[Rob van dam]

Hi Im currently intrested in exploring some anamationLike the stuff in the incredibles but very basic.What sort of software would be required? Ive heard of render man but i probably dont have the money or hardware to make it work.

[Randman]

Your should concentrate on your spelling and grammar before tackling video.

It's budding filmmaker, not buddying. And we won't even get into your post or sig.

If you don't have the money or the computer with enough power and memory and space, forget about animation on a computer. If you're truly interested, learn to draw with a pencil and paper.

[Rob van dam]

Originally posted by Randman:
Your should concentrate on your spelling and grammar before tackling video.

It's budding filmmaker, not buddying. And we won't even get into your post or sig.

If you don't have the money or the computer with enough power and memory and space, forget about animation on a computer. If you're truly interested, learn to draw with a pencil and paper.

wow do u have something stuck up youre ass. G5 with a gig of ram. who cares about my spelling.

[Randman]

A G5 with a stick of ram is hardly enough to do any serious animation.

And you wanted a serious answer, you got it. Learn to draw if you want to do animation.

As for the spelling, it makes you seem a) very, very young b) very, very stupid c) someone with a learning disability.

I apologise if it's c). If not, if you wanted to be taken serious, take an second and try and write properly.

And you have anything else to say, PM me. I'll be happy to wade through your incoherent ramblings. Makes me laugh.

[jamil5454]

Randman, watch what you say because you also have spelling and/or grammar mistakes in your posts.

But about the topic: If you just want to dabble in 3d modeling/animation, Blender3d is a very nice package to learn with. It takes some getting used to, but the best thing about it is that it's free and open source. A G5 with a gig of RAM should be enough for some light stuff, but it also depends on your graphics card. An X800 or GeForce 6800 would go a long way in making everything run smoothly.

[Rob van dam]

Originally posted by jamil5454:
Randman, watch what you say because you also have spelling and/or grammar mistakes in your posts.

But about the topic: If you just want to dabble in 3d modeling/animation, Blender3d is a very nice package to learn with. It takes some getting used to, but the best thing about it is that it's free and open source. A G5 with a gig of RAM should be enough for some light stuff, but it also depends on your graphics card. An X800 or GeForce 6800 would go a long way in making everything run smoothly.

Thanks you have been very helpful.Like i said i just want to dabble in some light stuff.

[gautch]

I used to 3d on a PC, 400Mhz, 128 megs of ram 12 gig drive.... i think your G5 with a gig or ram will do fine!!

[budster101]

Originally posted by Rob van dam:
Hi Im currently intrested in exploring some anamationLike the stuff in the incredibles but very basic.What sort of software would be required? Ive heard of render man but i probably dont have the money or hardware to make it work.

You want to do some animation, like the work you've seen in the movie "The Incredibles"?
Then, you amend your statement with the all-encompassing, 'but'... very basic.

Stick figures?

How basic do you want to get? Give us an example, because in the movie "The Incredibles" you are viewing advanced 'stuff'. I think this is what tweeked a few people regarding your post.

You have a G5 with 1 gig of ram. Ok.

What is your budget?
What is your experience with traditional animation? Do you have a familiarity with keyframing?

You can do this with a pencil and paper, as described in another post for your storyboarding, and then take this either directly to your machine with scans for the prototype, or alpha of your little animation, and then you can onion skin them for your color work.

I suggest getting Flash. This is a great tool for animators.

Links:

Flashkit

Google'd this for you for further research

Go to versiontracker: If this link does not work

Do some homework. Go to a library, Google... It's not hard.

Also, Wacom Tablet. (Helps)

Good lukc

[eyevaan]

searched this forum for "rendering" - this discussion felt familiar...

link from the search

POVRay and Blender still the cheapest.
MAYA PLE is free too but you can't publish the stuff since it is for Personal Learning...

[KeriVit]

Originally posted by Randman:
Your should concentrate

You should concentrate

Originally posted by Randman:


I apologise

And you have anything else to say, \

I apologize

And if you have anything ...


Geez, Randman, considering your typos, you're being kinda harsh...

Though I do partially agree... I picked up book on all the basics of animation and a sketchbook before I even thought of sitting down with software at the computer... It really helps to understand the process before sitting down to get it done.

The software suggested is fine, but if you REALLY want to learn, start with the basics and work your way up. Perhaps, what Randman really wanted to say is that just because you have a computer and some software- does not make you an animator... ?

[Rob van dam]

Originally posted by KeriVit:
You should concentrate



I apologize

And if you have anything ...


Geez, Randman, considering your typos, you're being kinda harsh...

Though I do partially agree... I picked up book on all the basics of animation and a sketchbook before I even thought of sitting down with software at the computer... It really helps to understand the process before sitting down to get it done.

The software suggested is fine, but if you REALLY want to learn, start with the basics and work your way up. Perhaps, what Randman really wanted to say is that just because you




have a computer and some software- does not make you an animator... ?

No randman was being a prick no insight what so ever. I can understant what you mean about the book to learn the process.What's the name of the book?.See i come from mainly a producers PA background and you know i work in the real world like trying to work with actors.So the whole concept of Animation was foreign to me.

[KeriVit]

You may think they are basic- but ya gotta start with the basics...

Book 1

Book 2

Quite helpful to understand the craft. Then get the software guides later...

[eyevaan]

Originally posted by KeriVit:
You may think they are basic- but ya gotta start with the basics... Quite helpful to understand the craft. Then get the software guides later...

good suggestion, for those new to the craft - and $33 for both!!! what a steal.

[JB72]

Originally Posted by Randman

Your should concentrate on your spelling and grammar before tackling video.

You know, WETA stands for "Wingnut Entertainment Technical Allusion. Some say "allusion" is actually a play on words, but...

I've met more than a few animators/motion graphics people in the entertainment industry. I'm not sure many of them would consider spelling their strong point.

[mitchell_pgh]

My input:

1) Learn how to spell� good <kidding>
2) Learn how to draw well first (with a pencil) or at a minimum, take some type of a structures class� AKA the human body.
3) Download something like Maya http://www.apple.com/downloads/macos...ngedition.html and go crazy.

Maya will get you started in the novice zone.

[loki74]

Before anything, be an artist. Thats all that matters. at all. trust me. People get these notions (not that you do, but it is common) that "computer people" are the only ones who make good 3d stuff. Thats just not true. it is an art, no matter how you cut it. 100% flawless spelling? yeah its good to have but you dont need it to get started...

I downloaded blender once, and was not impressed. I mean, yeah its free and all, but its not all that intuitive.

Maya is excellent software, but you'll spend $7000 if you want the fluid effects etc. Unless you can get a student discount, but still.

As a 3D animator/artist, i would reccomend Hash Animation:Master. its $300 and extremely simple to use. However, the Mac version is kind of windowsy. I was very pissed off with the conversion, so... yeah its OK. Following that is Strata 3D CX, which is $600. Its pretty good, but a little harder to learn. Any higher than that, and you may as well save up a little more and get Maya.

By how hard something is to learn, I dont really mean the interface. I mainly mean the modeling system. Maya is capable of NURBS modeling, SDS modeling, and polygonal modeling, as far as I know, using the PLE. Animation:Master is kind of its own type-it uses hash patches, and I think its the only one that does. Patches and splines are much simpler a concept to grasp than SDS or NURBS. Strata is capable of SDS, polygons, and bezier surfaces (im not sure exactly how they differ from NURBS) SDS (subdivision surfaces) allow you to rapidly create smooth surfaces from low-detail hard ones, and you can control the complexity of subdivision. Personally, I like patches and SDS WAY better than NURBS or Polys.

as for RenderMan, that is not a 3D animation package from what I understand; I think it just renders. It was created for and by Pixar as their proprietary rendering software, so I have no clue as to whether or not consumers can get their hands on it.

If you have no animation experience previous to this, you should try some 2D animation first. It will help you understand the basic concepts-squash and stretch, interpolation, keyframing, etc.

From the film aspect of it, you'll also want to consider things like aspect ratios: do you want widesreen? if so how? hard matte? soft matte? anamorphic? Most 3d programs will let you chose (maybet not directly using thos terms, but effectively so.) Also from a film aspect--will you be compositing your 3D work with real life? If so you'll want to invest in some motion-tracking software, as well as compositing software, like Apple Shake which will set you back another 3000.

The main point is: plan ahead. If you want to get good, yes, be creative and all that jazz, but have a plan of attack--know exactly where you want to go.

oh, and your computer will be fine. I have set up and rendered a number of projects on my dual 2.5 with only 512MB DDR SDRAM.

[vtgts500kw]

a drawing tablet will help ALOT, id suggest picking one up.

wacom are the best (animator may differ) but i find it great for my design work.
get a big size too, no point fiddling round with the tiny ones, waste of time.

[Rob van dam]

once again thanks for the input guys