wsimike
-
Posts
61 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Posts posted by wsimike
-
-
Must be what's got Rabbit all ready to fight. Maybe he got popped in the eye and its escalating from there?
I'll go with that..
Way ta think on yer feet!
:-)
-
Name: Mike
Exercise Completed: Exercise 3
Date Completed: Aug. 13, 2006
Instructor: TAoAM Book and some goofing around
Remarks: Well, it's "blah" compared to what many others have done in this thread, but I at least had some fun with it :-). I'm not sure what that wierd artifact under the rabbit's left eye is from, but it's shown up in every render.
-
Name: Mike Vogel
Exercise Completed: Exercise 2: Chorus Line
Date Completed: Sunday August 13, 2006
Instructor: TAoAM Book
Remarks/Suggestions for Improvement: Not a suggestion, but does it look to anyone else like the Knight's knee is going way high in that clip? Or is it maybe just the dead-on angle making it look that way?
Link To the completed avi:
-
Hi all,
Wondering if anyone has suggestions for a good online file storage site? I'll need one to place some of these finished TAoAM projects...
I've done a google for them, but to be honest, I'm not sure which is reliable, secure, etc. I've tried one in the past and it seemed fine - until I tried referencing files I'd uploaded there. It started blocking the files (and it was nothing copyrighted). When I logged in to check on the files they were deleted. So I really don't want to find another one where they mess with, block or lose your files like that..
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Mike
-
Name: Mike Vogel
Exercise Completed: Exercise 1: You're The Director
Date Completed: 8/12/06
Instructor: (Optional)
TAoAM Book
Remarks/Suggestions for Improvement: (Optional but certainly appreciated)
No suggestions for improvement, just a Thank You for making the adjusted KeeKat model available.
Will post with the next one asap
-
I found a fixed knight model, but not keekat.
There is no 'fixed' Keekat. He refuses to go through that procedure.
As its fairly easy to tweak the foot and position it as needed in the exercise I've seen it as a good introduction to adjusting the basic rig. Now animating Keekat with that foot... hmmm... that could be a little more problematic if we don't fix his foot.
Mike,
If you follow the link in the very first post of Exercise #2 you'll find the discussion and download for the Knight. Knight's Knees Problem
The exercise post is 'stickied'. The easiest way to get a post ignored is to 'stickie' it I'm told so that may be why people are missing it.
I increased the font size to emphasize it a bit more.
There are similar links in the other exercises that use the Knight too.
We'll try to provide a more visible means of identifying the fix but the best means I can think of is to read through what others have done before.
People have reposted the Knight several times so I know continue to miss the initial links.
The best I can do right now is say 'Thanks' to everyone for keeping the issue in the public eye.
Thanks!
Rodney
Hiya Rodney,
Fair enough on the Knight situation. I'm still on the Keekat issue, though. Don't want to move forward on one before the other is completed correctly. That's why I didn't bother looking for the Knight exercise yet.
As for the Keekat debacle.. Your suggestion that it be considered an exercise on how to fix the basic rig... eh... <shakes hand side to side>... kinda beyond the scope of the exercise, dontcha think? Especially being the very first thing a new user is introduced to. Seems a bit more like a "well, it's all in how you look at it!" scenario. And, you're assuming knowledge on the user's part that they shouldn't be expected to have yet - being at Exercise #1 and all.
Some will know to tool around and maybe figure it out. The point is, they shouldn't have to. That's not what the tutorial is about.
Perhaps I'm just being nit-picky, but I've worked for a software company as a QA Analyst. I know that if I gave a "work-around" answer like that to a customer about something not working as instructed - and it was due to a flaw on our end - it wouldn't have gone over very well... with the customer, or with my superiors.
I just think it should be investigated and a solution be found, even while the work-around is suggested.
-
Yup Mike. If you look in the individual threads for each exercises you'll see more information about these oddities. In some cases you'll find links to working models.
Everybody does read those things right?
Well, my first response seems to have been "lost", so I'll try again.
Prior to posting that message, I did search the forums for an answer, first because often times you can find that others have had the same question answered for them and it saves my fingers the time typing and their fingers the time typing it... again. Also, because often times asking a question results in being told to search the forums anyway.. so I basically eliminate that step from the get-go.
I searched the forums again after reading the responses here.. but did not find anything any more helpful. In fact, rather ironically, I did find one response wherein the poster is told to search the forums for an answer. Go figure.
Now, I did search for different variations on the topic, including words as keekat, posing, lesson 1, etc... none came back with anything useful that helped me fix the problem. So I posted here.
Also, someone here recommended downloading the files. I searched the site, and the forums, for said models. but was unable to find anything about them. Some help in tracking them down would be appreciated.
And finally, as a suggestion... If a topic/issue comes up that seems to be encountered by more than a couple people and can be identified and fixed with a set series of steps.. perhaps then it would be a great idea to post a stickied topic addressing the problem and providing instructions to those who encounter it on how to go about fixing it so they can move on. This way, if someone does post a question about it, they can simply be referred to the stickied topic, or, perhaps they will find it on their own.
Thank you.
-
Hello..
I'm wondering if anyone else has had this problem and/or if there's a fix for it? I'm working through the manual tutorials so I can follow through and get my AM diploma :-). However. I'm stuck on the first lesson, "You're The Director".
If you'll look at the attached screenshot, when Keekat's Dynamic Pose is at 100%, his right foot is not positioned as it is in the picture, but instead gets sorta "rolled" to one side. What's more, when I put the slider back to 0%, that same foot remains in the same position, even while everything else goes back to the default pose.
What to do?
I'm using version 2005/Sasquatch (12v+)
Thanks!
EDIT: Ran into another, similar problem with Lesson 2. When the models are doing the CanCan, their bodies are not twisting correctly for the second kick, but staying positioned in the original angle, so their left legs are crossing over their bodies in a very unnatural looking way. Is there some kind of problem with the files themselves, or newer ones I should be downloading from somewhere? This can't be right.
-
Not quite sure how to explain this, but I'm using the latest release/update of A:M 11.0 and am having trouble when trying to undo any operations.
Specifically, I'm trying to lathe a bowl - no big deal right?
Well, first... for some reason when I try to patch together the hole left in the middle of the bowl after splining, no matter how I do it, starting with a 3-CP spline, or a 5 CP-spline, then cutting off the two end ones after... I end up with a "loop" around the middle one where all the others will criss-cross.. I hope that makes sense :-)...
So... no problem, I use the ol' Undo - but then it gets really wierd... I use Undo, and all of a sudden CP's are "warped" off into a completely different area of the workspace with the spline running of with them.. using Undo again worsens it.. and so forth..
Last time it happened, my entire system froze up for a good 30 seconds, and I practically had to hard-reboot the PC...
So, has anyone else experienced this?
Thanks..
Mike
-
Yeah, I was just reading about that. Sounds nasty..
I guess I've been spared (knocks on wood).. I have Norton AV going and a Firewall set up.. so I think I blocked it out. I read that it went out over the weekend and my system was up and online pretty much constantly... I would have gotten it by now, I think.
I hope everyone else on here was spared it as well...
Mike
-
Nice!
Okay! Well, that'll be first on m "to-do" list when I get home...
Thanks for the clarification!
Take care,
Mike
-
Hello...
Just want to make sure I got this right..
I purchased A:M and also got the Orangutang CD.. mine shows as version 10.5r. Purchasing that one also "bought me in" to version 11, so I don't have to pay the additional $99, but just download it?
If so, that would be great.. cause I was just thinking "bummer.. if I'd only waited a couple more weeks..."
Thanks..
Mike
-
@ragtag:
Hey there..
Well, using a grayscale "heightmap" or "displacement map" is one of the methods commonly used to get a very "general" type of landscape in many engines. But, the one thing they don't allow for is the inherent modeling of things like perfectly vertical cliffs (since the vertices are equidistant from each other, there's always going to be a slope), or especially overhangs.... This is where I think Animation:Master comes in so well... because you have such fine control over the exact curve of a surface, you can really create some very organic and natural looking terrain to be as smooth, or jagged, as you want.
Modeling things like caves or any other such terrain feature would be relatively easy to do...
I really have to look into this more and see what people are doing in this area...
Thanks!
-
Hey there..
I'm thinking it is possible to use the spline format directly. I have seen a few instances where spline/bezier based geometry is being supported in real-time rendering.. which is pretty amazing.. My guess is they're handling a Level-of-Detail that increases or decreases the amount of subdivisions per patch based on distance.. not unlike the current polygonal methods used in games.
As for it being converted to polysl.. that's actually what I was thinking when I asked. I just failed to say it as such.. my thinking was, is it possible to create terrain in Hash and then export it into a polygon format to be used in a game.. I'm thinking it would make creating and modifying terrain alot easier than doing it in with a bunch of triangles...
As for Tak being all A:M - that would be awesome! The game does look very entertaining.. I have that on my "get list" for the future, as soon as I've gotten a couple others out of the way...
Thanks!
Mike
-
Hello..
Quick question here...
I know that A:M has been used to varying degrees for use in real-time 3D games now.. I know that, at least, the commercials for TAK were done with it - I don't know about the actual in-game models, though. I know there are various converters/exporters for them...
I know that, for a MMORPG called "Saga of Ryzom" (beautiful game, you should check it out - www.ryzom.com), their terrain is created via bezier curves/patches.. which I don't think would be too different in practice than Hash patches. Reading that about their engine is what made me curious about doing something similar with A:M.
Assuming that using A:M to create objects to export as low-poly geometry for games is feasible.. is it feasible to use it to create terrains? Having the kind of control and flexibility that splines/patches provide, I think, would allow for some incredible results - especially based on some of what I've seen people do with it already.
Can this be done.. and/or has it been done already?
Thanks!
Mike
-
Hello all...
I'd posted this last night, but then realized that I posted it to the wrong forum (WIP).. so, I decided to manually move it over here...
Here's the original message:
---------------------------------
I'm wondering if there's another tutorial somewhere that would be a good replacement for the giraffe tutorial in the AOA:M manual? Reason is, I'm having a hard time trying to discern, from the side view, where the leg on the "far side" ends and the one I'm supposed to be tracing starts.. it's all sorta just combined together.. and I don't want the poor thing coming out looking like a deformed giraffe.
In all, I just think a different, but similarly-focused tutorial (modeling for animation) would do me better..
Any suggestions?
How about those Anzovin CDs.... are any of them a good substitute?
Thanks in advance!
Mike
-
Ack...
I just realized I posted this to the wrong forum.. I thought I was in the General Discussion forum..
Can an Admin move it, possibly? That'd be great.. Thanks!
Mike
-
Hello...
I'm wondering if there's another tutorial somewhere that would be a good replacement for the giraffe tutorial in the AOA:M manual? Reason is, I'm getting a head-ache trying to discern, from the side view, where the leg on the "far side" ends and the one I'm supposed to be tracing starts.. it's all sorta just combined together..
Also, the tutorial sorta leaves out what I think is an important detail.. It instructs you to shape the neck from the top - but there's nothing really to shape it from. There is the top "seam" decal, but it doesn't have a head and I don't know how large to scale it to to make sure I'm not adjusting things too big or small..
In all, there's just too many "little" things for me to feel comfortable with what I'm doing coming out correct.
In all, I just think a different, but similarly-focused tutorial (modeling for animation) would do me better..
Any suggestions?
How about those Anzovin CDs.... are any of them a good substitute?
Thanks in advance!
Mike
-
Maybe, just maybe I really want to make my own toons, and have wanted to all my life!!
...
What a wonderfully optimistic thread!!!
@Doug:
I singled out a couple specific comments because they hit a certain "nail on the head" for me.
My own path to deciding to seriously pursue animation is rooted in a long-time desire to design games. Since the original NES came out, I've wanted to design games. I made a go of it a few times and on one occasion, the project even got some recognition in PC Gamer... but it fell apart... and maybe for good reason :-).
Three things that have remained consistent through every idea I've ever thought up or game design I've ever worked on are a strong central character or characters; a deep, unfolding story and an emphasis on drawing the player in and making them *care* about what their character is experiencing.
Basically, it all boils down to this... I've always wanted to weave a good story. I was aiming for game design as the vehicle. And, just recently - very recently actually - I had an epiphany of sorts and realized that perhaps game design isn't the direction I should be working in. Thus, I came to order Animation:Master (a program that an old friend and co-worker enthusiastically introduced me to back in 2000) and... here I am!
So, while I won't discount game design altogether as a possibility somewhere down the road, I'm convinced that learning computer animation is the way I should go. Like others have said, seeing the work of so many others, in these forums and elsewhere, is incredibly inspiring and is proof to me that you can really create anything you can imagine.
As for the second quote about the "optimistic thread".. I agree! That is one of the reasons why I started it. Creativity can be incredibly contagious. By sharing what has and continues to inspire each of us, I believe we are directly or indirectly further inspiring others. I know I have more than a few times said "Awesome..." out loud while reading the replies in this thread and immediately wanted to jump right into A:M :-).
If I may quote a lyric from a favorite band of mine, Rush:
"Energy is contagious. Enthusiasm spreads"
I think that sums it up nicely :-).
Thanks!
Mike
-
@CRToonMike and omoanime:
Cool stuff!
I really like the idea of using Flash to create the animatic.. I don't have Flash, but I do have Swish.. which will do the same thing. Excellent approach.. I'd never even have thought of that :-).
Speaking of Anime, I actually bought a book on how to draw Anime-style art today. I'm going to start now because a future animation of mine (one that I'm *so* looking forward to working on...) is going to feature some anime-style characters.. the less "exagerrated" end of the spectrum, though; the more "elvish" look.. tall, lithe and very elegant. It's going to be a fantasy-themed, bitter-sweet story; potentially (hopefully) a tear-jerker. As I said.. I can't wait to work on it... all in due time.
Anyway... thanks for sharing!
Take care,
Mike
-
Hello again!
First, I want to say that I *really* like it here in these forums. Y'all are some very cool folks. Very informative, supportive, cooperative, helpful and so far as I've seen, always respectful. I'm sure I don't need to tell you how rare it is to see any *one* of those qualities in an online forum, much less *all* of them... So.. Kudos!
Okay... now on to my question :-)
Well, since the last question I asked has been getting such awesome responses, I decided to post another, to take the discussion a little farther :-)...
Basically, I'm curious as to what the first "real" animation/story you are planning to create with A:M will be - or if you've already done so, what it was.
To explain a little more, this would be the first full production that is not a "test" or a "learning experience", but is a fully scripted/storyboarded production with sound and/or dialog (if applicable), that has a distinguishable beginning and end. "Fluffy", "Mosey: The Sequel" or other similar films would be an example.
If you don't want to give any details away, then don't. Wouldn't want to cheat anyone any surprises.. But, if you can provide a basic premise or theme, that would be great!
I'll start:
In order to keep things simple and not overwhelming myself, I've decided to use a pretty simple object as the main character of mine.. a piece of pasta. I don't want to give too much away, but let's say it'll be a "goofy but horrific" tale :-).
Some goals for it are:
- To implement as much as possible of what I'll have learned about Animation: Master in a complete production.
- To give something as "plain" as a piece of pasta life-like personality.
- To create a plot that, while being a clear "flight of fantasy", totally makes sense in the context of the story
- Since there will be no dialog, the appropriate use of music must be implemented.
- At the "high end", to evoke some kind of positive emotional response, hopefully laughter, from the viewer - so I'll know I've succeeded, on some level, of telling an at least entertaining story.
- At the low-end, not to bore anyone to death :-)
There you go...
I know I won't get to this in the very near future, as I'm still going through the tutorials in the manual and plan to pick up that A:M 2002 book (checked it out - some *great* stuff in there!) and work through that. I'll tackle my first real project when I feel fully confident to do so... not a moment sooner.
Thanks!
Mike
-
@Adam:
Hey.. very cool Poser stuff! I tried that program and would always end up with models that were horribly distorted.. arms twisted behind their heads, legs all pretzel'd up... lol. Pretty bad.. Needless to say the tools were a bit hard for me to figure out.. heheh.
I like how each of your images have a "story" to tell... there's something happening in each scene that is conveyed in just that one frame. That's something I'm especially a fan of...
I can just about imagine what your animations with A:M will be like :-).. I look forward to seeing them!
-
Then along came the Persistence of Vision Raytracer (POV).
The imagery people do with this software has been an inspiration to me
for years and years, and continues to be.
Listen up everyone. The skills and understanding of 3d imagery I learned using this
software has made it possible for me to open any 3d program and understand how
it works. Modeling, textures, mapping, animation, its all there.
End of POV commercial
Commercial is probably not the best word. Its not acompetitor to AM, its free and is all text editor based. Great way to
develop a working "3D brain".
@PLJack:
Heheh.. you sound so much like a good friend of mine. He's one of those people who are truly gifted enough to have a talented left *and* right brain.
He's a genius when it comes to programming.. he's working on his own language as we speak.. sick..
He was also always a huge fan of POV-RAY and tried to get me into it for some time... I could never get the hang of it, but I know *exactly* what you mean when you say it teaches you to develop a 3D brain. There are no visuals to work with, no buttons, no grid lines... only a text editor, an imagination and a mental understanding of 3D space. Even textures are formulaic in nature; you "program" a marble texture. And he did some *insane* stuff with it.. modeled a full detailed "Mech-Warrior" style robot in a round room then animated it to have a camera rotate around the robot.. Back when he did that, on a blazing 486 if I remember right.. he had that puppy rendering all night.
There *are* modelers now that will export to POV "script"... and there have been for some time.. I've played with a few of them. But the purists definitely prefer a good ol' ascii editor :-).
As for the Timex Sinclaire - I had one of those! That membranic keyboard! And the tape players.. heheh.. yep.. nothing quite like "fast-forwarding" or "rewinding" to the beginning of a program :-)...
Anyway.. great stuff, all.. Keep it comin'!!
Mike
-
Very cool! Great responses so far :-)
One thing that I didn't ask in the first question but am curious of, is what was the catalyst for your deciding to pursue Animation.. with A:M or otherwise? Was there any single event, movie, anything that you experienced that made you think "Oh.. I gotta learn to do that..."
Like... for me, it was that one ElfQuest #21 cover and imagining the events that led up that moment. That "planted the seed", so to speak, for me.
By the way...
Here's a link to that specific cover:
http://www.elfquest.com/gallery/images/marvel21.jpg
And here's the cover to the first EQ comic I got that hooked me:
http://www.elfquest.com/gallery/images/marvel16.jpg
Thanks!
Trouble working with models...
in New Users
Posted
Hello..
This isn't a complaint about anything, but rather a "how do you deal with this" sort of thing.
I'm working through the AoAM book and am still on the "It's a Pitch" project. It's taking me some time thanks to rl issues and, most pertinently, because I'm finding myself having trouble working on it.
Basically, I'm finding it very difficult to work with the armature. It seems that I can't get the right angle to move/rotate things and it's causing me alot of headaches. For example, I'm working in left-side view and everything looks fine.. until I look at it head on or from any other angle, then I realize that everything is out-of-whack looking. Then it's a challenge trying to find an angle that I can discern one bone from another, making sure I'm selecting the right bone, and then selecting the appropriate part of it for the task I need to complete. Not always trivial when you have several bones all overlapping each other in a given view.
All in all, I'm finding myself going back and having to fix, re-fix and re-re-fix a single part of the model, like the arm when you're bringing it back for the pitch. The arm's fine.. but the hand looks all funny. So I adjust that.. looks fine.. 'til I look at it in another view.. and so forth.
How do you all get used to working with rigs/models? How do you get your eyes to adjust, or know that what you're adjusting from one angle isn't throwing it off in some other way?
I hope that makes sense.
Thanks :-)