bighop

Very cool. I don't think it is too fast. I like the speed.

I ordered mine from Creation Engine. http://www.creationengine.com/ They may still have some. I liked the CD's, they were interesting. Is there something specific you're looking for?

Looks good! You may want to add some details like this: Sorry, I had a long day and couldn't resist.

Yes I did see that. I thought it was not being used anymore. I have to get cracking and make one.

I haven't seen any new videos posted to the film gallery in a long time. Is this not being done anymore?

A good start, the first model has a "Boba Fett" look to it.

Looks good! I don't know if this has been said, but could you animate a light so it looks like the passing of a day?

I didn't know 15 could do that. Is there a tutorial on how to edit renders together?

I see what you mean about a little more slow. The reason they are going around several times is that there is narration that is going on. (I have a cold so my voice is off) I used a brass material on the spike and you're right, it is too rough. I'm sure the spikes were steel, but I wanted some contrast as it was going together. Too much of the same color just looked bad. I know education is always changing. What is sad is that State testing drives the curriculum not what we would like to see as change. What I'm working on is not on a State test, so it will be over looked as something needed. A separate thread for education is a good idea. Thanks for your input!

Ok, here is more to the animation. I still haven't added any voice over or sound. Each part of the track will be explained as it is spinning, and then the track being assembled. I haven't added a close up of the spikes going in, that is a good idea. Let me know what you all think. Andy new_animation.mov

Phatso, You are correct about the sound track. I should have written down what I wanted to say first, and then planned the animation. I was interested in seeing the animation first. However, as for the textbooks being obsolete just Thomas Edison felt the same way when he started his motion picture company. I think we're still not their yet. Thanks for the input.

I have an old mac but I'm running 10.4. I'm using the web download. Click on the apple in the upper left corner. "About this mac" will tell you the version you are running.

Hey Gerry, Nice video. I never gave a thought to using the toon render feature. Does it render quicker? I'll keep posting as I develop this unit.

Thanks for the links. I won't be doing just trains. I'm hoping to create other animations as well. This is my starting point. I think you are right aout the spike. Time to render....

Thanks for the tips, you're right about the film speed and audio. I'll include the final one too. I'm not sure if I want to put it into flash, or just a quicktime movie.

This is a animation for my students, I teach 4th grade. We learn about transportation in social studies (Michigan Studies) so I created an animation to show how railroad tracks go together. I'm hoping to add more detail and more content to different animations as time goes on. This was my main reason buying AM, when I saw the program at a technology conference, I wanted to use it to help teach my students. I have to add sound and a voice over. This animation is a little rough, because I slowed some parts down in iMovie after I saw how fast some parts were. Let me know what you think. Andy track_animation.mov

Ahhh.... thanks, that explains a lot!

Adjusting the bump was a good idea. That's another thing I don't know about decals. If they give you the flexibility that materials offer.

Thanks. What adds more time...decals or materials?

Ok, I did the tutorial on Yves' web site (very helpful by the way) for wood grain. http://www.ypoart.com/ I've been trying to make railroad ties. ( Rodger Reynolds has been a great help by the way). Anyway, I made the material and it looks fine, how ever in the final render the grain seems to go away. I notice if I angle the model or camera this happens. Is this a normal look for a material? I thought you would be able to make out the grain no matter what angle it's at. Any advice would be great. Andy

When I render anything I get an additional file with ".sinfo" on the end. What are these files, what do you open them with and do you need to keep them?

Thanks for the in put.

Thanks for replying. That part I get, but I want the map to have some color to it. It all looks brown, no matter what color stones I use. I didn't know if I had to prep the photo in photoshop first.

Ok, I'm trying to make a stone road bed, but I'm having trouble with this. I used a picture as a displacement map, and the same photo to add color. But no matter what color stones I use, it just looks bad. Is there something I need to do to the displacement map prior to applying it? ***The displacement map is first and the color map is next**

Well that is a big project if you have never done that before. The first link is an on line tutorial that does just that. It puts the animation into live action. http://www.hash.com/users/ed/tutorials/fpm/fpm.htm The second link is to a store that has a training CD for this topic. I've used it and it is very helpful. Sam Buntrock narrates you through all the steps. http://www.pluginz.com/product/12431?category=190 Things to think about: 1. was this video taped on a tripod? If not without using a tracking software, it is going to be more difficult to match 2. You may want to convert your quicktime into Targa files and import them that way. Take your video and decal it onto a plane. (In the training cd he goes over how to compensate for camera distortion, but basically you add a bone to the model and make an action that moves the model in and out to adjust for distortion) 3. When you use the "front projection Mapping" you have to make simple models to catch shadows 4. Your camera should be "orthogonal" not "perspective" which is the default setting. I did this last year. This was just a photo, but it took some time doing. http://www.hash.com/forums/index.php?showt...20&hl=homer Hope that helps. Andy