Digital Compositing with Nuke

I was given a product of a very similar nature, a textbook about Nuke, but was not able to glean much from its pages. I chose to supplement my blocked education with this book. I believe that if not individually, then in combination, that these books will complement, balance, and supplement each the other and perhaps permit me access and inroads to the skills, and the mastery, that I'm already willing and prepared to work for.

326 pages of pure, up to date delight on the most popular node based animation/compositing software program. Long overdue! Nuke is being used by more high end animation studios than any other current node based programs. I'm the CTO of Shader Joes, an animation studio working in many media, and Nuke is our go to node software for many projects. Nuke is as complex as Maya, After Effects and many other modeling/animation programs, so it's probably obvious that it would take 10 volumes this size to cover the entire program. So what does the author cover vs. leave out?What's in: (chapters): 1: Nuke Interface-- not just the basics but outstanding comparisons to After Effects, Photoshop and many other interfaces. Most of today's highest end compositors are node based (little data boxes and trees) vs. layer based like Photoshop and After Effects (the most used compositor on the planet). Node based programs include Inferno, Flame, Toxik, Fusion, Shake and other very high end programs used by the top effects industry studios. 2: Transforming and Keyframing-- both awesomely illustrated main features of the Nuke scrubber and Keyframing, AND again, many comparisons to other programs and techniques that may be more familiar to readers just getting into Nuke. Enough step by step with the DVD examples for both beginners and pros. Not a LOT of depth on tangents, graphs, beziers, etc., but enough if you've used them in Maya, AE, etc. 3: Color. Plenty of great info on Nuke, but WOW, what a wealth of info on color channels in general! Almost a primer on CMYK/ gamma/ alpha/ RGB/ RYB, etc. even explaining bitmapping at a very basic level.4: Mattes and Rotoscoping-- you'll understand the WHOLE process a lot better, not just the Nuke UI. 5: Keying-- the tutorial is outstanding, Lynda dot com quality but much more specific to Nuke of course. 6: Channels and Artifacts: No way a complete animated Node tree can be covered in 30 pages, but again, gives both AE comparisons and doesn't assume you've worked with nodes a lot before. 7: Warping and Distortion-- MANY new features in the more recent Nuke releases, including a lot of AI in motion blur covered very well. 8: Motion Tracking-- One of the lighter of the most important topics, but made up for with THREE outstanding tutorials. 9: 2.5, 3D, Stereo 3D -- only one tutorial but a great one. covers about 20% of what you need to know on the lighting and camera sides. 10: Scripts and new techniques-- This chapter tries to solve the biggest problem with Nuke as a program today-- nodes can be GPU carnivores, blowing up even your Cray. Past workarounds have included messy divisions, disc saves and other pains. This chapter tries to give hints about the latest scripting and "node efficiency" techniques.Bonuses: 2 gig DVD of Nuke files; sections on NukeX and the major Foundry plug ins; good start on Python hints in chapter 10.What's out: This isn't a user's manual, yet it tries to cover all the key topics. It is tough to exactly describe the audience, because the author spends SO much quality time describing the basics and going over similarities to layer based programs. I sense that Lee has come across a lot of Maya and AE types who are new to nodes, and takes the time to explain a lot of similarities and differences to give common ground. This is GREAT for beginners and intermediate users, but has to leave out a lot for advanced users. Nevertheless, AS an advanced user, I highly recommend this volume as one of the few that really show a thorough real world familiarity with Nuke techniques.The UK group selling and supporting Nuke (the Foundry) has their hands full, and support is really iffy. If you're in education, expect a very painful process to get site licenses and student copies-- they suggest you send your credit card over an insecure email across the Atlantic if you're not in Europe! For 3 to 5 grand US, this is NOT a cheap program compared to AE, but student versions can be had with a lot of difficulty for a few hundred. Unfortunately the manufacturer has not yet heard of Creation Engine or other edu distributors, and makes the process tough. On the commercial side the support is a LITTLE better, but if you call the US office in California, you'll likely get a voice mail for many of the calls. Just a head's up before you invest in the software itself!! The book-- that purchase is a no brainer, even if you DON'T use Nuke-- there is enough on node based systems to make the book valuable for your career as a digital artist or animator regardless of your daily software use right now.There ARE a lot of typos-- this was obviously rushed into production, but they are annoyances only, as we're not talking Python mistakes. Trivia: Nuke was created by James Cameron and Stan Winston and first used in TRUE LIES and TITANIC in 94 and 97. Basically a line editor back then, it's now become more complex than AE, with deep math, AI and scripting features in the latest versions, and incredible new plug ins coming out every year.

I just had an intro class in Nuke for school and this really covers the information in an easy to follow along format. The pictures really help to reveal what the author is talking about.I highly recommend this book.

This gave me the info I needed to get up and running with Nuke. I had experience with Shake so I knew away around a node based compositor, this was an easy transition. I also didn't use Nuke for 9 months after reading this book and when I came back to it, I had the info I needed to get my composite done.

The book showed up just fine, and in a little over a week. The problem is it had a dvd attached to it, and it was broken in half upon opening.

The book covers just the very basic of Nuke. The exemples are poor, and do not show the professional use that the software can have. I do not recomend.

Lee Lanier has written some great titles in his time which have become staples for any classroom or teacher, and his latest 'Digital Compositing with Nuke' may well be his best yet. Lee is a solid authority on the subject of Nuke and compositing and has years of experience to back it up. I've been teaching animation and visual effects for several years and I use Lee's books in all my classes because he breaks down the subject and software in easy to follow lessons and step by step tutorials. Nuke is the premiere software for digital composting and the industry standard for effects and Lee demystifies Nuke's `node based structure' so the user can focus more on creativity and the project at hand. Lee's insightful book is not only another excellent resource to add to your classroom whether you're a student or professional it will help you with any Nuke project you are working on. I highly recommend it.

I was studying compositing and been reccomended of this book. But I have found it too easy for me. I'd reccomend it if you are just an amateur or an after effects artist looking for some notion of the node architecture, but I would not reccomend it if you aim to be a Nuke compositor

I am comparing this to the NUKE101 book I previously purchased. Lanier gets a little technical in this book which complements the NUKE101 book. I am recommending for those who have NUKE101 to purchase this book too!!Hussin Khan

Nice service, fast delivery, great book. Exactly what I expected.Book contains two different stories filled with black humor.Excellent book if you are moving from after effects to nuke.

Amazing book

Il libro espone in modo chiaro e preciso le caratteristiche e le funzionalità del software.Ottime anche gli esempi, molto chiari che aiutano a comprendere meglio le funzionalità del programma.veramente soddisfatto