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This animation stuff is a pain in the mouse hand.

This animation stuff is a pain in the mouse hand.

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huckleberryhound
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I'm working on a pretty decent bit of animation for my next project (if i do say so myself). Between photoshop and windows paint i've got a bit of a scene going, but i have to admit....i didn't think it'd be such hard work. I have to cut and paste objects onto a background then fill in the gaps in the past to make it look like the background FOR NEARLY EVERY BLOODY FRAME!!!

I am using the same background for the whole thing, so shortcuts can be made, and it's all pretty basic stuff, but it'll blow your mind when you see it. I haven't even any of it on a video project yet, just seperate images, and a vague storyboard in my head. By the time i get all the pictures ready my cubase studio might just be here to lay drums to the not written yet accompaniment.

I'm even hoping to get Phlabs to sing the vocal part....How cool will that be?

It might be ready in two weeks, we'll see how it goes 🙂

w
If Theres Hell Below

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Originally posted by huckleberryhound
I'm working on a pretty decent bit of animation for my next project (if i do say so myself). Between photoshop and windows paint i've got a bit of a scene going, but i have to admit....i didn't think it'd be such hard work. I have to cut and paste objects onto a background then fill in the gaps in the past to make it look like the background FOR NEA ...[text shortened]... t....How cool will that be?

It might be ready in two weeks, we'll see how it goes 🙂
if you insist on doing it all manyally instead of using an animation software, make one layer for background, and another layer for the object you're moving. fill nothing, erase nothing, just move the things on individual layers.

you can even make the background out of multiple layers, so you can move 'closer' things faster, thus creating a nice depth effect. like a view from a car window.

in an animation software you could automate all the in-between-images, and input only meaningful keyframes. that'll have a learning curve though, and won't look as 'handmade' if that's what you want.

huckleberryhound
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Originally posted by wormwood
if you insist on doing it all manyally instead of using an animation software, make one layer for background, and another layer for the object you're moving. fill nothing, erase nothing, just move the things on individual layers.

you can even make the background out of multiple layers, so you can move 'closer' things faster, thus creating a nice depth ef ...[text shortened]... t'll have a learning curve though, and won't look as 'handmade' if that's what you want.
I don't have the money to buy an animation software right now. Can you name any i can check out later?


(i'm using paint, photoshop elements, and premiere elements)

zeeblebot

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Originally posted by huckleberryhound
I don't have the money to buy an animation software right now. Can you name any i can check out later?


(i'm using paint, photoshop elements, and premiere elements)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blender_(software)

Blender is a 3D graphics application released as free software under the GNU General Public License.

It can be used for modeling, UV unwrapping, texturing, rigging, water simulations, skinning, animating, rendering, particle and other simulations, non-linear editing, compositing, and creating interactive 3D applications, including games.

Blender is available for a number of operating systems, including Linux, Mac OS X, and Microsoft Windows. Blender's features include advanced simulation tools such as rigid body, fluid, cloth and softbody dynamics, modifier-based modeling tools, powerful character animation tools, a node-based material and compositing system and Python for embedded scripting.

zeeblebot

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http://www.blender.org/

zeeblebot

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the wikipedia page also describes and links to some free short movies the Blender foundation made with Blender.

s
Fast and Curious

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Originally posted by zeeblebot
http://www.blender.org/
What is UV unwrapping? I usually think of UV as ultraviolet as in black light.

huckleberryhound
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Originally posted by zeeblebot
http://www.blender.org/
Thanks, i've downloaded it.

It's a lot to take in, not sure if i'm brainy enough to get that working but i'll give it a good lookthrough and see if i can use it.

zeeblebot

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Originally posted by sonhouse
What is UV unwrapping? I usually think of UV as ultraviolet as in black light.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UV_mapping

UV mapping is a 3D modeling process of making a 2D image representing a 3D model. The map transforms the 3D object onto an image known as a texture map. In contrast to "X", "Y" and "Z", which are the coordinates for the original 3D object in the modeling space, "U" and "V" are the coordinates of the transformed object. This creates the effect of painting the image onto the surface of the 3D object.

To put it simply, UV texturing permits polygons that make up a 3D object to be painted with color from an image. The image is called a UV texture map, but it's just an ordinary image. The UV mapping process involves assigning pixels in the image to surface mappings on the polygon, usually done by "programmatically" copying a triangle shaped piece of the image map and pasting it onto a triangle on the object. UV is the alternative to XY, it only maps into a texture space than into the geometric space of the object. But the rendering computation uses the UV texture coordinates to determine how to paint the three dimensional surface.

In the example to the right, ...

zeeblebot

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Originally posted by huckleberryhound
Thanks, i've downloaded it.

It's a lot to take in, not sure if i'm brainy enough to get that working but i'll give it a good lookthrough and see if i can use it.
u r welcome. there might be tutorials about. there are books out on it, too.

w
If Theres Hell Below

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Originally posted by huckleberryhound
Thanks, i've downloaded it.

It's a lot to take in, not sure if i'm brainy enough to get that working but i'll give it a good lookthrough and see if i can use it.
you need a 2d animation software, not a 3d modeler. but I haven't really used blender, so maybe the composition features allow you to make animation. my best guess is that using blender is far too complex, as getting up to speed with 3d animation from scratch would likely take years.

I've been off from animating for over a decade, so I can't really point you at a specific piece of software. starrman is the guy to ask that from. I'm the guy to ask if you want to code up a animation software from scratch.

that said, you can do very basic 2d stuff in adobe imageready or premiere. like gif animation for forum avatar and stuff. might be just what you're looking for, instead of a complex animation software?

w
If Theres Hell Below

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Originally posted by sonhouse
What is UV unwrapping? I usually think of UV as ultraviolet as in black light.
it means spreading out the surface of a 3d object into a flat plane.

w
If Theres Hell Below

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edit: scratch that, it was no good.

huckleberryhound
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Originally posted by wormwood
you need a 2d animation software, not a 3d modeler. but I haven't really used blender, so maybe the composition features allow you to make animation. my best guess is that using blender is far too complex, as getting up to speed with 3d animation from scratch would likely take years.

I've been off from animating for over a decade, so I can't really point and stuff. might be just what you're looking for, instead of a complex animation software?
I have premiere elements and Photoshop elements. I've been trying to get my head around 4 different softwares in the past week (prem ele, photo ele, cubase le, and my h4n), and in my attempt to do everything i've made some shoolboy errors. Chances are i already have the software to basic 2d, but i've been reverting to windows paint to do my cropping, copying and pasting because the interface is less scary. I then found the lassoo function in photoshop and still went back to paint. Also i don't really have time to hunt tutorials when that's exactly what i should be doing.

My problem with going pro with either prem, or pho is the large cost. I can about manage €200 a month on my hobby, more if it's for a good reason. the upgrades are way above the return value.

S

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You need a 2D package, a 3D package is not only overkill, it's extremely complicated to learn. http://www.toonboom.com/products/toonBoomStudio/ is a good start, you can download a free trial. You'll only need to concentrate on the simplist of aspects to begin with: importing a background, and then dropping your characters on top, then laying out the movement and exporting it. There are plenty of tutorials on the internet.

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