Stefan: Indeed, “log2e” is a math term (with an approximate value of 1.442695040888963387), but it was not intended as such in the first place. When I was looking for a cool-sounding company name I wrote down some internet-related buzzwords and slogans. One of them was “Log on to the E-World”. I shortened it to “log2e” and dropped the hackneyed slogan. Though I have no math background I admire the logical strength of this science. As for the Ph.D., I earned it in German Literature (that was in one of my former lives some hundred years ago). I have no educational background in programming or art. I used to work as a marketing guy for IT companies, but as far as web design and programming are concerned, I am completely self-taught.

RainWriter: Now German Literature I would have never guessed. The first time you came to our attention as a Swift 3D customer was when you submitted your “Flying Keys” animation that you created with Swift 3D V3. Was this your first foray into 3D?

Stefan: (laughs) Yes, and it got me my first job as a Flash designer and my first customer from the United States. I posted the “Flying Keys” animation on a user forum for software synthesizers because I did the soundtrack with music software from Spectrasonics. The Creative Director of Spectrasonics saw it and emailed me that he wanted some Flash banner ads with a 3D look. So my first Swift-related project I got paid for was a 120 by 60 pixels Flash ad with 3D elements. Designing for this tiny canvas is a real challenge! I guess you can imagine that the phrase “start small” has a special meaning to me. Later I advanced to 468 by 60 pixels. Now, is that progress?

RainWriter: You then went on to create another experimental project, “Degrees of Infinity,” which is equally as impressive. What was your inspiration for this animation?

Stefan: I was afraid you would ask this question. Now I must admit it: Yes, I have a strange love for mathematics. The expression “degrees of infinity” alludes to the mind-boggling fact that there are different levels of infinity in Set Theory. I did the project at a time when I was reading several books on Set Theory. My goal was to create an animation with some weird objects, shapes and transitions that mirror the mind-twisting experience of those mathematical thoughts. But most people enjoy this little animation just as a piece of abstract Flash work. And that’s fine.

RainWriter: “Degrees of Infinity” combines both vector and raster animation. What steps did you take to get such a smooth integration of both types of output?

Stefan: The process of putting this animation together was totally experimental and unorganized. When I started I did not know where this thing would take me. I had several pre-rendered animation sequences that I had done before as Swift 3D exercises. I reused some of them; others were built from scratch. Also I did some post work on the raster renderings in Fireworks. Then I threw all my vector and raster animations into Flash and started mixing it all together. I arranged and rearranged the layers and scenes in Flash over and over. It took me ages until I was satisfied with the flow of the animation.

RainWriter: Now while I know your first love will always be Swift 3D, you’ve moved up in the 3D world a bit and are now a user of LightWave 3D. What made you decide to take on a higher end 3D program?

Stefan: I always wanted to learn modeling on the vertex and polygon level. I had been playing around with free software like Wings 3D and Blender but the results I got from these programs did not meet my expectations. So I looked for a professional program that was affordable and powerful. I ended up with LightWave 3D and I am still happy with this decision.

RainWriter: As with Swift 3D, you quickly mastered LightWave and launched a wonderful new site for your LOG2E company. It definitely has a futuristic-type design to it. Can you tell us about it?

Stefan: Well, I consider myself still a LightWave learner. The artwork on my new website reflects pretty well my current skill level in 3D. I wanted to make the imagery a dominant part of the new design because in the past I was very often hired for PHP and ActionScript programming jobs only. So the new site should showcase a much broader range of capabilities. I really would like to do more design-oriented Flash work. (So much for the shameless self-promotion part of this interview.) Maybe those organic and virus-like objects are not emotionally appealing but they make people send me emails and ask questions like “Hey, I like this electron microscope look but what has this image to do with web programming?” My answer is: “I do not know either but it made you start communicating with me.” And that’s what this business is all about: communication.

RainWriter: And not to let readers think you have abandoned us, you are now a user of our Swift 3D LW plug-in (and a moderator at our Swift 3D LW forum), and have included RAViX renderings on your new site. How has the combination of LightWave 3D and the Swift 3D LW plug-in enabled you to enhance your new site?

Stefan: The combination of LightWave and the Swift 3D LW plug-in gives you the best of both worlds: the incredible modeling features of LightWave and the fantastic vector output of the RAViX engine. It opens up so many creative possibilities. For example, it is so quick and easy to render the outlines of a complex LigthtWave object as vectors, import them into Flash, convert them to fills and use them as masks. This is in short what I did excessively on my new site. Also, you can easily combine a bitmap-rendered scene with less bandwidth-consuming vector animations. As a Flash designer I really enjoy these endless possibilities.

RainWriter: You showcase several client projects in your portfolio section that have Swift 3D standalone elements. Are you working on any current projects or have any future plans for using Swift 3D LW?

Stefan: Right now I do a lot of PHP and ActionScript programming again. Hopefully in 2004 there will be more Flash and 3D-related projects. I will keep you informed.

RainWriter: Stefan, thank you for your time and good luck with your future projects.

Stefan: Thank you for your appreciation of my work.