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A:M Forum Rules
GENERAL FORUM GUIDELINES
The A:M Forum is for technical support and the sharing of tips and ideas between users/prospective users of Hash software. It is moderated constantly by technical support representatives.
DO'S!
-Ask questions about the software.
-Assist other users... everyone was new at this once.
-Inform people of your version/platform when asking for help.
-Share resources; tutorials, models, textures, tips and techniques (link to useful websites).
-Post links to your work, or where your art is being used online (on websites, in games, toons', etc.)
-Search the A:M Forum and FAQ. The question you are about to ask may have already been answered.
-Organize and inform others about user groups, IRC chats, image and animation contests, job opportunities, etc.
-Discuss what you are working on and let everyone know about magazine reviews and articles that relate to your projects.
DON'TS!
-Do Not be rude or disrespectful or mean to other forum members in any way. Personal attacks will be removed.
-Do Not post bug/crash reports to the list (send bug/crash reports to http://www.hash.com/reports.
-Do Not complain about forum content. Complaints or suggestions can be sent directly to hash@hash.com
-Do Not reprimand other forum members for violating forum rules, that's the moderators job, which (unless you are a moderator) you are not.
-No complaining or whining on the forum or distribution of misinformation.
-No flames of any kind.
-No Off Topic posts. (Posts in the Off Topics section should be related to A:M in some form or fashion or benefit the A:M community as a whole).
-No soliciting of any kind without prior approval.
-No threads or comparisons related to other 3D Applications.
-No "Wish list" or feature requests, they should be sent to www.hash.com/reports for categorizing and prioritization (User requests define the future development of the software).
-No "me too!" posts
-No discussion of Hash Internal Affairs (finances, advertising, PR.)
-No posting of private email to the forum unless permission of the author is granted. (Private correspondence should remain private)
-No very general questions like: "how do I make a good 3D model" make your questions as complete and concise as possible.
If you have questions as to whether it's appropriate, send it to: support@hash.com, We'll be happy to let you know whether it is, or is not appropriate.
User Led Forum Considerations
Firstly and foremostly, please remember this is Martin Hash's forum and that it is every A:M User's primary resource for information about A:M. In order to remain relevant we need everyone's continuing support and interest.
Secondly, understand there is a distinction between A:M (the program) and the A:M forum. There are some topics and issues that are outside the scope of this forum and most can be deduced by reading through the forum guidelines. These include such things as Hash Inc internal policies, business practices, trade secrets, and specific plans for the future not yet publicly released. Each of these would be fascinating topics of their own but are better reserved for private communications with a representative of Hash Inc.
Related to the second, is purchasing, customer service and other areas outside the purview of the common user who may have no interest in such things; subjects relating to money exchanging hands are beyond the scope of the A:M Forum and often can lead to conflicts of interest between users and/or Hash Inc. (If Hash Inc cuts you a deal on volume purchasing it's really no one else's business). Likewise, individual complaints about a product or service are best remedied by going direct with Hash Inc representatives empowered to make decisions. Please allow them them the time necessary to resolve your specific issue and consider the cost of customized solutions.
This last area is likely the source of much confusion because many see the A:M Forum as the official outlet for Hash Inc... and it is. But the forum is not designed for conducting business and private matters best resolved by going to Hash Inc directly. Similarly, bug reports are best resolved by entering them directly into the A:M Reporting system.
Many problems can be easily addressed at the user level just by asking fellow users in the forum. If someone at Hash Inc suggests the forum as a source, it is very likely a problem can be easily resolved. For tougher issues there is even more reason to take the issue directly to the source... you don't want the issue discussed... you want it resolved quickly.
Finally, remember that we want to pass this forum on to future moderators and generations of A:M Users in the absolute best condition possible. A:M is just that good a program and is worthy of our consideration.
Thanks for making the A:M Forum a great community.
4,160 topics in this forum
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- 1 follower
- 24 replies
- 1.9k views
Hey, i really dony quite understand the concept of rotoscoping, does anyone, by any chance, have a tutorial that could help me all about rotoscoping and how to do/use it.
Last reply by AMkyle, -
- 10 replies
- 1.9k views
in theory pretty simple, i have a basic landscape set up with trees and grass textures, and i want a different texture to over right the grass were i want it to do so, think the zerg creep if u ever played starcraft1/2 but with a little more control like if i wanted to send out tendrils or something http://www.gosugamers.net/starcraft/images...Zerg%20Base.jpg if at all possible to have it raise a little of the ground i would be cool but thats a secondary objective in the how do i get it to change textures to begin with
Last reply by Fuchur, -
- 1 follower
- 7 replies
- 1.9k views
WOW! Hello folks. I've been away from the forum for a while, and things have sure changed up while I've been gone. I'm using version 15.0J+ There have been a couple of new versions released. Is it possible to purchase a new CD version or is the only way to upgrade the yearly download option? Although I haven't been animating, I've been using A:M as an artistic tool to create "photo" borders. Before I left I was fairly confident in my modeling skills but stalled out learning rigging. I've decided that I want to attempt to animate a short piece, and to do this I'm gonna need to call upon the generosity that I've always found with the members of this forum.I'll n…
Last reply by Shelton, -
- 1 follower
- 25 replies
- 1.9k views
Hey folks How would you create a rail of light? Like say a florescent light bulb?
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 5 replies
- 1.9k views
I finally got back into A:M. I originally got the program back in 2001. I was never very successful with it because I am not an artist or animator. It just seemed so overwhelming. Then in 2005 I got a civilian job with the Army as a broadcast producer. I am always trying to improve my skills, but it usually ends up being self taught. In 2006, I pulled out my AM program and started teaching myself how to use it. I was able to create a nice little logo for a news program I was doing. That accomplishment always stuck with me. But, job priorities and work load didn't allow me to spend the time I needed to develop any more skills. Time went by and my skills grew. I …
Last reply by Muff, -
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- 1.9k views
hello all such a long time i didn't came here. so then to be clear i sold all my blender 3d books but still want to make cgi. so as i own two licences of a:m 18, i am actually trying to make it being transfered to my new linux system under wine, as i tried before and it succed ^^ and soon i hope i will have the pleasure to ask you several questions about animation but first modelisation. i wish you the best and tell me good luck for licences kindly regards
Last reply by stefff285, -
- 15 replies
- 1.9k views
Hello and here is my scenario: I have developed MANY detailed models in A.M., V15 - that I want to have plastic Injection Molds made from. The Models are to Exact Scale because threaded Inserts will be needed and holes will need to be lined up and they need to interact with other components in the "Industry Standard" size. I am trying to convert one of the many files with little success. My Problems: 1. AM's MDL files are not supported except in Wings 3d (Old version). 2. When I export the model into a *.OBJ or *.DXF File - I lose my curved surfaces. I must have curved surfaces (I thought DXF supported that? No? How do Autocad users get their smooth model…
Last reply by Wildsided, -
- 5 replies
- 1.9k views
Hi, I must be missing something VERY basic. How do I create a rendered version of a frame of scene/choreography? I have a choreography, I don't want to render the entire choreography just a single rendered frame from within the choreography Make sense? Oliver
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 31 replies
- 1.9k views
Hi, I had the 2003 CD version and some plugins but unfortunately I didn't use it much. Now I started again with animation, so I bought the subscription to have more features (or less bugs). Currently I'm using (trying to learn) 15.0G because there was a bug with real time rendering in shaded mode with the 15.0H version, so I'm sorry if the following problems have been corrected: 1. If I try to customize the toolbars just by adding more toolbars to the window (Tools/Customize/Toolbars), when I press "OK" all changes disappear (my screen resolution is 1920x1200 if that helps). 2. While there is enough space on the existing toolbar line for more toolbars (~4…
Last reply by dllb, -
- 8 replies
- 1.9k views
I look to see if there was a cylindrical mapping tutorial and could not find one. I ahve problem mapping a seamless image onto a cylinder. first of all, i want to know why it always default to a repeat of 3 in the x !!! it is seamless so i want the beginning to match my end around the cylinder. Then, about the normals. Should they be pointing out of the cylinder or in? Sometimes, my map shows up as a mirror image... Any tutorial out there? Thanks. Pierre
Last reply by mouseman, -
- 14 replies
- 1.9k views
I was trying to hide none animating bones in a model which i was rigging I edited their visibility property But when i tried to save , it is not saving and it is giving me the following error message : "An Invalid argument was encountered" I repeated the process more than one time and it kept on giving me the same message . I appreciate your help
Last reply by Nik, -
- 1 follower
- 10 replies
- 1.9k views
All CG in this video was done in Hash AM http://www.cleanercube.com
Last reply by jason1025, -
- 1 follower
- 17 replies
- 1.9k views
I am trying to use the Surface constraint to make pupils move on an irregular eye. I have got everything working exept for one detail: I can´t make the pupils align in the direction of the surface normals. As I understand it, the Property Translate only is the one controlling this. I have set it to ON but it still does´t behave as I want. I have tried to change all of the properties I could find, both for the constraints and for the bones I use. I also made sure that the normals were pointing outwards. I have run out of ideas... what am I missing here? This is the current alignment of the bone that controls the pupil mesh. Note that it is pointing in the…
Last reply by Gerry, -
- 17 replies
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I've noticed lately that my PC is pretty slow at importing and rendering. Its a dual core Pentium 2.2GHz with GeForce 9400GT graphics cards with a 32bit Vista OS load. It works, but I'd like to build a much faster rig. I'm proficient at building my own PCs, so I'd like some advice on which processor/memory/graphics combo would yield the highest performance for A:M. Thanks.
Last reply by pixelplucker, -
- 2 replies
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I have a burning question okay maybe not burning. When making a body part like arms and legs for a biped character what is the ideal lathing settings for them? I mean something like a character you will use for a simple animation or for a comicbook like say Largento's? I hope that made sense thank you.
Last reply by Dpendleton77, -
- 19 replies
- 1.8k views
Looking for some insight into speeding up my productivity and am going after the machine, and the person using it... Been on a mouse so far but considering a graphic tablet. Anyone offer some advice/ suggestions/ direction? Next Question: I'd appreciate some input on speeding up the machine. I recently read a forum entry leading me to believe that more RAM will speed up rendering. I figured it was simply a function of processor speed but am wondering now that I stumbled across the post.... Thoughts, experiences? Glider
Last reply by danf, -
- 1 follower
- 23 replies
- 1.8k views
I'm having trouble applying my decal for a UV Map . I've flattened the group in an action window and i am now trying to APPLY my image as a DECAL (like the tut says) but the apply button is blanked out, and it says i can't drag it into the screen. Help would e greatly appreciated. Oh wait nevermind, I had entered the decail in the wrong object! Problem solved. Oh man nevermind to that too. How do I get into the UV Editor(Decal View) so that the image shows flattened patch? I mean I can apply the decal then stop positioning, but then how do I see it in the Decal View?
Last reply by teh1ghool, -
- 1 follower
- 23 replies
- 1.8k views
I am trying to animate an item that has moving video on it within the animation. Plan 'A' is to have a television in the background. I have tried to use one of my previous animations as a decal. I can import it, I can apply it (although it is a blank image at time of application) and then it's lost. Still shows up in the image folder in the decal area but doesn't show up rendered or in choreography. Ideas? Plan 'B' is to build a movie projector in an animation. Thorough the manuals, It would seem I can just import a video and use it as a light gel, but I am running into the same issue: I can import it to the image file, even adjust/crop etc. But nothing…
Last reply by Glider, -
- 1 reply
- 1.8k views
Okay you know this stuff already right? Because I'm a big fan of Right Clicking I sometimes forget about the ease of double clicking in the Project Workspace and use alternative ways that often add a few extra steps. The primary exception to the rule in double clicking in the Project Workspace is the top container (Project). As you are already in a project double clicking won't create a new project. In fact it won't do anything. When clicking on Image, A:M will prompt you to open an image. The same goes for double clicking on Sound. A:M will prompt us to load a audio file. Double clicking on a Material will create a new (default) material, ready and waiti…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 14 replies
- 1.8k views
We are embarking on a project here in the New Users Forum to identify, resource, fully illustrate and thoroughly reveal areas of Animation:Master that users of Animation:Master want to see fully explained. The perspective we are seeking is that of the New User. From opening the box on the first day to adding detail to your animated film successful we want to document it all. This is not a new idea and there are many who have contributed to the wealth of knowledge already available. We are greatful for those that have worked so hard to help everyone understand the power and ease of animating with A:M. We hope you'll join in and help with this project. Shortly …
Last reply by Hutch, -
- 9 replies
- 1.8k views
how do you make the scence make it dark like night? HELPPP!!! I'LL LOVE YOU FOREVER!!!
Last reply by TheSpleen, -
- 24 replies
- 1.8k views
I love A:M, but it seems to have a mind of its own...'squirrely' would not be too strong a term. Sometimes I get an image inside the yellow decal bounding box, sometimes not. [i switched Open GL for Direct3D] The first few applications of decal [2 or 3] work, but after that...nothing. Since that switch, the yellow boxes do not appear when items are to be sized. rotated or moved. Except in brief flashes. Then they disappear. On the day before yesterday, I got the fish to swim along its path. Last night [new fish] it would not. Lately, when I try to view animations in the Hash Films section of the website, all I get is a black box, though there is the Quicktime toolbar and …
Last reply by Dhar, -
- 1 follower
- 13 replies
- 1.8k views
planning stage: what's a smart way to have jewels reflect light? i'll be making crowns, they have different kinds of stones in/on them. the light won't be that of the sun or lamp, cheats are sort of built in. i'll be compositing excessively, no problem to add a layer or three. but how to think/plan/execute?
Last reply by dblhelix, -
- 1 follower
- 9 replies
- 1.8k views
Hey Guys, I have been writing support for a couple days now trying to figure out the process of getting my subscription moved to a different windows machine. My last machine crashed and burned so I do not have ANY file I can copy over. I have no feeling how buried the Hash guys are, but how long should a request like this take to get a response? i also emailed jason @hash.com yesterday per a different post's suggestion. Anything else I can do to get a response, or am I being too "Hurry up, already" at this point?
Last reply by thumperness, -
- 15 replies
- 1.8k views
Hello, I need to change the pivot point in a choreography fir a model. It is easy to change the pivot point in a model with the manipulator, in the choreography it moves the whole model. I tried using the manipulator properties I just do no t have a scale to know where I am in the window. I want to spin my model to I need the pivot point in the center of the model while in the choreography. By the way you guys that constantly help others are fantastic. I really do appreciate your help and hope one day to be good enough to pass on the favor.
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 15 replies
- 1.8k views
I have created an action that rotates an object 90 degrees. The problem is that it always starts from the zero azimuth If it is not a too advanced subject is there any to have the start of the action to be from where the front of the action is facing? Then, I could rotate the object 90 degrees from there.
Last reply by bubba, -
- 2 replies
- 1.8k views
Top 4 Newest And Coolest Kitchen Gadgets For Your Home! Why You Should Try To Buy And Use These New Gadgets ❈It’s clear that our lives are changing rapidly. Cooking now seems to take so much time. Besides, many people come home exhausted which makes it hard for them to get into the kitchen. To reduce the time they have to work in the kitchen, people have started to invent many new gadgets to help others out. In this way, you can truly enjoy cooking, as it is much easier and safer for you. According to people’s needs, they come up with ideas and bring these ideas to life. However, you might find some of these new gadgets a bit weird at first, but you can sure tha…
Last reply by Shelton, -
- 15 replies
- 1.8k views
I bought AM at Wondercon last year and haven't looked at it since I installed it. Today I decided to learn a little about it. It asks me for registration info every time I start up, then gives me this error message: Unable to load plug-in [/Applications/Animation Master 16.0/Textures/Simbiont2.atx],-err- Then it opens and I can play with everything. I went through the first video tutorial but I couldn't save anything. This makes me think I'm not really registered. I have the disc with the activation code, but I thought I put that in when I installed the program. Thanks for any help you can offer.
Last reply by RobinR, -
- 6 replies
- 1.8k views
Hello everyone, i need help with AM V18 Licensing. I got a Master.lic file from Hash, added it to my AM folder as directed and got this Message Wrong Host for License (-4) Thoughts??
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 11 replies
- 1.8k views
The Copy/Flip/Attach command is mirroring my half-model across the XZ plane instead of the YZ plane. How do I fix this? It doesn't happen for all models, but it does for this one. On a related note, is there a real instancing-based mirror mode? The face-icon mirror mode (although useful for gluing points to YZ) doesn't cut it, because it only mirrors transforms.
Last reply by Clipping Path Specialists, -
- 6 replies
- 1.8k views
Hi I am following the Modeling Tutorial and making the vase. It came out nicely. But when after I "stitched" the holes in the bottom of the vase in wire view, they were still holes in shaded view. It's just joining 4 CP's correct?
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 12 replies
- 1.8k views
Hey Gang, Has anyone tinkered with shattering glass? I'm guessing Newton would have to be used? Can it be directional shards such as this video clip? Here is a video clip of what I mean. glasss_shatters.mp4
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 13 replies
- 1.8k views
Hi, A real quick question. Is there a way to hide the distortion boxes from the modeling screen after you finish using them ? Thanks for the help.
Last reply by NancyGormezano, -
- 3 followers
- 26 replies
- 1.8k views
This one is new to me, did you know you can add a material to lights? I knew this was available in other programs so I tried on AM. I read some post about lighting effects, and I thought I would add this. Again, new to me but this could be old news to some.
Last reply by John Bigboote, -
- 22 replies
- 1.8k views
The production company I'm currently Interning for uses a combination of Maya and 3DS Max for all their 3D work. We work closely with sports teams and produce 3D logos for in Arena playback. To do this, we import Illustrator files as editable splines and texture and extrude the logo's faces. As i use A:M at home, I'd like to know if anyone has tried this function?
Last reply by SCDonnelly, -
- 1 follower
- 17 replies
- 1.8k views
This is just a nitpick, but: (Using A:M 11.1i) I noticed during rendering there is a small animation of a couple of aliens "boxing" during the rendering. Is there a way to disable that animation? -SB
Last reply by sb4, -
- 1 follower
- 22 replies
- 1.8k views
ive had animation master since....the christmas before last and i dont think im good at all....i took most of the tutes from the manual and i cant make anything of quality. ive seen some posts from new guys who are already ahead of me. is there some secret super-tute that teaches you everything that i dont know about?? i want to get better at this. any suggestions?
Last reply by zandoriastudios, -
- 1 follower
- 36 replies
- 1.8k views
i made a run cycle; a choreography that i saved as an action. created a new chor for testing speed in relation to distance, imported the runcycle and scaled its length in the view that's all white with only red squares. prolonged the cycle to span the scene, then proceeded to animate the cycle nailing toes so thom wouldn't ski. took a break, closed am. came back, worked on an object in the same project then returned to the finished runcycle across the stage. thom was skiing. i cursed "must have scaled something by accident" and did it all over again. rendered, pondered, took notes and went to bed. today i open the project and whaddyaknow, thom is skiing…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 15 replies
- 1.8k views
This one is a bit more involved than I might otherwise target, but our own forum member steve392 has daringly volunteered it for inspection, so have at it! The centaur nature of the character complicates things a bit, but I think you can still examine this mostly in terms of a biped doing a standing jump. Which is a good basic body mechanics challenge for an animator. There's quite a bit going right here. Can you spot what's going wrong? side_jump.mov 3/4 view same jump
Last reply by alano, -
- 10 replies
- 1.8k views
For me, working with bones and there tool set of constraints is confusing and frustrating. I know what I want and how I want it, but getting that actually setup in AM is still beyond my skills and understanding of logic. I've got a bird shaped mechanical foot from a Mad Cat I'm trying to model. Played around with Euler/Spherical limitations and Limit Manipulators, turning off the axis I don't want it to move along. Setting up restrictions of -15 to 15 degree along the X-axis rotation for the toes. When manually manipulating/adjusting bones, I'm restricted to follow those limitations. But when I use the Aim at Target, pointing at a Null, it seems…
Last reply by Rodney, -
- 1 follower
- 2 replies
- 1.8k views
Hi Folks Its been years since I've been on the forums in a contributive way. I have a question. I made a cloth, dropped on a model with a deflector in a chor. Its great. Now I want to create a model from the cloth that was simulated in the chor, from a specific frame in time. Said differently. The original cloth was a flat grid. After the cloth simulation, the flat grid is now deformed by the deflector model, and that deformation changes through time with each frame. I want to take the cloth from frame 4 and export that model as a new model so I get a new model with the new deformations from frame 4. Im, sure there is a way to do this. I tried co…
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 14 replies
- 1.8k views
--What is that questionmark for in the actionobjects or materials for example? Does it say something is missing? Seems nothing is really affected by it.... Can anybody clarify this please --Also: Why can a cropped action not be copied multiple times into the same channel? I wonder, if it really is necesary to copy the action onto the model every time you need it newly again?
Last reply by Gerry, -
- 2 followers
- 19 replies
- 1.8k views
Hello, I think this is what David refers to as "gamma popping" in his book. Sometimes when I am animating a character in the Chor, the arms in particular will look a little "planar" and concave along one spline (flattened-looking). If I switch to muscle mode and select what I think is the offending CP with its spline direction, it will suddenly go back to the way it should look. I understand what gamma does, but because this character is not a mechanical model, I haven't adjusted the gamma at all. All randomly sampled CPs have a (default?) gamma of 0%. It's as if occasionally a spline forgets whether it is to bend in or out. As I said, as soon as I touch a CP+splin…
Last reply by sbk, -
- 1 follower
- 15 replies
- 1.8k views
Hello all here at hash animation master im new here and looking to get into 3d animation. but im useless with it i got it about a week ago and i carnt make nothing just need some advice on where to start once you get animation master with no experince in 3d? any advice on where to start how to start what to start with??? Thanks in advance guys look forward to replys. im thinking i should quit because i have always been intrested in 3d animation try loads of programs but never get the hang of it so now im trying animation master hope the experts here can help me out cheers cya soon
Last reply by the_black_mage, -
- 6 replies
- 1.8k views
Newbie here. I'm glad to have found this great online animation and modelling community. I'm hoping to learn more from the other members here. Cheers!
Last reply by SilvienDrefto, -
- 1 follower
- 20 replies
- 1.7k views
Hi again, I seeem to be having a problem grasping combining actions to render a movie of a few minutes. I understand the concept of the shift-keyframe to go from say the resolute walk and have the character perform other actions in a new choreography action. I also added a dialog action with a new choreography action and that works fine. That all takes about 9 seconds. Here is the character flow I have so far. - Character walks across the screen (resolute walk) - Character sits in a chair and turns head to face front - Character speaks and the mouth is animated That all works fine and I couldn't be happier. Now, I need the character to turn his hea…
Last reply by greg, -
- 6 replies
- 1.7k views
hi, all. I purchased quicktime pro and exported targa sequences... can bring them into my images in project but can't bring them into camera unless I bring them all one at a time...hmmm...
Last reply by tomross2002, -
- 2 followers
- 5 replies
- 1.7k views
I haven't seen any new videos posted to the film gallery in a long time. Is this not being done anymore?
Last reply by bighop, -
- 1 follower
- 17 replies
- 1.7k views
So anyways for christmas i got these Jeff Lew Animation video's. and the last one is a tutorial. So i found where to get the character i needed for the tutorial and downloaded him and tried him on AM. He has a skeleton, but when i try to animate with him, a lot of points dont work, like the foot targets and the hip targets . also certain parts of him when you move it just pulls the part off of him, like if you grab a certain arm bome, the arm just comes right off of the character. Is it possible that im not downloading it right, and im missing something. If any of you know whats going on, heres the link to where you download the guy …
Last reply by robcat2075, -
- 1 follower
- 15 replies
- 1.7k views
Hey everyone, Wondered if anyone knew how to create bouncing particles with collisions? For instance, I'm doing something with a ton of soccer balls and wanted a bunch of soccer balls to fall from the top of the screen, bounce off a logo in the middle and land on the floor. Make sense? I can't seem to figure it out. Not sure how to control them. I know this is a big one, but any input would be so appreciated. Attached is screenshot of something I did with After Effects, but I know our beloved A:M could produce much better results with greater control... I just know it! Also, I attached a video clip of what I mean. Notice how the balls bounce off the 3D text…
Last reply by new guy,
