Deborah R. Fowler
Houdini Overview
Posted Dec 12 2017
Updated on Dec 26 2023
A very quick overview of the
essentials in video form:
- introduction to hscript
expressions in 18.5.351
- Houdini Essentials
updated to version 18.0.287 and still relavent information
even in 19.5
- older version of above 17.0.352
And non-video form ...
This section is intended to
give an overview of commonly used techniques in Houdini. This is
from my personal perspective - opinions are freely given. There
is extensive documentation
at SideFX.com which goes into greater depth. There are
also numerous other resources - good
starting points here. Houdini is a multi-purpose package
and I will focus my website on its
- non-destructive node based proceduralism
- dynamics and
- vex/vops
Click on the link to the topic you are interested in below:
General Concepts and With Notes
Basic
Trig Review (for procedural animation)
INTRODUCTION TO COPY / LOOPING
LOOPING
(For-each and links to point wrangle, python) also see the
video above on Houdini copies and variation.
INSTANCING
Example file
showing the concepts discussed also in the section on LOOK DEV
below. Instancing in general and in Mantra and Redshift featured.
LOOK DEV
Now that H19/19.5 have been released I'm updating in this Overview-H19.html as I explore Karma and Redshift
***Lighting in Houdini Redshift
Lighting in Houdini (KARMA-CPU/BETA XPU)
Lighting in Houdini (MANTRA)
- Basics:
Types,
Attenuation
- Instancing (my favorite!)
- Instancing with
Geometry (read above section first)
- Linking (powerful but be careful!)
- Render basics
(materials/shadows/render nodes)
- Passes (not Layers) = lighting and Layers (not Passes) = geometry
Compositing in Houdini - for serious compositing work, use Nuke,
however Houdini has a handy in-application compositing network
which is terrific for testing layers/passes without having to ever
leave the package. I use it frequently.
Dealing with Images in Houdini
Fun with Logos and Markers
- Example of Modeling
- Very Basic Fracturing (not including the RBD Material Fracture Node)
- Mocap Marker Fun
COMPLEX
SCENES see also good habits (advice for the beginning
user)
COMMAND LINE RENDERING (MANTRA and
REDSHIFT)
Caching/Saving
Geometry
PDG (Topnet) Wedging