I think the open source versions Anteru mentioned have what you need as far as learning how to create shaders and rib scenes. If you go this route it will take time, but I think you will be happy with the results. I’m giving you the no fluff, no powder puff advice. However, learning the math concepts as you approach them in programming is a difficult way to go. You don’t have to do the math all at once. Tough task, but this is the key to thoroughly understanding the material. Read about philosophy of procedural programmingĬode while you are reading all these things So in summary:Īcquire a strong math foundation (Algebra, Calculus, Linear Algebra) This math is used in higher level shading concepts all the time. If you haven’t, you should take these math courses or acquire the information some other way. Of course, I’m assuming that you have taken math courses from Algebra I through Calculus II up to Linear Algebra.
Renderman Shading language resembles C programming and “The Renderman Companion” uses the C language to describe scenes instead of the RIB metafile format. Most people are not aware of this distinction, but it is a crucial one for artists who are not program oriented. It is more difficult to grasp the nature of the language if you are trying to absorb the philosophy and the syntax/grammar at the same time. That is, you need a book that covers the philosophy behind procedural programming before just jumping into the language. If you can, you should read a book on the programming thought process. Also, read the documentation for the particular renderman compliant renderer that you are using. Of course read the Renderman Specification. “The Renderman Companion” and “Advanced Renderman” are a little more difficult to read through, but you get solid information on the more advanced aspects of SL and RIB coding as well as good backround history on renderman. “Renderman Fast” is a good beginners book.
Here are some that cover renderman subject matter.ĭeathFall - Pixar’s website - I would recommend that you look into books first. I noticed that you don’t have any replies yet so I thought I would contribute something. Christos resides in Vancouver, Canada.Hi PeaceOfMind. He teaches in-person workshops in rendering at such places as the Filmakedemie in Germany, FMX conferences, SIGGRAPH conferences, and School of Visual Arts in Shanghai. Since cofounding LollipopShaders, Christos and his team develops procedural solutions to shading and lighting, experimenting with physically plausible and nonphotorealistic shading.
He continued his career by designing and developing shading software for Walt Disney's feature film The Wild, followed by shading and lighting for the films Superman Returns, Spider-Man 3, Beowulf, A Christmas Carol, Mars Needs Moms, and Life of Pi (which won the 2013 Oscar for Best Visual Effects). Shading architect Christos Obretenov also demonstrates techniques for creating realistic glass surfaces and still life scenes, so you can see what possibilities RenderMan offers straight out of the box.Ĭhristos Obretenov is a shader architect and the CEO of LollipopShaders.Educated at Simon Fraser University with a BSc in computing science, specializing in computer graphics, Christos started contributing to the animation and film industry at Mainframe Entertainment in conjunction with Simon Fraser University. It dives into all the lights offered in the software (area lights, mesh lights, etc.), as well as the main shading networks (PxrDisney and LM-layered materials) and beginner-intermediate rendering settings in RenderMan's new RIS path-tracing rendering engine. This introduction teaches the basics of using RenderMan with Autodesk Maya, including features such as arbitrary output variables (AOVs), the path tracer, and integrators. Created by Pixar, and available for the first time ever for noncommercial use, RenderMan is the high-end 3D rendering package that can be used for any 3D rendering projects: animation and visual effects, but also architecture, visualizations, and commercial work. Ever wondered how Pixar makes all their animated feature films and how most studios around the world do their visual effects? Meet RenderMan.