What you'll learn

Learn the fundamentals of mental ray nodes in Maya and add visual depth to your work. Contains over 4 hours of project-based training. Perfect for intermediate artists. Popular highlights include: Overview of Common mental ray Materials; Simulating Glass & Water with Dielectric Materials; Setting up Dielectric-to-Dielectric Material Interactions; Simulating Glossy Reflective Surfaces with DGS Material; Generating Realistic Automotive Renders with Car Paint Phenomena; Mimicking Light through Skin with Subsurface Scattering; Creating Multi-node mental ray Shading Networks; Controlling Texture Placement Using Rotational Matrices; Overview of mental ray's Procedural Textures; Utilizing Maya's Procedural Shaders in a mental ray Network; Constructing Custom Phenomena; Understanding the Various Types of Ambient Occlusion; Applying Real-world Lighting Data to mental ray Lights; Using mental ray Lights that Emit Color Based on Temperature; Creating Caustic Effects with Photonic Materials; Overview of mental ray's Architectural Material; Generating Realistic Outdoor Renders Using Physical Sky Shader; Maya 8.5 and higher is recommended for several lessons. Software required: Maya 8 or higher (Maya 8.5 required for project files).