Poser

Poser is a 3D computer graphics program optimized for 3D modeling of human figures. The program has gained popularity due to allowing beginners to produce basic animations and digital images, and the extensive availability of third-party digital models.

Overview

Poser is a 3D rendering software package for the posing, animating and rendering of 3D polymesh human and animal figures. Akin to a virtual photography studio, Poser allows the user to load figures, props, lighting and cameras for still and animated renderings.

Natively using a subset of the Alias object (OBJ) file format and a text-based markup for content files, Poser comes with a large library of pre-rigged human, animal, robotic, and cartoon figures. The package also includes poses, hair pieces, props, textures, hand gestures and facial expressions. As Poser itself does not allow for original modeling of objects, a large community market of merchants and artists creating, selling and marketing third-party Poser content emerged, but these new models are usually crafted in modo, ZBrush, Blender or Autodesk 3ds Max.

Poser is available in English, Japanese, German and French for both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X platforms. Poser's interface has evolved since the product's introduction in 1995. The current Poser 9 and Poser Pro 2012 versions preserve many of the application's interface elements so that legacy users can move into the newest version and navigate the application without relearning the program's controls.

Features

Poser comes with a library of pre-built, ready to use content including poses, materials, props, facial expressions, hand poses, hair pieces, lights, cameras and scenes. Poser includes a REYES based render engine called Firefly which supports material nodes for the creation of complex materials. Poser provides import of sound files, image files, video files, motion capture data and 3D content for the creation of Poser scenes or the creation of new Poser library items. Poser exports content in a variety of 3D formats, and rendered images and animation. Poser has a series of rooms that support for material editing, facial photo matching, dynamic hair, dynamic cloth and new figure rigging. Poser's content room provides a link to on-line content. Poser Python inside Poser enables third party developers to create a variety of additional features for Poser users ranging from custom libraries, rendering engine control panels, metadata editors and utility scripts. Poser also supports an ecosystem of third party content developers and marketplaces including RuntimeDNA, DAZ3D and Renderosity.

Usage

Poser is a popular tool for hobbyist artists and illustrators, and is typically used to create original images featuring human figures. Artists use Poser for human renderings of medical and industrial design illustrations, editorial illustrations, information graphics, graphic novel illustrations, comics, and adult oriented "pin-ups".

Poser contains basic animation capability and is regularly employed by broadcast professionals including animation staff at Fox Bones, the Colbert Report and Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Poser animation can be seen in industry applications, such as the animated instructions for checkout automated machines in Albertson city`s, Save-On stores and Wal-Mart, and at least one full-length Star Trek fan-film, Star Trek: Aurora.^[1] Poser characters and animations were used for early computer games from 'buddies' game creators ("Desert Rifle" games and "Cake shop" from Qi and ELEFUN(TM) game developers).^{[citation needed]}

Standard Poser characters have been extensively used by European and US based documentary production teams to graphically render the human body or virtual actors in digital scenes.^{[citation needed]} Humanoids printed in several science and technology magazines around the US are often Poser rendered and postworked models.^{[citation needed]}

Library

The Poser package includes many ready to use 3D content items that permit new users to get started working with the application, without immediately needing to purchase additional content. These items are stored in Poser's drag and drop enabled "Library." The Poser content furnished in the Library is organized by type and name, for example People/Ryan2. Users can save customized figures or objects into the Library to reuse those items at a later point in time. The Library also supports adding in additional "Runtimes" which are collections of content that legacy users have assembled from third party providers.

The Library includes a user configurable keyword based Search feature to locate content in the user's Library or connected Runtimes. Content can also be added to the Library's Favorites for quick access at any time.

The Library is set-up with categories that each include collections of similar content items:

• Character: includes pre-rigged figures including anatomically accurate humans, mannikins, animals, insects, dinosaurs, cartoon characters, human anatomy such as skeletons and musculature and mechanical figures such as vehicles
• Pose: includes animated and static poses for the included human and animals covering day to day activities, dancing, walking, standing and sitting, as well as action and sport poses
• Face: includes full and partial facial expressions
• Hair: includes prop based transparency mapped hair pieces, dynamic hair pieces and hair props such as mustaches or sideburns.
• Hand: includes hand poses of various types such as American Sign Language, hand signals, counting, action poses and gestures
• Props: includes primitives such as spheres and cylinders, clothing items grouped by character, scene props, furniture, rooms, vehicles, plants and cartoon elements
• Lights: includes animated or static pre-set lights consisting of spotlights, infinite lights, point lights, diffuse IBL lights, .
• Cameras: includes animated or static cameras
• Materials: includes simple and complex node based materials
• Scenes: includes full Poser scenes including a Factory, Crime Scene Lab and a modern Apartment.

Program history

Poser was created by artist and programmer Larry Weinberg, as a software replacement for artist's mannequins. Versions 1.0 and 2.0 were published by Fractal Design; in 1997, Fractal Design was acquired by MetaCreations, and Poser's interface was redesigned by MetaCreations' Phil Clevenger for release as Poser 3 in 1998. This interface has remained as the basis for all subsequent versions. In 1999, MetaCreations sold Poser to egi.sys AG, which established the subsidiary Curious Labs, with Larry Weinberg as CEO, to handle Poser development and publication. Curious Labs and Poser were sold to the publisher e-frontier, in 2003. On 15 November 2007, Smith Micro Software announced the purchase of Poser, Anime Studio and Manga Studio from e-frontier.^[2]

Early versions of Poser were bundled with fully clothed humanoid figures specifically designed for the then-current version of Poser. Next, add-on packages of human figures were sold by the manufacturer of Poser. Soon, third party companies began creating figures which work with Poser. As clothing became separate from the humanoid figure, collections of 3D garments were created for specific models which conform to the shape and pose of the Poser figure. 'Poses' for figures were packaged and sold by the software vendor and by third parties. 'Morphs' allowing customization of body or face shape or other features are also for sale. Different skin textures, frequently combined with settings for morph technology, are marketed to allow one base model to be customized into many different 'characters'; similar 'texture' packages allow one garment to take on many different appearances, an animal to represent different breeds of the same species, or a vehicle to show many different colour schemes.

In September 2011, Poser 9 and Poser Pro 2012 were simultaneously released.^[3] 2011 marked the 16th year of Poser as a published software product.

On January 24, 2012, Poser Debut was released for the Mac App Store.

In May 2013 Poser 10 and Poser Pro 2014 were released, introducing Bullet Physics and Subdivision Surfaces.^[4]

See also

• MakeHuman
• Avimator
• Digital art
• Lightwave 3D
• Electric Image Animation System
• Cinema 4D
• Modo
• Blender

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Poser.

• Official website
• History of Poser
• Poser on the Open Directory Project