Autodesk released the new version of their award winning 3D applications 3ds Max 2013 and 3ds Max Design 2013 bringing new motion graphics, animation, and simulation tool to CG artists and designers. The products share core technology, but offer specialized toolsets for game developers, visual effects artists, and other creative professionals working in the media design industry on one hand. The new version enhancing the UI & Workflow, MassFX and a lot more along with new features and ActiveShade interactive NVIDIA® iray® rendering.
One of the bigger changes in this new version is implementing Adobe After Effects, Adobe® Photoshop Interoperability which was possible due the entirely new render pass system. I really hope that all mistakes and bugs from the 2012 version were fixed and also better use of NVIDIA® technology would be present. Subscription customers can get the 2013 version of 3ds Max 2013 and 3ds Max Design 2013 from Subscription Canter or you can simply download the trail version.
Whats new in short:
- Adobe® After Effects® interoperability
- New Render Pass system
- ActiveShade interactive NVIDIA® iray® rendering
- Enhanced interoperability with Autodesk® Revit® Architecture and Autodesk® DirectConnect support
- MassFX enhancements
Adobe After Effects Interoperability
If you use Adobe® After Effects® software, you’ll find a level of interoperability in Autodesk 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design 2013 that sets a higher standard for 2D/3D data exchange. The new Media Sync functionality provides two-way transfer of cameras, lights, null objects, plane objects/solids, footage, footage layering, blend modes, opacity, and effects; with it, you can iterate more effectively and reduce rework to complete projects in less time.
Render Pass System and Photoshop Interoperability
Scenes can now be more easily segmented for downstream compositing. Thanks to an entirely new render pass system in Autodesk 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design, you can now create render elements for Autodesk® Smoke® 2013 software, Adobe After Effects, Adobe® Photoshop software, or certain other image compositing applications more efficiently. A state recorder enables you to capture, edit, and save the current state, while a visual interface shows how compositing and render elements are wired together to create the final result.
ActiveShade Interactive iray Rendering
Experience an interactive creative process for finalizing renderings, with new ActiveShade support for the NVIDIA® iray® renderer. ActiveShade enables you to iterate more effectively by providing an interactive rendering session that constantly updates as changes are made to cameras, lighting, materials, and geometry.
Customizable Workspaces
You can now adapt 3ds Max and 3ds Max Design to your personal way of working by selecting from a choice of default or custom workspaces. Each workspace can have individual settings for menus, toolbars, ribbon, and viewport tab presets; in addition, selecting a new workspace can automatically execute a MAXScript. This enables you to more easily configure the workspace to suit your preferences or to fit the task at hand; as an example, you might configure one workspace for modeling, and a different one for animating.
Nitrous Viewport Performance and Quality
The Nitrous accelerated graphics core has received a number of enhancements in Autodesk 3ds Max 2013 and 3ds Max Design 2013. You’ll find increased interactivity on large scenes, together with new support for image-based lighting, depth of field, and accelerated particle flow display. In addition, improved support for shadows in large scenes and improved workflows for interior scenes all extend the Nitrous functionality.
More info at: Autodesk