Poser4 Poser 4 User Guide

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Welcome to Poser 4
Poser 4 Overview
- How Poser Works
- The Poser Workspace
Poser 4 Basics
Tutorial
Posing
Body Shaping
Props
Cameras
Lights
Animating Figures
Animation Techniques
Surface Materials
Rendering
Advanced Body Shaping
Hierarchies
Creating Custom Figures
Using Poser 4 with Other Applications
A Troubleshooting
B Glossary

User Guide

for Macintosh

and

Windows

Trademarks

MetaCreations Poser is a trademark of

MetaCreations Corporation. All other

trademarks or registered trademarks are the

property of their respective owners.

“Macintosh” is a registered trademark of Apple

Computer, Incorporated. “Windows” is a

registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.

“Pentium” is a registered trademark and “i486”

is a trademark of Intel Corporation.

ImageStream is a trademark and ImageStream

Graphics Filters is a registered trademark of

INSO Corporation. All other product names

mentioned in the manual and other

documentation are used for identiﬁcation

purposes only and may be trademarks or

registered trademarks of their respective

companies. Registered and unregistered

trademarks used herein are the exclusive

property of their respective owners.

MetaCreations Corp. makes no claim to any

such marks, nor willingly or knowingly misused

or misapplied such marks.

This manual, as well as the software described

in it is furnished under license and may only be

used or copied in accordance with the terms of

Corporation, including the look and feel of the

product. MetaCreations Poser User Guide

this guide may be reproduced in any form or by

any means without the prior written permission

of MetaCreations Corporation.

Notice

Before using this software or reading this user

guide, make sure you have read, understood and

agreed to the license contained in the back of the

Poser User Guide.

Credits

Poser was originally created by Larry Weinberg.

MetaCreations Poser was created by

Larry Weinberg, Seath Ahrens, Jianhua Shen,

Sree Kotay.

Original interface design by Phil Clevenger.

New interface design by Kyle Maxwell.

Quality Assurance testing by Dan Huver,

Lorna Brown, Brian Romero, Steve Yatson, and

Jim Brown. Quality Assurance Management by

Michael Cinque

Thanks to Technical Support lead

Todd Burlingame.

Product management by Steve Cooper.

The User Guide was written by Carol Franger

and Linda Stevens; Tutorial by Ian Grey and

Erick Vera; edited by Laura Turnidge and

Valarie Sanford; managed by Erick Vera;

production by Landis Gwynn. Art direction by

Brian Moose; cover illustration by

Heather Dunnigan; manual and comic book

illustrated by Nathan Harris; illustration

assistance by Melinda Kniffen; layout design by

Tish Loosley.

Collateral materials designed by Tish Loosley

and Heather Dunnigan; production

management by Rich O’Rielly.

Poser models by Zygote Media Group Inc. and

Keith Hunter, Hunyes Publishing. Poser walk

animations and gestures by Chris Derochie.

Special thanks to the Poser Web Community and

the Poser Forum members for their

contributions and support.

Contents

CH0 Welcome to Poser 4

What’s New in Poser 4? 12

Conforming Figures and Clothing 12

Bendable Props 12

New Lighting Features 12

Deformers 12

Morph Targets 12

Hierarchy Editor 12

Sketch Designer 13

Grouping Tool 13

Copying and Pasting 13

New Document Display Styles 13

When You Have Questions 13

About Your User Guide 14

Technical Support 14

Web Support 14

Phone Support 14

Installing Poser 15

System Requirements (Macintosh) 15

System Requirements (Windows) 15

Macintosh Installation 15

Windows Installation 16

CH1 Poser 4 Overview

How Poser Works 19

The Poser Workspace 20

The Document Window 20

Camera Controls 21

Light Controls 22

Document Display Style Controls 22

Editing Tools 23

The Libraries Palette 23

Animation Controls 24

The Menu Bar 24

CH2 Poser 4 Basics

Setting Up Poser 25

Macintosh Setup 25

Setting Application Preferences 26

Setting Up Your Workspace 27

UI Memory Dots 28

Workspace Backgrounds 28

Setting Up the Document

Window 28

Placing Figures and

Elements in the Studio 32

Using the Libraries Palette 32

Deleting Objects from a Scene 35

Working in the

Document Window 36

Viewing Your Figure 36

Previewing Your Figure 37

Figure Properties 41

Element Properties 42

Using the Editing Tools 42

Selecting Body Parts 43

Pasting Figures onto

the Background 43

Hiding Figures 44

Contents



Displaying Guides 44

Undoing Operations 46

Restoring Default Settings 46

Changing Defaults 46

Printing 47

Importing and Exporting 47

Saving and Closing 48

CH3 Tutorial

Welcome 51

The Basics 52

Lesson 1: Setting Up a

Default Workspace 52

Lesson 2: Working with Cameras 55

Lesson 3: Tracking Modes 60

Lesson 4: Document Display Styles 60

Working with Lights 64

Lesson 1: Using the Light Control 64

Using Poser’s Tools 67

Lesson 1: The Parameter Dials 67

Lesson 2: The Rotate Tool 68

Lesson 3: The Twist Tool 70

Lesson 4: The Translate and

Chain Break Tools 72

Posing 76

Lesson 1: Creating Poses 76

Lesson 2: Adding Poses to the

Pose Library 81

Lesson 3: Posing Faces 82

Rendering 84

Advanced Tutorials 87

Character Creation

and Animation 87

Lesson 1: Creating a Clown

from Scratch 87

Lesson 2: Making the

Clown Walk 91

Lesson 3: The Walk Designer 96

Lesson 4: Keyframe Editing 100

Lesson 5: Adding the Final Touch 105

Lesson 6: Setting Animated

Cameras and Test Rendering 106

Lesson 7: Final Render 108

CH4 Posing

How Posing Works 109

Posing and Camera Views 110

Posing and the Library 110

Translation 110

Inverse Kinematics 111

Understanding IK 111

Turning IK On or Off 112

Limiting Motion 113

Posing Body Parts 113

Selecting Parts 113

Posing a Figure 113

Using the Editing Tools 114

Rotate Tool 115

Twist Tool 118

Translate/Pull Tool 119

Translate In/Out Tool 120

Chain Break Tool 120

Using the Parameter Dials 121

Default Parameter Dial Settings 122

Posing Parameters 122

Posing Parameters for the Body 123



Poser 4

Symmetry 124

Drop to Floor 125

Copying and Pasting 125

Element Properties 126

Posing Hands 127

Using the Hand Model 128

Using Preset Hands 129

Posing Faces 129

Using the Parameter Dials 130

Posing Eyes 131

Faces and Phonemes 132

Using Preset Faces 133

Posing Animals 133

Posing Animal Heads 133

Pointing Body Parts 134

Locking Objects 134

Auto Balance and Posing 134

Saving Poses 135

Saving Poses in the

Libraries Palette 135

Using the Pose Memory Dots 136

Using Poses from the Libraries Palette

136

CH5 Body Shaping

General Characteristics 138

Selecting Figures from the Library 138

Figure Height 139

Using the Color Tool 139

Shaping Individual

Body Parts 140

Using the Shaping Tools 140

Using the Parameter Dials 141

Symmetry 141

Scaling the Body as a Whole 142

Using Parameter Dials 142

Copying and Pasting 143

Using the Deformer Tools 143

The Magnet Deformer 144

The Wave Deformer 149

Using Morph Targets 152

Using Morph Targets to

Add Ethnicity 153

Using the Superhero

Morph Target 154

Creating Custom Morph Targets 154

Using the Grouping Tool 157

Using the Group Edit Palette 158

Locking Figures and

Body Parts 159

Saving Figures to the

Libraries Palette 160

CH6 Props

How Props Work 161

Using Hair 163

Working with Clothing 164

Using Clothing without a Figure 166

Adding and Importing Props 166

Using Props from the Library 166

Importing Props 166

Deleting Props 168

Working with Props 168

Deforming Props 168

Creating Props 168

Creating New Prop Parameters 169

Contents



The Prop Origin 169

Prop Properties 170

Setting Prop Parents 171

Replacing a Body Part with a Prop 173

Adding Props to the Library 175

CH7 Cameras

How Cameras Work 177

The Main and Posing Cameras 179

The Auxiliary Camera 179

The Hand and Face Cameras 179

The Dolly Camera 179

The Orthogonal Cameras 179

Flyaround View 180

Selecting a Camera 180

The Camera Selection Control 180

Changing the Studio View 181

Positioning Cameras 181

Using Camera

Parameter Dials 183

Focal Length 183

xOrbit 184

yOrbit 184

zOrbit 184

Yaw 184

Pitch 184

Roll 184

Scale 184

xScale 184

yScale 185

zScale 185

DollyX 185

DollyY 185

DollyZ 185

Camera Options 185

Pointing Cameras 186

Locking Camera Positions 186

Saving Camera Positions 186

Saving Camera Sets to the Library 186

Using the Camera Memory Dots 187

CH8 Lights

How Lights Work 189

Infinite Lights 190

Spotlights 191

Light Properties 191

Adding Lights 193

Aiming Lights 193

Using the Light Control 194

Using Light Indicators 195

Aiming with Parameter Dials 197

Pointing a Light at an Object 199

Lighting Color 199

Setting a Light’s Color 199

Setting Light Intensity 200

Setting Spotlight

Characteristics 200

Using Shadows 201

Shadow Parameter Dials 202

Setting a Parent 202

Saving Light Sets 203



Poser 4

CH9 Animating Figures

How Animation Works 206

Animation Tools 206

What You Can Animate 206

Animating Figures 206

Animating Hands 207

Animating Faces 207

Animating Props 208

Animating Deformers 208

Creating Animations 209

Setting Up Your Animation 210

Working with the Timeline 211

Recording Keyframes 212

Adding and Deleting Keyframes 213

Editing Animations 213

Editing Animation Setup 214

Viewing the Elements List 215

Editing Keyframes on the

Timeline 217

Retime Keyframes 223

Advanced Editing 224

Keyframe Interpolation 224

Editing Keyframe Interpolation 225

Previewing Animations 228

Setting the Play Range 229

Using the Libraries

Palette for Animations 229

Adding an Animation to

the Library 230

Using a Multi-Frame Animation

from the Library 230

CH10 Animation Techniques

Setting Keyframes 231

Creating Realistic Motion 232

Making Your Figure Walk 233

Creating a Walk Path 233

Designing a Walk 234

Editing a Walk 235

Saving a Walk 235

Loading a Walk 236

Applying a Walk 236

Animating Cameras 237

Turning Camera Animation

On or Off 239

Animating Lights 239

Adding Sound 240

Editing Sound 240

Syncing Sound and Motion 240

Using Poser with Other

Motion Graphics Programs 241

Motion Capture and Animations 241

CH11 Surface Materials

How Surface Materials Work 243

Applying Surface Materials 244

Applying Materials to Body Parts 245

Applying Bump Maps 247

Creating a Custom Bump Map 247

Applying Texture Maps 249

Creating a Custom Texture Map 250

Applying Transparency Maps 252

Creating a Custom

Transparency Map 252

Contents



Applying Reflection Maps 253

Reflective Color 254

Creating a Custom

Reflection Map 254

Setting Colors 255

Object Color 255

Highlight Color 256

Ambient Color 257

CH12 Rendering

How Rendering Works 259

Setting Up a Render 260

Setting Render Destination 261

Setting Image Size 261

Choosing a Rendering

Background 262

Setting Surface Detail 262

Rendering an Image 263

Using the Render Command 263

Antialias Rendering 263

Rendering an Animation 264

Using the Make Movie Dialog 264

Using the Sketch Designer 265

The Sketch Designer Window 266

Rendering a Sketch 269

CH13 Advanced Body Shaping

Creating Custom

Morph Targets 272

Setting up Morph Targets 272

Morph Target Tutorial 273

Lesson 1: Setting Up 273

Lesson 2: Creating the

Morph Target 275

Lesson 3: Using the Target

in Poser 277

Figure Joints and

Blend Zones 278

Editing Joint Parameters 279

Using the Joint

Parameters Palette 280

Interactively Editing

Joint Parameters 280

Joint Attributes 282

Spherical Falloff Zones 287

CH14 Hierarchies

How Hierarchies Work 289

Using the Hierarchy Editor 290

Controlling what is Displayed 291

Collapsing the Hierarchy Editor 291

Selecting Objects 292

Deleting Objects 292

Renaming Objects 293

Reordering Objects 293

Displaying Object Properties 294

Changing Object Visibility 294

Establishing Hierarchical

Relationships 295

Creating Multi-Figure

Hierarchies 298

Applying the Standard

Hierarchy 299

Applying Standard

Rotation Order 299

Setting Inverse Kinematics 299



Poser 4

CH15 Creating Custom Figures

Modifying Existing Figures 302

Combining Multiple Figures 303

Combining Props 303

Creating Figures using

other Software 304

Deciding how to Start 304

Understanding the Process 305

Determining Model Format 305

Grouping Body Parts 305

Naming Groups 306

Arranging Groups on a Model 307

Looking inside the Poser

Hierarchy File 308

Converting Hierarchy Files 312

Verifying Hierarchy Files 312

Adjusting Joint Parameters 312

Setting Limits 313

Setting Favored IK Angles 313

Memorizing Default Positions 314

Setting Surface Materials 314

Adding Morph Targets 314

Naming Body Parts 314

Tutorial: Creating a Figure

in Ray Dream Studio 315

CH16 Using Poser 4 with Other

Applications

Using Poser with

Ray Dream Studio 5 323

Using Poser with Painter 3D 326

Using Poser with Bryce 3D 328

Using Poser on the

World Wide Web 331

Internet Connection 331

Using a Browser 331

Accessing the Web 332

Using Poser with MetaStream 333

Using Poser with Canoma 333

AppA Troubleshooting

AppB Glossary

Contents



Welcome to

Poser 4

Poser is an easy-to-use ﬁgure design and

animation tool. With Poser you’ll produce lifelike

3D illustrations and animations of human and

animal ﬁgures in action—dancing, scaling a cliff,

meditating, even walking.

Poser is great for anyone who wants to add

realistic human and animal ﬁgures to an art

project. It’s a welcome companion to your

favorite graphics, illustration, 3D, animation, and

multimedia applications.

Welcome to Poser 4



What’s New in

Poser 4?

If you’re a Poser 3 user, the following

information will bring you up to date with

the new features in Poser 4.

Conforming Figures and

Clothing

One of the most requested features for Poser is

the ability to change clothes on the Poser

ﬁgures. Poser now includes wardrobes of

custom clothing in the Libraries palette.

Custom clothing behaves the same as Poser

ﬁgures; each article includes parameters for

the corresponding body parts. You can

conform clothing to a ﬁgure so that it moves

as the ﬁgure moves. Refer to “Working with

Clothing” on page 164 for complete

information on clothing.

Bendable Props

When you attach a prop to a body part, you

can conﬁgure it to bend as the body part

bends. This feature is helpful for naturally

bendable objects, such as a rollerblader’s elbow

pads. For details, refer to “Setting Prop

Parents” on page 171.

New Lighting Features

Poser’s lighting controls are completely

redesigned. Now you have the choice of using

traditional inﬁnite lighting or spotlights that

you can move around the studio. You can add

an unlimited number of lights, as well as

delete them, to ﬁt your needs. The new light

control also includes an intensity control. All

the new lighting features are discussed in

“Lights” on page 189.

Poser now supports spherical reﬂection maps

and transparency maps. For details, refer to

“Surface Materials” on page 243.

Deformers

Poser now includes two deforming tools. The

Magnet deformer allows you to stretch and

pull body parts and props. The Wave deformer

lets you add ripples to objects such as clothing,

ground planes, and props. Deformers can be

animated and used to create morph targets.

These tools are discussed in detail in “Using

the Deformer Tools” on page 143.

Morph Targets

You can now access a library of ﬁgures and

props with built-in morph targets. Poser

includes targets for single body parts as well as

a full ﬁgure morph. You can also use the

deformers and Parameter Dials to create your

own morph targets. The possible applications

for morph targets are inﬁnite. Learn all about

morph targets in “Using Morph Targets” on

page 152.

Hierarchy Editor

With Poser’s new Hierarchy Editor, you now

have complete control over the ﬁgures, props,

cameras, and lights in your scene. The

Hierarchy Editor provides an easy way to

select, delete, and rename objects. It’s never

been easier to turn visibility on or off for

ﬁgures, body parts, props, or lights. With the



Poser 4

Hierarchy Editor, you can adjust parent-child

relationships and create IK chains. For the

truly ambitious, the Hierarchy Editor is an

exciting route to creating brand new Poser

ﬁgures. Refer to “Hierarchies” on page 289

for complete information.

Sketch Designer

Rendering possibilities are greatly expanded

with the new Sketch Designer, which lets you

create and reﬁne hand-drawn quality portraits

of your scenes. Drawings are rendered with a

series of brush strokes that deﬁne the

background, edges, and actual elements.

Many drawing options are available, so you

can tailor the strokes to your liking. For

details, refer to “Using the Sketch Designer”

on page 265.

Grouping Tool

The new grouping tool is a powerful feature

for assigning materials and generating new

props and objects. It also complements the

deformer tools and morph targets: you can

specify sections of a body part or prop for

deforming and morphing. Refer to “Using

the Grouping Tool” on page 157 for complete

information.

Copying and Pasting

Cut, Copy, and Paste commands are now

included in the Edit menu, so you can easily

copy poses, body shaping, and animations to

other ﬁgures, body parts, and props. This new

functionality is explained in detail in

“Copying and Pasting” on page 143.

New Document Display

Styles

You can choose from 12 interactive display

styles in the Document Display Style palette.

New styles include ﬂat shaded with mesh,

smooth shaded with mesh, and cartoon style

without lines. Refer to “Previewing Your

Figure” on page 37 for explanations of all 12

display styles.

When You Have

Questions

You can ﬁnd answers to most of your

questions in the following sources:

• Status line tips - As you move the cursor

over most UI elements, descriptions

appear at the top of their palette or

window.

• Poser 4 User Guide - Provides all the

information you need to get the most out

of Poser. The Poser CD includes a PDF

version of the User Guide. Adobe

Acrobat Reader is required to read the

PDF ﬁle format. Adobe Acrobat Reader

software is available on the Poser CD or

downloadable for free from

www.adobe.com.

• Web links - You can launch your web

browser and access MetaCreations and

Poser-related web sites directly from

Poser. To do this, choose Help menu>

Web Links> choose a link.

Welcome to Poser 4



About Your User

Guide

The Poser 4 User Guide is for both Macintosh

and Windows. By convention, Macintosh

commands precede Windows commands in

the text. For example, Command/Ctrl+I, is

equivalent to the Macintosh Command-I and

the Windows Ctrl+I. For simplicity, the term

“folder” refers to directories as well as folders.

The Poser interface for Macintosh and

Windows platforms is identical, unless

otherwise speciﬁed.

When a modiﬁer key differs between the

Macintosh and Windows platform, the

Macintosh modiﬁer is listed ﬁrst followed by a

slash and the Windows modiﬁer key. Option/

Alt means Macintosh users press the Option

key and Windows users press Alt.

There are several conventions used to identify

paths to certain tools and controls. The

convention to a menu follows the rule of the

menu name> menu item. The convention

to a palette follows the rule of the palette

name: subpalette name. The convention to

a palette menu follows the rule of palette

name: palette menu> menu item.

Technical Support

Online technical support is free to registered

users of Poser. There are two easy ways to

contact technical support for questions about

installation, conﬁguration, or functionality.

These options are: Web support and phone

support.

You’ll ﬁnd the answers to most of your

questions in this User Guide. If you need

further assistance, you can contact

MetaCreations’ Technical Support in the

following ways:

Web Support

Many of the answers to your questions are

available 24 hours a day on our Web site:

http://www.metacreations.com/support

In addition to frequently asked questions

(FAQs), the Web site provides troubleshooting

techniques, late breaking product news, and

other resources to help you get the most out

of Poser.

Phone Support

Free phone support is available for a limited

duration after your ﬁrst call. The length of

time varies based on the product and whether

it is an upgrade or a ﬁrst-time purchase.

MetaCreations also provides additional paid

support options. Details about phone support

can be found in the Technical Support insert

included with your product.

Phone support hours are Monday–Friday,

8:00 AM–5:00 PM Paciﬁc Standard Time,

excluding holidays.

For Standard Support, call (831) 430-4000.

Please have your serial number handy and be

at the computer where you need assistance.

For international support, please contact your

local distributor. To locate the distributor

nearest to you, check the Web site at:

http://www.metacreations.com/support/intl



Poser 4

Installing Poser

This section provides installation instructions

for both Macintosh and Windows. Follow the

instructions appropriate to your system.

System Requirements

(Macintosh)

• Power PC and compatible models

• System 8.0 or higher

• 32 MB application RAM (64+ MB

recommended)

• 240 MB available hard disk space

• 16-bit color (24-bit recommended)

• CD-ROM drive

System Requirements

(Windows)

• IBM® PC compatible

• Pentium processor

• Microsoft® Windows® 95, Windows 98,

or Windows NT version 4.0 with Service

Pack 3 or later

• 32 MB available system RAM (64+ MB

recommended)

• 240 MB available hard disk space

• Color display (true color recommended)

• CD-ROM drive

Macintosh Installation

When you install Poser on a Macintosh, create

a custom extension set for the installation. You

can save your current extension set, so that

you can go back to it after installation.

To create a custom extension set:

1Select Apple menu> Control Panels.

2Double click the Extension manager.

3Save your current extension set by

selecting duplicate set; give it a new

name. After installation, you can go back

to this set.

4Deselect everything.

5Expand the Extensions folder by clicking

the arrow to the left of it.

6Check the Apple CD-ROM, Quicktime,

and Quicktime Powerplug extensions.

7Restart.

To enable extensions:

1Double-click to open the hard drive.

2Double-click to open the System Folder.

3Open Control Panels.

4Double-click the Extension Manager.

5Check all to enable all extensions or

choose your own custom set.

To install Poser 4 on a Macintosh:

1Choose Apple menu> Control

Panels> Extensions Manager.

Note Poser is intended for local

installation only. Do not

attempt to install it onto a

network server.

Welcome to Poser 4



2To save your current extensions setting,

click Duplicate Set, and enter a name in

the dialog that appears. This will be the

set of extensions you use for the

installation.

3In the new set, expand the Extensions

folders and deselect all extensions except

those for:

• CD-ROM or DVD-ROM

• Quicktime

• Quicktime Powerplug

4Insert the Poser 4 CD-ROM into your

computer’s CD-ROM drive. The Install

Poser dialog appears.

5Double-click the Poser icon.

6Follow the instructions provided by the

installer.

The installation dialog displays an

important ReadMe.

7Click Accept after reading the complete

ReadMe.

Windows Installation

Before you install on Windows, you must end

any background tasks except for Systray and

Explorer.

To end background tasks in Windows:

1Type Ctrl-Alt-Delete. The Close Program

dialog appears.

2Click End Task for all items except

Systray and Explorer.

This must be done one item at a time;

repeat these steps to end each task that is

open.

To install Poser 4 on Windows:

1Insert the Poser 4 CD-ROM into your

computer’s CD-ROM drive. The Install

Poser dialog appears.

2Double-click the Poser icon.

3Follow the instructions provided by the

installer.

The installation dialog displays an

important ReadMe.

Note If you are not using standard

Apple drives, your drives may

require additional extensions

to run properly. If so, turn

those extensions on.

Tip Increase the RAM available to

Poser by allocating any unused

RAM to it. This allows Poser to

run faster and handle larger

ﬁles and renderings. However,

be sure to leave some RAM for

the system software. System

software must dynamically

allocate RAM to itself when

required.



Poser 4

4Click Yes after reading the complete

ReadMe.

Poser installs into C:/Programs/

MetaCreations/Poser. If you change the

drive where you want to install Poser, be

sure to include a folder. For example, if

you install on the D: drive, your path

could be D:/Poser.

Welcome to Poser 4



Poser 4 Overview

How Poser Works

Poser is the easiest and most effective tool you can

use to pose and animate ﬁgures. It is the perfect

complement to any 3D illustration or character

animation tool.

With Poser you can:

• Choose a ﬁgure from a large number of pre-

built models included in the Poser Libraries

• Pose the ﬁgure using the posing tools

• Add colors and textures to your ﬁgures to

create realistic or fantastic looks

• Set up poses to use as keyframes for an

animation

• Render ﬁgures as still images or animations

Poser 4 Overview



The Poser Workspace

This section leads you through the Poser

Workspace. Whether you are a previous Poser

user or new to Poser, this section familiarizes

you with the new Workspace.

You’ll notice that Poser doesn’t use traditional

ﬂoating palettes and toolbars. Most of Poser’s

features are integrated into the Workspace,

which ﬁlls your entire screen. This keeps the

space uncluttered and makes tools easy to

locate.

The new Workspace is incredibly ﬂexible.

Feature controls ﬂoat over the top of the

Workspace. You can move controls to any

location and save their positions for later use.

You can also change the color of the

Workspace and add stylistic elements to its

background. For more information on setting

up the Workspace, refer to “Setting Up Poser”

on page 25.

The Document Window

The Document window is where you view

and pose your ﬁgure. It acts like a

photographer’s studio; you can move lights

and shift between cameras to get a different

perspective on your ﬁgure.

The view of your ﬁgure in the Document

window is taken through a camera. Since

you’re in a three dimensional space, you can

use this camera to view your ﬁgure from any

angle, including above and below.

You can resize the Document window to best

suit your needs. In addition, several controls

around the window let you change the

appearance of elements within the window,

such as the ground plane and the background.

The Poser Workspace ﬁlls the screen and provides

access to all of Poser’s controls.

The Document window displays the current view of

your ﬁgure.



Poser 4

The Ground Plane

The Ground plane represents the ﬂoor of the

posing studio. This plane helps you orient the

ﬁgure in 3D space. It also helps you orient

your view of the ﬁgure. As you move the

camera, the ground plane tilts or rotates to

indicate the new orientation.

Camera Controls

The Camera Controls set the view of your

ﬁgure in the Document window. There are

two types of Camera Controls: the View

controls and the Positioning controls.

The View controls let you move between a

number of preset views. By clicking or

dragging this control, you can access all the

available views in Poser.

The Positioning controls let you move the

camera interactively. There are two sets of

positioning controls: the Camera Plane

controls and the Rotation Trackball. The

Use the Ground Plane to orient your ﬁgure in 3D

space.

Use the Camera Controls to set the view of your

scene.

The View controls let you quickly move the camera

to a preset position.

Poser 4 Overview



Camera Plane controls let you move the

camera along speciﬁc planes. For example,

you can move the camera in only a vertical or

horizontal direction.

Tool titles indicate which two axes the camera

is moving in.

The Rotation Trackball control lets you tilt

and spin a camera around the studio. With this

control you can move the camera to almost

any position while still keeping the ﬁgure in

the center of your ﬁeld of view.

Light Controls

The Light Controls let you deﬁne preset

positions for the lights in your virtual studio.

With these controls you can change light

color or illuminate your ﬁgure from various

angles.

Document Display Style

Controls

The Document Display Style controls let you

set the preview quality of the ﬁgure in the

Document window.

There are several preview styles available.

Different styles work best for different

operations. For example, at times you may

want to view the entire mesh of a ﬁgure

(Wireframe), at other times you may prefer a

realistic look (Smooth Shaded).

The Camera Plane controls let you move the

camera along a plane in 3D space.

The Rotation Trackball lets you move a camera

around the Document window.

Note The Rotation trackball does not

affect the orthogonal cameras.

Use the Light Controls to set up the lighting for your

ﬁgure.

The Document Display Style controls let you set

how your ﬁgure is displayed in the Document

window.



Poser 4

Editing Tools

The Editing Tools let you adjust the position

of the ﬁgure’s body parts to create speciﬁc

poses. Each tool moves the ﬁgure in a

different way. Using a combination of

controls, you can create an inﬁnite number of

poses.

The Parameter Dials

The Parameter Dials let you pose ﬁgures more

precisely than the Editing Tools by adjusting

the values of speciﬁc parameters.

If all the Parameter Dials do not ﬁt in the

window, use the scroll bar to slide through the

list.

The Libraries Palette

The Libraries palette contains all the ﬁgures

and props available in Poser, as well as custom

poses and light and camera settings. From this

palette, you can access sub-categories and

preview each ﬁgure or prop.

Use the Libraries palette to add or replace

ﬁgures or props in the Document window.

The Editing Tools let you set the position of your

ﬁgure’s body parts.

The Parameter Dials let you precisely pose your

ﬁgure using numerical values.

The Libraries palette contains all the ﬁgures and

props available in Poser.

Poser 4 Overview



Animation Controls

The Animation controls let you quickly set up

animation keyframes. You can set up a pose as

a keyframe, change to a new keyframe, change

the pose, then set another keyframe. When

you play the animation, the ﬁgure appears to

move from one pose to the other.

With the Animation controls, you can move

quickly through keyframes, and add or delete

them as needed.

Animation Palette

The Animation palette displays the animation

timeline and lists all the keyframes that you

have created for the ﬁgure. Use the palette to

ﬁne tune an animation.

The Menu Bar

Although the Poser Workspace ﬁlls the entire

screen, you can still access several features

through the Menu Bar. You can also switch

between Poser and other applications. On the

Macintosh, the Menu Bar appears when you

move the cursor over the top of the

Workspace.

The Animation controls let you quickly set up

keyframes for your animation.

The Animation palette lets you reﬁne and edit your

animations.

Poser 4 Basics

This chapter describes how to set up Poser 4 and

describes some basic techniques for posing ﬁgures.

Setting Up Poser

Poser is a color application. For the best preview

display, set your display to the highest color depth

possible. To do this, use the Macintosh Monitors

control panel, the Windows Setup options, or

your video adapter control panel.

Macintosh Setup

By default, the Macintosh version of Poser is

allocated a speciﬁc amount RAM appropriate for

most systems. If you have more memory available,

increase Poser’s memory allocation to improve

Poser 4 Basics



application performance. To check the

application’s memory allocation, choose the

Apple Menu> About this Macintosh in

the Finder.

To increase Poser’s memory allocation:

1Make sure Poser is not running.

2From the Finder, click the Poser program

icon.

3Choose File menu> Get Info. The

Poser Information dialog appears.

4For System 8.5 or higher, choose

Memory from the Show popup

5In the Memory Requirements section,

increase the Preferred Size to a level

appropriate for your system.

For Poser to operate well with fully

articulated Poser people ﬁgures, it must

have at least 32 MB of RAM. However,

do not use all the available memory on

your computer; leave one megabyte or

more for the system.

If you don’t have enough RAM, you can

turn on virtual memory, which uses some

disk space with a cost of slower

performance.

Setting Application

Preferences

Poser’s preferences dialog lets you control how

the application appears when it opens.

To set application preferences:

•Choose Edit menu> General

Preferences. The General Preferences

dialog appears.

Document Preference

The Document Preference controls how the

document appears when you start Poser or

create a new document. You can make the

document appear as it did when you last

closed it, or in its default state.

For example, if you want to always start Poser

with the Casual Woman and the ground plane

on, you can load the woman, turn on the

Ground Plane, and set this as the preferred

state.

To set the Preferred State:

1In the Poser workspace, move the palettes

and controls to the positions you prefer.

Use the Get Info dialog to allocate memory to Poser

on the Macintosh

Use the General Preferences dialog to set the

interface’s appearance and the application’s launch

state.



Poser 4

2Choose Edit menu> General

Preferences. The General Preference

dialog appears.

3Click the Set Preferred State button.

To set the Factory state:

1Enable the Launch to Factory State

button.

2Click OK

Interface Preference

The Interface Preference controls how the

interface appears when you open Poser

without using an existing document.

To set interface preferences:

•If you want the application to appear as it

did when you closed it, enable the Use to

Previous State radio button.

•If you want the application to launch in

its default state, enable the Use to Factory

State radio button

To close the General Preferences dialog, click

OK.

Setting Up Your

Workspace

Your Workspace reﬂects the layout of the

controls and Document window. You can

customize most controls within the Workspace

can be customized to suit the way you work;

place controls anywhere in the Workspace and

store those changes for later use.

To re-position an element in the

Workspace:

•Click the element’s title and drag it to a

new position.

You can drag any of the controls, such as

the Camera, Light, Display Style, and

Parameter Dial controls.

To re-position the Document window:

•Click the text label above the Document

window and drag it to a new location.

To “window shade” a control so only its

title appears:

•Double-click the title bar.

Note As you move the cursor over the

controls, text describing the

Workspace elements appear

Poser 4 Basics



UI Memory Dots

The nine UI dots in the bottom-right corner

of the Workspace store Workspace layouts,

Poses, and Camera positions.

To save a Workspace layout:

1Click the arrow icon next to the memory

dot element title and choose UI Dots

from the menu that appears.

2Arrange the Workspace controls to their

optimal positions.

3Click an empty UI Dot. The Workspace

layout is stored in that memory dot.

To retrieve a Workspace layout:

1Make sure the memory Dot element title

is selected.

2Click on a full memory dot. The interface

elements are re-arranged to conform to

the stored layout.

To delete a saved Workspace layout:

•Option/Alt-click a full memory dot. The

layout information is deleted from the

memory dot.

Workspace Backgrounds

The Poser Workspace background includes

several stylistic elements. You can change,

move, or hide the ﬁgure, and you can change

the Workspace background color.

To change the Workspace background

ﬁgure:

•Option/Alt-click the background ﬁgure.

Continue clicking until an image you like

appears (one option is no ﬁgure).

To reposition the background image:

•Drag the ﬁgure to a new position.

To change the Workspace background

color:

1Click the Color tool.

2Click on the background and choose a

color from the Color picker.

To restore the default Workspace

background color:

•Option/Alt-click the background.

Setting Up the

Document Window

The Document window provides a view of

the studio where you pose and view your

ﬁgure. There are several parameters that allow

you to change the window appearance to suit

the way you work.

Use the Memory dots to save Workspace layouts,

Poses, and Camera positions.

Note You cannot use Poser 3 UI

preferences in Poser 4

Full Memory Dot

Empty Memory Dot



Poser 4

To interactively set the Document

window size:

•Drag the size control circle until the

window is the desired size.

To numerically set the Document

window size:

1Double-click the window dimensions at

the top-right corner of the Document

window, or choose Window menu>

Document Window Size. The Set

Window Size dialog appears.

2Enter Width and Height values.

3Click OK.

To move the Document window:

•Drag the Document window’s title to a

new position.

Document Window Color

To improve your view of the ﬁgure, you can

set the background, foreground, shadow, and

ground colors of the document window.

The Color controls are located in the bottom-

right corner of the window.

To set the Document window colors:

1Click the appropriate color button on the

bottom-right corner of the Document

window.

2Drag the dropper icon over the color

picker that appears. Release the mouse

button when you select the desired color.

Drag the size control to resize the Document

window.

Use the Color controls to set the color of Document

window elements.

Tip To access the standard Macintosh

or Windows color picker,

Command/Ctrl-click the color

button.

Foreground Color

Background Color

Shadow Color

Ground Color

Poser 4 Basics



Depth Cueing

Depth Cueing adds dimension to objects in

the Document window. Elements that are

farther away fade into the distance.

To enable or disable Depth Cueing:

•Click the Depth Cueing button on the

bottom-left corner of the Document

window.

Figure Tracking

Tracking is a performance enhancing feature

that changes the display of an object as you

reposition its parts. For example, if you use

Fast Tracking, a ﬁgure’s body parts display as

boxes when you’re moving them, then revert

to their display style when they stop moving,

You can use the following types of tracking in

the Document window:

•Box Tracking displays ﬁgures and

objects as boxes at all times. Box Tracking

is the fastest way to render objects.

•Fast Tracking displays ﬁgures and

objects as boxes only when they are being

dragged or animating.

•Full Tracking uses the display style at all

times. With Full Tracking, large or

complex objects render more slowly.

An example of Depth Cueing with a ﬁgure in

Wireframe display style.

The Depth Cueing button.

Enabled Disabled

An example of Fast Tracking using a ﬁgure in Flat

Shaded display style.



Poser 4

To enable a tracking mode:

•Click one of the tracking option buttons

on the top-right corner of the Document

window.

Paper Textures

You can enhance the view of the Document

window by changing the Paper Texture. There

are several texture options available—such as

Paper, Weave, and Grid—to help you precisely

position your ﬁgure.

To choose a paper texture:

•Choose Display menu> Paper

Texture> desired texture.

To clear a paper texture:

•Choose Display menu> Paper

Texture> None.

Drop Shadows

Figures in the studio cast drop shadows

directly on the ground plane. Shadows can

help you orient a figure in 3D space. You can

turn shadows off to save on redraw time.

To turn drop shadows on or off:

•Click the Display Shadows button on the

right side of the Document window.

The Figure Tracking option buttons.

A ﬁgure with a grid line texture applied to the

background.

Full Tracking

Fast Tracking

Box Tracking

The Display Shadows option button.

Note Drop shadows are not actually

shadows cast by a light; they

always appear directly beneath

an object on the ground ﬂoor.

Shadows cast by lights appear

only when a scene is rendered.

Refer to “Rendering” on

page 259 for details.

On Off

Poser 4 Basics



Placing Figures and

Elements in the

Studio

The main working area of the Poser

Workspace is the studio in the Document

window. The ﬁgure that appears in the studio

is determined by the model you load from the

Figures category of the Libraries palette, or

from a document or import. The Libraries

palette is the main tool you’ll use to load

ﬁgures and props.

Using the Libraries

Palette

The Libraries palette provides access to all the

preset ﬁgures, props, light sets, and camera sets

available in Poser. The content of the libraries

palette is divided into eight categories.

Each category includes sub-categories. For

example, the Figures category includes the

subcategories People, Animals, Poser2 ﬁgures,

etc. Each sub-category contains ﬁgures to

choose from. Once you load a ﬁgure into your studio from

the library, you can customize it and save it

back to the library for future use.

To display the Libraries palette:

•Click the handle on the right side of the

screen.

Choose Windows menu> Libraries.

Note Some ﬁgures are more posable

than others. The People sub-

category of the Figures category

give you more control over hands

and faces. Poser 2 ﬁgures have

less control.

The Libraries palette divides the available content

into categories. Each category palette provides

previews.

Sub-

more on this palette.

2Drag the scroll bar all the way to the top.

3Click the green keyframes for Frame 15

and drag all the way to the bottom to

select the keyframes for all the attributes.

The selection is bordered with a white

line.

Be sure only the green keyframes of

Frame 15 are selected. Be very careful not

to select anything but Frame 15.

4Drag all of selected keyframes to Frame

30.

The Animation palette.

Scroll bar

All the Frame 15 keyframes selected.

Frame 15 keyframes moved to Frame 30.



Poser 4

5Click the close box in the upper-left

corner of the dialog.

6In the Animation controls, move the

Scrubber to Frame 30.

7Choose Figure menu> Symmetry>

Swap Right and Left.

8Click the Play button to check your

work.

The ﬁgure should appear to walk in

place.

Saving the Walk

You can save animations as poses to the

Libraries palette. Next, you’ll save your

completed walk to the Poses library.

To save an animation to the library:

1Open the Libraries palette.

2Click the Poses icon.

3Click the sub-category menu and choose

Walk Designer.

4Click the Add to Library (+) icon.

The Add New Set dialog appears.

5Enter a name for your animation and

click OK.

A Save Frames dialog appears.

6Enable the Multi Frame option and click

OK.

The Scrubber at Frame 30.

The Play button.

The Poses icon in the Libraries palette.

The Add to Library icon.

The Save Frames dialog.

Tutorial



7Your animation is saved as a 30 frame

preset in the Walk Designer category.

Lesson 3: The Walk

Designer

The Walk Designer lets you set up various

parameters to automatically create a realistic

walking motion. In this lesson you’ll use the

ﬁle you created in the previous lesson in

conjunction with the Walk Designer to make

your clown move.

To set up the walk animation:

1Choose File menu> New to start with

an empty ﬁle.

2Open the Libraries palette and click the

Figures icon.

3Double-click the clown ﬁgure you saved

earlier.

The default ﬁgure is replaced with the

clown.

4Choose Figure menu> Create Walk

Path.

A new path appears in the Document

window.

5Make sure the Scrubber in the Animation

Controls is at Frame 1.

6Open the Libraries palette and click the

Pose icon.

The clown in the Libraries palette.

The clown ﬁgure in the Document window.

A new Walk Path in the Document window.



Poser 4

7Click the sub-category menu and choose

Tutorial.

8Double-click the Clown-Start pose to

apply it to the clown.

9Display the Animation palette.

10 Move the Scrubber to Frame 30.

11 In the Libraries palette, double-click the

Clown Finish pose to apply it.

12 Click the Current Element popup at the

bottom of the Document window and

choose Cameras> Top Camera.

13 Set Scale to 400%. You should able to see

the entire scene.

14 Move the camera up or down to see the

whole path.

15 Select the Walk Path using the Translate/

Pull tool.

It looks like a slight backward “S”

extending out in front of the ﬁgure.

The Clown Start pose in the Library.

The Clown Finish pose in the Library.

The Element menu.

The clown viewed from the top.

The scaled view of the clown.

Tutorial



The path has several small white squares

along the gray walk path called nodes.

16 Select each of the middle two nodes and

move them so that the path becomes

straight. Notice how the pointer changes

when you position it over the path.

17 Make sure the Scrubber is at Frame 30.

18 Click the Element menu at the bottom of

the Document window and choose Body.

19 Drag the clown to the end of the Walk

Path.

Make sure the red ﬁgure ring appears

before you start dragging. The ring

indicates that the whole ﬁgure is selected.

Do not click directly inside the Figure

ring or you will move the ﬁgure’s parts

instead of the entire ﬁgure.

Place the clown over the end of the gray

path.

Nodes on the Walk Path.

Your path should look like the one shown.

The repositioned clown on the path.



Poser 4

To set up a walk in the Walk Designer:

1Press Command/Ctrl-Shift-S to open the

Walk Designer.

2Click the walk button to see the current

walk style in action.

Click the stop button to stop the action.

3Scroll the Blend Styles section of the

dialog until the Clown walk is visible.

4Set Clown to 100%.

5Click Apply.

The Apply Walk dialog appears.

You are about to apply the walk to the ﬁgure.

Once you’re done with the Walk Designer, the

only real way to ﬁx errors is to start from

scratch (beginning from Lesson 3).

6Make sure the following defaults are set

in the dialog:

• Start Frame = 1

• End Frame = 120

• Figure = Figure 1

• Walk In Place = Disabled

• Cycle Repeat = Empty

• Path = Path_1

• Always Complete last step = Enabled

• Transition from pose at path start in

15 Frames = Enabled

• Transition to pose at path start in 15

Frames = Enabled

• Align head to = Disabled

The Walk Designer.

The Apply Walk dialog.

Tutorial



7Once all parameters in the Walk Designer

are set, click OK.

8Click Done to close the Walk Designer.

The new walk is applied to the clown.

9Save the ﬁle with the name:

CLOWN-ANI.

Lesson 4: Keyframe

Editing

So far, you’ve created a waddling clown that

appears to fall over something invisible at the

end of the Walk Path. There are two missing

elements: the object the clown fell over, and

the cause of his fall. By editing the animation

and adding props, you can create the story

behind the clown’s actions.

First. you’ll create a back up ﬁle to preserve

your work so far.

To create a back up ﬁle:

1Open the ﬁle you saved at the end of

Lesson 3.

2Choose File menu> Save As.

3Rename to the ﬁle to CLOWN-ANI01.

Now you have a back-up of your original

animation.

Consider using a compression utility to

archive the original clown-walk.pz4 ﬁle. This

will save hard drive space and future

headache’s. You can continue to add

completed lesson ﬁle to the archive as you

work through the rest of the tutorial.

Next, you’ll set up an animated expression for

the clown.

To set up an animated expression:

1Click the Edit Keyframe button on the

Animation controls.

The Animation palette appears.

2Click the Head label on the left side of

the dialog.

3Select all the keyframes from 2 to 105.

The Edit Keyframes button.

The Head element selected.

Head keyframes selected.



Poser 4

4While still pressing the mouse button,

drag up one line to include the Neck

frames in your selection.

5Press Delete.

6With the frames still selected, click the

Linear Section button.

This is important for any expression

changes applied face during the

animation.

7Select Head keyframe 1.

8Close the Animation palette.

9Open Libraries palette.

10 Click the Faces icon at the top of the

palette.

11 Click the sub-category menu and choose

Add New Category.

The New Category dialog appears.

12 Enter Clown Faces and click OK.

13 Click the Add to Library button to add

the clown’s face into the library.

14 Move the Scrubber to Frame 105.

15 Apply the face preset you just saved to the

clown.

Next, you’ll add another actor to your scene.

To import a Poser document:

1Choose File menu> Import> Poser

Document.

An Open dialog appears.

2Locate the ﬁle Tutorial: TRAPESE

ARTIST WALK.

Both Head and Neck keyframes selected.

Linear Section button.

Head keyframe 1 selected.

The Face icon on the Libraries palette.

Your clown face in the library.

Tutorial



A new ﬁgure appears in the document

window.

3Click the Element menu beneath the

Document window and choose Top

Camera.

4Set Scale to 400%.

5Click the Box Tracking icon.

6Click the Play button on the Animation

controls

While the animation plays, watch the relative

positions of the ﬁgures as they pass each other.

At the beginning, they’re walking past each

other on the right. Then, the clown turns his

head to face the new ﬁgure as he walks.

To align the ﬁgure’s face:

1Make sure the Scrubber in the Animation

controls is at Frame 1.

2Press Command/Ctrl-T to switch to the

Top camera.

The imported document in the Document window.

The ﬁgures viewed from the Top Camera.

The Box Tracking icon.

The Play button.



Poser 4

3Use the Twist dial to align the head to

face of the Trapeze Artist ﬁgure.

4Divide the Twist value in half and reset

the Twist dial.

This creates the starting pose for the

clown’s head.

5Select the clown ﬁgure’s Neck.

6Use Twist to align the Neck so that the

clown’s face is looking at the Trapeze

Artist ﬁgure

7Move the Scrubber to Frame 50.

8Repeat steps 2-6 for Frame 50.

9Move the Scrubber to Frame 55.

In Frame 55, the Trapeze Artist and the

Clown are in the process of passing each

other. The Clown’s chin should be in-line

up with his shoulder, and his silly grin

should be intact.

10 Repeat step 2 to 6 for Frame 55.

Next, you’ll twist other body parts to keep the

Clown facing the Trapeze Artist. You’ll use the

same twisting method you used on the Head

to re-align the Chest and Abdomen.

The scene from the Top camera.

The clown’s head rotated to face the Trapeze ﬁgure.

Tip If you’re having a hard time

seeing the position of the

clown’s head, try expanding the

size of the Document window

using the resize control in the

bottom-right corner of the

window.

The head and neck rotated.

Tutorial



To align the ﬁgure’s body:

1Click the Edit Keyframe button to open

the Animation palette.

2Select keyframes 56 through 105 of both

the Clown’s Abdomen and Chest.

3Press Delete.

4Close the Animation palette.

5 Move the Scrubber to Frame 60.

6Press Command/Ctrl-T to switch to the

Top camera.

7Click the Element menu and choose the

Chest.

8Use the Twist dial to align the clown’s

chest so that its Head faces the Trapeze

Artist.

Twist should be set to approximately -46.

9Divide the value of the Chest’s Twist dial

in half and reset Twist to the resulting

number.

10 Click the Element menu and choose the

Abdomen.

11 Use the Twist dial to align the abdomen

so that the clown faces the Trapeze Artist.

The Edit Keyframe button.

The scene view through the Top camera.

The re-aligned chest and head.



Poser 4

These are more reﬁnement s you can add to

this ﬁle to make the action more realistic:

• Have the clown’s eyes follow the Trapeze

Artist as his body ﬁnishes twisting.

• Add hand gestures to both ﬁgures.

Use the skills you’ve learned in the earlier

parts of the tutorial to create these effects.

Lesson 5: Adding the

Final Touch

At the end of the Clown animation, the

Clown seems to trip and fall over an invisible

object. To complete the scene you’ll need to

add a prop.

To add a prop:

1Display the Libraries palette.

2Click the Props category dot.

3Choose the Tutorial category from the

menu.

4Click the Circus Ring.

The prop is added to the scene.

Now that you have a prop, you can adjust the

character’s movements to interact with it.

The re-aligned abdomen shown through the Main

camera.

The Props category dot.

The Circus Ring prop in the scene.

Tutorial



To add an animation to your scene:

1Click the handle at the bottom of the

screen to display the Animation controls.

The center of the Animation controls,

displays the current frame and the total

number of frames.

2Click the total number of frames ﬁeld.

3Enter 130 to add ten frames.

4Click the current frame display and enter

121.

5Click the Poses category dot in the

Libraries palette.

6Click the sub-category menu and choose

Tutorial.

7Click the Clown Flop pose.

This ten frame animation will be added to

your the animation.

Lesson 6: Setting

Animated Cameras and

Test Rendering

In this lesson you’ll use the Dolly camera (the

only free ﬂoating camera in Poser) to render

the scene. You could use any camera to render,

the Main, Auxiliary, Posing, and Head cameras

The total number of frames ﬁeld.

The current frame ﬁeld.

The Poses category dot.

The Clown Flop pose in the library.

Note When you’re setting up an

animated pose like Clown Flop

to append to a work in progress,

be sure not to move the entire

Body. Adjust the Hips instead to

get the proper motion in

relation to the last pose created.



Poser 4

are all good choices for rendering. However,

the advantage of the Dolly camera is that it

stays true to its own center, making it useful

for animations.

When you’ve completed the lesson, try

experimenting with the other cameras,

especially the Head and Posing cameras.

To position the Dolly camera:

1Select the Dolly Camera from the

Camera Controls palette.

2In the Animation controls, move the

Scrubber to frame 120.

3Using the Move X and Y control, move

the camera back until the Clown is in full

view.

4Choose Animation menu> Make

Movie.

The Make Movie dialog appears.

5Click the Resolution menu and choose

Quarter.

6Click the Quality menu and choose

Current Display Settings.

These settings should give you a good test

render.

7Click OK. The Save dialog appears.

8Choose a save location for the MPEG

(MAC) or AVI (PC) ﬁle and click OK.

The Video Compression dialog appears.

9Use the default settings and click OK.

Poser starts rendering.

The Dolly camera icon.

The readjusted view.

Note Reduce the resolution for the

test render, as Full resolution

renders are time consuming.

Even at this resolution, the

animation will not render quickly.

Tutorial



Lesson 7: Final Render

After one or more test renders, you’re ready to

start the ﬁnal rendering.

To render your ﬁnal animation:

1Choose Render menu> Current

Render Settings.

2Adjust the Current Render Settings as

needed.

Enable Shadows and Anti Aliasing to

produce the best results.

3Click Render Now.

Depending on the Image Size and

Computer System, the ﬁnal render takes

between 45 minutes to two hours.

Poser’s animation tools are its single most

powerful features. Creating animation is

challenging, even for the most experienced

user. Patience is key to using all 3D

applications, and Poser is no exception.

Posing

How Posing Works

Posing is the process of bending, twisting, and

pulling a ﬁgure into new and fantastic positions.

There are two aspects of a pose: how the body

parts twist and bend and the position of the body

in the studio. The Editing Tools let you move both

body parts and entire bodies simply by clicking

and dragging.

Since you’re working in three-dimensional space,

you can pose your ﬁgure in almost any position.

The only limits are speciﬁc range of motion limits

placed on individual body parts, to keep poses

realistic. For example, in the human ﬁgure, you

can’t twist the head 360°.

Posing

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Posing and Camera

Views

With the newer Poser ﬁgures, you can pose

the hands and faces of your ﬁgures. Poser

includes special cameras that automatically

zoom into ﬁgure’s hands and faces.

When you’re posing, you can switch camera

views to see and adjust the pose from different

directions. Use the Posing Camera to view a

ﬁgure close-up, while preserving the position

of the Main Camera. Refer to “Cameras” on

page 177 for more information.

Posing and the Library

As you create poses, you can add them to the

Libraries palette. You can then retrieve a pose

from the library and use it as a starting point

for a new pose. Refer to “Loading from the

Libraries Palette” on page 33 for details.

Translation

Translation moves multiple body parts, pulling

them along in a chain. To visualize this, think

of a person lying relaxed. If you were to take

hold of the hand and pull up, you’d lift the

arm off the ﬂoor. Pull higher, and you’d lift

the shoulder, then the chest.

This is how the Editing Tools work in Poser.

Drag any part, and connected parts follow.

Not only do the parts move, but they bend

and twist as you would expect.

Note Posing works differently

depending on the models you

use. You have more control over

the hands and face of the newer

Poser People category models.

Poser 2 models have fewer

controls.

Starting here...

Dragging the hand up...

Continuing to drag, lifting the arm, the shoulder,

and eventually the body.

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Inverse Kinematics

Poser’s Inverse Kinematics (IK) features help

you achieve realistic poses and natural motion

in animations. The term may sound

intimidating, but IK is easy to use and

understand.

The effects of IK are most apparent when

using the Editing Tools. Translate the hip—the

legs bend to accommodate the new hip

position without changing the foot position.

Translate a foot—the hips and other leg stay

ﬁxed in position.

The behavior of the arms under IK is similar.

If you place a ﬁgure’s hands against an

imaginary wall, moving the hip toward the

wall causes the arms to bend. The arms bend

while the hands remain ﬁxed in position.

If you enable IK on a pose created with IK

turned off, the rules of IK can force the pose

to change.

Understanding IK

Kinematics is the study of motion, velocity,

rotation, and position. In terms of jointed

structures, like an arm or leg, forward

kinematics can be used to calculate how

actions at the root of the structure determine

the position and rotation of those at the end.

For example, by raising your arm, the hand at

the end of it is automatically translated to a

new position and rotation. If you know the

angle the arm raises, you can calculate the

new position of the hand.

IK uses the same kind of dependency, but in

reverse. The extremity moves, and IK

determines how the objects joined to it (closer

to the root) must respond to support the new

placement. For example, if someone was to

grab your hand and push, your arm would

automatically bend at the elbow, while your

shoulder would stay ﬁxed in position.

Poser supports IK for the legs and arms. When

IK is turned on, you can translate the hands

and feet and achieve appropriate arm and leg

positions automatically.

When IK is turned on for the arms or legs,

the hands and feet have targets to indicate the

end of the chain. When the hands or feet are

moved, the target moves—it is reset to a new

position. When you move any other body

part, the targets remain ﬁxed and the arms and

legs reach for their targets. Once the target is

reached, the end of the chain is ﬁxed, and the

other parts must bend to accommodate the

hand or foot position. For example, a foot

reaches its target and the knee bends.

Posing

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To work effectively with IK, note the

following:

• IK is enabled when you use the Editing

Tools.

• The Rotate, Translate, and Twist tools

may not behave as expected on some

body parts. For example, you cannot

easily rotate or translate a thigh or shin

when IK is enabled—the foot’s position

takes precedence.

This corresponds to the natural behavior

of your limbs. When you stand, your feet

and legs support your body weight, so

you cannot arbitrarily move or rotate

them. This consideration applies to using

Editing Tools and Parameter Dials.

• You cannot use both the Chain Break

tool and IK on the same limb.

Turning IK On or Off

Inverse Kinematics can be set for the legs and

arms of any ﬁgure. For a new ﬁgure, IK is

enabled for the legs, but not the arms. For

most artists, this setting offers the most useful

way to work. You can enable IK for the arms

or disable it for either or both legs.

To change the IK setting for the current

ﬁgure:

•Choose Figure menu> Use Inverse

Kinematics> the limb you want to change.

IK is turned on when the menu item for

that limb has a check beside it.

Lift the foot and the leg bends naturally.

Translate the hips down and the knees bend.

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Limiting Motion

The Use Limits option keeps body parts

within a natural range of motion. This feature

does not apply to parts affected by IK.

What is considered natural differs among

individuals. Poser’s default limits are a rough

guideline, and may not look right to you. You

can customize the range of motion by setting

the Use Limits maximum and minimum.

In some cases, Use Limits may prevent you

from posing a part where you want it. Keep

this in mind when you modify Use Limits.

To turn Use Limits on or off:

•Choose Figure menu> Use Limits.

Use Limits is on when the menu item has

a check beside it.

To change the range of motion allowed

by Use Limits:

1Select the body part whose range you

want to adjust.

2Double-click the Parameter Dial for the

motion you want to adjust.

3In the dialog, change the Max and Min

values.When you are done, click OK.

Posing Body Parts

Like the human body, Poser ﬁgures are made

of body parts connected by joints. You

manipulate the separate body parts to pose a

ﬁgure. Because body parts are independent,

each is considered an object or element. This

is also true for the animal models. No matter

how many legs an animal has, each leg is

connected by joints which bend and extend.

Selecting Parts

You can select a part to pose in one of the

following ways:

• Click on the part in the studio.

• Use the Current Element pop-up

beneath the Document window.

• Select the part from the Hierarchy Editor.

For details on, refer to “Selecting

Objects” on page 292.

Posing a Figure

The easiest way to pose your ﬁgure is to

choose one of the Editing Tools, select a body

part, and drag the mouse to move the part.

How the part moves depends on which part it

is, the tool you use, and the direction you

drag. It also depends on whether Inverse

Kinematics (IK) is enabled. IK is a special

An example of a selected body part.

Posing

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posing feature that assists you in achieving

realistic poses and natural animated actions

more easily. Refer to “Inverse Kinematics” on

page 111 for more information.

Only one body part can be selected at a time.

The selected part is highlighted on the ﬁgure

and listed at the bottom of the Document

window. Always conﬁrm which part is

selected before using a tool on it.

If you are not satisﬁed with a change you

make, choose Edit menu> Undo.

You can also use the Pose Memory dots to

store changes in a pose as you create it. This

way you can revert to a previous position if

you are not satisﬁed with the change.

Using the Editing

Tools

The Editing tools let you move body parts a

number of different ways. The effect of each

Editing tool depends on whether IK is

enabled. Each tool can be used to pose a body

part or to pose the entire ﬁgure.

To pose a body part:

•Select the part on the ﬁgure and drag.

To pose the entire ﬁgure, do one of the

following:

•Click and drag on the tool icon you want

to use. This automatically selects the

ﬁgure.

•Select the Figure Ring surrounding your

ﬁgure and drag. The ring is highlighted

when selected, so you can tell you are

editing the whole ﬁgure.

While you use a tool in the Document

window, the cursor changes to a

representation of the selected tool. This allows

you to keep track of how you’re moving a

ﬁgure (such as rotating or twisting).

When using a tool, you don’t have to start

dragging over a body part—you can drag from

anywhere inside the document window.

Click a body part to move it, or click the Figure Ring

to move the entire ﬁgure.

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Rotate Tool

The Rotate tool bends a body part at its joint.

Click the Figure Ring to rotate the entire

ﬁgure. Rotate works in three dimensions, so

you can make a lot of progress with only a few

moves.

Rotating a Body Part

The direction you drag determines how the

part moves in each of the three dimensions.

• Drag perpendicular to the part to move it

side-to-side or up and down.

• Drag parallel to the part to move it

toward or away from you.

Drag perpendicular to the arm to move the arm

down to the side.

After moving the arm down toward the side.

Drag parallel along the arm to move the arm

around to the front.

Posing

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Rotating is easier when you view the bending

part from the side. For example, in the discus

thrower shown below, the left hand is better

viewed from the side than from the front.

For this reason, you’ll probably switch cameras

several times as you pose different parts of a

ﬁgure. Refer to “Cameras” on page 177 for

details on using cameras.

Rotating the Entire Figure

When you drag the Rotate tool, the ﬁgure

turns in three dimensions.

It takes a little imagination to understand how

a two-dimensional mouse rotates a ﬁgure in

three dimensions. Imagine a ﬁgure enclosed in

a glass trackball. Now use the mouse to drag

the front of the trackball to rotate it in the

direction you want to turn the ﬁgure. The

location on the trackball where you begin

dragging makes a big difference in the

direction the ﬁgure turns.

After the arm is moved around to the front.

Using different camera views helps you to pose a

figure more easily.

Original position.

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Poser4

Rotation on the X Axis

Drag down from the center of the window to

rotate the ﬁgure face down.

Rotation on the Y Axis

Drag left or right from the center of the

window to turn a ﬁgure side-to-side.

Rotation on the Z Axis

Drag in a circle from a corner of the window

to turn a ﬁgure on its side.

Rotation on Several Axes

Drag at an angle to compound rotation.

Drag down to rotate on the x axis.

Drag left or right to rotate on the y axis.

Drag in an arc to rotate on the z axis.

Drag at an angle to rotate on several axes.

Posing

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Twist Tool

Twist rotates a body part along its own axis.

You can twist the entire ﬁgure by selecting the

Twist tool and dragging. The entire ﬁgure

twists around its own axis.

Twisting a Body Part

Drag laterally when twisting a speciﬁc body

part, regardless of the part’s angle.

Many of the human body’s joints don't allow

for much twist. The forearm can twist nearly

180°, but the hand can hardly twist at all.

Keep this in mind as you pose the ﬁgure.

The axis of the head, neck, and trunk is in line

with the spine. The axis of a part in an arm or

leg is in line with its length.

Twist the forearm to turn the palm up.

Twist the head to turn it to the side.

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Twisting the Entire Figure

When you drag the Twist tool, the ﬁgure

rotates around its own axis. Drag laterally,

regardless of which way the ﬁgure is leaning.

If the ﬁgure is lying down, the Twist tool rolls

it over, from its stomach to its back.

Translate/Pull Tool

Translate/Pull moves the selected part or

ﬁgure vertically or laterally (in the x and y

dimensions), depending on how you drag.

Using Translate/Pull on the

Entire Figure

When you drag the Translate/Pull tool, the

ﬁgure moves laterally or vertically (in the x

and y dimensions) in relation to the camera.

Drag in the direction you want to move the

ﬁgure.

If you’ve rotated a ﬁgure to the edge of the

window, you may want to move it back to the

center. You may also move a ﬁgure if you are

working with more than one, and want to

place the ﬁgures relative to each other.

When a ﬁgure is standing, the Twist tool spins it

around.

Translating moves a ﬁgure around the studio.

Posing

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Translate In/Out Tool

Translate In/Out tool moves the selected part

or ﬁgure in the z dimension—toward or away

from the camera.

Using Translate In/Out on a

Body Part

When you translate a body part, drag down to

pull the part toward you. Drag up to push the

part away.

Hold down the Command/Ctrl key to toggle

between the Translate/Pull and Translate In/

Out tools.

Using Translate In/Out on

the Entire Figure

When you drag the Translate In/Out tool, the

ﬁgure moves toward or away from the camera

(in the z dimension). Drag down to move the

ﬁgure toward you. Drag up to move it away.

Moving a ﬁgure toward you makes it appear

larger in the window and vice-versa.

Chain Break Tool

A chain break placed on a body part ends the

chain of parts affected by the Translate tools.

Use chain breaks on different body parts to

modify translation effects. For example, to

prevent the chest from moving, use the chain

break on it. Now, if you translate the hand,

only the forearm, shoulder, and clavicle are

affected.

To add a chain break:

•Choose the Chain Break tool and click

on the part where you want the chain

Translate In/Out moves a ﬁgure toward or away

from the camera.

Chain Breaks are shown on a ﬁgure.

Note This feature is only available for

limbs not using Inverse

Kinematics.

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Poser4

broken. A Chain Break icon appears on

any affected parts.

To remove a chain break:

•Choose the Chain Break tool and click

on the chain break you want removed.

Using the Parameter

Dials

The Parameter Dials let you pose a ﬁgure

using precise numerical increments. By

dragging on a dial you can move a body part

in small increments, allowing you to create

precise poses. Every property of a body part

has its own Parameter Dial.

When you select the Figure Ring, the

Parameter Dials affect the entire ﬁgure.

To use the Parameter Dials:

1Select the part you want to adjust.

2Select the dial for the parameter you want

to adjust, and drag it to the right or left.

To set a numeric value for a Parameter

Dial:

•Click on the dial’s value, and enter a new

value in the text ﬁeld that appears.

The Parameter Dial dialog lets you control a

property’s numeric value, maximum and

minimum limits, and name.

Note You cannot remove the chain

break at the hip.

Parameter Dials.

Scrollbar

Dial

Current Value

Note If not all Parameter Dials appear

in your window, drag the handle

down to expose more dials, or

use the scroll bar.

The Parameter Dial properties dialog.

Posing

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To set a Parameter Dial’s properties:

1Double-click a Parameter Dial. A dialog

appears.

2Set any of the following options:

•Value: to change the property’s

numeric value

•Min/Max Limit: modify the

property’s Use Limits.

•Name: create a new name for the

property.

•Sensitivity: modify the sensitivity of

a parameter’s dialing habits. The

lower the sensitivity value, the less

movement is allowed in its element.

•Graph: click this button to modify

the standard animation graph palette.

For details on this palette, refer to

“Editing Keyframe Interpolation” on

page 225.

3Click OK to close the dialog.

Default Parameter Dial

Settings

Each body part’s Parameter Dial has a default

value that deﬁnes its original state. As you

work with Parameter Dials, you may wish to

go back to the default, or memorized, setting.

To reset a Parameter Dial’s default

values:

•Option/Alt-click the dial.

1To change a Parameter Dial’s memorized

value:

2Set the dial to the value you want to be

memorized.

3Choose Edit menu> Memorize>

choose a menu item.

Posing Parameters

The following Parameter Dials are available

for posing. Since some properties don’t apply

to certain body parts, the number of dials

change as you select different parts.

Twist

Twist rotates a body part along its own axis.

For example, you can use twist on the head

and neck to turn the head. When you use it

on the chest and abdomen, Twist manipulates

the ﬁgure’s supple spine. Twist is also useful in

the shoulder and forearm, where it turns the

hand palm up.

Bend

Bend rotates a part on its major axis. All

parts—except the shoulder and hand—bend

forward and back. The shoulder and hand

bend up and down.

Side-to-Side

Side-to-Side rotates the part perpendicular to

its major axis. All the parts on the spine allow

some side-to-side motion. The thigh has a lot

of side-to-side motion, but the knee has very

little.

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Poser4

Turn

The Turn dial appears for the feet only,

rotating them outward or inward. Turning

both feet in makes a ﬁgure pigeon-toed.

Front-to-Back

Front-to-Back is used with the shoulders and

collars. It rotates them forward or back,

perpendicular to their major axis.

Posing Parameters for

the Body

The following Parameter Dials are available

for entire ﬁgures.

If you are working with more than one ﬁgure,

remember to select the one you want to move

before dragging a dial.

xRotate

xRotate rotates a ﬁgure around the x axis at

the ﬁgure’s hip. Drag the dial to the right to

rotate the ﬁgure face down.

yRotate

yRotate rotates a figure around the y (vertical)

axis. This works like the Twist tool, except

that you twist the entire ﬁgure. Drag the dial

to the right to rotate a ﬁgure counter-

clockwise.

xRotate, side view.

yRotate, top view.

Posing



zRotate

zRotate rotates a ﬁgure around the z axis.

Drag the dial to the right to lean a ﬁgure to

the right.

xTran

xTran moves a ﬁgure horizontally (in the x

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to move

a ﬁgure in that direction.

yTran

yTran moves a ﬁgure vertically (in the y

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to move

a ﬁgure up in the window.

zTran

zTran moves a ﬁgure toward or away from you

(in the z dimension). Drag the dial to the right

to move a ﬁgure toward you.

Symmetry

The Symmetry command allows you to copy

pose characteristics from one side of the body

to the other. This is a great time saver. Pose

one arm or leg, then use symmetry to

immediately put the other arm or leg in a

matching pose.

Another form of symmetry swaps the pose

characteristics of the right and left. You can

swap the arms, legs or both.

zRotate, front view. Before and After Symmetry: Right to Left.

Use Symmetry: Swap Right and Left to mirror the

pose.

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Poser4

You can apply symmetry to both the arm and

the leg (Left to Right or Right to Left), or just

the arm or just the leg. You can also use

Symmetry to straighten the torso.

To apply symmetry:

1Choose Figure menu> Symmetry>

select a symmetry option.

2A dialog appear asking if you want to

copy the joint zone’s setup also. Unless

you are working with a custom ﬁgure,

click No (the default). For complete

details on using joint zones, refer to

“Figure Joints and Blend Zones” on

page 278.

Drop to Floor

You can place a figure in any position, such as

a mid-air leap. There’s nothing wrong with

having your ﬁgure in the air, but if a ﬂoating

ﬁgure doesn’t match your plans for the image,

you can bring a figure to the studio ﬂoor with

the Drop to Floor command.

To drop a selected ﬁgure to the ﬂoor:

•Choose Figure menu> Drop to Floor.

This brings the lowest part of the body to

contact the ﬂoor.

To display the ﬂoor:

•Choose Display menu> Guides>

Ground Plane.

Copying and Pasting

Poser’s Copy and Paste feature lets you copy a

pose from one body part and paste it onto

another, or from one ﬁgure to another.

You can even copy a pose from one type of

body part to a different type of part. For

example, you could copy a twisted arm and

paste it onto a shin, to achieve the same

In this example, the Shoulder’s pose was copied to

the Abdomen.

Here, the man’s pose was copied to the female

ﬁgure.

Posing



amount of twist. However, note that all

parameters from the copied body part are

pasted to the new body part, so the results

may not be ideal.

To copy and paste a pose to another

body part:

1Pose a body part.

2With the body part selected, choose Edit

menu> Copy, or Command/Ctrl-C.

3Click to select the body part you want to

copy the pose to. This can be a body part

on the same ﬁgure, or a body part on

another ﬁgure in the studio.

4Choose Edit menu> Paste, or

Command/Ctrl-V.

The pose is copied to the new body part.

When you copy a pose from one limb to its

opposite, you do not achieve the mirrored

position; the translated position of the copied

limb equals the translated position of the

pasted limb.

Element Properties

Poser offers various options for manipulating

and displaying body parts. You can change

their name, make them invisible, and stop

them from bending.

To change a body part’s properties:

1Select the part you want to work with.

2Double-click the part or choose Object

menu> Properties. The Properties

dialog appears.

3Set any of the following options in the

Element Properties dialog:

•Name: rename the part.

•Visible: toggle the part visible or

invisible. In an animation, you

cannot make an element visible in

one frame, but hidden in another.

•Casts Shadow: toggle shadow

casting for the part.

•Bend: toggle the part bendable or

not. For details, refer to “About

Bending” on page 127.

•Add Morph Target: add a custom

morph target to the part. For details,

refer to “Adding Custom Morph

Targets” on page 156.

4Click OK to close the dialog.

The Element Properties dialog.

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Poser4

About Bending

All body parts are separate elements, or

objects. As you change their positions, Poser

tries to maintain the continuity of the body as

a whole. The arm should connect to the body

smoothly, and so on for every transition

between parts.

Poser achieves smooth transitions in any pose

by bending body parts where they join.

However, the bending information for the

human body may not work well for a body

part replaced with a prop. You can disable

bending for the body part replaced by the

prop. For more information on bend, refer to

“Replacing a Body Part with a Prop” on

page 173.

When rendering an image created with the

Bend option disabled, parts may appear

disjointed. This may be useful for special

effects, such as creating a robotic form.

Posing Hands

In the Figures palette, models in the People

sub-category have fully articulated hands;

when you move a ﬁnger, its knuckle joints

bend naturally.

Hands for all other models can be posed using

the preset Hand positions in the Libraries

palette.

The Left and Right Hand Cameras use the

hand as their center of rotation, making it

easier to create precise hand poses.

Use the same Editing Tools to pose a hand as

you use on the rest of the body. The hand’s

ﬁngers are body parts just like an arm or leg;

once you select them, you can rotate, twist, or

position ﬁngers just like any other body part.

Locking Hand Poses

After you finish posing, you can use the Lock

Hand Parts option to protect the hand’s pose

while you work on the rest of the ﬁgure.

To lock an articulated hand pose:

1Click the hand you want to lock.

2Choose Figure menu> Lock Hand

Parts. The hand is locked in place. No

ﬁnger parts can be selected or

repositioned.

This command is only available with

ﬁgures from the People sub-category.

Use the Hand Cam to easily view a ﬁgure’s hand.

Posing



Using Parameter Dials on

Hands

When you select the main potion of a hand—

labeled Left/Right Hand in the Current

Elements menu—a special set of hand

Parameter Dials appear. These dials let you

quickly reﬁne hand poses.

Grasp

This dial lets you control the severity of the

clench of the hand. The higher the value, the

more closed the hand appears. Higher values

create a ﬁst.

Thumb

This dial lets you control the position of the

upper thumb. Higher values move the thumb

in, toward the rest of the hand; lower values

move it away from the hand. You can position

the rest of the thumb (the tip and middle of

the thumb) separately by selecting them.

Spread

The Spread dial controls the amount of space

between the ﬁngers. Higher values spread the

hand out, while lower values push the ﬁngers

together.

Using the Hand Model

The Left and Right Hand models are designed

speciﬁcally for posing hands. These models

appears as disembodied hands ﬂoating in 3D

space.

Hand models are ideal for creating a library of

hand poses you can reuse on other ﬁgures.

When you save a posed Hand model to the

library, only the hand appears in the preview.

To access a Hand model:

1Display the Libraries palette by clicking

its handle on the right side of the screen.

2Select the Figures category.

3Click the pop-up and choose the

Additional Figures sub-category.

4Double-click either the Left or Right

Hand model.

The Hand model.



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Using Preset Hands

When you’re done posing a hand, you can

save it as a preset hand pose in the Libraries

palette. Hand poses are saved the same way a

ﬁgure pose is saved.

To use a hand pose:

1Click a figure to select it.

2Display the Libraries palette by clicking

its handle on the right side of the screen.

3Click the Hands category button. If the

button is not visible, move the cursor

over the category dots at the top of the

palette until the Hands icon appears.

4Double-click the preview of the pose you

want to use. A dialog appears asking if

you want to apply the hand to the left or

right hand.

5Click either Left Hand or Right Hand

button, then click OK.

Posing Faces

Poser’s People figures have fully articulated

faces, meaning you can position facial muscles

such as mouth, eyebrows, cheeks and eyes to

create different facial expressions. You’ll use

the Parameter Dials to pose faces.

When you select the head, a series of face-

speciﬁc Parameter Dials appears; each dial

controls a different aspect of the face. When

using these Parameter Dials, keep in mind that

you are controlling the muscles in the face.

Because an expression is made up of different

muscle movements, you need to adjust several

parameters to create an expression.

The Face Camera uses a ﬁgure’s face as its

center of rotation, letting you view it from

any angle.

Note Preset hands include Basic Hands

and Poser 2 Fig Hands. You can

only apply Basic Hands to the

People and Poser 3 Low Res sub-

categories of ﬁgures. Poser 2 Fig

Hands can only be applied to

Poser 2 ﬁgures.

Note Only the People sub-category of

ﬁgures have posable faces.

Use the Face Camera for posing a ﬁgure’s face.

Posing



Using the Parameter

Dials

The normal range of the facial Parameter

Dials is 0 to 1. This range represents the

normal range of motion of the face and

produces realistic expressions. Values above 1

produce an exaggerated pose, like a wide

gaping mouth. Values below 0 (that is, negative

values) produce the opposite effect of the

parameter. For example. a negative Frown

value produces a slight smile.

Mouth Parameters

These dials controls a ﬁgure’s mouth and

tongue. Together the dials control most of the

muscles in the lower face.

OpenLips

Controls the distance between lips. Positive

values spread the lips. Negative values move

them closer together.

Smile

Positive smile values raise the corners of the

mouth and close the eyes slightly. Negative

value produce the opposite effect.

Frown

Positive values drop the corners of the mouth.

Negative values produce a slight smile.

Mouth O

When the Mouth O dial is set to 1, the lips

are in position to produce the O sound.

Positive values pucker the lips. Negative values

stretch out the lips.

Mouth F

When the Mouth F dial is set to 1, the lips are

in position to produce the F sound. Using

positive values, the lower lip tucks up under

the upper teeth. With negative values, the

lower lip juts out.

Mouth M

When the Mouth M dial is set to 1, the lips

are in position to produce the M sound. A

positive value presses the lips together. A

negative value spreads out the lips.

The Mouth O dial in use.



Poser4

Tongue T

When the Tongue T dial is set to 1, the tongue

and mouth are in position to produce the T

sound. Positive values press the teeth together

and moves the lower lip down, opening the

mouth. Negative values close the mouth and

pull the lips together.

Tongue L

When the Tongue L dial is set to 1, the tongue

and mouth are in position to produce the L

sound. Using positive values, the mouth opens

and the tip of the tongue tucks in behind the

front teeth. A negative value closes the lips.

Eyebrow Parameters

This set of Parameter Dials control the

position of the eyebrows and eyelids. The

Eyebrow parameters control most of the

muscles in the upper half of the face.

Left/Right Brow Down

Positive values lower the brow down in a

straight line. Negative values curves the brow

up.

Left/Right Brow Up

Positive values lift the inner brow (that is, the

part of the brow closest to the nose) up.

Negative values lower the inner brow,

producing an angry look.

Worry Left/Right

Positive values move the inner brow up and

the outer brow down. Negative values have

the opposite effect.

Blink

When the Blink dial is set to 1, the eye is

completely closed. At 0 the eye is completely

open. Negative values produce extremely

open eyes, producing a horriﬁed look.

Posing Eyes

You can pose the eyes within a face just like

any other body part; select them using the

Editing Tools and position them using the

Parameter Dials. Eyes also appear on the

Current Elements pop-up menu.

The Tongue T dial in use.

The Worry dials in use.

Posing



Character Morphs

The following morph target Parameter Dials

are available with the Character models:

Brow: a higher value pushes the eyebrows

out.

BumpNose: a higher value creates a bump

on the bridge of the nose

Cheeks: a higher value makes the cheekbones

more pronounced.

Chin: a higher value makes a more

pronounced chin.

EyeRoundness: a higher value makes the

eyes more round.

FlatFace: a higher value makes the face

ﬂatter.

FlatNose: a higher value makes a ﬂatter nose.

HeartFace: a higher value makes a more

heart-shaped face.

LashLengh: a higher value makes longer

eyelashes.

LipSize: a higher value increases the volume

of the lips.

LongFace: a higher value makes a longer

face.

PointedNose: a higher value makes a more

pointed nose.

RoundFace: a higher value makes a rounder

face.

RoundNose: a higher value makes a rounder

nose.

SquareFace: a higher value makes a more

square-shaped face.

Faces and Phonemes

A phoneme is a linguistic term for the position

of the lips, teeth, and tongue as they make

sounds. To produce certain letter sounds, the

mouth and tongue must be in speciﬁc

positions. For example, to produce the letter A

sound, the mouth is open, and the tongue is

behind the lower teeth. A series of phonemes

strung together produce speech.

A series of examples of Phonemes.



Poser4

In Poser, you can create the appearance of

phonemes to create realistic facial animations,

simulating speech. This is useful when you

attach sound to ﬁgure. By setting up different

animation frames with different phonemes

you synchronize the face to the sound.

There are several preset phonemes included in

the Faces: Phonemes sub-category on the

Libraries palette. You can use these presets to

help you get started. Refer to “Loading from

the Libraries Palette” on page 33 for more on

retrieving phonemes from the Libraries

palette.

Using Preset Faces

Like hands, you can save face poses into the

Libraries palette. Once saved, you can easily

apply a face to any number of ﬁgures. Refer

to “Saving to the Libraries Palette” on

page 34 for more information.

Posing Animals

You can pose animal models using the same

techniques you use to pose a human ﬁgure.

Animal models have their own set of IK

settings, Bend zones, and Use Limits, so not

all the parts act as you may expect. On the

Horse model, for example, moving the hip

joint toward the ground does not make the

horse sit, as it does in the human ﬁgure.

All the same Editing Tools and Parameter

Dials you use on ﬁgures also work on animal

models. The Current Figure menu, at the

bottom-left of the Document window, lists all

the parts that make up the animal.

Posing Animal Heads

Several animal models have fully articulated

heads. For example, the dog model has a

mouth and ears that can be posed. Like

human ﬁgures, use the Parameter Dials to

pose the features on an animal model’s head.

An example of posing a dog ﬁgure.

Posing a dog’s eyes and mouth.

Posing



When you click an animal model’s head, a set

of special Parameter Dials appear that control

all the posable parts of the head. Each model

has different morph target parameters. To ﬁnd

out which parameters are posable, click on the

head.

Pointing Body Parts

You can aim body parts directly at other

ﬁgures, body part, or props using the Point At

command. You may ﬁnd this feature handy, for

example, to illustrate a ﬁgure following her

hand with her eyes.

To point a body part directly at an

object:

1In the Current Element popup, select the

element you want to point.

2Choose Obejct menu> Point At. A

scene selection dialog appears.

3In the list of objects, click to select the

ﬁgure, body part, or prop you want to

point the element at, then click OK.

The element points at the object, and a

Point At Parameter Dial appears for the

element. You can adjust this parameter as

needed. At 1, the element is pointed

completely at the object. At 0, the

element is not pointed at the object.

To disable the pointing of a body part:

1In the Current Element popup, select the

body part that is pointing.

2Choose Obejct menu> Point At.

3In the dialog that appears, click None.

Locking Objects

You can lock body parts or an entire ﬁgure, so

that the editing tools and parameter dials don’t

affect it. This feature is helpful when you want

to protect a pose while you work on the rest

of the ﬁgure

To lock a ﬁgure or body part:

1Click the Current Element pop-up and

choose the ﬁgure or element you want to

lock.

2Choose Object menu> Lock Actor.

The actor is locked when this menu item

is checked.

When a body part is locked, you can still

manipulate other parts and the ﬁgure. If you

lock an entire ﬁgure, you can still manipulate

its parts, but the ﬁgure itself cannot be moved.

Auto Balance and

Posing

The Auto Balance feature is a valuable tool for

creating realistic poses. When Auto Balance is

enabled, Poser calculates the mathematical

“weight” for a ﬁgure and then maintains it. In

the following example, there is more weight

in the ﬁgure’s hip or center portion than in

the upper torso.

3As you pose a ﬁgure, Auto Balance adjusts

body parts to maintain the original

weight distribution. This results in more



Poser4

natural looking poses, without requiring

several position adjustments.

When using Auto Balance, small subtle

motions result in better poses than do large

motions. Large motions may create drastic

results. If this happens, use Edit menu>

Restore to reset body parts’ positions.

To enable the Auto Balance feature:

•Choose Figure menu> Auto Balance.

Saving Poses

The Libraries palette lets you save poses and

animations. Saved poses are readily accessible,

so you can apply them to the current ﬁgure at

any time.

You can save poses either temporarily—just

during the session—or indeﬁnitely—to use

them in other projects. You can also save a set

of poses as a morph target.

Saving Poses in the

Libraries Palette

When a pose is saved in the Libraries palette,

all the parameters are saved.

To save a pose to the Libraries palette:

1To display the Libraries palette, click its

handle on the right side of the screen.

2Click the Poses category button. If the

button is not visible, move the cursor

over the category dots at the top of the

palette until the Poses icon appears.

3Click the Add to Library (+) icon. A

dialog appears.

4If you want to specify parts of the pose to

include or not include, click the Select

Subset button. In the Hierarchy Selection

list that appears, deselect any items that

you don’t want to include, then click

OK.

5Enter a name for your library item and

click OK.

6A dialog appears asking if you want to

save a Single frame or a multi-frame

animation.

Posing using Auto Balance.

You can save a still or the entire animation.

Posing



• If you select the Single frame option,

the current pose is saved.

• If you select the Multi-frame

animation option, you can specify a

range of frames to save.

Choose either Single frame or Multi-

frame animation from the dialog and click

OK.

A rendering of the pose appears in the

Libraries palette. If you saved a multi-frame

animation, the number of frames appears in

the Library preview.

Using the Pose Memory

Dots

Use the Pose Memory Dots to store a ﬁgure’s

position during a session. You can store up to

nine different poses. Memory dots are saved

with the ﬁle, so your ﬁgure positions are

available the next time you open the ﬁle.

To save a ﬁgure position to a memory

dot:

1Set up a ﬁgure pose.

2Click the pop-up menu above the

memory dots and choose Pose Dots.

3Click an empty memory dot. The ﬁgure

position is stored into the dot you clicked.

To recall a stored position:

•Click on a memory dot. The ﬁgure

moves to the stored pose.

Using Poses from the

Libraries Palette

When you use a single frame pose from the

Libraries palette, Poser applies it to the current

frame.

When you use an animation from the library,

Poser applies it to a series of frames, beginning

with the current frame, and extends the full

length of the applied multi-frame pose. Make

sure you have enough frames ahead to

accommodate the multi-frame pose.

Otherwise, Poser automatically extends the

length of the animation to accommodate the

poses.

To load poses from the Libraries

palette:

1To display the Libraries palette, click its

handle on the right side of the screen.

2Click the Poses category button. If the

button is not visible, move the cursor over

the category dots at the top of the palette

until the Poses icon appears.

3Click the sub-category pop-up and

choose the type of pose set you want to

apply.

If you want to apply an animated pose to

your ﬁgure, use the Animation Sets sub-

category.

4Double-click the preview of the pose you

want to use.

Use the Pose Dots to save poses.

Empty Memory Dot

Full Memory Dot

Body Shaping

Human bodies come in all shapes and sizes.

Starting with any Poser model, you can adjust its

proportions to create a body of any type, from

lifelike to absurd.

Poser lets you shape the body any way you like.

Body Shaping



Poser 4 includes several features for body

shaping. You can select from a library of

morph targets to reshape any body part. You

can create your own morph targets using the

deformer tools. The Grouping tool lets you

target speciﬁc sections of elements and props.

With the Scale tool, you can scale the body or

its parts in one, two, or all three dimensions.

Scaling all three dimensions maintains the

body or object’s proportions. Scaling in one or

two dimensions changes the actual shape. For

example, increasing the height scale makes a

figure taller. Increasing only the width and

depth can make a figure stout—even rotund.

With the Taper tool, you can taper parts of the

body so they make smooth transitions.

You can customize ﬁgures by replacing body

parts with props you’ve imported into your

scene. You can also attach a prop to a ﬁgure,

such as a sword or a pair of wings.

As you create new bodies, you can save them

to the Figures category in the Libraries palette.

The library is the easiest way to store and

retrieve body shapes.

General

Characteristics

Selecting Figures from

the Library

The Figures category of the Libraries palette

provides many figures to work with, including

various types of males, females, children,

skeletons, stick ﬁgures, and animals.

Poser ﬁgures are divided into different

categories of older and newer Poser models.

Models in the Poser 2 ﬁgure category are

available in high resolution and low resolution

versions. Low resolution models use less

memory and display more quickly, while high

resolution models offer better detail. High

resolution models have the word “Hi” in their

titles and low resolution models have “Lo”.

You can create exaggerated body types. Examples of the skeleton, stick ﬁgure and Poser 2

models.



Poser 4

Newer Poser models are more detailed and

have fully articulated hands and faces. The

Animals category also contains fully

articulated animal models.

You can ﬁnd the most recently Poser ﬁgures

in the “People” sub-category of the Figures

library. In addition to fully articulated hands

and faces, they include extra morph targets,

and are optimized to work with Poser’s library

of clothing. The Poser People models that can

change clothing begin as nudes. The People

sub-category also includes Robots.

You can use older and newer Poser models

together to optimize your workﬂow. For

example, while posing, you can use a lower

resolution model from a Poser 2 category to

maximize the response time of your

computer. Then when you’re ready to render,

make a movie, or export a model, switch to a

high resolution model from the People sub-

category.

To change the ﬁgure type:

1Display the Libraries palette.

2Click the Figures category button. If the

button is not available, move the cursor

over the dots at the top the palette until

the Figures icon appears, then click the

mouse button.

3Click the sub-category popup menu and

choose the sub-category of ﬁgures you

want to use.

4Double-click the preview of the ﬁgure

you want to use.

Genitalia

The male nude model is anatomically correct.

To turn display of his genitals on or off,

choose Figure menu> Genitalia.

Figure Height

Poser provides several ﬁgure heights as starting

points. You can modify any of these toward

the body shape you want.

To set ﬁgure height:

•Choose Figure menu> Figure

Height> select a height.

Using the Color Tool

You can use the Color tool to change a ﬁgure

or its clothing’s color. The Color tool changes

the color of the entire ﬁgure; you cannot use

it on individual body parts.

Some of the People and Animal ﬁgures.

The Color tool.

Body Shaping



To change a ﬁgure’s color:

1Click to select the Color tool, then click

the ﬁgure whose color you want to

change.

2Drag the dropper icon over the color

picker that appears. Release the mouse

button when you select the desired color.

Shaping Individual

Body Parts

Shaping individual parts can signiﬁcantly

change the appearance of the body. Enlarge

the abdomen to give the model a big belly.

Stretch the head wider to give the model a

broad face.

Shaping is easiest when a ﬁgure is in the

default pose—with arms out, facing the

camera. In this pose, you can clearly see the

proportions of the separate elements and the

effects of your changes.

Using the Shaping Tools

The easiest way to shape a part is to choose

the Scale or Taper tool, click on the element

you wish to adjust, and simply drag it. For

more precise control in each dimension, use

the Parameter Dials.

Scale

Drag in (toward the selected element) to

reduce the scale. Drag out (away from the

element) to increase the scale.

• You scale the three dimensions to varying

degrees, depending on how you drag.

Drag laterally to scale width and depth (x

and z dimensions). Drag vertically to scale

height (y dimension).

• To scale proportionally in all three

dimensions, hold down the Shift key as

you drag.

If the result is not what you expected, choose

Edit menu> Undo.

For more precise control of the scale in each

dimension, use the Parameter Dials.

You can animate the scaling of a body or body

part. For details on animating, refer to

“Creating Animations” on page 209.

Shaping an individual body part.



Poser 4

Taper

Taper adjusts the scale of one end of an

element only—the other end does not

change. Taper affects the end of the element

that is distant from the center of the body.

Drag to the right to increase the taper.

Increasing the taper shrinks the end of the

element farther from the center of the body.

Drag to the left to decrease the taper. This

“ﬂares” the end of the element.

Using the Parameter

Dials

When you click a body part, the Parameter

Dials change to display the appropriate scaling

controls.

Taper

Taper adjusts the scale of one end of an

element only—the other end does not

change. Drag to the right to increase taper.

The end of the element farther from the

center of the body shrinks. Drag to the left to

decrease the taper.

Scale

Scale adjusts all three dimensions

proportionally. Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale.

xScale

xScale adjusts the width scale (x dimension).

Drag the dial to the right to increase the scale

in this dimension.

yScale

yScale adjusts the height scale (y dimension).

Drag the dial to the right to increase the scale

in this dimension.

zScale

zScale adjusts the depth scale (z dimension).

Drag the dial to the right to increase the scale

in this dimension.

Breast Size

The female model’s chest includes the

BRLarge and BRSmall Parameter Dials for

changing the breast size. Drag the BRLarge

dial to the right to increase breast size. Drag

the BRSmall dial to the right to decrease

breast size.

Symmetry

You can save a lot of time and effort with the

Symmetry command. When you shape an

arm or leg, you can use Symmetry to give the

other side the exact same proportions.

You can apply symmetry to both an arm and

leg (Left to Right or Right to Left), or just an

arm or leg. You can also use Symmetry to

straighten the torso.

Body Shaping



To apply symmetry:

1Choose Figure menu> Symmetry>

select an option.

2A dialog appear asking if you want to

copy the joint zone’s setup also. Unless

you are working with a custom ﬁgure,

click No (the default). For complete

details on using joint zones, refer to

“Figure Joints and Blend Zones” on

page 278.

Scaling the Body as a

Whole

Scaling the body simply changes its size. To

scale the ﬁgure, select the Scale tool, select the

Figure Ring for the appropriate ﬁgure, and

drag in the Document window.

For details on the Scale tool, refer to “Scale”

on page 140.

Body Size and Uniform

Scaling

A ﬁgure’s size is signiﬁcant only in relation to

other ﬁgures or objects in the scene. If you are

posing a single ﬁgure, uniform scaling of the

body is not necessary. Instead, to make a single

ﬁgure larger or smaller in the window, scale

the camera.

If you are working with two or more ﬁgures

and you want to make a ﬁgure appear to be in

the distance, use the Translate In/Out tool to

move it back in the studio space.

To make a ﬁgure a certain size for a ﬁnal

rendering, you can set the Rendering Options

to render at a speciﬁc resolution. For details

on rendering, refer to “Setting Up a Render”

on page 260.

Using Parameter Dials

The Parameter Dials are particularly useful for

body shaping. The values show the scale in

that dimension as a percentage. The normal

scale of a Poser model is 100%.

Scale

Scale adjusts all three dimensions

proportionally. Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale.

xScale

xScale adjusts a ﬁgure’s width (x dimension).

Scaling the entire body using the Figure Ring.



Poser 4

yScale

yScale adjusts a ﬁgure’s height (y dimension).

zScale

zScale adjusts a ﬁgure’s depth (z dimension).

Copying and Pasting

Poser’s new Copy and Paste feature lets you

copy a shaped body part and paste the shaping

Parameters onto another, or from one ﬁgure

to another.

For example, you could resize a hand, and

then copy the new size to the opposite hand

on the ﬁgure, to another ﬁgure’s hand. You

can even copy a new shape to a different type

of body part, such as a foot or the head.

To copy and paste a shaped body part:

1Manipulate a body part with any of the

shaping tools or parameters.

2With the body part selected, choose Edit

menu> Copy, or Command/Ctrl-C.

3Click to select the body part you want to

copy to. This can be a body part on the

same ﬁgure, or a body part on another

ﬁgure in the studio.

4Choose Edit menu> Paste, or

Command/Ctrl-V.

The parameters are copied to the new

body part.

Using the Deformer

Tools

Poser’s deformer tools are used to shape body

parts and ﬁgures into new and interesting

forms. You can stretch a ﬁgure’s nose, make a

ﬁgure’s belly bounce as it walks, add ripples to

clothing, or create a splash. You can animate

the deformers both in their settings and

positions. You can also use the deformers to

create custom morph targets.

When working with the deformers, it’s best to

use the full tracking display style so you can

see the effects of the deformer as you

manipulate it.

To turn full tracking on:

•Choose Display menu> Tracking>

Full Tracking or click the Full Tracking

button on the upper-right corner of the

document window.

Deformer tools do not appear when a scene is

rendered in Poser.

Examples of deformed objects.

Body Shaping



The Magnet Deformer

The Magnet deformer distorts an object by

creating a virtual magnet which stretches it.

The Rotate, Twist, Translate, and Scale tools

can be used on the Magnet deformer, as well

as several specialized Parameter Dials.

To create a Magnet deformer:

1Select the object you want to deform.

2Choose Object menu> Create

Magnet.

When you create a magnet, three Magnet

objects, which together create the deformer,

are added to your scene.

• The Magnet object deﬁnes the behavior of

the actual magnet.

• The Magnet Base deﬁnes the zero point of

the area to be deformed. When you move

the Magnet Base, the Magnet object

moves with it.

• The Magnet Zone deﬁnes the area to be

deformed. You can move and shape the

Magnet Zone to ﬁt your needs.

Using Editing Tools with

Magnets

You can use the same tools you use for posing

to position the magnet objects.

To edit a magnet object:

1Select the magnet object from the

Current Element popup.

2Select the editing tool you want to use.

For all of these tools, when you move the

Magnet Base, the Magnet object moves along

with it.

The editing tools that can be used on Magnet

object are:

•Rotate rotates a Magnet object around its

axis in three dimensions.

•Twist rotates a Magnet object along its

own axis.

•Translate/Pull moves the Magnet object

horizontally or vertically (in the x and y

dimensions), depending on how you

drag.

•Translate In/Out moves the Magnet

object in or out from the center of the

studio.

A sphere deformed by the Magnet.

The three parts of the Magnet deformer.

Magnet object

Magnet Base

Magnet Zone



Poser 4

•Scale increases or decreases the size of

the Magnet object.

Using Parameter Dials with

Magnets

When a Magnet object is selected, you can

use the Parameter Dials to precisely control a

it’s position and orientation:

•Scale adjusts all three dimensions

proportionally. Drag the dial to the right

to increase the scale.

•xScale adjusts the width scale (x

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale in this dimension.

•yScale adjusts the height scale (y

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale in this dimension.

•zScale adjusts the depth scale (z

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale in this dimension.

•xRotate rotates the Magnet object

around the x axis.

•yRotate rotates the Magnet object

around the y axis.

•zRotate rotates the Magnet object

around the z axis.

•xTran moves the Magnet object in the x

dimension.

•yTran moves the Magnet object in the y

dimension.

•zTran moves the Magnet object in the z

dimension.

Magnet Properties

Just like body parts, you can control the

properties of the Magnet objects.

To edit a Magnet object’s properties:

1Choose the Magnet object from the

Current Element popup.

2Choose Object menu> Properties.

The Properties dialog appears.

The Properties dialogs differ depending on

which Magnet object is selected.

Magnet Object Properties

The options in the Magnet Properties dialog

are:

•Name: rename the Magnet object. This

option is helpful when you are working

with several magnets.

•Visible: toggle the Magnet visible or

invisible.

Note xScale, yScale, and zScale are not

used with the Magnet Base

object.

Magnet object properties.

Body Shaping



•Add Element to deform: add another

element to be affected by the magnet. If

you click this button, select an element in

the Hierarchy list that appears, then click

OK.

Magnet Base Properties

The options in the Magnet Base Properties

dialog are:

•Name: rename the Magnet Base object.

•Visible: toggle the Magnet Base visible

or invisible.

•Display Origin: display the Magnet

Base’s axis. This feature is useful because

the Magnet object translates on the

Magnet Base’s axes, not the ground ﬂoor

axes. So for example, if you use a

Parameter Dial to move the Magnet along

the y axis, it moves along the base’s y axis,

not the studio’s y axis.

Magnet Zone Properties

The options in the Magnet Zone Properties

dialog are:

•Name: rename the Magnet Zone object.

•Visible: toggle the Magnet Zone visible

or invisible.

•Edit Falloff Graph: edit the Magnet

Zone’s falloff (the area where the

deforming ends or “falls off”). Click this

button, then edit the graph that appears.

•Set Parent: set a parent object for the

Magnet Zone. Click this button, select an

element in the Hierarchy list that appears,

and click OK.

•Group: deform a grouped part of the

selected element. Enable the checkbox,

then select one or more groups from the

Note In order for this feature to work,

the added element must be in the

Magnet Zone, or it won’t be

deformed. You can move or scale

the Magnet Zone object to bring

the element into the zone.

Magnet Base properties dialog

Magnet Zone properties dialog



Poser 4

popup. A group is selected when a check

appears next to it.

Locking Magnets

The Lock feature can be especially helpful for

the Magnet Zone objects. Once you have a

zone carefully positioned to get the effect you

want, you can lock it so that it isn’t

accidentally moved. For details, refer to

“Locking Figures and Body Parts” on

page 159.

Tutorial: Using the Magnet

Deformer

This short tutorial demonstrates how easy it is

to use the Magnet deformer. For a simple

demonstration, we’ll use a magnet on an

empty ground plane.

To use the magnet deformer:

1To remove any ﬁgures from the scene,

select the ﬁgure in the Current Figure

popup, then choose Figure menu>

Delete Figure.

2Choose Display menu> Guides>

Ground Plane, then click the ground

plane to select it.

3If the Display Shadows control is on, turn

it off by choosing Display menu>

Ground Shadows.

4Choose Object menu> Create

Magnet. The Magnet, Magnet Base, and

Magnet Zone objects appear.

The Magnet object scales to a size bigger

than the object it has been created for, so

in this case it is quite large. For a smaller

body part or prop, the magnet would not

appear so large.

5Now you’ll probably want to zoom out a

little. Drag the X and Z camera control

up until the entire ground plane is

showing in your Document window.

6Click the Translate/Pull tool, then click

the Magnet object.

Tip To get an optimal 3D view of the

magnet zone, change its display

style to Wireframe. Select the

Magnet Zone, select Element

Styles from the Document Display

Style popup, then click the

Wireframe icon.

The X and Z camera control.

Body Shaping



7Drag the magnet up, down, and side-to-

side. The ground plane follows the

magnet around.

8Click the Rotate tool, and rotate the

Magnet object around. The ground plane

rotates around the center of the Magnet

Base object.

9In the Current Element popup, choose

Mag Zone 1 to select the Magnet Zone

object.

10 Drag the Scale Parameter Dial for the

Magnet Zone and scale the zone to about

50%. Now only the portion of the

ground plane within the magnet zone is

deformed. Experiment with the editing

tools and Parameter Dials on the zone.

For example, translate the zone to the

right to move the area being deformed.

11 With the Magnet Zone still selected,

choose Edit menu> Restore>

Element. The zone returns to its original

size and shape.

12 Choose Mag Base 1 from the Current

Element popup.

13 Using the Editing tools or Parameter

Dials, experiment with scaling, rotating,

and translating the Magnet Base object.

Translating the Magnet object.

Rotating the Magnet object.

Translating the Magnet Zone object.

Rotating the Magnet Base object.



Poser 4

The Wave Deformer

The Wave deformer distorts an object by

creating a wave path for it. The Rotate, Twist,

Translate, and Scale tools can be used on the

Wave deformer, as well as several specialized

Parameter Dials.

To create a Wave deformer:

1Select the object you want to deform.

2Choose Object menu> Create Wave.

When you create a Wave deformer, two wave

objects, which together create the deformer,

are added to your scene:

• The Wave object deﬁnes the behavior of

the actual wave.

• The Wave Zone deﬁnes the area to be

deformed.

Using Editing Tools with

Waves

You can use the same tools you use for posing

to position the wave objects.

To edit a wave object:

1Select the wave object from the Current

Element popup.

2Select the editing tool you want to use.

The editing tools that can be used on Wave

objects are:

•Rotate rotates a wave object around its

axis in three dimensions.

•Twist rotates a wave object along its own

axis. Twist has no effect on the radial

wave.

•Translate/Pull moves a wave object

horizontally or vertically (in the x and y

dimensions), depending on how you

drag.

A cube distorted by the Wave deformer.

The two parts of the Wave deformer.

ave object

ave Zone

Body Shaping



•Translate In/Out moves a wave object

in or out from the center of the studio.

•Scale increases or decreases the size of a

wave object.

Using Parameter Dials with

Waves

When a wave object is selected, you can use

the Parameter Dials to precisely control a

wave’s position and behavior.

The Parameter Dials available for both the

Wave and Wave Zone objects are:

•Scale adjusts all three dimensions

proportionally. Drag the dial to the right

to increase the size of the wave object.

•xRotate rotates the wave object around

the x axis. For this parameter to affect the

Wave Zone, the zone must be

disproportionately scaled (not perfectly

round).

•yRotate rotates the wave object around

the y axis. For this parameter to affect the

Wave Zone, the zone must be

disproportionately scaled (not perfectly

round).

•zRotate rotates the wave object around

the z axis. For this parameter to affect the

Wave Zone, the zone must be

disproportionately scaled (not perfectly

round).

•xTran moves the wave object in the x

dimension.

•yTran moves the wave object in the y

dimension.

•zTran moves the wave object in the z

dimension.

The Parameter Dials available only for the

Wave object are:

•Phase deﬁnes the position of the wave in

the inﬁnite time. Use this dial when you

are animating waves.

•Amplitude deﬁnes the wave’s height.

•Wavelength deﬁnes the distance from

one wave crest to another.

•Stretch deﬁnes the amount of stretch for

each wave.

•Amp Noise deﬁnes the randomness or

“noise” of the wave pattern’s amplitude.

•Freq Noise deﬁnes the randomness or

“noise” of the wave pattern’s frequency.

•Sinusoidal deﬁnes the size of the sine

wave pattern.

•Square deﬁnes the shape of the wave

pattern. Drag the dial to the right to

create square-shaped waves.

•Triangular deﬁnes the shape of the wave

pattern. Drag the dial to the right to

create triangle-shaped waves.

•Turbulence deﬁnes the roughness of a

wave pattern. Drag the dial to the right to

create jagged, or turbulent waves. Drag

the dial to the left to create a smooth

wave patter.

•Offset controls whether the wave pattern

is above, below, or across the wave’s

origin. Drag the dial to the right to bring

the wave pattern above the origin. This

control is handy, for example, when you

want to keep clothing from deforming

into a ﬁgure.



Poser 4

The Parameter Dials available only for the

Wave Zone object are:

•xScale adjusts the width scale (x

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale in this dimension.

•yScale adjusts the height scale (y

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale in this dimension.

•zScale adjusts the depth scale (z

dimension). Drag the dial to the right to

increase the scale in this dimension.

Wave Properties

Just like body parts, you can control the

properties of the wave objects.

To edit a wave object’s properties:

1Choose the wave object from the

Current Element popup.

2Choose Object menu> Properties.

The Properties dialog appears.

The Properties dialogs differ depending

on which wave object you select.

Wave Object Properties

The options in the Wave Properties dialog are:

•Name: rename the Wave object. This

option is helpful when you are working

with several waves.

•Visible: toggle the Wave object visible or

invisible.

•Add Element to deform: add another

element to be affected by the wave. If you

click this button, select an element in the

Hierarchy list that appears, then click

OK.

Wave object properties dialog.

Note In order for this feature to work,

the added element must be in

the Wave Zone, or it won’t be

deformed. You can move or scale

the Wave Zone object to bring

the element into the zone.

Body Shaping



Wave Zone Properties

The options in the Wave Zone Properties

dialog are:

•Name: rename the Wave Zone.

•Visible: toggle the Wave Zone visible or

invisible.

•Edit Falloff Graph: edit the Wave

Zone’s falloff (the area where the

deforming ends or “falls off”), Click this

button, then edit the graph that appears.

•Set Parent: set a parent object for the

Wave Zone. Click this button, select an

element in the Hierarchy list that appears,

and click OK.

•Group: deform a grouped part of the

selected element. Enable the checkbox,

then select one or more groups from the

popup. A group is selected when a check

appears next to it.

Using Morph Targets

A morph target is a custom Parameter that is

added to a body part so you can gradually

reshape it. Poser includes several built-in

morph targets in its library, and you can build

your own.

With morph targets, you can easily resize and

reshape body parts. Just like any other motion,

you can animate your morphs.

For an example of how morph targets you can

use, take a look at the Head parameters of a

Poser People ﬁgure. All the facial parameters,

such as Mouth and Tongue settings, were

created using morph targets.

Wave Zone properties dialog.

Use a morph target to make transitional changes in

a ﬁgure’s geometry.



Poser 4

Using Morph Targets to

Add Ethnicity

Poser now includes morph targets which

allow you to easily add ethnic traits to your

ﬁgures.

To use an ethnic morph target:

1Display the Libraries palette.

2Click the Figures category button. If the

button is not available, move the cursor

over the dots at the top the palette until

the Figures icon appears, then click the

mouse button.

3Click the sub-category popup menu and

choose the Characters sub-category.

4Double-click the preview of the ﬁgure

you want to use.

The new ﬁgure contains an ethnicity

morph target Parameter Dial.

If you want to customize your own ﬁgure, the

following morph target Parameter Dials are

available with the Character models:

Brow: a higher value pushes the eyebrows

out.

BumpNose: a higher value creates a bump

on the bridge of the nose

Cheeks: a higher value makes the cheekbones

more pronounced.

Chin: a higher value makes a more

pronounced chin.

EyeRoundness: a higher value makes the

eyes more round.

FlatFace: a higher value makes the face

ﬂatter.

FlatNose: a higher value makes a ﬂatter nose.

HeartFace: a higher value makes a more

heart-shaped face.

LashLengh: a higher value makes longer

eyelashes.

LipSize: a higher value increases the volume

of the lips.

LongFace: a higher value makes a longer

face.

PointedNose: a higher value makes a more

pointed nose.

RoundFace: a higher value makes a rounder

face.

RoundNose: a higher value makes a rounder

nose.

SquareFace: a higher value makes a more

square-shaped face.

Using morph targets to change a ﬁgure’s ethnicity.

Body Shaping



Using the Superhero

Morph Target

Poser includes a full ﬁgure morph target in

which the entire ﬁgure is morphed in various

body parts simultaneously to form a superhero

character.

The full ﬁgure morph target is the Superhero

Parameter Dial on the body. Drag to the right

to move the ﬁgure into the morph.

Creating Custom Morph

Targets

You can create your own morph targets in

Poser as well as other applications. In this

section, you’ll learn how to create morph

targets in Poser. For details on creating morph

targets in other applications, refer to “Creating

Custom Morph Targets” on page 272.

You can use one or a combination of the

deformers and morph channels (such as the

Worry dials on the articulated faces) to create

custom morph targets. When you create a

morph target on an element, a new Parameter

Dial is added.

To create a morph target in Poser:

1Shape an element using any available

morph channels or deformers.

When you shape multiple elements on a

body part and then create a morph target,

all the changes in shape are included.

2With the body part selected in the

Current Element popup, choose Object

menu> Spawn Morph Target.

3In the dialog that appears, enter a name

for the morph target. The target appears

in the list of Parameter Dials.

4Drag the dial to the right to reshape the

element toward the morph. Drag the dial

to the left to reshape it away from the

morph.

5A value of 0.0 for this dial is the original

object, while a value of 1.0 changes the

body part to the morph target. A value of

0.5 is halfway between the original object

and the morph target. A negative value

inverts the vertices.

Tip If you used deformers on the

element and don’t plan to use

them anymore, you may delete

them now.

Note If you left the deformers and

morph channels on the element,

the morph target will add on top

of them, so the effects will seem

doubled. To restore the body

part, choose Edit menu>

Restore> Element.



Poser 4

You can use the Hierarchy Editor to delete

morph targets from the list of Parameter Dials.

For details, refer to “Deleting Objects” on

page 292.

Creating Full Figure Morph

Targets

You can shape multiple body parts and then

save the entire pose as a full ﬁgure morph

target. The new morph target encompasses all

the parameters for that pose, so everything

morphs at the same time.

To create a full ﬁgure morph target:

1Create morph targets for as many body

parts as you wish. Refer to “Creating

Custom Morph Targets” on page 154 for

instructions.

2Using the newly created morph target

Parameter Dials, morph each body part.

If you create morph targets but they are

set at zero, they won’t appear in the full

ﬁgure morph.

3With the ﬁgure selected, choose Figure

menu> Create Full Body Morph.

4In the dialog that appears, enter a name

for the morph target.

Now when the Body is selected in the

Current Element popup, the morph

target appears in the list of Parameter

Dials.

5Drag the dial to the right to reshape the

entire body toward the morph. Drag the

dial to the left to reshape it away from the

morph.

A custom morph target.

Note Only morph target channels

combine into a full body morph.

Deformers are not automatically

turned into individual morph

targets to be included in the full

body morph. Likewise, scales,

rotates, and translates are not

included in a full body morph.

Body Shaping



Adding Custom Morph

Targets

You can create morph target in other

applications, such as Ray Dream Studio, and

add them to your ﬁgures. For details on

creating custom morph targets, refer to

“Creating Custom Morph Targets” on

page 272. You may also acquire custom morph

target ﬁles from other sources, such as the

Poser forum on the Internet. This section

describes how to add custom morph targets to

a ﬁgure.

To add a custom Morph Target:

1Select the body part to which you want

to add a morph target.

2Choose Object menu> Properties.

The Properties dialog appears.

3Click Add Morph Target.

The Add Target dialog appears.

4Click Locate to ﬁnd the geometry ﬁle

you want to use as a morph target. The

ﬁle must:

• Be in OBJ format.

• Contain the same number of vertices

as the original body part.

• Contain only the body part you are

morphing. Do not use a ﬁle of the

entire ﬁgure.

5Enter a name. The name appears on the

morph target Parameter Dial for the

selected body part.

6Click OK to return to the Element

Properties dialog. Click OK again to

return to the main window.

A new Parameter Dial is added for the

selected body part. Use this dial to morph

the body part from its original shape to

the morph target. A value of 0.0 for this

dial is the original object. A value of 1.0

changes the body part to the morph

target.

Element Properties dialog.

Add Shape Interpolation Target dialog.



Poser 4

Saving Morph Targets

You can save a morphed ﬁgure in the

Libraries palette. It retains all morph

Parameter Dials, so the next time you retrieve

the ﬁgure you can use any morph targets on

it.

To save a morphed ﬁgure:

1Choose the Figures category in the

Libraries palette.

2Choose a sub-category from the popup.

3Click the Add to Library (+) icon at the

bottom of the palette.

4In the dialog that appears, enter a name

for your ﬁgure and click OK.

5A dialog appears asking if you want to

save a Single frame or a multi-frame

animation.

• If you select the Single frame option,

the current pose is saved.

• If you select the Multi-frame

animation option, you can specify a

range of frames to save.

Select either Single frame or Multi-frame

animation and click OK.

Using the Grouping

Tool

The Grouping tool lets you select and group

speciﬁc polygons within a body part. With

this feature, you can assign surface materials to

speciﬁed sections of a body part. For details

on assigning materials, refer to “Applying

Materials to Speciﬁc Regions” on page 246.

You can also create new props, deform and

morph selected sections of an element, and

create custom ﬁgures. For complete

instructions on creating ﬁgures, refer to

“Creating Custom Figures” on page 301.

To use the grouping tool:

1Click the Grouping tool in the Editing

menu.

All ﬁgures and objects in the studio

become gray, and the Group Edit palette

appears. Refer to “Using the Group Edit

Palette” on page 158 for complete details.

2Click to select the body part you want to

group.

3Click individual polygons, or drag the

cursor over a group of polygons to select

them.

• To deselect individual polygons, hold

down the Control key while clicking

or dragging.

• To select polygons that are currently

out of view, either use Wireframe

display style or use the camera

trackball to change the view of your

ﬁgure.

The Grouping tool.

Tip While working with the grouping

tool, hold down the Option/Alt

key to quickly access the camera

rotation trackball.

Body Shaping



Using the Group Edit

Palette

When the Grouping tool is selected, the

Group Edit palette appears. This palette

provides several options for working with

polygon groups. Use it to create, edit, and

delete multiple groups, as well as to create and

customize props.

The options in the Group Edit palette are:

•Prev and Next view any groups that have

been created.

•New Group creates a new group. Enter

a name for your group in the dialog that

appears.

•Delete Group deletes the currently

selected group.

•Add All selects all the polygons in the

body part.

•Delete All deselects all the polygons in

the body part.

•Invert Group inverts the selection (select

all the currently deselected polygons, and

deselect any currently selected polygons).

•Include Group includes another named

group with your selection.

•Remove Group removes another named

group from your selection.

•Include Material includes another

material—such as a joint—from the body

part.

•Assign Material creates a new material

class for the selected polygons.

•Create New Prop makes a new prop

from the selected group. Enter a name for

your prop in the dialog that appears.

•Spawn Props makes props for all groups

that have been created.

•Create Perspective UVs maps the UV

texture coordinates for a group. This

command can be used, for example, to

map an imported background image of a

face to a group made from a Poser ﬁgure

face. The texture coordinates of the face

would be mapped onto the image.

•Reverse Group Normals reverses the

normals of the selected group. This way

you can turn environment type objects or

other imports inside out to render them

interactively as desired.

•Hide Other Objects makes other

elements and props in the scene invisible,

The Group Edit palette.



Poser 4

so you can have an unobstructed view of

the element you are grouping.

•Show Multigroups Faces displays any

polygons that appear in more than one

group. When you group a model out for

splitting apart, this is a handy way to see if

any polygons have been put into more

than one group.

•Show Non-grouped Faces displays any

polygons that are not grouped. When you

group a model out for splitting apart, this

is a handy way to see if any ungrouped

polygons have been left out.

Using Deformers on

Grouped Objects

Once you’ve created one or more groups, you

can use the deformer tools to shape and

morph them. Groups can be selected by name

in the Properties dialog for the Magnet or

Wave Zone objects.

To deform a group of a body part:

1Click to select the body part.

2Choose Object menu> Create

Magnet or Create Wave.

3Choose the Magnet Zone or Wave Zone

from the Current Element popup.

4Choose Object menu> Properties. The

Sphere Zone Properties dialog appears.

5Enable the Group checkbox, then select

one or more groups from the popup. A

group is selected when a check appears

next to it.

Now when you use the deformer on a body

part, only its grouped part is deformed.

Locking Figures and

Body Parts

Once you’ve shaped body parts or an entire

ﬁgure to your liking, you can lock them so

that they cannot be moved or reshaped

further.

The Lock feature is especially useful with

deformers. Once you have shaped a Magnet

or Wave Zone object to your satisfaction, you

can lock it to prevent it from being moved.

To lock a ﬁgure or body part:

1Click the Current Element popup and

choose the ﬁgure or element you want to

lock.

2Choose Object menu> Lock Actor.

The ﬁgure or body part is locked when

this menu item is checked.

When a body part is locked, you can still

shape other parts as well as the entire ﬁgure. If

you lock an entire ﬁgure, you can shape its

parts, but not the ﬁgure itself.

Body Shaping



Saving Figures to the

Libraries Palette

After you’ve shaped a body to your liking, you

can save the body to the Figures category in

the Libraries palette. Your ﬁgure is easy to

retrieve the next time you want to use it.

If you’ve modiﬁed the ﬁgure by replacing a

part with a prop or by attaching one or more

props, the Figures category maintains these

customized geometries. Refer to “Saving to

the Libraries Palette” on page 34 for details on

saving ﬁgures to the library.

Props

How Props Work

Poser lets you add props to your scenes. Props are

three-dimensional objects that your ﬁgures can

wear or interact with.

Props can be accessories that give the ﬁgure more

realism or character—perhaps a wig, moustache,

sunglasses, cigar, or briefcase. In some cases, the

pose itself depends on the prop—a ﬁgure leaning

on a cane, tossing a ball, or climbing a ladder.

You can manipulate props as you do other

elements. You can change their color, reshape,

deform, morph, and apply texture and bump

maps to them (if they have UV mapping). Props

even cast shadows.

Props



Poser’s replaceable geometry feature allows

you to replace a body part with a prop. The

prop actually becomes part of the body and

takes on the posing behavior of the part it

replaces. This is a great way to create

customized characters. For example, you

could replace the ﬁgure’s hand with a metal

hook to create a pirate.

You can also attach a prop to a speciﬁc body

part by setting a prop’s “parent.” This allows

you to pose and animate the ﬁgure holding a

prop, such as wielding a sword or carrying a

briefcase.

You can select props from the Props library or

import props in several popular 3D ﬁle

formats. A catalog of props is displayed in the

Libraries palette. You can also create your own

props in a 3D modeling program, such as Ray

Dream Studio.

Use props to customize a character.

Props can be attached to body parts.

Props can help add meaning to some poses.



Poser 4

Using Hair

Hair is a special kind of prop that

automatically attaches to a ﬁgure’s head. You

can choose from several styles. Once assigned,

the hair on a ﬁgure moves as you move the

head. Poser includes some types of hair which

you can morph and shape into new styles.

Older Poser hair models are static, so you can’t

edit them.

To add hair to a ﬁgure:

1Display the Libraries palette.

2Click the Hair category icon. If the icon

is not visible, move your cursor over the

category dots at the top of the palette

until the Hair category appears and click

the mouse button.

3Choose a Hair sub-category from the

popup.

4Double-click the preview of the hair you

want to use.

You can edit the hair’s scale and position using

the Parameter Dials. Some hair models

include morph target Parameter Dials which

you can use to shape and move the hair. For

example, you can make a ponytail swing back

and forth for a walking animation.

The library also includes a poseable hair

model. This model contains several elements

for the hair piece. You can the pose the hair

element using the same tools you’d use to pose

a ﬁgure.

Male and female ﬁgures with different hair styles.

Morphable hair.

Poseable hair.

Props



To use the poseable hair model:

1Select the Poser female nude from the

Figures:People subcategory of the

Libraries Palette.

2Select the Clothing-Female sub-category

in the Figures category.

3Click Long Curls.

4Click the Create New Figure icon at the

bottom of the palette.

5To conform the hair to the ﬁgure, choose

Figure menu> Conform To.

Working with

Clothing

Poser includes a whole library of clothing you

can use on the nude People ﬁgures. The

Clothing sub-categories in the Figures library

palette includes shirts, pants, shoes, dresses,

skirts, etc.

Each article of clothing behaves like a regular

Poser ﬁgure—it includes all the elements and

parameters for that portion of the body, and

can be posed and shaped just like a ﬁgure. For

example, shirts have chest, neck, abdomen,

and arm elements.

The Create New Figure icon.

Poser clothing.

Clothing includes all the elements and parameters

for that portion of the body.



Poser 4

When a piece of clothing is added to a scene

and deﬁned as a conforming ﬁgure, it attaches

itself to the base ﬁgure, snapping to the

similarly named body parts. As the base ﬁgure

moves, so does its clothing.

To add clothing to a ﬁgure:

1In the Figures category of the Libraries

palette, select one of the People ﬁgures.If

you want, you can pose it at this point, or

you can wait until the clothing is added.

Custom clothing is optimized to work

with the nude People ﬁgures, and not the

older Poser nudes.

2Depending on your ﬁgure’s gender, select

either the Clothing-Male or Clothing-

Female sub-category in the Figures

category.

3Click the preview of the clothing you

want to use.

4Click the Create New Figure icon at the

bottom of the palette.

The clothing is added to the scene.

5Make sure the clothing is selected in the

Current Figure popup.

6To conform the clothing to the ﬁgure,

choose Figure menu> Conform To.

7If you’ve already posed your ﬁgure, the

clothing is now posed in the same

position, and will move with the ﬁgure if

you continue to pose it.

Some tight-ﬁtting clothes may not completely

cover the ﬁgure—there may be spots where

the skin shows through. This is easy to ﬁx.

The Create New Figure icon.

Clothing is added to a scene.

The clothing is conformed to the ﬁgure.

Props



To hide skin under conformed clothing:

1Choose the Poser ﬁgure from the Current

Figure popup.

2Choose the body part that you want to

hide from the Current Element popup.

3Choose Object menu> Properties.

The Element Properties dialog appears.

4Disable the Visible checkbox, then click

OK.

The body part is hidden under the

clothing.

You can also make body parts invisible using

the Hierarchy Editor. For details, refer to

“Changing Object Visibility” on page 294.

Using Clothing without a

Figure

You may wish to use clothing by itself, not

conformed to any ﬁgures. For example, you

could pose articles of clothing for a catalog. To

do this, don’t conform the clothing to a

ﬁgure. You can still pose and shape the

clothing as you would a normal ﬁgure.

Adding and Importing

Props

You can add a prop by either selecting a prop

from the Libraries palette, or importing a 3D

object created in another application.

Using Props from the

Library

The Libraries palette displays all the props

available in Poser. You can choose from a

number of different types of props, including:

a ball, box, cane, cone, cylinder, square, stairs,

or torus. You can add any number of basic

props to the studio. The only limit is your

system’s memory.

To apply a basic prop:

1Display the Libraries palette.

2Click the Props category icon. If the icon

is not visible, move your cursor over the

category dots at the top of the palette

until the Props category appears, then

click the mouse button.

3Double-click the preview of the prop you

want to use.

Importing Props

Any object saved in a 3D format supported by

Poser can be imported as a prop. This means

that you can use a 3D modeling application,

such as Ray Dream Studio, to create an object

and then import it into Poser as a prop.

Poser uses a plug-in architecture for ﬁle

import and export. Using plug-ins, you can

extend the types of ﬁle formats Poser supports.

Refer to the Read Me ﬁle and consult the

MetaCreations Web site for the latest

information.

Poser imports model ﬁles in DXF, BVH,

3DMF, Wavefront OBJ, 3D Studio

(Windows), and Painter3D (Detailer) formats.



Poser 4

To import a prop:

1Choose File menu> Import> select the

appropriate file format. The Import dialog

appears.

2Locate and open the ﬁle you want to use

as a prop. The Prop Import Options

dialog appears.

3Enable the desired options:

Centered centers the prop in the middle

of the studio.

Place on Floor positions the prop on

the ground plane.

Percent of standard ﬁgure size scales

the prop. Since each 3D program has its

own scaling protocol, props are imported

in reference to the ﬁgure’s height. If you

scale a prop to 50%, it imports at half the

size of the ﬁgure’s height. Of course,

once you add the prop, you can resize it

with the Scale tool or Parameter Dials.

When importing DXF format ﬁles, Poser

considers one DXF unit equal to the

male ﬁgure’s height—about six feet.

Offset sets the prop’s exact position in

the studio.

Weld identical vertices uniﬁes vertices

that are identical on the prop.

Make polygon normals consistent if

the vertex normals are supplied on a

prop, this option makes polygon normals

consistent with vertex normals.

Flip normals reverses all the prop’s

normals.

Flip U Texture Coordinates reverses

the prop’s U texture coordinates.

Flip V Texture Coordinates reverses

the prop’s Vtexture coordinates

4When you’ve set the prop import

options, click OK.

Poser places the prop in the studio, with the

origin located as speciﬁed. However,

depending on where and how the prop was

created and exported, the origin may not be

placed where you want it. Refer to “The Prop

Origin” on page 169 for more on prop

origins.

If you don’t see your imported prop in the

studio, the prop is probably too large and the

camera you’re looking through is inside or in

front of it. Use the X and Z control to zoom

out your view of the studio.

When you import a prop, you can set its scale and

location.

Props



Deleting Props

To delete a prop from the document

window:

•Select the prop from the Current

Element popup, then choose Object

menu> Delete Prop.

Working with Props

Props, including hair, function as elements in

the studio, so you can control a prop just as

you would any body part.

Before you can edit a prop you must select it.

To select a prop:

•Click the prop’s center, or select it from

the Current Element popup at the

bottom-left of the Document window.

To move, rotate, or resize a prop:

1Click to select a prop, or choose it from

the Current Element popup.

2Use any of the following tools to move or

modify a prop:

• Use the Rotate or Twist tool to

change the prop’s orientation. Rotate

turns a prop on its origin point. You

can change how a prop rotates by

adjusting its origin.

• Use the Translate/Pull or Translate

In/Out tool to move the prop in the

studio.

• Use the Scale tool to resize a prop.

• Use the Parameter Dials for more

control over any adjustment. For

example, you can use the dials to

scale the prop only in the Y

dimension.

• Choose Figure menu> Drop to

Floor to place a prop on the ﬂoor.

Deforming Props

Poser now includes deformer tools, which you

can use to stretch, reshape, and deform props.

For details, refer to “Using the Deformer

Tools” on page 143.

Creating Props

You can use the Grouping tool to select

speciﬁc polygons on a ﬁgure or prop. With

this feature, you can create new props. For

example, you could create a mask prop from a

face.

Use the Grouping palette to create props from

body parts.

Polygons

selected on a

ﬁgure

A mask

prop

created

from the

group

1. A ﬁgure



Poser 4

To create your own prop:

1Select the body part or prop you want to

create the prop from.

2Click the Grouping tool

All ﬁgures and objects in the studio

become gray, and the Group Edit palette

appears.

3Click individual polygons, or drag the

cursor over a group of polygons to select

them. For complete details on using the

Grouping tool, refer to “Using the

Grouping Tool” on page 157.

4Once you have all the polygons selected

for your new prop, click the Create New

Prop button on the Group Edit palette.

5Enter a name for your prop in the dialog

that appears, then click OK.

The new prop is listed in the Current

Element popup. You can now edit, move,

and shape it just like any prop.

6To save your prop in the Libraries Palette,

refer to “Adding Props to the Library” on

page 175.

Creating New Prop

Parameters

You can use morph targets to create new

parameters for your props. Refer to “Using

Morph Targets” on page 152 for complete

information.

The Prop Origin

The prop origin appears in the Document

window as 3D cross-hairs. The Origin is the

prop’s center of rotation and scale. When you

rotate a prop, it moves around the origin

point. When you scale a prop, it grows or

shrinks from the origin point.

You can display the prop origin by choosing

Object menu> Properties and enabling the

Display Origin checkbox.

Changing the Prop Origin

When a prop is selected, three Parameter Dials

for moving the origin are available—originX,

Y, and Z.

The Grouping tool.

The prop origin appears as an X. Y, and Z cross-hair.

Props



The main reason for moving the origin is so

the prop rotates on a different point. When

you adjust the originX, originY, or originZ

dial, the origin moves with respect to its

original location.

As you move the origin in the respective

dimensions, you may want to switch camera

views to see the relative positions of the origin

cross-hairs and prop geometry.

Prop Properties

Poser offers several options for props. You can

change the name, make it invisible, and display

the origin or set the prop’s parent.

To change options for a prop:

1Select the prop you want to work with.

2Double-click the prop in the Document

window or choose Object menu>

Properties.

3Set any of the following options in the

Prop Properties dialog:

•Name: rename the prop. Giving

your props descriptive names makes

them easier to locate in the Current

Element popup and in the Animation

palette.

•Visible: toggle the prop visible or

invisible. In an animation, you

cannot make a prop visible in one

frame, but hidden in another.

•Casts Shadow: toggle shadow

casting for a prop. Disable this

checkbox if you import a room

object. Otherwise, if the object casts

a shadow, you won’t get any inﬁnite

lighting on anything inside of it.

•Display Origin: display the prop’s

axis. This feature is useful because the

prop translates on its axis, not the

ground ﬂoor axes.

•Set Parent: make the prop move

with another element in the scene.

Refer to “Setting Prop Parents” on

page 171 for details.

•Add Morph Target: add a custom

morph target to the part. For details,

refer to “Adding Custom Morph

Targets” on page 156.

Adjusting the prop origin.

The Prop Properties dialog.



Poser 4

Prop Color and Surface

Material

You can set surface material characteristics for

your props. For example, you can apply an

image of marble as the texture map on a tall

cylinder to create a pillar. You may also use a

bump map to roughen the surface of a wig.

A prop you import may already have Texture

and bump maps assigned. If possible, Poser

keeps these maps attached to the prop.

Poser uses implicit (UV) mapping to apply

texture and bump maps to the prop. This

method requires the model to have UV

coordinate data. Most 3D ﬁle formats carry

this data. DXF, however, does not. If a prop

does not have UV information, you can’t

apply texture or bump maps to it.

You can set the color of prop objects, apply

texture and bump maps to them, and control

highlights using the Surface Material dialog.

The dialog is discussed in detail in “Applying

Surface Materials” on page 244.

In the Surface Material dialog, you can also

select the prop just like you would a body part

and assign surface property parameters to it.

Refer to “Surface Materials” on page 243 for

more on applying surface materials.

Setting Prop Parents

You can attach props to body parts. When you

pose a body, the attached prop maintains its

contact and orientation with the parent

element.

As the ﬁgure moves, so does the prop.

Props



You can control whether attached props bend

with their parent body part. You may not want

to bend some props—like sunglasses, a

wristwatch, or sword. Others you will want to

conform to and bend with the ﬁgure—such as

the elbow pads on a rollerblader.

It is best to set prop parents before posing.

Once you start posing the ﬁgure, it becomes

much harder to get props correctly positioned

and keep them where you intended them.

To attach a prop to a body element:

1Add or import the prop you want to use.

Rename it if you like.

2If necessary, use the editing tools,

deformers, or Parameter Dials to shape

the prop.

3Move the prop into position using the

Translate tools or the Parameter Dials.

To make sure the position and orientation

of the prop and body part are exactly as

you want them, you may want to do any

of the following:

• Use a detailed preview style like Lit

Wireframe or Flat Shaded.

• Zoom in for a closer look. Zoom in

with the Posing Camera to avoid

changing or animating the Main

Camera.

•Do a test rendering to check the

alignment.

4With the prop selected, select Object

menu> Properties, then click Set

Parent in the dialog that appears.

5In the Hierarchy list that appears, click to

select the element you want to attach the

prop to. For example, to attach a sword to

the left hand, click Left Hand. If you

want to release a prop from its parent,

choose None.

6To make the prop bend like its parent

body part, enable the Inherits bend of

parent checkbox.

7Click OK to close the Hierarchy list.

8Click OK to close the Prop Properties

dialog.

Making a prop bend with its parent body part. Move the prop to the ﬁgure before setting the

parent.



Poser 4

Replacing a Body Part

with a Prop

Poser lets you replace a body part with a prop.

For example, you could import a model of a

bull’s head, then replace the ﬁgure’s head with

the bull head to create a Minotaur. Then you

can move the Minotaur’s head as you would

move any ﬁgure’s head.

It’s best to replace a body part before you start

posing the ﬁgure, since it’s harder to position a

prop after you’ve moved the ﬁgure’s body

parts.

To replace a body part with a prop:

1Add or import the prop you want to use.

2If necessary, use the editing tools,

deformers, or Parameter Dials to shape

the prop.

3Move the prop into position on the body

using the Translate and Rotate tools, or

the Parameter Dials.

Make sure the prop and body’s positions

and orientation are exactly as you want

them. In most cases, you’ll want to

“overlap” the prop with the part it will

replace. You also may want to try some of

these tips:

• To more easily position a prop, hide

the part you are replacing. To do this,

double-click the part, then disable

the Visible checkbox in the Element

Properties dialog.

• Use a detailed display style like Lit

Wireframe or Flat Shaded.

• Zoom in for a closer look.

• Do a test rendering to check the

alignment.

4Select the body part you’re replacing.

5Choose Object menu> Replace Body

Part with Prop. Poser displays a dialog

with a popup of all props in the scene.

6Choose the prop you are swapping in,

then click OK. The prop takes the name

of the part it replaces.

Replace a body part with a prop to create custom

characters, such as a Minotaur.

Props



If a replaced a body part doesn’t look right

when you bend it, you can turn off bending

for that replaced part. Double-click the part,

then disable the Bend checkbox in the

Element Properties dialog.

In terms of surface material, the prop remains

independent of the body. You can use the

Surface Material dialog to apply texture and

bump maps to a prop. Refer to “Surface

Materials” on page 243 for more on surface

materials.

Changing a Figure Type with

a Prop Attached or

Replaced

If you try to change the model type of a ﬁgure

that has an attached prop or replaced part,

Poser alerts you. You can either keep the

modiﬁcations on the new ﬁgure or start with a

standard ﬁgure.

To keep props that replace parts on the ﬁgure,

enable the Keep modiﬁed geometries

checkbox.

To keep props “with their parents,” enable the

Keep props attached to ﬁgure checkbox.

To keep props with their deformers, enable

the Keep deformers attached to ﬁgure

checkbox.

Restoring a Figure’s

Geometry

If you replace a body part with a prop, then

later decide you want the original body part

back, simply reload the ﬁgure from the

Libraries palette. When you load the original

model, Poser displays a dialog asking if you

want to Keep modiﬁed geometries. To restore

the original body part, leave the checkbox

disabled and click OK.

Note Bend zones on a ﬁgure are

very speciﬁc and editing them

is a very technical process.

Once a Bend zone is altered,

the model is irreversibly

changed. Use Bend zones with

caution.

If you change the type of a customized ﬁgure with

props, Poser alerts you.



Poser 4

Adding Props to the

Library

After you’ve modiﬁed a prop, you can save it

in the Libraries palette.

To save a prop to the library:

1Select the Props category in the libraries

palette.

2Choose a sub-category from the popup.

3Click the Add to Library (+) icon at the

bottom of the palette. A dialog appears.

4To specify parts of the scene to include or

not include, click the Select Subset

button. In the Hierarchy Selection list

that appears, deselect any items in the

scene that you don’t want to include,

then click OK.

5In the dialog that appears, enter a name

for your library item and click OK.

6If the prop has a parent element—such as

a hat attached to a head—a dialog appears

asking if you want to make the prop a

smart prop. A smart prop “remembers” its

parent element, so the next time you

select it from the Prop library, it is

positioned with its parent element.

7Click OK to save your new prop.

Props



Cameras

How Cameras Work

The view of the Poser studio is taken through the

lens of a virtual camera. 3D cameras include

Main, Auxiliary, Face, Posing, Left Hand, Right

Hand, and Dolly cameras. These can be

repositioned anywhere in 3D space, allowing you

to view the studio from almost any angle.

Orthogonal cameras, which provide perspective-

free views of the studio, include Left, Right, Top,

Bottom, Front and Back cameras. When you

render an image or movie, it is rendered from the

viewpoint of the currently selected camera.

Cameras



The cameras aim at the studio from different

directions. By switching cameras, you can see

ﬁgures and objects in the studio from entirely

different viewpoints.

Viewing the studio from different angles is a

great help as you work. An arm that reaches

straight toward you in a front view reaches

horizontally in a side view. Posing this arm

may be difﬁcult in the front view, but is much

easier in the side view.

View through the Main camera.

View through the Posing camera.

View through the Right Hand camera.

View through the Face camera.



Poser 4

The Main and Posing

Cameras

The Main and Posing cameras rotate around

the center of the studio. When the ﬁgure is in

its default position, it is always in the center of

the view as you rotate or re-position these

cameras.

The Posing camera uses the currently selected

ﬁgure as its center of rotation. Wherever the

ﬁgure moves, the Posing camera follows, so

the ﬁgure is always in view. If you select

another ﬁgure, the Posing camera moves to

the selected ﬁgure.

In contrast, the Main camera doesn’t use the

ﬁgure as its center of rotation. When you

move the ﬁgure, the Main camera doesn’t

follow.

The Auxiliary Camera

The Auxiliary camera provides an additional

camera view. Like the Main camera, it rotates

around the center of the studio. You’ll ﬁnd the

Auxiliary camera useful when you want

another view but you want to hold the Main

camera’s current position, or when the Main

camera is locked.

The Hand and Face

Cameras

The two Hand cameras and the Face camera

provide close-up views to help you with hand

and face posing. Like the posing camera, these

cameras rotate around the selected ﬁgure’s

components.

When you’re working with an animal ﬁgure,

the Hand cameras rotate around the animal’s

paws, hooves, or claws, and the Face camera

rotates around the animal’s face.

The Dolly Camera

The Dolly camera rotates around its own

center. This means it can move around and

between ﬁgures and objects in the studio. If

you want to emulate a motion picture camera,

use the Dolly camera.

The Orthogonal

Cameras

The Left, Right, Top, Bottom, Front, and

Back cameras are

orthogonal

cameras—they

produce orthographic projections. In an

orthographic projection, all objects appear

ﬂat. These cameras are different from the

perspective views provided by the other

cameras. In a perspective view, the scale of

objects diminishes as their distance from the

camera increases.

The orthogonal cameras display ﬂat perspective-

free scenes; the studio cameras display scenes in

3D.

Left (orthogonal) camera

view Main camera (perspective)

view

Cameras



The orthogonal cameras cannot be rotated;

they are permanently aligned to their

orientations in the studio. You can use these

cameras for reference when you’re posing

ﬁgures.

Flyaround View

The Flyaround view lets you see all the

contents of the studio all at once. In this view

the camera is placed on an imaginary track

above and away from the center of the studio.

When the view is active, the camera

continuously moves along this track so you

can get a 360° view of the ﬁgures in the

studio.

To activate ﬂyaround view:

•

Click the Flyaround ring at the top of the

Camera controls.

To deactivate ﬂyaround view, click

anywhere in the window.

Selecting a Camera

There are several ways to select a camera:

• Use the Camera Selection control.

• Select a camera from the Current

Elements popup under the Document

window.

• Choose

Display menu> Camera

View>

choose a camera

• Use the camera’s key shortcut.

The Camera Selection

Control

The Camera Selection control lets you

graphically cycle through all the available

cameras. You can also use it to switch between

cameras and activate the Flyaround view.

The Select Camera popup lets you select a

camera by name. The Select Camera icon lets

you graphically select a camera.

To switch between cameras:

•

Drag over the Select Camera icon until

the icon for the desired camera appears.

The camera shortcut icons let you quickly

access cameras. The default shortcuts are Face

camera, and Left and Right Hand cameras.

The Camera Selection control.

The Camera Selection icon.

Camera

shortcuts

Flyaround

View

Animating

On/Off Select

camera

icon

Camera

shortcut

Select

camera

popup



Poser 4

You can customize the shortcuts to the

cameras of your preference.

To use the camera shortcuts:

•

Click the shortcut icon for the camera

you want to use.

To replace the camera shortcut icons:

Select the camera you want to make into

a shortcut.

Option/Alt-click on a camera shortcut

icon. The icon is replaced with the

currently selected camera.

The Animating On/Off icon enables or

disables keyframing for a speciﬁc camera.

When the control is disabled, the camera

position is not included as a keyframe, which

means you can’t animate the view of your

ﬁgures. When the control is enabled, any

movement of the camera can be recorded as a

keyframe. Refer to “Animating Cameras” on

page 237 for more on animating the camera.

Changing the Studio

View

The Main, Posing, and Dolly cameras can

rotate and move anywhere, even below the

ﬂoor. The orthogonal views move laterally

and vertically, so you can bring a ﬁgure to the

center of the ﬁeld of view. You cannot Rotate

or Translate In/Out (move in or out) the

orthogonal cameras (left, right, top, bottom,

front, and back). You can scale them, however.

Positioning Cameras

The Camera Controls palette lets you quickly

position a camera in the Poser studio. There

are two sets of controls for positioning: the

Camera Plane controls and the Rotation

Trackball.

Camera Plane Controls

The Camera Plane Controls constrain the

movement of the camera to speciﬁc 3D

planes. This helps you move the camera more

precisely.

3D space is made up of X, Y, and Z planes.

The Camera Plane controls constrain the

movement of the camera along one or two of

these planes.

The X, Y, and Z planes that make up 3D space.

Cameras



Y and Z

The Y and Z control constrains the movement

of the camera to the Y and Z planes. With this

control selected, the camera can move

backward, forward, up, or down.

X and Y

The X and Y control constrains the movement

of the camera to the X and Y planes. When

you use this control, the camera only moves

vertically or horizontally.

X and Z

The X and Z control constrains the

movement of the camera to the X and Z

planes. With this control the camera moves

forward, backward, left, or right.

Rotation Trackball

The Rotation Trackball tilts and spins the

camera around the entire studio. In the case of

the Main camera, it rotates around the center

of the studio. The Posing, Face, and Hand

cameras rotate around the ﬁgure, head, and

hands.

You can roll your view around a virtual

trackball by holding down Option/Alt and

dragging directly in the Document window.

The Rotation Trackball has no effect on the

orthogonal cameras (left, right, top, bottom,

front, and back).

The Y and Z control.

The X and Y control.

The X and Z control.

The Rotation Trackball.



Poser 4

Scale

The Scale control works like a zoom lens

control. Drag right over the control to zoom

into the center of the studio or left to zoom

out.

Focal Length

The Focal Length control increases or

decreases the selected camera’s focal length.

Drag left to decrease the focal length of the

camera. Decreasing the focal length increases

the sense of perspective. The effect is similar to

a photographer using a ﬁsh-eye lens: vanishing

lines converge more sharply and elements near

the camera appear to “reach” toward you. The

result can be dramatic.

Drag right to increase the focal length. This

“ﬂattens” the sense of perspective. The

distance between objects appears to be

shorter.

Display the vanishing lines guide to see how

changing the focal length changes the

perspective on the studio.

Roll

The Roll control banks the camera, tilting

your view of the studio. Drag right to roll the

camera to the right or left to tilt the view to

the left.

Using Camera

Parameter Dials

When a camera is selected, you can use the

Parameter Dials to precisely control the

camera’s position and orientation.

The Dolly, Posing, Face, and Hand cameras

have the standard 3D Pitch, Yaw, and Roll

capabilities. In contrast, the Main camera has

xOrbit, yOrbit, and zOrbit parameters.

Focal Length

Focal Length changes the perspective of the

view by adjusting the camera’s lens. Drag the

dial left to decrease the focal length, or

increase the sense of perspective. Drag the dial

right to increase the focal length, or ﬂatten the

image.

The Scale control.

The Focal Length control.

The Roll control.

Cameras



xOrbit

xOrbit tilts the camera forward or back. At a

low xOrbit (-30

), the camera is near or

beneath the ﬂoor, looking up at the studio

center. At a high xOrbit (45

), the camera is

up near the rafters, looking down at the studio

center.

yOrbit

yOrbit tips the camera to the left or right. If

you continue to drag, the camera orbits all the

way around and returns to the starting point.

zOrbit

zOrbit orbits the camera around the studio.

The camera continues to point at the center of

the studio as it orbits.

Yaw

Yaw rotates the Dolly camera on its own y

axis. The Dolly camera has 180

of yaw

pointing away from the studio center.

Pitch

Pitch tilts the Dolly camera on its own axis.

The camera stays in place, but changes the

pointing angle.

Roll

Roll tips the Dolly camera to the left or right.

If you continue to drag, the camera rolls all

the way around and returns to the starting

point.

Scale

Scale adjusts the dimensions of the studio in

the window. Scaling the camera is like

zooming in and out with a telephoto lens.

Drag the dial to the right to zoom in. Drag

the dial to the left to zoom out.

Changing the scale in only one dimension

distorts the ﬁgure’s appearance.

xScale

xScale changes the camera’s horizontal scale to

distort the appearance of the ﬁgure in the

window. Drag the dial to the right to increase

the xScale. Drag the dial to the left to decrease

the xScale.

Yaw, Pitch, and Roll.

Yaw

Roll

Pitch



Poser 4

yScale

yScale changes the camera’s vertical scale to

distort the appearance of the ﬁgure in the

window. Drag the dial to the right to increase

the yScale. Drag the dial to the left to decrease

the xScale.

zScale

zScale changes the camera’s depth scale to

distort the appearance of the ﬁgure in the

window. Drag the dial to the right to increase

the zScale. Drag the dial to the left to decrease

the zScale.

DollyX

DollyX moves the camera laterally. Drag the

dial to the right to move the camera to the

right.

DollyY

DollyY moves the camera vertically. Drag the

dial to the left to move the camera up.

DollyZ

DollyZ moves the camera in and out. Drag

the dial to the right to move the camera

toward the studio. Drag the dial to the left to

move away.

Camera Options

Poser offers two options for cameras. You can

change a camera name and set whether it can

be animated.

To set camera options:

Select the camera you want to change.

Choose

Object menu> Properties.

The Camera Properties dialog appears.

Enter a new name for the camera.

Enable the Animating checkbox to have

the camera’s movements recorded as

keyframes. When this option is disabled,

the camera’s movements cannot be

animated.

Set camera options in the Camera Properties

dialog.

Note

A camera that can be

animated can have different

settings in several frames. If

you want the camera to

animate—to leave keyframes

when changes are made—

enable the Animating

checkbox.

Cameras



Pointing Cameras

You can aim cameras directly at ﬁgures, body

part, or props using the Point At command.

This feature makes it easy to quickly focus on

an object, without having to use all the

positioning controls.

To point a camera directly at an object:

In the Current Element popup, select the

camera you want to point.

Choose

Object menu> Point At

. A

scene selection dialog appears.

In the list of objects, click to select the

ﬁgure, body part, or prop you want to

point the camera at, then click OK.

The camera points at the object, and a

Point At Parameter Dial appears for the

camera. You can adjust this parameter as

needed. At 1, the camera is pointed

completely at the object. At 0, the camera

is not pointed at the object.

To disable the pointing of a camera:

1In the Current Element popup, select the

pointing camera.

2Choose Object menu> Point At.

3In the dialog that appears, click None.

Locking Camera

Positions

Once you have positioned a camera to your

liking, you can prevent it from being moved

again.

To lock a camera:

•With the camera selected in the Current

Element popup, choose Object menu>

Lock Actor.

The camera is locked when the Lock Actor

menu item is checked.

Saving Camera

Positions

You can store a camera position in either the

library for use in any Poser ﬁle or a memory

dot for use with just that ﬁle.

Saving Camera Sets to

the Library

The Camera category in the Libraries palette

lets you save camera positions, then jump to

them with just a few mouse clicks.

The default Camera category provides several

positions. Add your own custom positions to

expand the library. Remember: camera

positions are in reference to the studio, not the

ﬁgure.

The Camera category in the Poser library

saves the settings of all of the cameras at once.

You cannot save only one camera.



Poser 4

To save a camera set to the Libraries

palette:

1Set up camera positions.

2To display the Libraries palette, click the

handle on the far right side of the screen.

3Click the Cameras category icon. If the

icon is not available, move the cursor over

the category dots at the top of the

Libraries palette until the Cameras

category appears, then click the mouse

button.

4Click the Add to Library (+) button at

the bottom of the palette. The Set Name

dialog appears.

5To specify parts of the scene to include or

not include, click the Select Subset

button. In the Hierarchy Selection list

that appears, deselect any items in the

scene that you don’t want to include,

then click OK.

6Enter a new name for the camera setting

and click OK.

7A dialog appears asking if you want to

save a Single frame or a multi-frame

animation.

• If you select the Single frame option,

the current camera position is saved.

• If you select the Multi-frame

animation option, you can specify a

range of frames to save.

Choose either Single frame or Multi-

frame animation and click OK.

Your camera settings are saved to the Cameras

category.

Using the Camera

Memory Dots

Memory Dots are the quickest way to store

the camera’s position during a session. You can

save up to nine different positions. Memory

dots are saved with the ﬁle, so your camera

positions are available the next time you open

the ﬁle.

To save a camera position to a memory

dot:

1Set up a camera position.

2Click the popup menu above the

memory dots and choose Camera Dots.

3Click an empty memory dot. The camera

position is stored into the dot you

clicked.

To recall a stored position:

•Click on a memory dot. The camera

moves to the stored position.

Cameras



Lights

How Lights Work

Lights add color to a figure, reveal curvatures of

the form, and enhance muscle contours. Lights

cast shadows, adding realism to your scenes. Good

lighting is essential to getting the right look when

you render. Lights can illuminate your ﬁgure in

renderings, in Lit Wireframe, and in Flat Shaded

previews. You can use as many lights in the Poser 4

studio as you need. The only limit is your system’s

memory.

Lights also aid in the creation of effects. For

example, when a reﬂection map is applied to

ﬁgures, body parts, or props to cause them to

direct light back at a light source, the Multiply

through lights option in the Surface Materials

dialog multiplies light colors in the rendering.

Refer to “Applying Reﬂection Maps” on

page 253 for details on using reﬂection maps.

Lights



Each light has characteristics you can set, such

as rotation, color, and intensity. In most cases,

the direction of the light will help you decide

its color. You can turn a light On or Off,

adjust how brightness diminishes toward the

edge of a light’s range, and decide whether or

not to cast a shadow.

You can animate lighting for dramatic effect,

such as a ﬂash from a bolt of lightning or the

ﬂickering lights of a street sign. You can also

link lights to speciﬁc body parts or objects, so

that a light source moves as the part or object

moves.

Lighting effects are not visible in basic

Wireframe or the low detail ﬁgure preview

styles. When aiming a light, use Lit Wireframe

or Flat Shaded preview styles. These styles

demonstrate how the lights you use illuminate

the ﬁgure.

Inﬁnite Lights

The quality of inﬁnite lights (sometimes called

distant or global lights) in the studio is

comparable to the sun or moon shining on the

Earth. The light rays from an inﬁnite source

are parallel as they enter your Poser studio. If

you have multiple ﬁgures, inﬁnite lights shine

equally on each ﬁgure. No ﬁgure can be

outside of an inﬁnite light’s range. When you

use inﬁnite lights, no ﬁgure can be lit

differently from another.

The effect of inﬁnite lights in Flat Shaded preview.



Poser 4

Spotlights

A Spotlight casts light in a speciﬁc direction.

They throw light along a cone-shaped path,

creating the classic “stage spot” effect. Use a

Spotlight when you want to point a light at

something. You can add one or several

Spotlights to create effects with directional

light sources.

Light Properties

Light properties help you ﬁne-tune your

lighting effects. You can:

• name a light for easy referencing

• turn a light On or Off, or set the visual

representation of the light’s source to

visible or non-visible

• control whether a light is animated

• cause a light to cast or not cast shadows

• select the light type (inﬁnite or spotlight)

• choose a lighting color

• set a parent for a light

To set light properties:

1Click a circle in the Light Control to

select that light. The Light Control is

located by default in the top left corner of

the Poser Workspace.

You can also select a light from the

Element popup at the bottom of the

Document window.

2Click the Light Properties bulb, just

outside the outer ring of the Light

Control in the top left corner of the

Poser Workspace.

Using a Spotlight.

Note Adding spotlights can increase

the amount of time required

during rendering.

Click a circle in the Light Control to select that light.

The Light Properties bulb brings up Light

Properties for a selected light.

Lights



Once a light is selected, you can also

choose Object menu> Properties to

edit light properties.

The Light Properties dialog is displayed.

Light Property options are:

•Name - Enter a name for the light to be

used in the Current Element list. You can

enter a descriptive name, such as

Morning Sun or Overhead Spotlight.

•On - Toggles a light On or Off. You can

also turn a light On or Off by Option/

Alt-clicking a Light Control.

•Animating - Controls whether the light

adds keyframes to the Animation palette.

An animated light can have different

settings in several frames. When this

option is Off, the light does not create

keyframes.

•Casts Shadow - Toggles between casting

and not casting a shadow. When this

option is On, the light casts a shadow.

•Visible - Makes the light indicator visible

or not visible. The light indicator is a

visual representation of the light’s source.

The light indicator does not show when

rendering. Making the light indicator not

visible can reduce clutter in your Poser

studio.When this option is On, the light

indicator is visible.

•Inﬁnite/Spot - Determines the type of

light source.

Inﬁnite lights shine into the studio in the

same way the sun shines onto the Earth.

The light rays from an inﬁnite light

source are parallel as they enter your

Poser studio.

Spotlights cast light in a speciﬁc direction.

They throw light along a cone-shaped

path, creating a classic “stage spot” effect.

A Spotlight is like a theater Spotlight

which can be moved or rotated to

highlight different elements in the studio.

•Light Color - Determines the light’s

color. To set the color, click in the Color

box, then select a color in the color

picker dialog. You can switch between

various color pickers, by selecting them

from the picker list at the left of the

The Light Properties dialog is where you set options

to ﬁne-tune lighting effects. When Visible is set to On, the light indicator—a

representation of a light’s source is displayed.



Poser 4

dialog. Refer to “Setting a Light’s Color”

on page 199 for more about setting light

color.

•Set Parent - Lets you set an element as a

light’s parent. For example, if you set a

ﬁgure’s head as the parent, the light

follows the movements of the head.

Adding Lights

You can add or delete lights in your Poser

studio. By default, there are three Inﬁnite

lights available when you start a Poser project.

To add a spotlight:

1Click the Add Light star, just outside the

outer ring of the Light Control in the top

left corner of the Poser Workspace.

Poser adds a spotlight to your scene.

To delete a Spotlight:

1Select the spotlight to be deleted.

2Click the Light Trash Can, just outside

the outer ring of the Light Control in the

top left corner of the Poser Workspace.

To add an Inﬁnite light:

1Click the Add Light star, just outside the

outer ring of the Light Control in the top

left corner of the Poser Workspace.

Poser adds a spotlight to your scene.

2Click the Light Properties bulb to open

the Light Properties dialog.

3Select Inﬁnite, then click OK.

To delete an Inﬁnite light:

1Select the light to be deleted.

2Click the Light Trash Can, just outside

the outer ring of the Light Control in the

top left corner of the Poser Workspace.

Aiming Lights

Finish posing your figure before aiming lights.

Otherwise, if you set the lights, then re-pose

the ﬁgure, its appearance under the lights

changes. For example, by rotating the ﬁgure

The Add Light star adds a light to your scene.

Use the Light Control trash can to delete a light.

Lights



180°, the illumination that was shining on the

ﬁgure’s front now shines on the ﬁgure’s back.

What had been well lit may now be shaded,

and you must set the lights again to

compensate for moving the ﬁgure.

Traditional artists often place a bright light

above the ﬁgure and to the left (from the

artist’s point of view). Strong single-source

lighting allows shading to develop on oblique

and distant surfaces. This shading contributes

signiﬁcantly to the ﬁgure’s depth and

curvature.

There are several methods for aiming lights:

• Aim lights in Poser by hand, using the

Light Control

• Move a light’s light indicator in the

Document window to position it

• Fine-tune light positioning with the

parameter dials

• Use the Figure menu> Point At

command

Inﬁnite lights in Poser’s studio always shine

into the studio. When you aim an inﬁnite

light, you’re actually setting the angle from

which the light shines.

Spotlights provide a direct lighting source.

When you aim a spotlight, you’re setting not

only the angle from which the light shines,

but also the point from which the light

originates.

Using the Light Control

The Light Control, located by default at the

top-left of the Workspace, represents the

current position and color of the lights in the

studio.

The globe in the center of the Light Control

represents your Poser ﬁgure in three

dimensional space. The circles surrounding the

large graphic in the center represent light

sources. By dragging these light sources to

different positions around the center globe,

you can adjust the lighting angle on your

object.

The Light Control automatically updates as

you drag to show a preview of the new

position. The Document window also updates

as you drag to show the effect of the newly

positioned light.

To reposition a light using the Light

Control:

1Click a circle in the Light Control to

select that light. The Light Control is

Note If you create a ﬁgure to match a

background image, remember to

position and color the lights to

match the lighting in the studio

background.

The Light Control. Drag the circles to reposition

lights.



Poser 4

located by default in the top left corner of

the Poser Workspace.

You can also select a light from the

Element popup at the bottom of the

Document window, or click on a

Spotlight to select it.

2Drag the light circle in the direction you

want the light to move.

Using Light Indicators

When you select a light, Poser displays a light

indicator that describes the light’s position in

the Document window. In some cases, it helps

to view the indicator from a different

perspective. Switch the camera view or zoom

out to get a different view of the indicator.

Using an Inﬁnite Light’s

Light Indicator

The inﬁnite light indicator appears as a ring

around the ﬁgure. To understand the inﬁnite

light indicator, visualize it as the equatorial

stripe of a transparent globe. The light aims

toward the center of the globe from a point

on the equator, shown by the arrows.

When viewed from an oblique angle, the

stripe appears as an ellipse, with the near side

lit and the far side darkened. This helps show

whether the light is in front of the ﬁgure or

behind it.

The light is not actually on the edge of the

indicator line. If it were, you could move the

ﬁgure to one side and out of the circle of

light. The indicator merely represents a larger globe

that encompasses the entire studio.

Click a circle in the Light Control to select that light.

Note When you click anywhere inside

the Light Control, the nearest

light circle is automatically

selected. The light indicator describes the currently selected

light.

Lights



To move an inﬁnite light with the light

indicator:

•Drag anywhere in the Document

window and continue dragging beyond

it, all the way to the edge of the screen.

Using a Spotlight’s Light

Indicator

The Spotlight indicator appears as the outline

of a Spotlight. It is depicted as a free-standing

Spotlight, aimed in a speciﬁc direction inside

the studio.

To move a Spotlight with the light

indicator:

•Drag anywhere in the Document

window.

Adjusting Light Indicators

with Tools

The Editing Tools can be used to adjust the

position of the indicator in the Document

window. Only the Rotate and Twist tools have

any effect on inﬁnite lights. These tools rotate

and twist the indicator around the center of

the studio.

The Rotate, Twist, Translate/Pull, and

Translate In/Out tools can be used to adjust

Spotlights.

Scaling a Light Indicator

You can change the size of a light indicator

with the Scale Parameter Dial. Scaling the

light indicators does not change lighting in the

scene—it only changes the size of the

indicator.

A Spotlight’s light indicator appears as the outline

of a Spotlight.

The Rotate and Twist tools can be used to adjust

the position of an inﬁnite light’s light indicator.

The Rotate, Twist, Translate/Pull, and Translate In/

Out tools can be used to adjust the position of a

Spotlight’s light indicator.



Poser 4

Aiming with Parameter

Dials

The Parameter Dials allow you to rotate or

move a light in a speciﬁc plane or to a

numerically deﬁned position.

Before using the Parameter Dials, select the

light you wish to adjust. You can either click

one of the Light Control, select the light from

the Current Element popup, click its listing in

the Animation palette, or click directly on a

Spotlight’s light indicator.

Rotating a Light

The xRotate, yRotate, and zRotate dials orbit

the light around the X, Y, and Z axes,

respectively.

When xRotate and yRotate are set to 0°, the

light aims directly at the front of the ﬁgure.

zRotate is signiﬁcant only when xRotate,

yRotate is not 0°, 0° or 180°, 180°.

The following diagrams of an inﬁnite light’s

light indicator should help you visualize the

effect of each dial. In each case, the ﬁgure is in

the default position.

xRotate

yRotate

The xRotate, yRotate, and zRotate Parameter Dials

let you rotate lights with numeric precision.

xRotate, side view.

yRotate, top view.

-90°

180°

90°

0°

-90°

180°

90°

0°

Lights



zRotate

To rotate a light numerically:

1Click beside the numeric value on the

right side of the parameter dial for the

axis you want to rotate the light around.

2Enter a value between zero and ±180.

3Click outside the entry area.

You can also double-click on a parameter

dial to open a dialog, where you can enter

a numeric value for the dial. In addition

to a numeric value, this dialog shows the

dial name, as well as minimum and

maximum limits for the selected dial.

Repositioning a Spotlight

The xTran, yTran, and zTran dials move a

Spotlight along the X, Y, and Z axes,

respectively.

To move a spotlight numerically:

1Click beside the numeric value on the

right side of the parameter dial to select

the axis upon which you want to move

the Spotlight.

2Enter a value between zero and ±180.

3Click outside the entry area.

You can also double-click on a parameter

dial to open a dialog, where you can enter

a numeric value for that dial. In addition

to a numeric value, this dialog shows the

dial name, as well as minimum and

maximum limits for the selected dial.

zRotate, front view.

-90°

180°

90°

0°

The xTran, yTran, and zTran Parameter Dials let you

move Spotlights with numeric precision.



Poser 4

Pointing a Light at an

Object

You can use the Point At feature to aim a light

directly at a ﬁgure, body part, or prop. For

example, you can use this feature to point a

spotlight at a ﬁgure’s head or hand. To easily

aim a spotlight, use the Point At feature on a

prop, then make the prop invisible in the Prop

Properties dialog.

To point a light directly at an object:

1In the Current Element popup, select the

light you want to point.

2Choose Object menu> Point At. A

scene selection dialog appears.

3In the list of objects, click to select the

ﬁgure, body part, or prop you want to

point the light at, then click OK.

The light points at the object, and a Point

At Parameter Dial appears for the light.

You can adjust this parameter as needed.

At 1, the light is pointed completely at

the object. At 0, the light is not pointed

at the object.

To disable the pointing of a light:

1In the Current Element popup, select the

pointing light.

2Choose Object menu> Point At.

3Click the None button, then click OK.

When a pointed light is disabled, its Point At

Parameter Dial still exists. You can remove this

dial in the Hierarchy Editor. For details, refer

to “Deleting Objects” on page 292.

Lighting Color

The color of the lights contributes to the

color of the ﬁgure in renderings. The colors

don’t mix and add to one another, they

multiply. For example, a blue ﬁgure with red

lighting would not appear purple, it would be

black.

If you don’t want lighting to inﬂuence figure

color, simply set the lights to white or gray.

Because the lighting and the surface color

determine the appearance of the rendered

ﬁgure, you may want to set the ﬁgure’s color

before working with the color of lights. For

more information on setting the color of the

ﬁgure, refer to “Using the Color Tool” on

page 139.

Setting a Light’s Color

To set a light’s color:

1Select a light.

2Click the Color dot that appears at the

bottom of the Light Control and choose

a color from the palette that appears.

Click the Color dot at the bottom of the Light

Control to change the color of a selected light.

Lights



Light Color Parameters

The Red, Green, and Blue Parameter Dials

adjust the levels of these color components.

Drag the Intensity dial to adjust the

brightness. Drag the dial to the right to

increase the level, or left to decrease it.

Setting Light Intensity

To set a light’s intensity:

1Select a light circle in the Light Control.

2Click and drag the Intensity dot located

outside the bottom left of the Light

Control. Drag clockwise to reduce

intensity. Drag counter-clockwise to

increases it.

You can also set light intensity by

adjusting the Intensity Parameter Dial.

Setting Spotlight

Characteristics

Use the Angle Start/End and Distance Start/

End Parameter Dials to set Spotlight falloff

characteristics. Light falloff lets you control

the relationship between the intensity of a

Spotlight and the distance from the light

source. In the real world, the farther you are

from a light source, the less inﬂuence it has on

the illumination of your surroundings. In

other words, the greater the distance, the

weaker the light.

In Poser, there are two types of falloffs you can

apply to a Spotlight:

Note Click an icon in the color picker

list on the left side of the color

dialog to select a color picker that

suits your needs.

Use the Intensity dial to set color brightness.

Drag the Intensity dot to quickly adjust light

intensity.

Use the light Intensity Parameter Dial to ﬁne-tune

the intensity setting.



Poser 4

• Angle Falloff sets how the brightness of

the light diminishes toward the edge of

the light cone. For example, a falloff of

10% means that the light has full intensity

from the center to 90% of the radius of

the light cone, then decreases linearly to

the edge of the cone. You can set a

starting falloff angle and an ending falloff

angle for every Spotlight.

• Distance Falloff determines the distance

from the light itself to the point where

the light has no effect. You can set the

distance at which a Spotlight starts to fall

off and an ending distance—after which

no light extends.

To set the angle falloff for a spotlight:

1Set the Angle Start Parameter Dial to the

percentage of intensity present at the start

of the cone of light projected by the

Spotlight.

2Set the Angle End Parameter Dial to the

percentage of intensity present at the end

of the cone of light projected by the

Spotlight.

To set the distance falloff for a

spotlight:

1Set the Dist Start Parameter Dial to the

distance where light starts to falloff.

2Set the Dist End Parameter Dial to the

distance past which no light extends.

Using Shadows

Poser lights cast shadows. Figures and props

produce shadows on each other and on the

ground plane when it is displayed. Shadows

can add appeal and enhance realism. In

animations, moving shadows can be highly

cinematic.

To change the cast of a light’s shadow, change

the angle of the light. You can also control

whether an individual light casts shadows in

the Light’s Properties dialog (Object menu>

Properties).

As you increase the falloff percentage, you

decrease the area that is 100% bright.

100% Falloff 50% Falloff 0% Falloff

Shadows are visible in renderings.

Lights



Spotlights always render based on the angular

range of the spotlight. That means tighter

Spotlights produce cleaner shadows. Inﬁnite

lights in comparison, adjust the view to ﬁll the

screen with all the objects that cast shadows.

Because of this, if you render a close-up of a

face in a scene which has 30 people, the

resulting shadow map does not contain a lot of

information.

Shadow Parameter Dials

The light Parameter Dials provide two

controls for shadows.

Shadow

Shadow controls the darkness of the shadow

cast by this light. You can adjust between a

faint shadow and a dark, 100% shadow.

You can animate the shadow strength. Set

keyframes of different shadow strength to fade

shadow darkness in or out.

Map Size

Map Size sets the resolution of the shadow

map for a light. Shadow maps are square, and

the value sets the number of pixels in a

dimension. Poser uses a map image to apply

shadows to objects in the scene. It develops

imagery (the shadows) in these maps during

rendering.

Larger map size values increase the detail of

shadow shapes, but that extra detail takes

longer to render. Each map requires memory.

For example, a 1024x1024 map needs around

4 MG, a 2048x2048 map requires 16 MG.

Each map also adds to the amount of memory

needed during rendering.

Depth cannot be animated. The setting applies

to the light throughout the ﬁle.

Setting a Parent

Poser lets you attach lights to body parts or

props. When you pose the body, the attached

light maintains its contact and orientation

with the parent part.

To attach a light to a body element:

1Add or select a light.

2Choose Object menu> Set Parent and

select from the list the body part to which

you want the light attached.

Note Shadows are only visible after

rendering.

Note Advanced users can open the

animation palette and select a

shadow camera attached to a

light to adjustment that camera

so that it zooms in on a subject.



Poser 4

Saving Light Sets

If you set the lights in a way that you want to

use again, save the lighting environment as a

light set to the Lights category in the Poser

Library, where you can easily retrieve it.

The Lights category saves the current settings

for the lights, including the map size.

To save a light setup:

1Set up your lights.

2Display the Libraries palette by clicking

the handle at the far right side of the

screen.

3Click the Lights category. If the category

is not visible, move the cursor over the

category dots until the Lights category

appears and then click the mouse button.

4Click the Add to Library (+) icon. The

New Set Name dialog appears.

5To specify parts of the scene to include or

not include, click the Select Subset

button. In the Hierarchy Selection list

that appears, deselect any items in the

scene that you don’t want to include,

then click OK.

6Enter a name for the new light set and

click OK.

A dialog appears asking if you want to

save a Single frame or a multi-frame

animation.

• If you select the Single frame option,

the current lighting setup is saved.

• If you select the Multi-frame

animation option, you can specify a

range of frames to save.

7Choose either Single frame or Multi-

frame animation and click OK.

The new light set appears in the Light

category.

Lights



Animating

Figures

Poser 4 lets you animate your ﬁgures, adding

motion to your scenes. You can use your work in

multi-media projects, on Web pages, and in video

projects.

When you’ve developed an animation in Poser,

you can save it as a movie in QuickTime, in AVI,

or as sequential image ﬁles. You can open

animation ﬁles in a motion-graphics application,

where you can add effects and perform other

post-production tasks.

You can create Poser animations of any length;

however, it’s easier to create relatively short

animations. You can use a movie-editing program

to splice animation clips together.

Animating Figures



How Animation

Works

Poser uses a technique called keyframe

animation to simulate motion based on static

figure poses. In keyframe animation, you set

up poses at different points in time, called

keyframes, and Poser ﬁlls in the gaps, creating

an illusion of motion. This way you don’t have

to keep posing your ﬁgure each time you want

to create a motion. All you have to do is set up

the starting position of the action and the

ending position. Poser takes care of the rest.

Poser ﬁlls in the gaps between keyframes using

a process called interpolation. Interpolation

determines how intermediate poses (that is,

the poses in between the start and end poses),

are created. There are four types of

interpolation:

• Spline, which places intermediate poses

(and settings) on a curve.

• Linear, which places intermediate poses at

equal increments so the motion is smooth

and straight.

• Break Spline, which has no intermediate

poses. Position changes abruptly only at

the keyframes.

• Constant interpolation, which maintains

a keyframe position, then instantly

changes to the next pose.

Refer to “Keyframe Interpolation” on

page 224 for more on interpolation.

Animation Tools

There are two animation tools in Poser: the

Animation Controls and the Animation

palette. The Animation Controls let you

quickly set up and preview animations using a

simple click and drag interface. Refer to

“Creating Animations” on page 209 for more

on the Animation Controls.

The Animation palette lets you edit keyframe

positions and create more complex

animations. It also lets you animate individual

body parts and edit the keyframes within your

animation. Refer to “Editing Animations” on

page 213 for more on the Animation palette.

What You Can

Animate

You can make any series of changing images

into an animation. The “change” can be of

any description. Virtually any type of change

you can make in Poser can be animated.

Regardless of what you animate, you go about

it in the same way—by setting keyframes at

the start and end of each action (change).

Animating Figures

Figures can change positions and move about

the studio. They walk, dance, climb, ﬁght,

tumble, ﬂy, and fall to earth.

Often, you create the illusion of movement by

changing the pose of a ﬁgure. However, you

can also create animation using the Scale tool.



Poser 4

When animating ﬁgures, keep these points in

mind:

• You can set Inverse Kinematics (IK) for

the legs and arms of any ﬁgure. IK is a

global setting; there can only be one IK

setting per animation. You cannot set IK

on in one keyframe and off in the next.

• Turning IK on or off can affect

interpolated motion. For this reason,

whenever you change the status of IK for

any limb, Poser 4 creates keyframes that

secure the motion approximately “as is.”

• Inverse Kinematics determines the pose

of some body parts based on the pose of

another part. For example, the knee may

be bent but the shin won’t have a

keyframe. The foot or hip, one of which

is keyframed, determines how and when

the shin bends.

For more information on IK refer to

“Inverse Kinematics” on page 111.

Animating Hands

You can create animated hands just as you

would animate any other body part. By

creating a starting and ending position for the

ﬁngers on a hand you can create almost any

type of hand motion.

Animating Faces

Like hands, the faces on Poser’s People ﬁgures

are fully articulated, meaning that you can

animate facial expressions. Facial animations

can be extremely powerful. With a moving

face, you can simulate a wide range of

emotions and even speech.

The Poser libraries provide a series of

phoneme presets to help you simulate speech

motions. The phoneme presets do not provide

all the facial positions you need to create fully

realistic speech, but you can use them as a

starting point. For more information on

simulating speech, refer to “Faces and

Phonemes” on page 132

Example of an animated ﬁgure.

Example of animating a hand.

Example of animating a face.

Animating Figures



Animating Props

Props can move, rotate, and change size. A ball

can bounce. An axe can swing. A chair can be

overturned. Use the Set Parent feature to

attach props to the ﬁgure. This keeps props

moving with the ﬁgure through any pose.

For more information on setting prop parents

refer to “Setting Prop Parents” on page 171.

Animating Deformers

Magnet Deformers

The Magnet deformer distorts an object by

creating a virtual magnet which stretches it.

Magnet behavior, the Magnet Base, and the

Magnet Zone can all be changed. You can also

rotate, twist, translate, and scale a Magnet

deformer and capture the effects in an

animation.

For more information on using Magnet

Deformers, refer to “The Magnet Deformer”

on page 144.

Wave Deformers

A Wave deformer distorts an object by

creating a wave path for it. Waves can rotate,

move, and change size. You can switch

between wave types. The Wave zone can be

changed. You can change Wave amplitude,

Wavelength, and Stretch settings. Noise

parameters can be adjusted, Turbulence added,

or an Offset can be set. Easy examples of

animating a Wave Deformer are causing a ﬂag

to wave or creating the effect of moving

water.

Example of animating a prop.

Example of animating the effect of a Magnet

Deformer on an object.



Poser 4

For more information on creating Waves, refer

to “The Wave Deformer” on page 149.

Morph Targets

A morph target is a custom Parameter for a

body part that enables you to gradually

reshape it. You can create morph targets for

ﬁgure elements, full body morphs, or morphs

that work on grouped parts. Reshaping an

object using a morph target can be animated.

For more information on creating Morph

Targets, refer to “Creating Custom Morph

Targets” on page 154.

Creating Animations

The Animation Controls, located at the

bottom of the screen, are the tools you use

most to create animations. They contain

controls for adding keyframes, editing

keyframes, and previewing animations.

The main area of the Animation Controls

displays the Timeline. The Timeline represents

time in Poser. The Scrubber on the Timeline

represents the current time. By positioning

the Scrubber at different points in time you

can move through time setting up keyframes.

The counter in the center of the controls

shows you which frame you’re currently

viewing in the Document window.

The controls on the left side of the Animation

Controls let you preview all the frames on the

Timeline. You can play all the frames or step

through all the frames one at a time.

The controls on the right side of the

Animation Controls let you edit the keyframes

on the Timeline. You can add, delete, and

preview keyframes.

Example of animating a the effects of a Wave.

Example of animating the effect of using a Morph

Target.

The Animation Control’s Time Display Area controls

the creation and playing of animations.

Timeline

Scrubber

Preview

controls Keyframe

controls

Frame

indicator

Animating Figures



Setting Up Your

Animation

When you begin an animation, you set the

dimensions and duration of your project.

To set up an animation:

1Choose Window menu> Document

Window Size. Set the dimensions of the

Document window according to the

aspect ratio of the frame size you want.

The Document window need not equal

the frame size for your intended

animation output, but it must be

consistent with the aspect ratio.

Any aspect ratio is acceptable. For an

extremely wide animation, you could use

an aspect ratio of 3:1 and create a window

that’s 600 x 200.

If you are working with an imported

background—either still or moving—you

can import that ﬁle now. Poser asks if you

want to set the dimensions of the

Document window to match the

imported background.

2Choose Animation menu>

Animation Setup. Poser displays the

Animation Setup dialog.

3In the Frame Size ﬁeld, enter either the

width or height value for the animation

output you want. The aspect ratio of the

Document window determines the other

value.

4Set a Frame Rate. Frame Rate

determines how many frames are

displayed each second.

NTSC video plays at 30 frames per

second (fps). Film plays at 24 fps. Many

computer animations work quite well at

12 to 15 fps. Animations for display on

the World Wide Web can be successful

with as few as 8 frames per second.

5Set either the Frame Count or the

Duration. These values are

interdependent. Set one, and Poser ﬁlls in

the other.

• Frame Count is the total number of

frames in the animation.

• Duration describes how long the

animation lasts. The display uses the

SMPTE standard—hours: minutes:

seconds: frames.

The Document window Aspect Ratio dialog.

The Animation Output Settings dialog.



Poser 4

Working with the Animation

Background

By default, your animation moves over the

background set for the Document window.

You may want to animate over a changing

background. For example, in some

animations, walking characters stay in the

center of the screen. The background scrolls,

which gives the impression that they are

actually moving.

You can import a QuickTime or AVI ﬁle as

the background. Each frame of the imported

movie appears sequentially as the background

in frames of the animation.

When you make a movie, Poser composites

the ﬁgures with the background imagery by

default. This is an easy way to get your

animated Poser ﬁgure in a moving scene.

To import background footage:

1Prepare a QuickTime or AVI movie as

the background.

2Open your Poser animation ﬁle.

3Choose File menu> Import>

QuickTime Footage or AVI

Footage.

4Use the Display menu> Show/Hide

Background Footage and Clear

Background Footage to control

background display.

Working with the

Timeline

The Timeline that appears at the bottom of

the screen is a graphic representation of time.

The Scrubber on the Timeline represents the

current time as displayed in the Document

window.

Setting the Current Time for

an Animation

The Scrubber is the tool you use most when

creating animations. The Indicator controls

when a keyframe occurs in time. When

creating keyframes, you move the indicator to

deﬁne when the event occurs.

As you move the Indicator, the Frame number

changes to show the number of the current

frame. To move to a speciﬁc frame, either

move the Frame Indicator or enter a number

in the Frame number ﬁeld.

Tip You can use background footage

as a guide for animating. For

example, import a video clip of a

gymnast and pose a ﬁgure to

match the actions of the gymnast.

The Timeline.

The Scrubber controls when keyframes occur in

animations.

Animating Figures



The Scrubber also controls which portion of

your animation is displayed in the Document

window. When the Indicator is at the

beginning of the Timeline, the ﬁrst frame of

your animation shows. As you move the

indicator, you see how your pose changes over

the course of your animation.

To move the current time manually:

•Drag the Scrubber along the Timeline. As

you drag, note that the Time Display area

shows the current frame number in your

animation.

Release the mouse button when you

reach the desired frame.

To move the current time numerically:

1Click the frame number in the Time

Display area. A text ﬁeld appears.

2Enter the number of the frame you want

to move to and press Return/Enter. The

Scrubber jumps to the speciﬁed frame.

Recording Keyframes

When camera animating is On, Poser records

changes you make to your Poser ﬁgures as

animation keyframes. You create keyframes by

moving the scrubber to a new point on the

timeline, then making a change to a Poser

ﬁgure, object, prop, light, or camera.

A recorded keyframe stores changes in the

position of each body part in the ﬁgure. It also

stores changes in scale, color, lighting, or

camera position. Since you can store one set

of positions and parameter settings at any

given point on the timeline, Poser saves the

last changes you make, until the scrubber is

moved to a new point in time. For example, if

you move an arm up and then down while the

scrubber remains at the same location in the

timeline, the down motion is recorded for that

keyframe. To make an arm move up and then

down, record the up motion in one keyframe,

then move to a different keyframe to record

the down motion.

To record keyframes:

1If necessary, click the Animating On/Off

Key icon in the Camera controls to turn

the Poser animation system On for the

current camera.

Camera Animating is On by default.

When Off, the Animating On/Off Key is

red.

2Move the Scrubber to a position in time.

3Use the Editing Tools to adjust the pose

of your ﬁgure or make an adjustment to a

camera or light. A new keyframe is

created.

4Move the Scrubber to a different point on

the timeline and change something else.

5Continue creating keyframes until your

motion sequence is complete.

Click the Animation System Key by the Camera

control to toggle the system between On and Off.



Poser 4

Adding and Deleting

Keyframes

In most cases, the Animation System is used to

automatically record keyframes for your

animation. Sometimes, you’ll want to instruct

the Animation system to explicitly create a

keyframe, like when Animating for the

current camera is set to Off and no keyframes

are being recorded.

For example, you set the Scrubber to a point

in the timeline, then make a number of

changes—not realizing that Animating for the

current camera is set to Off. Because the

system is turned Off, you must manually

create a keyframe to store the results of your

changes. If you don’t create a keyframe, when

you move the scrubber to a new point on the

timeline the changes you’ve just made are

discarded.

You might also want to add a keyframe to

ﬁne-tune movements recorded by the

Animation System. For example, at frame

number 10, the ﬁgure’s left foot is ﬂat on the

ground. You move the scrubber to frame 20,

then make a change to the position of the left

foot. The Animation System records that

change, then calculates positions for the left

foot for all those "in-between" frames. To

further reﬁne the "in-between" frames, you

could move the Scrubber to frame 15,

reposition the left foot in an intermediate

pose, then explicitly add a keyframe to store

that change.

The Animation Controls let you quickly add

and delete keyframes. When you delete a

keyframe, all the stored properties for the

ﬁgures are deleted. When you add a keyframe,

the ﬁgure’s current position in the Document

window is saved as a keyframe.

To add a keyframe:

1Move the Scrubber to the desired point

in time.

2Click the Add Keyframes (+) button.

To delete keyframes:

1Click either the Previous Keyframe or

Next Keyframe button until the keyframe

you want to delete is displayed in the

Document window.

2Click the Delete Keyframes (-) button.

Editing Animations

The Animation palette is where you edit the

keyframes in your animation. The palette

shows the layout of the keyframes and

provides for setting and navigating between

them. The palette also provides controls for

playing animations.

The Keyframe controls allow you to add and delete

keyframes.

e ete

Keyframes

sp ay

mat

palette

Add Keyframes

rev

ous

Keyframe

Next Keyframe

Animating Figures



To display the Animation palette:

•Choose Window menu> Animation

Controls.

Click the Display Animation Palette

button on the right side of the Animation

Controls.

When you ﬁrst display the palette, it shows all

the keyframes you’ve previously created using

the Animation Controls.

The Animation palette is divided into the

following sections:

• The Setup controls are used to set Frame

Rate, Duration, Frames, and display

options for the Timeline Area. These

controls also let you preview your

animation and navigate through the

keyframes.

• The Elements List displays all the objects

in the studio. Figure-type elements

contain a listing for each of the parts that

make up that figure.

• The Timeline Area, displays all the

keyframes stored for each of the body

parts. Keyframes are displayed as red

squares in the grid and interpolated

frames are shown in different colors to

identify the interpolation type. An

interpolated frame is an animation frame

created by Poser to ﬁll in the gaps

between keyframes.

Editing Animation Setup

You can use the Animation palette’s Setup

controls to edit your animation setup

parameters. Many of the controls in this

palette can also be accessed from the

Animation Setup dialog (Animation menu>

Animation Setup).

Changing the Frame Rate

Frame Rate determines how many frames are

used during each second of action. Thus,

frame rate is measured in Frames Per Second

(fps). Higher frame rates have more frames in a

second, producing smoother motion, but

require more time to render.

To edit the frame rate:

1Click the FrameRate indicator at the top

of the Animation palette. A text ﬁeld

appears.

2Enter a frame rate.

The Animation palette allows you to edit keyframes.

nterpo at

Controls

rev

Controls

Radio buttons indicate

what is affected

Preview

Range

rame

Controls

Elements

List Timeline

Area

etup

Controls

The Animation Palette’s setup controls.



Poser 4

You can also click the arrow icon next to

the Frame Rate indicator and pick a

frame rate from the menu

Moving the Current Time

The Current Time display lets you keep track

of the current time shown in the Timeline

area, and lets you change the current time.

As you edit keyframes in the Timeline Area,

the display changes to show you the current

time in SMPTE format (Hours: Minutes:

Seconds: Frame). You can also enter a time to

display a speciﬁc point in time.

To move to a speciﬁc time:

1Click one of the Current Time display

ﬁelds. A text ﬁeld appears.

2Enter the hour, minute, second, or frame

you want to see.

Changing the Number of

Frames

The two Frame indicators show you the

number of the currently selected frame and

the total number of frames in the animation.

You can move to a speciﬁc frame by selecting

the Frame ﬁeld and entering a frame number.

To change the total number of frames in your

animation, click in the Total Frames ﬁeld and

enter a new value. When you change the total

number of frames you set the maximum

number of frames in your animation. If you

have more frames in the animation than the

Total Frames value, frames are deleted.

Viewing the Elements

List

The Elements List displays all the ﬁgures,

lights, cameras, and props currently in the

studio. The listing for a ﬁgure can be

expanded to display all the objects that make

up that figure. Each object within a ﬁgure can

be further expanded to display all the

properties of that object. For example, you

can view the Scale or Translation keyframes.

Using this listing, you can select an object or

studio element you want to animate.

The Frame indicators. Elements List in the Animation palette.

Elements listing

Currently selected object

or element

Collapsed listing

Expanded listing

Property listing

Animating Figures



Selecting Elements

You can select an element by clicking on it in

the Elements List. Selecting an object here is

equivalent to clicking on it in the Document

window or choosing it from the Current

Element popup at the bottom of the

Document window. Poser highlights the name

and grid row of the selected object.

To scroll down the list of elements:

•Drag the vertical scroll bar.

Collapsing the Elements List

Each ﬁgure has many parts, and each part has

many properties. This can make for a very

long Elements List. You can collapse any of the

ﬁgure listings to save space, or expand them to

show more detail. When you are not working

with a particular ﬁgure, you can collapse its

listing. This shortens the Elements List and

makes other objects easier to locate.

To collapse/expand a listing:

1Click the triangle next to the ﬁgure

name.

A down-facing arrow indicates that a

listing is expanded. A right-facing arrow

indicates a collapsed listing.

2Click the triangle again to collapse the

list.

The hip is the selected element.

Scrolling through the Animation palette to display

additional elements.

Vertical

scroll bar

Note When you collapse a Figure in the

Elements List, the keyframe line

displayed controls the ﬁgure’s

position in the studio. Posing

changes only show when the

listing is expanded.

You can collapse or expand the elements listing in

the Animation palette.



Poser 4

Editing Keyframes on

the Timeline

You can use the Timeline area to select

keyframes, edit their position, or delete them

from the animation. You can also add new

frames for speciﬁc properties or objects.

The Timeline area displays time as a grid. The

grid displays the keyframes for each of the

items in the Elements List.

Time is displayed as columns. Each column

can represent either a speciﬁc point in time or

a frame in the animation. The Ruler at the top

of the area indicates whether the columns

represent points in time or frames.

Each object or property in the Elements List is

represented on a row in the Timeline area.

Keyframes appear as red squares. Interpolated

frames between frames appear in different

colors depending on the type of interpolation

used to create them. Green denotes Spline

interpolation, and red denotes Linear

interpolation.

To change the Timeline Ruler display:

•Click the Options label at the top of the

palette, and choose Display Frames or

Display Time Code from the menu.

Selecting Keyframes

Poser starts with the ﬁrst frame selected (frame

#1). You can select any frame by clicking in,

or above, its column. You can also enter a

number in the Frame ﬁeld at the top of the

palette. Poser displays the number of the frame

and highlights the column.

When you select a keyframe, the item’s row

and the time column is highlighted, creating

an intersection. Selecting another keyframe

moves the intersection to a different point.

To select a keyframe:

•Click one of the dark red squares on the

grid.

Timeline Area on the Animation palette.

Timeline Ruler Current Time tab

Scroll bars Play Selected Range bar

The hip is the selected object. Frame #6 is the

current frame.

The Frame scroll bar appears when there are more

frames than the window can display.

Animating Figures



To scroll across frames:

•Drag the horizontal scroll bar. The scroll

bar only appears when the number of

frames exceeds what the window can

display.

Adding Keyframes

You can add keyframes to store a speciﬁc pose

or save an interpolation frame created by

Poser.

Keyframes can be added for a speciﬁc object

or property using the This Element option.

When enabled, any keyframe you create is

only applied to the selected element.

You can also use the All Elements option to

add frames to store all changes for all the

elements in the animation at a speciﬁc point

in time. This creates a kind of checkpoint.

Once all element properties are saved into

keyframes, you can experiment with poses in

the remaining part of the animation while

leaving the ﬁrst half of your animation

unchanged.

To add a key for one element:

1Select the frame where you want to add

the new keyframe.

2Click the This Element radio button.

3Select the object you want to set.

4Click the Add Keyframes (+) button.

To add a key for all elements:

1Select the frame where you want to add

the key.

2Click the radio button for All Elements.

3Click the Add Keyframes (+) button.

To add a keyframe for a selected element, click the

Add Keyframes button for This Element.

Add a keyframe for this element.

To add a keyframe for the entire ﬁgure, click the

Add Keyframes button for All Elements.



Poser 4

Clearing Keyframes

At some point, you may decide to remove a

keyframe. Once a keyframe is removed, the

animation changes.

You can clear a keyframe for a single object/

element or for all objects/ﬁgures in the scene.

Clearing does not delete the frame. It removes

the settings that make this frame a keyframe.

The frame is still in the animation, but it does

not have a key assigned to it. Once the

keyframe is removed, the values at that frame

are recomputed to properly blend with

neighboring keyframes.

To clear a keyframe for one element:

1Move the Current Time tab to the point

in time where you want to clear the

keyframe.

2In the Elements List, select the ﬁgure part

whose keyframe you want to clear.

3Enable the This Element radio button.

4Click the Delete Keyframes (-) button.

You can also press the Delete/Backspace

key.

To clear a keyframe for all elements at a

given point in time:

1Move the Current Time tab to the point

in time where you want to delete the

keyframe.

2Enable the All Elements radio button.

Add a keyframe for all elements. Notice the color

changes in keyframe #8.

To clear a keyframe for one element/object, click

the Delete Keyframes button for This Element.

After clicking Delete Keyframe, the keyframe is

removed and Poser interpolates between the

previous and next keyframe.

Animating Figures



3Click the Delete Keyframes (-) button.

You can also press the Delete/Backspace

key.

To clear a range of keyframes:

1Shift-drag over the range of frames you

want to clear.

2Press the Delete key.

To clear speciﬁc keyframes:

1Press Shift and click each of the frames

you want to delete.

2Press the Delete key.

Navigating the Timeline

You can move to a keyframe in the Timeline

using the Navigation controls at the top of the

palette. The This Element and All Elements

radio buttons let you move to the keyframes

for a selected element or to keyframes for any

element.

To advance to the next keyframe for a

speciﬁc element:

1Click the row for the desired element.

2Enable the This Element radio button.

3Click the Next Keyframe button.

To move back to the previous keyframe

for a speciﬁc element:

1Click the row for the desired element.

2Enable the This Element radio button.

3Click the Previous Keyframe button.

To clear a keyframe for all elements, click the Delete

Keyframes button for All Elements.

The selected keyframes are cleared for all elements

at this time.

To advance to the next keyframe for a given

element, click the Next Keyframe button for This

Element.

To move back to the previous keyframe for a given

element, click the Previous Keyframe button for This

Element.



Poser 4

To advance to the next keyframe (for

any element):

•Click the Next Keyframe button for All

Elements.

To move back to the previous keyframe

(for any element):

•Click the Previous Keyframe button for

All Elements.

To go to a speciﬁc frame:

1Click to highlight the current frame

display.

2Enter the value you want. Press Return/

Enter.

Moving Keyframes

As you work, you may decide you want

certain keyframes to occur sooner, or later, or

that you want to use the settings in one

keyframe somewhere else in the animation.

Poser makes this easy by allowing you to move

keyframes or groups of keyframes.

To move a keyframe:

1Click the keyframe to select it.

2Drag the colored grid cell horizontally to

the frame where you want it.

To advance to the next keyframe for any element,

click the Next Keyframe button for All Elements.

To move back to the previous keyframe for any

element, click the Previous Keyframe button for

All Elements.

The current frame display lets you jump to a speciﬁc

frame.

Select an element and a frame.

When you click on the grid cell, the cursor turns into

a four-way arrow. Drag the keyframe to where you

want it.

Animating Figures



To move a block of frames:

1Drag a marquee around all the frames you

want to move, or Shift-click the desired

frames.

Poser outlines the selected block of

frames.

2Drag the block of frames to a different

position on the Timeline.

Copying Keyframes

You can copy keyframes, ﬁgure parts, and

parameters in the Elements Listing. There are

no limits to how little or much you can copy.

For example, say you’ve ﬁne-tuned

movements over the course of an animation

for parts in a Poser ﬁgures, like the Left Thigh,

Left Shin, and Left Foot. You can copy

keyframes and the parameter settings they

represent for those parts, then paste them to

other ﬁgures. In this way you could bring a set

of marching Poser ﬁgures into perfect step.

Although you can copy and paste keyframes

across elements and objects, copying data to

inappropriate parameters, like scaling data into

rotation parameters should be avoided. Pasting

body part parameters from left to right or

Select a block of frames by

Shift

-clicking.

Drag a block of frames to a new location.

By copying elements between ﬁgures, you can

bring a set of marching ﬁgures into perfect step.



Poser 4

right to left can also give unexpected results.

Because they are on opposite axis, you must

make the copied parameter negative to get a

symmetrical position.

To copy a keyframe to a new position

on the timeline:

1Click the keyframe to select it.

2Option/Alt-drag the keyframe to the

point in time where you want it to

appear. When it’s positioned, release the

mouse button, then release the Option/

Ctrl.

To copy a block of frames to a new

position on the timeline:

1Drag a marquee around all the keyframes,

elements, or parameters you want to

copy, or Shift-click the desired elements.

2Choose Edit menu > Copy, or press

Ctrl/Cmd+C to copy.

3Drag a marquee around the area where

you want to paste the copied

information.

4Choose Edit menu > Paste, or press

Ctrl/Cmd+V.

Poser pastes the copied information into

the selected area of the palette.

Retime Keyframes

The Animation menu> Retime

Animation command lets you take a motion

or a set of keyframes and change the amount

of time it takes for that motion to occur.

The Retime Animation command doesn’t

destroy any keyframes inside the source range

and outside the destination range, so you can

use it to repeat motions by copying them from

one time to another. By selecting a motion in

one area and selecting a non-overlapping

destination, you remap the motion to another

time without deleting the original motion.

To set retime keys:

1Choose Animation menu> Retime

Animation. A dialog appears asking you

to ﬁll in your Source and Destination

frames.

2For the Source frames, enter the start and

end frames for the section of animation

you want to retime.

3For the Destination frames, enter the

range of frames to retime the animation

to.

• If the destination range is longer than

the source range, the animation is

expanded, or slowed down.

• If the destination range is shorter

than the source range, the animation

is compressed, or sped up. Old

Pasting body part parameters from left to right or

right to left gives unexpected results.

Animating Figures



keyframes that were previously in the

destination range are deleted. The

keyframes that were in the source

range are retimed and placed in the

proper time in the destination range.

4Click OK.

Advanced Editing

The following section deals with editing an

element’s animatable properties and applying

different interpolation methods. Both

techniques are advanced features of Poser, so

become comfortable with the animation

process before trying these techniques.

Keyframe Interpolation

Poser interpolates the intermediate ﬁgure

poses and element settings between keyframes.

Interpolation refers to the way Poser calculates

the “in between” position of objects/

elements.

You have several options for the rules used to

interpolate the poses or settings. In this way,

you can make subtle changes in the animated

motion.

Interpolation settings apply to a range of

frames. This means you can use one

interpolation type prior to a keyframe and

another after it.

If the beginning and end of a selected range

does not already have keyframes, changing

interpolation type will automatically insert

keyframes at the beginning and ending frames.

You can apply the following types of

interpolation to your keyframes:

•Spline places intermediate poses (and

settings) on a curve. The element/object

accelerates and decelerates in and out of

the motion.

•Linear places intermediate poses at equal

increments so the motion is smooth and

straight. The speed of motion does not

change in between keyframes, but can

change speed suddenly at keyframes

•Constant has no intermediate poses;

changes occur abruptly only at the

keyframes. Whereas previous versions of

Poser limited the use of Constant

interpolation to the end of an animation,

Poser 4 allows you to use it at any point

An example of Spline interpolation.

An examples of Linear interpolation.



Poser 4

where abrupt change at a keyframe is

required.

•Break Spline stops the interpolation at

the break point, so that another type of

interpolation can begin. This type of

interpolation is useful for ending a series

of interpolated frames to begin a fresh

series.

For example, a bouncing ball has a

smooth arc until it hits the ﬂoor and then

starts off in another arc. With Break

Spline you can create this type of abrupt

change in the arc.

You can use different interpolation options

depending on the motion you want. Using a

walk as an example, you would use Spline

interpolation for the keyframes of a foot while

it’s moving through the air. However, you

would use Linear interpolation while it’s on

the ground to make it easier to keep it

planted.

Interpolation types are shown in different

colors on the Animation palette. Green is used

for Spline, and red for Linear. A cross in the

keyframe indicates that Break Spline has been

applied. Keyframes that use Constant

interpolation are grayed out.

To choose an interpolation method:

1Select a range of keyframes in the

Timeline Area.

2Click one of the four Interpolation

Controls.

Editing Keyframe

Interpolation

The Graph palette let you perform precise

edits on keyframes and adjust the

interpolation methods used in the your

animation.

To display the Graph palette:

•Click the Show Graph Display button on

the Animation palette.

You can also double-click on an element

or keyframe to display the graph for that

element.

An examples of Constant interpolation.

Select one of the Interpolation Controls.

The Show Graph Display button.

Spline Linear Constant Break

Spline

Animating Figures



The palette is made up of two axes and a

graph. The horizontal axis represents time in

your animation, displayed as frame numbers.

The values in the vertical axis change

depending on the attribute you select. If you

choose a position attribute (xTrans, yTrans,

etc.) the values on the axis represent positions

in 3D space. If you choose a ﬁgure editing

property (Taper, Bend, Side-to-Side, etc.) the

values on the axis indicate degrees of change.

The graph itself shows the actual change in

the selected element over the course of the

animation. Depending on the selected

attribute, the graph shows changes in position,

rotation, scale, or tapering. The graph’s shape

indicates the type of interpolation used to

move from one keyframe to another.

A smooth curve indicates that Spline

interpolation is being used, a straight line

means that Linear interpolation is being used.

The Graph palette also provides controls for

synching sound to motion in your animation.

Refer to “Syncing Sound and Motion” on

page 240 for more information.

Editing the Graph

You can edit the graph to achieve varying

degrees of interpolation. For example, to

decrease the amount of Spline interpolation,

straighten the curve.

You can set the shape of the curve using the

preset interpolation methods or by just

dragging the curve’s points until it’s the shape

you want. In addition, you can apply different

interpolation methods to different parts of the

graph.

The Graph palette lets you perform precise edits on

keyframes.

Interpolation

Methods

Frame Numbers Animatable Properties

Interpolation

Select Frames Add/Delete

Frames

Different shapes of the Interpolation graph.

Spline Interpolation

Linear Interpolation

Break Spline Interpolation

Constant Interpolation



Poser 4

To edit the shape of the graph:

1Click the popup at the top of the palette

and choose the attribute you want edit.

2Drag any point on the graph in the

direction you want to move the curve.

Depending on the type of interpolation

you’ve applied to the curve, it reshapes

either smoothly or linearly.

3Use the Scrollbar to view points that fall

outside of the current graph window.

To change the type of interpolation

applied to the graph:

1Drag over a portion of the graph to select

it.

The selected portion is highlighted.

2Click one of the interpolation method

buttons at the bottom of the dialog.

The graph is re-shaped using the selected

method.

If you have a range of frames selected in

the Animation palette, changing the

interpolation method can add new

keyframes.

3Use the Scrollbar to view points that fall

outside of the current graph window.

Editing Keyframes on the

Graph

The vertical lines on the graph represent

keyframes. You can move these points, to

change when keyframes occur, or you can add

new keyframes.

The Current Frame indicator lets you know

which frame you’re currently working on.

To select a keyframe:

•Click the Next Keyframe or Previous

Keyframe button.

You can also click on a black keyframe

line on the graph, or drag the Current

A graph showing different interpolation methods.

Note Remember, you’re affecting

how the ﬁgure moves as you

change the shape of the

graph, so make sure that the

graph reﬂects the type of

motion you want to create.

Spline Interpolation

Linear Interpolation

Keyframes on the graph.

Use the Next Keyframe or Previous Keyframe to

select keyframes.

Keyframe line

Current Frame

indicator

Animating Figures



Frame indicator to the frame you want to

edit.

To select a range of keyframes:

•Drag an area around the desired frames. A

selected area is highlighted in dark grey.

To reposition a keyframe:

•Select a keyframe and drag it to a different

position on the graph.

To add a keyframe:

1Move the Current Frame indicator to the

position where you want to add a frame.

2Click the Add Keyframes button.

To duplicate a portion of the graph:

1Drag across an area of the graph to select

it.

2Choose Edit menu > Copy (or press

Ctrl/Cmd+C).

3Position the cursor where you want to

insert the copy.

4Choose Edit menu > Paste (or press

Ctrl/Cmd+V).

To move a keyframe:

•Command/Ctrl-drag a key or range of

keys to a new point in time.

To delete a keyframe:

1Move the Current Frame indicator to the

position where you want to delete a

frame.

2Click the Delete Keyframes button.

Previewing

Animations

You can preview animations using the VCR

style controls in the Animation Controls or

the Animation palette.

When you use the Preview controls to

preview your animation, the animation plays

in the Document window. The quality of the

preview depends on the current display style

and Tracking mode that’s currently enabled.

Refer to “Previewing Your Figure” on

page 37 for information about display styles

and refer to “Figure Tracking” on page 30 for

information about tracking modes.

Play starts the animation. While the

animation plays, the readouts display the

current frame and time. The Play button

becomes the Pause button during a preview.

Stop halts play and jumps the animation to

the ﬁrst frame.

Pause halts play at the currently displayed

frame.

Fast Forward advances to the last frame of

the animation.

Use the Preview Controls to preview your

animations.

rst

rame

End Frame Play

top

tep

Step Forward



Poser 4

Rewind returns to the ﬁrst frame of the

animation.

Step Reverse moves back one frame.

Step Forward advances to the next frame.

The Loop radio button plays the animation

over and over again until you stop the

playback.

When disabled, the Skip Frames radio

button displays all frames in the animation.

When enabled, frames drop from the preview

to speed up play.

To preview an animation in the

Document window:

1Click the Play button in the Preview

controls.

The Play button becomes the Pause

button.

2Click the Stop button to stop the

preview.

To view a speciﬁc keyframe:

•Click either the Previous Keyframe or

Next Keyframe button in the Keyframe

controls.

The Document window changes to

display the poses in the selected keyframe.

Setting the Play Range

By default, you preview the entire animation

when you click the Play button; however, you

can choose to play only a section of your

animation. You can adjust the length of the

Loop Range bar in the Animation palette to

set in and out points for the preview. Only

frames between the in and out points play.

To change the range:

1Drag the end of the Play Range bar to set

the in or out point of the preview.

Using the Libraries

Palette for

Animations

The Libraries palette lets you save single

frames or multi-frame poses. A multi-frame

pose is an animated ﬁgure.

The Previous and Next Keyframe controls.

Keyframe

The Play Range bar sets which frames will play. In

this case, Poser plays all frames of the animation.

Drag the ends of the Play Range bar to set the

range of frames. In this case, Poser plays frames 5

through 19.

Animating Figures



Adding an Animation to

the Library

When you add to the Poses category Libraries

palette, Poser asks whether you want to save

one or multiple frames. For a multi-frame

animation, you can specify the range of

frames.

When you name the animation for the library,

consider including the number of frames in its

name. For example, name a listing Strut_48 to

indicate that this animation has 48 frames.

This information is helpful later when you use

the animation.

Using a Multi-Frame

Animation from the

Library

When you use an animation from the library,

Poser applies it to a series of frames, beginning

with the current frame. The series extends the

number of frames in the saved animation.

However, it does not exceed the number of

frames in the current document. You may have

to increase the number of frames in the

animation to make room for all the keyframes

in the saved pose.

Scale changes are not stored in pose sets. This

allows you to use stored poses for

reproportioned ﬁgures without modifying

their scale. Animated scale changes are not

stored in pose sets.

To add a multi-frame animation from

the Libraries palette:

1If the scene has more than one ﬁgure,

select the ﬁgure you want to apply the

animation to.

2Select the frame where you want the

animated sequence to begin. Frame #1 of

the library animation applies to the

current frame.

3Make sure you have enough frames to

accommodate the multi-frame pose. You

may need to add frames to the ﬁle or

move a set of keyframes farther to the

right.

4In the Libraries palette, click the Poses

category button.

5Click the Poses popup and choose

Animation Sets.

6Double-click the preview of the set you

want to use.

Animation

Techniques

The animation process begins with the creation of

keyframes and poses, but it certainly doesn’t stop

there. A simple jerky motion can become a

smooth ﬂowing one, if you just know a few

techniques for using Poser’s tools to their full

potential.

The techniques described in this chapter will help

you create more realistic motion and enhance

your basic animations.

Setting Keyframes

How do you know how to space keyframes? You

have to consider time and frame rate. You should

space keyframes so that at the chosen frame rate,

the animated action takes the right amount of

time.

Animation Techniques



• Frame Rate x Duration = Number of

Frames

The duration refers to how long it should take

the ﬁgure to move from Point A to Point B.

For an example, we’ll look at a simple

animated action—getting up from a chair. In

this action, the extremes are (1) sitting in the

chair (2) standing in front of the chair. These

are the keyframes we’ll set.

Decide on the duration of the action. You may

want to time yourself getting up from a chair

to get a better idea. Let’s say the action should

take three-quarters of a second (0.75 sec).

At a 30 frame per second rate, you can

calculate the number of frames for the action:

0.75 • 30 = 22.5

Dropping the decimal, you see it should take

22 frames to complete the action.

With the ﬁrst keyframe (sitting in the chair) at

frame #1 of the Poser animation, you should

place the second keyframe (standing in front

of the chair) at frame #21.

Set these keyframes, then work in, adding

more keyframes to improve the motion.

Creating Realistic

Motion

The key to human motion is to examine the

parts of the move. If you look at a baseball

player’s swing, it looks like the arm is simply

moving in an arcing motion. However, on

closer inspection you can see that the motion

is a combination of the hips, shoulder, hand,

neck, head, back and arm. To create this kind

of motion in Poser, you work from the large

motions to the smaller ones.

The ﬁrst thing you do to create a motion is

“rough out” the larger movements. In the case

of the baseball swing, determine where the

arm starts at the top of the swing and where it

ends up a the end of the swing. In Poser, these

two points are determined by two keyframes:

one for the start, the other for the end.

Once the larger motions are set up, you can

start adding in the smaller, more subtle,

motions. Continuing the baseball swing

example, start by adding in the hip swings, the

shoulder tilt and so on. It is these smaller

motions that make the entire action look

Two examples of keyframes.

A motion starts with large actions.



Poser 4

realistic. Poser’s Animation palette is ideal for

adding these little motions. In the palette, you

can add keyframes in between the frames for

the start and end of the swing.

Working this way, you an create almost any

kind of action. When you start, ﬁrst examine

the big movements, then ﬁll in the smaller, or

secondary motions, in between the big

movements.

Making Your Figure

Walk

One of the most complicated human motions

to simulate is the simple act of walking. What

appears on the surface to be a rather

straightforward matter—just put one foot in

front of the other—is actually an incredibly

complex interaction between a variety of

muscles in the legs and torso. Realistic

walking motion would normally take a great

deal of precision posing. However, with the

Walk Designer, it is just a matter of setting up

a few parameters and letting Poser do the rest.

Creating a walking ﬁgure is a two step process:

ﬁrst determine the walking path through the

studio, then determine how the ﬁgure walks.

Creating a Walk Path

Before you design how the ﬁgure walks, you

must determine where it walks. This is what

the Walk Path is used for. The path is a line or

curve you draw in the Document window to

set the ﬁgure’s course as it moves about the

studio. When you apply the walk, the ﬁgure

starts walking a the start of the path and stops

at the end of the path.

To draw a walk path:

1Choose Figure menu> Create Walk

Path. A path appears in the studio.

The more you examine a motion, the more you see

the smaller, or secondary motions, that make up the

action.

A Walk Path in the studio.

Animation Techniques



2Click one of the Editing Tools and adjust

the position or shape of the path.

Click on a point to reshape the path, or

click on the ring that surrounds the entire

path to reposition it.

Designing a Walk

Walks are designed in the Walk Designer. As its

name suggests, the designer lets you create

realistic walking motions which you can apply

any human ﬁgure. The designer has two

sections: the upper set of controls let you

create the larger motions of a walk, the lower

set of controls let you set up the secondary

motions of a walk.

The designer provides a real-time preview of

the walk. As you change the parameters, the

walking ﬁgure in the preview also changes.

Load in a prototype style that matches the

ﬁgure-type you’re animating and see an even

more realistic preview.

To design a walk:

1Choose Window menu> Walk

Designer. The Walk Designer dialog

appears.

2Click Figure Type to select a preview style

that matches the ﬁgure-type for which

you are designing a walk.

In the Poser: Runtime: Libraries:

Characters: People folder, select the

prototype style you want to preview.

Use the Walk Designer to deﬁne the characteristics

of the walk.

Tip Changes you make to the

foreground, background, and

shadow colors in your Poser

Workspace are reﬂected in the

real-time preview in the Walk

Designer.

Note Using a Figure Type is not

required, but be sure to select a

Figure Type if you need to collect

walk data for articulated body

parts present in your Poser ﬁgure,

like articulated feet or hands.

Poser 3 Low Res Figure Types

work well for this purpose.



Poser 4

3Click Walk to start the real-time preview

of the walk.

4Drag the Blend Styles sliders to set the

large motions of your walk.

5Drag right to increase the intensity of an

action, or left to decrease the action.

Try several settings in conjunction. You

may have to combine more than one

attribute to get the desired walk type.

6Adjust the positions of the Tweaks sliders

to set the smaller, or secondary, motions

of the walk.

You can click Defaults to reset the sliders

to their default positions.

7Click Apply to apply the walk to a Walk

Path.

The Walk Apply Dialog appears.

8Set walk options and click OK. Refer to

“Applying a Walk” on page 236 for more

on walk options.

Click Done to exit the dialog without

applying the walk.

Editing a Walk

A Walk Path is a spline curve that always lies

on the ground (the z-component is always

zero). You can edit the shape of the curve by

adding, deleting, and moving its control

points.

To add a control point:

•Click a point on the curve (not on a

control point).

To move a control point:

•Click a control point, then drag.

To delete a control point:

•Alt/Option click a control point.

Saving a Walk

A walk path is a special kind of prop. You can

save the path in the prop library to reuse later.

You can use editing tools, like scale or rotate

to transform the walk path, as you would

other types of props.

Using a Figure Type that matches your Poser ﬁgure-

type assures collection of walk data for articulated

body parts present in your Poser ﬁgure.

Note Using a preview Figure Type

slows the real-time preview.

Note The default walk path is a

spline curve with four control

points. You can create a

straight line by deleting the

middle two control points.

Animation Techniques



To save a walk:

1Set up your walk by adjusting the sliders.

2Click Save.

3Choose a location and ﬁlename for your

walk and click Save.

4Click Done to exit the dialog, or click

Apply to apply the walk to a Walk Path.

Loading a Walk

To load a walk:

1Click Load. The Open dialog appears.

2Locate the walk you want to load and

click OK.

Applying a Walk

There are several options you can set when

applying the walk to a Walk Path.The

WalkApplyDialog provides options for setting

where the walk begins, how the walk effects

the animation, and the behavior of the ﬁgure

as it walks.

To display the WalkApplyDialog:

1Choose Window menu> Walk

Designer. The Walk Designer dialog

appears.

2Set your walk characteristics as described

in the previous section and click Apply.

The Walk Apply Dialog appears.

Start Frame and End Frame

When you apply a walk, you can set the frame

where it begins and the frame where it ends.

The more frames you assign for the walk, the

more natural the motion is.

Figure and Path

If you have more than one ﬁgure or path in

the studio, you can use these popup menus to

choose a speciﬁc Figure to use for the walk

and a speciﬁc Path to follow.

Walk In Place

This option makes the ﬁgure walk in a single

spot. When this option is enabled, the ﬁgure

does not walk along the path.

The WalkApplyDialog.



Poser 4

Cycle Repeat

This ﬁeld indicates how many times you want

a walk to repeat along the path.

Always Complete Last Step

This option forces the walk animation to

complete within the allotted time. If you ﬁnd

that the walk stops in mid-stride at the end of

your animation, enable the option. This forces

the walk animation to end at the same time as

your animation.

Transition from/to Path Start

In/End In

These two options can be used to create

smooth motion from your pose into and out

of the walk. When these options are enabled,

Poser interpolates between the pose of the

ﬁgure before the walk, and between the last

position of the walk and the ﬁnal pose

creating smooth transitions.

The frames ﬁelds let you determine how

many frames Poser uses to accomplish the

transition.

For example, you can use this option to

quickly set up a runner animation. You can

create the crouched starting position of the

runner, and a ﬁnish line pose, then enable the

Transition options. When you apply the run

you designed, the ﬁgure moves smoothly from

the crouch, into the run, and then into the

ﬁnish line pose.

Align Head

The Align Head options let you control how

the ﬁgure’s head acts as it moves along the

Walk Path.

One Step Ahead keeps the head aligned

with the body. As the ﬁgure changes direction,

so does the head. This options produces the

most changes in head position.

End of Path keeps the head aligned to the

end point of the path. The head remains

pointed at the end of the path regardless of the

direction of the body.

Next Sharp Turn aligns the head to the

turns in the path. The head only changes

positions when there’s a curve in the path.

Animating Cameras

When the camera is animated, the view of

your scene changes over the course of the

animation. The moving viewpoint adds

interest to the animation. Watch a movie and

pay attention to how much the camera moves.

You may be surprised.

An example of the Transition options used to create

smooth motion.

Animation Techniques



The camera can be animated just like any

other object in the studio, and since it is in 3D

space, the camera can slowly rotate around the

ﬁgures, zoom in for a close-up or sweep high

for a birds-eye-view. The cameras are

animated by storing their properties (such as

position) as part of a keyframe. This means you

can create camera keyframes exactly the same

way you create posing keyframes.

The camera’s motion depends on which

camera you use to render your animation. The

Main Camera rotates around the center of the

studio. The Dolly Camera rotates on its own

center as if it were on a tripod. This difference

allows the Dolly Camera to move through the

scene in ways that are not possible with the

Main Camera. If you want to emulate a

motion picture camera, use the Dolly Camera.

The Face and Hand Cameras rotate around

the face and hand of the ﬁgure, so animating

these cameras gives you moving views of the

ﬁgure’s body parts.

You can only make a movie from one camera.

You can’t switch cameras in an animation or

animate between different cameras. If this is

what you want, you should make separate

clips, then edit them together in a movie

editing application.

Animating the Main Camera—it orbits the studio.

Animating the Dolly Camera allows you to move the

camera to the center of the studio.



Poser 4

Turning Camera

Animation On or Off

By default, every camera movement can be

recorded as a keyframe. But there may be

times when you only want the ﬁgure to be

animated, not the camera. In this case you can

turn camera animation off. When the camera’s

animation if disabled, you can move it freely

during your animation without changing the

view of the studio.

Animation can be turned on or off for each

individual camera. The key-shaped icon in the

Camera controls indicates whether camera

animation is on or off. When the icon is

white, animation is on. When it is red,

animation is off.

If you want to record changes in camera

position while camera animation is off, you’ll

have to manually add a new frame. Refer to

“Adding and Deleting Keyframes” on

page 213 for more on adding frames.

Animating Lights

Like cameras, light properties can also be

recorded into a keyframe. During the course

of an animation, a light can change color and

position. As the lights move, the shadows they

cast move with them.

Animated lighting can produce exciting

effects. You can show a ﬁgure caught in the

headlights of a passing car or a ﬁgure

illuminated by lights in a storm.

Lights are animated by storing the position

and color and of the Light Controls in a

keyframe. This way you can animate a light

exactly as you would a camera or body part.

For lights, the default animation interpolation

is Spline. When animating changing light

colors, use Linear or Break Spline

interpolation. The Spline type of interpolation

can be more difﬁcult to control. Keep in mind

interpolation applies to both light color and

position, they cannot be interpolated

independently.

The Animation indicator.

Animating lights. As light position change, shadows

follow.

Animation Techniques



Adding Sound

Poser lets you import sound clips that can play

as a soundtrack for your animation. When you

import a sound, it is added to the beginning of

the animation and plays every time you play

the movie.

You can control the sound’s start and end

point in the Animation palette.

To import a sound:

1Choose File menu> Import> Sound.

An Open dialog appears.

2Locate the sound ﬁle you want to add and

click Open.

The sound ﬁle is attached to the

animation at the ﬁrst frame. The sound

plays whenever the animation is played.

Editing Sound

When you import a sound, its duration

appears in the Sound Range bar at the bottom

of the Animation palette. You can clip the

sound ﬁle by shortening the length of this

range bar. You can use the bar to control when

the sound begins. However, if the Sound

Range starts at any frame other than Frame 1,

the beginning of the sound is clipped.

For information on accessing the Animation

palette, refer to “Editing Animations” on

page 213.

To clip a sound ﬁle:

•Drag the end of the Sound Range bar to

the left.

Syncing Sound and

Motion

The Graph palette displays a graphic

representation of the sound ﬁle, called a

waveform. This lets you see where the changes

in sound occur. Using this information you

can then position keyframes to happen at the

same time spikes in the sound ﬁle occur.

For information on accessing the Graph

palette, refer to “Editing Keyframe

Interpolation” on page 225.

Sound in the Animation palette.

Sound in the Graph palette.



Poser 4

You can simulate speech using by matching

the peaks in the sound ﬁle with the changes in

mouth position.

To display a waveform in the Graph

palette:

1Display the Graph palette, by click the

Show Graph Display button in the

Animation palette.

2Click the Toggle Sound Display button.

The waveform appears in the palette.

Using Poser with

Other Motion

Graphics Programs

Poser does a great job of animating the human

ﬁgure. However, there are animation

techniques and movie-making tasks that you

can accomplish in other programs.

Typically, you’ll want to create relatively short

animation clips in Poser. You can then open

these clips in another program for post-

production work, like retouching or adding

other animated foreground elements.

After you’ve prepared a series of clips, you can

assemble them in a movie-editing program. At

this point, you can also incorporate the

soundtrack.

In addition, you can render your animation

with an alpha channel. This lets you overlay

your Poser animation in a video composition

application. Refer to “Rendering an

Animation” on page 264 for more on

rendering.

Motion Capture and

Animations

Poser can read stored motion capture ﬁles,

known BVH ﬁles. These ﬁles let you apply

stored human motion to your 3D models.

BVH ﬁles enable you to create incredibly

realistic motion without setting up a large

number of keyframes.

BVH ﬁles are created using motion-capture

hardware. Reﬂectors are attached to a ﬁgure’s

joints. As the ﬁgure moves, the position and

rotation is captured in 3D space at different

points in time. Each point of time is then

keyframed together to create a smooth

animation. Since this process creates literally

thousands of keyframes, no interpolation is

needed to create smooth motion.

Syncing sound and motion.

The Toggle Sound Display button.

Motion

Keyframes

Animation Techniques



Importing and Exporting

Motion Capture Files

BVH ﬁles can be imported and exported like

any other ﬁle type. Sample BVH ﬁles are

stored in the Coolstufﬁnhere!:motion

capture folder on the Poser 4 CD-ROM.

To import a BVH ﬁle:

1Choose File menu> Import> BVH

motion.

The Import dialog appears.

2Locate the desired ﬁle and choose Open.

To export a BVH ﬁle:

1Choose File menu> Export> BVH

motion

This may take several minutes, depending

upon the complexity of the ﬁle.

Setting the Align Axis

You can set whether a ﬁgure’s arms are aligned

on the X or Z axis during the import process.

The align axis is determined at the time of

recording. It is important to choose the right

axis or your ﬁgures will look incorrect.

To determine the correct axis for the BVH

ﬁles on the Poser 4 CD-ROM, read the

Biovision README or the House of Moves

README. If you’re using other BVH ﬁles,

you need to contact the developer of the

motion capture data with which you are

working.

Editing Keyframes

The BVH keyframes are applied to the current

ﬁgure when imported. You can edit BVH

keyframes as you would any other animation.

BVH ﬁle in the Animation palette.

Surface Materials

How Surface Materials

Work

A surface material deﬁnes the surface properties of

an object in the studio. A material can turn a

human ﬁgure into a statue or a glass sculpture.

Surface materials provide fur for animal models or

scales for the reptile models.

Poser provides several features for customizing the

surface of the ﬁgure, props, and ground plane.

These features include Bump maps, Texture maps,

Transparency maps, Reﬂection maps, and surface

material color.

The Bump map determines the shape of bumps or

dents on the object’s surface. It can create the

effect of cracks in rock or raised patterns. The

Texture map determines the patterns of colors on

the surface. The Transparency map determines an

object’s translucence. The Reﬂection map lets you

Surface Materials



make a texture appear to be mirrored in an

object. The surface color determines the base

color of the object and the color of its

highlights.

Poser also provides several map templates that

let you create your own custom surface

material maps.

Surface maps can be used in conjunction to

create a surface. For example, you can use the

Texture map to create the pattern of rock

veins for marble, and a Bump map to create

the cracks in the rock. By combining different

surface material maps you can recreate almost

any type of surface.

Applying Surface

Materials

Surface material maps are applied with the

Surface Material dialog. You can load surface

materials for any object in the studio, as well as

set object, highlight, ambient and reﬂective

colors.

You can select and set surface materials for

objects—ﬁgures and props—in the scene, or

individual body parts on a ﬁgure.

To display the Surface Material dialog:

•Choose Render menu> Materials.

Click the Surface Material button in the

Render Options dialog.

A Bump and Texture map combined.

Texture map Bump map

Transparency map Reﬂection map

Note Surface Material maps do not

appear until a scene is

rendered. For details on

rendering, refer to

“Rendering” on page 259.

The Surface Material dialog.



Poser 4

To choose an object to edit:

•Choose the desired object from the

Object popup. The changes you make in

the surface properties are applied to the

selected object.

To turn off a surface material:

•Choose No Bump and No Texture from

the surface material Map popups.

Applying Materials to

Body Parts

Surface material maps can affect either a

whole ﬁgure or to just a part of it. Some

ﬁgures, like animals and Poser’s People

models, have maps for each individual ﬁgure

part. Other ﬁgures, like the Poser 2 models,

have one map for the entire ﬁgure. The

Surface Material dialog lets you pick the exact

ﬁgure and part to use for a speciﬁc map, so

you can use one map for the head and a

different map for the arm.

The parts listed in the Material popup depend

on the currently selected ﬁgure.

To apply a map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the ﬁgure or object you want to

edit from the Object popup. The changes

you make in surface properties are applied

only to the selected ﬁgure or object.

3Do one of the following:

• To apply a map only to a selected

body part, choose the part from the

Material popup.

• To apply the map to an entire ﬁgure,

enable the Texture Changes apply to

entire ﬁgure checkbox.

4Select a texture, bump, transparency, or

reﬂection map from popup.

If the map you want to apply isn’t listed

in the popup, click Load. Poser default

maps are located in the

Poser:Runtime:Textures folder.

Locate the desired map and click OK.

The surface material map is applied, and

appears when the scene is rendered or

previewed in Texture Shaded style.

An object with different materials on the head and

shirt.

Surface Materials



Applying Materials to

Speciﬁc Regions

You can apply surface materials to speciﬁed

regions of a body part or prop. For example,

you could apply a scar to a face, or hair on a

chest.

To do this, use the grouping tool to select the

polygons of the element or prop. You can

specify a created group, and that group appears

in the Material popup of the Surface Material

dialog.

To use the grouping tool:

1Click the Grouping tool in the Editing

menu.

All ﬁgures and objects in the studio

become gray, and the Group Edit palette

appears.

2Click to select the body part you want to

group.

3Click individual polygons, or drag the

cursor over a group of polygons to select

them.

• To deselect individual polygons, hold

down the Control key while clicking

or dragging.

• To select polygons that are currently

out of view, either use Wireframe

display style or use the camera

trackball to change the view of your

ﬁgure.

4In the Group Edit palette, click the

Assign Material button.

For complete details on the Group Edit

palette, refer to “Using the Group Edit

Palette” on page 158.

5In the dialog that appears, enter a name

for your material group, then click OK.

6Select Render menu> Materials.

7In the Surface Material dialog that

appears, choose the ﬁgure or object for

which you set the material from the

Object popup.

8Choose your material group from the

Material popup.

9Select a texture, bump, transparency, or

reﬂection map from the appropriate

popup.

If the map you want to apply isn’t listed in

the popup, click Load. Poser default maps

are located in the

Poser:Runtime:Textures folder.

Locate the desired map and click OK.

The surface material map is applied, and

appears when the scene is rendered.

A surface material applied to a group.



Poser 4

Applying Maps to Props

Poser uses Implicit (UV) mapping to apply a

map image to the 3D model. The props you

import must have UV coordinate information

for Poser to apply maps to them.

If models don’t have UV information,

mapping is not possible. DXF models and

models created in certain programs do not

carry UV data. Try using another format, such

as Wavefront OBJ, Detailer text, or 3DMF.

Applying Bump Maps

A Bump map is a special image, wrapped

around the object, that works with the studio

lighting to give the appearance of 3D texture

on an otherwise smooth object. For example,

you can import a crackly surface to give the

ﬁgure the look of a cracked statue. Or, by

importing different Bump maps onto different

ﬁgure parts, you can create effects like a rough

shirt on smooth skin.

Bump maps can also enhance the appearance

of props. For example, making smooth bars

into stone columns or a torus into a tire tube.

Bump maps appear when a scene is rendered

or previewed in Texture Shaded style.

To load the default Bump map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the default map for this ﬁgure

type from the Bump Map popup. For

example, if you’re using the Nude Man,

choose the Nude Man texture. You may

need to load a map. Do do this, click

Load, then select a directory and ﬁle in

the dialog that appears. Poser default

maps are located in the

Poser:Runtime:Textures folder.

3Adjust the position of the Bump Strength

slider, to set the level of surface relief. The

range is from -100% to 100%. Negative

values invert the bump—what was raised

becomes depressed.

To clear the Bump map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose No Bump from the Bump Map

popup.

Not all ﬁgures and props have Bump

maps, but you can create them for any

ﬁgure or prop.

Creating a Custom

Bump Map

A Bump map is a grayscale image that Poser

uses to determine which areas of a surface are

indents and which are bumps. You can create a

Bump map from any grayscale image.

A ﬁgure with different Bump maps applied to the

hand and shirt.

Surface Materials



Using a grayscale image, you can create a

surface “terrain.” The darker you paint, the

more depression you create on the surface of

the object. Use 50% gray for medium

depressions and solid black for deep

indentations. Save your bump map document

as a PICT (Macintosh), TIF, or BMP

(Windows) ﬁle. Poser automatically converts

the image into a Bump map, where you can

save it under a new name.

By customizing the Bump map, you can add

wrinkles, buckles, or blemishes. You can use

any type of image. For example, you could

create a Bump map with scales to mutate a

ﬁgure into a reptile.

When creating a custom Bump map, consider

these suggestions:

• Use an 8-bit, gray scale image. The

brightness of a map’s pixels is the only

factor used, and an 8-bit image requires

less memory.

• Bump maps do not require a 1:1 ratio to

the ﬁnal resolution. Increasing the

dimensions does not necessarily improve

deﬁnition in the ﬁnal rendering. It does,

however, require more memory to load,

making Bump maps difﬁcult to load on

some systems.

• If you do increase the image dimensions,

be sure to maintain the proportions.

Keeping this aspect ratio is crucial for

Poser to wrap the image onto an object.

• As you paint a Bump map, use an airbrush

tool or another brush that creates smooth

edges. The smoother the transitions in a

custom map, the smoother the

appearance of your rendered ﬁgure or

object. Hard edges create blocky forms

on a rendered object.

To load a custom Bump map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Click the Load button in the Bump Map

section. An Open dialog appears.

3Select a Bump map (.bum) or image ﬁle.

Using Templates

If you did a complete install, templates are

provided in Poser:Runtime:Textures. If

you didn’t, look for the templates on the

Poser 4 Application CD-ROM in the Textures

folder.

Loading a custom Bump map.

Note If you select an image ﬁle,

Poser asks if you want to

convert it to a Bump map.

Conversion takes a little while;

the status bar on the

Document window displays

the progress.



Poser 4

By editing the maps in this template you can

edit the different parts of the ﬁgure. For

example, you can use an image-editing

application like Painter to paint a grayscale

pattern of the map of the face. When you

apply the template, the edited template

produces bumps on the face.

To apply an edited Bump map

template:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the ﬁgure or object you want to

edit from the Object popup.

3Do one of the following:

• To apply a map to a speciﬁc part,

choose a part from the Material

popup.

• To apply the map to the entire ﬁgure

or object, enable the Texture

Changes apply to entire ﬁgure

checkbox.

4Click the Load button in the Bump Map

section. An Open File dialog appears.

5Locate the edited template ﬁle and click

Open. The bump map is applied to the

ﬁgure, object or part you selected, and

will appear when the scene is rendered.

Applying Texture

Maps

Texture mapping is a 3D technique that wraps

an image around an object to paint its surface.

A real-world parallel to using a Texture map

would be to rip a picture out of a magazine

and physically wrap it around an object, like a

baseball or drinking glass.

Poser’s default Texture maps provide shading

to enhance the appearance of the ﬁgures. You

can create a custom Texture map to change

the fabric of the clothes or to color any other

feature on your ﬁgure.

A sample Texture template.

The Bump map template applied to a ﬁgure.

Face

Front/

Back

Lips

and

Teeth

Eyes and

Eyebrows

ArmsFeetShoes

Pants

Front/

Back

Belt

and

Buckle

Left /Right

Hands

Sweater Front/

Back

Surface Materials



Like Bump maps, different Texture maps can

be applied to different body parts. Using this

technique, you can have a unique pattern on

the shirt of a ﬁgure and a different texture for

the skin tones.

To load the default Texture map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose a Texture map for this ﬁgure type

from the Texture Map popup.

To clear the Texture map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose No Texture from the Texture

Map popup.

Creating a Custom

Texture Map

You have a few options for creating custom

Texture maps. You can use an image or you

can paint your own.

To create a custom Texture map, you need to

create an image ﬁle. When you design your

custom Texture map, you are “painting” the

surface of your Poser ﬁgure. Make a texture or

pattern, or paint a skintight super-suit for a

comic book hero.

When creating Texture maps, keep the

following tips in mind:

• Usually, 8-bit color is all you need for a

Texture map. Images with a color depth

of 16 or 24 bits require more memory,

which can make them difﬁcult to load on

some systems.

• You probably don’t need to increase the

dimensions of the template image. The

template size is good for most uses. If you

do increase the dimensions, be sure to

maintain the proportions. Keeping this

aspect ratio helps Poser wrap the image

onto the ﬁgure.

To load a custom Texture map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2In the Texture Map section, click the

Load button. An Open dialog appears.

3Select your custom Texture map and click

Open.

4Use the Strength slider in the Texture

map section to adjust the intensity of the

Texture map. You can lighten the Texture

map by setting the slider lower.

5Use the Apply Texture to Highlight

checkbox to control whether highlights

are pure (disabled) or combined with the

texture (enabled). When disabled, you can

The Texture map image for the Poser 2 male casual

ﬁgure.



Poser 4

get shiny spots on a black area of the

texture.

Using Templates

If you did a complete install, templates are

provided in Poser:Runtime:Textures. If

you didn’t, the templates can be found on the

Poser 4 Application CD-ROM.

Bump, Texture, Reﬂection, and Transparency

maps are found in the Textures folder. The

templates let you precisely align the image you

paint with the ﬁgure.

The template provides Texture maps for every

available part of a ﬁgure. They contain maps

for everything from teeth to the shoe laces. By

painting on the template, you can edit the

color or pattern of a body part.

When you have modiﬁed the Texture map,

save it as a PICT (Macintosh), TIF (Windows)

or BMP (Windows) ﬁle. Put it in the Poser

Textures folder for easy loading.

To load an edited Texture map

template:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the ﬁgure you want to edit from

the Object popup.

3Do one of the following:

• To apply a map to a speciﬁc part,

choose a part from the Material

popup.

• To apply the map to the entire ﬁgure,

enable the Texture Changes apply to

entire ﬁgure checkbox.

4Click the Load button in the Texture

Map section. An Open dialog appears.

5Locate the edited template ﬁle and click

Open. The texture is applied to the

ﬁgure.

6If you edited other body parts, choose the

body part you want to change from the

Materials popup.

7Click the Texture Map Load button again

and load the edited template ﬁle.

8Continue selecting body parts and

loading the template ﬁle, until all the

body parts on your ﬁgure have the

desired Texture map. The textures will

appear when you render the scene.

The Texture map template applied to a ﬁgure.

Surface Materials



Applying

Transparency Maps

Transparency allows light pass through a ﬁgure

or object, so you can see through it. The

higher a transparency value, the more of the

surrounding environment is visible through

the object’s surface. If no light is reﬂected on

an object, a 100% Transparency Min and Max

makes it invisible.

Use transparency maps for interesting effects

in your creations. For example, you can create

ghost-like characters in a scene, with

transparent bodies mapped with patterns or

textures.

When a transparency map is applied to an

object, its texture interferes with the

transparency of the object. For example, a

checkerboard map results in an object that is

alternately transparent and solid. You can thus

use textures as transparency maps.

To load a Transparency map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose a Transparency map for this ﬁgure

type from the Transparency Map popup.

To clear the Transparency map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose No Transparency from the

Transparency Map popup.

Creating a Custom

Transparency Map

You have a few options for creating custom

Transparency maps. You can use an image or

you can paint your own. When creating

Transparency maps, use an 8-bit, gray scale

image; do not use color. The brightness of a

map’s pixels is the only factor that matters, and

an 8-bit image requires less memory.

To load a custom Transparency map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the ﬁgure you want to edit from

the Object popup.

3Do one of the following:

• To apply a map to a speciﬁc part,

choose a part from the Material

popup.

• To apply the map to the entire ﬁgure,

enable the Texture Changes apply to

entire ﬁgure checkbox.

4In the Transparency Map section, click

the Load button. An Open dialog appears.

5Select your custom Transparency map and

click Open.

The Transparency map applied to a sphere.



Poser 4

Using the Transparency

Sliders

The Transparency Min, Transparency Max,

and Transparency Falloff sliders work together

to determine how an object’s transparency

behaves.

Transparency Min refers to the edges of the

object facing away from the eye. A high

Transparency Min value makes the object very

transparent on its edges.

Transparency Max refers to the part of the

object which points at the eye. A high

Transparency Max value makes the object

very transparent in the center facing the eye.

For most renderings, you’ll want to use a

Transparency Max value that is higher than

the Transparency Min value.

Transparency Falloff determines the rate at

which the transparency becomes opaque on

the edges of an object. For a real world

example, look at a transparent object such as a

drinking glass. The edges of the glass are less

transparent than the rest of the surface. This is

where transparency of the glass “falls off”. In

Poser, you can vary this falloff behavior. A

smaller value renders a smaller falloff band,

while a larger value renders a wider band

If the Transparency Min and Max values are

the same, there is no falloff in the rendering.

Applying Reﬂection

Maps

Reﬂection makes a ﬁgure or object direct

light back at its source, giving it a mirrorlike

appearance. A Reﬂection map is a 2D texture

applied to a virtual sphere that surrounds your

studio. The texture is then reﬂected from the

studio and onto your object.

Reﬂection maps can be applied to different

objects and body parts. For example, you

could create a space alien and apply a mirror-

like reﬂection map to the head, or the entire

body.

Lower and higher Transparency Min values.

Transparency Min at

a higher value

Transparency Min at

a lower value

Three different falloff rates.

A Reﬂection map applied to a ﬁgure.

Surface Materials



To load a Reﬂection map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the ﬁgure you want to edit from

the Object popup.

3Do one of the following:

• To apply a map to a speciﬁc part,

choose a part from the Material

popup.

• To apply the map to the entire ﬁgure,

enable the Texture Changes apply to

entire ﬁgure checkbox.

4Click the Reﬂection Map popup to

choose a Reﬂection map.

5Use the Strength slider in the Reﬂection

map section to adjust the intensity of the

map. The higher the value, the more

reﬂective the surface. At 50%, half the

light that hits the object is reﬂected. At

100%, all light is reﬂected.

6Control the intensity of the reﬂection

with these checkboxes:

• The Multiply through lights

checkbox reduces the reﬂection’s

intensity based on how the ﬁgure is

lit by the lights. This is an easy way to

add subtlety to the lighting.

• The Multiply through Object Color

checkbox reduces the reﬂection’s

intensity by multiplying its result

through the object’s color. So, for

example, a red object would get a

reddish reﬂection instead of the raw

color from the reﬂections map.

7To add a Reﬂective Color, click its

button. Choose a color from the color

picker dialog, then click OK. The

reﬂective color appears when you render

the scene.

To clear the Reﬂection map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose No Reﬂection from the

Reﬂection Map popup.

Reﬂective Color

Reﬂective Color is a tint that is added only

when a reﬂection map is applied. Use the

Reﬂective Color control to create dramatic

effects in your renderings.

To make a highly reﬂective object appear

more vivid, use a variation of the object’s

color. If the object’s color is particularly

bright, you may want to use a darker tint of

the same color. For an unusual tint, use a color

that is distinctly different from the object’s

color.

Creating a Custom

Reﬂection Map

You have a few options for creating custom

Reﬂection maps. You can use an image or you

can paint your own.

When creating Reﬂection maps, keep these

points in mind:



Poser 4

• The image in a reﬂection map is applied

to a virtual sphere and reversed when it is

reﬂected on your object.

• For color reﬂection maps, the hue affects

the tint of the reﬂection and the

brightness determines the amount of

reﬂection. Darker colors result in less

reﬂection; brighter colors result in more

reﬂection.

To load a custom Reﬂection map:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Choose the ﬁgure you want to edit from

the Object popup.

3Do one of the following:

• To apply a map to a speciﬁc part,

choose a part from the Material

popup.

• To apply the map to the entire ﬁgure,

enable the Texture Changes apply to

entire ﬁgure checkbox.

4In the Reﬂection Map section, click the

Load button. An Open dialog appears.

5Select your custom Reﬂection map and

click Open.

Setting Colors

The color of a ﬁgure’s “skin” in a rendering is

determined by the lighting environment and

these surface material factors:

• Object color

• Highlight color

• Ambient color

• Reﬂective color

• The surface material map

These features apply to both ﬁgures and props.

Object Color

The object color is the surface color of the

current ﬁgure or prop. If there is no Texture

map, the object color is the only color of the

ﬁgure—not considering the effect of colored

lights. In a high quality rendering, when a

Texture map is loaded, the object color

inﬂuences the appearance of the Texture map

by coloring it. If you don’t want the Texture

map affected by the object color, set the

object color to white (the default color is tan).

A custom Reﬂection map applied to a prop.

Surface Materials



To set the object color:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Click the Object Color button. The color

picker appears.

3Choose a surface color for the object and

click OK.

You can also set the object color using the

Color tool. Refer to “Using the Color Tool”

on page 139 for more information on the

Color tool.

Texture Maps vs. Object

Color

When a Texture map is loaded, the object

color is used as a multiplier on the Texture

map. What does this mean? The complete

answer is rather technical. The result, however,

is quite simple. The object color inﬂuences the

Texture map in a rendering as though some of

its pigment was washed over the Texture map

image. How much of the pigment depends on

the brightness of the object color—the lighter

the object color, the less pigment is used.

Therefore, when the object color is white, it

has no effect on the Texture map whatsoever.

When the object color is near black, it

obliterates the Texture map; this effect is only

apparent in renderings.

Highlight Color

Highlights are bright areas appearing where

the light is reﬂected directly toward the eye—

or camera. As Poser renders the ﬁgure, it

determines where highlights should occur and

adds the highlight color to the base color at

these points.

In daylight and under most room lights,

highlights are white. To complement the

lighting environment you’ve set, select a color

similar to your main light.

To select the highlight color:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Click the Highlight Color button. The

color picker appears.

3When you’ve chosen a color, click OK.

4To control the size of the highlights,

move the Highlight Size slider. The

default value is 70%. Higher settings

increase the size of the highlight, creating

a dull effect. At 100%, the highlights

overwhelm the ﬁgure. At 20%, the

highlights are small, creating a shiny

effect. At zero, with the highlight color

set to black, no highlights appear

Setting highlight size.



Poser 4

Ambient Color

In Poser, you can set the Ambient color for

each ﬁgure or object individually. An object’s

Ambient color is the color it emits equally in

all directions. It simulates an ambient (overall

room) lighting contribution. Unlike the other

color properties, it acts without taking into

account any light positions or colors.

The Ambient color mixes with the other

lighting properties. Too much ambience

ﬂattens the detail of an object, since it looks

the same no matter how the surface faces

lights. If you want to turn ambient light down

or off, set the Ambient color to gray or black.

If you want more intense ambient light, set

the Ambient color to white or a bright color.

To select the ambient color:

1Choose Render menu> Materials. The

Surface Materials dialog appears.

2Click the Ambient Color button. The

color picker dialog appears.

3When you’ve chosen a color, click OK.

Surface Materials



Rendering

How Rendering Works

Rendering is the process of converting the 3D

view of your ﬁgure into a 2D image. Once you

render an image, you can use it in other image-

editing applications.

Rendering



During the course of a Poser project, you’ll

want to render a number of times to check the

progress of your pose, body shape, camera,

surface material, or lighting changes.

Renderings show more detail, so you see

things in a rendering that aren’t otherwise

apparent. Based on these results, you’ll go

back to posing, body shaping, etc., to adjust

anything that needs improvement. You’ll

probably go back and forth—making changes,

then rendering to check your changes—

several times.

A render mode called Antialias Preview Render

lets you quickly generate an antialiased image

that you can use to check lighting or surface

materials. Refer to “Antialias Rendering” on

page 263 for more on generating previews.

These “check” renderings are typically

displayed in the Document window. You

probably won’t save them. They’re just a by-

product of the work process.

Finally, when you’ve made all the changes you

want, you’ll generate a high-quality rendering

that you will save—either by exporting the

Document window as an image ﬁle or by

rendering to a new window. Rendering an

animation takes longer, depending on the

number of frames it has.

Rendering an animation is similar to

rendering an image; however, instead of

creating one image, you create several—a

separate image for each frame. Render an

animation with Animation menu> Make

Movie. This procedure is covered in

“Rendering an Animation” on page 264.

Renderings do not include guides, with the

exception of the Ground Plane. If you don’t

want to show the Ground Plane, hide it before

rendering.

Setting Up a Render

The Render Options dialog lets you control

the size and attributes of the ﬁnal output

rendering. Render Options include rendered

image size, background color, antialiasing,

shadows, and whether to apply surface

materials, if any have been loaded.

A rendering in progress.



Poser 4

To display the Render Options dialog:

•Choose Render menu> Render

Options. The Render Options dialog

appears.

Setting Render

Destination

By default, renderings appear in the

Document window. Poser clears the image

from the window as soon as you make an

adjustment. This saves on memory and keeps

your Desktop from getting cluttered with

windows.

If you want renderings to go to a separate

window, enable the New Window option.

Future renderings of your scene appear in

separate windows.

To set the render destination:

1Choose Render menu> Render

Options. The Render Options dialog

appears.

2Enable the New Window radio button if

you want to open a new window for a

rendering. Otherwise, enable the Main

Window button and the rendering

replaces the image in the Document

window.

Setting Image Size

When you render to a new window, you can

set the window to any size.

If you’ve imported a background image, Poser

automatically sets the new window to the

dimensions of the background. This is handy

when you’re planning to composite the ﬁgure

with the background.

To render at a particular size:

1Choose Render menu> Render

Options. The Render Options dialog

appears.

2Enable the New Window radio button

and enter the size you want.

You can specify the render size in either

pixels or in inches. Use the popup to

select the units you want.

3Enter either the height or the width for

the rendering; Poser automatically adjusts

the other value to maintain the aspect

ratio of the window.

The Render Options dialog.

Note Renderings always use the

aspect ratio of the Document

window. If you want a different

aspect ratio, resize the

Document window.

Rendering



Choosing a Rendering

Background

By default, Poser renders to the Document

window over the background color or

imported background picture. When you

render to a new window, you can specify

which background is rendered with the

window.

To choose a rendering background:

1Choose Render menu> Render

Options. The Render Options dialog

appears.

2In the Render Over section, enable one

of the three radio buttons. The available

options are:

Background color: The ﬁgure is

rendered over the current background

color. You can change the background

using the color icons on the right side of

the Document window or using the

Color tool.

Black: The pixels on the edge of the

ﬁgure are antialiased darker with a black

background. This is the best option when

you are planning to composite the ﬁgure

with an image in another application.

Background Picture: Poser composites

the rendering of the scene with the

imported background image. This option

is available only when you’ve imported a

background image.

For more information on background

pictures, refer to “Pasting Figures onto

the Background” on page 43 or

“Importing and Exporting” on page 47.

Setting Surface Detail

The Surface detail section of the Render

Options dialog provides options for rendering

features. Disabling these features allows the

rendering engine to work more quickly. In

the ﬁnal rendering, however, you’ll want all

these features turned on.

To set surface detail:

1Choose Render menu> Render

Options. The Render Options dialog

appears.

2In the Surface detail section, click one or

more of the options provided.The

available options are:

Antialias blends the pixels along the edge

of one area with the pixels along the edge

You can render over a background image to add

interest.



Poser 4

of the adjacent area. This creates a softer,

smoother edge.

Use Bump Maps and Use Texture

Maps control whether these surface

material features—if currently loaded—

are used in the rendering. Transparency

and Reﬂection maps are considered

texture maps.

Cast Shadows controls whether Poser

renders the light shadows. Shadows

increase render time, so you may want to

render without them if you’re in a hurry.

Rendering an Image

You can render an image using either the

Render command or one of the preset

rendering options. The Render command

uses the options you set in the Render

Options dialog to render your image, and

should be used to render a ﬁnal image. The

preset rendering options temporarily override

the Render Options parameters. They

produce lower quality renders you can use to

periodically check your work.

Using the Render

Command

The Render command uses all the current

settings in the Render Options and Surface

Material dialogs.

To render a scene:

•Choose Render menu> Render. A

status dialog appears letting you know the

status of your render. When completed, a

new rendered image appears in either the

Document window or a separate

window.

Antialias Rendering

The Antialias Document Render command

temporarily overrides the features set in the

Render Options and Surface Materials

dialogs, and creates an antialiased image from

the Document window. The image is created

using the current display style and lighting.

When you click the Document window, the

antialiased image is replaced by the current

display style.

To make an antialiased rendering:

•Choose Render Menu> Antialias

Document.

Choose Antialiased to create a smooth, high quality

rendering.

Aliased Antialiased

Rendering



Rendering an

Animation

You can make a movie by rendering a Poser

animation as a QuickTime or AVI movie ﬁle.

Poser renders each frame of the animation to a

frame in the output movie.

Typically, you’ll make a movie several times to

check its smoothness and continuity. Each

time, you can go back to your animation ﬁle

and improve the keyframe settings. You can

trash your test movies after viewing them.

Finally, when you’re satisﬁed with the entire

animation, you’ll make the movie at its full

resolution and render settings. This is the ﬁnal

product that you’ll save and open in a post-

production program.

The ﬁgures in the ﬁnal movie are masked in

each frame. This makes it easy to composite

the movie with other images.

Using the Make Movie

Dialog

The Make Movie dialog contains all the

controls you’ll need to set and render an

animation.To make a movie:

1Make sure the current camera is the one

for which the animation was created.

2Choose Animation menu> Make

Movie. The Make Movie dialog appears.

3Enter a name in the Movie ﬁeld.

If you are saving to numbered ﬁles, Poser

automatically appends 4-digit numbering

to the ﬁle name.

4Choose a format for the output movie

from the Sequence Type popup.

• For viewing, use QuickTime or AVI.

These formats are also suitable for

saving a movie for other applications.

• For exporting to a motion graphics

program, you may want to use

numbered PICT (Macintosh), BMP

or TIF ﬁles (Windows). This type of

output allows you to save animations

without any loss of data.

5Choose Full, Half, or Quarter from the

Resolution popup. The smaller the

resolution, the faster the rendering, so

you may want to use smaller resolutions

for test movies.

Set the dimensions of the full sized frame

in the Animation Setup dialog.

6Choose the current display or render

settings from the Quality popup.

If you choose Current Render Settings,

verify that they are set as you want them

before making the movie. Some options,

like antialiasing, increase the rendering

time.

Set movie options in the Make Movie dialog.



Poser 4

7To turn antialiasing on, enable the

Antialias checkbox

8In the Frame Rate section, select one of

the following options:

• To use the frame rate set in the

Animation Setup dialog, enable Use

Movie’s frame rate.

• To use a new frame rate, enable Use

this frame rate, then enter a number.

You can use a lower frame rate,

which renders faster, for test movies.

Frame Rate does not apply to numbered

ﬁles.

9In the Time Span section, enter the

Start and End time of your rendered

animation. This sets the range of frames

that are rendered as the ﬁnal movie.

Poser calculates and displays the number

of frames and duration of your selection.

Usually, you’ll use the entire set of frames.

However, you can select a subset of

frames to check a particular motion.

The Time Span display uses the standard

SMTPE time code format (Hours:

Minutes: Seconds: Frames).

10 Click OK to start the rendering. A Save

dialog appears.

11 Choose a save location. If you’re saving to

numbered ﬁles, you may want to create a

special folder for them.

12 Click Save to proceed.

If you are saving to numbered ﬁles, the

rendering begins.

If QuickTime or AVI is the selected

sequence type, Poser displays the

QuickTime Compression or MS Video

Compression options dialog. Choose

compression options and click OK. This

may take a little while.

Poser renders a frame and displays it in

the QuickTime dialog so you can visually

check compression quality.

For more information about QuickTime

and AVI movie compression options,

consult your operating system’s User

Guide.

Using the Sketch

Designer

Poser’s Sketch Designer renders scenes in a

sketch style drawing. A scene is rendered using

a series of black and white or colored brush

strokes. You can tailor the strokes to your

liking.

The Sketch Designer.

Rendering



Renderings in the Sketch Designer can be

saved and reloaded later. You can also export a

sketch as a Painter script to create rendered

images using the Painter brush libraries.

Finally, you can create amazing animations

which emulate traditional sketching

techniques.

You’ll get the best results from the Sketch

Designer when you render a scene with

considerable detail (such as hair on a ﬁgure)

and dramatic lighting.

The Sketch Designer

Window

To use the Sketch Designer:

•Choose Window menu> Sketch

Designer. The Sketch Designer window

appears.

While a sketch is drawing in the window, you

can click anywhere on the screen to stop the

rendering.

You can customize the controls of the Sketch

Designer window to create your own sketch

styles, or you can choose from several styles in

the Preset Styles popup.

The following sections describe the options

that are available for creating a unique Sketch

Designer.

You can animate sketching techniques with the

Sketch Designer. The Sketch Designer window



Poser 4

Parts of the Scene

You can control the sketch style behavior of

three parts of the scene:

• Click Stroke to edit the sketch style of

any ﬁgures and objects in the scene.

• Click Background to edit the sketch style

of the background.

• Click Edge to edit the sketch style of any

ﬁgures and objects’ edges.

Sliders

You can customize your sketch with the slider

controls. The sliders determine many

characteristics of stroke lines. As you adjust

each slider the sketch is redrawn, so you can

see your results in real time.

Density controls the density of lines in the

sketch.

Line Length deﬁnes the length of strokes.

Min Width deﬁnes the width of the edge of

each stroke. This control affects the brightness

of the original image.

Max Width deﬁnes the width of the center

of each stroke. This control affects the

brightness of the original image.

Lo Brightness determines the band of tone.

A lower setting means lines are drawn only in

the darkest parts of the scene. If the Over

Black option is disabled, set this control to zero

for the best results.

Hi Brightness determines the band of tone.

A lower setting means lines are drawn only in

the darkest parts of the scene. If the Over

Black option is enabled, this control should be

at 1, for best results.

Stroke Head determines the amount each

stroke tapers at its head.

Stroke Tail determines the amount each

stroke tapers at its tail.

Line Random a higher value randomizes the

shape of the lines

Color Random a higher value randomizes

the color of the lines

Opacity determines the clarity of lines.

Lower values create more transparent strokes.

Cross Hatch controls the frequency of cross

hatching in the strokes.

Total Angle determines the amount of angle

change that the whole stroke can go around

before it stops drawing the stroke. A higher

value makes an image darker. When you set

Density at a small value, set Total Angle at a

smaller value.

Color Cutoff determines the threshold of

color change allowed for a stroke. Use this

slider in conjunction with Total Angle.

Light 1, 2, 3 determine how much each of

the ﬁrst three studio lights contributes to the

direction of the strokes. A high value results in

strokes going in the direction of the light.

BG Direction deﬁnes the direction of the

background strokes.

Rendering



Auto Spacing If Auto Density is enabled,

this slider controls the amount of space

between strokes

Color Blend controls the amount of color in

the document window to be blended into the

sketch.

Textured Brushes

You can choose between several texture

brushes in the Sketch Designer window. The

choices are Sharp, Bristles, Very Soft, Soft, Less

Soft, and Slanted. You’ll ﬁnd the effects of

these brushes is most visible when you set the

Min Width and Max Width sliders to higher

values.

Sketch Designer Options

The checkbox options available in the Sketch

Designer window are:

Over Black When enabled, the background

is black and strokes are white. When disabled,

the background is white, and strokes are black

or colored.

Auto Density When enabled, the render

reaches an automatic density based on the

original image, and the Density slider setting

is ignored. When this is disabled, use the

Density slider.

Colored Strokes When enabled, ﬁgures and

objects are rendered in color. When disabled,

no colors appear.

Working with Completed

Sketches

Once you create a sketch, you can save it to

and delete it from the Preset Styles popup. In

addition, you can export your sketches to

Painter scripts.

To save a sketch:

1Choose Create Preset from the Preset

Styles popup.

2Enter a name for your sketch. Poser

automatically attaches a .pzs sufﬁx to the

ﬁlename.

To delete a sketch:

•Choose Delete Preset from the Preset

Styles popup.

To export a sketch to a Painter script:

1In the Sketch Designer, render the scene

to your liking.

2Choose File menu> Export> Painter

Script.

3Choose a save location and name the ﬁle.



Poser 4

Rendering a Sketch

After setting up a sketch, you can render it so

that the sketch appears in your document

window. You’ll ﬁnd this feature useful if you

want to export a movie in sketch style.

To render a sketch in the Document

window:

•Choose Render menu> Sketch Style

Render.

Rendering



Advanced Body

Shaping

Besides the basic shaping tools discussed in

Chapter 5 , “Body Shaping,” you can also

customize the shape of ﬁgures using custom

morph targets and the Joint Parameters palettes.

Advanced Body Shaping



Creating Custom

Morph Targets

As discussed in “Using Morph Targets” on

page 152, morph targets are transitional

changes in the geometry of a ﬁgure that can

be animated over time. Poser now includes a

library of morph targets, and you can build

your own morph targets in Poser as well.

In this section, you’ll learn how to build

custom morph targets in other 3D modeling

applications.

A morph target is a custom Parameter that is

added to a body part so you can gradually

reshape it. A ﬁgure’s geometry can move from

the original shape of the model to the

geometry of the morph target. During the

course of an animation, the model begins to

change shape until it reaches the morph target

geometry.

Setting up Morph

Targets

Morph targets are assigned to individual body

parts. When you set up a Morph Target, a new

Parameters Dial is added to the body part. The

Parameter Dial lets you control the amount of

morphing applied to the body part.

To add a morph target, you create a morph

target geometry that represents the end-point

of the morphing. The morph target geometry

must contain the same number of vertices as

the original body part, so it’s best to use the

original body part as a starting point.

A Morph Target geometry can be created in

any 3D modeling application that saves ﬁles in

Wavefront (OBJ) format. The tutorial later in

this chapter uses Ray Dream Studio 5 to

create a Morph Target geometry. However,

you don’t have to use Ray Dream Studio; any

application where you can edit geometries and

save ﬁles in OBJ format will work

To add a custom Morph Target:

1Select the body part to which you want

to add a morph target.

Choose Object menu> Properties. The

Properties dialog appears.

2Click Add Morph Target.

A Morph Target used to alter ﬁgure geometry.

Element Properties dialog.



Poser 4

The Add Target dialog appears.

3Click Locate to ﬁnd the geometry ﬁle

you want to use as a morph target. The

ﬁle must meet all the following

requirements:

• File must be in OBJ format.

• File must contain the same number

of vertices as the original body part.

• File must contain only the body part

you are morphing. Do not use a ﬁle

of the entire ﬁgure.

The ﬁlename appears in the Geometry

ﬁeld.

4Enter a name. The name appears on the

morph target Parameter Dial for the

selected body part.

5Click OK to return to the Element

Properties dialog. Click OK again to

return to the main window.

A new Parameter Dial is added for the

selected body part. Use this dial to morph

the body part from its original shape to

the morph target. A value of 0.0 for this

dial is the original object. A value of 1.0

changes the body part to the morph

target.

Morph Target Tutorial

This tutorial uses Ray Dream Studio 5 to

create a Morph Target for the head of a ﬁgure.

You’ll make the nose grow like Pinocchio’s.

Lesson 1: Setting Up

To load a ﬁgure geometry into Ray

Dream Studio 5:

1Launch Ray Dream Studio 5.

2Choose File menu> Open.

3In the Open dialog that appears, click the

Format popup and choose Wavefront.

4Select the folder Poser 4: Runtime:

Geometries: newMaleCasHi.

5Select the ﬁle newMaleCasHi.obj and

click Open.

6Use the default settings for the OBJ

import dialog and click OK.

Add Shape Interpolation Target dialog.

Note Important: For this tutorial to

work correctly, you must have

installed the new OBJ import/

export plug-in and mesh form

modeler for Ray Dream Studio

5.0.2, which is included with

Poser 4.

Advanced Body Shaping



The ﬁgure loads into the perspective view

and into the timeline with the name

lFoot.

To edit the ﬁgure’s geometry:

1Select the ﬁgure newMaleCasHi in the

Timeline.

2Click to select the ﬁgure in the

perspective window, then choose Edit

menu> Jump In.

3Click the Selection tool.

4Click away from the object to make sure

there are no vertices selected.

5Double-click in the ﬁgure’s head.

The entire head is selected. This may take

a while.

6With the head selected, choose

Selection menu> Invert to select

everything but the head.

The newMaleCasHi geometry, as shown in the

Perspective window.

The newMaleCasHi geometry, shown in the mesh

form modeler.

The newMaleCasHi ﬁgure with head selected.



Poser 4

7Press the delete key.

8Click the Zoom tool.

9Drag a marquee around the head.

10 To switch to the left view, choose View

menu> Preset Position> Left. This

makes the model easier to deform.

Lesson 2: Creating the

Morph Target

To deform the geometry:

1Click the Sphere of Attraction tool.

The default size, 4 inches, is too large for

Poser ﬁgures. Compared to standard Ray

Dream Studio units, Poser ﬁgures are

very small. However, do not change the

geometry size other than in the manner

you want to morph it.

If, for example, you increase the size of

the entire head, the size increase is

included in the morph target. This is also

true of the position relative to the center.

In some cases, that may be the effect you

The body is deleted.

Enlarged view of the head.

Left view of head.

Advanced Body Shaping



are seeking. In this case, however, you just

want to increase the size of the nose.

2If the Properties palette is not already

open, choose Windows menu>

Properties.

3Change Radius of Sphere unit setting

from inches to millimeters.

4Change the Radius of Sphere value to 1

millimeter.

5Click on the tip of the nose and drag to

the right. You have now created a morph

target.

6Click the Done button in the lower-left

corner of the window.

To save the new morph target ﬁle:

1Choose File menu> Save As.

The Save As dialog appears.

2In the Format popup, choose Wavefront.

3Change the name to nosemorph.obj and

save the ﬁle in the same folder as the

original, newMaleCasHi.

4Click OK.

A dialog appears warning you that saving

out of Ray Dream Studio format may

result in loss of information.

5Click OK to continue.

6Choose File menu> Close to exit Ray

Dream Studio.

The Properties palette.

The deformed newMaleCasHi head.



Poser 4

Lesson 3: Using the

Target in Poser

To add a morph target in Poser:

1Launch Poser.

2From the Figures category of the

Libraries palette, choose the People sub-

category, if it’s not already selected.

3Double-click the Casual Man preview.

The ﬁgure appears in the Document

window.

4Click the Face Camera icon in the

Camera Controls.

5Select the Head, and choose Object

menu> Load Morph Target.

6In the Add Target dialog that appears,

locate and open the ﬁle Poser:

Runtime: Geometries:

newMaleCasHi: nosemorph.obj.

7Enter “Nose” in the label ﬁeld. This

assigns the name “Nose” to the new

Parameter Dial.

8Click OK.

The People sub-category.

The Casual Man in the Document window.

The Face Camera icon.

Advanced Body Shaping



9Use the rotation trackball to rotate the

view slightly to the left or right.

10 Click to select the Head.

11 Drag the Nose Parameter Dial to the

right toward 1.0.

Your morph target is complete.

Figure Joints and

Blend Zones

The joints on a ﬁgure control how parts bend,

blend, twist, and bulge. Realistic movement in

a ﬁgure is controlled by joint settings. For

example, a human knee joint can’t bend

forward.

A ﬁgure’s bending and twisting motion is

created using transformers. Transformers

stretch, skew, or scale polygons in the

transformation zones to produce desired joint

motion.

The transformation zone is deﬁned by the

inclusion and exclusion angles assigned to

each transformation. Polygons in the

exclusion angle are not affected by a

transformation, while polygons in the

A rotated view of the ﬁgure.

The morphed Nose.

An example of ﬁgure joints.



Poser 4

inclusion angle are affected. In the area

between the angles, or blend zone, polygons

are adjusted to create a smooth transition

between the surrounding polygons.

Joints are controlled using the Joint

Parameters palette. Blend zones are edited

each time you adjust the transformation

inclusion and exclusion angles. Blend zones

can be further reﬁned using Spherical Falloff

zones.

Editing Joint Parameters

The Joint Parameters palette lets you control

both joints and blend zones. You can directly

manipulate joints and blend transformers to

set how a joint works. These advanced settings

can be used to:

• Fine tune the bending of existing ﬁgures

to suit your needs

• Create new types of effects, such as

imitating ‘Mr. Fantastic’ from the

Fantastic Four comics

• Customize joints and transformers for

creating your own new figures

Refer to “Creating Custom Figures” on

page 301 for more information on creating

Poser ﬁgures.

Each joint on a ﬁgure has a set of attributes,

like Bend, Twist, or Side-to-side. The

attributes available for editing depend upon

which joint is selected. Editable attributes are

displayed in the popup at the top of the

palette.

To edit a joint’s parameters, you ﬁrst select a

joint attribute and then set each of its

parameters. Each attribute has a speciﬁc set of

parameters that control how the attribute

affects the joint. For example, the parameters

for the Center attribute let you control the

exact position of the center point.

An example of blend zones.

Note Before making any changes to

a Joint Parameter, turn all IK

Chains off. It is also easier to

see some attributes, such as

the center, if you view them in

outline or wireframe display

mode. If your computer is fast

enough, use Full Tracking to

see the results of your changes

in real-time.

Advanced Body Shaping



To display the Joint Parameters palette:

•Choose Window menu> Joint Editor.

The controls available on the Joint

Parameters palette depend on the

currently selected body part or prop.

To edit a joint parameter:

1Select a body part.

2Display the Joint Parameters palette.

3Select an attribute from the popup at the

top of the palette.

4Set the attribute’s parameters.

Using the Joint

Parameters Palette

The Joint Parameters palette contains several

controls to set attributes for a joint. Although

the controls change for different body parts,

the controls common to all body parts are:

Display Deformer: Toggles the graphical

display of the joint on a ﬁgure.

Zero Figure: Resets to 0 the rotation (Bend,

Twist, Side-Side, Front-Back) for all body

parts.

Use Spherical Falloff Zones: Toggles on or

off the Spherical Falloff Zones on a ﬁgure.

Refer to “Spherical Falloff Zones” on

page 287 for more on falloff zones. The Use

Spherical Falloff Zones control appears on all

attributes except the Center attribute.

Interactively Editing

Joint Parameters

When you select a joint attribute from the

popup in the Joint Parameters palette, a

graphical representation of the parameter

appears on a ﬁgure. For example, when you

select the Twist attribute for the leg, a red and

green line appears on the leg.

Center

A body part’s center becomes the outline of

the selected target when you can edit it.

The Joint Parameters palette.

Attribute popup



Poser 4

Twist

When you select the Twist attribute, a line

with two handles appears on the ﬁgure. The

red handle represents the starting point of the

twist transformation area, and the green

handle represents the end. Dragging these

handles increases or decreases the Twist area.

Editing Inclusion and

Exclusion Angles

When using Bend or Side-Side/Front-Back,

the red lines represent the exclusion angle,

while the green lines represent the inclusion

angle.

Polygons in the exclusion angle are not

affected by a transformation. Polygons in the

inclusion angle are affected by the

transformation. The area between the

inclusion and exclusion angles is the Blend

zone.

To edit inclusion and exclusion angles:

1Move the cursor to an end point of the

exclusion or inclusion angles until the

cursor changes to a target symbol.

2Drag the angle. If you’re using full

tracking, the effects of your change are

shown as you drag.

Inclusion and exclusion angles exist in three

dimensions, so you can rotate a figure to see

all the areas affected by the transformation.

You can also edit angles in all three

dimensions.

To make sure you’re moving an angle in only

one dimension, use the orthogonal cameras.

For example, using the From Front camera,

moving left and right moves in x. Moving up

and down moves in y. With the From Left

view, left and right move in z, and up and

down move in y.

Bend

To adjust the Bend transformation area, drag

the end-points of the red or green angle. To

change the center of the body part, drag the

center point target.

Side-Side/Front-Back

Like the Bend attribute, both the Side-Side

and Front-Back attributes are edited by

dragging the inclusion and exclusion angle

lines.

A Twist attribute displayed graphically on the ﬁgure.

Advanced Body Shaping



Joint Attributes

Each joint on a body part has a number of

parameters that together control how the joint

moves.

Center

The Center Attribute sets the center of

rotation for a selected body part. This attribute

is available for all body parts and props.

The parameters of the Center attribute are:

Center Point: Sets the XYZ position of the

center of the body part. 0,0,0 is located in the

center of the body on the ﬂoor.

Orientation: Sets the XYZ rotation of the

axis. Click and drag a dial to rotate the axis.

Option/Alt-click a dial to reset it to 0.

Align: Aligns the axis to the rotation of the

body part.

Twist

The Twist attribute alters the location of the

twist transformer for each body part. The

intensity of the transformation is controlled

using the Twist Parameter Dial or Twist tool.

There is not a Twist attribute for the hip, since

it is the parent of the entire ﬁgure. Twisting

the parent is the same as rotating the entire

ﬁgure. When IK is enabled, twisting the hip

transforms body parts included in the IK

chains.

The Center attribute.

The Twist Attribute.



Poser 4

By default, the Twist axis runs lengthwise

down the center of each body part. For

example, for arms, the twist axis is the x-axis,

while for legs the twist axis is the y-axis.

Moving and rotating the center of a body part

can alter the position of this axis.

The parameters of the Twist attribute are:

Twist Start, Twist End: Sets the start and

end of a twist area on a body part. Only the

body parts in the twist area are affected by the

twist transformation.

Twist areas can be made larger than the body

part to make a twisting motion appear more

natural. In most cases, you want to include the

body part’s parent.

Bend

The parameters for the Bend attribute alter

the angles of the bend transformers and deﬁne

how bulges are created.

The parameters of the Bend attribute are:

Center Point: Sets the XYZ position of the

center of the body part. Bending occurs at the

center point. Changing that point changes the

center of the body part.

Joint Angles: Set inclusion and exclusion

angles for the Bending transformation. The

values in Static A and D together set the

exclusion angle. Polygons in the exclusion

The Twist axes on the body.

The Bend attribute.

Advanced Body Shaping



angle are not affected by the bending. The

values in Dynamic B and C together set the

area of inclusion. Polygons in the inclusion

angle are affected by the bending.

Apply Bulges: When enabled, these

parameters control how polygons in the bend

zone are stretched or pinched to create bulges

or wrinkles. Right and Left dials refer to the

sides of the ﬁgure. Neg and Pos dials refer to

negative or positive values for the rotation of

the attribute (for example, a positive value for

the Bend attribute creates bulges as set by the

Right and Left positive bulge dials). Option/

Alt-click these dials to reset them to 0.

Side-Side/Front-Back

The parameters for the Side-Side/Front-Back

attributes control angles of the Side-Side/

Front-Back transformers and deﬁne how

bulges are created.

The angles of inclusion and exclusion on a body

part.

Differences in bulges and wrinkles when the body

part center is changed.

The Side-Side attribute.



Poser 4

The Side-Side/Front-Back attributes have the

following parameters:

Center Point: Sets the XYZ position of the

center of the body part. Side-Side

transformations occurs at the center point.

Joint Angles: Set inclusion and exclusion

angles for the Side-Side transformation.

Apply Bulge: When enabled, these

parameters control how polygons in the Side-

Side transformation zone are stretched or

pinched to create bulges or wrinkles.

Scaling

Each body part has parameters that let you

scale the parent and child body parts. The

settings are similar to the Twist parameters,

and follow the Twist axis of the child or parent

body part.

For example, the Right Collar of the Business

Man has scaling controls for the chest (the

parent body part) along the y-axis, and scaling

controls for the Right Shoulder (the child

body part) along the x-axis.

High End/Start, Low Start/End: The

High and Low parameters deﬁne a blending

area. For example, when scaling the head you

may also want the top of the neck to scale.

When setting this parameter, only one pair of

settings—the high or the low setting—is

relevant. The unused parameter pair is

automatically set to an out-of-limit number

The Front-Back attribute.

The Scaling attribute.

Advanced Body Shaping



(such as 100.000 or 99.000). This indicates

that the pair is not relevant to the area you

have selected for blending. The out-of-limit

settings should not be edited.

The end of each blending zone is represented

in red, while the start is represented in green.

The effects can be uniform, or can be

controlled by spherical falloff zones. Refer to

“Spherical Falloff Zones” on page 287 for

more information.

Copying Joint Parameters

You can copy joint parameters from one half

of a ﬁgure to the other using the Symmetry

command.

To copy joint parameters:

1Choose Figure menu> Symmetry>

choose an option. A dialog appears asking if

you want to copy the joint zone’s setup

also.

2Click Yes to include joint parameters.

Saving Joint Parameters

Changes to joint parameters affect only the

current scene. To save joint parameter changes,

you must either save your scene, or save the

ﬁgure in the Libraries palette. Refer to

“Saving to the Libraries Palette” on page 34

for details on saving ﬁgures to the Libraries

palette.

The effects of High/Low scaling.



Poser 4

Spherical Falloff Zones

Spherical Falloff Zones are an advanced

method for controlling blending between

body parts. Two spheres, a green “inner”

sphere and a red “outer” sphere represent the

falloff zones.

The green sphere deﬁnes the area that is 100%

affected by the transformation. The red sphere

represents the boundary of the transformer’s

effect. The area between the inner and outer

sphere is the “blending” zone. The effects of

the transformation gradually decrease from

100% at the boundary of the inner sphere to

0% at the boundary of the outer sphere.

When adding Spherical Falloff Zones, the

default position of the sphere is 0,0,0.

Displaying Spherical Falloff

Zones

Spherical Falloff Zones can be selected and

displayed using any display mode. To change

the display mode for a sphere, select Element

Styles from the Display menu, then select a

mode. The default display mode for these

spheres is outline.

Wireframe mode lets you view the spheres in

3D and still see the body parts they surround.

Editing Spherical Falloff

Zones

Spherical Falloff zones can be edited using any

of the Edit tools. You can reposition, scale,

rotate, or twist Spherical Falloff zones.

Spherical Falloff Zones.

A Spherical Falloff Zone viewed in Wireframe

mode.

Advanced Body Shaping



Hierarchies

How Hierarchies Work

In order to display a ﬁgure in the Workspace,

Poser must interpret information about the

ﬁgure’s geometry and body part parameters. This

information allows Poser to create bendable joints

between parent and child objects.

A scene’s hierarchy describes the parent-child

relationships of all objects in the scene. Body parts

or props that are physically located at a seam are

generally contained either in a parent object or a

child object. Data like rotation order and IK

relationships are also deﬁned in the scene’s

hierarchy.

A Poser document hierarchy contains:

• A list of everything in the scene’s universe,

including ﬁgures, body parts, props, lights,

and cameras

Hierarchies



• Hierarchical connections (parent-child

relationships) for scene objects

• Parameters, including rotation,

translation, Morph Targets, and Point At

parameters.

• Any Inverse Kinematics (IK) chains of a

ﬁgure

In Poser 4, you can work directly with a

scene’s Hierarchy. The Hierarchy Editor

displays everything in your Poser scene—all

the ﬁgures, lights, cameras, and props

currently in the studio.

With the Hierarchy Editor, you can:

• Select elements in your scene. When you

select an item in the Hierarchy Editor, it

is selected in the Document Window,

Objects List, and Graph Palette.

• Double-click on an object to bring up its

Object Properties.

• Set element visibility. Quickly hide body

parts, props, or deformers.

• Rename or delete elements and

parameters such as morph targets or Point

At parameters.

• Set up or change parent-child

relationships for props.

• Set up Inverse Kinematics (IK) chains.

• Change rotation order for props or body

parts.

• Create new ﬁgures. Refer to “Creating

Custom Figures” on page 301 for more

information.

Using the Hierarchy

Editor

The Hierarchy Editor displays a hierarchical

listing of everything in your Poser document’s

universe. You can contract this list to show

only the parent elements in your scene,

expanded elements to show their children,

and expand objects to display their parameters.

Depending upon what you want to select or

modify, you can display it in the Hierarchy

Editor.

To display the Hierarchy Editor:

•Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor. The Hierarchy Editor appears.

Using the Hierarchy Editor, you can easily expand/

collapse scene elements.



Poser 4

Controlling what is

Displayed

You can control what displays in the

Hierarchy Editor by selecting display options

at the top of the Editor. Options indicate

what type of scene objects are in the hierarchy

view.When the Hierarchy Editor ﬁrst opens, a

default set of options are checked.

To set the Hierarchy Editor display:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Click a display option to display or not

display certain scene elements.

An X appears in the box beside a selected

display option.

Display options are:

•Show Figures: display all ﬁgures in

the document

•Show Cameras: display all cameras

• Show Parameters: display object

parameters

• Show All Parameters: display all

parameters, as well as a few special

scene level elements, like inner and

outer scene boundaries

•Show Props: display all props in the

scene, including the ground plane

•Show Deformers: display Magnets,

waves, and Morph Targets

•Show Lights: show all lights in the

scene

Collapsing the Hierarchy

Editor

Scenes contain scene elements, including

body parts, props, deformers, cameras, and

lights. This can make for a very long

Hierarchy Editor listing. You can collapse

elements in the list to save space or expand

them to show more detail. When not working

with a particular ﬁgure, you can collapse its

listing. This shortens the Hierarchy Editor list

and makes other objects easier to locate.

To collapse/expand a listing:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Click the minus icon next to an object to

collapse it. The icon changes to a plus

when the element is collapsed.

3Click the plus icon next to an object to

expand it. The icon changes to a minus

when the element is expanded.

Use the display options at the top of the Hierarchy

Editor to control what is displayed.

Hierarchies



Selecting Objects

You can select an object in the Hierarchy

Editor. Selecting an object here is equivalent

to selecting it in the Document Window,

choosing it in the Current Element pop-up at

the bottom of the Document window, or

selecting it in the Graph or Animation palette.

To select an object in the Hierarchy

Editor:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Click the object you wish to select.

As you select an object, notice that it is

now also selected in the Document

Window.

Deleting Objects

You can delete ﬁgures, props, and lights in the

Hierarchy Editor. You cannot delete Poser

ﬁgure body parts, cameras, or the ground.

You can delete Morph Targets and Point At

parameters in the Hierarchy Editor. You

cannot delete other object parameters.

To delete objects in the Hierarchy

Editor:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select the object you want to delete.

3Press the Delete/del key to delete that

object.

To delete a group of objects in the

Hierarchy Editor:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select the objects you want to delete.

Click on an object to select it.

Note You cannot delete just a body

part. If you select and delete a

body part, it deletes the entire

ﬁgure, just as it would in the

Document Window.



Poser 4

Renaming Objects

You can rename objects, making it easier to

identify speciﬁc body parts and props.

To rename an object:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Double-click on the name of the object

that you want to rename.

3Type in a new name for the object.

Reordering Objects

Figures

You can reorder props and Deformers in the

Hierarchy Editor. Reordering Deformers can

be useful, especially when they appear at the

bottom of the Hierarchy listing. You cannot

establish new parent-child relationships for

Poser ﬁgure body parts.

You can reorder morph targets and rotation

parameters (yrotate, zrotate, xrotate) for ﬁgure

body parts. Rotation order affects how a body

part twists or bends. By default, Twist is the

top rotate parameter.

Props, Deformers, Lights,

and Cameras

You can move Deformers and Morph Targets

in the Hierarchy Editor.

You can reorder prop rotation parameters.

Rotation order affects how a prop twists or

bends. You can also do translations for props.

Because the order in which rotation

parameters are interpreted is important, be

careful should you decide to reorder them.

You can reorder prop, light, or camera Point

At parameters. These parameters also appear at

the bottom of the Hierarchy Editor list.

Note Be extra careful should you

decide to change rotation order,

because you can get unexpected

results.

Rotation parameter order affects how ﬁgure body

parts twist and bend.

Hierarchies



Displaying Object

Properties

You bring up the properties dialog for an

object right from the Hierarchy Editor.

Accessing object properties from the

Hierarchy Editor can be a real time saver.

To bring up the properties dialog from

the Hierarchy Editor:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Double-click an object in the Hierarchy

Editor listing to display its Object

Properties.

Changing Object

Visibility

You can change object visibility in the

Hierarchy Editor. When you change object

visibility in the Hierarchy Editor, it’s the same

as changing it in the Object Properties dialog

for that object.

Changing object visibility right in the

Hierarchy Editor can also be a great time

saver. It’s a great way to hide Magnet

Deformers from view while you inspect the

results of the Deformer. Changing object

visibility is also a fast way to hide body parts.

For example, when you load Poser 4 clothing

into a scene, it may be necessary to hide some

body parts so that they don’t show through the

clothing. This is especially true for tight-ﬁtting

clothing. With the Hierarchy Editor, you can

quickly make body parts invisible.

To change object visibility:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Click the Eye icon next to the object to

toggle visibility on and off. When the Eye

is grey, the object is invisible.

To change visibility for a group of

objects:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Press Opt/Alt while you click the

Visibility Eye for an object. This turns

Double-click on an object to display Object

Properties for that object.



Poser 4

visibility on/off for that item and all its

children objects.

Establishing

Hierarchical

Relationships

A ﬁgure in Poser 4 is essentially a 3D model

that has separate parts for each moving body

part. What makes a Poser model unique is

how it interacts with the controls in Poser. A

3D model in Poser has joints that move

realistically, as in a real person.

Poser mirrors real body movement by adding

joint parameters to each body part. This allows

you to manipulate the ﬁgure based on those

parameters. You can then create realistic

motion, using Parameters Dials or the Walk

Designer.

You can change parent-child relationships

between the ﬁgures you’ve created and set up

parent-child relationships for props. You

cannot, however, reorder or change parent-

child relationships for Poser ﬁgures. Refer to

“Creating Custom Figures” on page 301 for

more about creating new ﬁgures. Refer to

“Establishing Hierarchical Relationships” on

page 295 for more about setting up parent-

child relationships.

When you bring a geometry into Poser, the

Hierarchy Editor displays a Universe, followed

by a list of props. Scene hierarchy relates what

should move with what, i.e., children move

when their parent moves.

When you create a ﬁgure from the geometry,

Poser uses hierarchy information, to create

joints necessary for ﬁgure posing. Unless the

ﬁgure was created using standard body group

names, you’ll have to manually establish

parent-child relationships and establish a

hierarchy order. Refer to “Applying the

Standard Hierarchy” on page 299 for more

about applying the Standard Hierarchy to

ﬁgures created with standard group names.

Opt/Alt click the Visibility Eye for an object to reset

visibility for that object and all objects indented

under it in the Hierarchy Editor list.

Note You see changes in child/parent

relationships when IK is On verses

when IK is Off.

Hierarchies



To create a parent-child relationship:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Drag the intended child prop onto the

root object, that is, the intended parent.

A white box highlight surrounds a valid

parent object when the child object is

correctly positioned on top of it. In

addition, the mouse cursor indicates

when it is OK to drop an object.

3Release the child object when the box

highlights the intended parent object.

To reorder objects at the same

hierarchical level:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select the prop object you want to

reorder.

3Drag the object to the desired level.

A box highlight surrounds the intended parent

object when the child object is correctly positioned.

The Hierarchy Editor after dropping the child object

onto the intended parent object.



Poser 4

A line is displays immediately before/after

the target object, indicating where the

object will be inserted.

4Release the object to insert it in its new

position.

A line is displayed immediately before/after the

target object, indicating where the object will be

inserted when dropped.

After moving an object to the same hierarchical

level as the target object.

Hierarchies



Creating Multi-Figure

Hierarchies

When posing more than one ﬁgure, you may

want to tie the movement of one ﬁgure to

another ﬁgure. You accomplish this by setting

up a parent-child relationship.

For example, if you pose a female ﬁgure on a

horse, you can make the female ﬁgure a child

of the horse. This way, when the horse (the

parent) moves, so does the female ﬁgure (the

child).

You can attach the child to the entire parent

ﬁgure or to just a portion of it. Continuing

with the example, you can make the female

ﬁgure a child of the whole horse or just the

horse’s abdomen.

Once a parent-child relationship is set up, any

rotation, translation, or twisting performed on

the parent ﬁgure also applies to the child

ﬁgure or prop.

To set up a multi-ﬁgure relationship in

the Hierarchy Editor

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select the ﬁgure you want to use as the

child.

3Drag the body of the child ﬁgure onto

the intended parent. A box highlight

indicates a valid drop location.

To set up a multi-ﬁgure relationship

outside the Hierarchy Editor:

1Click the Current Figure pop-up beneath

the Document window and choose the

ﬁgure you want to use as the child.

2Click the Current Element pop-up and

choose Body to select the entire ﬁgure.

3Choose Figure menu> Set Figure

Parent. The Set Parent dialog appears.

4Select the body part from the hierarchy

selection in the Set Figure Parent dialog.

5Click OK to close the dialog.

Set up a parent-child relationship so ﬁgures can be

posed together.



Poser 4

Applying the

Standard Hierarchy

It doesn’t matter how you create the geometry

for a new ﬁgure. You can create it in Poser by

grouping and saving groups as new Poser

props. You can create individual ﬁgure parts in

another software application and join them

together in the Hierarchy Editor.

Regardless of how the geometry was created,

when you introduce it into Poser, the

Hierarchy Editor displays a Universe, followed

by a list of props or a single prop with groups.

If, however, you created your ﬁgure geometry

using standard body group names for human/

bi-ped ﬁgures, you can use the Hierarchy

Editor to automatically apply the Poser

Standard Hierarchy to your ﬁgure. Applying

the Standard Hierarchy establishes parent-

child hierarchy in one pass. Poser can apply

the Standard Hierarchy to full or partial

ﬁgures. Refer to “Naming Groups” on

page 306 for more about creating ﬁgures with

standard body group names.

To apply the Poser Standard Hierarchy

to a ﬁgure:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select the Universe.

3Click the Apply Standard Hierarchy

button.

Applying Standard

Rotation Order

If the props for human/bi-ped ﬁgures use

standard body part names, Poser can

automatically apply the standard rotation

settings for each prop.

To apply standard rotation to a ﬁgure:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select Universe.

3Click the Apply Standard Rotation Order

button to apply the standard Poser

rotation settings to body parts.

Setting Inverse

Kinematics

Kinematics is the study of motion, velocity,

rotation, and position. In terms of jointed

structures, like an arm or leg, forward

kinematics calculates how actions at the root

of the structure affect the position and

Note The Apply Standard Hierarchy

button is not available unless the

universe is selected.

Using the Apply Standard Hierarchy button in the

Hierarchy Editor automatically maps the parent-

child relationships for your ﬁgure.

Hierarchies



rotation of those at the end. For example,

when you raise your arm, your hand

automatically moves to a new position and

rotation.

Inverse Kinematics (IK) uses the same kind of

dependency, but in reverse. The extremity

moves, and IK determines how the objects

joined to it (closer to the root) responds to

support the new placement. For example, if

someone was to grab your hand and push,

your arm would automatically bend at the

elbow, while your shoulder would stay ﬁxed in

position.

Poser supports IK for any limb. When IK is

on, you can translate the hands and feet and

achieve appropriate arm and leg positions

automatically. In Poser 4, you can create and

delete new IK chains, using the Hierarchy

Editor.

To turn IK off for a chain:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Uncheck the IK On/Off checkbox to

turn IK off for that chain.

You can also turn IK Off with the Figure

menu> Use Inverse Kinematics

command.

To create an IK chain:

1Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

2Select IK chains, to enable the Create

New IK Chain button.

3Click the Create New IK Chain button.

4Enter a name for the new IK Chain.

A blank IK chain is added to the ﬁgure’s

IK chains.

5Drag individual body parts from the

ﬁgure you’re creating onto the new blank

IK chain.

6Add nodes to the IK chain in the order of

root to goal, the goal being the

terminating node. For example, in the

arm IK chain, the hand is the chain’s goal.

Note It might be helpful to turn Inverse

Kinematics Off for all existing

chains before setting up IK chains

in the Hierarchy Editor.

Creating Custom

Figures

Almost any geometry made up of polygons can be

used as a ﬁgure in Poser. When you create a

ﬁgure, its appearance has no effect on how it

functions in Poser. It doesn’t even have to look

human.

You can create your own Poser ﬁgures, using a

variety of techniques. You can:

• Modify existing ﬁgures, then save them to the

Figure Library

• Combine multiple existing ﬁgures into a new

one.

• Combine props created with the Grouping

tool that you’ve stored in the Props Library

• Create ﬁgure geometry in a 3D software

application, like MetaCreations Ray Dream

Studio, then use the Hierarchy Editor to set

up ﬁgure Hierarchy information.

Creating Custom Figures



• Create ﬁgure geometry in a 3D software

application, like MetaCreations Ray

Dream Studio, then manually create a

Hierarchy ﬁle.

Modifying Existing

Figures

Starting with an existing Poser ﬁgure, you can

make changes to it, then save it to the Library.

Refer to “Body Shaping” on page 137 for

more about modifying ﬁgures.

You can:

• Adjust proportions to create any type of

body, from lifelike to the absurd.

• Shape individual parts to signiﬁcantly

change body appearance. Give the model

a big belly. Give the model a broad face.

Makes a ﬁgure taller. Make a ﬁgure

stout—even rotund.

• Customize ﬁgures by replacing body parts

with props you import into your scene.

You can also attach a prop to a ﬁgure,

such as a sword or a pair of wings.

• Modify ﬁgure height.

• Change a ﬁgure or clothing color.

• Use Poser’s deformer tools to shape body

parts and ﬁgures into new and interesting

forms. Stretch a ﬁgure’s nose. Make a

ﬁgure’s belly bounce as it walks. Add

ripples to clothing.

• Use morph targets to add ethnic traits to

your ﬁgures. (Poser even includes a full

ﬁgure morph target for morphing ﬁgures

into superhero form.)

Once you modify an existing Poser ﬁgure, you

can create a customized ﬁgure in the Library

palette. Because body parts and their

relationships are cloned from standard Poser

ﬁgures, Poser automatically creates the joints

necessary for the new ﬁgure to operate

correctly in the Poser workspace. Refer to

“Saving Poses” on page 135 for how to save to

and use ﬁgures from the Library palette.

You can create exaggerated body types.



Poser 4

Combining Multiple

Figures

Starting with an existing Poser ﬁgure, you can

make changes, then save parts of that modiﬁed

ﬁgure in the Library. For example, you can

save several types of heads, arms, legs, and

torsos, just for use in creating future ﬁgures.

Refer to “Saving Poses” on page 135 for more

about using the Select Subset option when

you’re saving ﬁgures.

To combine multiple ﬁgures into a new

ﬁgure:

1Load the ﬁgures you wish to combine

into your Poser document.

2Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

3Set up parent-child relationships to

establish the new ﬁgure’s Hierarchy.

Refer to “Using the Hierarchy Editor”

on page 290 for more about using the

Hierarchy Editor to create ﬁgure

hierarchies.

4Click the Create Figure button on the

Hierarchy Editor.

If the ﬁgures you’ve combined use

standard Poser body parts, Poser follows

the Hierarchy you’ve established to

automatically create the joints necessary

for the new ﬁgure to operate correctly in

the Poser workspace.

Combining Props

You can use the Grouping tool to select

speciﬁc polygons on a ﬁgure or prop. With

this feature, you can create new props. For

example, you could start with the ball or cube

props, modify them, then save a series of props

that, when combined, create a robot body.

Refer to “Using the Grouping Tool” on

page 157 and “Adding Props to the Library”

on page 175 for more details.

Using the expanding/contracting Hierarchy Editor,

you can create new ﬁgures.

Creating Custom Figures



To combine props into a new ﬁgure:

1Load the props you wish to combine into

your Poser document.

2Position the props to form the new

ﬁgure.

3Choose Window menu> Hierarchy

Editor to display the Hierarchy Editor.

4Set up parent-child relationships to

establish the new ﬁgure’s Hierarchy. Refer

to “Using the Hierarchy Editor” on

page 290 for more about using the

Hierarchy Editor.

5Click the Create Figure button on the

Hierarchy Editor.

Poser follows the Hierarchy you’ve

established to create a new ﬁgure. Once

created, you can use the Hierarchy Editor

to ﬁne-tune rotation order, so that body

parts twist and bend as desired.

Creating Figures

using other Software

You can create your own Poser ﬁgure, using

another 3D software program, like

MetaCreations Ray Dream Studio. When you

create ﬁgures outside of Poser, creation is a

multi-step process.

Deciding how to Start

Before you begin to create articulated,

bending ﬁgures in Poser, you need to make

the following decision.

You can:

• Follow speciﬁc naming rules for body

groups, then use the Hierarchy Editor in

Poser to automatically apply standard

Hierarchy and rotation order to your

ﬁgure.

• Use non-standard (or a combination of

standard and non-standard) naming for

body groups and use the Poser Hierarchy

Use the Grouping palette to create your own props.

The Hierarchy Editor Create Figure button.

Tip In addition to parent-child

relationships, the Figure menu>

Point At command can be useful

for controlling the movement of

individual body parts in a robot

ﬁgure.



Poser 4

Editor to manually establish a ﬁgure

Hierarchy

• Use non-standard (or a combination of

standard and non-standard) naming for

body groups, then create a ﬁgure

Hierarchy as a text ﬁle and convert it for

use as a Poser ﬁgure Hierarchy

Regardless of what you decide, the ﬁgure you

create must be set up properly and stored in

the correct format. That done, you can move

or pose the model, just as you would any of

the models included with Poser. With the

right setup, you can make anything from an

accordion to a zebra into a poseable ﬁgure.

Understanding the

Process

To create a poseable ﬁgure, follow these steps.

• Create a 3D model of the new ﬁgure.

• Use the Poser File menu> Import

commands to bring the contents of your

3D ﬁgure ﬁle into the current document.

• Use the Hierarchy Editor to create a

Hierarchy file for the ﬁgure (or create a

Hierarchy ﬁle as a text ﬁle and convert it

to a Poser Hierarchy file).

• Adjust any joint parameters of body parts

that twist or bend incorrectly.

• Set any necessary body part limits.

• Use the Hierarchy Editor to set up

Inverse Kinematics (IK) chains.

• Set surface materials for the ﬁgure.

• Add any desired morph targets for

adjusting the size and shape of body parts.

• Save the new ﬁgure to the Libraries

palette.

Determining Model

Format

In order to use ﬁgure geometry in Poser, you

must store it in a Wavefront (OBJ) compatible

format. With Poser 4, you can import model

ﬁles in DXF, BVH, 3DMF, Wavefront OBJ,

3D Studio (Windows), and Painter3D

(Detailer text) formats.

When creating your model, use only

polygons. Nurbs or spline surfaces will not

translate correctly.

Grouping Body Parts

Poser uses group names to identify body parts.

Some Poser features, like the Walk Designer,

require speciﬁcally named body parts. The

group name is also the default name for

working with this body part (you can change

that at a later time).

It is important to denote the individual

moving sections. You can store body parts as

individual OBJ ﬁles or save the entire ﬁgure as

a single ﬁle. With either method, plan

carefully how you separate polygons into

individual moving parts.

Creating Custom Figures



You don’t need to move these parts to the

origin individually. You should leave them

where they naturally relate to one another. Set

up local origins later, inside Poser.

When you store the entire body in one ﬁle,

you must use “groups” to separate different

parts of the body that represent the moving

Hierarchy. Saving the entire body in one file is

usually the preferred method.

It is very important not to overlap groups.

Wavefront grouping allows polygons to be in

more than one group. If this happens, the

overlapping polygons are duplicated when you

bring the ﬁle into Poser and each group is

turned into a separate Poser body part. For

example, if you build a human-like object,

you need to separate model polygons into the

following groups:

• rHand

• lHand

• head

• neck

• lCollar

• rCollar

• chest

• abdomen

• hip

• rThigh

• lThigh

• rShin

• lShin

• rFoot

• lFoot

• rShldr

• lShldr

• rForeArm

• lForeArm

In order to use a ﬁgure in the Walk Designer,

or have Poser 4 automatically apply Standard

Figure Hierarchy and Rotation Orders, you

must use the above groups in the ﬁgure.

Naming Groups

In a Poser ﬁgure ﬁle, each body part actually

has two names: and internal name and a user

name. It is important that certain body parts

use standard internal names in order to be

available for speciﬁc Poser features. You can set

the user name (speciﬁed by the “name” line of

actors) as you wish.

Use the following body part names/Wavefront

group names when available:

•rHand for the body part that represents

the base palm of the right hand

•lHand for the body part that represents

the base palm of the left hand.

Note When you store each body in a

separate ﬁle, specify only one

group in each ﬁle. That group

contains all the polygons in that

ﬁle.

Note If you plan to create a ﬁgure

Hierarchy ﬁle outside of the

Poser 4 Hierarchy Editor,

import your ﬁgure ﬁle as a

prop ﬁrst, to check that the

geometry imports correctly.



Poser 4

In order for the hand library features to work

completely, the ﬁngers of the hand should be

broken up using the following names

(working from root to tip):

• rHand, rPalm, rKnuckles

• rThumb1, rThumb2, rThumb3

• rIndex1, rIndex2, rIndex3

• rMid1, rMid2, rMid3

• rRing1, rRing2, rRing3

• rPinky1, rPinky2, rPinky3

• lHand, lPalm, lKnuckles

• lThumb1, lThumb2, lThumb3

• lIndex1, lIndex2, lIndex3

• lMid1, lMid2, lMid3

• lRing1, lRing2, lRing3

• lPinky1, lPinky2, lPinky3

Arranging Groups on a

Model

When Poser processes a new model’s

geometry and generates a Poser Figure Library

entry, it automatically adds bending joints

between parent and child objects as speciﬁed

in the Hierarchy file.

Joints only bend polygons of the objects that

are contained in the parent or child body part

at any given joint. So, all polygons that are

physically located at a seam must be contained

in either the parent object group or the child

object group. In other words, you cannot have

three groups joining at the same place.

A good rule of thumb to use when creating

groups is: if two objects don’t have a parent-

child relationship, they shouldn’t be touching

each other. It’s important to keep this in mind

when you set up groups, otherwise gaps

appear when you start bending the model in

Poser.

The following example shows the connection

of the abdomen, hip, and upper leg of a horse.

Since the abdomen is a child of the hip and

the upper leg is also a child of the hip, there is

The Hierarchy of the hand.

Ring 2

Pinky 1

Mid 3

ex 1

Thumb 1

Hand

Thumb 2

Thumb 3

Pinky 2

Pinky 3

Index 2

Index 3

Mid 2

Mid 1

Ring 1

Ring 3

Creating Custom Figures



no parental attachment between the abdomen

and the upper leg. Therefore there can be no

physical attachment between the abdomen

and the upper leg.

Looking inside the Poser

Hierarchy File

You generally create scene hierarchies in the

Poser 4 Hierarchy Editor, but you can create

them outside of Poser in any text editor that

can save documents in a text-only format.

The Hierarchy file describes how the groups

in a ﬁgure are arranged. It outlines the parent-

child relationships between groups. Once

created it can be imported into Poser where it

is converted to create a new ﬁgure ﬁle in the

New Figures library.

The Hierarchy file speciﬁes:

• the geometry (OBJ) ﬁle to use

• the hierarchical connections (parent-child

relationships) of the body parts

• the desired rotation order of each body

part

• each Inverse Kinematics (IK) chain to be

included in the ﬁgure

The wrong way to connect groups on the horse.

Another example of the wrong way to place groups.

The correct way to place groups on the horse.



Poser 4

Following is an example Hierarchy file; it

represents the full Hierarchy for a horse,

including curve channels for the tails.

objFile:Runtime:Geometries:horseHi:

horseHiP3.obj

1 hip zxy

2 abdomen zyx

3 chest zyx

4 lShldr yzx

5 lUpArm yzx

6 lForeArm yzx

7 lWrist yzx

8 lHand yxz

4 rShldr yzx

5 rUpArm yzx

6 rForeArm yzx

7 rWrist yzx

8 rHand yxz

4 lowNeck zyx

5 upNeck zyx

6 head yzx

2 lThigh yzx

3 lLeg yzx

4 lShin yzx

5 lAnkle yzx

6 lFoot yxz

2 rThigh yzx

3 rLeg yzx

4 rShin yzx

5 rAnkle yzx

6 rFoot yxz

2 tail1 zyx curve

3 tail2 zyx curve

4 tail3 zyx curve

5 tail4 zyx curve

ikChainLeftLeg lThigh lLeg lShin lAnkle

ikChainRightLeg rThigh rLeg rShin

rAnkle

ikChainLeftHand lShldr lUpArm

lForeArm lWrist lHand

(continued)

ikChainRightHand rShldr rUpArm

rForeArm

rWrist rHand

The File Header

The ﬁrst line of the Hierarchy file contains

the “OBJ File” command which speciﬁes the

location of the OBJ ﬁle associated with the

new ﬁgure.

objFile: Runtime:Geometries:horseHi:horseTex.obj

The ﬁle location should be deﬁned using a

Macintosh format ﬁle speciﬁcation (that is,

using colons). The ﬁle location is speciﬁed

relative to the Poser application folder.

When the Hierarchy file is converted, the text

of the OBJ ﬁle is read into Poser where a

geometry resource is created and linked to the

OBJ ﬁle. This process results in a new ﬁgure

ﬁle.

From then on, when Poser uses this ﬁgure ﬁle,

the geometry resource is used to deﬁne the

ﬁgure Hierarchy relationships rather than the

text stored in the OBJ ﬁle. Reading from the

geometry resource is dramatically faster.

Creating Custom Figures



The File Body

The bulk of the Hierarchy file contains lines

similar to the one shown below:

The ﬁrst part of the line indicates Hierarchy

level—or the parent-child relationship—of the

body part. In this case, the abdomen body part

is a child of the body part of the part on the

next level up. Hierarchy levels are numbered

in descending order, so the next level up from

this part is 1.

In the following example, the lShin object is

located on the 3rd level of the Hierarchy. The

closest level 2 line above would be the lThigh,

so the lShin is a child of the lThigh.

The indenting of the lines is not processed but

is helpful visually to denote the Hierarchy

levels.

The second part of the line speciﬁes the name

of the body part. In the example the part is

called abdomen. This name must match the

group name in the OBJ ﬁle.

The 3-character string at the end of the line

represents the rotation (or gimbal) order of the

body part. A rotation order deﬁned as “zxy”

means that a Z axis rotation occurs ﬁrst,

followed by the X, then Y axis rotations.

Poser uses the following X, Y, and Z axis

orientations:

A typical Hierarchy ﬁle line.

Parent-Child relationships indicated in the

Hierarchy ﬁle.

Rotation Order

Body Part Name

Hierarchy Level

2 abdomen zyx

2 lThigh yzx

3 lShin yzx

4 lAnkle yzx

Parent Object

Child Object

The body part name in a Hierarchy ﬁle line.

The rotation order in a Hierarchy ﬁle line.

The X, Y, and Z planes that make up 3D space.

Body Part Name

2 abdomen zyx

Rotation Order

2 abdomen zyx



Poser 4

Assigning a rotation order is a three-step

process:

• Always place the “twist” axis ﬁrst. This

axis should be placed lengthwise through

the object. If the object, like a leg, is built

down the Y-axis, specify the Y ﬁrst, since

that is the axis along which the leg twists.

• Of the two remaining rotations, place the

one most likely to become 90 degrees

last. This helps reduce rotation lock

problems that occur when the middle

rotation approaches 90 degrees.

• Place the remaining rotation channel

second.

Some objects do not align to the major axes.

In this case, you can align the coordinate

system of the body part later, while adjusting

the joint parameters. For the Hierarchy file,

pick the closest rotation order. When you

align the part later, the twist axis you choose

becomes aligned down the length of the body

part.

When Body Parts are Stored

in Separate Files

If each body part were stored in a separate ﬁle,

rather than all body parts being groups in a

single ﬁle, you would specify the full path

name for the ﬁle at the end of each line. This

path is relative to the Poser 4 folder.

Here is an example of three links using this

method:

1 link1 yzx

:Runtime:Geometries:examples:l1.obj

2 link2 yzx

:Runtime:Geometries:examples:l2.obj

3 link3 yzx

:Runtime:Geometries:examples:l3.obj

Using Curved

Transformations

The Curved ﬂag tells Poser that this link

should use curve transformations. This is a

method of bending designed for the tails of

the animal ﬁgures in Poser. Here is an

example used in the Horse ﬁgure:

2 tail1 zyx curve

3 tail2 zyx curve

4 tail3 zyx curve

5 tail4 zyx curve

Inverse Kinematic Chains

The last commands in the Hierarchy file

specify the links that compose the individual

IK chains. IK can also be deﬁned by using the

Poser 4 Hierarchy Editor. Here’s how chains

look after they’ve been deﬁned. If you’re

creating a Hierarchy ﬁle manually, be sure to

store IK information in the following format:

ikChain chainName ﬁrstLink nextLink

nextLink... endGoal

In the example above, the ikChain is deﬁned

as follows:

The name of an ikChain cannot contain

spaces.

An ikChain line in a Hierarchy ﬁle.

Chain Name

ikChain LeftLeg lThigh lShin lAnkle lFoot

Creating Custom Figures



Converting Hierarchy

Files

When you create a Hierarchy ﬁle manually,

you’ll need to convert it to an actual Poser

Hierarchy ﬁle. Once the Hierarchy ﬁle is

completed in the text editor, you can import

it into Poser by converting it into a geometry

resource (called a CR2 ﬁle).

This geometry resource is then used in

conjunction with OBJ 3D data to create a

new ﬁgure ﬁle with rotation order and IK

relationships as deﬁned by the Hierarchy text

ﬁle.

On Windows, the resource is a separate ﬁle

with the sufﬁx RSR. On a Macintosh, the

resource is stored with the OBJ ﬁle. If you

need to edit the resource on a Mac, use a

resource editor to remove the text from the

OBJ ﬁle, or create a new text ﬁle by copying

and pasting from the old one.

If you make changes to the Hierarchy file and

then convert it again, the conversion won’t re-

create the geometry resource if it already exists

in the OBJ ﬁle. So if you are trying to make

geometry changes, you must either delete the

resource, or start with a new blank text ﬁle

that contains only the text portion of the OBJ

ﬁle.

To convert a Hierarchy ﬁle:

1Choose File menu> Convert Hier

File. The Open dialog appears.

2Locate the Hierarchy ﬁle you created in

the text editor and click Open.

If there are no errors, a Poser Body

Library ﬁle is created.

The Hierarchy conversion may take

several minutes if there is a large

geometry ﬁle.

The ﬁgure ﬁle references the geometry

ﬁle. If the location is of the geometry ﬁle

changes, you must edit the ﬁgure ﬁle to

designate the new location (speciﬁed

relative to the Poser application in Mac

format).

Verifying Hierarchy Files

Once you begin adjusting the joints, you are

not able to regenerate the ﬁgure ﬁle a second

time and have all your joint changes in place.

Make sure that all parent-child relationships

are correct before editing Joint Parameters.

You can make geometry corrections later, but

you cannot change the Hierarchy without

creating different joints from scratch again.

Adjusting Joint

Parameters

When the Hierarchy ﬁle was converted into a

new ﬁgure ﬁle, Poser automatically added

joints between all the parent and child objects

in the ﬁgure. These joints may not work as

you expect them to because they use the

default joint settings.

Before you can pose your ﬁgure, you must

adjust each body part’s joint parameters. The

Joint Parameters palette lets you select each

joint, twist, smooth scale, and center

parameter and adjust them for optimal

bending. Refer to “Adjusting Joint

Parameters” on page 312 for details.



Poser 4

It’s highly recommended that you work from

the outside of the ﬁgure in, making a ﬁrst pass

through to make sure all origins are located as

desired. If you move the origin point (center

of rotations) of a body part later, it carries

along the other joint changes so the bending

characteristics change. You’ll save yourself

from doing extra work if you specify the

origins (centers) ﬁrst.

Keep the IK chains turned off until all

adjustments are completed. You can use the

Zero Figure button to quickly set all rotations

to zero while working.

Setting Limits

Limits establish a range of rotation, position,

and scale for a given body part. Limits can be

set for each body part on the ﬁgure. However

the most commonly used and logical limits are

Bend, Twist, Side-Side, and Front-Back. For

these parameters, limits are expressed as the

maximum and minimum degrees of rotation.

Limits are set using the Parameter Dial dialog.

Refer to “Using the Parameter Dials” on

page 121 for how to access the Parameter Dial

dialog. Enter the minimum value of the

parameter in the Min. Limit ﬁeld and click

OK.

Setting Favored IK

Angles

The IK in Poser works from the current

rotations of a body part, so proper IK angles

must be preset in the ﬁgure for it to work

predictably. Therefore, the original rotation

values loaded on the joint are important to

help the IK system know which way to bend

some joints.

Before you memorize the default position of

all the body parts, you should bend the ones

that are used in IK chains so that they favor

their natural bending directions. For example,

a human thigh is bends slightly forward and

out. The shin is bends slightly back and in.

Note It’s a good idea to periodically

save your ﬁgure to a new

Figure preset as you work so

you can back up if you make

mistakes.

Note Remember to save your ﬁgure

as a new ﬁgure in the Figures

library periodically as you

work, so you can back up if you

make mistakes.

Favored IK positions.

Creating Custom Figures



Do this while keeping all the IK chains turned

off. Only turn them on after you have set the

favored angles.

Memorizing Default

Positions

Memorizing the settings on a ﬁgure sets the

default values and positions for all the ﬁgure’s

joints and body parts. The next time you use

this ﬁgure, the memorized setting are used.

To memorize the ﬁgure’s settings:

•Choose Edit menu> Memorize>

Figure.

Setting Surface

Materials

In order to set the preset material for your

ﬁgure, you must edit its CR2 ﬁle that you

created when you converted the Hierarchy

ﬁle.

The preset material cannot be set from the

Poser interface. You’ll need to edit the ﬁnal

Figure library ﬁle with a text editor that is

capable of opening any kind of ﬁle. At the end

of the ﬁgure ﬁle is a block of text that speciﬁes

the preset material colors and texture map. If

you’ve edited the regular material to be what

you’d like, you can copy the information to

the preset material.

The following is a sample of the surface

material section of the CR2 ﬁle:

material shirt

KdColor 0.972549 0.988205 0.972549 1

KaColor 0 0 0 1

KsColor 0.00784314 0.00784314

0.00784314 1

TextureColor 1 1 1 1

NsExponent 30

bumpStrength 0

ksIgnoreTexture 0

textureMap "Biz Man Texture.pict”

0 0

Adding Morph Targets

If you have created Wavefront format OBJ ﬁles

that have the identical vertex ordering as any

individual body part, you can load them as

morph targets.

Refer to “Setting up Morph Targets” on

page 272 for more information.

Naming Body Parts

The names of the groups you set up in the

OBJ ﬁle and Hierarchy ﬁle may not be the

most descriptive names you can use. Once the

main parameters are set for the ﬁgure, you can

change the name of each body part.

To change the name of a body part:

1Double-click a body part. The Element

Properties dialog appears.

2Enter a new name in the Name ﬁeld.



Poser 4

Tutorial: Creating a

Figure in Ray Dream

Studio

In this tutorial, a Ray Dream Studio object is

converted into a Poser ﬁgure. A pre-made

mesh object included on your Ray Dream

Studio 5 CD is used, but the concepts can be

applied to any of your own models.

Lesson 1: Creating the Initial

Figure

To create the initial ﬁgure:

1Place your Ray Dream Studio 5 CD in

the drive and Launch Ray Dream Studio

2Create a new, empty scene.

3Choose Windows menu> Browser to

open the Browser, then select the Objects

tab.

4Choose File menu> Add Folder/

Directory.

5On your CD-ROM drive, select the

Dream Models: Mesh Models folder.

The folder is added at the end on the

right, so you may need to scroll the

window using the scroll bars at the

bottom of the window.

6Drag and drop the Woman2 object into

the Time Line Hierarchy. The Woman2

object is located towards the bottom of

the list.

7The Woman2 object is a group of objects.

You must move all the groups into the

mesh modeler, but retain individual body

parts. Use the OBJ exporter to

accomplish this.

Choose File menu> Save As.

8In the dialog that appears, set the ﬁle

format to Wavefront OBJ and click

Options.

9Enable the Export Full Path for Grouping

checkbox and click OK.

10 Select a folder, then click Save.

11 Close the Ray Dream Studio version of

the scene.

Lesson 2: Naming Body

Parts

To name the upper body parts:

1Reopen the OBJ ﬁle, using the default

settings for Import options.

2Double-click the object to jump into the

mesh form modeler.

If the set name dialog appears, leave the

default name and click OK.

3Choose View menu> Preset

Position> Front.

4Choose View menu> Preview (Fast).

5Using the Zoom tool, zoom in on the

ﬁgure to about a 4:1 magniﬁcation.

All the individual objects from the

original Ray Dream Studio groups are

now separate polymeshes inside the mesh

modeler.

6Double-click on the chest with the

selection tool.

Creating Custom Figures



7With the chest selected, choose

Polymesh menu> Name Polymesh.

8Change the name to “chest”, then click

OK.

9Repeat the above for the neck portion of

the ﬁgure, naming it “neck.”

10 Call the left and right shoulder “lShldr”

and “rShldr.”

To match Poser conventions, left and

right should be from the reference of the

ﬁgure, opposite to your own left and

right. Also, make sure the selection tool

has selected the entire polymesh before

trying to use name polymesh. If double-

clicking doesn’t select the entire

polymesh, double-click in an deselected

area of the object. If the name polymesh

feature is grayed out, then the entire

polymesh is not selected.

11 Using the same procedure, name:

• the left and right upper arms:

“lUpperarm” and “rUpperarm”

• the left and right forearm:

“lForearm” and “rForearm”

• the left and right hand “lHand” and

“rHand”

To name parts of the head:

1Double-click the forehead of the ﬁgure to

select the head.

2Use Name polymesh to name the object

“head.”

3Select View menu> Hide Selection.

You may need to zoom in to see the eyes

and mouth now left behind.

4The eyes and mouth are currently a single

object. Use the marquee tool to select the

ﬁgure’s left eye.

5Choose Selection menu> Detach

Polygons to make the eye a separate

polymesh.

6Choose Selection menu> Weld to link

the eye to the eyelashes.

7Choose Name Polymesh to name the

object “lEye.”

8Make the ﬁgure’s right eye a separate

polymesh, link the eye to the eyelashes,

and name it “rEye.”

9Double-click on the mouth.

10 Use Name Polymesh to name the object

mouth.

To name the midsection body parts:

1Zoom out, and then zoom in around the

midsection of the ﬁgure.

2Double-click just above the belt and

name this section “abdomen.”

3Choose View menu> Hide Selection.

4Use the marquee selection tool to drag a

selection around the belt and into the hip.

5Hold down the shift key and double-click

with the selection tool on a deselected

area of the hip.

6Choose Selection menu> Weld to

create a single hip object.

7Make sure you have a polymesh selected,

and then name it “hip.”

8Zoom out, then zoom back in on the

legs.



Poser 4

9Double-click on a vertex in the shorts

below the hip.

You can see that both the left and right

side of the shorts are a single object.

10 Use the marquee selection tool while

holding down the Alt-Option/Alt key to

deselect the ﬁgure’s left side of the shorts.

You’ll probably want to start from the

outside and slowly deselect inwards until

you reach the space between the two legs.

11 Choose Selection menu> Detach

Polygons.

12 The bottom hem of the shorts is also a

separate object. Select the hem, then

deselect the ﬁgure’s left side with the

Ctrl/Alt-marquee selection.

13 Choose Selection Menu> Detach

Polygons.

14 Select just the ﬁgure’s right hem.

15 Choose View menu> Hide Selection.

16 Select the polygons that are behind the

hem, which connect the shorts to the

right thigh.

17 Choose View menu> Reveal Hidden

Vertices.

18 Use the selection tool with the shift key

to also select the right hem and right leg

of the shorts.

19 Choose Selection menu> Weld.

20 Repeat the previous two steps for the left

pant objects.

21 Name each side “lPant” and “rPant”

respectively.

To name body parts from the thighs

downward:

1Zoom out, and then zoom in from the

thighs down.

2Select the left and right thigh and name

them “lThigh” and “rThigh” respectively.

3Select the left and right calf and name

them “lCalf” and “rCalf” respectively.

4The feet are actually broken up into areas

of “foot” and areas of “sandal.” For this

tutorial, combine the areas into a single

left and right foot. Double-click the

ﬁgure’s right ankle.

5Use the marquee tool with the Shift key

to select the rest of the right foot.

6Choose Selection menu> Detach

Polygons.

7Choose Selection menu> Weld.

8Name the object “rFoot.”

9Repeat for the left foot, naming the

resulting object “lFoot.”

To name parts in the shoulder area:

1Zoom out, and then zoom back in

around the right shoulder.

2Select the right shoulder.

3Hold down the Shift key and double-

click on the very edge of the hem of the

shirt with the selection tool. This selects

the polygons moving inward towards the

upper arm.

4Choose Selection menu> Weld.

5Rename the resulting object rShldr.

Creating Custom Figures



6Repeat for the left shoulder.

7Select View menu> Reveal hidden

vertices if any are still hidden.

8Click Done.

9Save a copy in Ray Dream Studio format.

Lesson 3: Checking

Geometry Imports

There are still a couple of steps to complete

the object in Ray Dream Studio. Importing

this object as a prop into Poser allows you to

check the import of the geometry for errors.

This part of the tutorial illustrates potential

problems you may have in your models, and

how you might ﬁx them.

To check for geometry errors in Poser:

1Select Save As and set the ﬁle type to

Wavefront.

2Locate your Poser folder on your hard

drive, then open the Runtime:

Geometries folder.

3Make a new folder called rdswoman.

4Open the rdswoman folder and save the

ﬁle as woman.obj.

5Open Poser.

You may need to close Ray Dream

Studio ﬁrst in order to have enough

memory.

6Click and drag on the Translate In/Out

tool to move the ﬁgure away from the

camera.

7Select File menu> Import: Wavefront

OBJ.

8Open the woman.obj ﬁle. Use the default

import options.

9Use the Translate tool to drag the ﬁgure

up.

Lesson 4: Fixing Surface

Normals

You may notice that some areas seem to have

holes or appear inverted. This is because the

surface normals are ﬂipped. You should see

holes in the eyes, neck, abdomen, thighs, and

calves. You can ﬁx this in Ray Dream Studio.

To ﬁx the surface normals:

1Close Poser, then restart Ray Dream

Studio (if necessary).

2Reopen the woman.obj ﬁle.

3Double-click the object to enter the

modeler.

4Use the selection tool with the Shift key

to select the eyes, neck, abdomen, thighs,

and calves.

You’ll probably need to select and hide

the head to get to the eyes.

5Choose Polymesh menu> Reverse

Polymesh Normals.

6Choose View menu> Reveal Hidden

Vertices.

7Click Done.

8Select File menu> Save As.

9Set the ﬁle type to Wavefront.



Poser 4

10 Click Options.

11 Turn on the Export Texture Maps option.

Although there are no maps assigned in

Ray Dream Studio, the Export Texture

Maps option allows you to set a material

color for each body part in Poser. With

this option turned off, the entire ﬁgure is

considered one surface.

12 Save the ﬁle as womanﬁnal.obj into the

rdswoman folder.

13 Close Ray Dream Studio. You do not

need it for the remainder of this tutorial.

Lesson 5: Creating the

Hierarchy File Manually

In Poser 4, you can create parent-child

relationships in the Hierarchy Editor. If you’d

rather create them manually, here’s how to do

that. Refer to “Using the Hierarchy Editor”

on page 290 for how to use the new

Hierarchy Editor.

To create the Hierarchy file manually:

1Using a text editor, create your Hierarchy

file to appear as follows:

objFile:Runtime:Geometries:RDSWoman:w

omanﬁnal.obj

1 hip zxy

2 abdomen yxz

3 chest zyx

4 neck yxz

5 head yxz

6 lEye yxz

6 rEye yxz

6 mouth

yxz

4 lShldr xzy

5 lUpperarm xyz

6 lForearm xyz

7 lHand xyz

4 rShldr xzy

5 rUpperarm xyz

6 rForearm xyz

7 rHand xyz

2 lPant yxz

3 lThigh yxz

4 lCalf yxz

5 lFoot zxy

2 rPant yxz

3 rThigh yxz

4 rCalf yxz

5 rFoot yzx

ikChain lArm lShldr lUpperarm lForearm

lHand

ikChain rArm rShldr rUpperarm rForearm

rHand

ikChain lLeg lPant lThigh lCalf lFoot

ikChain rLeg rPant rThigh rCalf rFoot

2Save the Hierarchy file into the

rdswoman folder and name it

womanﬁnal.phi.

To scale the new ﬁgure:

1Open Poser

2Select File menu> Convert Hierarchy

File.

A new ﬁgure is created in a group called

New Figures.

3Open the library window and click on

the ﬁgure tab.

4Select the New Figures category.

Creating Custom Figures



5Double-click the new ﬁgure (with the

shrugging Poser ﬁgure icon).

6The ﬁgure is initially very large. Select

“body” from the Current Elements pop-

up menu.

7Double-click the scale parameter dial and

change the value to 4.2%.

To adjust body part color:

1Choose Figure menu> Drop to Floor.

2Each body part is a different color. Use

the color tool on the body parts to better

organize the ﬁgure.

3Use a similar color for the chest,

abdomen, left shoulder and right shoulder

to form the shirt.

4Use a similar color for the hip, left pant,

and right pant to form the shorts.

5Use a similar color for each foot.

6Color the mouth red and each eye white.

7Use a skin tone for the remaining body

parts.

8Select Edit menu> Memorize:

Figure.

9Add the ﬁgure to the library, naming it

Womanﬁnal.

Lesson 6: Setting Joint

Parameters

If you use the Poser 4 Hierarchy Editor, you

can have Poser set joint parameters based on

the Hierarchy you deﬁne. Even so, you will

may want to make adjustments to joint

parameters.

Your ﬁrst task is to set the center of rotation

for all body parts. If you change this later, it

affects all other bending parameters for parent

and child body parts.

To set the hip center of rotation:

1Switch to outline display mode.

2Open the Joint Parameters window.

3Click on Zero Figure.

4Start by selecting the hip.

5Change the Center point x and z values

to 0.0.

6Set the y value to 0.9.

7Set the End Point y value to 0.8. The x

and z value should be 0.0.

Note Before adjusting joint

parameters, always check that

IK Chains for the ﬁgure are

turned off.



Poser 4

To set the centers of rotation for pant

body parts:

1Select the right pant body part.Look at

the center of rotation.

2Select the right thigh body part.

3Drag the center of rotation up towards

the edge between the right pant and the

hip. This gives the effect of the thigh and

the pant leg moving together.

4Repeat this for the left thigh.

To set the center of rotation for the

abdomen:

1Select the abdomen.

2Drag the center of rotation down, slightly

into the hip.

To set the center of rotation for the

chest:

1Select the chest.

2Drag the center of rotation up slightly,

within the bottom of the chest.

To set the center of rotation for the

arms:

1Select the right upper arm.

2Move the center of rotation towards the

joint of the shoulder.

3Repeat this for the left upper arm.

To set the center of rotation for the

head:

1Select the head.

2Switch to the face camera.

To set rotation values:

1In the Joint Parameters Window, switch

from center to yrot.

2Swap the twist start and twist end

positions. You can test your settings by

adjusting the yrot Parameter Dial in the

Parameter Dial Window. The twist end

(in green) should be above the chin. The

twist start (in red) should be below the

chin and into the neck. This blends the

rotation of the head into the neck.

3Switch to the camera from the right, and

zoom in on the head and neck.

4Switch from yrot to xrot in the Joint

Parameters Window.

5Drag the static handle on the left (in red)

down below the chin.

6Drag the dynamic handle on the right (in

green) counter-clockwise till it is also

below the chin, but still higher than the

static handle you dragged in the previous

step.

Notice that as the dynamic handle hits

the static handle, the static handle is also

moved.

7Drag the static handle counter-clockwise

until it is at the top of the back of the

neck.

8Test your settings by adjusting the xrot

parameter dial.

Creating Custom Figures



To adjust scale values:

1Switch from xrot to neck_scaleY. This

controls the blending zone for the y-axis

scaling of the neck when scaling the head.

2Set Low start to 5.97 and Low end to

6.14.

This sets the blending to within the neck,

below the chin.

3Select the mouth_scaleY.

4Set Low start to 6.4 and Low end to 6.27.

5Select lEye_scaleY.

6Drag the High end up towards 9.

7Repeat this for the right eye.

8You can now scale the head to see the

effects.

You can now set limits for each body

part.

To set remaining limits.

1Repeat the above procedures for the

remaining body parts, so that your ﬁgure

moves and bends realistically.

2Set the default IK angles. Memorize the

default position.

3Save the ﬁgure to the library.

Using Poser 4

with Other

Applications

Using Poser with

Ray Dream Studio 5

Poser adds features to Ray Dream Studio’s Mesh

Form Modeler. The Mesh Form Modeler lets you

edit an object’s surface directly, by editing the

points that deﬁne its surface. For a full description

of the Mesh Form Modeler, refer to the Mesh

Form Modeling chapter in your Ray Dream

Studio manual.

The following Mesh Form Modeling features

have been added to the Selection and Polymesh

menus.

Using Poser 4 with Other Applications



Selection Menu

Name Polygons

Name Edges

Name Vertices:

Apply group names to selected polygons or

edges. Poser uses these group names to name

body parts when importing Hierarchy ﬁles to

create new ﬁgures. Refer to “Creating

Custom Figures” on page 301 for more

information.

Detach Polygons: Separate the current

selection into a new polymesh. The edges and

vertices in common with the original and the

new polymesh are duplicated, so that no

polygons are lost. This is useful for breaking

up a solid object into individual sections for

use as body parts in Poser.

Polymesh Menu

Name Polymesh: Similar to name polygons,

this option works on an entire Polymesh. It

creates a group name for the polymesh; Poser

uses this name when importing Hierarchy ﬁles

to name body parts. Refer to “Creating

Custom Figures” on page 301 for more

information.

Reverse/Standard Polymesh Normals:

When you export geometry in an OBJ ﬁle,

Ray Dream assigns each polygon a direction,

called a surface normal.

For some objects, Ray Dream Studio may

assign normals in the wrong direction. In this

case, it appears that you are seeing the interior

of the object from the front instead of the

front faces. Select these parts of the model in

the Mesh Modeler, and then select Polymesh

menu> Reverse Polymesh Normals. The

OBJ exporter ﬂips the normals when

exporting.

The Selection menu.



Poser 4

Importing and Exporting

OBJ Files

The OBJ ﬁle format can be used between

Ray Dream Studio and Poser to:

• Create new ﬁgures from scratch using

Hierarchy ﬁles

• Edit Poser geometry to create new

morph targets

• Create objects in Ray Dream Studio to

use as props in Poser

Importing OBJ Files

When importing OBJ ﬁles, the available

options are:

Group Information: Although Wavefront

objects can have a First or Last name

associated with each group, Ray Dream

Studio requires a single name per group. The

Group Information option lets you choose the

name to use within Ray Dream Studio. To

import an object as a single polymesh, you

must select the Make Only One Group radio

button.

Scaling Factor: Deﬁne the unit conversion

between Ray Dream Studio units and OBJ

units. If you are importing Poser geometry to

create morph targets, always use the default of

4.00 inches.

Create Meshform Objects: If None is

selected, the object imports as an external

object, with the minimum modeler as its

default modeler. If One is selected, the object

imports as one meshform object. The object is

still broken up by its group names as

individual polymeshes within the modeler if

you did not use Make Only One Group from

Group Information. If One for Each Group is

selected, an individual object is created for

each group.

Transpose Coordinates: Compensate for

the difference in world coordinates between

other programs and Ray Dream Studio. Ray

Dream Studio has the y and z coordinate axes

transposed from other programs, including

Poser.

To import an OBJ ﬁle:

1Select File menu> Import or File

menu> Open to open an OBJ ﬁle.

2Set the ﬁle type to Wavefront (*.obj).

3Select the OBJ ﬁle and click Open.

Exporting OBJ Files

When exporting OBJ ﬁles, you are presented

with the following options.

Export Normals: Toggles exporting of

surface normals on and off. You almost always

want this setting turned on.

Export UV values: Toggles exporting of UV

texture data on and off. Turn this on to enable

texturing in Poser. Poser only supports UV

mapping of ﬁgures and props.

Export Full Path For Grouping: If you are

saving a number of Ray Dream Studio objects

that have been grouped, the groups are saved

as Wavefront groups.

Note Use the default settings when

importing Poser ﬁgures.

Using Poser 4 with Other Applications



Export Texture Maps: Creates a Wavefront

Material ﬁle to be used with the OBJ

geometry ﬁle. This ﬁle describes how objects

are textured. It creates one material for each

group.

Transpose Coordinates: Compensates for

the difference in world coordinates between

other programs and Ray Dream Studio. Ray

Dream Studio has the y and z coordinate axes

transposed from other programs, including

Poser.

Degree of Tessellation: Controls the

smoothness of the exported object.

Textures Format: If the Export Texture

Maps option is turned on and the objects have

attributes which must be converted to texture

maps, this controls the format of the texture

ﬁles and their resolution.

To export an OBJ ﬁle:

1Select File menu> Export or File

menu> Save As.

2Set the ﬁle type to Wavefront (*.obj).

3Click on the Options button to alter the

export options.

Using Poser with

Painter 3D

You can export a ﬁgure as an OBJ ﬁle from

Poser and then paint on it as you would any

other model.

To use a Poser model in Painter 3D:

1Create and pose a ﬁgure in Poser.

2Choose File menu> Export>

Wavefront OBJ.

3In the dialog that appears, select the

Single frame option.

Poser ﬁgure.

Select Single Frame.



Poser 4

4In the Hierarchy Options dialog that

appears, click OK to use the default

settings.

5Launch Painter 3D.

6Choose File menu> Acquire >

wavefront obj.

The figure appears in the model

window.

7Create a texture map for the body and

hair.

8Save the texture maps as pict ﬁles for use

with your Poser model in other

applications.

Poser ﬁgure in the Painter 3D model window.

Painter 3D texture map.

Painter 3D hair texture map.

Painter 3D texture map applied to ﬁgure.

Using Poser 4 with Other Applications



Using Poser with

Bryce 3D

You can import Poser Figures as OBJ into any

Bryce scene.

To use a Poser model in Bryce:

1Create and pose a ﬁgure in Poser.

2Choose File menu> Export>

Wavefront OBJ.

3Select the Single frame option.

4In the Hierarchy Options dialog that

appears, click OK to use the default

settings.

5Launch Bryce.

6Open or create a scene where the Poser

ﬁgure is to be placed.

7Choose File menu> Import Object to

add the ﬁgure to the scene.

Poser ﬁgure.

Select Single Frame.

The unrendered scene.

The rendered scene.



Poser 4

8Scale and position the ﬁgure

appropriately.

The ﬁgure is placed in the scene with a

default gray texture attached.

9If the ﬁgure has hair, the hair and body

import into Bryce as a group. To map

each part:

• Ungroup the hair and body by

clicking the ungroup button, which

appears beside the object when

selected.

• Select the body to map it ﬁrst.

To apply a texture map to the ﬁgure:

1Click to select the ﬁgure.

• Click the Edit Materials icon in the

Edit Palette.

The Materials Lab appears.

2Click column A for Diffuse and Ambient

channels.

Scale and position the ﬁgure.

The default gray texture.

The Materials Lab.

Select Diffuse and Ambient channels.

Using Poser 4 with Other Applications



3Click the Image Texture button in

material A.

4Set the mapping mode to parametric and

click the Texture Source Editor button in

material A.

The Texture Source Editor appears.

5Click Load (above the ﬁrst large pict

box).

6Apply texture map(s) with one of the

following methods.

• Select and open the pict ﬁle texture

you created in Painter 3D. Refer to

“Using Poser with Painter 3D” on

page 326 for details on creating a

Painter 3D texture ﬁle for a Poser

model.

• To use the default texture from Poser,

open Poser:Runtime:Textures and

select the appropriate texture. Poser

renders as a multiplication of the

texture and body part color.

• Open the Poser pict ﬁle in an image

editing application (such as Painter or

Photoshop), edit the colors, add

patterns, then save the ﬁle as a new

pict ﬁle for use with your ﬁgure.

• Use Bryce’s textures to create surreal

ﬁgures (such as rock or glass).

The Image Texture button.

The Texture Source Editor button.

The Texture Source Editor. Open the Painter 3D texture ﬁle.



Poser 4

7Click on the black dot above the second

large pict box to delete the mask.

8Click on the check mark to accept the

deletion.

9Adjust other material channels

appropriately.

For this scene, the specularity and

reﬂection were increased to make the

swimmer look wet.

10 Click on the check mark to accept

material.

11 With the hair selected, repeat these steps

to apply the hair texture.

Using Poser on the

World Wide Web

If your computer is connected to the Internet,

you can access the World Wide Web directly

from Poser. You can exchange information

with other Poser users, visit the

MetaCreations site, or view the latest

technical support information.

Internet Connection

You must have an Internet connection and a

browser package to use the Web-based features

of Poser. If you have an account with an ISP

(Internet service provider), such as EarthLink,

AOL, or other provider, you are ready to go.

Otherwise, acquire an Internet account and

install a modem on your computer. Once you

have a connection, you can start using Poser’s

Internet-based features.

If you have an e-mail only account with a

provider such as Juno, you will not be able to

use all of the Web-based features of Poser.

Using a Browser

The two most common browsers are Internet

Explorer and Netscape Navigator.Use version

4.0 or greater of either browser to take

advantage of interactive HTML features.

The ﬁnal result.

Using Poser 4 with Other Applications



Windows Users

If your computer is running Windows 95,

Windows 98, or Windows NT 4.0 or greater,

you should already have Internet Explorer

installed. If not, you’ll need to install it. Once

you have an account with an ISP, you can start

using the Web-based features of Poser.

Macintosh Users

Once you have an account with an Internet

provider and a browser software package

installed, you can start using the Internet-

based features of Poser.

Accessing the Web

Poser now has a “Links” menu that will launch

your default browser and take you to the one

of the Poser-related Web links in your links

list. You can update this links list to add your

own links and delete any default links you do

not use.

In addition, you can also export both still ﬁles

to the Web using the Export Image or Render

to Disk options on the File menu. You can

export animations through the Render

Animation feature.

To select a Web link:

1Choose Help menu> MetaCreations

Web Links> choose a link for links to

MetaCreations Web pages

Help menu> Other Web Links> choose

a link for links to Poser Web sites.

2Poser launches your browser and opens

the desired link.

Modifying Poser Web Links

You can create, delete, or edit Poser Web Link

ﬁles. Each link is a simple ASCII ﬁle that

contains a line with the link’s URL.

To add, delete, or edit Web links:

1From your desktop, open:

Poser:Runtime:Weblinks:

MetaCreations/Other Web Links.

Link ﬁles appear in these folders.

2Do any of the following:

• To change the name of a link,

highlight the ﬁlename and enter a

new name.

• To delete a link, drag its ﬁle to the

Trash/Recycle Bin.

• To create a new link, open a text

editor such as Note Pad or

SimpleText. Enter the URL on the

ﬁrst line of the ﬁle, and save the ﬁle

in the Poser:Runtime:Weblinks:

MetaCreations/Other Web Links

directory.

• To change a link, open the link ﬁle in

your text editor, enter the new URL,

then save and close the ﬁle.

3Restart Poser.

Your menu reﬂects the new links.



Poser 4

Using Poser with

MetaStream

You can export Poser scenes to MetaStream

format ﬁles for use on web sites.

To export a Poser scene to MetaStream

format:

1Create and pose ﬁgures and objects in

Poser.

2Choose File menu> Export>

MetaStream.

Two ﬁle formats are generated:

• HTML: embeds MetaStream output

generated by Poser using the

EMBED tag.

• MTS: contains compressed geometry

and textures.

Double-click the HTML ﬁle to open the

output.

Use MetaStream objects as embedded objects

in an HTML page. This gives the page author

full control over a wide range of rendering

and interaction options described at the

MetaStream Web site:

http://www.metastream.com

If you open a raw MTS ﬁle, the plug-in runs

with all attributes set to default values.

Textures generated by Poser are already lit (by

real light) and do not need additionally

shading by synthetic lights, so set texture

shading to off.

Using Poser with

Canoma

Canoma models can be exported in the OBJ

format for import into Poser.

Exports to Poser Prop command within

Canoma exports a .pp2 ﬁle and several .bmp

(Win)/.pict (Mac) textures.

To use a Canoma model in Poser:

1Manually copy or move the .pp2 ﬁle to

any immediate subfolder of Runtime:

Libraries:Props.

2Move or copy all the .bmp or .pict ﬁles

to:

PoserAppDirectory:Runtime:Textures

Note If Inﬁni-D is installed on your

computer, MTS ﬁles appear with

an Inﬁni-D icon. Double-clicking

this icon launches Inﬁni-D. If an

error message appears, make

sure the Inﬁni-D path information

in the HTML ﬁle is correct and

that all required libraries are

available.

Using Poser 4 with Other Applications



The Canoma-generated object or scene

appears in the list of props (without a special

icon) and with the name you give the prop.

You can place and work with the prop like any

other.

A word of caution: do not give two Poser

generated props the same name or you will

overwrite part of one prop’s textures.

Tip Keep shortcuts and aliases for the

Poser texture and prop type

folders handy to where you

generate the prop ﬁle, then drag

the ﬁles onto the shortcuts. This is

faster than hunting down the

directory.

Troubleshooting

Installing Poser

If you have trouble with your installation, be sure

to read “Installing Poser” on page 15.

Poser (Windows) locks up the

ﬁrst time you launch it

Many video cards cannot use hardware

acceleration at the high setting in any screen depth

other than High Color or 16-bit. There are two

ways to correct this problem:

To set your display to High Color or 16-bit:

1Right-click on your desktop.

2Select Properties.

3Choose the Settings tab.

Troubleshooting



4Change the color palette to High Color

(16-bit.).

To lower the graphics hardware

acceleration setting in Windows:

1Select the Window Start button.

2Choose Settings.

3Open the Control Panel.

4Double-click the System Icon.

5Select the Performance tab.

6Click Graphics.

7Adjust the Hardware Acceleration slider

to a lower position.

8Test your system using this method until

you ﬁnd the level of hardware

acceleration compatible with Poser.

Poser (Windows) does not

accept your serial number

This problem may be related to your video

drivers. You can set your display to VGA (256

color). Or on NT, reboot and choose NT

VGA mode.

To allow for CD-ROM support and

16-color video:

1Right-click on your desktop.

2Select Properties.

3Choose the Settings tab.

4Change the color palette to VGA (256

color).

If this procedure does not work, enter the

serial number in all ﬁelds (name, serial

number, etc.).

Poser (Macintosh) does not

accept your serial number

Create a custom extension set according to the

instructions in “Macintosh Installation” on

page 15.

Macintosh Extension

conﬂicts

Create a custom extension set as described in

“Macintosh Installation” on page 15, add

extensions, and test Poser to see if the conﬂict

is resolved. Some culprits of extension

conﬂicts are scheduling applications, task bars,

and RAM doubling type applications.

Interface corruptions are caused by bad fonts

(such as system 8-8.1’s charcoal). Update older

versions of Adobe Type Manager (ATM), as

they can have conﬂicts.

Glossary

Aliasing A visual artifact caused by low-

resolution sampling that can cause hard edges or

areas of high frequency in an image to look

jagged. Refer also to Anti-aliasing.

Angle Falloff The amount of diminution in the

brightness of a spotlight toward the edge of a light

cone.

Animation Controls A control panel located at

the bottom of the Poser Workspace that lets you

quickly set up and preview animations using a

simple click and drag interface.

Animation Duration The amount of time that

an animation lasts.

Animation Elements List A list that displays all

ﬁgures, lights, cameras, and props currently in the

studio. The Animation Elements List is accessed

on the Animation palette and is used during the

editing of animation keyframes.

Glossary



Animation Frame Count Refer to Frame

Count.

Animation Frame Rate Refer to Frame

Rate.

Animation Frame Size Refer to Frame

Size.

Animation Graph Palette Refer to Graph

Palette.

Animation Palette A comprehensive dialog

which lets you edit keyframe positions, create

complex animations, animate individual body

parts, and edit keyframes within an animation.

Refer also to Animation Elements List.

Anti-aliasing The process of eliminating

aliasing by higher resolution sampling, so that

hard but jagged edges appear smooth and

clean.

Auxiliary Camera An additional camera

view. Like the Main camera, the auxiliary

camera rotates around the center of the studio.

AVI A PC ﬁle type used for saving movies.

Axis A hypothetical linear path. The X, Y,

and Z axes (width, height, and depth,

respectively) deﬁne the directions of the 3D

universe. The axis along which an object is

rotated is the axis of rotation. An object’s axes

are parallel to its bounding box.

Box Tracking A tracking style that displays

ﬁgures and objects as boxes at all times. Refer

also to Figure Tracking, Fast Tracking, and Full

Tracking.

BMP A Windows ﬁle format for bitmapped

or pixel-based images.

Break Spline Interpolation A type of

animation interpolation which has no

intermediate poses. Position changes abruptly

only at the keyframes. Refer also to Constant

Interpolation, Linear Interpolation, and Spline

Interpolation.

Bump Map A type of surface material that

determines the shape of bumps or dents on an

object’s surface.

Camera Plane The plane that a camera

moves along.

Child An object that is linked to another

object (its parent) in a hierarchy. When the

parent is moved, the child moves with it.

Refer also to Parent.

Chain Break A tool that breaks the chain of

parts affected in a translation.

Constant Interpolation A type of

animation interpolation that maintains a

keyframe position, then instantly changes to

the next pose. Refer also to Break Spline

Interpolation, Spline Interpolation, and Linear

Interpolation.

Deformers Properties that can be applied to

an object (or group of objects) to deform its

geometry. In Poser, deformers include

magnets and waves.

Depth Cueing An effect which creates the

appearance that elements far away are dimmer

than elements closer to the camera.

Display Style A style that determines how

ﬁgures, elements, or the document are

displayed in the Document window.



Poser 4

Distance Falloff The distance from a

spotlight itself to the point where the light has

no effect.

Distant Light Refer to Inﬁnite Light.

Document Display Style Refer to Display

Style.

Dolly A camera view where the camera

moves around in 3D space as if gliding on the

surface of a sphere surrounding the Poser

studio.

DXF Originally developed for use with

AutoCad, this is the most common 3D ﬁle

exchange format.

Fast Tracking A tracking style that displays

ﬁgures and objects as boxes only when they

are moving. Refer also to Box Tracking, Full

Tracking, and Figure Tracking.

Figure Ring The ring that surrounds a

ﬁgure and allows you to select the entire

ﬁgure (as opposed to its elements).

Figure Tracking A feature used during the

posing and shaping phases that changes the

display of an object as you reposition its parts.

Refer also to Box Tracking, Fast Tracking, and

Full Tracking.

Flyaround View A camera view that lets you

see all the contents of the studio at once. In

this view the camera moves around an

imaginary track above and away from the

center of the studio.

Focal Length A camera control that changes

the camera perspective in the studio.

Decreasing the Focal Length increases the

sense of perspective. Increasing the Focal

Length “ﬂattens” the sense of perspective.

Frame Count The total number of frames

in an animation.

Frame Rate The number of frames used

during one second of animation.

Frame Size A width or height value for the

animation output set during Animation Setup.

The aspect ratio of the Document window

determines the other value.

Full Tracking A tracking style that uses a

display style at all times, resulting in a slower

motion as you manipulate poses and shapes.

Refer also to Box Tracking, Fast Tracking and

Figure Tracking.

Graph Palette A palette that lets you

perform precise edits on keyframes and adjust

the interpolation methods used in an

animation. The palette is made up of two axes

and a graph. The horizontal axis displays frame

numbers which represent time in your

animation.

Grouping Tool An editing tool that allows

you to select speciﬁc polygons on an object

and group them.

Group Edit Palette A dialog that

accompanies the Grouping tool. The Group

Edit palette includes various options for

grouping and creating props.

Hierarchy A tree structure that lists the

objects in the scene and shows their logical

relationships to other objects.

Glossary



Horizon Line A reference line in a studio

that shows perspective.

Implicit (UV) Mapping Refer to UV

Mapping.

Inﬁnite Lighting A lighting control that

shines light into the studio the same way the

sun or moon shines on the Earth. The light

rays from a distant source are parallel as they

enter the Poser studio.

Interpolation An animation process by

which Poser ﬁlls in the gaps between

keyframes to create the illusion of motion.

Refer also to Break Spline Interpolation,

Spline Interpolation, Linear Interpolation, and

Constant Interpolation.

Inverse Kinematics (IK) A feature which

determines the dependency of jointed

structures in movement. When an extremity

on a ﬁgure moves, IK determines how objects

joined to it respond.

Keyframe A representation of one point in

time in an animation. Keyframes store changes

in position for each body part in the ﬁgure, as

well as changes in scale, color, lighting, or

camera position.

Keyframe Animation The process of

assigning different poses to different keyframes

during an animation.

Keyframe Interpolation The method Poser

uses to calculate the “in between” position of

objects or elements. Refer to Spline

Interpolation, Linear Interpolation, Break

Spline Interpolation, and Constant

Interpolation.

Libraries Palette A Poser library dialog by

which ﬁgures, poses, props, lights, cameras,

and animations are saved and retrieved.

Light Control A control used to create and

position lights in the Poser Workspace. The

Light control is located by default in the top

left corner of the Poser Workspace.

Light Indicator A visible representation of a

light source. The inﬁnite light indicator

appears as a ring around the ﬁgure. The

Spotlight indicator appears as the outline of a

Spotlight.

Linear Interpolation A type of animation

interpolation that places intermediate poses at

equal increments so the motion is smooth and

straight. Refer also to Break Spline

Interpolation, Spline Interpolation, and

Constant Interpolation.

Magnet A deformer that distorts an object as

if it were being affected by a magnet.

Memorize A feature that sets a default value

for a Parameter Dial.

Memory Dots A graphical control that

allows you to save multiple poses, cameras,

and UI conﬁgurations within a ﬁle.

Morph A change made to the form or

character of an object.

Morph Targets A parameter added to an

object that allows you to gradually reshape it.

Natural Light Refer to Inﬁnite light

OBJ A ﬁle format used in many 3D graphics

programs.



Poser 4

Orthogonal A camera projection of a scene

which has no perspective distortion.

Object Any 3D volume or other item that

appears in the universe, including cameras and

lights. When objects are grouped, their group

is also described as an object.

Orbit Refer to X, Y, Z Orbit.

Orientation The direction an object faces as

deﬁned by the compound effect of the

object’s pitch, yaw, and roll. Usually, the most

important aspect of an object’s orientation is

its relation to other objects. An object’s

relation to the viewpoint can be changed by

moving the current camera.

Origin Refer to Prop Origin.

Parameter Dimensions or encompassing

characteristics applied to a ﬁgure or object to

deﬁne its relationship to itself or other objects.

Parameter Dial Movement controls that

allow ﬁgure posing using precise numerical

increments. By dragging a dial you can move

a body part in small increments, allowing for

precise poses.

Parent An object that is linked to another

object (its child) in a hierarchy. When the

parent is moved, the child moves with it.

Refer also to Child.

Phoneme A linguistic term for the position

of the lips, teeth, and tongue as they make

sounds that produce speciﬁc letter sounds. In

Poser, you can create the appearance of

phonemes to create realistic facial animations,

simulating speech.

PICT A standard Macintosh ﬁle format for

pixel-based images.

Pitch The aspect of an object’s attitude that

describes its angular deviation along its

vertical (top-to-bottom) axis.

Point of View (also viewpoint) The

position and angle from which a scene is

viewed. The point of view (POV) is always

through a camera. You may add several

cameras, positioned and angled differently, and

switch the Universe window POV between

them. When you render an image, you choose

the POV from which the image should be

taken.

Properties A collection of characteristics

applied to (or available for) an object.

Properties for an object appear in its

Properties dialog.

Prop Origin 3D cross-hairs that represent a

prop’s center of rotation and scale. When you

rotate a prop, it moves around the origin

point.

QuickTime A standard Apple ﬁle format for

movies.

Reﬂection Map A type of surface material

that determines what is reﬂected on an

object’s surface.

Render The process of building a 2-

dimensional bitmapped image from the

information contained in a 3-dimensional

scene.

Roll A camera command that tips the Dolly

camera to the left or right.

Glossary



Scale A value that describes the space an

object occupies; synonymous with Size,

though Size implies an absolute space.

Scrubber A control which represents the

current period of time on the Animation

Timeline. By positioning the Scrubber at

different points in time, you can move

through time to set up keyframes.

Smart Prop A prop setting that describes a

speciﬁc location for a prop in relation to

another object. The location is found when a

smart prop is retrieved from the library.

Spline Interpolation A type of animation

interpolation which places intermediate poses

(and settings) on a curve. The element or

object accelerates and decelerates in and out of

the motion. Refer also to Break Spline

Interpolation, Constant Interpolation, and

Linear Interpolation.

Spotlight A light that is cast in a speciﬁc

direction along a cone-shaped path, creating a

“stage spot” effect.

Spread The amount of space between the

ﬁngers, controlled by the Spread Parameter

Dial. Higher values spread the ﬁngers out,

while lower values push the ﬁngers together.

SMPTE ISO standard acronym to describe

time by hours:minutes:seconds:frames.

Surface Materials Rendering controls that

let you apply texture characteristics to an

object.

Symmetry A menu control that allows pose

characteristics to be copied from one side of

the body to another.

Taper Adjusts the scale of one end of an

element only—the other end does not change.

Texture Map A type of surface material that

determines the texture of an object’s surface.

TIFF A graphics ﬁle format used for still-

image bitmaps.

Timeline A graphical representation of time

located in the Animation Controls.

Tracking Refer to Figure Tracking.

Translate In/Out Tool An editing tool that

moves a selected part or ﬁgure in the z

dimension.

Translate/Pull Tool An editing tool that

moves a selected part or ﬁgure vertically or

laterally (in the x and y dimensions).

Translation A manipulation of the position

or attitude of an object. Also, an extrusion in

which the cross section remains at one angle,

regardless of the curvature of the sweep path.

Transparency Map A type of surface

material that determines what is reﬂected in a

transparent object’s surface.

Turbulence A Parameter Dial that deﬁnes

the roughness of a wave pattern. Go from a

smooth pattern, to a jagged, turbulent one.

UI The User Interface (UI) is what appears

when you launch Poser. The screen is the

interface between the user and all of the

features of the application. It contains buttons,

pull-down menus, and paths to the features

themselves.



Poser 4

URL Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is

the string of locations in a Web address. The

URL for MetaCreations, for example, is:

http://www.metacreations.com

Use Limits A feature that keeps body parts

within a natural range of motion. Use Limits

does not apply to parts involved in IK (Inverse

Kinematics).

UV Mapping A 3D coordinate mapping

system. UV coordinates are used in parametric

mapping to align points on the shader with

points on the object.

Vanishing Lines A guide used to achieve a

realistic perspective when matching the view

of a ﬁgure with the perspective in a

background image.

Vector A line of movement deﬁned by its

end points or by the current position and one

other point.

Vertex A control point on a path. Paths

begin, change angles, and end at vertices.

Viewpoint Refer to Point of View

VRML Virtual Reality Modeling Language

—a ﬁle format that can be imported and

exported in Poser.

Walk Designer A dialog that allows you to

experiment and control motion creating a

realistic walking gait. The designer also

provides a real-time preview of the walk.

Wave A deformer that distorts an object as if

it were being affected by a wave.

Waveform The graphic representation of a

sound ﬁle.

Wavefront A ﬁle format designating

Wavefront OBJ.

xOrbit A camera control that tilts the camera

forward or backward.

Yaw The area the Dolly camera points at as it

rotates 180 degrees on its y-axis.

yOrbit A camera control that tilts the camera

to the left or right.

zOrbit A camera control that orbits the

camera around the studio. The camera

continues to point at the center of the studio

as it orbits.

Glossary



Index

Numerics

2D rendering 259

3D programs

props and 167

3D Studio file format

exporting 48

importing 47, 166

3DMF file format

exporting 48

importing 47, 166

Accessing the web 332

Add Element to deform button

magnet object

properties 146

wave object properties 151

Add Keyframes button 213, 218

Add Morph Target

body parts 42, 126

Prop properties 170

Adding

animations to library 230

chain breaks 120

figures to studio 33

hair 163

infinite lights 193

keyframes 213, 218, 228

lights 193

poses to the library 135

props 166

spotlights 193

Adjusting light indicators 196

Advancing keyframes 220, 221

Aiming

infinite lights 194

lights 193, 197

spotlights 194

Aliasdefined 337

rendering 262

Alignhead 237

joint parameters 282

All Elements option 218

Deleting keyframes 219

Next Keyframe 221

Previous Keyframe 221

Allocating memory 25

Always Complete Last Step 237

Ambient color 257

Amp Noise dial, waves 150

Amplitude dial, waves 150

Angle Falloff

defined 337

spotlights 201

Animals

heads and 133

posing 133

Animating checkbox

Light properties 192

Animating On/Off icon 181

Animation

adding keyframes 213, 218

adjusting current time 212

adjusting scrubber 212

align head 237

All Elements button 219

Always Complete Last Step

237

background and 211

break spline

interpolation 206, 225

BVH files 242

cameras 181, 237, 239

changing Timeline

Ruler 217

clearing keyframes 219

clip sound file 240

constant interpolation

206, 224

controls 206

copying keyframes 222, 223

creating 209

Current Frame

Indicator 227

cycle repeat 237

deformers and 208

deleting keyframes 213,

219, 220

designing walks 234

Dolly camera 238

duration 210, 337

editing 206, 213

editing graph 227

editing interpolation 225

editing keyframes 217

editing sound files 240

editing walks 235

Elements list 215, 216, 337

Face camera 238

faces 207

figures and 205, 206

frame count 215, 339

frame rate 214

frame size 210

go to keyframe 221

green keyframes 225

Hand cameras 238

hands 207

how it works 206

indicator 239

Index



interpolation 206, 224

interpolation graph 226

Inverse Kinematics and 207

key-shaped indicator 239

lights 239

linear interpolation

206, 224

loading walks 236

magnet deformers and 208

Main camera 238

morph targets and 209

motion 232

moving keyframes 221, 222

navigation controls 220

Next Keyframe button

220, 221

palette 206, 213

previewing 206

Previous Keyframe

220, 221

props and 208

red keyframes 225

rendering 264

saving walks 236

selecting elements 216

selecting keyframe

range 228

selecting keyframes

217, 227

setting dimensions 210

setting duration 210

setting up 210, 214

simulating speech 207

Sound Display 241

sound files 240

sound range 240

spacing keyframes 231

spline interpolation

206, 224

syncing sound 240

techniques 231

This Element button 218,

219, 220

timeline 211, 217

timing keyframes 223

Transition options 237

turn camera off 239

walk in place 236

walk paths 233

walking 233

wave deformers and 208

waveforms 241

window size ratio 210

Animation Controls 209

command 214

defined 337

scrubber 211

understanding 24

Animation Palette 24

Animation palette 213

add keyframes 218

adding keyframes 218

clearing keyframes 219

current time and 215

defined 338

delete keyframes 219

Elements List 215

frame numbers 215

show graph display button

225

This Element button 219

Timeline 217

Animation Setup command

210, 214

Animations

adding to library 230

advanced features 224

cameras and and 187

creating 205, 209

current time 215

current time and 211

lights and 203

looping 229

multi-frame 230

playing 228

poses and 35, 48, 135, 157

previewing 228, 229

saving 265

speed 210

stopping 228

techniques 231

Answering questions 13

Anti-alias

defined 338

Document render 263

rendering 262

Apply Bulges parameter 284

Apply Bulges parameters 285

Apply standard rotation order

299

Applying

preview modes 40

standard hierarchy 299

symmetry 125, 142

walks 236

Arms, selecting 43

Articulated Hand model 128

Aspect ratio, rendering 261

Auto Balance, posing with 134

Auxiliary Camera 179, 338

AVI background 211

defined 338

Footage command 211

importing 47, 211

rendering and 264

Axis, defined 338

Background

animation 211

image 211

movie 211

Background color

Rendering and 262

setting 29

Background Picture 262

Backgrounds

clearing 44



Poser 4

color 194, 262

pasting figures onto 44

rendering and 262

Workspace 28

Bend dial 122

Bend option, Element

Properties 42, 126

Bending

body parts 122

figures 127

joint parameters 281, 283

props 12

Black, rendering and 262

Blend zones 278

Blink, posing for 131

Blocks, selecting keyframes 222

BMP file format 251

defined 338

importing and 47

rendering and 264

Bodies

scaling 142

sizing 142

Body parts

attaching to prop 172

bending 42, 122, 126

casting shadows 42, 126

front-to-back

movement 123

grouping 305

hiding 42, 126

locking 134

morph targets and 42, 126

naming 42, 126

options 126

Parameter Dials and 141

pointing 134

properties 42

replacing with props 173

scaling 140, 141

selecting 43, 114

side-to-side movement 122

surface materials and 245

tapering 141

turning 123

twisting 118, 122

Body shaping 138

Box Tracking 30, 338

Break Spline interpolation 206,

225, 338

Breasts, changing size 141

BRLarge 141

Brow parameter 132, 153

Browser 331

BRSmall 141

Bryce 3D, using with Poser 328

Bump maps

converting PICT 248

custom 247

defined 338

loading custom 248

painting 248

props and 171

rendering with 263

Strength slider 247

templates 248

BumpNose parameter 132, 153

BVH file format 47

Importing BVH files 242

Camera Controls

understanding 21

using 181

viewing figures and 36

Camera parameters

Focal Length 183

Pitch 184

Roll 184

Scale 184

xOrbit 184

Yaw 184

yOrbit 184

zOrbit 184

Camera Plane

controls 181

defined 338

Camera Selection control 180

Cameras

animating 181, 237

animation indicator 239

auxiliary 179

category 32

controls 21

Dolly 179

face 179

flyaround view 180

focal length and 183

hand 179

Hand Cameras 127

how they work 177

locking 186

main 179

memory dots 37, 187

options 185

Orthogonal 179

parameters 183

pointing 186

Posing 179

posing and 110

properties 185

roll 183

rotation trackball 182

saving positions 37, 186

saving to library 186

scaling 183

See also Libraries

selecting 36, 180

shortcut icons 180

switching 180

turning animation

on/off 239

Canoma, using with Poser 333

Cartoon style 39

Cartoon w/Line style 39

Casting shadows 201

Index



Casts Shadow button,

properties 42, 126, 170

Center Point

joint parameters 282,

283, 285

Center, joint parameters

280, 282

Chain break

adding 120

posing and 120

removing 121

tool 120, 338

Changing

defaults 46

play range 229

prop origin 169

Timeline Ruler 217

Characters, figures 153

Cheeks parameter 132, 153

Child

defined 338

parent and 296

See also Libraries

Smile 130

TongueL 131

TongueT 131

using 133

Worry Left/Right 131

zooming into 36

Facial positions 207

Factory state 26, 27

Falloff graph

magnet zone 146, 152

Falloff zones

spherical 287

Fast forward button 228

Fast Tracking 30

defined 339

Feet, selecting 43

Figure Height command 139

Figure joints 278

Figure Ring

defined 339

posing and 114

scaling and 142

Figure tracking 30, 339

Figures

adding clothing 164

adding to studio 33

animating 205, 206

applying surface

materials 245

bending 127

category 32

changing types 138

color 199

combined props 304

combining to create

new 303

conforming 12

conforming clothes to 165

conforming hair to 164

creating 301

creating outside Poser 304

deforming 143

genitals 139

heads 45

height 139

hiding 44

hiding/showing 44

locking 134

modifying to create

new 302

moving 124

options 126

pasting onto background 44

perspective of multiple

figures 45

placing in studio 32

posing 113, 114

previewing 37

properties 41

props, and 161

range of motion 113

renaming 41

restoring 174

rotating 115, 123, 124

saving 160

scaling 138, 142

See also Libraries

Hand Cameras 179

animating 238

posing 127

Hands 128

animating 207

category 32

Grasping 128

locking 128

Parameter Dials and 128

posing 127

presets 129

See also Libraries

selecting 43

Thumb dial 128

zooming into 36

H-Anim file format 48

Headanimals 133

selecting 43

Index



Head lengths 45

HeartFace parameter 132, 153

Height, figures 139

Hidden Line style 38

Hide Figure command 44

Hiding

body parts 42, 126

figures 41, 44

guides 44

prop origin 169

props 170

skin under clothing 166

Hierarchical Relationships 295

Hierarchies, multi-figure 298

Hierarchy

defined 339

how it works 289

See also Libraries

selecting color 192

setting color 199

setting intensity 200

setting parent 193, 202

turning on or off 192

turning on shadows 192

using Point At 199

Limits

Parameter Dials and 113

using 113

Linear interpolation 206,

224, 340

Links menu 332

LipSize parameter 132, 153

Lit Wireframe style 38

Figures from a Libraries

palette 33

walks 236

Lock Hand Parts command 127

Locking

body parts 134

figures 134

hand parts 128

magnets 147

Locking, cameras 186

LongFace parameter 132, 153

Loop button 229

Low Start/End joint

parameters 285

Macintosh

custom extensions 15

extension conflicts 336

installation 15

memory usage 16

Poser and 336

setup 25

system requirements 15

Magnet

defined 340

Magnet base 144

properties 146

Magnet deformer 12

animating 208

Magnet object 144

properties 145

Magnet tool 144

Magnet zone 144

properties 146

Magnets

locking 147

moving 145

parameter dials 145

properties 145

repositioning 144

rotating 144

scaling 145

twisting 144

Main Camera 179

animating 238

Make Movie command 260, 264

Map Size dial 202

Mapping, UV 171

Materials command 245

Max Limit 122

Memorize command 46, 340

Memorizing Parameter Dials 122

Memory dots

cameras 37, 187

defined 340

pose 136

posing 114

UI 28

Memory, allocating 25

MetaCreations

license agreement 363

MetaStream file format

importing 47, 166

Min Limit 122

Model Format 305

Morph 340

Morph targets 12

adding 156

adding to body

parts 42, 126

animating 209



Poser 4

custom, creating 154

defined 340

ethnic 153

props and 170

superhero 154

Motion

creating 232

syncing with sound 240

Motion Capture Files 242

Motion graphics programs 241

Mouth parameters 130

Frown 130

MouthF 130

MouthM 130

MouthO 130

OpenLips 130

Smile 130

TongueL 131

TongueT 131

MouthF, posing for 130

MouthM, posing for 130

MouthO, posing for 130

Moving

current time 215

Document window 27, 29

figures 124

keyframes 221, 228

magnets 145

multiple keyframes 222

props 168

tools 27

waves 150

workspace background 28

Moving infinite light 196

Moving lights 197

Moving spotlight 196

Multi-Figure Hierarchies 298

Multi-frame animation

saving 35, 48, 135, 157,

187, 203

Multi-frame animations 230

Multiple figures

in perspective 45

lighting 190

relative sizes 142

Multiple keyframes

moving 222

selecting 222

Name

Edges 324

Light properties 192

Polygons 324

Polymesh 324

Vertices 324

Name field

figure properties 41

magnet base properties 146

magnet object

properties 145

magnet zone properties 146

wave object properties 151

wave zone properties 152

Naming

body parts 42, 126

props 170

Natural Light. See Infinite Light

Navigating frames 220

Netscape Navigator 331

Next Keyframe button 213, 220,

221, 227

OBJ file format

defined 340

exporting 48

importing 47, 166

See also Libraries

Posing

animals 133

Auto Balance and 134

cameras and 110

copying and pasting 125

eyes 131

faces 129

figures 113

hands 127

libraries and 110

memory dots 114

Parameter Dials and 121

parts 113

phonemes and 132

symmetry 124

undoing 114

Posing camera 179

Positioning

magnets 144

spotlight 198

waves 149

Positions, saving camera 186

Preferences 26

keyframes 224

rendering 260

Preferred state 26

Preview Controls 228

Preview modes

applying 40



Poser 4

figures and 40

Previewing

animations 206, 228, 229

figures 37

Previous keyframe 221

Previous Keyframe button 213,

220, 227

Previous State 27

Printing files 47

Prop origin

defined 341

hiding 169

Prop parent 171

Properties

Bend 42, 126

body parts 42

Camera mode 185

defined 341

figures 41

lighting 191

props 170

props and 174

shadows 201

Properties command 41, 42,

126, 169, 170, 185

lighting and 192

shadows and 201

Props 171

3D programs and 167

adding 166

animating 208

applying surface

materials 247

attaching to figures 172

bending 12, 172

category 32

color 171

creating 168

creating parameters 169

defined 161

deforming 168

deleting 168

exporting 48, 166, 167

hiding 170

how they work 161

importing 166, 167

morph targets and 170

moving 168

naming 170

origin 169, 170

parents 171

parents and 175

properties 170

replacing body parts 173

resizing 168

rotating 168

saving 175

See also Libraries

setting parent 171

setting parents 170

smart props 175

surface material 171

Props category 166

Quality, animation and 264

Questions 13

QuickTime background 211

QuickTime file format

defined 341

importing 47, 211

rendering and 264

QuickTime Footage

command 211

Quit command 49

RAM usage 16

Range of keyframes, deleting 220

Range of motion 113

Rates, frames 210

Ray Dream Studio 323

Red keyframes 225

Reflection map

clearing 254

color 254

custom 254

defined 341

loading 254

Reflective color 254

Relative size 142

Removing

chain breaks 121

keyframes 219

Renaming objects 293

Render commands 263

Render Options command

142, 261

Render over 262

Render to

image size 261

New Window 261

Rendering 259

animation 264

anti-alias 263

aspect ratio and 261

defined 341

how it works 259

images 263

lights and 189

options 260

saving animations 265

setting up 260

shadows 263

surface material 262

Reordering

objects 293

Replace Body Part with Prop

command 173

Repositioning

Document window 27

keyframes 228

tools 27

workspace background 28

Resizing

breasts 141

Index



Document window 29

Libraries palette 33

props 168

Poser4 Poser 4 User Guide

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