Update to award-winning 3D animation system includes addition of hair and fur along with new real-world lighting system and advancements in global illumination

NewTek, Inc., manufacturer of industry-leading video and 3D animation products, today announced LightWave v9.5, a major update to its award-winning 3D application, LightWave 3D. LightWave v9.5 new capabilities include a complete hair and fur solution, new lighting system and many improvements to animation, global illumination, rendering and workflow. The update will be available to registered owners of the LightWave v9 series at no charge. The LightWave v9.5 Open Beta program is scheduled to begin early March; LightWave v9 owners who wish to participate may register now by visiting: http://register.newtek.com/
“As promised with the LightWave v9 series we’ve added major capabilities with each of the updates we’ve delivered so far and LightWave v9.5 is certainly no exception,” said Jay Roth, president, NewTek 3D Division. “With the addition of a complete hair and fur solution, all new real-world lighting system and GI that is significantly faster with even more beautiful results, LightWave v9.5 has something to offer the 3D community regardless of the specialty – from game developers to character animation to architectural visualization.”
LightWave v9.5 Update Includes:
Character Animation Enhancements
– New Hair and Fur System
– Enhanced IK and Animation Systems
  • New Collada, FBX and OBJ I/O
  • New IK Calculation Options for Faster Performance
  • New Bone Type – Joints
  • New Objective Options for IK
  • IK/FK blending
  • Multi-threaded Mesh Deformation Evaluation
Modeler
  • UV Unwrap/UV Relax
  • Symmetry Tolerance
Node Editor Enhancements
  • Interpolated Soft Rlections/Refractions
  • Support for New Light API Functions
  • Oren-Nayar Shading Option for Many Materials