New tutorials: Introduction to Maya 2026
The Gnomon Workshop has launched Introduction to Maya 2026, the latest of veteran Maya instructor Eric Keller‘s popular series of beginners’ guides to the industry-standard 3D software.
Introduction to Maya 2026: Volume 1 provides over four hours of video training, and covers the Maya interface and key workflow concepts.
Volume 2 provides over five hours of video training on 3D modeling, retopology, the deformers system, and the fundamentals of creating animation rigs.
Volume 3 provides over four hours of video training, and covers UV layout, lighting, shading, rendering with Arnold, and Maya’s animation interfaces.
Volume 1: an essential introduction to Maya’s interface and core workflows
In the first part of the workshop, Keller covers Maya’s user interface and key workflow concepts, providing 20 approachable lessons, each 12-15 minutes long.
He begins by explaining how to set up Maya properly, how to use Editors such as the Outliner, Attribute Editor and Channel Box, and the options available in panel menus.
Workflow topics covered include working with cameras, geometry, lighting, and rendering within Maya’s viewports, including how to preview textures and shading using Viewport 2.0.
Keller also demonstrates the options available in the Tool Box, plus pivot manipulation, Component versus Object Mode, and Blue Pencil.
Volume 2: master the fundamentals of 3D modeling and rigging in Maya
In the second part of the workshop, Keller provides a further 25 concise lessons on Maya fundamentals.
He begins by explaining how to customize the Maya interface to match your working style, revealing how to create custom hotkeys, shelf buttons, and marking menus.
Keller then moves on to 3D modeling, first exploring fundamental concepts like construction history and the difference between transform and shape nodes.
He walks through the process of creating a model using a polygon modeling workflow, before discussing the difference between polygons and NURBS surfaces, and how to use curves.
Keller also explores how to use Maya’s new remeshing and retopology tools to refine a model.
The training concludes with an overview of deformers, weight painting, and the basics of creating animation rigs in Maya.
Volume 3: master UV editing, shading, lighting and animation in Maya
The third part of the workshop provides 20 lessons on materials, lighting and animation.
Keller begins with an overview of the UV tools, then moves on to the Hypershade, Maya’s texturing and shading interface, demonstrating how to build materials for rendering in Arnold.
The workshop also explains how to use the Substance 3D plugin for Maya to import and edit procedural materials in Substance format.
Keller then moves on to Maya’s lighting tools, with an emphasis on Arnold lights, and how to create atmospheric effects such as fog.
The workshop continues by demonstrating Maya’s animation interfaces, as Keller creates a simple walk cycle and edits the animation in the Dope Sheet, Graph Editor, and Time Editor.
Keller finishes by demonstrating how to animate cameras, how to add post-process effects to renders, and set up batch renders in Arnold.
As well as the training videos themselves, viewers of the workshop can download accompanying project files, making it possible to follow along with real-world examples.
About the artist
Eric Keller is an Emmy Award-nominated CG artist. His credits include One Piece, Wednesday, Dune: Prophecy, and the John Wick and Aquaman movies.
As well as his other training videos for The Gnomon Workshop, he has also taught at the Gnomon school itself, and been a guest lecturer at Harvard Medical School.
Pricing and availability
Introduction to Maya 2026: Volumes 1 to 3 are available via a subscription to The Gnomon Workshop, which provides access to over 300 tutorials.
Subscriptions cost $57/month or $499/year. Free trials are available.
Read more about Introduction to Maya 2026: Volume 1
Read more about Introduction to Maya 2026: Volume 2
Read more about Introduction to Maya 2026: Volume 3
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