thefreshestever Posted December 22, 2010 Posted December 22, 2010 that looks terrific! i like the bump map jacket as it is... Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted December 22, 2010 Hash Fellow Posted December 22, 2010 Nice outfit, none-the-less, Are sleeves unfinished or is that the intended structure? Quote
John Bigboote Posted December 22, 2010 Posted December 22, 2010 You have it ALL going on there... Paul, GREAT character! Quote
Paul Forwood Posted December 22, 2010 Author Posted December 22, 2010 Thanks, guys! I haven't sorted out his costume yet but I am very, very happy to discover that TSM2 is working in A:M16 Beta 5! This is roughly the concept that I am working to but everything is subject to change: And this is a low res, single pass before I start redoing the maps: Mapped_A05d_1pass_.mov Quote
Paul Forwood Posted December 22, 2010 Author Posted December 22, 2010 This is the start of the real hero, based on the previous model: FG_A00.mov Quote
nino banano Posted December 23, 2010 Posted December 23, 2010 Hi Paul, very nice characters here... Quote
Paul Forwood Posted December 23, 2010 Author Posted December 23, 2010 Thank you, Sabino. I continue to work on these guys while they get some training: FG_A00c.mov PB_StandLeap_A00.mov Lots of weighting to do and no face rigs yet. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted January 29, 2011 Author Posted January 29, 2011 I have made a few changes to this character but have somehow messed up the rig for the fingers. Also I have to redo all of the mapping/textures. Lad_Test_A00.mov Quote
Admin Rodney Posted January 29, 2011 Admin Posted January 29, 2011 I have made a few changes to this character This design makes him a lot more accessible. I like him. Very nice. So, is this an additional character or have you redesigned all the previous characters? They certainly look like they could inhabit the same world. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted January 30, 2011 Author Posted January 30, 2011 So, is this an additional character or have you redesigned all the previous characters? Well, it's an additional character really so they can all be given a role to play. The first model is loosely based on the proportions of the male lead in Disney's "Tangled/Rapunzel" and the second is loosely based on the proportions of Hiccup from Dreamwork's "How to train your dragon". Yes, I think that they could occupy the same world. Thanks, Rodney. Quote
largento Posted January 30, 2011 Posted January 30, 2011 Looks impressive with either proportions, Paul! Love the quilted look on the tunic! Quote
John Bigboote Posted January 30, 2011 Posted January 30, 2011 Great stuff! I really like the wrinkles in the PB Stand Leap movie around his upper legs... is that smartskinned, or perhaps a relationship set on a bump map....? Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted January 30, 2011 Hash Fellow Posted January 30, 2011 Yeah, I like that quilted outfit too! Quote
Paul Forwood Posted January 30, 2011 Author Posted January 30, 2011 The quilt effect and wrinkles are just bump mapping and simple geometry. I think the effect will be enough for these characters. Thanks for the comments. Quote
itsjustme Posted January 31, 2011 Posted January 31, 2011 It just keeps getting better, Paul! Great stuff. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 1, 2011 Author Posted February 1, 2011 Thanks, guys! I'm going to reflatten him today and redo the textures. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 6, 2011 Author Posted February 6, 2011 Another diversion: I usually use the Setup Machine 2 to rig my characters but after experiencing a couple of glitches with it recently I decided to have a go at building my own simple rig. It's still pretty primitive but I was able to squeeze this out of it: Walk_Test_A00c.mov Walk_Test_A00d.mov Not good, I know but I'll keep playing with the rig. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 Thanks, Gene! I will replace this video with a smaller file tomorrow: (Done) Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 Walk_Test_A00h.mov Well, it's a bit smaller. Quote
Tore Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 I see that you too get these black line artifacts in your volumetrics. Guess that this is rendered multipass in v. 16 rc1, which is where/when I get them. Maybe you should file an error report? Nice walk, by the way :-) Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 Thanks, ToreB! Way back in this thread I thrashed my way through this volumetric light artifact problem before. I will have to read up on what I did to overcome the problem last time. I recall a problem regarding alpha, ie. if there was no background image or skydome the streaks would appear. To test that I enclosed this scene in a skydome, or rather sphere, but the streaks are still there. Back to my notes ... -------------------- Edit: Here is a quote from my earlier explorations into volumetric lights and the streak anomalies: I have been concentrating on the light and model properties up to now and have found that I can eliminate the anomalies by keeping the width softness at either 0% or 100%. Anywhere inbetween causes a problem. I have eliminated just about every other possibilty. I haven't tried messing with my current project yet but I will report back when I have. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 7, 2011 Author Posted February 7, 2011 That's it! Turn width softness to 0% and the streaks should disappear. I tried 100% and they were still visible but 0% does the trick. Walk_Test_A00m.mov Quote
Tore Posted February 7, 2011 Posted February 7, 2011 Haven't tried that - but it is still an error, that renders the use of volumetrics impossible...for my purposes anyway. And the 0% softness solution makes the volumetric look ugly and computerish. There are in general a lot of problems with the volumetric/fog/glow in both 15j and 16rc1, and I have posted error reports on some of them - not the streaks though. As you mention there is also strange things happening when using standard (transparent) background, which is the reason that I always enclose my scenes in a giant black sphere :-/ Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 18, 2011 Author Posted February 18, 2011 Don't know if I'll be able to get back to this thread. (Currently typing from the little chair in the kid's playroom at Princess Alice's Hospice.) Quote
Admin Rodney Posted February 19, 2011 Admin Posted February 19, 2011 Hope everything is okay Paul. My thoughts and prayers are with you. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 19, 2011 Author Posted February 19, 2011 Sorry. I meant to say thank you. I meant to say thank you for all of the years of pleasure that I have had hanging out around here while my world was falling apart. Having this creative space full of diverse opinions and wide ranging talents helped to keep me focused on the important truth that, no matter how different... we are all the same. Here, on A:M forums, and some other forums too, I could feel connected with like minds and be inspired by people like you. It has been a great space that I have found creative value in. A place in which to inspire and in which to be inspired. A place where we could practice the art of telling our own story and writing our own endings. There have been a great many people here, past and present, who have touched me deeply and I just want to say THANK YOU... ...thank you. The back ache of a decade ago, (just an industrial accident that I will continue to work around), is now a rapidly debilitating and disfiguring terminal illness that I was told would kill me by last November and is doing it's best to finish me off on a daily basis. I hold tight to my delusion that I will overcome this evil injustice and step back into my life that was so good. At the moment I only have this primitive connection to the internet for an hour or so per day, with no access to any of my creative tools, but when I get back home I hope to pick up my tools and get back to telling my story, or at least improving my modelling, for in this cgworld I can still sore high with the eagles or dive deep with the aquatic creatures that my imagination can dream up. I am free and can live for ever. Thank you all for making this place somewhere that I still love to come to. Paul ----- Quote
*A:M User* Shelton Posted February 19, 2011 *A:M User* Posted February 19, 2011 Paul Thanks for letting us know the situation. And as Rodney has stated our thoughts and prayers are with you. You have been a source of inspiration for me and many others. I always look forward to updates from you. Keep splining! Steve Quote
NancyGormezano Posted February 19, 2011 Posted February 19, 2011 Yes Paul, please keep coming back. I for one am very thankful for your presence and always wonderful, masterful and inspiring work. no matter how different we are all the same Beautifully said. My heart and wishes are with you. Quote
HomeSlice Posted February 19, 2011 Posted February 19, 2011 Paul, the poignance of your words is deeply touching. Thank you for sharing some of yourself with us over the years. You have become an indelible thread in the fabric of our worlds, reaching out beyond this humble forum. Thank you for that. I do hope you continue to post here for a long time to come. Quote
nino banano Posted February 20, 2011 Posted February 20, 2011 Hi Paul...My thoughts and prayers are with you too... keep posting as posible... Quote
mouseman Posted February 20, 2011 Posted February 20, 2011 Your contributions and spirit have been greatly appreciated! Rest when you need to, but know we're always glad to see you here when you're up to it. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted February 27, 2011 Author Posted February 27, 2011 Thanks for all of your kind words, friends. (Yes, I do count you as friends...cyber friends). Your words are a great lifter. I am hanging in here as best I can. Heck, I only just bought my annual subscription recently so I have no intention of going anywhere too soon. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted March 13, 2011 Author Posted March 13, 2011 I'm going to dump a load of test render images into this thread. They will mostly be collections of test stills that may be of interest or not. They will be simple rough images full of proxy models and very little finish, if any, but may inspire or educate or provide a laugh or yawn. First off if a series of images produced while attempting a landscape test for a CG Society landscape competition which I never completed: YosemiteWIP.mov The second is a similar sequence for a second image for the same competition. The sequence is not in the correct order but I may fix that later, or not.: SierraNevadaWIP.mov Quote
Paul Forwood Posted March 13, 2011 Author Posted March 13, 2011 This is a link to a movie that my son, Josh, worked on in his first year at university: http://vimeo.com/20957369 CAUTION: Some bad language. He is currently working on a natural history short, a number of websites and a load of other stuff. These are all final projects as he graduates later this year. Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted March 13, 2011 Hash Fellow Posted March 13, 2011 Hi Paul, i just caught your note about your back. That's very disappointing news to hear. I hope there's a way to turn that around, for your sake and for us as we all do value seeing your work and your input on the forum. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted June 1, 2011 Author Posted June 1, 2011 I have been playing around with this model, making him suitable for a game model, low splineage and very simple rig. I was finding the TSM2 rig just too heavy for exporting to game engines as it uses more than 250 bones. My simple rig has about 38 bones at the moment, which makes it harder to animate, but makes it much better for exporting as X files. (I wish we had an fbx exporter though. X files apparently include separate CPs for every patch which contributes to large file sizes X file to FBX conversions can now be done in Ultimate Unwrap! ). MorphTest_A01f.mov Anyway, what I wanted to ask concerns copying keys from one Action to another. I am fairly certain that it was possible in the past to select all the keys on one frame, copy them and then paste them into another Action for the same model. This doesn't seem to work anymore. Can someone confirm that it used to work or if there is still some way of doing this without starting from scratch? Quote
John Bigboote Posted June 1, 2011 Posted June 1, 2011 Lookin good, Paul... funny! Sorry to hear about your situation. You are a 'pillar' of strength here in this community. Love your work! Quote
Paul Forwood Posted June 1, 2011 Author Posted June 1, 2011 Thanks, Matt. I'm not too bad at the moment, though I am still the incredible shrinking man and I do have to be very careful how I move around, but all in all I am better than I have been for quite a while, even walking without a stick at times and without any pain killers. Any ideas about copying keys from one Action to another? Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted June 1, 2011 Hash Fellow Posted June 1, 2011 Anyway, what I wanted to ask concerns copying keys from one Action to another. I am fairly certain that it was possible in the past to select all the keys on one frame, copy them and then paste them into another Action for the same model. This doesn't seem to work anymore. Can someone confirm that it used to work or if there is still some way of doing this without starting from scratch? I just tried it , it appears to work in v16. Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted June 1, 2011 Hash Fellow Posted June 1, 2011 Two ideas to consider... I have been playing around with this model, making him suitable for a game model, low splineage and very simple rig. I was finding the TSM2 rig just too heavy for exporting to game engines as it uses more than 250 bones. My simple rig has about 38 bones at the moment, which makes it harder to animate, but makes it much better for exporting as X files. -rig and animate with TSM2 like you really want to -bake the animation including constraint results -swap in a version of your model that didn't have rigger run on it yet (it would have none of the non-geometry control bones, just the bones your mesh is attached to.) -delete all the channels pertaining to now-unnecessary bones (you can make a filter to make it easy to do this again once you've done it once) -export (I wish we had an fbx exporter though. X files apparently include separate CPs for every patch which contributes to large file sizes). You dont' want the mesh at all? Swap in a version of your character that has all the mesh deleted and leaves just the bones, then export. Quote
Paul Forwood Posted June 3, 2011 Author Posted June 3, 2011 I just tried it , it appears to work in v16. Really? I have tried it with the last two versions of AM16a, 32bit and 64 bit, without any luck. No keys are copied at all. -rig and animate with TSM2 like you really want to -bake the animation including constraint results -swap in a version of your model that didn't have rigger run on it yet (it would have none of the non-geometry control bones, just the bones your mesh is attached to.) -delete all the channels pertaining to now-unnecessary bones (you can make a filter to make it easy to do this again once you've done it once) -export That looks like it would work. Thanks, Robert! Quote
Paul Forwood Posted June 18, 2011 Author Posted June 18, 2011 Just a bit of fun while rigging: FaceTest_A00c.mov Quote
Hash Fellow robcat2075 Posted June 18, 2011 Hash Fellow Posted June 18, 2011 He's very flexible! Quote
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