[Assignment One]: Project One

I followed my "guide" posted below and practiced animating my figure with an inanimate object-a ball, for Project One.  The trick with this is that the ball needed a rig for a few of the frames.  Here is a link to the rough cut with the rig:

After photoshoping the rig out, adding a light in After Effects and adding some rough sound effects, here is the final product:

After doing this Project, I have realized that I kind of want to go back and do it again to practice as I think the bonce of the ball could be a little more precise, as well as the stance of the figure could have been moved a little better as far as making the weight shifting more believe able (bends in knees).  For this animation, I kind of "ad libed" the animation as I went.  For the next one, I think I will story board a little more, do a flash drawing animation to get the movements right and then use that as a reference video (Project Two) for the next video (Project Three).  While I am making these next two Projects, I will be creating another armature.  This guy's arm already is starting to break because I used too thick of wire for the arms.  So while I wait for the thinner wire to be shipped to me, I will continue working with this guy.  I have to have that next Project ready to go tomorrow for Studio... looks like a long night at the computer is ahead of me!  Until tomorrow...

Wire, Foam and Expoxy, Oh My!

So, before I can create these mini stop motions, I need to build an armature.  I just recently purchased "The Advanced Art of Stop Motion Animation."    This book has become my bible.  What is so great about it is that it was published in 2010, so it has all of the up to date information about the best ways to create these things with current technology.

I followed the way to build an armature that was written in the book and found I was having a hard time building up the fingers.  After contacting Tom Brierton and comming a crossed the video "Make a Build up Puppet" I started to create another armature.  Haven't started the hands yet, but lets keep our fingers crossed!

Cheers!

[Assignment One] Two Projects a Week

So, it is Monday, and the start of a new Assignment, to create two projects a week for four weeks. The works have to be resolved, but can be studies of sorts (they do not have to be completely polished pieces), but they do have to be looked at as a series.

I have decided to continue exploring stop motion further by focusing on one technique at a time. Here is the list of techniques I have decided to work on:

1. Contact with an inanimate object
2. Lighting
3. Camera Movement
4. Walk Cycle
5. Contact with an animate object
6. Green Screen
7. Special Effects in Camera (Rain)
8. Lip Sync

Junior Studio Take Two

Who: Junior Painting, Sculpting, and New Media majors at the University of Illinois
What: Studio; a time to work on specific work related to your chosen field
When: Spring 2011, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 9am-11:40
Where: Flagg Hall, University of Illinois
Why: Because we are art students, that's why.