Swift 3D ® v4 is a simple, affordable 3D modeling and animation program. It focuses on output to Macromedia Flash (SWF) format and offers excellent vector and raster rendering capabilities. Created specifically for Macromedia Flash designers, graphic artists and other designers who spend the majority of their time in the 2D world, Swift 3D provides an accessible toolset and interface that allows anyone to quickly learn the basics of 3D modeling and animation while providing plenty of room to grow into more advanced 3D tools. This practical "how to" course by 3D animation expert and long time author, Michael Hurwicz, starts from the beginning and uses practical examples to demonstrate Swift 3D’s capabilities. Work files are provided for every example, so the user can follow right along. To begin learning today, simply click on one of the Swift 3D v4 lessons.
Introduction
About this Tutorial Overview pt. 1 Overview pt. 2 New in Swift 3D v4 Getting Started
System Requirements Setting Screen Depth Playing Safe For Mac Users Viewports/Tabs and Tools
Overview and Main Menu Viewports pt. 1 Viewports pt. 2 Tabs/Toolbars/Toolbar Lists Property Tools pt. 1 Property Tools pt. 2 Property Tools pt. 3 Animation Tools Hierarchy Tools Main Menu
Trackballs/Galleries/Rendering
Trackballs: Rotation/Lighting
Galleries pt. 1
Galleries pt. 2
Rendering pt. 1
Rendering pt. 2
Rendering pt. 3
Render Viewport Buttons
Lights/Cameras/Materials
Lighting pt. 1
Lighting pt. 2
Cameras
Animating Cameras
Parenting a Free Camera
Animating a Target Camera pt. 1
Animating a Target Camera pt. 2
Compositing Camera Views pt. 1
Compositing Camera Views pt. 2
Geometry/Materials/Rendering pt. 1
Geometry/Materials/Rendering pt. 2
Pattern Scaling
Main Menu pt.1
Main Menu pt.2
Creating Primitive Objects
Overview
Text
Sphere/Geosphere
Cube/Pyramid
Cone
Cylinder/Torus/Plane
Polyhedron
Creating a Pencil pt.1
Creating a Pencil pt.2
Vector vs. Raster Output
Vector vs. Raster Output pt. 1
Vector vs. Raster Output pt. 2
Choosing the Best Fill
Optimization in Flash
Materials
Finish
Color pt. 1
Color pt. 2
Color pt. 3
Color pt. 4
Raster vs. Vector for Textures
Amount and Noise for Textures
Texture Animation
Adding a Material to a Gallery
Advanced Modeler
Overview
Working with Viewports
Creating a Mesh
Sub-Object Selection/Intro
Soft Selection
Surface Groups/Intro
Breaking Apart Meshes
Combining Objects
Grouping Instead of Combining
Roundness
Align To
Mirror
Flatten
Subdivide
Welding pt. 1
Welding pt. 2
Smoothing Groups
Smoothing Controls
Multi-Selection
Advanced Soft Selection
Text in Advanced Modeler pt. 1
Text in Advanced Modeler pt. 2
Extrude Basics
Extrude/Reducing Poly Count
Extrude/Normals
Positioning Bitmaps pt. 1
Positioning Bitmaps pt. 2
Fun with Text
Fun with Text pt. 1
Fun with Text pt. 2
Animation
Adjusting Animation Timing
Multiple Animation Segments
Delete/Cut/Paste Keyframes
Saving to the Animation Gallery
Animation Path
Using the Extrusion Editor
Extrusion Editor Intro pt. 1
Extrusion Editor Intro pt. 2
Building a Guitar pt. 1
Building a Guitar pt. 2
Building a Guitar pt. 3
Converting Text to Paths
Using the Lathe Editor
Lathe Editor pt. 1
Lathe Editor pt. 2
Importing External Files
Intro and 3ds Import
EPS Import
Conclusion
Wrapping it Up
Credits
About this Author