Don't Let the Machine Win

I was planning on having a bigger announcement this week, but I'm navigating the legal implications. So for now I'm pleased to announce that I'm launching a Patreon for this blog. If you enjoy this blog and want to contribute please hit the button on the right. Contributions will help support the blog and I have plans for the future, which include a Stylized Reality tool set and, given enough patrons, video tutorials based on my personal projects. Patrons will also be able to make requests and suggestions for topics they'd like to see covered in future blog posts.

Also, now that I've reached my self-imposed deadline of January 31, compounded with crunch time at work, I'm going to throttle back a bit and do one post a month. I may start doing one every two weeks when we're out of it. We'll see!

And now for a tip.

The computer, as inbetweener, is an idiot. It knows how things should move mathematically, but not naturally. When I block in stepped, I end up breaking my animation down to the point where I manually place keys every 2 to 4 frames, depending on the action. This gives greater control over the final product. There will need to be some massaging once splining begins, but it should all-in-all be a less painful process and give you the poses and breakdowns you want, rather than the ones the computer demands.

There are tools and techniques you can use to help you with inbetweening. To help you beat the computer.

- Arc trackers are vital. I use it even in stepped blocking. Using it early in the process, tracking all your arcs, helps to make sure everything will work down the line. I use toolChef's motion path tool as well as MorganLoomis' arc tracer at home.

- Space switching is hugely helpful. I almost always have FK arms in world space, as well as the rotations of the head. On some characters, like Kaa, the whole head is in world space. These kind of things reduce the amount of counter-animating you'll have to do because of something the body might be doing. Be in control of what the different parts are doing.

- Make use of rotation orders. Maya doesn't evaluate all of the rotation channels all at once. It does them in a certain order and it can change how one key transitions to another. Morgan Loomis has a great tool for changing rotation orders on something that has already been animated. It even gives you an analysis of which one will give you the best results. This helps you keep on top of the computer. 

Worse comes to worst, you'll have to key something every frame, but that is the last ditch effort. Don't let the machine win! The computer is a tool, it works for you. Don't let it bully you into inferior animation because of math.

Keep on keyframing!