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Poll

Who had the best walk cycle?

menamarco
- 4 (16%)
AirAKose
- 8 (32%)
ENSONIQ5
- 13 (52%)

Total Members Voted: 17

Voting closed: September 13, 2009, 03:08:13 pm


Pages: 1 [2] 3 4

Author Topic: [ COMPLETE ] Challenge #8: Walk Cycle  (Read 112913 times)

ENSONIQ5

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #15 on: August 22, 2009, 08:55:45 am »

Cheers Headwax, you are quite right, it is a bit too smooth.  What makes it so difficult to achieve a really accurate cycle is that you don't have full control over every aspect of a Figure in Sequence mode.  For example, you can't change the relative vertical location of the Figure's root bone, so the Figure is locked in place, which makes defining the leg action that much more difficult, if body motion is to be taken into account.  I suppose it would be possible to build a pair of angled bones from the base bone, kinda like a spring, and have all other bones sprout from these.  I will see if this works better, and hopefully get a bit more undulation in the spine.

I plan to have the "dog" go from a walk to a trot to a flat-out sprint, though I may be being a bit over ambitious again.  Up to this point I have not used any reference images or videos in constructing this, but I might need to search for a couple of dog/cat/horse running vids to pick apart the action for the faster gaits.  So far there is around 12 hours work in this, not including render time, so I am very aware of how fast the deadline approacheth.
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kreator

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #16 on: August 22, 2009, 11:13:05 am »

I always add two bones Like scissors then add another bone and rename it to Newroot, and add my object to that.  Manipulating the scissor bones will give the bounce effect. Johnars tut on a basic walk shows that as well. 


Good luck with the challenge, I wait with baited breath for HiHoSilvers!!
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ENSONIQ5

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #18 on: August 22, 2009, 07:48:02 pm »

Thanks for the links, interesting stuff.  Also interesting how little the horse's spine curls in and out at full run compared to a dog or cat.

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ENSONIQ5

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #19 on: August 23, 2009, 10:10:16 am »

Test render for the "run" cycle.

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captaindrewi

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #20 on: August 24, 2009, 03:12:52 pm »

very smart. benchmark stuff.
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headwax

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #21 on: August 25, 2009, 05:58:46 pm »

gee there goes the neighbourhood, talk about scaring off the other entries :) ho
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ENSONIQ5

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #22 on: August 25, 2009, 10:59:29 pm »

Nuthin to do with me mate, animation just isn't as popular as still frame imaging among Anim8ors, which I have always found a bit odd really, considering the program's name.  To me, a model un-animated is a project un-finished, and still frames are for test renders only... but that's just my opinion I guess.  With the option of using pre-made models for this comp I am a bit stumped as to why so many anim8ors haven't taken up this challenge.
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kreator

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #23 on: August 26, 2009, 02:25:34 am »

Quote
being able to get bones to follow a target object woud be a grande help

The Rig will follow a Target ...did you mean individual bones???

I agree with Ensoniq5, anim8or should really be used more for animating rather than just "STILLS" perhaps its the weak timeframe that you are allowed on these animating challenges that is the issue,,, or as it seems that most on this site have some fixation about doing Games stuff that a Shoot em up challenge would be more appropriate
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Mills

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #24 on: August 26, 2009, 05:20:57 am »

Definitely just a question of time for me; don't have time to produce a respectable animation by the deadline, and don't want to just post something old as it seems object-defeating.

I don't think people come to Anim8or looking for a 3D animation tool specifically, they're just looking for a 3D package to work with (the name is incidental!). Certainly I found the program needing something to produce a very basic, still render. Still and moving renders are very different things as I'm sure you all know well; but the render time is always quite limiting in producing animations. It's feasible to wait 50 hours for a still frame, but who would wait even a quarter of that time if it was one frame out of 100? A still render can be a nice, easy, and very complete product in a comparatively short time frame.
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headwax

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #25 on: August 26, 2009, 05:24:08 am »

well said Mills :)
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Pincho

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #26 on: August 26, 2009, 09:38:36 pm »

Here is my own dog running animation from the Gallery. this is all done in Anim8or....

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ENSONIQ5

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #27 on: August 26, 2009, 10:55:32 pm »

It's feasible to wait 50 hours for a still frame, but who would wait even a quarter of that time if it was one frame out of 100?

As you say Mills, this could well be the biggest single factor in limiting people's involvement in animation.  I believe that the most important/urgent upgrade requirement for Anim8or is the speed of its renderers, which at present prevent Anim8or from being considered a serious contender in the field.  I am currently rendering out the final animation for this comp, and at only 400x300px, 300 frames at 24fps, no AA, no soft shadows, the render time would have been 50 minutes per frame (ART renderer).  Removing the bumpmap from the ground surface and reducing the amount of reflective materials has dropped the render time to 26 minutes per frame.

All this means that the render will not be ready before the deadline, and the currently posted links will have to stand.  This is the second animation contest run in Anim8or and this is the second time my final render will have missed the deadline!  My suggestion would be that animation comps need more than two weeks, as has been suggested previously.  At least a week needs to be set aside for rendering, if anything resembling quality submissions is expected.  I plan to re-render at 720x576 with AA and soft shadows, but only when I won't need my machine for 3 or 4 weeks (ie. never).
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AirAKose

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #28 on: August 29, 2009, 06:24:58 pm »

Here's my submission- ^^'



That is a Puppet demon of my own creation. All done in anim8or.


EDIT: Changed the link from a GIF to a YouTube video..
« Last Edit: August 29, 2009, 08:38:17 pm by AirAKose »
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3D Joe Wiltshire

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Re: Challenge #8: Walk Cycle
« Reply #29 on: August 29, 2009, 07:03:34 pm »

Wow, very nice AirAKose, very silent hill esque. what were your influences for that monstrosity!?
Awesome work, I could see that in a horror film
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