Let's have a look at the origins of Alpha Channel in images in order to use it more effectively in the Material Editor and in compositing maps and images. Later tutorials will make use of alpha information in a more practical application. As a side note; my blog site has be down a bit lately as well as my email address tedb@tbmax.com . If you need to contact me use tbdesign1@earthlink.net if you don't hear a reply from me. Thanks Ted   more »

Ray traced reflections can be computationally expensive and too intense in your scenes, but this video tutorial will explain how to make them more convincing as well as more efficient.   more »

Here's another quick deviation from the Material Editor to answer a question on the Autodesk Area forum recently. This is an exercise that I used to do in some classes to illustrate parametric modeling and it is one that I might resurrect again. Pay more attention to the procedures than what is actually being created and you may find the techniques useful for other situations.   more »

Bump mapping is an illusion created at render time that allows you to simulate geometry. This is an important factor in keeping your modeling efficient while the viewer is convinced of more complex geometry. Lighting is a key factor in bump mapping. White pixels in a map cause the illusion of raised areas, black has no effect, and gray is some level in between. Color maps work, but it's difficult to judge the effect visually.   more »