Rodney

As I hinted at, dragging and dropping objects that have already been created would be the quickest way. Here I've added the Box as a Library resource where it remains ready for dragging and dropping and for manipulation as necessary. Drag_and_Change.mp4

Let's see if this uploads... Not necessarily the BEST way to create a box but probably the fastest. Short of dragging and dropping one that is already created into A:M that is. The danger in doing things like this is that you can inadvertently create internal patches which is not a good thing. As this is a silent tutorial... For those who may wonder, the primary tool used in this mini-tutorial is the E key (for Extrude). QuickestCube.mp4

Dennis, I'm jealous already. (A lot of us are big fans of traditional animation around here) I hope you can find time to be involved in the forum. There is a lot of learning around here to share. As an illustrator I know you'll find A:M will compliment your skills very well.

Now THAT is cool.

Okay, here's where we see how forgiving Mark is... I liked this semi-tutorial enough I thought it deserved to be given the PDF treatment. I've taken quite a few liberties and its far from perfect but hopefully it does Mark's effort justice and is at least readable. Thanks Mark for the great information. Creating_the_Alien_Space_Suit.pdf

We are all here to learn to use A:M better so the more the merrier. Welcome to the A:M Forum!

He looks great thus far!

I need to work a little more on the accuracy of my time travel.

I think this fits in with what David is suggesting... You've nailed the rhythm pretty well but it may be have a little too much similarity. It may be best begin with the action already in motion and Red Shirts arm coming down. Alernatively you might have the drink already going to Red's mouth at the beginning and coming down before Blue Shirt stabbingly points his finger at him. In this way the action keeps the viewer's eyes returning to Red's face. Also, the first two times Red lifts the bottle he advances to what looks like the exact same place in each instance. In order for the action to build you want to vary that a little.

Jason (Simonds), We can probably do a lot to bring down that load on the server to a reasonable level. Removing the top 20 percent of the largest attachment will likely drop the size of attachments by over 50%. There are some files that have only been accessed once yet take up 90+MB. Multiple versions of the exact same file account for a large part of the rest.

Outstanding. You are a master of the comic strip. (as evidenced in part by your use of scale in storytelling)

This is outstanding Jason. Way to go!

I've been hesitating to answer because I don't know about Camtasia for the Mac. I was under the impression the Mac version had all the bells and whistles as the PC version. (The Mac version was recently released so if you haven't checked the site recently you should) The PC version of Camtasia simply rocks. It does a lot more than just screen capture and has had a very recent update released too. If I was rich I'd buy everyone here a copy of Camtasia to use with A:M. It is that useful. My primary dilemma these days is finding the time to use it. Edit: Yes, it looks like the Mac version is limited but improving. As I read into it more however, its not clear what those limits are (if there are any). Knowing what I know right now, if I had a Mac I'd purchase Camtasia for it. I think the price may be mostly to get their foot in the door. If in doubt, I'd contact them and see what they plan to do with it. You can download a free trial of Camtasia for the Mac (and PC)... what have you got to lose? http://www.techsmith.com/camtasiamac/free-trial/

It's your day Mark. Hope its a great one. Long live the Wannabe Pirates! Happy Birthday!

Oh, yeah. You know it Mark. I'll be here.

You've got a great thing going here. I'll offer this as an option or alternative. (Not necessarily something you should pursue here) There is a great opportunity to exploit the rhythm and beat that is echoed in the dialogue. The idea is to withhold the payoff until the very end. Let me explain... Guy 1 (on screen left) takes a big swig of his drink and in a way that is the end of the thing. The idea is to delay the action to the greatest extent possible in order to milk the payoff for everything its worth. So instead of drinking he first begins to lift the bottle for a drink. He then voluntarily brings the bottle back down as Guy 2 is talking because he is actually thinking about what Guy 2 is saying. The second time he lifts it, the bottle almost makes it to his lips... but he drops his hand again because this time he's got something important to say. "I borrowed it 'til I did know'. As he goes to finally get his drink, Guy 2 grabs the bottle from him and takes *his* drink. (stealing the payoff from Guy 1) and finishing the scene. dot dot dah. ...the pattern of a successful repetition (with required payoff). The extension of that is: dot dot dah (wait for it.... ) bomb. This where you get a really solid and accentuated payoff. ...building... ...building... ...variation... release. In this way there is a visual surprise gained in the characters interactivity. Hope this makes sense. The beauty of your animation made me more fully see this opportunity.

I'll offer the following 'one word' answers to get you thinking in the right directions More detail will follow as everyone outlines how they work. 1. Ease (Adjust the Ease setting of the camera over time) 2. Keyframes (There is an aspect of your description I'm not understanding fully) 3. Nulls (Constrain the Camera to look at the Null or other object via a "Aim At" Constraint.

Impressive on so many levels! (...and note to self everyone! Shots like this score major cool points for what is done with the default ground plane! )

You know... I've been noticing that too. Glad you got the solution you were after. While movie formats like .MOV and .AVI are handy for rendering previews it is wise to final render to sequential images. Programs like AE are awesome for smashing those sequences together. For those that want to keep the whole process in A:M this still applies to you... create your movie files but render to sequential images first before you do. After you've rendered your sequence of images, Right Click on the PWS container and Save As Animation and you'll have a copy in movie format too.

He looks awesome! Tell me you are going to rig him to squash and stretch. Edit: But you are hereby fined one cool point for leaving the ground plane in its default state.

I really enjoyed that. Thanks Robert!

Just when you think you've seen all the various categories of things you can make with A:M... there goes you showing we've only scratched the surface of the possibilities. Beautiful work. (and thanks for the alphabet!)

Any time he wants it, he's got it. We could even include the old 'Lost Worlds of Zandoria' topic.

A screen capture of what you are seeing will speak volumes.

That's a great idea to go anthoropomorphic Will. This is going to be good!