SuperSteve3D

Since the release of ZBrush 3.2 for OSX and the introduction of GoZ (www.GoZBrush.com), we have received a tremendous amount of positive feedback from the artistic community as well as companies interested in becoming GoZ supported applications.

In order to continue refining GoZ and other ZBrush4 features, we have decided to postpone the release of ZBrush 4 and instead release an interim ZBrush 3.5 for Windows and Mac users. Version 3.5 will have all the features of ZBrush 3.2—including GoZ—as well as additional refinements.

Some of the features in ZBrush 3.5 are…

Multiple texture, normal and displacement maps per SubTool, with enhanced displacement and normal map options such as native export of 32-bit displacement maps. High-Definition displacement and normal maps from HD geometry. Improved perspective with a floor grid. Reorganization of the Tool sub-palettes to coordinate with selected SubTools. The ability to merge all visible SubTools and optionally weld the seams. The new PUVTiles mapping method, which represents the most efficient use of UV space yet. PolyPainting and masking have now been enhanced to 16-bit from the previous 8-bit. New navigation to work with the virtually unlimited zooming. Right-Click Navigation. New sliders added to Project All, providing more control over your results. Memory management enhancements give the capability to subdivide your models to higher polygon counts. New ambient occlusion masking, which can create an AO texture for use in other applications.

Furthermore…

ZBrush 3.5 will also include one of the still unannounced key features of ZBrush 4. We are very excited to include this very powerful and creative new feature in version 3.5, and are sure that you will be too! An introduction to this feature will be made available here, at ZBC, within the next couple of weeks.

The Windows version of 3.5 will be released by the end of August, followed by a release of the OSX version in September. Following the release of 3.5, we will continue to refine ZBrush 4 and its features (such as LightBoxand Spotlight) for release in the 4th Quarter of 2009.

ZBrush 3.5 and ZBrush 4 will be released as free upgrades to all registered users.

 

Alongside today’s introduction of updated Time Capsule models, Apple appears to have finally discontinued Shake, its long-standing high-end digital compositing and visual effects software package. While Shake’s product pages remain available on Apple’s site, it is no longer listed in the online Apple Store and MacRumors has received word that Apple sales representatives have been informed of the product’s discontinuation. Shake had been priced at $499.

Shake was originally launched in 1997 as a product of Nothing Real, which was acquired by Apple in early 2002. Apple continued to update Shake over the next several years, but the release of Shake 4.1 in mid-2006 was accompanied by the announcement that no further software updates were planned. A minor update to version 4.1.1 was issued in late 2008.

At the time of Shake 4.1’s release, rumors claimed that Apple’s replacement for the software package, code-named “Phenomenon”, would be based on Apple’s Motion software and released in 2008. While such a standalone product has not surfaced, it is possible that Apple finally views Motion 4 and other components of the updated Final Cut Studio released last week as a sufficient replacement for Shake’s features.

Update: Apple’s Shake product pages now redirect to the Final Cut Studio main product page.

 

Vicon will be showcasing a pre-release version of its eagerly awaited boujou 5 at the SIGGRAPH conference in two weeks in New Orleans. boujou is the industry leading camera match-moving software for artists to capture complex camera motion and calibration data from image sequences.

Building on its established ease of use and automation, boujou 5 is enhanced with a unique new way of solving 3D camera positioning and motion paths from image sequences. This new approach radically accelerates the solve and allows users more manual interaction within complex shots.

The upgrade includes new features that many existing boujou users will have been eagerly waiting for:
•    New Automatic Sequential Solver-Previous versions of boujou took the entire shot into account before delivering a solve. Now, the application looks at a single frame at a time, which not only enables the user to intervene, it can make the entire process a lot faster.

•    Fully functional Graph Editor-Lets the user manually tweak the camera data and, if necessary, reprocess a shot. boujou 5  also provides the ability to lock valid sections of solved data or sections which are known to be correct, which animators can then use to improve other segments of an image sequence.

•    Reference Frames- Allows users to import still images taken with any camera and use them to assist in a solve.

 

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