Badminton Court

[elliotclem1]

Hi there,

 

Just started a new project and wounded what is the best way to make a net for my badminton court?

 

P.s How do i edit the title?

[MasterFunk]

You could try using a grid plugin. I know there is one you will just have to find it. then u could use simcloth to make it look like a net.

 

MasterFunk

 

Ps. I am only 14. Its nice to see other young animators.

[John Bigboote]

Depends...do you need to get really close to the net? If not, then try just using an image with an alpha channel and cookie-cut mode. I am only 45...when I was 14 all I had was my uncle Wilbur's old 1950's era regular8mm camera and I had to save my paper-route money for film and processing, you guys are LUCKY!

[ruscular]

How funny! I was a paper route boy with a subscription to Starlog and a 8MM camera as well!

 

I would have been a fat boy if I had AM: and a computer.

[elliotclem1]

I think i might try the grid method as i don't have decent photo imaging software.

 

When i made the grid and rendered it, it turns out like a box. I tried rendering as toon lines but that only rendered the outside splines.

 

What do you think is the best way?

 

Do you mean there is anther grid plug-in available?

[robcat2075]

select the splines and in the properties for the group set "render as lines" ON

[elliotclem1]

Ok thank's i will try that.

 

The only problem would be that when i come to edit the final image i will have to ender everything as spline. am i right?

[frosteternal]

Ok thank's i will try that.

 

The only problem would be that when i come to edit the final image i will have to ender everything as spline. am i right?

 

All objects set to "Render As Lines" will do just that - render as lines. (Great for representation of thin geometry, that would otherwise alias horribly by other render methods or be just annoying to work.)

[elliotclem1]

OK so i created a group containing the whole of the model.

 

Then I set 'render as lines' ON.

 

This is what I get:

 

[pwknox]

I just tried it as well and learned a few things. If you want it to look like a net then none of the splines can make patches. I did the grid wizard thing and got similar results to yours. Then I disconnected the splines and then got good results. Good luck.

[elliotclem1]

yer i got good results from that but is there a quick way of deleting the splines then just clicking on each cp manually and disconnecting the splines?

[pwknox]

...is there a quick way of deleting the splines...

Not that I know of. Shift-K is a hot key that will disconnect a them, but only one at a time. Sorry.

[Rodney]

Try this...

 

Select a spline and whack the 'Y' key.

This will break the valid patch by adding a new CP but leave the spline.

If you do this in the right places it'll break two patches at a time.

 

 

(here's another technique but don't let it distract you)

Apply an image with a transparent inside and visible outer frame as patch images on your grid.

You can select the entire grid and apply the image at the same time via Right Click / Add Image.

 

I call this the JohnL3D technique. He has several examples of the technique in the forum.

In one he demonstrates how you can recreate the look of wireframe render with a see-through Thom.

 

What I like out this technique over 'render as splines' is that you can't easily control the look of the rendered splines.

With the patch images you can customize the look considerably, round corners, add texture, etc.

[pwknox]

Rodney,

 

I like the JohnL3D method. I did a little more playing around with both methods. I learned a little more...

 

JohnL3D method casts shadow. Render as lines does not.

 

JohnL3D method deminished with distance. Render as lines does not; the line is just as thick in the forground as in the distance.

 

I had a little trouble getting clean sharp lines with the JohnL3D method. It is probably my technique. I tried a cookie-cut and it does not render properly with muti-pass. Single pass it works well. I tried a color map with a transparency but it shows the patches underneath. I think that the best result was a transparencey map with a color map applied as well. Multi-pass can be used with a transparency map.

 

Question: What is the difference between a cookie-cut and a transparency map? The cookie-cut seems to be a subset of the transparency map. Why have both?

[Rodney]

Question: What is the difference between a cookie-cut and a transparency map? The cookie-cut seems to be a subset of the transparency map. Why have both?

Rather than get lost in my own opinion here I'll extract and combine the info from the A:M Tech Ref on the subject.

 

The basic difference (oversimplified) is that transparency maps give you gradations of transparency whereas Cookie cuts are all or nothing. Experts please correct me where wrong. (Note: There seems to be an image of the leaf with background missing from the left side of the attached image but it should otherwise be good info)

[PaulX]

I think i might try the grid method as i don't have decent photo imaging software.

 

When i made the grid and rendered it, it turns out like a box. I tried rendering as toon lines but that only rendered the outside splines.

 

What do you think is the best way?

 

Do you mean there is anther grid plug-in available?

 

How about simply downloading 'Gimpshop' (it's free) and drawing your net pattern black on white paper, scan it and then use Gimp's 'color to alpha' to get rid of the white?

[Caroline]

I'm glad somebody asked (and answered) that, as it was something I'd been wondering.

 

So from reading that, this is what I get in summary:

 

That a cookie map pixel is there or not, according to the alpha (or keycolour). A transparency pixel is given an opacity based on the blackness of the mapped pixel.

 

However, a cookie map has a Value percentage, so that if I had an orange map on a blue model, and a value of 75%, then it would be 75% orange and 25% blue. A transparency value just affects opacity.

 

(Photoshop Elements is cheap, and Artweaver is free - I find the Gimp difficult)

[photoman]

For transparency's I used to use a old game making program where you can choose the alpha channel of the picture.

I think the website for the program (Its free) is Here

 

Young animator pride lol

 

-Photoman