In this week, polish our walking cycle is the point of aim. Last week I learned how to adjust the blocking rate, this week I know there are some framesthat need to be added in Maya project,( But it still not clearly to know correctly).
This week, we did a walking animation used walking rig and fix it. At the beginning I misunderstanding about the homework, actually we need to do the blocking presentation. But I do the hole animation not the blocking, and need to adjust the project to blocking.
In the first animation, some thing didn’t correct enough, like when the right feet some frame will like “Michael Jackson”, floting at the animation. That is the problem I need to fix.
The process is: open the graph editor in maya. and check the transtate “x” to make sure it keep in the “spline tengents” mode, keep step in the same flat! (show like feedback’s red line)
aniamte the upward main body
Adjust the feet in the same flet when it land a place
Here is the original verson.
For Ting’s homework:
Here is hand post reference: shooting by myself.
Feeling: when I editing the Maya project, something was confuse like the rotate well with the Metacarpals and First Metacarpals. So I look famliliar with the hand layout.
Week 8 we have a rare chance to know how animation industry working. Personal speaking it is very helpful to let you know what kind of work you want to join, and what kind of area you want to put into and dive into it. For me, I think the most important thing is not find the path to go, instead of learning the 3D founfermental is very important and crutial which means when you are powerful in yourself skill, you can have more choices.( just my personal thinking)
In this week, we need to planning the next 4 week’s animation, to be honest, I am just from new in Maya step to famillier with Maya, So I pick the simple sport but this motion has lots of important principle and animation tips, it looks like simple but if you want to make it excellent, you need to put a lot of effort into it:
JUMP FORWARD
Planing
I think hand post is also important, because it shows how power shift from back to forward.
This week we prepared a research outline. I found a lot of information online about games and films, but during my one-on-one discussion with the teacher, they pointed out an issue with my approach. For a 1500-word essay, the topic shouldn’t be too broad or cover too much ground. In my outline, I talked about games and then jumped to films, which I shouldn’t have done. If I’m discussing 3D games, I should focus on games and not switch to the topic of films. Also, since we’re talking about 3D, it’s important to note that 2D hasn’t been overshadowed by the rise of 3D. In fact, there are still countless people in the real world who are passionate about 2D animated games…
After this discussion, I found the teacher’s points very reasonable. I realized that with such a broad topic, it would be impossible to cover everything properly within a 1500-word limit or to write it well. So, I’ve decided to adjust my topic, but I still want to keep the focus on 3D content. Additionally, regarding Harvard-style referencing, I have to admit that as someone who has never used this format before, I’m a bit unsure about the specific requirements and feel a bit nervous and anxious. Nevertheless, I will refer to other people’s essays to learn how to do the citations correctly.
In this week, we leanning the dynamic lighting about how to add the light and built the house to show the light types and change the light color. and I learn a pretty cute name “Lumen”, whichis in Unreal Engine 5 is a fully dynamic global illumination and reflection system designed for next generation consoles. But for me at this moment it is quite hard to use well.
About the homework，I started building the forest scene using Landscape Mode. On the first day, I had no clear idea how to begin, so I referred back to the world map I had drawn earlier and slowly adjusted the material colors and scales.
When I looked at it from a faraway distance, it felt too simple, so I decided to add a stone path. But after searching for a while, I couldn’t find a suitable stone path material. Then, in Fab, I found an ancient Roman style path, but its material was too bright; it almost glowed in the dark(see the picture), and overall it looked too urban and didn’t fit the forest setting.
So I wondered if I could paint my own path instead. I created a Plane and found a pretty good material for it, though I wasn’t sure if the tiling would work well. While learning the tutorials, I came across a nice pond asset and thought: maybe I could combine the path with a small pool, that might look better. So I started setting up a little pond scene.
Then I followed a tutorial to create the water material for the pond, but the material I made turned out green. After looking carefully, I realized the sample color for red wasn’t set correctly, different red reflection actually produce different blues or even greens. I also had to adjust the transparent . Finally, I got the pond and stone path looking the way I wanted.
Very rough forest organized concept version
wet lanscapematerial not suitablelight in the dark( not good)
This week, we discussed how to write an essay and the methods for essay writing. Personally, I’ve always been a bit afraid of writing text-based assignments. However, when it comes to a research project where I can freely choose the topic, I don’t mind it at all. For example, I love 3D animation—shows like Arcane, Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures, the Barbie movie series, Disney animated films, and Pixar movies—I’d be more than happy to study and appreciate them.
But writing an essay requires critical thinking and dialectical analysis. It’s not just about praising or disliking a work outright. Instead, it’s about clearly analyzing its strengths and weaknesses, reading perspectives from authoritative authors on the topic, referencing their ideas, and exploring the significance of the theme in the paper.
It’s necessary to first draft an outline to identify what’s missing, which areas need deeper exploration, and where dialectical discussions are required. These will be the key focuses for the next few weeks of research.
This week I began working on my main project. Even though many knowledge point were covered in class, I couldn’t remember everything clearly when I actually started. So I had to learn some skills on my own again. I also ran into several difficulties when I use in my project.
For example, I wanted my terrain to have some hills and slopes, not just be completely flat. So I looked for tutorial videos online (https://youtu.be/ZDD-JMcfEII?si=M4WXiAipYc_fzy2N) about creating terrain. At first, I didn’t understand how to set up a texture blueprint, but luckily there were free tutorial videos that showed internet that I could adjust the roughness, Metallic, ect.
However, the scale of my landscape material was too large at first, the UVs parameter too small and looked very strange. I then found a tutorial video in Blibili that explained how to change the UV settings in the material node. (I found the Landscape Coordinates and adjusted the Mapping Scale. After trying different values, I chose 5, which shows me the effect I wanted.) Then I started placing and editing materials. (Some attached screenshots are in Chinese version，because I temporarily switched to the Chinese version while working. I’ll change it back to English later so everyone can easily to understand.)
After that, I began sculpting the terrain without a clear plan. To be honest, the world of my story isn’t fully clear in my mind yet, but I knew I didn’t want just flat woods—I wanted land with some height changes. So I looked at many references, including works by a concept artist I really like from Bulgaria, Ismail Inceoglu.
Mapping scale
landscape mode
Reference of Forest
from Snow White movie
Ismail Inceoglu，Conceptual artist and illustrator from BulgariaIsmail Inceoglu，Conceptual artist and illustrator from Bulgaria
WEEK6 we need to learning how to planing walking cycle and Knowing the point is walking movement should keep the hip and the weight balance is important. and familiar with what is happening with the hips in relation to the legs.
so do the planning first including timing and then making the animation. I leaned the weight is change when it up leg or land leg, and keep the balance when it move the hip.
Actually, I am a little bit mis understanding the knee and the weight change, but I follow the animation bible( animation kit) it say when the moving animation start the rig should keep moving, because that is the weight shift which should not be stopped by animater making.
Blocking animation!
After planning, I started doing animation in my Maya project. since the several weeks study, I’m quite good knowing the Maya things that when I need to find the tool to help my animation, i can find very fast, thanks for tutor and classmate’s help.
I totally misunderstood “Blocking”, I thought this is just making the every key frame so call blocking, and I just do key frames in Maya. When I output this project, it just shows the fully animation not blocking. Untill tutor George told us, that is not blocking! we should find the tool in Maya and use the tool to change the animation rate into a flat in every frame!!
This week we have an assignment to analyze and prepare for our final essay. I’m considering focusing on animation-related films and games as the subject of my research.
In this term1’s final homework, I would like to create an “fairy” adventure land. But I realise that my personal skill can not support me to complete the totally huge project, so I need to adjust the size and the making level in UE5, especially for the freshman in the fundamentals.
Original Storyline:
A thin mist filled the air. The ground was wet and shiny. Silver fireflies flew over it. They left golden spots that looked like little stars. Suddenly, the bushes nearby moved. A hand pushed through the leaves. It opened the bushes, and a small sprite appeared. She wore soft pink and blue clothes. Her silver hair was in two pigtails. Her big eyes looked around. Then she stepped out. She walked on the wet brick path. It reflected the light. There were small puddles and some weeds. Little flowers swayed as she passed. With every step, the fog grew thicker. She heard strange sounds—like water gurgling and the wind whispering. She felt scared and walked faster, holding her map tightly. Everything turned dark. Black eyes seemed to move around her. Shadows flew past—but they were only birds. Then, under a lamp, a scary shadow appeared. She was surprised to see it was just a small rabbit. But the moonlight lit her way… so she began to run. Again and again, she pushed through tall grass and trees. Then the fairy’s view opened up. It was a beautiful moonlit night. Everything sparkled.
STORY BOARD
Character
In this week’s class, I talked to Sarra about my project process, actually, I still feeling confused about my story, including the character. Though the 1-1 feedback talk, I am so appreciat with Sarra, she helps me clarify my storyboard. She said I need to lock on my story, I truly realise my story always changes, and there are so many characters who need to do the animation, it will be quite heavy for the left one month.
In this week, we need to use a ball with 2 2-leg rig to show the physics and body moving side by side. When I do the animation, I found that the angle always overrotates until I adjust my action.
When I did the planning, I realized the frame is important, because to be an animator, I never think about the timing and will make the animation “confusing”. The frame should depend on the action speed and others.
THE PANING IN WEEK 5
The Understanding and Personal Feeling
In the 12 Principles of Animation, anticipation should be more in this moving animation. When the right foot is first time to move up, the body should follow the Principle in this term: K.I.S.S ( KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID) is means to do the simple thing to the highest quality and highest understanding, so that no squash and stretch would be better and natural.
When the weight shift to the middle position, the gravity is in the middle, so no routate and no side， just in symmetrical. Then, next move to the other side ( right feet keep, left feet up and straight), which looks like a triangle and stable. after that animation switch the gavitay and weigh to the right feet, so the body machanic would be in the right side, and show more anticipation.
After this week’s homework, I understand that the important things in this homework is to focus on the hip and legs of the weight shift(or walk), and the variation in speed between poses or frames.
When it switch in between
when it up the feet
when it left land
For Ting’s Post to Post animation
First version:
In this post to post animation, the first version can see lots of problem, When I first made this animation, I didn’t use any video reference, I just based it on how my own body moves and what I imagined. Because of that, the timing and the way the feet float looked really unnatural and uncoordinated.
To be honest, while making this first version, I felt really stuck. I didn’t know where to start or how to adjust things—I was just moving controls mechanically, imagining it in my head. That wasn’t a good way to work.
Then I sent it to my friend Chichi for help. She told me the feet looked so weird, like “one foot was stepping while the other was doing a Michael Jackson move.” So I focused on fixing the feet.
Second version:
It looks much better now, but I still feel like something’s weird，I don’t even know how to fix it or why it feels strange.
This is the first time I feel like: I have no idea. My friend couldn’t spot it either, so now I’ll just have to wait for Ting’s feedback.
