The Academy Award–winning Maya 3D animation and effects software is the top choice for film and video artists, game developers, and 3D design professionals. Learn to build, render, and animate your own digital models and scenes, and begin to develop professional-level Maya skills with Introducing Maya 2008.

This new edition of a perennial bestseller is the ideal initiation to 3D and Maya. Starting with the basics, it builds from the ground up, combining straightforward text with practical examples that make it fun and easy to learn Maya's core tools while introducing the latest Maya 2008 features. Follow clear-cut, step-by-step lessons while you learn by doing using a wealth of hands-on files provided on the CD. You'll also find compelling examples in the full-color insert to inspire you.

The enclosed CD features images, movies, and scene files that let you view material from the book. The support files will enable you to complete all of the tutorials. The CD also includes Maya Personal Learning Edition software.

• Learn to navigate the Maya 2008 interface

• Experiment with modeling by creating a hand, a rocket, and a locomotive

• Explore the basics of NURBS, polygons, and subdivision surfaces

• Discover the nuances of shading and texturing

• Rig a locomotive model for automated animation

• Create more natural lighting with mental ray® Final Gather and Global Illumination

• Use Maya's Render Layers and an Ambient Occlusion pass for greater reality