Amorphium Pro - A Different Approach - Page 16

There are several reasons Amorphium Pro is listed separately from the main discussion of 3D. One is that the product was released within a week or so of the deadline for this book, and it took a few days to acquire it, so I didn't have much time to think about it. More importantly, though, Amorphium Pro is so completely divergent from conventional 3D packages in so many ways that it really creates its own category. Amorphium Pro is also a little more expensive than other tools in our roundup (about $370 retail).

At the highest level of overview, Amorphium is a professional 3D tool that happens to export directly to SWF using its native tools. If being used in big Hollywood films is a yardstick of success, Amorphium Pro is very successful. In short, it is recognized by 3D professionals in media outside of Flash. This is a valuable indicator for people coming from a non-3D background into a market filled with tools of all levels of quality.

The most striking thing about Amorphium Pro is its comprehensive set of tools for modifying a polygon mesh interactively with brushlike tools. Most of the tools are for deforming the mesh. I hesitate to call it "modeling," because it is so different from what I am used to, but that's what it really is— modeling with brushes.

The tools to modify texture mapping are even interactive, using the brush model. There are some tools that modify the mesh in ways that serve the interest of traditional 3D, such as the MeshMan set of tools shown in Figure 20-20.

This set of tools is a comprehensive set of solutions to the problems created by Amorphium's unique brand of modeling. The tooltip in the image labels the decimate tool, which reduces the number of polygons in an object, analogous to Flash's optimize curves function. What is even more amazing about this smart tool is that you can apply it to sections of the polygon that you select with a mask tool, which also uses a paint-on, interactive brush approach. These tools will also patch up ripped or torn polygon meshes, a common symptom of trying to automatically weld objects together into a single model.

At first the polygon deformation tools in the Tools section of Amorphium Pro struck me as gimmicky and not very useful for modeling. However, they grew on me fast. As you can see in Figure 20-21, the number of parameters and options available for each tool does give more control than the basic concept would suggest.

The basic concept of the mesh deformation tools is that you have a brush— there is a built-in palette, plus you can edit the brushes or build your own— and this brush is used in conjunction with a number of tools to either push or pull on the mesh.

The most striking toolset in Amorphium Pro is called Wax. The idea behind the wax tools is that you add, subtract, or smooth a mass of wax with brushlike tools. Using this set of tools takes some getting used to. After spending a couple of hours with the software, I still found the results of my brush strokes to be less than 100% predictable. That said, I should point out that I was able to create a recognizable model within minutes, and people who have used the tool seem to operate effortlessly in this style of modeling. If you are interested in getting some quick gratification in 3D modeling, I can't think of a faster way than wax. Figure 20-22 shows an extruded appendage made with a single brush stroke.

There are plenty of other tools in Amorphium Pro for building, coloring, and texturing your model. Some of the more novel features include an Effects toolset, pictured in Figure 20-23, a "Potter's Wheel," which spins the model on an axis to allow you to get at every angle uniformly with the brushlike tools. I used the Potter's Wheel to paint the head of the character I created, which I estimate saved me at least 20 or 30 seconds on that simple job alone. It would have been hard to select the head with a marquee since it is not exactly symmetrical. The concept of the Paint toolset is one of the more orthodox interactive brush-type tools in Amorphium Pro.

While I personally wouldn't use Amorphium Pro as my sole application for modeling, it does have a surprising range of features for a tool in this price range, even before you consider SWF output. There are a number of tools that are typically found in very expensive 3D packages, such as HeightShop, which uses the light and dark areas of an imported image to deform a mesh. This type of tool is often used to assist in modeling complex shapes, like the surface of a lake.

I especially like the texture mapping functions because they are so easy and intuitive to use and produce good results. This function is of little consequence for Flash output, but if you are interested in 3D for any other medium, this feature is worth a look. You can import models of many varieties, including 3DS and DXF.

Primitive Character Animation - Page 15
Macromedia Flash 5 Developer's Guide
Amorphium Pro - Con't - Page 17