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Never Animated Before. Where To Start?
Hello All,
I am a citizen of Orpheus, composer, songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist. Watching many of the wonderful animations produced by the members here makes me want to branch out and give animation a try. However I dont know squat of where or how to begin. I have DL'ed the free version of ToonBoom and watched the video tutorials and am totally lost. I really cant draw worth a darn, but I am profficient with PhotoShop, if that is a help.
I was hoping someone might be able to point me to an inexpensive or free easy to use program for a true beginner. One with a really small/short learning curve. Something where instead of drawing scenes and characters I could import and manipulate photos
I have a couple of songs that I would like to try putting to an animation.
Thanks for your time,
Duffman
Discussion started by duffman , on 24 October 03:55 AM
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Sunday, 15 April 2012 10:39
There are some books I can recommend for you for a first time animator.
The Animator's Survival Kit by Richard Williams.
Character Animation Crash Course
Timing for Animation, Second Edition by John Halas and Harold Whitaker
Elemental Magic, Volume I: The Art of Special Effects Animation
How to Draw Manga Making Anime(Has a lot of useful information on shading for your animated projects.)
The Animator's Survival Kit by Richard Williams.
Character Animation Crash Course
Timing for Animation, Second Edition by John Halas and Harold Whitaker
Elemental Magic, Volume I: The Art of Special Effects Animation
How to Draw Manga Making Anime(Has a lot of useful information on shading for your animated projects.)
Tuesday, 22 March 2011 13:10
maybe someone can help me here...i'm using milkshape3d and i can't upload a picture to here it's a ms3d file...can someone help? Thanks magnus1851
Saturday, 26 February 2011 18:13
Try using Xtranormal. I'm using their download "State" program which is the only way you'll be able to do sophisticated music.
Look at my channel for some of the stuff I'm doing to mod it for Trek-like scenarios.
http://www.xtranormal.com
This is a group dedicated to avanced State animations:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/xtranormal-tech/
Look at my channel for some of the stuff I'm doing to mod it for Trek-like scenarios.
http://www.xtranormal.com
This is a group dedicated to avanced State animations:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/xtranormal-tech/
Friday, 24 December 2010 18:57
In addition to Animators Survival by Kit Richard Williams you should also try to get The Illusion of Life: Disney Animation by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnson.
Sunday, 21 November 2010 22:42
Well gosh I didn't expect this much help!!
Oh I am more then familiar with P-Shop. And in the past couple of weeks I have been playing around with the limited animation in Google SketchUp.
I guess what I have come to realize is that, as much as I would like to learn and be good at animation, my talent is in music. Time is another problem. If I am watching a tutorial on ToonBoom I 'm not laying down tracks, or playing guitar, keys, drums, not mixing or mastering. I am self employed and spend 50 hours a week at my business, and my wife has a hun-e-do list as long as my and your arm together. While I have been exploring ani I have left 3 of my original songs undone, and neglected a collaboration needing a lead guitar part....Time to admit to myself where my real talent, okay maybe not talent but interest, lies.
Do what you do, and do it well. I think I will leave the animation to those who actually have that talent.
Thanks,
Duffman
Oh I am more then familiar with P-Shop. And in the past couple of weeks I have been playing around with the limited animation in Google SketchUp.
I guess what I have come to realize is that, as much as I would like to learn and be good at animation, my talent is in music. Time is another problem. If I am watching a tutorial on ToonBoom I 'm not laying down tracks, or playing guitar, keys, drums, not mixing or mastering. I am self employed and spend 50 hours a week at my business, and my wife has a hun-e-do list as long as my and your arm together. While I have been exploring ani I have left 3 of my original songs undone, and neglected a collaboration needing a lead guitar part....Time to admit to myself where my real talent, okay maybe not talent but interest, lies.
Do what you do, and do it well. I think I will leave the animation to those who actually have that talent.
Thanks,
Duffman
Monday, 15 November 2010 11:54
Well, honestly, as a freelance animator, I've tried a ton of programs, and ToonBoom's stuff seems to be the easiest to understand for a beginner. They offer a lot of tutorials and video learning, which you've already discovered. That being said, animation is not easy...it takes a lot of work! I'd suggest continuing to work through the tutorials and user guides, and maybe get a few textbooks about animation to learn how to draw basic shapes.
If you're already familiar with Photoshop, you can actually animate with it, too. Here's a few links to get you started:
http://pelfusion.com/tutorials/40-photoshop-tutorials-to-create-animation/
http://creativetechs.com/tipsblog/build-animated-gifs-in-photoshop/
Good luck!
If you're already familiar with Photoshop, you can actually animate with it, too. Here's a few links to get you started:
http://pelfusion.com/tutorials/40-photoshop-tutorials-to-create-animation/
http://creativetechs.com/tipsblog/build-animated-gifs-in-photoshop/
Good luck!
Monday, 15 November 2010 11:09
I got my start in animation by taking a college class. That's where I got "hooked" on animation.
Sunday, 07 November 2010 09:33
It may sound strange but I've used a track ball and some buttons. It was in an arcade machine case (MAME), I liked it because I could stand up or be stretched on a stool, I find it more relaxing like that.
Almost done with a breakfast bar (almost 4 ft tall) for the same effect.
Almost done with a breakfast bar (almost 4 ft tall) for the same effect.
Saturday, 30 October 2010 10:25
It's important to familiarize yourself with the principles before you start thinking about software. I'm sure you know people who own Logic or Pro Tools unnecessarily. I would recommend you pick up one of these books:
(In order of complexity)
Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair
Character Animation Crash Course by Eric Goldberg
Animators Survival by Kit Richard Williams
I have all three. They don't deal with the particulars of software which is actually what makes them so good. The Eric Goldberg one is probably the best overall value for a beginner. Go watch some old Warner Brothers or Disney animation. Try turning the sound off or watching it in slow-motion. This will be very illuminating.
Try some basic examples like the bouncing ball, sack or a standard walk cycle. Your local art store may have punched paper and pegbars. You could just as well use generic pads of paper from the 99 cent store.
If you don't want to use paper, Toon Boom's Flip Boom All-Star and Animation-ish both look pretty good. I know they're kid's software but I'm sure someone could get a lot of mileage out of them. (Think of it as starting with Garage Band.) You might want to try a Wacom tablet too, any one will do. Using a mouse will be pretty frustrating.
I hope I haven't scared you off. Good Luck.
(In order of complexity)
Cartoon Animation by Preston Blair
Character Animation Crash Course by Eric Goldberg
Animators Survival by Kit Richard Williams
I have all three. They don't deal with the particulars of software which is actually what makes them so good. The Eric Goldberg one is probably the best overall value for a beginner. Go watch some old Warner Brothers or Disney animation. Try turning the sound off or watching it in slow-motion. This will be very illuminating.
Try some basic examples like the bouncing ball, sack or a standard walk cycle. Your local art store may have punched paper and pegbars. You could just as well use generic pads of paper from the 99 cent store.
If you don't want to use paper, Toon Boom's Flip Boom All-Star and Animation-ish both look pretty good. I know they're kid's software but I'm sure someone could get a lot of mileage out of them. (Think of it as starting with Garage Band.) You might want to try a Wacom tablet too, any one will do. Using a mouse will be pretty frustrating.
I hope I haven't scared you off. Good Luck.
Friday, 29 October 2010 17:45