Remarkable Figure Design Tool Incorporates the Human Body into 2D and 3D
Artwork

Aptos, California--May 15, 1995--Fractal Design Corporation this week ships
Poser, an application for producing the human form in graphic design,
illustration, multimedia and 3D software. Built for the digital artist and
graphic designer, Poser brings the art of life drawing into the electronic
studio. Poser is a modeling and rendering application that allows users to
create an infinite variety of human figures which can be posed, rendered
with surface textures and multiple lights, and easily incorporated into
artwork. Poser is designed to work closely with 2D and 3D design
applications such as Fractal Design Painter, Adobe Photoshop, Ray Dream
Designer, Macromedia Director, and many other programs.

"One of the most difficult tasks for any artist or designer is to draw the
human form with accurate scale and proportion," said Jon Bass, product
manager for Poser. "With Poser, we not only provide an accurate visual
reference for the human figure, but also let designers create compelling
artwork by applying surface and bump maps, creative lighting and unique
camera angles to the human form."

"Nothing on the market compares to Poser," said Dorothy Simpson Krause,
professor at Massachusetts College of Art and corporate curator for Iris
Graphics, Inc. "In the past I've used photo-derived images, but Poser lets
me work with a model of a figure in the round and, with lighting,
foreshortening and camera angles, get effects that could not be achieved
any other way. Poser lets someone with no 3D ability or interest
successfully incorporate 3D elements into their work."

Poser provides male, female and stylized models that can be moved,
modified, shaped into any pose and viewed from any angle. Poser offers
body sizes ranging from infant to adult to super hero. Individual body
parts, such as arms, legs and torsos, can be adjusted in size and
dimension. Poser provides direct figure manipulation; users can grab the
hand and place it wherever desired. The arm and shoulder follow the
movements of the hand. Once a Poser model has been shaped, multiple light
sources, as well as bump and texture maps, can be applied to create a
fully rendered model of the human body. The final composition can be
exported as a RIB, DXF, or PICT file.

"You can create anything from muscle-bound monsters to snakeskin-covered
sylphs-all as easily as posing a wooden mannequin," Bass said. "Poser
provides the science of figure drawing, maintaining true perspective and
proportion, so the designer can focus on the creative direction."

Poser's user interface is derived from Fractal Design Painter, the
award-winning natural-media paint, image-editing and video/animation
application. In fact, the two programs work extremely well together,
especially when using Poser's models in Painter's tracing layer.

Applications for Poser

Poser expands the creative range of the graphic designer, production artist
and illustrator, allowing them to use the human body as a design element.
Poser generates life-like models that can be used to speed the process of
concept design, used as tracing templates for illustrations, and as an
infinite collection of source imagery for compositing.

For the fine artist, Poser provides the reference models for sketching or
drawing the human form, replacing reference photographs and books. Poser
can be used to identify form, perspective, body proportioning,
highlighting and shadows. Poser models can be printed on paper for
traditional drawing or used directly on-screen.

For Photoshop and Painter users, Poser models provide a great foundation
for the application of filters and special effects. Poser is also a
valuable tool for creating storyboards and planning photo shoots. Poser
models are quick to manipulate and images can be used as a backdrop to
identify props or scene content.

Poser also makes it possible to use the human form in 3D applications. For
3D modelers, Poser takes the difficulty out of building and shaping the
human form. Figures can be placed into any pose and exported into
applications like Ray Dream Designer, Alias Sketch, Strata Vision 3D and
Infini-D.

Easy controls permit the user with little or no drawing experience to
create human figures. Poser is better than clip-art galleries, enabling
users to create the exact figure they need in the exact pose. With Poser,
anything is within grasp of the innovative user, regardless of their
drawing ability.

Using Poser is straightforward. A figure is displayed on-screen and users
click and drag body parts to pose their digital mannequin. Body parts are
scaleable, and each body part can be sized independently to create big
heads, long arms, or fat stomachs. Three light sources can be colored and
positioned to provide environmental control. Poser comes with dozens of
libraries which contain saved poses, body shapes and lighting conditions.
Library settings can be applied to any figure and designers can create
their own custom libraries. For detailed control, parameter dials can be
used to modify every body part and scaling attribute. This allows fine
control of body positioning and numerically accurate positioning of joint
bends.

System Requirements/Pricing and Availability

Poser for Macintosh is shipping now for a retail price of $199. A special
introductory offer of $99 is available through August 31, 1995. The
software requires an Apple Macintosh with system 7.x or greater and a
floating point unit (FPU) or a Power Macintosh; a hard disk; a color
display (24-bit recommended) and 6MB of application RAM. A Windows version
of Poser is in development. Customers can call 1-800-297COOL to order.
Poser is available through distributors, including Ingram, Merisel and
Tech Data, as well as superstores, major resellers and mail order.

About Fractal Design Corporation

Fractal Design Corporation is a major force in multiple-platform graphics
software, creating and marketing next-generation paint, photo-design and
image-retouching software for Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows
computers. Additionally, all Fractal Design products are written to
support the new Power Macintosh computers. Fractal Design develops and
markets the award-winning natural-media paint and image-processing
applications: Fractal Design Painter, Dabbler, Poser, ColorStudio &
Shapes, and Fractal Design Sketcher. Fractal Design products are available
through distributors including Ingram, Merisel and Tech Data, as well as
superstores, major resellers and mail order. The company is headquartered
at 335 Spreckels Drive, Aptos, CA 95003. Telephone: 408 688-5300. Fax: 408
688-8836.

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