'm Justin Marshall and this in-depth Maya tutorial is designed to help you get a solid understanding of the core features found in Maya and help you to ease your transition into this very powerful program. During the course of these lessons, you'll have a chance to learn about different aspects of Maya from three experts. In the first portion of this tutorial, you'll get familiar with some of the vocabulary and foundational skills that you'll need in order to begin moving around and working in Maya. From there, you'll move into exploring some of the modeling features found in Maya and begin building a flying sailship, which will be your central project for the remainder of this course. From there, you'll go through the entire process of adding textures and materials to the ship. Then, you'll see the process of adding animation controls, animated movement, and dynamics. Finally, you'll discover how to add lights, shadows, and how to output your final animated sequence. This course is designed for new Maya users, so the goal is not to weigh you down with a lot of technical information. Instead, its goal is to help you form some really good habits and workflows, allowing you to see the entire start-to-finish pipeline for this project. And by the end of this Maya course, you'll be at a point where you can feel very comfortable using the software.

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