Walk cycle
Initially before entering this assignment I began to design my character. I chose to go with a 2d design and animation as I find it easier to work with. I created a a simple hedgehog character walking on 2 legs therefor sticking with the regulations of our character needing 2 arms and 2 legs to achieve that clear walk, running and jumping cycle.
Here is my chosen character design.
The simple design made this much easier to manipulate and I went with a stop motion tussle of animation. When approaching this challenge I began by drawing out the beginning standing pose a mid step pose and final pose
This allowed me to have a clear direction with the movement I wanted to achieve and how to get there seamlessly
without losing the goal. This also helped me reach the same pose I began with to create that seamless loop. I also made a point to make mŷ character do a slight lift to create a more realistic effect as if they are actually walking forward.
This diagram I found very useful as although my character is a hedgehog they have very human like movements. Here it is clear as I said before they have shown the movement as the character moves up and down and the extend of the legs so I could more clearly see the movement required.
Run cycle
Moving on to my run cycle I had to extend the steps with less frames to increase the speed to imitate a run more realistically.
This reference was good for the posing however I did find myself surprised at how much more I struggled with the loop rather than bringing the character forward as any errors where made more clear with the cycle. Due to the character now running I had to ,ale each movement more dramatic elongated and ensure again I am bringing the character up and down but keeping in unison with the running movement.
A few things to know when creating a walk cycle
This is the moment the character makes contact with the surface this is very important to be aware of with key frames and weight transfer. Weight transfer basically when the characters weight Is transferred from one limb to the other , e.g. one leg lifts the other takes the weight carrying the rest of the body forward reoeating this movement to then create a walk cycle. A main factor to consider is consistency, tho character is doing a simple walk therefor the steps but be equal and planned to perfection to disguise that loop so the audience can’t tell where it starts and ends. Once you have. Pimple red these key frames taking in these guidelines it is time to get the in between frames which should come easy now you have a baseline and direction for your animation. The in between a are Simply frames added to help bring those frames together for a much smoother movement. Like most things once you believe it is complete you must take a step back review what you’ve done then decide if my areas could do with more
Refining.
Jumping cycle
Another animation I done with this character was a jumping cycle which I found the most difficult of all the cycles. Again I completed the same process with the key frames then in between however getting the accurate movement was surprisingly difficult for me. The main struggle is aligning the arm movement along with the up and down motion as a real person would do.
Also these simple frames come in handy the keeping your character on the one place with these movements was something I found very difficult.
-jump cycle tips-
When beginning the best -b to get down are the squash and the stretch. These poses are of ur character at their lowest point and then their highest taking into consideration the position they will be in at these times. Again weight and gravity is a great factor in this movement as when the character is going up they will be moving at a slower pace than when they are descending due to gravity. Also a brief pause or slow down at the highest point of the jump adds to the realism as although it’s hard to pick up on with the naked eye it could be that final touch to bring your cycle life. again along with the other poses it is vital to backtrack and make sure your character finishes in a pose which matched the first pose to keep it running smoothly or else it will ruin the illusion and make it very clear that they are repeating movements. Loops are great way of learning anatomy and movement and can be used a great timesaver within animating however once done wrong they can disrupt and overall decrease the quality of the overall project. This is another example of why we must take a step back and review our work fo make sure there is no where else we could refine or improve on.
Self reflection
Self reflection
when creating my cycles I found the balancing the arms and legs to work together as they would on real life and in furores for battle this I will definitely plan it out more and think more in depth about where I want them to go and how I want it to look. I found I struggled the most with the jumping cycle as it is a trickier movement to grasp as many more limbs and muscles ,use be takin into consideration that I did not realise which is something I could do with researching more in depth. Then my only other issue is with more time I would moved the main body more for a realistic effect which If I managed my time more efficiently I may of been able to complete which I will remember when tackling my next assignment.
However within all off this I have come away learning a great deal which I will carry with me for future projects as for example weight was never something I considered much when animating but it does make a great deal of difference. Considering weight allowed me to understand more the next move and the inbetweens as it must always have a place which holds up the weight of whatever character you are animating.
However within all off this I have come away learning a great deal which I will carry with me for future projects as for example weight was never something I considered much when animating but it does make a great deal of difference. Considering weight allowed me to understand more the next move and the inbetweens as it must always have a place which holds up the weight of whatever character you are animating.
my cycles