Saturday, January 26th, 2019 Posted by Jim Thacker

Master Realistic Dog Grooming for Production with XGen


The Gnomon Workshop has released Realistic Dog Grooming for Production with XGen: a complete guide to Maya’s hair and fur toolset, recorded by Image Engine grooming artist Jordan Soler.

An essential guide to using Maya’s XGen toolset for production work
A versatile geometry instancing system, Maya’s XGen toolset is often used in VFX and animation production for styling hair, fur and feathers.

In the workshop, which comprises over two and a half hours of video training, Soler shares his entire workflow for creating a groom for a photorealistic dog with XGen.

He starts with fundamentals, like how to organise files and analyse reference material properly, before moving on to discuss how to create hair guides and adjust modifiers.

The tutorial concludes with an overview of Soler’s shader set-up, and how he sets up texture maps: as well as Maya, the workflow involves “a bit of Mari”.

According to The Gnomon Workshop, the workshop provides a range of “production-proven tips and tricks in XGen and grooming in general”.

About the artist
Jordan Soler is currently a grooming artist at Image Engine Design, having also previously worked with studios including Illumination Mac Guff, MPC, Animal Logic and Method Studios.

His work can be seen in a range of major VFX movies and animated features, including Despicable Me, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Peter Rabbit and Aquaman.

Pricing and availability
Realistic Dog Grooming for Production with XGen is available via an online subscription to The Gnomon Workshop. Subscriptions cost $49/month or $490/year, providing access to over 300 tutorials.

Read more about Realistic Dog Grooming for Production with XGen on The Gnomon Workshop’s website


Full disclosure: CG Channel is owned by Gnomon.