Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/57248
For additional product news and information, visit CGW.com SOFTWARE PLUG-IN Improving Efficiency R&D company CoreCG has released MentalCore, a cross-platform plug-in designed to help artists achieve maximum creativity and efficiency while using Nvidia Mental Ray with Autodesk Maya. The plug- in, developed by supervising TD Corey Frew at Oktobor Animation and beta-tested by film, game, and TV facilities, is suitable for any size studio, supports Maya 2011 and Maya 2012, and is compatible with the Mental Ray stand-alone renderer. The tool's render globals interface provides quick access to all global settings and render passes; its node-based render pass system eases linking to objects, materials, and lights. It also comes with a shader library, color management system, and a preview renderview. Python API allows for the easy integration of Mental- Core into any pipeline. MentalCore is avail- able as a node-locked license for $189 or a floating license for $199. CoreCG; www.core-cg.com WIN MAC LINUX Boosting Development Luxion has released a free KeyShot plug- in for Creo 1.0. With the new plug-in, anyone involved in the product develop- ment process can create high-quality imagery from Creo data with just a few clicks. KeyShot breaks down the complex- ity of creating photographic images from 3D models. Its ease of use allows those working with 3D data to create photo- graphic images quickly. Luxion; www.keyshot.com WIN MAC IMAGE PROCESSING Software Stretches, Resizes GoPro has released a new version of its pro family of 2D and 3D production soft- ware: GoPro CineForm Studio Premium and GoPro CineForm Studio Professional. The company also made available a new version of its free software, GoPro Cine- Form Studio, which adds new features appealing to consumers and pros alike. GoPro CineForm Studio (free download) enables users to adjust aspect ratios and instantly correct distortions or image stretching that typically occurs when resizing images. Users can add keyframes ate one frame. Through a patent-pending architectural rendering engine, Stadia is capable of generating photorealistic imag- ery in milliseconds. Stadia sends BIM data from Revit to the cloud for computation. Users are then e-mailed a downloadable file, which contains the interactive render- ing that produces imagery in real time, allowing users to walk through the building as if it was already built. The technology is available as a site-license subscription and can be downloaded as an add-in for Revit. Earlybird Technology; www.stadia3d.com anywhere in the video, as well as effects such as pan and zoom. GoPro CineForm Studio Premium ($299) captures the most popular features of both CineForm's Neo HD and Neo 3D into a singular solution designed for 2D and 3D broadcast and feature-film production. The app extends the stereo 3D tool set and is optimized for multi-camera stereo rigs, such as SI, Phantom, Red, and Arri Alexa. GoPro CineForm Studio Professional ($999) features a new and improved user inter- face; non-destructive color correction, reframing/image manipulation, and 3D correction; support for 2D and 3D (all types) video cameras; support for HD and beyond; as well as independent eye control for professional 3D camera rigs. GoPro; www.gopro.com WIN MAC VFX Virtual Environment Tool Earlybird Technology recently launched its first product, a software tool that draws from the Autodesk Revit building infor- mation model (BIM) to generate photo- realistic virtual environments that can be freely explored, much like a video game. Stadia is designed to help architects and clients experience the physical, spatial, and temporal qualities of proposed archi- tecture, as opposed to two-dimensional drawings. These photorealistic virtual environments were not previously possible because industry-standard raytracing rendering may take several hours to gener- Real-time Lighting Lightmap has released HDR Light Studio V.3.0, the latest version of its real-time lighting software designed to allow artists to quickly light CG scenes. The updated release includes new light-blending modes that use light sources to adjust exposure, color, and saturation. Custom fall-off curves allow for fine control over synthetic light fall- off. A new color system provides color selection and analysis tools for precise color matching and auditioning. And V.3.0 now offers Collada support for the importing of geometry and camera information from all major 3D modeling packages. Render times have also been improved. HDR Light Studio can be used as a stand-alone tool by importing 3D scenes into the CPU-based LiveLight preview tool (included), or in conjunction with any number of LiveLight plug-in part- ners, including KeyShot, Maxwell Studio, Deep Exploration, VRED, and Patch- work3D. The Standard edition is priced at $630, while a Pro edition, which includes plug-ins for KeyShot, Maxwell Studio, and Deep Exploration, costs $946. Lightmap; www.lightmap.co.uk WIN 3D Digital Painting Visual effects software developer The Foundry has released Mari 1.4, the latest version of its 3D digital painting tool. February/March 2012 47