10 free winter tree gobo materials for Vue

I've posted a collection of 10 free winter tree gobo materials for Vue on my website today. Tested in Vue 7 Pioneer and Infinite and Vue 8 Infinite. Enjoy.

Cornucopia 3D ArchVis Forum

Cornucopia 3D has added an architectural visualization forum for discussing (shock!) using Vue in architectural visualization.

Tutorial on Vue and Maya Integration

Ignis Fatuus have launched their first training video for Vue on using e-on software's Vue 7 xStream, Autodesk's Maya 2009 and After Effects. According to the blurb it covers creating the environment with Vue then using Maya for animation and rendering. It also covers using Maya dynamics to create exhaust flames, jet and missile trails that are rendered separately for compositing in After Effects.

3D World Christmas 2009

So we're almost into December and we've already had the December issue so now it's time for the Christmas 2009 issue of 3D World.  There is video tutorial for Vue 7.5 on the CD by Chris Ayling along with scene files and models from Cornucopia 3D of a boat slung under a gas bag, a flock of seagulls and a single seagull.

Renderosity November 2009 Vue Monthly Challenge

Details of the Renderosity Vue monthly challenge for November 2009 Floating have been posted in the Renderosity Vue forum.

Aerial Adventures winners!

The Winners of the Cornucopia 3D  Aerial Adventures competition have been announced.

Chipp's CloudPeep

Chipp Walters has posted a free PDF and a supporting scene file to his web site about how the controls in the Atmosphere Editor affect a cloud's shape in Vue 7 and 8. If you want to get more out of your clouds its really worth having a read of CloudPeep.

3D Commune

Very sad to see the end of the 3DCommune website which had some excellent Vue products from Monsoon.

E-on Software Ships Vue 8 Digital Nature Solutions for 3D Artists and 3D Enthusiasts

HIGH END DIGITAL NATURE STILL FREE WITH VUE 8 PIONEER

November 05, 2009. Beaverton, Oregon: following the release last Monday of its Vue 8 Digital Nature solutions for CG Professionals, e-on software announced today the immediate availability of its full line of Vue 8 products for 3D Enthusiasts and 3D Artists. Today’s announcement finalizes the successful introduction to the market of the eighth generation of Vue, the leading solution for natural 3D environments.

E-on software offers products for the creation and rendering of Digital Nature for all market segments and all budgets, starting from the completely free Vue 8 Pioneer all the way up to industry leading solutions.

• Vue for 3D Enthusiasts: Vue 8 Pioneer & Theme-Packs and Vue 8 Frontier.
  Features content-filled, easy-to-use scenic nature creation for home and family use, with the addition of the new, cost effective Vue 8 Frontier, specifically dedicated to Poser™ users.
• Vue for 3D Artists: Vue 8 Esprit, Vue 8 Studio and Vue 8 Complete.
  Provides 3D artists with powerful modular applications to create rich 3D Digital Nature scenery and landscapes.
• Solutions for CG Professionals: Vue 8 Infinite, Vue 8 xStream and Ozone 4.0.
  Industry leading solutions for CG Professionals and SFX Studios.

Vue 8 Pioneer: Cutting Edge Digital Nature Technologies – Still Free

Despite the addition of revolutionary new technologies for the creation and rendering of natural 3D environments, e-on software also announced that Vue 8 Pioneer, its entry-level product will remain available for free.

Newcomers to 3D and casual artists will find in Vue 8 Pioneer all the landscape-creation tools they need to easily create and render amazing images of their own 3D worlds. Vue 8 Pioneer is the perfect introduction to the world of 3D.

The product can be extended with 12 optional modules that add specific functionality to the base application. Thanks to this modular approach, users can progressively upgrade all the way from Pioneer up to Complete. Vue 8 Esprit, Studio and Complete represent pre-bundled, cost-effective alternatives to the modular approach of Pioneer.

Pioneer is published by Cornucopia3D, a division of e-on software.

Vue Theme-Packs

The Vue Theme-Packs include all the software tools and ready-made content for the creation and animation of themed 3D images and video clips.

There are 3 different Vue Theme-Packs: Vue Science Fiction, Vue Fairy Tale and Vue Fantasy.

Each Theme-Pack includes over $100 worth of exclusive content – 3D virtual sets, models (plants, pre-animated meshes, etc.), atmosphere presets and more.

The Vue Theme-Packs are compatible with all 12 Vue expansion modules.

Priced at $49.95, these products are available directly through e-on software's online store, and will progressively be available through e-on software’s international reseller channels.

Vue users can also purchase the content packs from www.cornucopia3d.com.

Customers who purchased a Vue 7 Theme-Pack will receive their upgrade to Vue 8 at no charge.

Introducing Vue 8 Frontier:

Vue 8 Frontier provides scenic nature and Poser character rendering for 3D enthusiasts to easily compose character-filled images and video clips.

Based on the Vue 8 core application, Vue 8 Frontier will import any static Poser model, including Poser 8 characters. If they like, users may also render their Poser characters using the native shading tree of Poser, so that their characters look exactly like in Poser - with the added beauty of Vue's radiosity and environments!

Vue 8 Frontier includes a free version of SkinVue 8 that adds the ability to enhance human skin realism. A VuePython powered utility, SkinVue 8 quickly and easily transforms Poser characters into vivid, realistic models.

Vue 8 Frontier retains the modular architecture of the 3D Enthusiasts and 3D Artists products, to progressively upgrade all the way up to Complete.

Vue For 3D Artists

Vue 8 Esprit is the enhanced Digital Nature application with extended import and scenery control features for serious 3D artists. It is focused on intuitive workflow, advanced rendering features and Poser integration. With a clear, uncluttered interface and state of the art features, Vue 8 Esprit combines sophistication with ease of use. With Vue’s renowned natural 3D tools and unique render quality, 3D artists will soon be creating inspiring 3D art in any style.

Vue 8 Studio is the advanced Digital Nature application with powerful vegetation and rendering features for dedicated 3D artists. Focused on enhanced natural vegetation capabilities, advanced rendering features and extended Poser integration, Vue 8 Studio provides comprehensive control over the creation of complex scenes, while maintaining an intuitive workflow.

Vue 8 Complete combines into a single package a multitude of cutting-edge features that let 3D artists easily create and control rich EcoSystems™ of wind-swept trees and plants, hyper-realistic spectral atmospheres and detailed terrains in fully animated scenes.

Pricing and availability

Vue 8 Pioneer, the Vue Theme-Packs, Vue 8 Frontier as well as Vue 8 Esprit, Studio and Complete are available in English for Windows XP/Vista/Windows 7 as a 32 and 64 bit application, and on Mac OSX 10.4+ as Universal Binary.

Vue 8 Pioneer is free, Vue 8 Theme-Packs retail for $49.95, Vue 8 Frontier at $99.

Vue 8 Esprit at $199, Vue 8 Pro Studio at $399 and Vue 8 Complete at $599.Upgrades and sidegrades from Vue 7 and Vue 6 are also available (see pricelist for full details).

A comprehensive comparative chart is available at: www.e-onsoftware.com/products/chart.php

Users who bought Vue 7 Esprit or Vue 7 Pro Studio or Vue 7 Complete after October 1, 2009 are eligible for a Free Upgrade to the equivalent Vue 8 version (available until February 2, 2008).

A comprehensive price list is available at: www.e-onsoftware.com/pricelist.

E-on software will be releasing a Trial version of Vue 8 Esprit, Studio and Complete later in the year.

Vue 8 Complete, Studio, Esprit, Frontier and Pioneer Too (soon)

Vue 8 Complete, Vue 8 Studio,Vue 8 Esprit and Vue 8 Frontier  appear to now be available from e-on software's web site. It looks like some information pages are still being put live and Vue 8 Pioneer won't be available till the 5th.  Although since its been the 5th here for some time I'm guessing that means the 5th somewhere else :-)

October 2009 Renderosity Vue Challenge Winners

The winner of the October 2009 Renderosity Vue Challenge have been announced.

QuadSpinner HyperTerrains and Strata Tutorials

Two new tutorials from QuadSpinner about HyperTerrains and Strata are now available at the e-on software web site.

The Mighty HyperTerrains video covers techniques that can be used in Vue 6, 7 and 8 and covers creating unimaginable rock formations right inside Vue: create alcoves, overhangs, boulders, arches, monuments and even fantastical terrains. Model breathtaking rock formations using Fractals and learn to use the new Bump and Displacement features in Vue 8.

The Beauty of Strata is a companion to QuadSpinner earlier tutorial Realistic Procedural Terrains and covers how to stratify terrains with the new Strata and Confined Strata Filters in Vue 8.

Free Terrain Reference Card and Vue 8 Training from asileFX

asileFX have a free, printable Terrain Editor Keyboard Shortcut reference cards is available for the new Vue 8 terrain editor. They also have two Vue 8 training products available: Getting Started with Vue 8 6 hours 46 minutes and What's New in Vue 8 & 7.5 6 Hours.

E-on Software Ships Vue 8 Infinite and Vue 8 xStream

VUE 8 FOR 3D ARTISTS AND 3D ENTHUSIASTS SCHEDULED FOR RELEASE NOV 04, 2009

November 02, 2009. Beaverton, Oregon: e-on software, the leader in Digital Nature solutions, announced the immediate availability of its Vue 8 line of products for CG Professionals.

In order to assure a smooth transition, and to avoid order processing congestion, e-on software also announced that it will release the rest of the Vue 8 product line – Pioneer & T-packs, Frontier, Esprit, Studio and Complete – two days later, on November 4, 2009.

Vue 8 xStream – The Integrated Solution:

Vue 8 xStream, e-on’s flagship solution, offers CG professionals the premiere solution for creating exceptionally rich and realistic Digital Nature environments, fully immersed within Autodesk 3ds Max, Maya, and Softimage, Maxon Cinema 4D or Newtek LightWave. All Vue tools are fully integrated in the host application as menus and toolbars and directly accessible from within the host interface, providing immediate access to the most advanced 3D environment creation technologies.

Vue 8 Infinite – The Standalone Solution:

Vue 8 Infinite offers CG professionals the premiere solution for creating exceptionally rich and realistic Digital Nature environments in a stand-alone package. Vue 8 Infinite is the ideal tool for multimedia and entertainment professionals, architects and graphics designers.

Next Generation Features

The release of Vue 8 marks e-on's ongoing commitment to provide substantial, cutting-edge features and improvements to our valued users and customers who share our passion for Digital Nature. With this new release, all aspects of the program have been improved in the areas of natural scenery creation, precise artistic control, performance, immersive integration and content.

Vue 8 includes a number of important new features such as:

• 3D Terrain Sculpting: Allows users to freely sculpt terrain features such as overhangs and caves directly into Vue standard and procedural terrains, with on-the-fly mesh subdivision.
• Localized Infinite and Procedural Terrain Sculpting: Combine the best of both worlds with the ability to locally sculpt features on the infinitely detailed procedural terrains. Now, users have the ability to fine tune or completely rework localized areas on procedural terrains providing even greater artistic control and creativity.
• Scene Context Sculpting: Allows users to sculpt terrain features in the context of scene elements. Sculpt rocks and reliefs around vegetation and architectural structures.
• New Stratified Terrain Fractals which allow the creation of richly detailed stratified terrain features.
• New Directional Displacement Engine for textures to create more detailed and life-like surface features with greatly increased performance.
• 3rd Generation Spectral Atmospheric Technology which dramatically improves the quality and realism of clouds, god rays, atmospheric shadows, and scene light inteaction.
• Direct Re-Posing of Rigged Meshes: Rigged and pre-animated mesh objects can now be re-posed directly inside Vue. Currently supported formats: 3DSMax, Collada and Vue Pre-animated Meshes.
• New Shader-based OpenGL Preview Engine for improved real-time performance and previewing accuracy.
• Deeper xStream Immersive Integration offering more seamless operation and improved workflow with the leading CG applications. Vue 8 xStream adds support for Maya 2010, Cinema 4D R11.5, Softimage 2010 and V-Ray for Maya to the list of compatible applications (see below).
• All the new features introduced in Vue 7.5: camera mapping, planetary rendering, cross-shadowing and cloud masks, spherical cloud maps, animated EcoSystem populations, and more.

More details on the new features are available on the e-on software website, at:
www.e-onsoftware.com/infinite and www.e-onsoftware.com/xstream

Pricing and Availability

Standard Retail Price:

Vue 8 xStream will retail for $1,495, with upgrades from Vue 7.x xStream available for $495. Vue 8 Infinite retails for $895, with upgrades from Vue 7.x Infinite available for $295. Other upgrade paths from Vue 6 Infinite and Vue 6 xStream are also available (see full product pricelist at http://www.e-onsoftware.com/pricelist for details).

Annual subscriptions for Educational licenses of Vue xStream and Infinite are available respectively for $149 and $99 per seat and per year. Upgrades to Vue 8 are free for owners of active educational licenses of Vue 7.5.

Site licensing discounts are available for both products. Contact e-on software for further details and pricing information.

Special Offers:

Customers who purchased Vue 7.5 xStream or Vue 7.5 Infinite between October 1, 2009 and October 12, 2009 are eligible for a Late Buyers special and will receive their upgrade at no charge. Such customers will receive an e-mail with instructions on how to get their upgrade.

Customers who purchased Vue 7.5 xStream or Vue 7.5 Infinite after October 12, 2009 will also receive their upgrade to Vue 8 at no charge, following the terms of their complimentary 30 day maintenance.

E-on software is also offering the option to purchase Vue 8 Infinite and xStream pre-bundled with a yearly maintenance plan, providing a saving of respectively $100 and $200 on the regular cost of maintenance.

All special offers will end on January 4, 2010.

Availability:

Vue 8 xStream and Vue 8 Infinite are available in English for Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7, for both 32 and 64 bit, and on Mac OSX 10.4+ as a 32 bit application (Mac Intel only). Vue 8 xStream is compatible with the following renderers: Mental Ray for 3ds Max, Maya and Softimage (integrated and MR satellites), V-Ray for 3ds Max and Maya, Maya Software, as well as the native Cinema 4D and LightWave renderers. Other renderers are under consideration.

Personal Learning Editions:

E-on software will be releasing a Personal Learning Edition of Vue 8 Infinite and xStream later in the year.

E-on Software News November 2nd 2009

E-on Software's latest newsletter is out and includes:

• Vue 8 xStream and Infinite Now Shipping
•  Vue 8 For 3D Enthusiasts and 3D Artists Around the Corner
•  Training Material for Vue 8 Already Available!

Vue 8 xStream and Vue 8 Infinite Now Shipping

According to the e-on software homepage Vue 8 xStream and Vue 8 Infinite Now Shipping are now shipping.

Renderosity Vue Monthly Challenge (October 2009) Voting

Voting is now open for this months Renderosity Vue Monthly Challenge (October 2009).