Jan 232012
Poser 9
- Get Started Fast – Drag and drop characters and props right onto Poser?s virtual stage to create 3D scenes, add lights and cameras, then render away!
- Customize Characters – Start with one of the many included ready-to-pose 3D characters and customize them using your photos or hundreds of face shaping morphs to produce unique characters in minutes.
- Rendering Styles – Poser?s powerful rendering engine will transform any 3D scene you?ve created into photorealistic, cartoon or sketch style images and animations.
- Animate Easily – Poser?s key-frame animation tools make it easy to transition between poses, or make a character walk or talk, throw a ball or even dance.
- 3D Characters for Any Project – Create art or animation for graphic design, web, fine art and illustration projects. From comic books and animated shorts to architectural and industrial design, Poser adds character.
Poser 9 is the world’s easiest way to create amazing art and animation with 3D characters. Poser’s simple to learn tools and included characters let you focus on making art. Poser comes with over 3 gigabyte of ready-to-pose humans and animals, textures, props and 3D scene elements. In the Face Room, customize Poser characters from facial photographs. Add dynamic hair and clothing. Dress Poser’s virtual stage with props, lights and cameras to build 3D scenes. Animate and render scenes into
List Price: $ 249.99
Price: $ 39.99
For Mac Users: Works great on Mac, Faster renders and yes…you can use your older Poser libraries with this latest version,
As a longtime user of Poser software, using it on PC and then on Mac, my last purchase was Poser 6. I figured that I had no need to upgrade since 6 was pretty solid for what I needed to create and for the next few years, I continued to use the software until June 2011 when I upgraded to Mac OS 10.7 Lion and realized, a lot of the older software would no longer work with Lion. So, suffice to say…I was S.O.o.L.
But with the announcement of the release of Poser 9 and Poser Pro 2012 and the fact that these will work with OS 10.7 Lion was big for me. Also, Poser 9 comes with both the Windows and Mac version which is a plus.
But my biggest concern was…after spending so much money on Poser characters, clothing and accessories, I hope it works with this latest version of the software. I skipped Poser 7 & 8 and there wasn’t much information online for those who use Poser on a Mac. So, now that I have tested this, hopefully I can help other Mac users who are considering purchasing this software.
I. Is this software for you?
First, to keep things basic for those not familiar with the software. Poser is a 3D software which you can model a character (human/animal/monster, etc.), environment, prop, have control over their movements and pose them anyway you want. There are websites where you can purchase models, clothing, props, environments, etc. or if you are savvy…you can design them and sell them on various marketplace online.
As a graphic designer, I have used Poser for posters, commercial ads and I have known people to use Poser in addition with other software to create book covers, posters, ads, videos, etc.
The difficulty of having to create to program and create the model of the character, clothing, etc. is not there because everything is presented to you as is. Everything is there for you to manipulate. So, you can select a variety of models that come with the program or purchase a character. Want to create a fairy, a zombie, a soldier, a knight, a superhero, a fashion model, etc. The sky is the limit…it all comes down to your creativity. You can pose them from everything to bending their legs, arms, moving their neck, eyes, fingers, enhancing their bodies, etc. You have control!
Is there a caveat of using the software? The main caveat is you need to purchase things online. So, if you want a fairy, you need to buy the clothing, the wings, the hair, the props, the backgrounds, etc. But of course, the more you use the software, you will want to create other types of characters requiring more clothing, hair, use another model, etc. That cost money.
Otherwise, if you are great with software like Adobe PhotoShop, then you can create your character and then pretty much digitally create things on your own. If you are great with other 3D software and no how to model, then you can create things for your character and go even further with your creation.
But with that being said, like any video editor who needs to purchase plug-ins or those needing to add to their existing software for audio or video, those plug-ins cost hundreds dollars and it adds up. With Poser, you can buy bundles under $100 and many sites offer a lot of freebees as well.
So, is this software for you? If what I mentioned interests you, then yes. It’s important to know that there is Poser 9 and the more powerful (and more expensive) Poser Pro 12 (which has more features) that allow exporting your characters into 3DS Max, Maya, LightWave 3D and CINEMA 4D. Also, better weight mapping and joint system (so, you have control over every bend and bulge) and is 64-bit native.
If you want to create characters off the bat and no need for the extra power of Power Pro, Poser 9 is all you need and it is just as possible!
II. Poser 9 – So, What’s New?
* Comes with software for MAC/PC
* Many 3D characters are included with this release
* Powerful Rendering Engine
* Auto Lip Synch
* Poser keyframe animation makes animation easy
* Includes advanced vertex Weight Map Rig
* Grouped body part figures and single mesh figures
* Improved Firefly render engine
* Supports rendering with ambient occlusion, you can enable subsurface scattering and more!
III. INSTALLATION
I installed Poser 9 on an older iMac 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo on Mac OS X Lion 10.7.2. The only thing that I didn’t like about the installation is that with my previous Poser, I can select the harddrive to install. I like to keep Poser on an external drive. But couldn’t do that. The installation took about 35-40 minutes as there is a lot to install with this latest software.
IV. USING POSER 9
I was happy to see the new interface improvements (remember, my last software was Poser 6) and seeing everything via tabs on top, so I can go from my Poser…
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|Poser ++,
I have had the opportunity to use both Pro 2012 and 9 and I can say that they both have blown me away. I have been a poser user since version 2, and I can’t think of a version change that has included so much! The SSS and Weight Mapping alone are worth the price of admission… not to mention the UI improvements, Speed improvements, changes to the IDL and Light Casting Objects, the list goes on. If you are into Poser, you will not regret this upgrade. If you are new to Poser and 3D… now is the time to get on board!
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|Not For the Novice,
I’m writing this review to answer the question, “Hey, I’m a complete novice! Is Poser 9 easy to learn?”
Answer: NO
I don’t have any experience working with this type of software. Still, the description promises “easy to use,” “simple to learn” and “get started right away.” Sorry, this wasn’t true. While I could do a few basic things, I didn’t understand many of the terms used or the parameters I was working with. If I managed to get something done, I didn’t know what to do next or even where to look. To make matters worse, if you ever do get further along, you have to BUY clothing, props and other elements.
I wasn’t sure how to rate this, so I took the middle ground. It’s probably fabulous if you’re experienced. However, it is a bit misleading to use terms like “easy” and “simple” for software that is difficult for the uninitiated.
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