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Shading Theory

Learn the principles behind shading in 3D graphics

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About This Course

Make Smarter Shading Decisions

Shading Theory is a course designed to help you get familiar with shading concepts that are universal to all applications. The course is split between observing the behavior that light has in the real world with practical application. To demonstrate this, we'll be using the principled shader with Karma. However, the concepts covered in this course are universal to any render engine. By the end of these lessons, you'll have a solid understanding of how light reacts to objects in the real world along with practical knowledge when it comes to applying these principles to shader settings that are found in Houdini.

Beginner

No need to be a Houdini expert here - these lessons are designed to be very understandable.

Duration

1 hour 30 min

Pre-Requisites

Houdini For the New Artist

Related Courses

Tyler Bay

Lead Instructor and Owner of CG Forge

About

Tyler Bay is an experienced 3D artist who founded CG Forge in 2019. Before establishing CG Forge, he spent many years working as a freelancer in film, online education, advertisement, biomedical animation, virtual reality, graphic design, and product visualization industries. Tyler aims to keep courses simple, thorough, and straight-to-the-point - which has become the heart and soul of what CG Forge is all about. That goes a long way towards ensuring that the skills you learn are applicable towards meeting production challenges while offering you the best courses and resources to reach your goals.

About CG Forge:

CG Forge is an online educational platform that helps professionals and aspiring individuals succeed in their career development and educational goals.

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About Mentorship Calls

At CG Forge, you can schedule one-on-one video calls with your instructor to gain personalized guidance when learning Houdini. Each mentorship call is 90 minutes, and during that time, you can get answers to questions, go through scene files, talk about strategies for studying / applying for jobs, and anything else that's related to your goals.

To book a call, just visit https://www.cgforge.com/book-consultation

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Study Plan Call

Premium Subscribers gain access to study plan calls every 4 months. During this time, we will establish a personalized study plan that's specific to your goals and skill level. The study plan call lasts for 45 minutes and combines CG Forge content + outside resources. Each plan is custom tailored to your needs and will help you make the most of your time as you are studying.

Look at the welcome email for further instructions on how to schedule a call if you are a Premium Subscriber.

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Premium Member Discord

Sometimes you may have quick questions that need quick answers. For that, CG Forge offers the Premium Member's Discord channel. Here you can receive professional feedback, gain quick answers to Houdini questions, and connect with other members.

Unlike the standard discord server, the Premium Member server receives faster replies, feedback on projects outside CG Forge courses, and exclusive discounts on mentorship calls that aren't offered anywhere else.

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Houdini Education License

CG Forge Premium subscribers have the option of purchasing Houdini Education licenses. For more information on SideFX's Education license, visit https://www.sidefx.com/buy/

In summary, the educational license of Houdini acts much like Houdini Indie - but at a discounted price. The main difference between Indie and Education is that this version of Houdini cannot be used for commercial projects. It's great, however, for learning and preparing a demo reel without the limitations of Houdini Apprentice.

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Unlock Resources

As a CG Forge subscriber, you have access to a wide variety of resources that aren't found anywhere else.

One of the best examples of this is the Node Bible. This resource acts like an encyclopedia of Houdini knowledge. Each entry features a node, goes through all the parameters, and offers video quick tips on how to use each node. The Node Bible goes beyond the native Houdini documentation because it's easier to understand, offers practical examples, and links up to nodes that get used in the courses.

In the resource sections, you'll also find quick tips that cover a variety of miscellaneous topics along with The Weekly Wrangle - which is a series dedicated to advice and real-world conversations surrounding career success.

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Redshift Discount

Becoming a CG Forge Premium Subscriber also allows you to obtain 10% off a yearly Redshift subscription. Redshift offers a fantastic render engine that compliments Houdini and is required for most CG Forge courses. Even though Houdini ships with Karma, you'll find that Redshift will make it much easier to get started with Houdini, and it's well worth the price. For more info about Redshift, visit:
https://www.maxon.net/redshift

Aug 28th, 2024 Changelog

General Changes:

• New, simplified website design is now live!
    ◦ All new particle banner is featured on the home and after login pages
    ◦ The after-login page now features courses that are sorted by ones that you have recently watched. This makes it easier to continue watching whatever you’ve been working on without scrolling through all the courses to find what you’re looking for.
    ◦ There is also a new “resources” section that can be found beneath the “Browse Courses” on the after-login page. This makes it easier to bring up the Node Bible, the “Tips + Tricks,” or Weekly wrangle in a new tab
    ◦ “CG Forge Academy” has been replaced with a “Mentorship Calls” at the top menu (see below for more details)
    ◦ The resources dropdown now features “Tips + Tricks” (see below for details)
    ◦ Certification requirements have been slightly re-written to be easier to understand
    ◦ Subscriptions have been re-designed from the ground up (see below for details)

Subscription Changes:

• Subscriptions have changed to include a "Basic Subscription" and a "Premium Subscription" option. The Basic Subscription renews monthly, and the “Premium Subscription” renews every 4 months. Yearly subscriptions have been removed.
    ◦ These changes only affect new subscribers. Existing subscribers will not see anything change with their auto-renewal amount.
    ◦ 10% off a Redshift yearly subscription is now included with the Premium Subscription. (If you are currently a 4 or 12 month subscriber, then just email support@cgforge.com for this)
    ◦ A new “Study Plan” call has been added to the Premium Subscription. (If you are currently a 4 or 12 month subscriber, then just email support@cgforge.com for this)
    ◦ A Houdini education license is now available for “Premium” subscribers. (If you are currently a 4 or 12 month subscriber, then just email support@cgforge.com for this)
    ◦ For more information, visit the subscriptions page.

• CG Forge Academy has been redesigned to be easier to use.
    ◦ 45 minute calls have been removed. Existing coupons are still valid and can be used towards 90 minute sessions for the amount listed on each coupon.
    ◦ 8 week mentorships have been removed - Instead, you can book as many 90 minute calls as you’d like.
    ◦ Free onboarding calls have been removed - Instead, premium subscribers now receive a complimentary “Study Plan Call” that establishes a personalized curriculum moving forward.
    ◦ The “CG Forge Academy” top menu is now replaced with “Mentorship Calls” and only allows for booking 90 minute calls.

All new “Tips and Tricks” resource page:

• “Tips and Tricks” is now a resource page that holds all quick tips, Houdini update videos, and other miscellaneous videos in one place. If you’re looking for “Quicktips Season One and Two” or "Houdini 19 Updates" they have now migrated over to the “Tips and Tricks” resource section.

Discord changes:

• The CG Forge Discord channel will now be divided into two categories: “Basic Members” and “Premium Members.” The premium member channel will be invite-only to premium subscribers or those who are currently enrolled in a 4 or 12 month subscription. If you eligible to join the premium discord channel, email support@cgforge.com for an invitation.
    ◦ Basic Discord members will no longer receive support for projects that are outside the topic of CG Forge courses.
    ◦ Premium Discord members will receive support for projects outside of CG Forge content
    ◦ Premium members will receive discounts on mentorship calls, and basic members will not.
    ◦ Premium members will have their questions / posts answered before basic members
    ◦ Early access to courses will now be exclusively provided to premium members via the discord channel.

If you have any further questions about these changes, feel free to email support@cgforge.com

Cheers,

- Tyler

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1:1 Support and Feedback

There are a variety of ways to get help when you need it at CG Forge. All courses feature a monitored chat forum that link up to the video that you're watching. This makes it easy to ask specific questions for specific answers. In addition, you can always contact support@cgforge.com or add a message to the CG Forge Discord if you need anything.

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Unlock ALL Courses

One thing that makes CG Forge unique is that you can unlock 23+ courses when you become a subscriber.

Instead of paying lots of money for ONE course, you can pay less for a library of courses.

With CG Forge, you can also count on highly refined content that's conveniently found in one place. This makes it easy to cut through the clutter of Houdini tutorials out there and make the most of your time while you learn.

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Disturbance

According to the SideFX documentation:

"The disturbance force introduces small amounts of change, mimicking the effects of localized environmental change. This localized change in momentum cancels itself out over time, preserving the simulation’s general motion and overall shape."

In practice, disturbance is great at capturing smaller details in a pyro sim. It's not as great at capturing larger movements and details. Artists will often use disturbance to break up mushroom shapes that occur along the leading edges of smoke simulations or to add tiny bits of detail in general.

Disturbance has two primary modes: Block-based and Continuous. Block based gives you better control over how large the detailed shapes are. The block size is represented in meters, and the larger the size, the larger size the randomized forces are on the pyro. Continuous will provide a fuzzier, smaller-detailed look, and it is often better to use when trying to soften the overall look of a pyro simulation. Continuous mode can be useful when representing avalanches or areas of mist along a waterfall.

Shading Theory

Make Smarter Shading Decisions

Beginner

Duration

Pre-Requisites

Related Courses

Tyler Bay

About CG Forge:

Featured links

Find us Across the Web

About Mentorship Calls

Study Plan Call

Premium Member Discord

Houdini Education License

Unlock Resources

Redshift Discount

Aug 28th, 2024 Changelog

1:1 Support and Feedback

Unlock ALL Courses

Disturbance