Maya and shading

This guy http://www.digitalartform.com/has some interesting thoughts on shading like a painter.
Well worth a read.

Fisherman's head

My latest little work. Modelled in Wings3d and rendered etc in Maya.

Bump maps are used for details in the skin. A specularity map is used to make sure that only some parts of the modell is shiny. All maps ar made using the Paint Tool in Maya.


A single Fur Description is used for all hair, with the attributes painted in (Length and Baldness).

The eyes are made with Nurbs spheres with one of the poles pointing forward. The texture is a combination of ramps. The first one is the basic eye structure, going from black to blue, dark blue and then white. The blue part (the iris) is then made into a new ramp that basically is several bands going from darker to lighter blue. This ramp goes in the other direction compared to the first ramp.
Samt goes for the third ramp, which is mostly white with a couple of red/ white-red stripes going from the iris outward. Adding a slight level of noise gives makes for simple veins in the eye.