tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44110583411175308592024-02-06T20:07:33.246-06:00Twins & TangentsTips and Tricks from the Mad Minds of the Brothers PrattCameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-28274074984285563442017-05-08T19:04:00.001-05:002017-05-08T19:04:33.788-05:00Where Animation meets Clarification!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVUCdG0rqUGtdi0ZG5dTSP7wrJvqvd17ofGP68sIoBeVZhRNXmX587dRmdyXVrqZmJeUzhcsGBuvOJqujFGh0dGUinXGs38H7Uhkkn9cfnmkwXwXo1XN97Mf_1Cd7yIiONxAHFkK1WBaw/s1600/userprofile.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVUCdG0rqUGtdi0ZG5dTSP7wrJvqvd17ofGP68sIoBeVZhRNXmX587dRmdyXVrqZmJeUzhcsGBuvOJqujFGh0dGUinXGs38H7Uhkkn9cfnmkwXwXo1XN97Mf_1Cd7yIiONxAHFkK1WBaw/s1600/userprofile.png" /></a></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">Twins & Tangents is a site in progress. Each week we'll be updating with new tips and tricks, some helpful, and others just plain mad! </div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">We hope you enjoy your visit!</div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">-The Brothers Pratt</div><br />
Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-25906856760600802062017-05-08T15:24:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:24:19.823-05:00Class 2 - Week 1 - Mel ScriptsMel Scripts are probably one of my favorite ways of speeding up my <br />
workflow. They can range from simple scripts that change the color <br />
of a keyframe to complex monstrosities that can automate just about <br />
anything you can imagine. Plus the nerd in me just loves to see all <br />
the code and syntax.<br />
<br />
One of the things I love about Maya is you don't even need to know how <br />
to write code in order to create a Mel script. All you need to do is <br />
open the script editor (either by hitting the button in the bottom <br />
right corner of maya, or going to Window> General Editors > Script <br />
Editor) then use the command or series of commands you want to make a <br />
shortcut for and the script will show up in the top pane of Script <br />
Editor, where you can copy and paste them.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Here is the workflow I used to created a script that would allow me to <br />
quickly frame up on the current playback range in the graph editor.<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Open both the Script Editor (Window > General Editors > Script Editor) <br />
and the Graph Editor (Window > Animation Editors > Graph Editor).</li>
<li>In the Script Editor, make sure "History > Echo All Commands" is <br />
checked.(Echo All Commands isn't needed most of the time, but if you <br />
find that the command you want isn't showing up in the Script Editor, <br />
try turning on Echo All Commands and it should show up.)</li>
<li>Now go to the Graph Editor and hit "View > Frame Playback Range"</li>
<li>There should now be a few new lines in the top pane of the <br />
Script Editor. The one we're interested in is<br />
<b><i>animView -startTime (`playbackOptions -query -minTime` - 1) -endTime (`playbackOptions -query -maxTime` + 1) graphEditor1GraphEd;</i></b></li>
<li>Finally, select the code and hit Ctrl + C to copy it.</li>
</ul>
That was simple enough! But now that we have our script, we have to <br />
figure out what we can do with it.<br />
<br />
The first way you can use a script is to paste the script into either <br />
the MEL Command Line (which is at the bottom of Maya by default) or in <br />
the bottom pane of the Script Editor, then hit enter and the script <br />
should run. But this is only good for a one time use, which kind of <br />
defeats the purpose of going through all the trouble of getting a <br />
script. <br />
<br />
The second thing we can do is save the script to the shelf, creating a <br />
new button and making it easier to use the script later on.<br />
<br />
Adding a script to the shelf is a very simple process as well. Just <br />
select the script in either the Command Line or the Script Editor then <br />
middle mouse drag it up to the shelf and voila! A new shelf button is <br />
born. I would suggest not creating any new buttons in the arAnimTools <br />
shelf. If the Anim Tools updates or refreshes it will wipe out all the <br />
custom scripts you have in the arAnimTools shelf. Instead, create them <br />
in a custom shelf tab. This becomes even more useful when creating <br />
selection sets. For example, you could create a button on the shelf <br />
that selects all of Stewie's spine controls, one to select all his <br />
controls at once, or even one that selects all his controls and then <br />
keys them for you.<br />
<br />
Thirdly, if you go to "Window > Settings/Preferences > Hotkey Editor" <br />
we can use the script we've just created to make a new Maya hotkey, <br />
increasing it's usefulness even more!<br />
<br />
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<br />
<ul>
<li>To add a new hotkey, hit the New button in the Hotkey Editor.</li>
<li>Type in a name and, if you want, a description for the new hotkey.</li>
<li>Select the category you want the hotkey to be listed under. I <br />
personally like to add all my custom hotkeys to the "User" category, <br />
making it easier to find them later on.</li>
<li>Copy and paste the Mel script into the Command area and hit Accept.</li>
</ul>
You now have a new command but it's still not assigned to any hotkeys. <br />
To do that, select your newly created command and in the "Assign New <br />
Hotkey Section", pick the key you would like to use, as well as any <br />
modifiers, and hit Query. This will just double check to make sure the <br />
hotkey you wanted isn't already used by something else. Once you've <br />
found hotkey combination you want to use, just hit Assign and you're <br />
all set!<br />
<br />
I found that setting the "Frame to Current Time" script I mentioned <br />
earlier to "Ctrl + Alt + f" really helped my productivity.<br />
<br />
These are a few mel scripts from Kevin Freeman that I found very <br />
useful for marking which keys are breakdowns and inbetweens in the <br />
timeline. <br />
<br />
////change all key colors green////<br />
<b><i>keyframe -tds on `ls -sl`;</i></b><br />
<br />
////change key colors green on frame 12////<br />
<b><i>keyframe -tds on -t "12:12" `ls -sl`;</i></b><br />
<br />
////change key colors green on current frame////<br />
<b><i>$now=`currentTime -q`;<br />
keyframe -tds on -t ($now + ":" + $now) `ls -sl`;</i></b><br />
<br />
////set key and change key colors green on current frame////<br />
<b><i>$now=`currentTime -q`;<br />
setKeyframe;<br />
keyframe -tds on -t ($now + ":" + $now) `ls -sl`;</i></b><br />
<br />
Again, here's the script that will allow you to frame up on the <br />
current frame range in the graph editor.<br />
<b><i>animView -startTime (`playbackOptions -query -minTime` - 1) -endTime (`playbackOptions -query -maxTime` + 1) graphEditor1GraphEd;</i></b><br />
<br />
I hope this helps you and gives you a foundation with which to build <br />
your own awesome MEL scripts. If anything was unclear or you would <br />
like more info on how to create a custom hotkey, feel free to contact <br />
Cameron or me. We'd love to help out in any way we can. Have a <br />
fantastic new term and enjoy the continuation of your AM adventure!Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-84489215119443900612017-05-08T15:14:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:14:18.619-05:00Class 3 - Week 1 - Basic Texturing for StewieThe first step, as with anything involving tweaking Stewie, is to <br />
unlock his geometry and make it selectable, allowing us to color each <br />
part individually. You can do this by selecting the "stewie_ac_C_layout" <br />
control ring (the large one around his feet) and hitting the right <br />
arrow key, switching you to the "stewie_ac_C_visibility" node. Now in <br />
the Channel Box, look for an attribute called "Geo Display" near the <br />
bottom and set it from "referenced" to "normal". This will make all of <br />
Stewie's geometry selectable. Just remember to set the attribute back <br />
to "referenced" when you're done. That way you don't accidentally <br />
select his geo while you're animating.<br />
<br />
Next, we need to create some new materials to place on Stewie. For this <br />
we'll need to enlist the aid of the Hypershade which can be found under <br />
"Window > Rendering Editors > Hypershade".<br />
<br />
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<br />
For this tutorial, we'll be creating a simple Lambert material. To do <br />
that, simply find the Lambert button on the right side of the "Create bar"<br />
and click on it. The new material will appear under both the Materials tab <br />
and the Work Area. Select the newly created material and open the <br />
attribute editor, where you'll be able to change the color as well as <br />
rename the material. (It's a good idea to use a naming convention when <br />
giving new names to objects in Maya, keeping things nice and neat. For <br />
example, when I create new materials, I give them names such as <br />
"pants_M", or "hatRim_M")<br />
<br />
Once you've created all the materials you need for Stewie, it's time to <br />
apply them. Simply select the geometry you would like to apply the <br />
material to, and in the hypershade, right-click and hold over the <br />
desired material to bring up a menu that will give you the option to <br />
"Apply Material to Selection".<br />
<br />
And that about covers it. You'll now be able to color Stewie to your <br />
hearts content. But what if you want Stewie to be wearing socks? Or a <br />
t-shirt? Or just make it so he doesn't look like he's wearing a <br />
turtleneck sweater all the time?<br />
<br />
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<br />
For that we'll need to get a bit fancier and add in some ramp! Before, <br />
you get too excited, these aren't the types of ramps you jump cars off <br />
of. The ramps that I'm talking about are a color gradient node which we <br />
will be attaching to the color value of each material, giving us the <br />
freedom to tweak even more! But enough talking! Let's get to it!<br />
<br />
For this example, I'll be making a texture for Stewie's chest, to make <br />
it look like he's wearing a t-shirt instead of a turtleneck.<br />
<br />
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<ul>
<li>Create a new lambert.</li>
<li>Find the Ramp and middle mouse drag it onto the new lambert in the Work Area. <br />
(Make sure you are using a "Ramp" and not a "Ramp Shader").</li>
<li>A message will come up asking how you want to connect the two <br />
nodes. Select Color.</li>
<li>Apply the new lambert onto Stewie's chest (stewie_lo_C_chest)</li>
<li>It will appear as a grey. To turn on textures, hit the 6 key.</li>
<li>Now select the Ramp node and open up the attribute editor.</li>
<li>Set the type to "U Ramp" and Interpolation to "None"<br />
</li>
<li>Remove the top color (it should be blue by default) by hitting the <br />
box with an x in it on the right side of the color bar.</li>
<li>Select the next color (which should be green) by selecting the <br />
circle on the left side and set it's color to match Stewie's skin <br />
color. To make it easier, you can select the Stewie's skin material, <br />
and in the attribute editor, click on the color swatch. This will add <br />
the color into the color picker's swatches, letting you select it when <br />
in the ramp.</li>
<li>Set the "Selected Position" to around 0.46</li>
<li>Now select the bottom color and set it's to what you <br />
would like his shirt to be.</li>
</ul>
With his chest colored, you can apply a basic Lambert material to his <br />
torso to finish off the shirt on his body. For the arms, do the same <br />
thing as for the chest, but when you select the upper arms to apply the <br />
texture, due to the hierarchy of the rig, it will also add the material <br />
to the lower arms. To fix it, just select the lower arms afterwards and <br />
apply Stewie's default skin material back on to them.<br />
<br />
With this method, you'll be able to add quite a bit more detail to your <br />
texturing. The only drawback is that you will need to create a new <br />
material and ramp node for each piece of geometry, which can be a bit <br />
tedious.<br />
<br />
If you have the time and the know-how, you can also add a image file as <br />
a texture to give Stewie even more detail, or even go so far as to <br />
model some actual clothes for him, but that's way outside the scope of <br />
this tip. <br />
<br />
I hope that was helpful to you. Please feel free to contact either <br />
Cameron or me by Skype (which you can find at the bottom of the post), <br />
PM or AMConnect if you have any comments, or if there are any subjects <br />
you would like us to write about. We'll do our best to add it into the <br />
roster!Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-70015339648936613202012-04-30T11:21:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:38:40.829-05:00The Vorpal Blog went Snicker-Snack!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVUCdG0rqUGtdi0ZG5dTSP7wrJvqvd17ofGP68sIoBeVZhRNXmX587dRmdyXVrqZmJeUzhcsGBuvOJqujFGh0dGUinXGs38H7Uhkkn9cfnmkwXwXo1XN97Mf_1Cd7yIiONxAHFkK1WBaw/s1600/userprofile.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhVUCdG0rqUGtdi0ZG5dTSP7wrJvqvd17ofGP68sIoBeVZhRNXmX587dRmdyXVrqZmJeUzhcsGBuvOJqujFGh0dGUinXGs38H7Uhkkn9cfnmkwXwXo1XN97Mf_1Cd7yIiONxAHFkK1WBaw/s1600/userprofile.png" /></a></div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
Twins & Tangents is a site in progress. Each week we'll be updating with new tips and tricks, some helpful, and others just plain mad! </div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
We hope you enjoy your visit!</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
-The Brothers Pratt</div>
<br />Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-77706068487026461322012-04-04T19:45:00.000-05:002014-04-10T11:01:04.620-05:00Class 1 - Week 1 - AM 101<ul>
<li><b>Check out all the stuff on Animation Mentor</b><br />
AM is filled to the brim with amazing videos and articles that will help <br />
answer most of the questions you might have early on. Make sure you <br />
go through all the items in the library and check back each week to <br />
see if anything new has been added. </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Clear your browser cache weekly</b><br />
While not always necessary, I have found that at times new items won't <br />
show up on the AM site until I have cleared the cache. Now I make a <br />
habit of doing it weekly so that I don't miss the new rigs or videos. <br />
Here's a link on how to clear the cache for most of the current browsers.<br />
<b><i><a href="http://www.wikihow.com/Clear-Your-Browser%27s-Cache" target="_blank">Wikihow - Clearing your Browser Cache</a></i></b></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Get to know your fellow students</b><br />
Animation Mentor is not just a place to learn about animation. It's also a <br />
great community of people who all love the same thing; animating. <br />
So take this opportunity to get to know your fellow students. Most <br />
will be a wealth of knowledge and make your time in AM even more <br />
spectacular. It's also a great idea to try to comment on people's <br />
work as much as possible. Not only will it help them out and give <br />
them a reason to comment back on your work, it will also help you <br />
train your own skills by analyzing other people's work.<br /></li>
<li><b>Visit and subscribe to the AM Community Center</b><br />This forum is a great place to get news and tips for all sorts of things related to animation. It's also where you can find out where and when extra hangouts & Q&As are going on. These extra hangouts are an invaluable part of the AM experience where you can get to know people, have your work reviewed, and learn all sort of cool tips and tricks. To make it easier to keep up to date with whatever hangouts are going on, go to the "<i><b>Community Hangout and Gatherings</b></i>" page of the Community Center and hit the "Follow" button at the top right. That will allow you to get email notifications whenever a new hangout is posted.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Ask your mentor what they want to see in the assignments</b><br />
Each mentor is different and will want to see different things in the your <br />
assignments. For example, my Class 2 mentor wanted to see a little <br />
personality in the characters we were animating, whereas Cameron's <br />
mentor only wanted to see the principles of the assignment, with no <br />
personality added. Asking what the mentor wanted to see beforehand <br />
kept us from going overboard with the assignments and also gave the <br />
mentor more time to critique our work where it needed it since we were <br />
already on the right track.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Take notes</b><br />
Don't just take a few notes in classes. Take a ton of notes! In class, <br />
while reading a book, even while going out. (but preferably not when <br />
driving. Notes are extremely helpful ways of remembering information. <br />
Just the simple fact of writing something down seems to make it easier <br />
to remember things. They are also a great way to keep track of what <br />
you have to do next in an assignment. <br />
<br />
Instead of keeping all the things you have to do in your head, I find <br />
that writing them down then figuring out which ones I need to do first <br />
and numbering them keeps me from bouncing between ideas and <br />
helps to increase my productivity.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Try to get something uploaded early</b><br />
Probably the hardest tip to follow. (I still have trouble with it)<br />
Getting things up early will of immense help. Not only will it allow more <br />
time for people to comment on your work, it will also help keep the <br />
stress down to a minimum when the deadline comes rolling along. <br />
<br />
And don't worry if the work isn't perfect or not quite finished. The whole <br />
point of getting critiques is to get other people's opinions and hope <br />
they'll see something you missed. Waiting until the last minute before <br />
uploading while trying to make the scene perfect will only make it harder <br />
if someone notices something that needs to be changed.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Don't be afraid to ask for help</b><br />
AM is a wonderful community filled will people who want to help out. If <br />
ever something is giving you problems or things just don't seem to <br />
work, don't be afraid to ask someone for help, from your mentor, a <br />
fellow student, writing in the forums, or by sending in a support <br />
ticket. And don't worry if you feel your question is too simple or <br />
basic. Almost every student has asked those same questions at one <br />
point or another, and will gladly share the knowledge that was shared <br />
with them.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><b>Keep it simple</b><br />
This is probably the most important tip. And also one of the hardest to <br />
follow. Almost everybody wants to flex their creative talents and try to <br />
do something original, but that only hinders your learning . You'll have <br />
plenty of time to get creative in the later classes. <br />
<br />
For now it's better to focus on learning the principles of animation and <br />
doing each assignment as best as you can. If the assignment asks for <br />
a ball bounce, instead of having a ball bounce into the scene, then <br />
hit a line of dominoes, activating a Rube Goldberg machine that <br />
writes out "AM Rocks!", just focus on making the ball bounce as <br />
convincingly as possible. If the assignment asks for the ball to be <br />
a basket ball, use the extra time you save by keeping it simple to <br />
study and research just how exactly a basket ball bounces. How much <br />
energy does it lose in each bounce? How long does it dribble? How far <br />
does it roll? These things will help make your work shine. <br />
<br />
This also applies for rendering. You don't need to make the ball <br />
photo realistic. In many cases, that actually makes it harder for <br />
people to focus on the animation and give useful feedback.<br />
<br />
You could also use the extra time you save to do the assignment over <br />
again. It's amazing how much you can learn just by repeating the same <br />
assignment over and trying different techniques.</li>
</ul>
I hope that this has been helpful and that you have a fantastic term, <br />
learn lots of cool things, and make tons of new friends. It's going to be <br />
an amazing adventure!Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-46852776025976765332012-04-04T10:50:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:19:10.375-05:00Class 1 - Week 2 - RenderingThis is a subject that I ended spending way too much time on during <br />
Class 1, and I hope that by giving you these tips, it allows you to <br />
spend more time on your pose and less trying to get them out of Maya <br />
and uploaded to AM. Also, I would suggest only rendering your Stu <br />
poses and just playblasting your animations (which I'll go over next <br />
week) until week 12. Rendering animations can take a very, <br />
very long time and brings in many elements that don't need to focused <br />
on at the moment. <br />
<br />
To begin with, let's start with an amazing tutorial done by the <br />
AM Brony, Joel Finney. He does a fantastic job explaining how to <br />
get a shot rendered from start to finish, so be sure to check it out. <br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/25997477?color=ffffff" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe><br />
Also, check out all the other awesome tutorials he has on his vimeo <br />
page as well. If you use his method, be sure leave a comment on his <br />
vimeo page and thank him for all the work he does putting these <br />
together for everybody. <br />
<br />
This next tutorial was given to me by my class 1 mentor, Anthony Wong. <br />
<a href="http://content.screencast.com/users/animationerd/folders/Jing/media/f4698e1c-9af0-4f42-8a22-46318e83f50b/00000002.swf">Rendering Tutorial</a><br />
<br />
Along with the tutorial, he also gave us a few tips to improve the <br />
renders. <br />
<br />
"Put a "Directional Light" in the scene, this will be your main light <br />
source. You can rotate it to make the light come from the direction <br />
you want. I suggest scaling it up so you can tell which way it's <br />
pointing."<br />
<br />
"Then place in an "Ambient Light". This will essentially fill in the <br />
darks. You don't want it to fill them up too much, so I'd suggest <br />
lowering the Intensity of the Light in it's attribute settings on the <br />
right to "0.3" or lower. You can also change the color of the light <br />
to a very de-saturated light color of your choice to get a mood."<br />
<br />
"For getting shadows that look soft, click on your Directional Light. <br />
Look at the attribute settings, and open up the "mental ray" tab. <br />
Under "Shadows", click on "use mental ray shadow map overrides".<br />
For Resolution, type in "4096"<br />
For Samples, type "512"<br />
For Softness, type "0.400"<br />
For everything else, leave it as is."<br />
<br />
"To keep the render looking sharp, inside your render settings, after <br />
having mental ray loaded, go to the "Quality" tab. Under "Quality <br />
Presets" select "Production". Scroll down to "Multi-Pixel Filtering". <br />
Under Filter, select "Lanczos"."<br />
<br />
For my renders, I found that the Ambient Light was a tad too bright <br />
and lowered the Intensity to 0.25 and I got rid of the Directional <br />
Light entirely. It was adding too much work for me because now I had <br />
to think of where the light should be coming from, at what angle the <br />
shadows would be and how they would work together with the <br />
composition of the shot.<br />
<br />
Some of these tips, such as the shadow resolution, don't really apply <br />
to the other rendering methods I mention, but changing the <br />
Multi-Pixel Filtering is a great way to get any of your renders to <br />
look sharper.<br />
<br />
Finally, we come to my favorite and also the easiest rendering <br />
method, which was created and given to us by Bob Wilson, a fellow AM <br />
student who is now taking Animals and Creatures. To get started with <br />
it, download the following scene file and text file as well as both <br />
images. These will be useful later on so you don't have to keep <br />
referencing to this later on. To save the following links, right click<br />
on them and choose "save as".<br />
<br />
<a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4BmDXB8190NbzZiSTZHTjdMY1k" target="_blank">lightsetup.ma</a><br />
<a href="https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4BmDXB8190NUVQ1OUJJSDJlNlU">Setup Notes</a><br />
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<br />
<br />
Once you've got everything downloaded, you will need to; <br />
<br />
Import the "lightsetup" Maya file into your current shot, which you <br />
can do by going to "File > Import" in Maya. You will get a new <br />
spotlight and a groundplane in your scene. If you already have a <br />
groundplane, just delete the new one. If not, scale the imported one <br />
to the size you need. <br />
Next, go to the attributes of the camera you will render from, and <br />
under the Environment tab, set the Background Color to white by <br />
sliding the bar to the right. To get to the attributes, open up the <br />
outliner by going to "Window > Outliner", select the camera, then hit <br />
ctrl + a.<br />
<br />
Go to your render settings, which you can find under <br />
Window > Rendering Editors > Render Settings.<br />
<br />
Make sure you are rendering with mental ray.<br />
<br />
Under the Quality tab, set the "Quality Presets" to production, then <br />
under the "Indirect Lighting" tab, open up Final Gathering and set <br />
the "Point Density" to 15.<br />
<br />
Now all that's left is to position the spotlight how you want it and <br />
render away! To position the spotlight a little easier, I find that <br />
selecting the light, then going to "Panels > Look Through Selected <br />
Camera" in the viewport makes it much more intuitive.<br />
<br />
While you have the camera selected, another setting I like to change <br />
is the "Penumbra Angle" in the channel box. Set it to 10 and it will <br />
make the edge of the spotlight nice and soft.<br />
<br />
One thing Cameron and I found to be very helpful and a great <br />
time-saver no matter which render method you use, is to create a base <br />
lighting file to use with all our Stu Poses. All you need to do is <br />
open up a new Stu file and set up all the lighting you want in it. <br />
Then, save the scene out as Stu_BaseLighting or some other such name. <br />
Now whenever you need to do create a new pose, you can open up that <br />
file and have all your lighting and render settings ready for you. <br />
This is extremely helpful because from now on, you don't have to worry <br />
about spending time setting up the render and can focus soley on your <br />
assignment. Just remember to save your pose out to another file so <br />
you don't lose the BaseLighting file.<br />
<br />
I hope that was helpful and remember, this is AnimationMentor not <br />
RenderMentor. The only thing your mentor will care about is how good <br />
the pose is. Rendering should be kept to a minimum and should not <br />
take up too much of your time.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-3954646595446811432012-04-04T01:32:00.000-05:002012-05-07T22:47:11.380-05:00Class 3 - Week 1 - Getting IdeasThis week, I'm going to go over some tips on getting ideas for your <br />
shot. This was something we and many others struggled with, since AM <br />
doesn't provide a list of animation ideas for you to choose from this <br />
term. It may seem liberating at first, now that you can do whatever kind <br />
of shot you like and all the possibilities are open to you. Maybe you <br />
won't have any problems at all and ideas will flow smoothly from your <br />
mind. But you'll be surprised at how quickly you can hit a mental block. <br />
Questions will pop into your head like: What exactly is "Advanced Body <br />
Mechanics"? What kind of animation are the mentors looking for? Is my <br />
idea going to be too much, or is it not enough? Which of my ideas would <br />
be the best one to use? Do I do an animJam, or animExercise? <br />
Unfortunately AM doesn't really provide any answers to these questions, <br />
since the objective of the term is for you to learn how to build a shot <br />
on your own. However, we'll give you some tips that we've learned <br />
through the course of Class 3 that will hopefully make things a bit <br />
easier for you to come up with solid, workable ideas.<br />
<br />
<b>Tip #1</b><br />
<br />
This first tip was taught to us by Mike Gasaway. If ever you get stuck <br />
while trying to come up with ideas, and can't think of anything to do, <br />
try this. Take a moment to look around the room you're in. Unless where <br />
you are is an empty room, you should have plenty of objects around you. <br />
Now find 20 things that catch your interest. These objects can be <br />
anything, like a table, a dumbbell, a lamp, a TV, a pair of headphones, <br />
a hammer, a fragile vase, or anything else. Now you have a prop for your <br />
shot. <br />
<br />
Next, think of a simple scene with some of these objects. Maybe Stewie <br />
is trying his hand at weight lifting and is having some trouble, or <br />
perhaps he's dusting and knocks over a priceless vase. Maybe he's moving <br />
a cumbersomely heavy television. Presto! Now you have your idea. All it <br />
needs is to be refined a bit. This method works great because of what <br />
it's doing - narrowing your mental focus to only a few objects, and <br />
allows you to think of scenarios with them instead of your mind bouncing <br />
all over the place between random scenarios that might not work too well.<br />
<br />
<b>Tip #2</b><br />
<br />
Tip number 2 is to keep the shot simple. Try to keep your shot down to <br />
one solid idea, maybe 2 at most. It's very easy to start thinking of <br />
complex shots and planning out intricate storylines, especially if <br />
you're doing animJams, but remember that an animJam has to be made up of <br />
3 individual shots that can be understood when combined together as well <br />
as separate. <br />
<br />
Here is an example of a simple shot and a similar, but more complicated <br />
shot. Our easy shot starts with Stewie preparing to lift weights and <br />
finds that he's not strong enough. The main idea here is Stewie lifting <br />
weights, with a secondary idea of him having trouble doing the action. <br />
This idea is simple, clean, and easy to pull off in 200 frames. Now <br />
let's take a look at this shot's more complicated counterpart. This shot <br />
starts like the other, with Stewie preparing to lift weights, but has <br />
trouble, so he goes to find smaller weights. When he can't find any so <br />
he gets angry, somehow giving him Hulk-like strength so he tosses the <br />
heavy weights easily out the window. While this idea might work well <br />
spread out through 3 shots in an animJam, there are far too many ideas <br />
competing with each other for one shot to handle. It would also take far <br />
too long to set up each idea so that it's read clearly by the viewer in <br />
roughly 6 seconds. <br />
<br />
So just like in the previous classes, K.I.S.S. is the way to go.<br />
<br />
<b>Tip #3</b><br />
<br />
Now we're on to tip number 3. Keep acting down to a minimum. I know it's <br />
tempting to add in some pantomime and acting into your shot, maybe make <br />
it into something you could put on your demo reel. But Class 3 is all <br />
about solidifying your knowledge of body mechanics. Acting isn't <br />
something that is essential to your shot. Plus, if you put too much of <br />
it into your work, your mentors will have to spend their time critiquing <br />
the acting instead of the body mechanics of your animation. You have all <br />
of Class 4, 5, and 6 to work on acting. By the time you get to those <br />
later classes, I'm sure you'll be looking back at your Class 3 work and <br />
thinking "I can do better than that.". So don't worry about your demo <br />
reel just yet. Just concentrate on making solid shots with awesome body <br />
mechanics. That will help you both in improving your animation, and <br />
keeping your ideas simple and easy.<br />
<br />
<b>Tip #4</b><br />
<br />
As for the final tip, try to keep your animation's frame count roughly <br />
in the middle of your frame limit. If you go too close to the maximum <br />
limit, then you won't have any space to pad out your animation if your <br />
mentor asks you to add in some frames. If you go too close to the <br />
minimum, you won't have enough frames in your shot if your mentor asks <br />
you to cut out some parts. It's always best to try and aim for the <br />
middle, or about 150 frames, to give you that extra 50 frames of padding <br />
on either side for revisions. Furthermore, as a bonus for not going to <br />
the maximum frame count, you save yourself work and can concentrate on <br />
making the frames you already have look nicer. Therefore, plan <br />
accordingly for your shot and be sure to time out your video references <br />
so that you have a good idea of how long your animation will be.<br />
<br />
<br />
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and <br />
if you have any questions or suggestions, you're always more than welcome to <br />
leave a comment or send us a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-66569500320554387292012-04-04T01:29:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:04:01.178-05:00Class 2 - Week 1 - Planning MethodsThis week, I'm going to go over some tips on how to plan your shots. The <br />
method I will talk about is a combination of all the things both Beau's <br />
mentors and mine through Classes 1 and 2 wanted to see in our work. <br />
Every Mentor has something they want to see in your planning, so always <br />
remember to ask your Mentor for anything that they would like to see you <br />
do.<br />
<br />
You're allowed 3 pages of sketches for your planning for each new shot, <br />
and even though only 2 are required, I recommend you use all of them. <br />
Doing more planning and sketching will only help you out when you get <br />
started on your animation and will save you a lot of guesswork later on <br />
in your shot.<br />
<br />
Here is the method Beau and I found to best organize our sketch pages, <br />
but if you find a method that works better for you, don't hesitate to <br />
use it! I will be using the pages from one of my Class 3 assignments as<br />
examples for each section<br />
<br />
<b>Exploration Page</b><br />
<br />
This page is usually the first one we would work on. What it is, is a <br />
page full of rough sketches of all the important key poses in your shot, <br />
as well as any pose that might give you a bit of trouble. The point is <br />
to try and push the poses as much as you can here, so they don't have to <br />
be too clean. Just clean enough to be able to see what it is you're <br />
conveying.<br />
<br />
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<br />
The key here is drawing the poses in different ways, finding the lines <br />
of actions in your movements,getting used to the angle your shot will be <br />
using, and figuring out exactly what you want to put in your notes and <br />
timing pages beforehand.<br />
<br />
<b>Notes Page</b><br />
<br />
Next, we would work on the notes page. This page is all about taking <br />
down notes on what is happening physically in your animation. Using both <br />
the reference video and the exploration pages, go over your shot frame <br />
by frame and try to keep in mind exactly what was happening to your body <br />
at a specific time. How were your hips angled when you started? What <br />
direction did you shift your weight when you started walking? How did <br />
your legs take the impact of that landing? It's notes like that that <br />
really help you to know what is happening in your animation and will <br />
make your work much easier as you begin blocking your poses. <br />
<br />
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<br />
We would also draw out all the key poses, cleaner than the last rough <br />
sketches, on the notes page and give them rough timing based on the <br />
video reference. That way we could mark out when each note was <br />
happening, which helps to keep everything clean and tidy. And as a <br />
bonus, finding the rough timing and taking detailed notes will help you <br />
when you move on to your timing page.<br />
<br />
<b>Timing Page</b><br />
<br />
Now we move on to the last, but probably most important page of your <br />
planning. The timing page is pretty much exactly the same as the ones <br />
you did in Class 1. You have your refined key pose sketches, inbetweens, <br />
timing and spacing charts, and any supplemental notes you might want on <br />
the page to explain some of your timing or poses. Make sure to keep all <br />
of your drawings clear and easily readable, and figure out your timing <br />
to the frame. Even though it's probably going to change once you start <br />
working on your shot, it helps to have accurate frame numbers to start <br />
timing your blocking with.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Something else that is very helpful to add to this page is a drawing <br />
that shows the staging and composition of your shot. It doesn't have to <br />
be as detailed as your key pose drawings, all it is, is a small drawing <br />
that shows where your character starts in the shot, how he moves through <br />
the shot, and where he ends. This will be helpful in giving you a better <br />
idea of how far your character moves, and makes it much easier to <br />
position your camera when you get into Maya.<br />
<br />
This page is the one we would upload into the required sketch page slot, <br />
as it's the page with all the key information for your shot. The other <br />
two are there are very important as well, but are there to compliment <br />
the timing page, and to help you start your blocking quickly and easily.<br />
<br />
And that's about all I have for this week. Thank you for taking the time <br />
to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and if you have any questions <br />
or suggestions, you're always more than welcome to leave a comment or <br />
send us a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-63058586026994053602012-04-04T00:43:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:09:43.990-05:00Class 1 - Week 3 - Anatomy of a Bouncing BallRight now you're probably thinking "What! I don't want to hear about <br />
physics in my animation tips!", and you've got a point! I should be <br />
giving out animation tips, not a dusty physics lecture. But as animators, <br />
it should be our goal to study how the world works around us so that <br />
when we go to recreate it in our work, it looks and feels alive. This <br />
applies to physics, anatomy, and even things like how to dance the tango, <br />
move like a ninja, or throw a baseball like a pro. But the great thing <br />
about being an animator is that we only have to learn how it works to be <br />
able to make it look awesome on screen, not do it ourselves! <br />
<br />
So back to the bouncing ball. What is it that makes a ball bounce the <br />
way it does? At it's simplest, it's a combination of 4 elements: Gravity <br />
pulling the ball to the ground, Momentum moving it forward, Friction <br />
slowing it down, and Density, both of the ball and the ground it's <br />
bouncing on. In this week's assignment though, the ball and ground <br />
density is already set for you. Either a basket ball or soccer ball <br />
bouncing on hard ground, like concrete or hardwood floor. So with that <br />
already out of the way, we can concentrate on the effects of gravity and <br />
momentum!<br />
<br />
<b>Arcs & Contacts</b><br />
<br />
I'll begin by going over the basic elements of a ball bounce; the bounce <br />
arcs and contact points. <br />
<br />
When a ball bounces, why is it that the arc usually has that signature <br />
curved shape, and not a plateau or a peak? The reason for this is because <br />
as the ball bounces, the upward kinetic energy is gradually cancelled out <br />
by gravity, which then begins to pull the ball back down, building up speed. <br />
That gradual motion is what gives you the dome shape of the arc, which you <br />
can see by the red line on this drawing. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju2GzT83JbjP2ErDZ9ehxSSOWqjbW3uwoTVg7irajMaCmVU6EQ3iKrtxaJV89zVacR1G0JK4HzeFHEbZ7yu-ecymZGvVGjlwUewS6ulCwHaJase-S1wOO77rxd2BnEDxx8_dcAB1kkl_p/s1600/Week3c1c-Ball-height-degradation.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju2GzT83JbjP2ErDZ9ehxSSOWqjbW3uwoTVg7irajMaCmVU6EQ3iKrtxaJV89zVacR1G0JK4HzeFHEbZ7yu-ecymZGvVGjlwUewS6ulCwHaJase-S1wOO77rxd2BnEDxx8_dcAB1kkl_p/s400/Week3c1c-Ball-height-degradation.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<span id="goog_1974820941"></span><span id="goog_1974820942"></span><br />
<br />
If the arc had a flat plateau to it, it would mean that the ball is somehow <br />
defying gravity for a moment before dropping back down, and a sharp peak <br />
would mean that the upward momentum is suddenly cancelled out and the ball <br />
shoots back to the ground without that gradual energy shift.<br />
<br />
Now where bounces are a gradual shift in energy versus gravity, contacts are <br />
the sudden change in gravity turning into upward energy. This sudden change <br />
in direction is what gives the contact it's sharp V shape , which you can see <br />
in the above image. If the contact was a softer angle, or rounded shape, you <br />
would lose that nice bouncy "snap".<br />
<br />
<b>Height Degradation & Momentum Loss</b><br />
<br />
Now that we've covered the basic actions of a ball bounce, let's <br />
move on to talking about the degradation of both height and momentum <br />
of a ball as it bounces.<br />
<br />
Each time a ball bounces, a part of its momentum and energy is <br />
dissipated into the ground. This gives it less energy to bounce up <br />
and consequently, less energy to build on the downward half of its <br />
arc. What this means is that each consecutive bounce is going to be <br />
lower and closer together than the previous one. It also means that <br />
because the ball is leaving the ground with less energy than it came <br />
in with, the ball will be higher on the frame before the contact, <br />
and slightly lower on the frame after. <br />
<br />
You may be wondering "But how much energy does a ball lose on each <br />
bounce? And how do we keep it consistent?" The amount of energy a <br />
ball looses per bounce all depends on the kind of ball it is. A bouncy <br />
ping pong ball will only lose a tiny amount of energy, which keeps <br />
it bouncing for a long time. A heavy bowling ball on the other hand <br />
loses a huge amount of energy on each bounce, so it only bounces a <br />
handful of times before it doesn't have any more energy to get itself <br />
back in the air. <br />
<br />
One thing to remember though is that in a perfect circumstance <br />
(like your assignment), a ball will always lose the same amount of <br />
energy on each bounce. We'll use our trusty basketball for this example. <br />
A basketball loses roughly 40% of its energy in each bounce, with <br />
means that on each bounce, the height will be 60% of its previous <br />
height. This number is consistent. You won't see a basket ball drop, <br />
lose 10% of its energy in the first bounce, 50% in the second, and 20% <br />
in the third. This constant percentage is what gives a basketball that <br />
nice dribbling effect because it just keeps bouncing in tiny amounts. <br />
A nifty trick to visualize this is by drawing a curve running from the <br />
starting height of the ball drop, to the peak of the last bounce, as <br />
seen in this familiar sketch:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju2GzT83JbjP2ErDZ9ehxSSOWqjbW3uwoTVg7irajMaCmVU6EQ3iKrtxaJV89zVacR1G0JK4HzeFHEbZ7yu-ecymZGvVGjlwUewS6ulCwHaJase-S1wOO77rxd2BnEDxx8_dcAB1kkl_p/s1600/Week3c1c-Ball-height-degradation.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju2GzT83JbjP2ErDZ9ehxSSOWqjbW3uwoTVg7irajMaCmVU6EQ3iKrtxaJV89zVacR1G0JK4HzeFHEbZ7yu-ecymZGvVGjlwUewS6ulCwHaJase-S1wOO77rxd2BnEDxx8_dcAB1kkl_p/s400/Week3c1c-Ball-height-degradation.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
You can also do this with a straight line to make things easier, but <br />
it won't give you as nice a dribble at the end. This curve starts out <br />
a bit steep and slowly eases out into a flatter line. Each bounce between <br />
the start drop and final bounce will touch that curve, giving you a <br />
nice gradual height degradation. Keep in mind though that this curve <br />
is for a basketball. Each kind of ball has a different angle and steepness <br />
to the curve depending on how much energy it loses per bounce.<br />
<br />
Here is a handy little chart which shows a few different kinds of balls <br />
and their respective height percentages per bounce.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1eiNyMG_F-CY0LyYTTnR7oGgl0lGWvepR8SsDvH1cdwfzlW-ez7pwo5_ZQ-Gdh2iiA9OYbt-7n0nbbcfvK-KQn9_mcgDRld0bESzIdwKjo-F4Ht3ZWmhhtgeUlh5hIKWW4LFOullzN5jH/s1600/Week3c1c-bounce_chart.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1eiNyMG_F-CY0LyYTTnR7oGgl0lGWvepR8SsDvH1cdwfzlW-ez7pwo5_ZQ-Gdh2iiA9OYbt-7n0nbbcfvK-KQn9_mcgDRld0bESzIdwKjo-F4Ht3ZWmhhtgeUlh5hIKWW4LFOullzN5jH/s320/Week3c1c-bounce_chart.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
And finally, loss of momentum is quite a bit easier to handle. Momentum <br />
is lost gradually over time due to friction with both the ground, and the <br />
air, though air friction is very minimal. your Tx or Tz curve (whichever <br />
you're using for the forward movement) should look a bit like the curve <br />
I showed you earlier. It starts steep, going fast, and gradually eases <br />
until it comes to a nice gentle stop. Unless something stops it, a ball <br />
won't come to an abrupt stop on it's own. <br />
<br />
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I hope you've found these <br />
tips helpful. Remember that these are all just guidelines for you and I <br />
strongly encourage you to play around and experiment with different styles <br />
of ball bounces to see how they work for yourself. It's the best and most <br />
fun way to learn!<br />
<br />
As always, if you have any comments, questions or suggestions, you're <br />
more than welcome to leave a comment or send either Beau or me a <br />
message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-18616991007447857722012-04-03T23:55:00.001-05:002017-05-08T15:28:44.311-05:00Class 2 - Week 9 - Constraints: Part IConstraints enable you to constrain, or to lock the difference, <br />
between the position, orientation, or scale of an object to other <br />
objects. In other words, a constraint is a way to link the attributes <br />
of an object to the attributes of a second object which is great for <br />
getting a character to interact with his environment easily. For <br />
example, you can use constraints to have an animated character hold a <br />
cup without having to reposition it into his hand on each frame.<br />
<br />
While you will probably rarely ever need to do this, you can also <br />
constrain one object to two or more other objects and Maya will place <br />
the first one inbetween the other objects<br />
<br />
There are quite a few different ways to constrain in Maya, which means <br />
the first thing we have to think of when setting up a constraint is <br />
how do we need it to work and which constraint type should we choose?<br />
<br />
<b>Constraint Types</b><br />
<br />
Does an item need to be held firmly, or does a compass have to keep <br />
pointing north? Let's go over the most common constraint types and see <br />
what they can be used for:<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><b><i>Point -</i></b> A point constraint causes an object to <br />
move to and/or follow the position of another object, or the average <br />
position of several objects. This is useful for having an object match <br />
the motion of other objects. With the point constraint, only the <br />
translation of an object is constrained, allowing you to animate the <br />
rotations freely. Very useful if you need a camera to stay on a moving <br />
object, but still maintain control over where it's pointing.</li>
<li><b><i>Aim -</i></b> An aim constraint constrains an object’s <br />
orientation so that the object aims at other objects. Typical uses of <br />
the aim constraint include aiming a light or camera at an object or <br />
group of objects. In character setup, it is usually used to set up a <br />
locator that controls eyeball movement.</li>
<li><b><i>Orient -</i></b> An orient constraint matches the rotation <br />
of one object to one or more other objects. This is useful for making <br />
several objects orient simultaneously, for example, if you had to animate <br />
a train's wheels as it's going down the track, you could animate one <br />
wheel then constrain all the other wheels to the one you animated to get <br />
them all going together.</li>
<li><b><i>Scale -</i></b> A scale constraint matches the scaling of one <br />
object to one or more other objects. This constraint is useful for <br />
making several objects scale simultaneously. While probably the least <br />
used of the constraints, it is pretty handy if you have multiple ojects, <br />
such as juggling balls, and need to scale them all to a certain size.</li>
<li><b><i>Parent -</i></b> Probably the most widely used of all the <br />
constraints, it links the position (translation and rotation) of one <br />
object to another, effectivly pinning it. This is what you'd use if you <br />
need to have a character hold a cup. Be sure you don't confuse it with <br />
Parenting though, which is an entirely different subject. While both <br />
achieve the same result, they go about it in different ways. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXj6RZZB5bzMt8Ouuoj1bIh6XfzQQVDIP0kmZ0_xCF4Q2qM6KfWgLkpOFIo192eoW0Whw0V4mHlLVlZVCjDWfEwN7agtpgAwwS9g5emIr4t9uE6gxdaWGQJS259qtDj3173zzQffDuz8pA/s1600/Week9c2-b-Outliner-Comparison.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXj6RZZB5bzMt8Ouuoj1bIh6XfzQQVDIP0kmZ0_xCF4Q2qM6KfWgLkpOFIo192eoW0Whw0V4mHlLVlZVCjDWfEwN7agtpgAwwS9g5emIr4t9uE6gxdaWGQJS259qtDj3173zzQffDuz8pA/s400/Week9c2-b-Outliner-Comparison.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Parenting places the constrained object (also called a "child") into a <br />
hierarchy and if used improperly, can destroy a rig's own hierarchy, <br />
effectivly breaking the rig. With Parent constraining, on the other <br />
hand, the constrained object does not become part of the constraining <br />
object’s hierarchy, but remains independent and with it's attributes <br />
linked, behaves as if it is the child of the constraining object.<br />
<br />
Another difference is that while Parenting only allows you to have one <br />
parent per child, Parent Constraining lets you use multiple parents, <br />
placing the object at the average distance between them.</li>
</ul>
<br />
<b>Misc Tips</b><br />
<br />
While constraining, remember that to constrain properly, you first need <br />
to choose the parent, then the child.<br />
With Parenting on the other hand, the selection order is reversed, so <br />
you choose the children first, then the parent. <br />
This can be hard to keep track of as you're working and it takes some <br />
time before it comes naturally. The way I remember it is by keeping in <br />
mind that since Parenting can have multiple children, I need to select <br />
all of children first then the parent. For constraining, I just reverse it. <br />
<br />
Now you might be thinking, since a parent constraint links both <br />
translation and rotation, couldn't I use a point and orient constraint <br />
to achieve the same result? <br />
You can, and in some instances, it will give you more control but be <br />
wary as an object with a Parent Constraint does not behave the same as <br />
an object with a point and orient constraint. When a Parent Constraint <br />
is used, rotating the constraining object(s) affects the constrained <br />
object’s rotation along the world axis. When a Point and Orient <br />
Constraint are used, rotating the constraining object(s) affects the <br />
constrained object’s rotation along its local axis. Here's an example:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-e94v2NW3m9NCJgRFYglfGl1u3JylC94uWAANO39Q_8yWjZHBIt-699ja1AsR_NvyqPOl09S54O69mD8Kn9iLFiUMsFTMffT1ea0EUnNVRmzsfiufvt4xSJWUuvNiEf3FOsrK4A19oL4s/s1600/Week9c2-compPointOrient.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-e94v2NW3m9NCJgRFYglfGl1u3JylC94uWAANO39Q_8yWjZHBIt-699ja1AsR_NvyqPOl09S54O69mD8Kn9iLFiUMsFTMffT1ea0EUnNVRmzsfiufvt4xSJWUuvNiEf3FOsrK4A19oL4s/s400/Week9c2-compPointOrient.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
As you can see, with the Parent Constraint, the sphere's path goes <br />
around the other object as if that object was it's pivot. On the other <br />
hand, with Point and Orient Constraints, the sphere continues to rotate <br />
on its own axis, causing it to follow an entirely different path.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNmYyNOHl9nhw8V0-OZn3O2sV1hJ0QuUyKYI3zZEYgYcx0dS6Y8oqKwH5Bmk6uaaY5mnvipuTvajqW1d82eE0peHLjFDOlB5aWnFhk_OkNvAxdKW44M8fT29er46uweNl3o0rfW7rwObC/s1600/Week9c2-b-ConstraintOptions.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTNmYyNOHl9nhw8V0-OZn3O2sV1hJ0QuUyKYI3zZEYgYcx0dS6Y8oqKwH5Bmk6uaaY5mnvipuTvajqW1d82eE0peHLjFDOlB5aWnFhk_OkNvAxdKW44M8fT29er46uweNl3o0rfW7rwObC/s400/Week9c2-b-ConstraintOptions.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Also, a couple of very useful settings most of the constraint types have <br />
are the "Maintain Offset" option, which you can get to by clicking the <br />
box beside the constraint in the menu and the Constraint axes options, <br />
which allows you to choose whether to constrain the object completely, <br />
or just on one or two of the axis.<br />
When Maintain Offset is checked, the difference will be kept between <br />
position, rotation, and/or scale of the constraining and constrained <br />
objects. If you are constraining a cup to a hand, you will want to make <br />
sure Maintain Offset is turn on to keep the cup from snapping into <br />
another position.<br />
<br />
While turned off, it will snap the constrained object to the position, <br />
rotation, and/or scale of the parent object.<br />
<br />
Whew! That was quite a long winded explanation! Let's move on to a <br />
subject that, while not entirely related to constraints, can help you <br />
diagnose what's going on with your constraints.<br />
<br />
<b>Attribute Colors</b><br />
<br />
You've probably noticed, either when keying your character, exploring <br />
the rig, or constraining objects, that the attributes in the channel box <br />
are sometimes different colors. Now as animators, we know that red means <br />
that there is a key on that attribute, but what do the other colors mean?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnu0oPAg_1Ck-9WB-M8VNSTFNQtOSaVSGU2K_Frx-1yd4sRcUelogNj0TzlJmbKA6Wp7GwLeoKJU0m2qsRnoif1FBGmkx2iV7qLnqmj7vUk0Fn-I1qB62-G7bj9Vx7q_3EHpMqwPd3Aqr9/s1600/shotcam_environment_background_color.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnu0oPAg_1Ck-9WB-M8VNSTFNQtOSaVSGU2K_Frx-1yd4sRcUelogNj0TzlJmbKA6Wp7GwLeoKJU0m2qsRnoif1FBGmkx2iV7qLnqmj7vUk0Fn-I1qB62-G7bj9Vx7q_3EHpMqwPd3Aqr9/s400/shotcam_environment_background_color.png" width="225" /></a></div>
<ul>
<li><b><i>Normal -</i></b> Nothing to see here, just a regular old <br />
attribute going about its business.</li>
<li><b><i>Gray - Locked.</i></b> A locked attribute can not be edited or <br />
changed.</li>
<li><b><i>Light Gray - Nonkeyable.</i></b> As the name suggests, <br />
nonkeyable attributes can not be animated.</li>
<li><b><i>Brown - Muted.</i></b> This means that a keyed attribute has <br />
had it's animation turned off or frozen. Muting attributes can come in <br />
very handy if you want to focus on a certain aspect of your animation, <br />
such as the arcs of a bouncing ball, without being distracted by the <br />
rotation.</li>
<li><b><i>Red - Keyed.</i></b> An attribute that has a key on the <br />
timeline. As animators, this is a color we'll be seeing a lot during our <br />
careers.</li>
<li><b><i>Blue - Constrained.</i></b> Means that this attribute has been <br />
constrained to another object. If you try to edit this attribute, it <br />
will revert back to its constrained value when you scrub through the <br />
timeline.</li>
<li><b><i>Green - Blended.</i></b> This is what happens when you key a <br />
constrained attribute. Once keyed, the attribute will turn green and a <br />
new Blend attribute will appear. The Blend allows you to turn the <br />
constraint on and off, which is great if you need your character to put <br />
down his coffee mug. This is the preferred way of turning off a <br />
constraint. If you are turning it off by editing the constraint node, it <br />
can lead to problems later on when you need to re-time your animation.</li>
<li><b><i>Yellow - Connected.</i></b> While constrained attributes link <br />
different values, Connected attributes are linked mathematically to <br />
another attribute, most often, so that one equals the other.</li>
<li><b><i>Purple - Expression.</i></b> Purple means that this particular <br />
attribute's values are determined by a piece of code.</li>
</ul>
And there you have it. While this was probably not the most interesting <br />
tip so far, I hope it will help you understand constraints a little bit <br />
more. Next time, I'll be going over a few of my favorite constraint <br />
methods which should be a bit more useful to you.<br />
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to send either <br />
of us a comment or message via Skype, AMConnect, or PM.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-44017648698500600632012-04-03T23:55:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:39:38.281-05:00Class 1 - Week 4 - Simple TexturingLet's start with some Hypershade basics. And seeing as I'm a lazy <br />
bugger, I'll be linking you to a great video tutorial explaining <br />
the Hypershade. It's only 7 minutes so it won't take up too much <br />
time. <br />
<br />
<b><i><a href="http://www.digitaltutors.com/11/training.php?vid=31443&autoplay=1" targer="_blank">Digital Tutors - Hypershade</a></i></b><br />
<br />
If you haven't checked out Digital Tutors yet, they have a lot <br />
of free videos covering many of the Maya basics. If you have some <br />
free time, I highly suggest checking them out.<br />
<br />
Now that we're through the basics, here's the method Cameron and I <br />
used to texture the balls in our assignments. We went for a simple <br />
strip across the ball using the AM colors, but you can try <br />
whatever you want. Just remember that this is simply to be able to <br />
see the rotation of the ball so try to spend as little time as <br />
possible texturing. <br />
<br />
<b>Set up</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHWlpMLE-KPQFUfoazSX6WffRItsoEpJyigqyqQ5LyM7D785rIAZLH2NJaNhadquETb5Z739zgwUk2mCX_egNdFU8aVMC9DppgLF6_fRkCWNfeDgzsjNuKpWZeNEqSqTnhZMsCanaBuh04/s1600/Ramp-Shader.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHWlpMLE-KPQFUfoazSX6WffRItsoEpJyigqyqQ5LyM7D785rIAZLH2NJaNhadquETb5Z739zgwUk2mCX_egNdFU8aVMC9DppgLF6_fRkCWNfeDgzsjNuKpWZeNEqSqTnhZMsCanaBuh04/s320/Ramp-Shader.jpg" width="174" /></a></div>
<br />
<ul>
<li>Go to "Window > Rendering Editors > Hypershade"</li>
<li>In the right pane of the Create Bar, find and select <br />
"Lambert". A new Lambert material will show up in the Work Area.</li>
<li>Middle mouse drag a "Ramp" on to the newly created Lambert <br />
material in the Work Area (Make sure it's a "Ramp" and not a <br />
"Ramp Shader". A Ramp is a texture file that can be applied to the <br />
Lambert whereas a Ramp Shader is another type of material)</li>
<li>A popup will appear asking how you want to link the two nodes <br />
together. Select "Color" and an arrow will go from the Ramp to the <br />
Lambert showing they're connected.</li>
<li>Select the Ramp node and open up the Attribute Editor <br />
(Ctrl + A is the shortcut).</li>
<li>Under "Ramp Attributes", set the Type to "U Ramp"</li>
</ul>
Create a new color component by clicking on the ramp (check the <br />
image below). You should now have four colors. Select the top <br />
color by clicking on the circular handle to the left of the <br />
gradient and set it's "Selected Position" to a value of .56<br />
Set the second to .55<br />
the third to .45<br />
and the fourth to .44<br />
<br />
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<br />
<br />
Now it's time for the color. Before we begin though, let's go over <br />
the two different types of color pickers in Maya. The first, is a <br />
small popup window that will come up if you click on a color <br />
swatch once. It's very quick and easy but a bit annoying as it <br />
keeps disappearing if you move your cursor away.<br />
<br />
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<br />
The second is a larger window that you can get by double clicking <br />
on a color swatch. This is especially nice when you want to import <br />
a specific color and have to check the RGB or HSV value in another <br />
program as it won't disappear when you move your mouse cursor away.<br />
<br />
And speaking of RGB and HSV (also known as HSB), they stand for <br />
"Red, Green, Blue" and "Hue, Saturation, Value (or Brightness)" <br />
and are different ways you can use to input the color you want <br />
into Maya. You can switch between the two modes by either <br />
selecting the appropriate tab in the large color picker or going <br />
through the drop down menu in the bottom right corner of the small <br />
picker.<br />
<br />
For this demo, I'll be going with the AM rig colors but feel free <br />
to pick whichever color you would like. Just make sure the 2 inner <br />
swatches on the ramp are the same to create a nice solid line <br />
through the ball.<br />
<br />
<br />
For the AM colors, set the inner swatches to a HSV value of <br />
22, .619, .714<br />
And the outer swatches to a HSV value of<br />
36, .533, 1<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Applying the material</b><br />
To apply the material onto the ball, you can either;<br />
<br />
Middle mouse drag the material from the Hypershade onto the ball or<br />
select the ball and hold the right mouse button. In the pop up <br />
menu, select "Assign existing material" near the bottom and find <br />
the name of the new Lambert you created.<br />
<br />
Now you may be thinking, "Ok, the material has been assigned but I <br />
can't see any textures. I guess the poor guy doesn't know what <br />
he's talking about." And you'd be half right, the textures aren't <br />
visible.<br />
<br />
To get the textures showing in your active viewport, hit the 6 key <br />
to turn on hardware texturing. That about sums up our method of <br />
texturing the ball. <br />
<br />
And while I have you here and I just brought it up, here is a list <br />
of what the number keys do in Maya. (I just can't stop talking can I :p)<br />
<br />
<b>Geometry Resolution options</b><br />
<b><i>1</i></b> - Default Resolution<br />
<b><i>2</i></b> - Smooth Mesh + Cage <br />
<b><i>3</i></b> - Smooth Mesh<br />
When working with the more complex rigs like Stu or Stewie, <br />
pressing these keys while the character is selected can cause the <br />
character to morph out of shape. To fix it, open up the Window > <br />
Outliner and navigate through the rig until only the parts that <br />
are messed up are selected. Hit either the 1 or 3 key and it should <br />
revert back to it's original look.<br />
<br />
<b>Shading options</b><br />
<b><i>4</i></b> - Wireframe<br />
<b><i>5</i></b> - Shaded<br />
<b><i>6</i></b> - Textures<br />
<b><i>7</i></b> - Lighting <br />
If you have no lights in your scene, 7 is a great mode for checking out your silhouette.<br />
<br />
<b>And finally,</b><br />
<b><i>8</i></b> - Paint effects <br />
Paint effects is a Maya tool that you will probably never have to <br />
use for animation. If you accidentally enter paint effects mode, <br />
hover the cursor over the viewport and hit the space bar and it <br />
should bring you back to the regular Maya mode. When you close <br />
Maya, it will ask if you want to save a paint effects file. Just <br />
hit no and everything will be fine.<br />
<br />
I hope that helps and if you have any questions or would like some <br />
extra tips, just send us a comment or PM.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-83636173635152554132012-04-03T23:50:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:47:59.728-05:00Class 1 - Week 9 - Sharing Your ScreenBeing able to show what's going on your computer can come in very <br />
handy in many situations. You can show your mentor an issue that <br />
you're having difficulty explaining, share your workflow with <br />
students, or critique other people's work. <br />
<br />
To get started, we'll need to get a program that will allow us to <br />
share our desktop over the AM chat. There are many to pick from but <br />
the following 3 are the most popular choices.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://camtwiststudio.com/" target="_blank">CamTwist</a></b><br />
Pros - Good quality, lots of options<br />
Cons - Mac only<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2lqtzMhAH-kTtGfvMNpEjTdzl-b_u0eBthcDW_AjUYLeOLHxZtfwnpifpEB9edRY27-VloAQY72WMGMNgoxbBQAZ0k5dhEs1kZ9LsN4F3XD2__Tpz-GflbnrUncAfLF6e8XU5fzJAhvg_/s1600/Week9c1-b-camtwist_main.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2lqtzMhAH-kTtGfvMNpEjTdzl-b_u0eBthcDW_AjUYLeOLHxZtfwnpifpEB9edRY27-VloAQY72WMGMNgoxbBQAZ0k5dhEs1kZ9LsN4F3XD2__Tpz-GflbnrUncAfLF6e8XU5fzJAhvg_/s320/Week9c1-b-camtwist_main.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://manycam.com/" target="_blank">ManyCam</a></b><br />
Pros - Completely free, no watermarks<br />
Cons - Options are not quite as robust, video quality is not the highest<br />
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<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://www.webcammax.com/" target="_blank">WebCamMax</a></b><br />
Pros - More options <br />
Cons - Free version has watermark and pop up ads, takes a lot more <br />
resources.<br />
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<br />
<br />
Of these 3, ManyCam is my personal favorite with it's light resource <br />
load and lack of a watermark. WebCamMax is my least favorite due to <br />
it's ads and the annoyingly large watermark it adds to your video. <br />
As for CamTwist, I've heard it's the best but as I don't have a Mac, I <br />
haven't been able to test it personally. If you want to try out <br />
CamTwist, here is link to a tutorial that should help get everything <br />
set up.<br />
<br />
<b><i><a href="http://www.mikechambers.com/blog/2011/05/29/setting-up-desktop-streaming-on-mac-os-x/" target="_blank">Setting up a Desktop Stream on Mac OS X</a></i></b><br />
<br />
It goes over a few more programs as well but you should only need to <br />
go over the CamTwist section.<br />
<br />
<i>/// Warning ///</i><br />
With any of these free programs, when you go to install them, they may <br />
try to install toolbars in your browsers. To prevent it, just be sure <br />
to read each page of the installation carefully and decline the toolbar <br />
installation. If a toolbar gets installed and you can't figure out how <br />
to remove it, feel free to send us a message and we'd be more than <br />
happy to help.<br />
<br />
With that all out of the way, let's get a program setup. Since I'm <br />
Mac-less and don't care for ads on my computer, I'll be using ManyCam.<br />
<b><i>(ManyCam has updated to version 3, changing the interface slightly.</i></b><br />
<b><i>While it may look different, all the buttons and controls are the same)</i></b><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>First step, download and install ManyCam (when asked to <br />
install the Ask toolbar, make sure you hit Decline)</li>
<li>Once installed, it may ask to use "fddshow" with ManyCam. This is <br />
a video codec that ManyCam uses for some of it's features, so feel <br />
free to allow it.</li>
<li>With the program installed, there is only one setting that I like <br />
to change before starting any screen sharing. Under "Effects > Text <br />
over video" uncheck "Show ManyCam.com Logo". This will turn off the <br />
ManyCam watermark in the video and give you a more professional look.</li>
</ul>
<br />
That didn't take too long to setup! Now we can start playing around <br />
with the program. The two main sections in ManyCam are Effects and <br />
Sources. Effects covers anything that you can overlay over your video, <br />
such as text or drawings and Sources deal with what will be displayed, <br />
be it your webcam, desktop, or even a movie file.<br />
<br />
Since most of the Effects and Sources are pretty self explanatory, <br />
I'll just go over the different screen sharing options which you can <br />
find under "Sources > Desktop".<br />
<br />
We'll begin with the 3 buttons directly under the video. From left to <br />
right, they are, Single Mode, PiP Mode, and Pause<br />
<br />
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<br />
<b>Single Mode:</b> Sets ManyCam to use only one video source. Use it <br />
to get out of PiP Mode.<br />
<br />
<b>PiP Mode:</b> Also known as Picture in Picture, this allows you to <br />
overlay a second video source over the main one. To use it, click the <br />
PiP button, click on the new video that pops up (it should say "Choose <br />
source for Picture in Picture" by default) and choose a source from <br />
the list on the left. You can then move and resize the PiP view so <br />
it's not covering anything you want to show.<br />
<br />
<b>Pause:</b> Pretty straight forward, pauses the ManyCam broadcast.<br />
<br />
At the top right are all the video color and orientation settings and <br />
under that on the bottom bar you will find the most important <br />
settings. The View types!<br />
<br />
The 3 different desktop view types, Full, Partial, and Custom, are <br />
what you'll use to show the desktop. Just click the one that will best <br />
suit your needs and ManyCam will start sharing your screen instead of <br />
the webcam.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/32593712/Tutorials/Week9c1-b-ManyCamViewTypes.jpg" target="_blank"></a><br />
<br />
<b>Full desktop:</b> Simple enough, shows the entire computer desktop. <br />
If you have multiple monitors, it will span across all of them. This <br />
view is okay to show your workspace but isn't really clear enough for <br />
most people to see.<br />
<br />
<b>Partial desktop:</b> This method zooms in the camera and follows <br />
the mouse cursor. A great way to show your workflow or how to navigate <br />
through menus. But the constant movement can easily be distracting and <br />
sickening.<br />
<br />
<b>Custom desktop:</b> Allows you to choose a section of the desktop <br />
to display. Probably the most useful of the view methods as it allows <br />
you to zoom in, making things clearer, and keeps the focus on what <br />
your working on. The only thing to watch out for is if the custom view <br />
is too rectangular, it will display in a smaller size.<br />
<br />
<b>Update rate:</b> This setting determines the frame rate of the <br />
video feed. I like to set it all the way up but that may vary <br />
depending on your internet speed. You won't be able to get 24 frames <br />
per second while sharing your screen but it's usually high enough to <br />
show your work properly.<br />
<br />
When you're all done sharing your screen and are ready to go back on <br />
camera, all you need to do is go under Sources > Cameras and choose <br />
the name of your webcam.<br />
<br />
Another great feature that ManyCam offers is the ability to draw over <br />
your video source. <br />
Under Effects > Drawing over video you'll find all the tools you'll <br />
need to draw with.<br />
<br />
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<br />
To remove the drawing once you're done, as with any effect, hit the X <br />
beside the effect name in the "Select effects" box at the top right.<br />
<br />
There are a lot of other cool things you can do, so be sure to play <br />
around and try different things.<br />
<br />
With everything setup, it's time to start broadcasting to the world! <br />
But what's this? When you test your camera in the Q&A it only shows <br />
your webcam? That's because there's one more setting we need to <br />
change, but this one is in the AM chat itself. This will apply no <br />
matter which program your using to share your screen.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzFHn-9HASeq6X8RE6dW-QgeA2QziuOf1r_jq5Qrk2IP6TtlZl9v7ikcAWvvrJaVKXoaMc12or_H7KiydXNz2eEtWsLxksHZtR4vTZwa2568q_5g3W6f9rO-HmDhblaooUMTHeYb4NLvXR/s1600/Week9c1-b-FlashSettings.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzFHn-9HASeq6X8RE6dW-QgeA2QziuOf1r_jq5Qrk2IP6TtlZl9v7ikcAWvvrJaVKXoaMc12or_H7KiydXNz2eEtWsLxksHZtR4vTZwa2568q_5g3W6f9rO-HmDhblaooUMTHeYb4NLvXR/s1600/Week9c1-b-FlashSettings.jpg" /></a></div>
<a href="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/32593712/Tutorials/Week9c1-b-FlashSettings.jpg" target="_blank"></a><br />
<br />
Hit the Test Camera button in the Q&A and right click on the video. <br />
Under the Camera tab (the one that looks like a round webcam) set the <br />
camera to ManyCam Video Source. You should now be able to share your <br />
screen in any Q&A!<br />
<br />
Hopefully that was helpful and as usual, if you have any questions or <br />
comments, feel free to contact us on Skype, AMConnect or by PM.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-5028893920077379672012-04-03T23:45:00.000-05:002012-05-07T22:49:22.592-05:00Class 1 - Week 4 - Light & Heavy Ball PhysicsSo last week, we talked about how the effects of Gravity, Momentum, <br />
Friction, and Density affects a basketball/soccer ball. We learned <br />
that as a ball bounces, the effects of its kinetic energy vs. gravity <br />
is what gives that signature tapered arc in the bounces, and that a <br />
ball has height degradation, which means that each bounce causes <br />
the ball to lose energy, so that each consecutive bounce will be <br />
smaller that the previous one, unless it somehow gains energy, like <br />
from falling off a ledge. <br />
<br />
Now that we know all that, how do we then apply it to balls of <br />
different weights? What is it that really makes the difference <br />
between a ping pong ball and a cannonball? Is it size? A bowling <br />
ball weighs more than a tennis ball, but on the flip side, a small <br />
lead ball weighs a lot more than a large beach ball. So that's not <br />
it. Maybe it's gravity pulling on one ball more than the other? You <br />
can actually experiment with this yourself by taking two objects of <br />
different weights (preferably not something sharp or fragile) and <br />
dropping them at the same time. You'll find that no matter the <br />
difference in weight, both objects will hit the ground at the same <br />
time. Gravity has the same pull on any object, no matter it's size <br />
or weight. But then why do balloons, feathers, and sheets of paper <br />
float down to the ground instead of dropping? The reason for this is <br />
air friction, air density, and the surface area of an object which <br />
we'll discuss a bit further down. <br />
<br />
The answer to our question is Mass and Density. An object's mass is what <br />
determines how heavy it is, and consequently, how its arcs and height <br />
degradation is affected. Density is what causes different objects of <br />
the same size to weigh more or less than each other. A tennis ball has <br />
a small amount of mass in a relatively small amount of space, making it <br />
light, whereas a tennis ball sized lead ball has a large amount of mass <br />
in a small amount of space, making it very dense. <br />
<br />
<b>Mass & Density on a Bouncing Ball</b><br />
<br />
So how do these affect the bouncing ball? As I mentioned last week, <br />
when a dropped ball bounces, the downwards energy it got from falling <br />
(gravity) gets converted into upwards energy which then has to fight <br />
against gravity to be able to get the ball into the air again. With <br />
the size and drop distance of both a light and heavy ball kept constant, <br />
the heavier, denser ball will fall with more energy (not to be confused <br />
with more speed). The reason for this is because gravity accelerates <br />
all things equally, regardless of mass, and momentum = mass * velocity. <br />
So the denser ball has more momentum and more kinetic energy as it <br />
strikes the ground. In fact, the reason why denser objects overcome air <br />
drag better is that they have more momentum.<br />
<br />
With that information, you would think that a heavy ball would bounce <br />
higher than a light ball because of the increased momentum and energy. <br />
Depending on the surface and material of the ball, it definitely can <br />
(Bowling balls on concrete can bounce pretty well). But the reason why <br />
heavy balls often bounce less is that when they impact, they are more <br />
likely to lose energy into the ground plane because of their increased <br />
mass and momentum.<br />
<br />
But now what about ball roll? How do heavy balls roll compared to light <br />
balls? In general, a light ball doesn't take much energy to start <br />
rolling, but a heavy ball will roll faster and longer than a light <br />
ball, the more momentum it has. This is the same reason a large <br />
semi truck takes forever to stop compared to a small car. Be sure to <br />
ask your mentor what kind of rolling they like to see on the heavy <br />
balls. Some mentors, like mine, wanted to see a heavy ball drop almost <br />
straight down with no roll to emphasize the weight, but others like <br />
Beau's wanted to see a heavy ball with a longer roll to show momentum.<br />
<br />
<b>Light Balls VS Balloons</b><br />
<br />
I bet you thought I forgot about this topic! Nope. I've left it for <br />
last because it doesn't really have anything to do with light vs heavy <br />
balls, but is still kind of an important topic to talk about. As I <br />
mentioned before, the reason why light balls drop and balloons, feathers, <br />
and sheets of paper float down to the ground isn't because of gravity <br />
pulling things down with different amounts of force, but because of air <br />
friction, air density, and the surface area of an object.<br />
<br />
Balloons float down so lightly because they have so much more air inside <br />
them than they have the rubber that makes them, and the rubber is <br />
distributed over such a large area that its density is extremely low, <br />
causing it to float down. You can see that a balloon has a density similar <br />
to air by the fact that you can't throw it or hit it very far. Now Paper <br />
and feathers "float" because their wider surface areas and light weight <br />
cause them to glide over the air like a hang glider would, not because of <br />
air density. If you were to drop a piece of paper on it's edge, you'll see <br />
that it slices through the air and drops pretty quickly, or if you crumple <br />
it, it will drop like any other object.<br />
<br />
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, <br />
and as always, if you have any comments, questions or suggestions, <br />
you're more than welcome to leave a comment or send either Beau or <br />
me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-79134644484656110152012-04-03T23:44:00.002-05:002017-05-08T15:52:17.972-05:00Class 1 - Week 5 - SilhouettesWe'll begin with a few questions. What is it that makes a good silhouette, <br />
and why do we even need it? The pose should work with or without, seeing <br />
as how it still has all its arms and legs, right? The fact is that your <br />
poses can still "work" without a good silhouette, but they'll be very weak <br />
and it will be unclear what's happening. What a good silhouette does to <br />
your pose is it makes it stronger, instantly readable, and more appealing <br />
to the viewer. Being able to instantly know what a character is doing, <br />
even if you can't see anything apart from a solid mass is extremely <br />
important to creating good animation. <br />
<br />
Here's an example, showing a pose both normally and in silhouette. As you <br />
can see, even without the line art to show you what's happening, you can <br />
instantly tell that it's a Sherlock Holmes-style detective. (The images <br />
used here are taken from this FloobyNooby post that you may remember, <br />
<b><i><a href="http://floobynooby.blogspot.com/2011/01/lines-of-action-mickeys-christmas-carol.html" target="_blank">FloobyNooby - Line of Action</a></i></b>. They only go over silhouette in passing, <br />
but make sure to check out their post!)<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTz8DEbo8t1KlhKEqCU9pKaEFdjrzI4dxMlPA4aj34VRrR4aAnBPK-U0UPhNf-x5v3Nu3qcFnjkG-6Yf9XwAmL-7Pu2uJN9lm1daWkJZlUBQUSbKRG8ruJzGwPZsxk-OfX1eQownAKJvJv/s1600/Week5c1c-Silhouette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="138" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTz8DEbo8t1KlhKEqCU9pKaEFdjrzI4dxMlPA4aj34VRrR4aAnBPK-U0UPhNf-x5v3Nu3qcFnjkG-6Yf9XwAmL-7Pu2uJN9lm1daWkJZlUBQUSbKRG8ruJzGwPZsxk-OfX1eQownAKJvJv/s320/Week5c1c-Silhouette.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
So now that we know why we need a silhouette in our poses, what can we do <br />
to improve them? Here are a few tips and tricks that I find really help <br />
getting the most out of your silhouettes.<br />
<br />
<b>Clear Silhouettes</b><br />
<br />
This one may seem like an obvious one, but you'd be surprised how often it <br />
gets overlooked and also misunderstood. Having a clear silhouette doesn't <br />
mean that you have to be able to clearly see every limb on the body. If <br />
that were the case, posing a character would be extremely limiting and you <br />
would have arms and legs sticking out everywhere.<br />
<br />
A clear silhouette means that the action and meaning of the pose reads <br />
easily. Like in the above image, Daffy's right arm is almost completely <br />
hidden in the silhouette, but you still know exactly what he's doing. And <br />
the slight elbow that you can see tells you that his arm is still there. <br />
The most important thing is that you want the entire pose to tell you <br />
exactly what this person is doing. If it can't do that, then the action <br />
becomes unclear and you lose the visual interest. <br />
<br />
<b>Overlapping Shapes</b><br />
<br />
The next subject is overlapping shapes. As I mentioned in the last tip, it <br />
is okay to overlap limbs and bodyparts as long as you don't lose the <br />
clarity of the pose. But you also need to watch out for a few things when <br />
doing this. One of the biggest problems you want to avoid is overlapping <br />
so much that you lose a limb entirely. This can cause your character to <br />
look like his limb is missing instead of overlapped. You also want to pay <br />
special attention to the arms and legs. Because of the way the bend, arms <br />
and legs have a tendency to overlap in a way that they end up blocking <br />
themselves (for example, with an arm bent sharply, the upper arm can <br />
easily block out the lower arm or vice versa). Ideally it's best to be <br />
able to see both the upper and lower portions of the arms and legs, even <br />
if it's only slightly, to keep them from looking stumpy.<br />
<br />
<b>Joint Overlap</b><br />
<br />
Now that we've talked about overlapping shapes, it's time to discuss <br />
overlapping joints in silhouettes. This is something you want to try and <br />
avoid happening in your poses. By having the joints of your character <br />
overlap, for example the elbows, it makes it so that you can't tell which <br />
hand belongs to which arm. You can have them overlap slightly, but it <br />
doesn't take much for the joints to blend into each other and cause a mess <br />
of confusion in your poses.<br />
<br />
In this image, you can see examples of overlapping shapes, as well as <br />
examples of our next topic, negative space. But for now, notice how clear <br />
the poses are even with the overlapping shapes, and whenever Mickey has <br />
his arm bent over itself, you can still make out both his upper and lower <br />
arms. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgdgsvPZGOMQBdK7MxOmGnFUkCk3Yj0jMqjV0zPMASWYSycHWuyg2ZTPBhVJGTW1OE1IVHeWfd2JhlquoDSpkTwtDDTvZ02KvQHdBS1HkVysa-_wBJjiF1MChEfouiChJhf2Ur4COmDgC/s1600/Week5c1c-Whitespace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgdgsvPZGOMQBdK7MxOmGnFUkCk3Yj0jMqjV0zPMASWYSycHWuyg2ZTPBhVJGTW1OE1IVHeWfd2JhlquoDSpkTwtDDTvZ02KvQHdBS1HkVysa-_wBJjiF1MChEfouiChJhf2Ur4COmDgC/s320/Week5c1c-Whitespace.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<b>Negative Space</b><br />
<br />
Our last subject isn't actually about the silhouette, but about the space <br />
that surrounds it. Negative space, or the empty space around your <br />
character, is very important to your posing. Having a variety of empty <br />
spaces between the arms and legs, as well as a nice contrast of large <br />
spaces and small spaces helps to build a dynamic silhouette and keeps the <br />
pose visually interesting. Like posing though, you need to make sure to <br />
avoid twinning in your negative space. You can see some good examples of <br />
this subject in the image above. <br />
<br />
And that's all I have for you this week! Thank you for taking the time to <br />
read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and as always, if you have any <br />
comments, questions or suggestions, you're more than welcome to send either <br />
Beau or me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-42297918362855320642012-04-03T23:44:00.001-05:002017-05-08T15:54:06.965-05:00Class 2 - Week 5 - Hips & SpinesI know when I started with Armless Stewie, I had quite a bit of trouble<br />
getting used to all the new controllers I had to animate. I made quite a<br />
few mistakes and spent way too much time counter animating my work <br />
instead of actually finessing my shot. So with these 4 tips I have for you, <br />
I hope that you'll be able to avoid a few of the pitfalls I fell into.<br />
<br />
<b>Tip 1 - Head Align Follow</b><br />
<br />
This first tip is one that I actually wish I had used in my armless Stewie <br />
assignment. If you select Stewie's head controller and look through the <br />
channels, you'll see one called "Align Follow". What this option does is <br />
it changes the way Stewie's head follows the body. When it's set to 0, his <br />
head will twist and turn with the torso, which can be handy, but causes <br />
you to have to counter-animate the head through the entire shot, which can <br />
be a nightmare if you have a lot of body twists and you want him to keep <br />
looking in one direction. By turning "Align Follow" to 1, it locks his <br />
head in place, so that no matter what kind of twist or rotation you give <br />
his body, his head stays focused on wherever it's looking. This is great <br />
because it gives you much better control over his head, allowing you to <br />
animate it exactly how you want, and it also means that you won't spend <br />
ages counter-animating once you get into splines.<br />
<br />
<b>Tip 2 - Hiding the Hip Controller</b><br />
<br />
The second tip is another handy, albeit simple one that can really help <br />
you out when you're animating the spine. Because of the way Stewie's hip <br />
controller is overlayed on his lower spine controller, it can be extremely <br />
difficult to select the spine at times. There are also times that you <br />
don't realize you've accidentally selected the hips and rotate both <br />
controls, which can lead to frustrating fixups later down the line. So <br />
what you can do is simply select the hip controller, go to your Layers <br />
panel and create a new layer with the selected hip controller inside it. <br />
Now you can easily hide, lock off, and re-access your hips whenever you <br />
need them, but never when you don't! <br />
<br />
<b>Tip 3 - Creating a Shelf Tool to Select the Spine Controls</b><br />
<br />
Tip 3 is personally a life saver. I always found it a pain having to try <br />
and select each spine controller, one at a time, every time I wanted to do <br />
something with Stewie's body. Then I found out how to create a shelf tool <br />
that will automatically select all 3 controllers with one simple click! It <br />
made animating the spine so much easier for me. Here's how you can do it:<br />
<br />
Go to Window > General Editors > Script Editor<br />
<br />
With the script editor open, select each of the 3 body controllers. <br />
You'll see that each time you do, the script editor's code updates.<br />
<br />
Select and drag the 3 lines of code onto your shelf. It will ask you to <br />
save the script as either MEL or Python. Choose MEL and Voila. You have a <br />
brand new shelf icon!<br />
<br />
<b>Tip 4 - Basic Spine Tips</b><br />
<br />
For this last one, I'll go over a few tips and tricks on how to control <br />
the spine, and some things to avoid that should help make your animating <br />
easier.<br />
<br />
Rotate all the spine controllers at the same time. One of the worst <br />
things you can do to yourself is start rotating the spine controllers one <br />
at a time, each time compensating slightly for any twists and bends. What <br />
you'll end up with is a spine that is constantly counter-animating itself, <br />
which can be a real pain to fix. But by rotating all 3 controllers <br />
together, what you get is a much smoother motion, and one that's also much <br />
easier to keep in check. Of course you can always push one or two of them <br />
individually now and again to really exaggerate a pose or bend.<br />
<br />
Use the hip controller for accents only. It's very tempting to use the <br />
hip controller to push the curve of the spine throughout your shots. But <br />
the problem with doing that is the hips tend to look a bit wobbly after a <br />
while. In general you should be able to pull off most of your shot using <br />
only the spine and body controllers, and using the hips just to push poses <br />
slightly, or get that little bit of extra bend where you need it. By not <br />
using the hip controller as much in your shot, it also gives the added <br />
bonus of making the rig easier to animate since you have 1 less control to <br />
worry about, which is always nice!<br />
<br />
And lastly, this tip is about the uppermost spine controller, or the <br />
ribcage controller. If you take a moment to bend and twist your own body <br />
around, you'll see that this part of your body is very inflexible. The <br />
reason for this is because you have a very sturdy ribcage there. So when <br />
you're animating Stewie, keep in mind that he should also have a ribcage <br />
in there, so don't try to bend his upper body too harshly. If you do, it <br />
will give him either an odd noodle body type look, or make his spine look <br />
slightly broken. The human body bends mostly from the lower and middle <br />
back, so use those controllers to get that extra bend you need.<br />
<br />
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, <br />
and as always, if you have any comments, questions or suggestions, you're <br />
more than welcome to send either Beau or me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-3828478229200483902012-04-03T23:44:00.000-05:002017-05-08T15:58:51.061-05:00Class 2 - Week 5 - Working with Reference in MayaSo what's so great about having your reference in Maya as you animate, <br />
you may ask? The most useful thing about it for me is that instead of <br />
having to play the reference in quicktime then switch to Maya to compare, <br />
it allows me to scrub through my animation and see in real time how it's <br />
comparing. <br />
<br />
As you'll be needing two programs to accomplish this, I'll be splitting <br />
this tip into two sections, Quicktime and Maya. Let's begin!<br />
<br />
<b>Quicktime</b><br />
<br />
The first step will be to export your reference into an image sequence <br />
that we can import into Maya. There are quite a few programs that will <br />
do this but I'll be sticking to Quicktime for this tip.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTLM-0l210QWY6ocCPF6KSUb9ZuD0-vck_rRSlddlUSsKZXciQF7J3eJGy3Xi-f0jndm7kGYAgx7q0LXWRLLc8rdDG25XloWYDp_DmfSECbPrMhRz2lRXzQXoUqX6moTlp0Bv55CXNqFSq/s1600/quicktime-image-sequence-settings-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="134" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTLM-0l210QWY6ocCPF6KSUb9ZuD0-vck_rRSlddlUSsKZXciQF7J3eJGy3Xi-f0jndm7kGYAgx7q0LXWRLLc8rdDG25XloWYDp_DmfSECbPrMhRz2lRXzQXoUqX6moTlp0Bv55CXNqFSq/s320/quicktime-image-sequence-settings-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="http://dl.dropbox.com/u/32593712/Tutorials/quicktime-image-sequence-settings-1.jpg" target="_blank"></a><br />
<br />
Open up the reference in Quicktime, then go to the Export settings(File > Export) <br />
Set the export type to "Movie to Image Sequence" and select Options, where you'll <br />
choose which format the images will convert to. I personally prefer PNG as they have <br />
a higher quality but JPEG works just as well.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdiYZFbwDvEmUPtX2Wqb4D0-srQjXJ8l2To7AhDVhz5BKUPHPORoSIYMbJsW2N4w06cjpmsrqT05ERcB9kycBBNXX-SNQwPX_MbuXl478jEGpjzUPziOGCE81CWFY86n6nznUkoV6YE0D/s1600/quicktime-image-sequence-settings-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdiYZFbwDvEmUPtX2Wqb4D0-srQjXJ8l2To7AhDVhz5BKUPHPORoSIYMbJsW2N4w06cjpmsrqT05ERcB9kycBBNXX-SNQwPX_MbuXl478jEGpjzUPziOGCE81CWFY86n6nznUkoV6YE0D/s1600/quicktime-image-sequence-settings-2.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
Next, set the "Frames per second" to match the frame rate of the video. <br />
If you exported the reference using AM's video standardization, then it <br />
should already be at 24fps (which will play very well in Maya as it should <br />
be set to 24fps as well). If not, keep in mind that your camera probably shot <br />
the video at a different fps, most likely 29.97. If you're unsure what the fps<br />
of your video is, a quick way to find out is to go to "Window > Movie Inspector"<br />
in Quicktime. A window will come up with all the info you need for your shot. <br />
<br />
Once all that's done, just select a folder to store all the images <br />
and hit the Save button.<br />
<br />
<b>Maya</b><br />
<br />
Now it's time to bring everything together in Maya! To start with, <br />
create a new camera by going to "Create > Cameras > Camera"<br />
<br />
With your new camera selected, open up the attribute editor <br />
(Ctrl + a or Command + a if you're using a Mac), scroll down to <br />
the "Environment" section and hit the Create button beside Image Plane.<br />
<br />
You've now got an empty image plane attached to your camera. <br />
Time to add the images!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiluOuJaNIasrntacUijdJW6YkaE4JQKS5WttUvOV_api4pInL-CgjxfdhpS9ZTybrm6MUuBpXGARySnY6hAhOAVEGBOuigoNlMQdvsN5DgZdUdP4eu0bx_j1UOBQKD4wLYzHPEVIdcfo_h/s1600/image-plane-attribute-editor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiluOuJaNIasrntacUijdJW6YkaE4JQKS5WttUvOV_api4pInL-CgjxfdhpS9ZTybrm6MUuBpXGARySnY6hAhOAVEGBOuigoNlMQdvsN5DgZdUdP4eu0bx_j1UOBQKD4wLYzHPEVIdcfo_h/s320/image-plane-attribute-editor.jpg" width="151" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
Open up the attribute editor for the image plane. (If it's not already active, <br />
you can get there by selecting the camera, opening the attribute editor and <br />
selecting the imagePlane1 tab.)<br />
<br />
Set Display to "looking through camera",the display mode to RGB <br />
and make sure "Use Image Sequence" is checked.<br />
<br />
This will keep the image plane from appearing in any of the other viewports,blocking your view.<br />
<br />
Next, browse for the exported image files by clicking the folder icon <br />
to the right of "Image Name". You'll want to choose the first image of <br />
the sequence created by Quicktime.<br />
<br />
You should now have video reference in the viewport that will play along <br />
with the animation. Also notice that wherever the camera is moved, <br />
the reference will follow along.<br />
<br />
But what's this you say? The reference is taking up the entire screen? <br />
To fix this, go back to the imagePlane1 tab in the attribute editor <br />
and scroll down to the Placement section. The attributes we'll be using <br />
are "Size" and "Offset". <br />
For the size attribute, there are two numbers you can change <br />
but changing the first one is all that's needed. <br />
As for the offset, the first box controls left / right movement <br />
while the second box controls up / down. <br />
Just set the reference in a corner that's out of the way and you're ready to go!<br />
<br />
This is all great, but now we're faced with a new problem. Once we've <br />
animated our shot and are ready to playblast, the reference is getting <br />
in the way and needs to be hidden. Luckily, there is a simple solution. <br />
In the viewport, go to "Show" and uncheck Cameras. Now your all ready to <br />
playblast!<br />
<br />
For a video demonstration of all that I've covered, check out Joel Finney's <br />
awesome tutorial. http://vimeo.com/30770560<br />
Also, check the other tutorials he's created and if you find them useful,<br />
be sure to thank him on his workspace.<br />
<br />
Just remember that this is a workflow tip. Make sure you don't end up rotoscoping <br />
your reference as that will lead to a lifeless animation. <br />
<br />
I hope that was helpful and if you have any ideas or comments about out tips, <br />
we'd love to hear them. Or if you want any more help with image planes, <br />
just send us a PM or comment.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-8189663412985322272012-04-03T23:42:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:01:26.387-05:00Class 1 - Week 5 - Rotation Through an Obstacle CourseWhen playing around with the new ball rig, you may notice that if you <br />
stretch it then try to rotate, the ball will feel like an American football, <br />
making it impossible to roll across a surface in a nice smooth way. <br />
<br />
While this is simple enough to avoid when the ball is flying through the air, <br />
it can lead to issues when you want the ball to interact with the environment, <br />
like a ramp. The ball should roll across the surface but then that might lead <br />
to spacing issues if the ball is traveling at high speeds. So what do you do? <br />
You forget about the rotation! If the ball is traveling that fast, just have it <br />
stay stretched as it goes across the ramp and don't worry about rotating it. <br />
It will give the animation a smoother feel and your eyes probably won't even<br />
notice that the rotation is missing. <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Us2awcvlSUU8kh1AjyUPzInpvSNnDsyAqLRBa_rjP1GCxZH-gZZ3bASuRG8cAw1nI02RkRbQ8hKFcAZFGe-IFWY_lDVwg9UET5X79T86JKTptt5Nnhm01jt7AW4nop07nn_qqpEHW6dp/s1600/Week05c1-b-Ramp-stretch.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Us2awcvlSUU8kh1AjyUPzInpvSNnDsyAqLRBa_rjP1GCxZH-gZZ3bASuRG8cAw1nI02RkRbQ8hKFcAZFGe-IFWY_lDVwg9UET5X79T86JKTptt5Nnhm01jt7AW4nop07nn_qqpEHW6dp/s320/Week05c1-b-Ramp-stretch.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
One thing to watch out for when the ball stretches across a ramp is how it <br />
contacts the surface. If you add the stretch to the ball after making sure <br />
it moves nicely across the ramp, the ball will start to leave the surface <br />
of the ramp, creating a floaty feeling, kind of like the ball is flying <br />
over the surface instead of rolling across. To fix this, you'll need to <br />
tweak the keys so that the ball is in contact with the ramp at all times. <br />
Sadly, this can lead to the spacing of the ball not being quite as smooth <br />
as you would like. One thing I found extremely useful for this is the <br />
AC3D tool in the arAnimTools shelf. It will create an interactive curve that <br />
you can use to make sure your spacing and arcs are nice and smooth.<br />
<br />
AM has a great tutorial explaining how to use it. <br />
<b><i><a href="http://students.animationmentor.com/#classroom.tools&FileID=789&type=20" target="_blank">AC3D Tool Tutorial</a></i></b><br />
<br />
Now, if you're feeling fancy, you can mix and match as well. If the spacing is <br />
small enough try zeroing out the stretch and rotate the ball as it goes across <br />
the ramp then stretch it back out afterwards. If done properly, your eyes won't <br />
even notice the change but you will still feel the rotation giving a nice <br />
variation to the animation.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RSSTzLTfLC02a77dlhkxY0R4_s4QCNs-yzMmqfMTeMl7xBQEAX1_xxLE6g3m92AMXzVBMRzk1SschZzMxg71jAqZfdghAYjXXdwNhoKwwWYEtrp6NLWrA-NL7JhH1rdmJZPu_6Fvg2w-/s1600/Week05c1-b-Ramp-stretch-w-rotation.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0RSSTzLTfLC02a77dlhkxY0R4_s4QCNs-yzMmqfMTeMl7xBQEAX1_xxLE6g3m92AMXzVBMRzk1SschZzMxg71jAqZfdghAYjXXdwNhoKwwWYEtrp6NLWrA-NL7JhH1rdmJZPu_6Fvg2w-/s320/Week05c1-b-Ramp-stretch-w-rotation.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
I would also recommend planning when and how the ball will rotate through the <br />
environment. It doesn't need to be anything complex, but knowing the orientation <br />
the ball needs to be for all the contacts helps quite a bit.<br />
<br />
And remember while Squash & Stretch is crucial to giving life and character to <br />
whatever you animate, it does have a bit of a Dark Side. In general, it should <br />
be felt and not seen.<br />
<br />
I hope that helps and as usual, if you have any comments or requests for tips, <br />
just send us a comment or PM.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-91318976413429659622012-04-03T23:29:00.003-05:002017-05-08T16:04:38.337-05:00Class 1 - Week 2 - Line of Action in PosesSo what is the difference between a character with a weak pose<br />
versus one with a strong pose? Is it good body proportions? <br />
Proportions do play a small part if they feel unbalanced, but one <br />
look at Mike & Sully from Monster's Inc., Mr. Incredible from <br />
The Incredibles, Po from Kung Fu Panda, and so many other iconic <br />
characters, including Stu with his medicine ball sized head, will <br />
tell you that even the most oddly proportioned characters can have <br />
surprisingly awesome poses. <br />
<br />
So then, could it be drawing style? I know a lot of people feel <br />
that if they could only draw better, their drawings would have <br />
stronger poses and more dynamism to them. But to be honest, that's <br />
actually a very misguided thought. Good drawing skills will help of <br />
course, but someone could draw the most detailed and lifelike <br />
character ever, but still miss that "spark" of motion, whereas the <br />
person next to him could draw a simple gesture drawing that <br />
instantly catches your eye and makes you feel that it's more than a<br />
bunch of lines on paper. Knowing how to draw out a perfect human <br />
figure will only get you so far if you don't know how to give it <br />
that spark.<br />
<br />
What really gives a drawing a strong, dynamic pose is its line of <br />
action (silhouette and composition also play a role in this, but <br />
that's a tip for another week). What is a line of action, you ask? <br />
A line of action is the imaginary line running through a character <br />
that describes the direction and motion of his body and is the <br />
leading force of a character's action. For example, in this page <br />
of Preston Blair's book, Cartoon Animation, <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVbkX545zRRg0BfZCM-ogpHmUA9abf5vguOTxScY3eG-sdvzjyrXCwmCQbznsHgsQHjkk5GOQMD-aSmuwd0uM8gi5x69ut9pdY7JQTCjtXCeT7Vg2iBafOMTBL_XcapeYmDCvQHfiutOn/s1600/Week1c1c-LineofAction.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVbkX545zRRg0BfZCM-ogpHmUA9abf5vguOTxScY3eG-sdvzjyrXCwmCQbznsHgsQHjkk5GOQMD-aSmuwd0uM8gi5x69ut9pdY7JQTCjtXCeT7Vg2iBafOMTBL_XcapeYmDCvQHfiutOn/s320/Week1c1c-LineofAction.jpg" width="271" /></a><br />
<br />
you can see how a good line of action in a pose directs the body <br />
movements into a clear arc whereas a bad one, or none at all feels <br />
weak and lacks energy, and even life. You can also see that a line <br />
of action doesn't have to run through the body from head to toe. It <br />
can go from hand to foot, skipping the head entirely, from head to <br />
butt without ever going through the legs, and many other variations. <br />
This is because the line of action isn't locked onto a certain part <br />
of the body, but flows through the action of what your character is <br />
doing, be it a full-bodied punch, sitting at a cafe, or just a simple <br />
standing pose.<br />
<br />
Now that we have a better idea of what a line of action is and what <br />
it does, we can talk about the different types used in drawings. When <br />
it comes to the types of shapes used in lines of action, it can <br />
basically be broken down into 3 types; the C, reverse C, and S curves. <br />
You'll find that no matter what the line of action is describing, it <br />
will almost always be one of those shapes in varying extremes. Sometimes <br />
they will be bent so much that they look like a U shape, or so straight <br />
that they look like a bent l, but they are still considered to be one <br />
of those 3 types.<br />
<br />
But what, some people might wonder, do we do with all those extra body <br />
parts that aren't being used in our character's line of action? Won't <br />
they get in the way or break the line of action we tried so hard to build? <br />
The answer is that they can, but the trick is to use the extra limbs to <br />
compliment your line of action with secondary lines. These are just like <br />
your main line of action, only they don't lead the action, but draw the <br />
viewers eyes to the main action. As an example, we'll use some of my old <br />
Class 1 sketches; <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvb0KixkZOK5O0M9VpGWE_OvMc8lgBFK7YziPznb82lBg9o4D_d6JXwEojDCwaJKNVf81C2uwR_eW0GPDrp3nHu9TufCeKlds_sEK3NO-SK2FnZvkm24UQNrn2AXUfqjxSKsmtBgru5wu/s1600/Week1c1c-Sketches.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCvb0KixkZOK5O0M9VpGWE_OvMc8lgBFK7YziPznb82lBg9o4D_d6JXwEojDCwaJKNVf81C2uwR_eW0GPDrp3nHu9TufCeKlds_sEK3NO-SK2FnZvkm24UQNrn2AXUfqjxSKsmtBgru5wu/s320/Week1c1c-Sketches.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
As you can see, each pose has a line of action running through the body, <br />
and the limbs, even though they aren't part of the main line, either flow <br />
with it or contrast it to help give variety and dynamism to the pose. What <br />
you want to avoid though are lines that break your line of action, like <br />
in the Preston Blair example. Limbs that jut out in odd directions or go <br />
against the overall flow of the action too harshly will break your pose <br />
and make it look weak.<br />
<br />
Lines of action are somewhat tricky to get used to. In the beginning, it <br />
may feel more comfortable winging your drawings instead and hope a line <br />
of action will appear. But a drawing without a solid force flowing through <br />
it will not be able to express the energy, motion, and life that is so <br />
needed in animation. So always try to plan your actions. Study references, <br />
go out and do life drawings, and analyze people for the line of action <br />
running through every person's actions. It will definitely help improve <br />
your drawing skills, and by consequence, help make your animation <br />
poses stronger.<br />
<br />
If you want some extra reading material on Line of Actions, feel free to <br />
check out these great posts. I've found them very helpful, and are definitely <br />
worth a read:<br />
<b><i><a href="http://floobynooby.blogspot.com/2011/01/lines-of-action-mickeys-christmas-carol.html" target="_blank">Flooby Nooby - Line of Action</a></i></b><br />
<b><i><a href="http://johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2006/05/animation-school-lesson-5-line-of.html" target="_blank">JohnK Stuff - Line of Action</a></i></b><br />
<br />
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and <br />
if you have any questions or suggestions, you're always more than welcome to <br />
leave a comment or send us a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-51929732859702767752012-04-03T23:18:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:11:24.543-05:00Class 1 - Week 6 - Maya Pendulum TipsSo let's begin with getting a nice overlap in the pendulum during<br />
the initial movement. While there is no super secret ninja method <br />
of getting it done easily, (if there is, which ninja clan do I <br />
have to join to find out?) there are ways you can make it easier <br />
for yourself.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXDmHYyIfHriM6TbcshRq85uhRtD_iksCvdAAbEI9wQuIV3mRGdGjPIgPyyMg7nwgKg3lk38HiN6e5lziEd5St-L69asjPGchS5lGIIGnUN3wj-Fmw_Mm2dtiM-diwODLdHmpqDdwOxi9u/s1600/Pendulum-Names.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXDmHYyIfHriM6TbcshRq85uhRtD_iksCvdAAbEI9wQuIV3mRGdGjPIgPyyMg7nwgKg3lk38HiN6e5lziEd5St-L69asjPGchS5lGIIGnUN3wj-Fmw_Mm2dtiM-diwODLdHmpqDdwOxi9u/s320/Pendulum-Names.jpg" width="305" /></a><br />
<br />
Since the basic premise here is to keep each section in place as <br />
the one above it begins to move, what we need is a way to mark <br />
where the section was in the previous frame. And for that, <br />
locators work like a charm!<br />
<br />
Create 2 locators by going to Create > Locators<br />
Scale them up so they are about as tall as the pendulum and <br />
position them to the right or left edge of the pendulum balls, <br />
one against the smaller balls and the other by the large ball. <br />
If the pendulum is at it's default position (the way it was when <br />
you first opened the file) the first locator should be at around <br />
a Tx 0.62 in the front camera or Tz 0.62 in the side camera.<br />
The second should be at a Tx or Tz of 1.228.<br />
<br />
We've now have our placeholders but if you are using the default <br />
gradient background for Maya, you may find the locators a bit <br />
hard to see. So let's brighten them up!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj505B-yejOvSyjTIVJdRcRHCaz-3B-4nN-njMXhNwWGv3Xn5EkWxJvvm4XZy8TYPsk5rI6xosffmK8FjP0c8OvFTPZFrvNJO6WlWcSJNGDqIi5yGu0UEdZfDLOhBSEdHjXBKBz28uSaf6E/s1600/layer-editor-pendulum.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj505B-yejOvSyjTIVJdRcRHCaz-3B-4nN-njMXhNwWGv3Xn5EkWxJvvm4XZy8TYPsk5rI6xosffmK8FjP0c8OvFTPZFrvNJO6WlWcSJNGDqIi5yGu0UEdZfDLOhBSEdHjXBKBz28uSaf6E/s320/layer-editor-pendulum.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Select both locators and in the Layer Editor, go to <br />
"Layers > Create Layer from Selected"</li>
<li>Then change the color of the group by clicking on the icon beside the layer's name</li>
<li>Choose a nice bright color, like bright red, and now<br />
you've got locators that can actually be seen!</li>
</ul>
<br />
Now on to the animating! This is just an example of how to get <br />
the pendulum to drag as it starts to move. It will all depend <br />
on the speed and weight you want in the pendulum so be sure <br />
experiment.<br />
<br />
<b><i>Frame 1 -</i></b> Everything is in line as the pendulum hasn't started <br />
to move yet (whew, that was hard)<br />
<br />
<b><i>Frame 2 -</i></b> The Pendulum_ctrl will start to move forward. The rest <br />
of the pendulum balls should stay lined up to the locators. To do<br />
this, just rotate Pendulum_Arm_1 back so the ball is lined up with <br />
the locator. You'll then need to counter animate Pendulum_Arm_2 to <br />
keep everything straight. A neat tip I was told is to take the <br />
rotation value from Arm_1, multiply it by -1, use ot as the rotation <br />
value for Arm_2 and everything should line up. It's also a good idea <br />
to frame by frame through the dragging motion to make sure you aren't <br />
getting any pops or backwards movement in the arms.<br />
<br />
<b><i>Frame 3 -</i></b> Pendulum_ctrl will keep moving forward but this time, <br />
it's Arm_1 is starting to come along. Rotate Arm 2 to try and <br />
keep it as lined up as possible to the locator and counter rotate<br />
Arm_3 to keep it somewhat straight.<br />
<br />
Go all the way down to the Pendulum_Base using this method <br />
and you should get a nice feeling of drag to your pendulum. <br />
Now depending in how fast the pendulum starts to move, it may <br />
take more or less frames for the pendulum to drag so be sure to <br />
fine tune it to your animation needs. Just keep in mind that the <br />
idea behind this is to keep the pendulum arms from moving backwards <br />
from the locators and giving a floaty feeling to the animation.<br />
<br />
If you find the locators are getting in your way, another method is<br />
to apply ghosting to the pendulum, allowing you to see where each <br />
joint was in the previous frame and use that to line things up. <br />
<br />
To turn on Ghosting, first select what you want to ghost, either <br />
the entire pendulum or an individual ball of the pendulum. Then make<br />
the animation menu set is active by hitting the F2 key at the top <br />
of your keyboard and go to Animate > Ghost Selected > Options<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDtmQhHSXf8f6eexgBnZ0EIDHdfnmNvdtAyNKeB1MOpcKfhMH9sWTYz-qA0iHKI9SeMtVEzfukW1AW5J6dOpvA5KcPZFjRFUr71SibtTugb3_ScwNgKsmz08iS7rkfPWzAqiFTn0DP3fBD/s1600/Ghosting-pendulum.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDtmQhHSXf8f6eexgBnZ0EIDHdfnmNvdtAyNKeB1MOpcKfhMH9sWTYz-qA0iHKI9SeMtVEzfukW1AW5J6dOpvA5KcPZFjRFUr71SibtTugb3_ScwNgKsmz08iS7rkfPWzAqiFTn0DP3fBD/s320/Ghosting-pendulum.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
Now set <br />
"Type of ghosting" to "Custom frame steps" <br />
"Steps before current frame" to 3<br />
"Steps after current frame" to 0<br />
<br />
You should now be able to see where the selected object was <br />
3 frames before the current frame. When you're all done, <br />
turn it off by going to "Animate > Unghost All".<br />
<br />
Ghosting is also a fantastic way of seeing how the arcs and spacing<br />
are looking in your shot. If you play with the settings, you can get <br />
ghosting that will help in all sorts of situations. Just watch out <br />
there aren't too many frames showing at the same time as ghosting <br />
does take a lot of resources and can bog down your scene if overused.<br />
<br />
<b>Unlocking the Pendulum Rotations</b><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzqPQ3LJI557O5eB7_rwxArG__eNeajhkWM5_FSnTPm-JPRriAKsYv9ox6HwxpGCY0ozNVv1AAnoMH8JN2XTeba4Cdqql5oQL_v4F9VLhI0BBek6lEeB5ydbO-Y6F6OdLPgOmarqJ5Vuhi/s1600/Channel-Control-pendulum.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzqPQ3LJI557O5eB7_rwxArG__eNeajhkWM5_FSnTPm-JPRriAKsYv9ox6HwxpGCY0ozNVv1AAnoMH8JN2XTeba4Cdqql5oQL_v4F9VLhI0BBek6lEeB5ydbO-Y6F6OdLPgOmarqJ5Vuhi/s320/Channel-Control-pendulum.jpg" width="319" /></a><br />
Now let's move on to unlocking the pendulum's rotation attributes. This is a great way to add<br />
even more lift to your animation and get some<br />
really dynamic movement throughout the whole<br />
object. Some mentors prefer that the base not<br />
rotate at all while other like to see it added in so be sure to ask your mentor before you unlock the<br />
rotations.<br />
<br />
To start with, select the Pendulum_ctrl and go to <br />
Window > General Editors > Channel Control<br />
<br />
In the Nonkeyable Hidden middle pane, find<br />
Rotate X, Rotate Y and Rotate Z (there are many<br />
different versions so make sure you pick the right<br />
one) and select them by clicking and dragging.<br />
<br />
Hit the "Move" button in the bottom right of the window to <br />
move the attributes to the "Keyable" section.<br />
<br />
Now open the "Locked" tab at the top and select all 3 rotate attributes.<br />
<br />
Then hit the "Move" button at the bottom left of the window to<br />
unlock the attributes and you're all set to go!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXJSDG8L2uLJw351U81hxrh8p5JHsCLrixcpoT2Pqo93fVcTnNVQFVkZoTx1RmxrvskGSeFopDc-QmtxICR3COfOS924bUnS9dLEdKFOLK6at0LCU1K2hkbNxpdR92-d51kGEJ3rfIGpHO/s1600/Channel-Control-2-pendulum.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXJSDG8L2uLJw351U81hxrh8p5JHsCLrixcpoT2Pqo93fVcTnNVQFVkZoTx1RmxrvskGSeFopDc-QmtxICR3COfOS924bUnS9dLEdKFOLK6at0LCU1K2hkbNxpdR92-d51kGEJ3rfIGpHO/s320/Channel-Control-2-pendulum.jpg" width="319" /></a><br />
Keep in mind that rotating the Pendulum_ctrl will affect the position of the pendulum underneath, so if you already have some animation applied to the arms, you will need to counter animate the first joint to get it back into place<br />
<br />
Also, to add a bit more realism, once the Pendulum_ctrl has stopped moving, the swinging of the pendulum should still affect it ever so <br />
slightly. This isn't a necessity but it does help give a nice touch to the animation.<br />
<br />
As always, we appreciate any comment you have on our tips and if there is something that didn't make sense or that wasn't well explained, we would love to hear from you. <br />
Have a fantastic Week 6!Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-88278948037588859362012-04-03T23:09:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:17:28.489-05:00Class 2 - Week 7 - Arm & Leg TipsArms aren't actually too hard to use, especially when compared to the <br />
spine you learned a few weeks ago, though they do come with their own set <br />
of problems. Do you use FK or IK arms? What does arm align do? And how do <br />
knee and elbow PVs help?<br />
<br />
I've organized these tips into smaller sections, each focusing on a <br />
particular controller or topic. And remember, all of these are up to your <br />
own personal choice on whether or not to use them, so feel free to <br />
experiment and find what works best for you!<br />
<br />
<b>FK vs IK arms</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdz0UlYdCHxj3_GkYLJJ7GfUXXLqu6O2kZrnQf65SB5pkzPZvHAZ0yNGvnzaipB0nFoTAvtZ-YbZRsh7QpTCwBHmNogXJpfS9JFjIYGmZYwhY41VBvKxBwkWViVUPD61F77A8l1nuISGXy/s1600/Week7c-IK_arms.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdz0UlYdCHxj3_GkYLJJ7GfUXXLqu6O2kZrnQf65SB5pkzPZvHAZ0yNGvnzaipB0nFoTAvtZ-YbZRsh7QpTCwBHmNogXJpfS9JFjIYGmZYwhY41VBvKxBwkWViVUPD61F77A8l1nuISGXy/s320/Week7c-IK_arms.jpg" width="150" /></a><br />
Choosing between using FK and IK arms can be <br />
a tough decision, and should be something you <br />
plan out before doing any kind of blocking for <br />
your shot. You can find the IK/FK switch in <br />
Stewie's finger controllers, under the attribute <br />
"IK Enable".<br />
<br />
Using FK arms is good for when you want to animate <br />
loose or free arms. Having the shoulder, elbow, <br />
and wrist controllers are great for getting a <br />
nice overlapping action going. However, it can <br />
be a bit of a pain to use since you need to do <br />
most of the rotation from the shoulder to position <br />
the hand, and the elbow only rotates on the Rx axis. <br />
<br />
IK arms on the other hand are great for when you <br />
want Stewie to be pushing or leaning against <br />
something and using IK arms does make positioning <br />
hands much easier that FK, since the controller is right there on the wrist. <br />
However, the problem with IK is that since they don't follow the body, you <br />
constantly have to position them through a walk. You also run the risk of <br />
having an "IK hands feeling", which is basically a character who's arms <br />
look like a puppet's because you're moving the hands from the wrist <br />
instead of the shoulder.<br />
<br />
The best solution in my opinion is to use IK/FK switching to get the most <br />
of your scene. Use FK for any time the hands are free, or need to do some <br />
gesturing, and switch to IK whenever you need Stewie to hold onto <br />
something solid, or plant his hands. This will give you the most variety <br />
and control over your shot. Just remember that when you key your IK <br />
Enable to switch from 1-0 or vice versa, have it happen in a span of 1 <br />
frame. If you have the switch happen slowly with a splined curve, you'll <br />
run into problems where the IK enable is set to a decimal value, which is <br />
neither FK or IK, and messes up your ability to control the arms properly.<br />
<br />
<b>Arm Align Follow</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTdMhVDnqR18w-sK0qOKMBsZ8DbUR4pqLJZeOKE2gFuoW-B3OxsryDCQC2Tt3sbg4vkA6pr_CmWGibtuKS88JPc6jwECoS6wyb670otv95imi3IqrIUcuSL9Qg9FOX_ZLQ9DveWeKq1FB4/s1600/Week7c-AlignFollow_arms.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTdMhVDnqR18w-sK0qOKMBsZ8DbUR4pqLJZeOKE2gFuoW-B3OxsryDCQC2Tt3sbg4vkA6pr_CmWGibtuKS88JPc6jwECoS6wyb670otv95imi3IqrIUcuSL9Qg9FOX_ZLQ9DveWeKq1FB4/s320/Week7c-AlignFollow_arms.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
Align Follow is a handy attribute for FK arms which <br />
you can find in the shoulder controller. Just like <br />
the head align attribute I mentioned a couple of <br />
weeks ago, arm align follow "locks" the arm's <br />
shoulder rotation so that if you were to, for <br />
example, put Stewie's arms up in front of him <br />
parallel to the ground then bend him over, his arms <br />
would keep their parallel angle instead of bending down with the body. What <br />
this means for you is that if you have a movement in Stewie's arms that you <br />
really like, and you have to reposition his body slightly, you won't have to <br />
counter animate his arms back to the way they were.<br />
<br />
The downside to this is that if you rotate Stewie's body on the Ry axis, <br />
his arms will continue to face the same direction and could end up <br />
cutting into his body. However this is a minor issue since all you have <br />
to do is rotate the shoulders a bit in the Ry axis as well.<br />
<br />
<b>Stretching</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCUucbn8ly27BqXfFQj3BXuQg_KdP-38bh0k5uYgzckeIvRc44LvedvAiZA8Kq8EIXb_vbqklh2eVlVkXxWYM6tLJ4a5TWdd4O_RTvMDb-zFB9iuw4CYTvRjfV2cWOijHhArFV5Ouo6A_M/s1600/Week7c-Stretch_legs.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="205" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCUucbn8ly27BqXfFQj3BXuQg_KdP-38bh0k5uYgzckeIvRc44LvedvAiZA8Kq8EIXb_vbqklh2eVlVkXxWYM6tLJ4a5TWdd4O_RTvMDb-zFB9iuw4CYTvRjfV2cWOijHhArFV5Ouo6A_M/s320/Week7c-Stretch_legs.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
This tip applies to both the arms and legs. The <br />
stretch attribute is a handy one to use in your <br />
scenes, but can also be a very bad one if used <br />
improperly. You can find the stretch attributes <br />
for the arm in the finger controls, and for the <br />
legs in the square foot controller, along with the <br />
Stretch Bias, which determines the position of the knees or elbows, and <br />
the Stretch Sensitivity, which controls how much the stretch attribute <br />
affects the arms and legs.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOKrbuFo417QfVlGyyiXmeJ7om4yEuJ4MQKNp6uaSABlG9ueugX0lL8wakDmFR4I9AIYGCzEwWBaEGvrVFvvrjE1Le8JoL5CU7CVrnsnryh0Gke39sHF0HGFnaUtrsKYRJ75GPM8IVR65R/s1600/Week7c-Stretch_arms.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOKrbuFo417QfVlGyyiXmeJ7om4yEuJ4MQKNp6uaSABlG9ueugX0lL8wakDmFR4I9AIYGCzEwWBaEGvrVFvvrjE1Le8JoL5CU7CVrnsnryh0Gke39sHF0HGFnaUtrsKYRJ75GPM8IVR65R/s320/Week7c-Stretch_arms.jpg" width="150" /></a><br />
Using the stretch attribute is handy for adding squash and stretch to<br />
your character's limbs, using just a bit on the <br />
knees to fix pops, or to give your character more <br />
disproportionate limbs. The problem however is<br />
that when you stretch or squash Stewie's limbs, <br />
they stay the same width around, which means that <br />
they don't gain or lose mass when they're played <br />
with. It's also very easy to get "noodle" limbs <br />
feeling if you play around with the stretch too <br />
much in your scene. <br />
<br />
The best way to use the stretch attribute is <br />
minimally, or only on extreme stretches or <br />
squashes. Apart from that you should be able to <br />
pull off your shot without ever having to touch <br />
this attribute.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>Shoulders</b><br />
<br />
This is a very subtle, but very important tip to remember. When animating<br />
the arms, either in IK or FK, always remember to animate the shoulder<br />
controls. Since a person's entire arm movement is driven by the<br />
shoulders, it's important not to have them simply sitting there, static,<br />
while the arms move around. If you try to put your arm out in front of<br />
you, or raise your hand in the air above your head, you'll notice that<br />
your shoulder is doing a lot of movement to drive that arm.<br />
<br />
So from all small arm gestures, to wild flailing, always keep the<br />
shoulder controls in mind, and it will help make your animation look that<br />
much better.<br />
<br />
<b>Knee & Elbow PVs</b><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqvG6bqa5XFDljz6O72DJ2nNYDftXQUWS4g0wTwS53SpkjO5_XfbbI3qz8wsTWnUKhW-sJ9AezmMmfiM1YYqHpL6lUEPfhNW2_FXmgNSNGQhhjZvQGlPUJADM0RK0_RHvY515BSTnsrvW4/s1600/Week7c-PV_elbow.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqvG6bqa5XFDljz6O72DJ2nNYDftXQUWS4g0wTwS53SpkjO5_XfbbI3qz8wsTWnUKhW-sJ9AezmMmfiM1YYqHpL6lUEPfhNW2_FXmgNSNGQhhjZvQGlPUJADM0RK0_RHvY515BSTnsrvW4/s320/Week7c-PV_elbow.jpg" width="287" /></a><br />
The knee and elbow PVs are for IK arms and legs, <br />
which you can find in diamond controllers for the <br />
feet and wrists. They are used to control <br />
the knees and elbows instead of the arm twist <br />
and leg twist attributes. By using the PVs instead <br />
of the twist attributes, it gives you much better <br />
control over where your knees and elbows are <br />
pointed during your shot. Whereas the twist <br />
attributes need to be counter-animated throughout <br />
your shot, using the PVs gives you a new controller <br />
that floats in the direction that the knees and elbows are pointed, and you <br />
can move and key them around to where you want. This way you can set it far <br />
ahead of your character as he runs, and the knees will always stay pointed <br />
forward instead of bending out awkwardly.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf2BT0acfgFp4ZTV1Gi2JA-sO_qyQhxj4fdC65E0dEpHGZkCa7nCC1z_UKhdokArw0W7uUx70gKGqDhfxoGt4DKkQjrAfEXSKLtuke543jCY-u3fZdxmKDWfjXnKAvPtclBo4Fxzjqq8TY/s1600/Week7c-PV_knee.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf2BT0acfgFp4ZTV1Gi2JA-sO_qyQhxj4fdC65E0dEpHGZkCa7nCC1z_UKhdokArw0W7uUx70gKGqDhfxoGt4DKkQjrAfEXSKLtuke543jCY-u3fZdxmKDWfjXnKAvPtclBo4Fxzjqq8TY/s320/Week7c-PV_knee.jpg" width="243" /></a><br />
And that's about all I have for this week. Thank you <br />
for taking the time to read my post. I hope it's been <br />
helpful, and as always, if you have any comments, <br />
questions or suggestions, you're more than welcome <br />
to send either Beau or me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-2897112898888617802012-04-03T23:03:00.000-05:002012-05-20T23:04:16.753-05:00Class 1 - Week 9 - Animated SilhouettesAs you may recall, a few weeks ago I talked about silhouettes in poses, <br />
and how having a clear silhouette will make your pose read better to the <br />
viewer and also make it stronger overall. This principle doesn't change <br />
when you go into animating characters, even ones as simple as Ballie.<br />
<br />
Just as I mentioned in week 5 for your Stu poses, you have the same types <br />
of things to keep an eye out for in your animated silhouettes: <br />
<br />
Make sure to have clear shapes in all your poses, from the contacts, to <br />
passing positions, and even the extreme ups and downs in your walk cycle. <br />
All your key poses need to be read clearly, or you'll end up with odd <br />
pops and muddy looking motions. Avoid overlapping limbs and joints, and <br />
foreshortening in the limbs that cause body parts to look either shorter, <br />
longer, or non-existent.<br />
<br />
However, because the silhouette is constantly moving, there are a few <br />
extra things to watch out for.<br />
<br />
Probably one of the most common issues you might encounter while you <br />
animate is loosing track of which limb is which, for example in a walk. <br />
What that means is that as the free leg moves forward and passes the <br />
supporting leg, it almost feels like the legs are switching, so that the <br />
supporting leg is now moving forward while the moving leg looks like the <br />
support. They don't actually switch places, but it causes an illusion <br />
that makes it feel like they do. This happens when the silhouette of the <br />
passing leg lines up almost perfectly with the silhouette of the <br />
supporting leg, causing the viewer to lose track of which leg is which. <br />
You can avoid having this happen by simply making sure that the crossing <br />
limbs don't line up too closely.<br />
<br />
The next issue is popping in the silhouettes. There are two ways this can <br />
commonly be caused. The first way is actually almost exactly like the <br />
previous issue. When limbs, like legs, pass over each other too closely, <br />
sometimes instead of looking like a switch, it can look like a pop, even <br />
if your curves are perfectly smooth. The reason for this is because for <br />
those 1-2 frames where the limbs overlap, the viewer's eyes register that <br />
as a lack of movement, causing it to look like a pop as the limbs separate.<br />
<br />
The second way to get a pop is from two limbs moving and either one or <br />
both of them "swapping places". For example, let's say that you have two <br />
hands moving. As the right hand moves through the shot, the left hand <br />
moves into where the right one was, causing the hands to "swap" so that <br />
it looks like the right hand hasn't moved at all. This is again similar <br />
to the first issue, but the difference is that the limbs don't have to <br />
cross over each other, but are instead moving into the others place. <br />
<br />
The best way to avoid either of these is to make sure that when your <br />
limbs are moving, one or both don't end up in the others previous <br />
position within a span of a few frames. <br />
<br />
That's about all I have for this week. Thank you for taking the time <br />
to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and as always, if you have any <br />
comments, questions or suggestions, you're more than welcome to send <br />
either Beau or me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-17068278051034385232012-04-03T22:44:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:18:59.836-05:00Class 1 - Week 7 - Tailor TipsThis week's assignment is very similar to last week's: take a segmented <br />
object and give it overlapping action. So what's the big difference <br />
between the pendulum and Tailor? The difference is that with Tailor, not <br />
only are you trying to give your object a good sense of overlap, but your <br />
new goal is also to get the ball and tail to feel like a living creature. <br />
This means that the tail has to feel like it has some control over <br />
itself, like a cat or squirrel's tail, and not flop around lifelessly <br />
behind like last week's pendulum. <br />
<br />
To get this feeling, the first thing we need to do is animate the ball, <br />
or body of our Tailor rig. Just like animating the platform first in your <br />
last assignment, animating the ball will give you the arcs, path of <br />
action, and anything else you will need to get your tail moving nicely. <br />
You can hide each individual section of the tail in the layers panel, <br />
which will help you focus on getting the ball looking just right.<br />
<br />
Now that we have our body set up, we can start on the tail. There are a <br />
few ways you can go about this. The first method is to animate each <br />
section of the tail at a time, starting with the root and working your <br />
way up through the sections. The pros of this method is that you only <br />
have to focus on one control at a time, which makes things a lot easier <br />
to manage. Doing it this way also means you can use the pendulum trick of <br />
copying the rotations of the first section, copying it down to the next <br />
and offsetting it slightly. However the cons are that your tail might end <br />
up looking disjointed, since you haven't taken the tail as a whole into <br />
consideration, and using the copied curves trick will only get you a <br />
start. You'll still need to adjust each section afterwards.<br />
<br />
The second method is to animate the whole tail pose-to-pose, going <br />
through your shot and blocking out the main poses and paying attention to <br />
the arcs of the tail. The benefits of this method are that you can keep <br />
track of the tail's curves more easily, and you also get a better sense <br />
of weight since you're working with the whole tail and not one small <br />
section at a time. However, the biggest disadvantage is that it can be <br />
very easy to get overwhelmed by the amount of controls and lose track on <br />
how the tail curves are supposed to move through your shot. <br />
<br />
Choose whichever method you feel works best for you. Both are perfectly <br />
fine to use, and if you find a different way of doing things that works <br />
better for you, then go ahead and use it! But whichever method you use, <br />
remember that the tail should work the same either way. Which brings us <br />
to the next topic:<br />
<br />
<b>Tail Mechanics</b><br />
<br />
So now that we have our ball going and our work method figured out, let's <br />
get started with the tail! This actually won't be too long an explanation <br />
because most of it you already know, having done the pendulum assignment.<br />
<br />
Unlike the pendulum, which has a loose and uncontrolled overlapping <br />
action, a tail has bones and muscles, which means that Tailor has much <br />
greater control over its movements. It won't flop around behind him but <br />
instead flow with a wave-like action, and settle as he slows down. Here's <br />
an image to demonstrate the motion:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVn6fyKC86WEN96PrMEDw6eY4HTUrM76J28h5eLxXEi-ABGbkm_HJjL9zIAF9RNg-E-zmAYQHe794LzUSLk2MXGZQ37WhUJBRtE9EcVzgGMDy0np6iLFB9aNs77OurzD6nU60w-Sm3fkW-/s1600/Week7c-TailBlair.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVn6fyKC86WEN96PrMEDw6eY4HTUrM76J28h5eLxXEi-ABGbkm_HJjL9zIAF9RNg-E-zmAYQHe794LzUSLk2MXGZQ37WhUJBRtE9EcVzgGMDy0np6iLFB9aNs77OurzD6nU60w-Sm3fkW-/s320/Week7c-TailBlair.jpg" width="320" height="264" /></a><br />
<br />
If you imagine the squirrel's hips as a ball, it will give you an almost <br />
perfect representation of Tailor. And as you can see, while the hips <br />
bounce up, the tail drags downward behind it in a C-shaped curve, because <br />
the tail, just like the pendulum, wants to stay in place as long as <br />
possible. Then, when the hips reach the peak, the tail catches up, going <br />
into an S-shaped curve as the base of the tail follows the body and the <br />
tip is still following the upward arc. Finally, the curve reverses into a <br />
C as it drags upwards behind the dropping hips. It's important that the <br />
tail tip flows along the same arc as the base of the tail, only delayed. <br />
You can see it clearly in the first 4 drawings in the image above. Even <br />
though the hips are already dropping to the ground, the tail tip is going <br />
up along the path of the tail, and it's always pointed to where it was in <br />
the last pose.<br />
<br />
This dragging motion is what defines a good overlapping tail. If you have <br />
the tip swinging stiffly up and down, or have the tail going up while the <br />
ball goes up, and down as the ball drops down, then the tail isn't <br />
overlapping, but moving against the motion of the driving force of the <br />
the ball.<br />
<br />
Here is a great example of overlapping in a tail in action. This is a <br />
clip from the amazingly animated Sword in the Stone, and if you haven't <br />
seen it yet, I highly recommend you check it out. It's a goldmine of <br />
animation to study. <br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oDWnuddCf0E" width="420"></iframe><br />
<br />
As you can see, when the squirrels start, their tails are curled into an <br />
S-shape, keeping it up and out of the way. But as they start to run, the <br />
tail drags behind, because of drag and for balance, overlapping in a <br />
smooth wave-like motion. Then as they slow down and stop, their tails <br />
curl back up behind them, settling into its original S-shaped curve.<br />
<br />
And that's about all I have for this week. Thank you for taking the time <br />
to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and as always, if you have any <br />
comments, questions or suggestions, you're more than welcome to leave a<br />
comment or send either Beau or me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-19660227281602752362012-04-03T22:36:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:24:13.235-05:00Class 2 - Week 7 - The Dreaded Gimbal LockThis is one of the greatest curses of CG animation. It has the <br />
power to destroy your work, waste your time, and level entire <br />
mountains! (Okay, that last one might be a bit of a stretch).<br />
<br />
Before we can begin to vanquish this beast, we must ask <br />
ourselves, what is Gimbal Lock?<br />
<br />
Maya explains it as "a situation where one rotational axis is <br />
placed over another, causing the two axes to lead to the same <br />
result when animated." Basically, this means that as you are <br />
rotating your object in the scene, there may come a time when <br />
two of the rotation axes start to overlap, causing both of them <br />
to rotate in the same direction. This can lead to a major <br />
headache as you lose an entire axis of control and can lead to <br />
odd transitions or crazy rotations when you go into splining.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwWKNkBp0wkjpHVlCo7xklwJaYKXRjwxDuioBPQcR9Y-K3BcmYtGDyc3P5cX1GBH7n9XB6jHIl2KKskefvoUUY8J4www8sTfQezMXosjYQaXpSFnG8gn9-0tjPuLy143zwHRJC9yy1KTo/s1600/Week7b-Rotation_Mode_Hotbox.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="199" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdwWKNkBp0wkjpHVlCo7xklwJaYKXRjwxDuioBPQcR9Y-K3BcmYtGDyc3P5cX1GBH7n9XB6jHIl2KKskefvoUUY8J4www8sTfQezMXosjYQaXpSFnG8gn9-0tjPuLy143zwHRJC9yy1KTo/s320/Week7b-Rotation_Mode_Hotbox.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
But how can you tell when you are achieving Gimbal Lock? <br />
In Maya, there are 3 major rotation modes: Local, World, and <br />
Gimbal. You can switch between them by holding down the "e" key <br />
while in the viewport and then holding down the left mouse <br />
button. This will bring up a hotbox allowing you to change <br />
the current rotation mode.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3hI-MGOYCysGI2yKfyusdYylAt1YFnkKsA9rMK6FXXkQ7R0FMpT9syI6vm0rVe5dLk2DPrjrJ-EHF47slMAzymRqdjtSm8RxjbyyIYKneESf4zgxczrqh875lXtV02HzfKh4NrCmMyb8F/s1600/Week7b-Local_Rotation.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3hI-MGOYCysGI2yKfyusdYylAt1YFnkKsA9rMK6FXXkQ7R0FMpT9syI6vm0rVe5dLk2DPrjrJ-EHF47slMAzymRqdjtSm8RxjbyyIYKneESf4zgxczrqh875lXtV02HzfKh4NrCmMyb8F/s200/Week7b-Local_Rotation.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzx6XnbskNCx_MmvvsQgrgbN_1VZRQVagy3pUXTzXCEBCIMbfiUdQ0iKFj2lfxe6w0IsbqvD4-ODxpWJVnGiSeVje9gn2uyfU2DlnN7uurPWhvmpkvEJZRa2zRUaTUtVnAjz4I7Q2QJ017/s1600/Week7b-World_Rotation.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzx6XnbskNCx_MmvvsQgrgbN_1VZRQVagy3pUXTzXCEBCIMbfiUdQ0iKFj2lfxe6w0IsbqvD4-ODxpWJVnGiSeVje9gn2uyfU2DlnN7uurPWhvmpkvEJZRa2zRUaTUtVnAjz4I7Q2QJ017/s200/Week7b-World_Rotation.jpg" width="200" /></a><br />
<br />
<b><i>Local</i></b><br />
This is the default rotation mode of Maya.<br />
When in Local mode, the rotation manipulator <br />
rings will follow the object however you rotate <br />
it, making it one of the most useful modes.<br />
<br />
<b><i>World</i></b><br />
In World mode, the rotation manipulators will be locked to the <br />
scene's XYZ axis, meaning that no matter how you rotate an <br />
object, the manipulator rings will stay in the same position. <br />
This comes in handy when you need to rotate an object parallel <br />
to the floor<br />
<br />
<b><i>Gimbal</i></b><br />
Here is where we finally get to see what causes Gimbal Lock. <br />
Gimbal Mode allows you to see the rotation manipulators as Maya <br />
sees them, giving you more precise control of the rotation <br />
values but also making Gimbal Lock a lot easier to achieve if <br />
you don't pay attention to the Rotation Order.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRYuTiKxEiCnw0LePrwQ2dpu1zjsRXYpA8kUEc0PcPwviR-xkIj5LdnADJPfyFG3fzmbwZD4NPNMcjeyPGZqpeMnzOFh2KA58gqSDtz5y6BHU4Ks36GZFBc_4hF3EvjNceoZY9OJxuOET/s1600/Week7b-Gimbal_Rotation.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="107" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMRYuTiKxEiCnw0LePrwQ2dpu1zjsRXYpA8kUEc0PcPwviR-xkIj5LdnADJPfyFG3fzmbwZD4NPNMcjeyPGZqpeMnzOFh2KA58gqSDtz5y6BHU4Ks36GZFBc_4hF3EvjNceoZY9OJxuOET/s320/Week7b-Gimbal_Rotation.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
But what is this new fangled "Rotation Order"?<br />
Each of the three axes X, Y, and Z, must be linked to each <br />
other creating a hierarchy called a Rotation Order. This order <br />
determines how each axis will affect the others. For example, <br />
if you have a XYZ Rotation Order, it means the X axis is <br />
"parented" to Y and Y to Z. So if you were to rotate them, <br />
as you can see in the above image, the X axis will not affect <br />
the others, the Y will affect the X, and the Z will affect everything. <br />
<br />
When rotating with Gimbal mode, it's best to try to do it <br />
reversed from the Rotation Order. For example, if I have a XYZ <br />
Rotation Order, as the arrow does in the image, I would start <br />
rotating the Z axis, then the Y, and finally the X. If I were<br />
to start with either the X or Y, the object doesn't line up <br />
with the Z axis anymore, making it harder to rotate in the <br />
proper position. <br />
<br />
One major difference between Gimbal and the other modes is when <br />
you rotate using the manipulator, it will only affect the <br />
corresponding value in the Channel box. So if you rotate in X,<br />
the Rotate X value will change. With Local and World modes, <br />
rotating one axis may change more than one of the rotation XYZ <br />
channels making it harder to keep a nice smooth curve in the <br />
graph editor. <br />
<br />
Gimbal Lock can cause many problems in your scene, from not <br />
being able to rotate an object properly, to making weird and <br />
crazy things happen when you go into splined. While Gimbal Lock<br />
is usually the suspect in these cases, it can also happen when <br />
Maya guesses the rotation values incorrectly. Let's say you <br />
have an upper arm with a Y rotation of 20. On the next frame, <br />
you rotate it 10 degrees into it's next pose but thanks to <br />
Gimbal Lock losing you an axis, Maya has to compensate and <br />
instead of a Y value of 30, you get a weird value like 157.32 <br />
and both the X and Z channels get changed as well. Now the arm <br />
will look fine while in stepped but as soon as you start <br />
splining your animation, the arm will start to spin or move in <br />
weird arcs.<br />
<br />
Whew. That was a long winded explanation. But now that we know <br />
what's the cause, we can learn how to fix it.<br />
<br />
<b>Avoiding Gimbal Lock</b><br />
<br />
Sadly, there is no easy way to avoid Gimbal Lock while you're <br />
animating. Using Gimbal mode to rotate does help, but in many <br />
cases, it won't give you the rotation needed, especially when <br />
it comes to hands and feet. When in Local or World mode, the <br />
only thing you can do is be careful and watch the channels to <br />
make sure nothing is getting strange values. You could also <br />
open up the graph editor as you're working to see if anything <br />
weird happens in the curves. For example, if the character's <br />
arm is supposed to swing in a steady straight line, if a curve <br />
in the graph editor suddenly reverses direction, it's a sign <br />
that you've hit Gimbal Lock.<br />
<br />
<b>Fixing Gimbal Lock</b><br />
<br />
If you hit Gimbal Lock, there are a few things you can do to <br />
try and fix it. The first thing I usually go for is the <br />
animator's secret weapon, the Euler Filter! This is a command <br />
that will mathematically go through your curves and change the <br />
rotation values to remove the Gimbal Lock without affecting how <br />
your keys look. To use it, open up the graph editor and select <br />
all the curves of the Gimbal Locked object. Then go up to <br />
Curves > Euler Filter. Once it's done, it's a good idea to go <br />
through your animation and double check that none of your keys <br />
have been altered. Most of the time, this will clear up the <br />
lock but unfortunately, it is not 100% effective. <br />
<br />
In those cases, it's time to go in and do things manually! Try <br />
to find what key or keys are Gimbal Locked, the graph editor is <br />
a great place to find out where it's happening, and reset the <br />
rotation values of the locked object. Now reposition the object <br />
while making sure it doesn't lock again. Changing the rotation <br />
mode can help make things easier.<br />
<br />
If you have an extreme case of Gimbal Lock throughout an entire <br />
section of animation that refuses to go away, it's time to <br />
bring out the big guns! Let's say you have a shoulder that is <br />
stuck in gimbal lock from frame 70-80, making it next to <br />
impossible to get a nice clean arc throughout the swing of the <br />
arm. One method I found to quickly get everything working again <br />
is to track the arc of the elbow and wrist with the AM Arc <br />
Tracker, then nuke out all the rotations of the problem joint, <br />
the shoulder in this case. You can do that easily in the graph <br />
editor. Now you can start rotating the shoulder back into <br />
place, using the previously created arcs to line up the elbow <br />
and wrist. Be sure to check or use the Gimbal Mode from time to <br />
time to make sure you the same issue isn't happening again. <br />
This should get your animation back up to speed quickly and if <br />
you were careful, get rid of all the gimbal lock.<br />
<br />
For more information on Gimbal Lock, you can check out these videos.<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JqzwYu9VRs4?rel=0" width="420"></iframe><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zc8b2Jo7mno?rel=0" width="420"></iframe><br />
<br />
I hope that this was easy enough to understand (and not too long). <br />
If not, feel free to send a PM or comment. Also, if you are <br />
having a specific Gimbal issue that wasn't covered here, let us <br />
know and we'll try to help out.<br />
Have a great week!Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-71367186257362569822012-04-03T22:33:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:26:22.682-05:00Class 1 - Week 7 - Choosing a Camcorder<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Gs8q5pK8gAnznPFIMMlu1_EtXbNJI8Jq0AOOhUjfLAGnVOJrKWCNmSuYlvzJ20XFrYcOI9TmfxwWrUGkG0gGx6u_vtRtOEk7E-nAl8I4fbOt1QrrOPrvEyfOOfaiId9Z_ghDliQetRKa/s1600/Week7b-camcorder_lineup.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2Gs8q5pK8gAnznPFIMMlu1_EtXbNJI8Jq0AOOhUjfLAGnVOJrKWCNmSuYlvzJ20XFrYcOI9TmfxwWrUGkG0gGx6u_vtRtOEk7E-nAl8I4fbOt1QrrOPrvEyfOOfaiId9Z_ghDliQetRKa/s320/Week7b-camcorder_lineup.jpg" width="320" height="150" /></a><br />
<br />
The first thing we did before choosing a camcorder, just as <br />
in animation, is to plan ahead and ask ourselves a few questions.<br />
<br />
<b>What is my budget?</b> <br />
Let's face it, not all of us have a Batman-like budget. Luckily,<br />
even a low end, point and shoot camera is more than sufficient <br />
nowadays. When calculating your budget, don't forget to take <br />
into account any accessories as well.<br />
<br />
<b>What do I want to use it for?</b> <br />
Will this camera be used solely for reference purposes, <br />
filming family events, or shooting some short films? <br />
<br />
<b>What are the most important qualities to look for?</b> <br />
Since you'll be using this camera to capture lots of movement,<br />
you'll want one that has a good frame rate and motion <br />
performance to keep fast movements from blurring. High def <br />
resolutions aren't really a top priority for reference. While it<br />
does help to see the smaller details, it isn't a must.<br />
<br />
<b>Do I really need a camcorder?</b><br />
Camcorders can be quite an investment so why get one if you <br />
don't need to. If you have a smartphone, like an Iphone for <br />
example, many of the newer models come with pretty decent <br />
cameras. Or, if you have a laptop, with either a built-in or <br />
external webcam, there is usually some form of recording <br />
software bundled with it that can be used for your reference. <br />
While the quality of the video in either case won't compare to a <br />
camcorder, it should be more than enough for reference purposes.<br />
<br />
<b>1 or 2?</b> <br />
This is a question I wish we had asked ourselves when we were <br />
looking for our camcorder. While it is nice to get the best <br />
camera for your budget, buying two that are half the price can <br />
be even more helpful. Being able to shoot your reference from <br />
multiple angles at the same time will give a ton of information<br />
on how the action happens and will be invaluable for the more <br />
subtle motions. If you have a smartphone or laptop, this isn't <br />
such a big issue as those can always be used as a second camera.<br />
<br />
Now that you've asked yourself what it is you are looking for, <br />
it's time to find the camera. But there are so many places to look! <br />
One resource I find to be quite reliable is <b><i><a href="http://www.camcorderinfo.com/" target="_blank">CamcorderInfo.com</a></i></b>. <br />
They have information on a huge amount of camcorders and their <br />
reviews are quite in-depth, going from basic functionality to <br />
more complex aspects such as color and sharpness performance.<br />
<br />
As you are shopping around, there are quite a few terms that <br />
may sound like a just a bunch of gobbledygook, such as CCD, EIS <br />
or LUX. Here is a glossary of terms if you come across something <br />
you don't quite understand <b><i><a href="http://www.hdcameraguide.com/camcorder/consumer-camera-camcorder-terms-glossary/a" target="_blank">HDcameraGuide.com</a></i></b>.<br />
<br />
Once you have the camera picked out, it's time to start <br />
thinking about accessories. For the most part, cameras will <br />
come with everything you need to get started, but there are <br />
some things that I find are a must:<br />
<br />
<b>Extra battery:</b> If the camera runs on AA or AAA <br />
batteries, this is not such a big issue, but if it requires a <br />
special Lithium-Ion battery, as many do nowadays, it's a good <br />
idea to grab an extra one. Going out to film reference only to <br />
find that the battery is already dead is never a fun experience.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2unhu3S_nKw3mwsD8PryTq8WYu0hvo8TNT5-hzVCvQfK5mbnANfs1Eqd52IMYi7-pbdnIKyEi-gjrqTQqgyQOVWdPgaeXog2uILTWgzv-Trm9A9S8eFfvNDNwpFYwJjKNv38LlIy1XmG5/s1600/Week7b-gorilla_pod.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2unhu3S_nKw3mwsD8PryTq8WYu0hvo8TNT5-hzVCvQfK5mbnANfs1Eqd52IMYi7-pbdnIKyEi-gjrqTQqgyQOVWdPgaeXog2uILTWgzv-Trm9A9S8eFfvNDNwpFYwJjKNv38LlIy1XmG5/s320/Week7b-gorilla_pod.jpg" width="320" height="257" /></a> <br />
Unless you have somebody<br />
with a steady hand to hold your camera,<br />
this is a must. While you could always<br />
prop the camera on a shelf or table while<br />
at home, once you're out and about, it can<br />
be hard to find a place to put the camera.<br />
If you're looking for something easily<br />
portable and versatile, I would highly<br />
recommend looking at <b><i><a href="http://joby.com/gorillapod" target="_blank">Gorilla Tripods</a></i></b>.<br />
They are super handy as you can wrap<br />
them around nearly any object or place<br />
them on uneven terrain easily. The one<br />
drawback is that they are small and if<br />
there is nothing to place them on, the<br />
angle can be a bit low.<br />
<br />
<b>Cleaning supplies:</b> A camcorder is quite an investment, <br />
so it pays to take care of it and make sure it lasts as long as <br />
possible. Luckily all you really need is a can of compressed <br />
air to blow off any dust, a good lens cloth and some lens <br />
cleaner. Camcorder lenses are not made of regular glass so you <br />
should never use a regular cleaner like Windex as it can <br />
permanently damage the lens.<br />
<br />
<b>Extra Memory Card:</b> Like the battery, it's no picnic to <br />
go out to shoot reference, only to find out that your memory <br />
card is full. Having a spare is great and can be interchanged <br />
between other digital devices.<br />
<br />
I hope that this was helpful and makes choosing a camcorder <br />
somewhat easier. If you have any questions or comments, <br />
feel free to send us a PM or comment.Beau Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09234650306310168061noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4411058341117530859.post-14490671647358648982012-04-03T20:24:00.000-05:002017-05-08T16:31:00.963-05:00Class 1 tip - Week 8 -CompositionComposition is an extremely important and crucial part of a good shot, <br />
and is almost as important as the animation itself. Because no matter <br />
how amazing your animation is, if the viewer has trouble understanding <br />
the shot from the camera angle, or can't see what's happening clearly, <br />
then all the work you've done is pretty much wasted.<br />
<br />
All of this is also fully applicable to any visual medium, be it <br />
drawings, paintings, photography, or stu poses.<br />
<br />
We'll start by taking a look at one of the basics of shot composition, <br />
the Rule of Thirds. This rule is all about the placement of the subject <br />
in the frame. Your first instinct might be that since your character is <br />
the center of attention in your shot, that you should put him in the <br />
center of the screen. It makes sense, right? Oddly enough, it isn't. <br />
Placing your character just off center is actually more visually <br />
compelling than having them dead center. This is where the Rule of <br />
Thirds comes in to play. What you need to do is draw lines on your <br />
frame at every 1/3rd mark, both horizontally and vertically, to divide <br />
the frame into something that looks like a tic-tac-toe grid, which you <br />
can see in the example below. <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4JFirAH4yGH6cXBPkKduQGNh2wqbtsMENmuk-EXEM_Z_7NESjo3PVIBe9FHqT-jaOgWV0KbkW-l7b5_FbkJXlNL3bSiEujTEpkN31__YjNN9MCeCF71iO2l8aAEiuqqpzxKpjhoYWb0mO/s1600/Week8c-RuleofThirds.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4JFirAH4yGH6cXBPkKduQGNh2wqbtsMENmuk-EXEM_Z_7NESjo3PVIBe9FHqT-jaOgWV0KbkW-l7b5_FbkJXlNL3bSiEujTEpkN31__YjNN9MCeCF71iO2l8aAEiuqqpzxKpjhoYWb0mO/s320/Week8c-RuleofThirds.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
As you can see, this gives us a set of 4 lines, with 4 points where <br />
they intersect, marked by the green dots. These lines represent the <br />
places in a frame that are most pleasing to the eye, with the dots <br />
being the places where most focus is given. The basic rule of thirds is <br />
that you align your character with one or more of the lines, with the <br />
face, or key prop on one of the green dots. This will give your scene a <br />
much stronger impact and visual flair than planting your character <br />
smack dab in the middle. But, you may wonder, how does something like <br />
this apply to a moving animation? The characters can't stay in the one <br />
spot the entire time. And that's very true. It's impossible to keep a <br />
character in the one third lines all the time. But by using this rule, <br />
you can set up your key moments in the animation to have the maximum <br />
clarity and impact, such as holding up the prized treasure, striking a <br />
valiant pose, or in the case of the Vanilla Walk, not putting Ballie <br />
too far up or too far down in your shot. <br />
<br />
Maya doesn't come with a Rule of Thirds grid, but luckily for us, what <br />
we can do is make use of the Field Chart it does come with and <br />
improvise our grid. Go to your playblast viewport and click the icon <br />
between the grey circle and the green icon with 3 squares. This turns <br />
on the field chart, giving us a grid overlayed onto our shot. What we <br />
can do now is take that grid, and divide it by 3 to find the third <br />
markers. For example, the field chart is 12 units on either side of the <br />
center point, which gives us a total of 24 points. Divide that by 3, <br />
and we now know that the third markers are at units -4 and 4.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8xboHhWxOhF6Bomt-swFUnQYrFvgTrpbqnlUfsZV4eHUI_tSap-zHlwNs2pxzuy2xAVgUX-tU6P41ZusoSHzJFGlUUeH2gtfjdOtaknJiOFOcPdAwrAHawqMTPaJwj850ahce642KQ_Z5/s1600/Week8c-FieldChart.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8xboHhWxOhF6Bomt-swFUnQYrFvgTrpbqnlUfsZV4eHUI_tSap-zHlwNs2pxzuy2xAVgUX-tU6P41ZusoSHzJFGlUUeH2gtfjdOtaknJiOFOcPdAwrAHawqMTPaJwj850ahce642KQ_Z5/s320/Week8c-FieldChart.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
Using the Rule of Thirds, you can also roughly plan out your staging, <br />
horizon lines, and overal white space of the scene. Using a basic <br />
layout of one third ground, two thirds sky, or lining key scene objects <br />
to the lines, you can help give your set a more appealing and easy to <br />
read look.<br />
<br />
Now there is another, more complex way of planning layout called the <br />
Fibonacci Spiral, Golden Mean, or Divine Ratio. The Fibonacci Spiral is <br />
defined by a mathematical sequence of numbers and shows up throughout <br />
nature regularly, which is interesting in it's own right, but is why we <br />
naturally find it so appealing. <br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEils23Um_Lz5z17S33kshcy1g-Etqq3m1KFCeK9DsKWJIo6FcdK5ELTFd3hag-QpkaN9FnHurRWQOpPgQCnUDbYLainGu8N0MSUZuMaMiJwOEceVC0uL7hBb-Y31SOjbW98h0h_zCm8wESB/s1600/Week8c-FibonacciSpiral.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEils23Um_Lz5z17S33kshcy1g-Etqq3m1KFCeK9DsKWJIo6FcdK5ELTFd3hag-QpkaN9FnHurRWQOpPgQCnUDbYLainGu8N0MSUZuMaMiJwOEceVC0uL7hBb-Y31SOjbW98h0h_zCm8wESB/s320/Week8c-FibonacciSpiral.png" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
Though it may give more appealing layouts if used properly. the problem <br />
is that this method is much more compex than we need it to be, and is <br />
so close to the Rule of Thirds that you don't really have to bother <br />
with it. <br />
<br />
I had planned to include images with examples of how both the Rule of <br />
Thirds and the Fibonacci Spiral worked with images, but I decided that <br />
instead of cramming your page with images, I could instead just suggest <br />
that you go to Google and search for images of them yourselves. This <br />
will give you plenty of great examples of these principles in action. <br />
Just do image searches for Rule of Thirds, Fibonacci Spiral, Golden <br />
Mean, or any of the other variations I mentioned earlier.<br />
<br />
So now that we have a better understanding of the basics of <br />
composition, let's talk a little bit about the safe area in a shot, <br />
camera distance, and white space.<br />
<br />
The safe area is the area in your frame that is far enough from the <br />
edge of the frame to read well. If you animate your shots too close to <br />
the edge of the screen, it causes issues with the framing of the shot, <br />
and also stands a chance of being cut off if a television or monitor <br />
crops the image. So by leaving a small border of empty animation space, <br />
you make sure that your animation will always be safe. This isn't to <br />
say that you can't animate to the edge of the screen of course. If you <br />
have a character or any sort of action coming in or going out of frame, <br />
you can definitely do so. But it's important to try and keep all of <br />
your major storytelling action in the safe area. You can turn on a safe <br />
area marker in Maya by going to your playblasting viewport, and <br />
clicking on the green icon with 3 squares. This will show you the safe <br />
area, as defined by a green box around your shot.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZso2RPVO9FtTeqQlIk_ibNSaqZtW4XRrw6KHp851_Y0OZgFc8pfUPVxfuEwpuaR2WgmnssIQeEmZbN9MJazTjmWGfs7neNR-7WxqgmFmkRTZ1I2Rv3CN_JDpbItcIplItDBc350SRVwFq/s1600/Week8c-SafeAction.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZso2RPVO9FtTeqQlIk_ibNSaqZtW4XRrw6KHp851_Y0OZgFc8pfUPVxfuEwpuaR2WgmnssIQeEmZbN9MJazTjmWGfs7neNR-7WxqgmFmkRTZ1I2Rv3CN_JDpbItcIplItDBc350SRVwFq/s320/Week8c-SafeAction.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
Now for camera distance. This tip varies depending on the shot you're <br />
working on, and the mood you're trying to set, but typically, you want <br />
to set up your shot so that the action reads clearly in the frame. If <br />
you have the camera too far, then the viewer can't see what's happening <br />
and you lose interest. If it's too close, the same thing happens. You <br />
want to try and find a happy medium where you can see the entire action <br />
of your shot in frame, while still keeping white space around your <br />
character to give your animation "room to breathe".<br />
<br />
Speaking of white space, what is it exactly? Just like on your Stu <br />
poses, white space, or negative space is the area in your shot that <br />
adds contrast to your shot and gives your animation silhouette. And <br />
just like the Stu poses, keeping the white space in your shot from <br />
looking too even or twinned is key to setting up a good animation, <br />
which when you think about it, is exactly what the rule of thirds does!<br />
<br />
And that's about all I have for this week. Thank you for taking the time <br />
to read my post. I hope it's been helpful, and as always, if you have <br />
any comments, questions or suggestions, you're more than welcome to <br />
send either Beau or me a message on AM.Cameron Pratthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013610089853235783noreply@blogger.com0