intro.mov

Here is a rough draft for an opening cinematics idea I had in mind for my group.  Because my group is brand new, I wanted to keep our group fairly secret until early next year, so that element of mystery was mixed into this scene.  Let me have some solid critiques.

It’s been a long time since I’ve written my last post, mostly because I’ve been hard at work on my animation.  As I may have mentioned earlier, I’ve started an animation group at my school known as “Tough Luck Studios”, complete with two  3d production teams as well as two 2d production teams, and a handful of graphic designers and animators.  In total, we have around 18 individuals working hard on producing short films.

Our premeire show is set for the end of February, and because of that our studio is in our first “crunch time” period.  Our new term for production is set for January 11th, and our group is finally moving ahead on getting a Web site taken care of.

Right now, I’m putting together an introduction to premeire on our school’s television sets, both to advertise the permeire show as well as our group.  I’ll post that as soon as it’s taken care of.

I’ve been modeling things for practice every week, and looking back on my first models, it’s amazing how far I’ve come as a 3d artist.

That’s the update as far as I’m concerned.  I’ll be sure to post some of the finished renderings later in the month. 

Ball with see-saw

My first attempt at animating a ball with a see-saw.  A lot more refining is needed, however I received much-needed experience in animating a simple ball using the auto key feature and the graph curve editor.

Bouncing ball and see-saw

Right after I practiced the bouncing ball, I worked with the see-saw.  I quickly learned it was a lot more of a challenge.

I practiced with four new character poses just for extra practice.  Happy that I’m finally becoming comfortable with the controls.

first attempt ever -modeling after bugs bunny

1st figure practice

second figure

third figure

all figures together

Ball Bouncing 

Well, everyone has to start this lesson sometime, and I figured today was good.  So, I put modeling aside for one night to practice with the bouncing ball animation, as well as playing with the graph curve editor.  More refining work is needed, but I am happy I made the attempt.

Bugs Bunny Pose

Working with the Max rig I was provided off the internet, I worked on various poses, with my first one being presented above.  I modeled it after a picture of bugs bunny I found on the internet.  I’m happy to get the extra practice with animating before my classes start.

Toaster

Following a tutorial I found on 3dtotal.com, I created this simple toaster through converting a box to editable poly and attaching parts such as the knob and the stand at the bottom (which you cannot see).  A lot of practice connecting edges and chamfering, basically keeping my model clean along with messing with mental ray helped this model turn out ok.

Tire Practice

 My first attempt at modeling a car tire.  Obviously it looks very choppy and blocked off, but the real lesson here is that I gained a basic understanding of how to go about modeling a car tire.  Now, after a handful of times practicing this method, I will have a decent looking car tire.

Car

(Click image to enlarge)

My first attempt at modeling the frame of a car.  I’ve learned a lot about poly modeling and what goes into it, and with the knowledge I’ve gained through my first attempt, I’m sure my second attempt will yield much better results.  I am not necessarily pleased with how this turned out, but I am more happy with the fact that I made an attempt and came out with more knowledge.