Paul Forwood

Woah, Noah! What a couple of beauties! The pics are very nice too. I did notice the lack of contact with the seat in the side view too but put it down to denser cushions.

Hooray! Sounds like another successful gathering of the BA:M clan. Sorry that I couldn't make it but I'm glad that everyone else turned up. Next time.

Wow, David, that has come to life since the last time I saw it. Maybe that wasn't your modelling, not sure. The eyeballs and the mouth are amazing!

Sorry, guys, I'm not going to make this one. I don't want to be that guy who looks like death, is constantly blowing his nose and coughing and trying not to breathe on anyone. It will be healthier for the group if I miss this meeting but I'll be there in spirit. Someone take a camera and someone take notes! I want to know what I missed. If anyone wants to write a few, or more, words on the days events I would be very pleased to put them on the BA:M site. I really wish I was going though. Have fun and I hope to hear from you real soon! Paul Sam, is there any chance that you could get he room again in a month or so?

Hi, Bruce. I had never considered that but as they are losely based on a couple of our very own dear friends, or at least their avatars, here in the community, I don't think that it would be fare to allow everyone to gain that much control over their alter-egos. They are still very much WIPS with many imperfections but I may use them within some purely, self-indulgent animation shorts for the fun of everyone. I wouldn't want to see them being used maliciously though so I'll just keep them safe and bring them out now and then. One never knows when a superhero and a robot will be required and it's always useful to have an army of unique characters to choose from. Thanks for the interest though!

Ah Ha! I thought that might make you surface, Rodney. Glad to know you're still with us! Well, if I get any more of these snaps passed on to me from my associates at MI5 I'll pass them on to you so that you can keep up with what you've been up to.

Absolutely! And the camera is usually focused on the face so unless you really need a close up of bare feet why make life difficult?

Vern No, we've never met. I've seen your picture a couple of times though. One with the Hash gang in Mexico and another at some other Hash bash I guess. Maybe they were both from Mexico. Anyway your stories and your avatar paint the best pictures. I recognised your entry in the image contest and I've got to say, It is amazing! I'll say no more incase I influence anyone. If I gave Z-Man a black suit he might look a little like the image below and wouldn't stand out against all the dark and dangerous backgrounds that he has to pass through. But I guess that's what you wanted, eh? I don't know where those white shoes came from.

Have you downloaded the 'RandyHair.mov' file from the TechTalk forum? It's a big Quicktime movie, (almost 200Mb), in which Randy Croucher shows off many of the new hair features, including grooming tools. Well worth the download time!

Beautiful as ever, Jim! Thanks for the knowledge on patch images. That was news to me too. I mean, I knew that you could drop an image on a group and have it reproduced on every patch in the group but hadn't really seen the use of it and didn't know that you could then rotate. I'm going to have to experiment with that.

Superb alien-like head. Excellent!

And also:

More evidence:

I mean ... Is THIS what he's up to?

Is this what he's up to?

It's touch and go for me at the moment. Just getting over some nasty virus but hopefully I'll be feeling more chipper by then. The pub is called 'The Rose and Crown' I hope to see you all there.

Photograph the leather on an overcast day or with controlled light through a diffuser or just take out all the highlights in Photoshop. Actually, Vern's idea is probably the quickest and should give excellent results but you're still going to have to do some PS work to get the wrinkles and creases in the right places for your decal.

Now you're really showing off, Colin! But seriously, issues apart, that has some really good points and the shaders are just unbelievable. Must have taken awhile to render, eh? You are an inspiration! As you've shown us this before voting has begun doesn't that diqualify you?

Feb is F.A.B.! John, good luck with the gig. Eel Pie Island is a special place for me because, as well as being the early stomping ground of bands like The Stones, The Who, Rod Stewart and the Yardbirds, it is also where my mum and dad first met. The old Eel Pie Hotel used to be a hopping venue for Big Band/Swing bands in the 40's, jazz bands in the 50's and many of the successful bands from the sixties. They demolished the hotel in 1971 and I think the residents were glad of the peace and quiet. I am interested to know where you will be playing for as far as I know there are no venues left there. The boathouse which was used by a group of artists, and had occassional parties, burned down a few years ago and the local residents have been going up market since. A couple of well known people who live there are Trevor Bayliss, inventor of the wind-up radio and Nigel Planer, (Neil in the Young Ones). Pete Townsend lives just opposite. I may pop over for the atmosphere. Anyway. Any weekend is good for me regarding a BA:M! session.

Kevin, that looks so great!!! Have you tried to rig his munitions belt with dynamic bones? That could help get around the break when he bends. Top bvh examples are popping up everywhere!

Wow, Martin! How about strapping Steve Sappington into that and recording his activities throughout the day. Any chance that you might consider building up a more extensive library of motion for the community?

You could try the planet material applied to a sphere and then play with the parameters. That might be enough if the camera is moving at that speed or you could just use it as a base for a more detailed terrain. For what you are attempting I would consider scaling everything down. You could also search out some high altitude images on the internet, apply them to big grids and deforming to give a suitable landscape. It really depends on what the camera will be doing.

When are you going to show us something that you modelled, rigged and animated? Instead of prancing around in front of the camera in your tights you could be learning a thing or two about Animation Master! But seriously, Colin, that is stunning! I know there are still a couple of cps that are not behaving, (thearm pit, back of the neck and the belt), but on the whole it's perfect! Impressive! But not intimidating. I'm still going to the mountain!

Ha ha haaaa! Thanks, Nancy. It's good to be reminded of that in these days of ultra-realism. I'll pin that up somewhere. Now back to my BVH tests.

That gets my vote for the best looking A:M tree that I have seen to date!