21UX  $2,499 price reduced to $2,299

3DV home page  Questions? call (503) 644-6000

Description:

A Cintiq interactive pen display provides an unprecedented level of control, comfort, and productivity. 3D artists can pull points, manipulate wireframes, select vertices and navigate complex user interfaces quickly by taking advantage of their natural hand-eye coordination. 3D artists find that using a Cintiq allows them to combine the advantages of absolute positioning for fast model manipulation with the benefits of using the pressure-sensitive control of brushes and tools for sculpting, texturing, and 3D painting. Working with a Cintiq gives 3D artists the ability to switch between all creative applications while maintaining a consistent, tactile workflow with the pen on the screen, which reduces fatigue and strain while improving their artistic focus.

  Dan Casey Director of Digital Production, at Vinton Studios / LIAKA
A commercial animation studio in Portland Oregon uses a Cintiq for all of his 3D painting and texturing. After using a Cintiq on a project, Casey says "the Cintiq really speeds me up, it is the closest we've ever come to painting on canvas with the computer". Many times, it is difficult to determine how much quicker the Cintiq makes a 3D artist because it is useful for so many different applications. Casey says "bouncing between Maya, Photoshop, and BodyPaint is seamless, which keeps me focused on my work, not on the application". And while it may be obvious why using a pen on screen is advantageous for painting applications, many 3D artists are quite surprised to discover that the accuracy of the pen is a great tool for manipulating 3D models as well.
more about LIAKA - 37Kb PDF

3D modeling and engineering applications are incredibly powerful tools. In order to be so powerful, the user interfaces of these applications are quite complex. In the traditional use of 3D applications, the user's dominant hand controls not only a specific tool, but it also controls perspectives and viewing modes. This creates an enormous number of clicks and repetitive hand movements, especially while using a mouse. The Cintiq 21UX and the Intuos3 line of pen tablets help the 3D artist offload some of this burden to the non-dominant hand by using the built-in ExpressKeys and Touch Strips for viewing control and mode toggling. By easily pressing the user-assignable ExpressKeys with the non-dominant hand to toggle between rotation axes, as well as panning and zooming, the 3D artist reduces the number of clicks and movements required by the dominant hand. By coupling the ExpressKeys' quick and easy viewing control with the pen's high level of precision, the 3D artist gets a powerful and efficient toolset to increase productivity, as well as creative control.

The 8 ExpressKeys on the 21UX are user-assignable as well as chordable, so they are perfect for activating left, center, and right "mouse" clicks with the non-dominant hand while using the pen on screen with the dominant hand.

Noah Klabunde, a 3D artist uses a Cintiq in his studio and an Intuos on the road, he says that "Anyone who uses Photoshop for any amount of time knows that pen pressure sensitivity is where it's at", and he goes on to say "when I'm modeling, it is invaluable. It keeps me in the mind frame of working, not thinking about the equipment…It's all about getting work done". Klabunde has worked through the initial challenges of using a pen with 3D modelers such as Maya and has discovered that the key to a smooth workflow is to map the buttons appropriately to emulate a 3-button mouse for panning, zooming and rotating. Klabunde says "a few people have the perception that you can't use a Cintiq with Maya because of the 3 mouse buttons, but the cool thing is that with the drivers that come with the tablet, you can map the buttons however you like." Using a Cintiq for creating 3D art directly on the screen does impact Klabunde's workflow, he says "In a day's work, I would say I save half an hour to 45 minutes".

For 3D artists who are dedicated to developing the highest quality work under the tightest deadlines, the Cintiq is a key component to let them work in a faster, more natural way. As with all creative professionals, maintaining focus and staying "in the zone" allows 3D artists to power through the highly iterative processes while keeping the final vision in sight, resulting in greater productivity and better quality output. Working with a pen directly on the Cintiq screen frees the mind of the traditional obstacles associated with using an indirect input device, such as a mouse, and allows the artist to become totally immersed in the art.

Which Cintiq?

The Cintiq 21UX is the best choice for 3D artists.

The 21UX has a larger screen, higher resolution, and an ingenious stand that lets you rotate and tilt the Cintiq to get exactly the position that you want. Rotating the Cintiq in its stand provides the most natural painting experience you can get with digital technology. For modeling, the Cintiq pen allows you to virtually touch vertices, splines, and surfaces in a direct way while the ExpressKeys and Touch Strips provide two-handed control.

Give us a call today at 800-206-7886 so you also can get the control, comfort, and productivity of a Cintiq interactive pen display.

Please contact us with any questions you may have via: e-mail , or by calling (503) 644-6000 .

© 2003 3DV.COM

home page