This is the Time Management post that depicts the Unit completely closed I can say that I have done everything in the Unit that is vital to my learning experience. There was a delay on the modelling side as our game has now been converted to a flash rendition meaning there was no urgent need to get skinning satisfied. I ended up doing it just for the experience and I have learnt from it I'm glad to say.
With this Unit complete I can now use my board for other things some which I may link onto here I just don't want to post onto 2 separate blogs at a time I'd rather post on one, it's just quicker and posting blogs to my neat criteria takes me a while to lay them out how I like them. Anyway lets get down to the board.
Its a little shocking when I think back to the beginning of this course, the beginning of when I decided to chase this little dream. Seems like a blip on the radar now but its nice to stand at a landmark after succeeding in something to think "yeah I made it, I wonder how? lol"... I guess theres no reason to let it linger the point is i'm here and things are getting better with every task board.
With everything signed off I think I can conclude this post knowing that I did the best I could here and as the picture above demonstrates its behind me now so I got to look forward for the next bomb shell. I didn't do bad in this unit but I think Unit 5 was my shining moment, its nice to know that I had my 5 minutes this year.
I hope everyone is having a good summer on my course I think I'm beginning to re-gather my bearings for when we are to return to the grind stone. That being said this month is a really busy time for my company so my life is to be rededicated for our final months rest. Oh well...
Just a small update here, it's something I had been meaning to do earlier but what can I say stuff since breaking up has been heating up with our game.
The signing off segment of this post is in the form of 6 videos below which were recorded during our last unit (Unit 6) just so people could get a look into my crazy world. I can only apologise for the pacing I cannot stand still when I'm thinking out loud you can call me crazy if you wish. Just be gentle...
Anyway the videos leading up to the final deadline of: Unit 6 "Agebook" are below.
The images and video below this text are the construction of my new PC (which I have nicknamed Pandora's Box). The last Unit taught me that I needed new kit so I custom built myself a force to be reckoned with. Dual screen, 16gb of ram with the option of going to 32, Quad Core with 64 bit OS. She glides like a panther and is quite possibly the most lethal machine I have built to date.
Anyway the images below show the construction and eventual completion of "Pandora's Box", I don't brag often so indulge me this once :)
Okay I think that's this post complete with a couple more to go but they will be with you momentarily. I'm kind of proud of this little post I was kind of in two minds about posting it but I think it gives poise to my journey for Year 2 when it rolls around.
Back for a few updates, I've been busy with other things namely development on our game with a programming team. Details are not up yet but when they are I will be posting them on our official Free Fall Interactive site at http://www.ffil.co.uk.
Now that's out of the way lets get down to business.
The other day I decided it was about time to get cracking on my skinning tutorials which due to being totally knackered at the time were delayed. However I didn't want to work on someone else's hand, it destroyed the point for me so I chose to rip an arm from one of our models so it could be personal to me, the only true way to understand these topics is to go from scratch as you would.
So that's just what I did...
As you can see from the Image above Cogman will be starring in my renditions of these tutorials (specifically his arm). I ported him via ZBrush's GoZ functionality allowing a direct port into Maya 2012 from there I sliced off his arm and kept it smooth as I proceeded to get his rig into position.
I began with the component method of skinning which required me to add and subtract influence from individual vertices's, this method probably took the longest as I was trying to be so precise at getting the points to their correct levels. The video above shows the result I would like to mention that at this point It had not dawned on me to create a wire comparison so apologies for that. Never the less it was rigged with the component method I assure you.
Next came the Weight Painting Method (using Smooth Bind) this method I am much more familiar with as it allows you to physically see your vertice points with hues from white to 50 percent grey to black. The density of shade is what determines the bones influence over the outer laying mesh/geometry. Overall it is just more user friendly and allows you to cross fade into sections using the shift smudge tool.
Next came the death defying Rigid Bind Method something which I envisioned being some form of limitation when it came to skinning I could not have been more wrong. Selecting vertices's again was a bit of a chore until I saw that I could view all of them freely and see which were active on a specific bone. I was only more impressed when I got to try out the wiggle deformers for the tool which allowed the skin on Cogmans hand to deform better then my smooth binded version... I didn't think I would be but I am impressed with the Rigid Bind.
The Interactive Method is something that I have used in the past (there is a rendition of it in 3DS Max), while I can empathise with the speed to which the tool can bring results I do not hold it in such high regard as weight painting or the rigid bind. The dials and devices make the job quicker as you slide and move things to get the curve you want but my argument lies in the inability to be able to fine tweak and add those little bits that animate geometry perfectly.
Last but not least is the Object Influence Method I would say that this is to expand on an existing rig more so then it is to be used as a full mesh skinning method. In the video above you can see a plain near the elbow and there is a sphere in the bicep, you use these as objects in which you weight paint in animation and key their influence. The plane on the elbow pulls the curved geometry making it more narrow as an elbow should be. The sphere in the bicep causes a deformation of sorts as a bicep would.
Well that concludes this little post on Rigging I know it was meant to be done for the last unit but to be honest I like that I managed to make it work for me in a different way on a different model entirely. I'm actually happy that I can now do these methods in other little projects that I hold dear.
