Animation Programs for Beginners

The world of animation, computer graphics, 3D animation, cartooning, 3D Rigging, Shading, etc., etc., is an area that requires a ton of skill, but most would agree that more importantly, takes a lot of heart. Your probably saying to yourself, I love animation, or I would love to know how to do cartooning or video game creation. You might know a little about it, but you think to yourself that you know nothing on the level of what you want or the know how to get started. Well, the fact that you are taking the time for yourself to look into doing something about it means that you do have what it takes. That's the first step!! The drive, desire belief and the passion. You have to first realize that what you can currently do with your talent and skill, is more than most will ever be able to do. That's very important and you should always keep that with you. That being said, you have to cultivate that talent and develop that skill into something extraordinary. Whether you are wanting to get into the animation and computer graphics world for fun, a side hobby, a part- time endeavor or a full-time venture down the road, as with anything else, everything starts somewhere and that somewhere begins with you. If you are not already aware of this, there are endless areas of the animation and computer graphics field. You probably already have an idea of the area or areas that interest you, however if you don't or even if you do, its fun to play around in all the different areas to see if you would like to add additional skills to your knowledge base when creating. Some areas that might interest you just to name a few include:
Interactive 3D Rigging
Cartooning
Graphic Design
Video Game Creation
Realistic Physics & Particles
Complex Shading
Rendering
Composting
The list goes on and on and you might find yourself becoming interested in more than one of these very, very quickly. Take some time for yourself to explore these different areas to see which most fits your interest. Your talent speaks for yourself so let people see & experience it. You were given a gift so make sure that you give yourself a chance to cultivate it. With the right tools, know how and more importantly the want and desire, before you know it whether it's for fun, a side hobby or a full-time career you will be DOING exactly what you were supposed to be doing. It starts with you.

Overview of One Piece Episode One

The story begins with a view of a civilian ship sailing leisurely through the ocean and an insight into the happenings on board, inside the main room many glamorous individuals are eating, drinking and dancing. The sailors on the deck are all going about their duties - bar a few, who spot a barrel floating in the sea and decide to use a grappling hook to bring it aboard - thinking it to be wine or something valuable.
Disaster then strikes when one of the sailors sights a pirate ship on the horizon, flying the flag of Alvida, a notorious pirate captain. On board her ship the pirates are readying themselves for an attack, and all but one are consumed by a bloodthirsty excitement - a young boy with glasses who appears to be there against his will. Alvida commences the attack and brings her ship alongside the cruise boat in order to board it. The young boy on her ship is reluctant to cross so she strikes him over to the other side where he smashes into a wall.
The pirates board the ship and defeat any of the crew who put up a fight. They then proceed to rob the guests of all their possessions, while a few of them raid the ships supplies. An orange haired woman who was seen in the main hall of the ship is covertly sneaking around and disabling anyone who asks questions. Meanwhile the young boy 'Coby' is searching below deck and trying to stay out of the way. He encounters the barrel that was pulled out of the sea by the ship's sailors just before the attack, thinking that his find may score him some points and lessen his captors cruelty - he begins to roll the barrel towards the upper deck. Before long he is stopped by a group of three pirates who jeer at him and take the barrel for themselves, assuming it to be wine. The biggest of the three opts to smash the top of the barrel with his fist, and as he launches the blow the top of the barrel explodes, and a man bursts out, knocking the pirate senseless and quickly dispatching the other two when they attack.
The man from the barrel introduces himself as: Monkey. D Luffy, the man who will become the pirate king. The young boy Coby is amazed by this - as the world has not known a pirate king for many years and it is a feat that requires impossible strength and resources. Coby tells Luffy of his situation and receives poor feedback, the barrel man bluntly calls him a coward and expresses dislike for him. By this time the pirates that Luffy had attacked earlier had long since reported to Alvida, and the huge pirate came crashing through the ceiling. The pirates have infested the boat and the situation is dire. Luffy jumps to the upper deck.
The pair are surrounded by pirates, and Luffy opts to run away, as he runs past the mast he grabs it with one hand, his hand remains on the mast but his body keeps running as his arm stretches. His pursuers can only watch in horror as his arm stretches to its limit, and his body snaps back at a ridiculous speed, knocking many of them down. After Coby finally confronts his fears, and Luffy takes a blow from Alvida's heavy iron club without sustaining any damage - Luffy proceeds (much to Coby's horror) to stretch again to perform an array of attacks that completely destroys the pirate crew, and blows Alvida away into the sea. Luffy explains that he has eaten a 'Devil's Fruit', a type of fruit which gives the user a special ability - in his case his body gained the properties of rubber, making him a rubber man.
The victory is short lived as the marines show up to arrest any pirates in the area, as Luffy is a pirate he chooses to escape via boat. He and Coby steal a small boat from the side of the cruise ship and set sail. As they crash into the water luffy briefly sees the orange haired girl that evaded the pirates earlier. Then they are out in the open sea. As the episode Luffy chooses to travel to the nearest island to recruit the first member of his crew - an infamous swordsman named 'Pirate hunter Zoro' (much to Coby's dismay).

The Coolest Animated Movies Of All Time

1. Fantasia - This Disney classic was ambitious and because of the outbreak of World War Two during its production it lost the large European market essential to its breaking even. It was in its rerelease in 1969 to a new generation of music lovers that it first made a financial profit.
2. Pinocchio - Disney pulled the stops out for this one having geared up by producing Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs. It is the film considered by most old time Disney animators as Disney's masterpiece.
3. Bambi - This soft, lyrical film used impressionistic back ground paintings and realistic animal characters. Realistic looking, they were still anamorphic and it's still a little disturbing to hear the owl called "friend owl" by his potential food source.
4. Allegro Non Troppo - This movie was made in 1976 by the Italian animator Bruno Bozzetto and is a spoof of Fantasia. The animation sequences are sometimes a little more modern not only in theme but also in the use of using photo collage and some live action footage and the sequences of the animator animating the film "live" as a cheesy little orchestra of enslaved women play the soundtrack is a whole lot more fun than Deems Taylor.
5. Akira - Katsuhiro Otomo's sci fi fantasy is the opposite of the kind of bed time story fairy tale American audiences were used to. It's the sort of story to keep you awake at night, even if you're an adul
6. The Iron Giant - This film seems to use the character design style of MAD Magazine and has a 1950s science fiction vibe. Futuristic Retro is a term that could be applied to this Brad Bird directed under-rated cult film.
7. Rocktasia - This obscure cult favorite was, like Allegro Non Troppo, a take off on Disney's Fantasia but instead of animation done to Classical music its soundtrack featured hits from the Classic Rock era of the 60s and early 70s. The art style was based on the poster artists whose work was popular at the time and ranged from Peter Max, Frank Frazetta and Rick Griffen to Maxfield Parrish, M.C. Escher and Hieronymus Bosch.
8. Howl's Moving Castle - A fantasy along the lines of The Wizard of Oz and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, this is one trippy film. A little less head scratching than some other excellent Japanese imports, it is still from another land if not world.
9. The Lion King - This Disney masterpiece has the formula that makes for a successful animated movie; realistic animal designs acting like animals in a natural world devoid of humans. And great songs, this time from Elton John.
10. An American Tale - This movie helped launch Don Bluth as the first real competitor to Disney since the age of the Fleischer Brothers. A poignant story of prejudice and oppression it is a little disturbing if the viewer is aware of the Nazi propaganda which depicted Jews as vermin to be exterminated.

Get Your Career Started in 3D Animation

When you were a small child were you fascinated with animated movies? Would you sit mesmerized in front of the television watching your favorite animated show? Did you spend your free time drawing or found yourself doodling during class? Well, I'm sure you are already aware you fit this description, then you are in love with animation.
Now, that we have that covered, what really brings you to this page? It's because you want to pursue a career in 3D animation, but where to begin?
To work for Disney is probably your ideal dream come true. To work for Disney as a 3D animator is prestigious and certainly not impossible. Most people that work for Disney showed signs of artistic talent at a young age. If you were determined at creating art during your childhood and now as an adult you still have that passion, w deserves a big congratulations. Animation, especially 3D animation takes time and dedication. You have probably heard a lot of people criticize your work, but the fact that you had perseverance and you kept going gives you an upper hand to nailing your job. It involves heart and that is a part of who you are.
A college degree in 3D animation is another plus to have when trying to get a job in in the field. Education is so important, especially in this day and age. However, if you don't have a college degree but chose to take some additional classes to brush up on your animation skills that is suitable as well.
From these classes, not only will you get experience and a degree/certificate but also you will build your portfolio for an amazing reel. Reels are often required along with a resume and cover letter before you even get the chance to interview. Reels can be very confusing because there is so many rules as to what the director will be looking for. For starters make sure you take your best work. I know that seems obvious but put your best work first. Also make sure your reel isn't too long. I would say around 4 minutes max is a good amount of time to demonstrate your skills.
The beauty of animation is there are many different routes to take in the industry; from film, to gaming, to television. According the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average 3D animation salary is $56,000. It is also said the expected growth rate since 2008 was 12%. Because multimedia is new, even with the fall of the economy the entertainment industry is still thriving, so that is definitely a positive.

The Best 3D Character Animation Software

3D character animation is growing in leaps and bounds. 3D characters are used in every many facets, including games, videos, design industry, and business presentations. The charters create an eye-captivating picture when using video production for promoting your product or company. There are many modeling programs that will assist you in creating the best 3D characters and make your creation stand out from the crowd. The top three software programs will be outlined in this article.
1. ZBrush
ZBrush is a digital program for sculpting and painting with standout features and for amazing animations. It offers the world's most advanced tools for today's digital artists, hands down. The amount of features that have been developed with ease of use in mind is endless. This program has but is not limited to Geometry, LightCap, and Curve Mode. This is the reason why ZBrush is part of everyone's tool belt, from art enthusiast to major film and games studios. The user experience feels natural while assisting in bringing out your inner creativity. The ability of ZBrush is only limited by your imagination, because there is no lack of tools in this program.
2. Mudbox
Mudbox is a 3D sculpting and digital painting software. This program claims Mudbox gives users the freedom to create production-ready, 3D digital artwork by avoiding the technical details. The tool-set is full of stencils and brushes for very realistic 3D productions. The 3D sculpting tool-set is accurate while allowing the designer to create smooth designs fast. You can see the results immediately when painting directly onto a 3D model. Users can view render quality results directly in the view-port, making the displays interactive. Design concepts are easy to experiment with because designs are made in layers allowing for easy revisions.
3. Modo
Modo is an all in one package program. It has the ability to model, sculpt, and paint, animation and render. The features used within each task such as n-gons or 3D painting and edge weighting enhance these abilities. Modo differs from other 3D programs, because they use a lesser number of basic tools, but they do combine them to create new tools, using Tool Pipe. The artist can choose a pivot point by just clicking somewhere. The tools can be modified with customizable falloffs; this will modify the strength of the geometric shapes that make the images. The best part about Modo is that is has a progressive preview renderer.
These are only some of the 3D character animation software your can use to make your ideas come to life. There is also Maya, 3ds Max, Blender and Light Wave but these are not up to par with the program applications above.

The History of Japanese Anime

In 1854, with the opening of Japan to foreign trade, the technologies developed in the West were introduced to and quickly adopted by many in Japan. That ushers in the era of Japanese animation in 1914 with the earliest anime being first screened in 1917 with a two minute clip of a folk tale and comedy about a samurai warrior.
By the 1930s, the anime industry has gained a significant amount of interest in Japan. Unfortunately, the local Japanese animators had to deal with a lot of competition, both from foreign and local animators. As a result, Japanese animators were forced to work cheaply and therefore, they opted for the animation technique called cutout animation, instead of the more expensive cel animation. However, with cutout animation, Japanese animators such as Yasuji Murata were still able to create wonders. Later on, animators such as Masaoka and Mitsuyo Seo improved the Japanese animation industry, among others, by using cel animation and by introducing sound.
In 1933, Masaoka has produced the first talkie anime called "Chikara to Onna no Yo no Naka". This was succeeded in 1945 by Seo's direction of "Momotaro's Devine Sea Warriors", which was the first anime film with feature length. The achievement of these Japanese animators was even more commendable because it was difficult to survive commercially. They also had to rely heavily on the support of government, which entails an obligation to include educational and militaristic propaganda. Besides, Japanese animation was greatly influenced by the success of the 1937 feature film by the Walt Disney Company, called "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs". For instance, Osamu Tezuka started to mimic American style cartoons to reduce costs and limit the number of frames in production and with that created the popular graphic novel known as "Shintakarajima" in 1947.
In the 1970s, the Japanese film market shrunk due to the increased competition from television which eventually led to the bankruptcy of Mushi Productions. However, the work of Osamu Tezuka was able to survive this competition. In fact, his work was so impressive that he was often credited as the "god of manga". His distinctive "large eyes" style in animation still remains as one of the fundamental elements of anime today. During this difficult era, a genre known as Mecha has also been introduced whose animation films include "Mazinger Z" (1972-74), "Science Ninja Team Gatchaman" (1972-74), "Space Battleship Yamato" (1974-75) and "Mobile Suit Gundam" (1979-80).
Other notable milestones for the Japanese animation industry include the release of "Akira" in the 1980s that has found huge success in both the Japanese and foreign market, and the boom in production in the 1990s due to the release of "Ghost in the Shell". Furthermore, in 2008, Doraemon has been officially appointed as the first Anime Ambassador by Japanese government in order to promote anime worldwide. All these led to the success of the animation industry of Japan that we know today.

The Guilty Pleasures Of Pixar Films

Most of the Pixar movies have obsolescence as a main theme. I believe this is probably because the young artists who worked on these films and certainly the older artists who came from the traditional 2D animation world thought hand drawn animation was going to be their life's work. Most people who got into animation did so because they liked to draw, not program computers. After all, the "magic" of animation, as defined by Disney, was in watching drawings come to life.
The look of computer animation is much more akin to model animation or Claymation which ironically experienced a resurgence of popularity after the rise of computer animation. One would think it would have been model animation, which computer animation so closely resembles, that would have been replaced, not hand drawn animation.
So many of the great Pixar movies are about the old giving way to the new. Among the many examples are;
Toy Story - Old, wooden toy Woody the cowboy, is threatened by the arrival of shiny, new, plastic toy, Buzz Lightyear the spaceman.
A Bug's Life - A group of down and out theater troupe bugs get a chance to play heroes and save their livelihoods and their lives.
Monsters, Inc. - The old way of collecting energy through screams is eventually replaced by collecting laughter.
Finding Nemo - Dad proves his usefulness and his love by searching for his lost son.
The Incredibles - A whole "industry" of super heroes are put out of work and fall out of fashion.
Cars - A small town bypassed by a new highway gets rediscovered for its nostalgic charm.
Ratatouille - This must have been a reaction to America's annoyance with France over the Iraq war since it tries to associate French cooking with swarms of rats. Not a good example of obsolescence and a rare WTF?! moment for Pixar.
WALL-E - The whole planet is trashed. Robots do the clean up. Obsolescence to the extreme.
Up - An old man with no reason to stay simply flies away.
Pixar films are extremely well made on all levels and they've also been noted for their heart. It is the bitter sweet knowledge that the old must make way for the new that gives these films their sentimentality and that probably stems from the subconscious guilt Pixar must have for so completely replacing the traditional and beloved animated cartoon.

The 3D Adventure

The exciting adventure into a magical world with multiple dimensions where your imagination is allowed to run wild is the world of 3D animation. Take a swim in the deep blue sea exploding with tropical, colourful fish that you can almost touch and feel with your fingers. Walk through a fierce blizzard where you can feel the icy wind blowing and touch the magical snowflakes with your fingers. Trek through the Sahara Dessert whilst you can see the hot sand blowing on your face, watch the camels as if they were real life and enjoy the experience almost as if you were there now.
That is why skilled 3D animators are the most highly sought-after artists in the world of 3D. The main reason they are in demand, is that producing believable and entertaining animation requires a lot of skill and practice.
A 3D animator needs to be a type of actor so he can act out each move in sequence. It is a complicated set of skills and knowledge which is acquired through a lot of work and practice. This is usually achieved through years of studying acting and how objects move etc...
Keen observation may be the most important skill to develop as an animator. Observe life around you [such as the fish in the ocean] and the way that objects move. Draw pictures, take notes, and try to attach a meaning to what you observe. Don't study just animation. Try to study movies attend plays and even read comic books to understand how poses and movement create moods and communicate messages without using words. New animators would benefit from the old masters of 20th century animation - Walt Disney, Art Babbitt, Grim Natwick, and Ken Anderson. The principles used to bring characters like Mickey Mouse and Bugs Bunny to life are still as relevant today as they were back then. Indeed, the first place a new 3D animator should look is to the old animation manuals of 2D artists.
The novice 3D animator will be wise to focus on basic objects first: how to make a ball move from one place to another, and how to make it bounce. Later, as you explore character animation, you'll need to understand what determines a good walk and how to cut down on "float," a common problem for new animators where the character moves as if underwater.
Most importantly, animators must practice their craft repeatedly. Like modelling, animation requires time and patience. Even experienced animators may create many test movies before getting a good final result. A good animator can make an average model come to life, whilst even the best models can be made to look amateurish by a poor animator. Persistence generates success, and like all crafts, is the key to creating the ultimate success..

How to Make a Cartoon on the Computer With Flash and Skeletal Animation

When researching how to make a cartoon on the computer, one will quickly notice there is quite a reputation around skeletal animation and vector model design. There's a good reason for its being so highly praised, and contrary to popular belief, it's very easy to use.
The best tool for designing your vectors, hands down, is Flash. Anyone who's used to any image editing program will instantly feel at home with Flash's layout, and much of its thought processes. It's best to use CS5, as earlier CS releases tend to be a tad slow on average computers.
You'll notice almost instantly how easy it is to create stylistic lines and fills with Flash, drawing lines, snapping them together and bending the lines into curves. With any artistic talent, this process can lead to very crisp, beautiful cell models that any animation studio would be proud of.
Artistically-minded animators will also find that Flash is great for importing sketched models of characters, and rotoscoping them directly into Flash itself. To do this, simply import an image to the layer that the project has by default. Create a new layer over it, and make a white rectangle over the image. Set its color opacity to about 60% (though it may vary depending on the heaviness of the sketch's pencil work). Make one more layer above this, and then lock the two layers below. Begin following your sketch with the line and pen tools, and in moments, you have a beautiful cell model that's true to your original sketch.
Now, be sure to convert all of the moving pars of your model into distinct symbols (movie clips) by right-clicking on them and selecting "convert to symbol". Remove any rotoscoping layers and imported images at this point. Now, it's a good idea to distribute your moving parts to their own layers, stacked top to bottom by the order they overlap. Group your parts by what they belong to, so that all parts of an arm, for example, are in one single layer. Upon doing this, you're ready to animate your model.
Now, the wonderful thing with Flash since version CS4 is, you don't need another program in order to use skeletal animation on your model. Skeletal animation is also called "bone animation" or "inverse kinematics". Flash refers to this as bones.
When ready to animate, for example, the arm, select the bone tool. From the shoulder, drag a bone to just past the elbow. From this joint, drag another to just past the wrist. Now, selecting the pointer tool, you will find that dragging on different parts of the arm will result in the arm bending in the same way that a real arm would move. Well, you will notice it bends to extents that your arm cannot. To solve this, click on one of the bones, and in properties, simply play with the restrictions until you have it to where it seems proper for your character.
Now, once you've given your character all of his moving parts in this manner, you want to make an animation of them moving. This is very easy to do. Copy the existing frame in your timeline, and decide how many frames in length the motion should take. Select the empty frame for that distance, and paste the frame there. The timeline between the frames will fill out with just a long stretch of the original frame at this point.
In the final frame, move the parts of your model to where they should be once the motion is completed. Now, select all of the frames, and right click on the selection. You can create a classic tween, or a motion tween; Animators have had mixed results in comparing which of these works better, so it's best to try both, and see which one works best for you.
Voila, you've mastered vector model creation, and advanced skeletal animation, and you did it all with one program, in less than two hours!
This is a distinctly faster, and more streamlined method of design and animation than the classic frame-by-frame method that has been used since the birth of the art form. However, in being distinctly different from classic animation, it also looks very different. It takes a skilled animator and designer to not make skeletal animation look "puppety" or robotic. It lacks the organic feel that classic animation forms possess. However, when you look at how much time is saved with this animation style, and if you're willing to practice with it, the tradeoff is most often well worth it.

Top 3D Modeling Services

In this day and age, 3D modeling is a very common tool people are using when creating their works of art. If you are interested in having a 3D model for your project but don't know how to do it yourself there are plenty of 3D modeling services that can get the job done for you. Many services offer pre-made models that you can purchase or they can custom make one to your liking. Regardless here are the top 3D modeling services. Let's take a look at the ones that were named best of the year.
TurboSquid
This is one of the nation's best 3D modeling services. They are a very professional company and work on top-notch projects. However, because this company is so prestigious they do charge more for their services. They have worked with Pixar, Raytheon, CBS, and Boeing, just to name a few.
Falling Pixel
This company is a close second behind TurboSquid but still a very well known 3D service company. They are very professional and accommodating to their clients. They will pull from their pool of artists to make sure your needs are filled to the fullest. If you are a 3D artist looking to sell your work, Falling Pixel has one of the best artist commission rates in the industry with the artist receiving fifty-eight percent of the models sale price.
3d02
This is another great 3D modeling service. Their sight allows you to browse through models by category and formats making it very easy to see which models are a good fit for your work. Here you can buy models individually, collectively, or also have your own model created. 3d02 is also best known for their reasonable prices.
The 3D Studio
This service has thousands of models and textures that work with 3ds max, Cinema 4D, Lightwave, and Maya. The thing to note about The 3D Studio is that their models are far more simple then other 3D modeling services but that may very well suit what you need. It just depends on what you are looking for. They do have a variety of categories to choose from including characters, vehicles, plants, space, sports, industrial, anatomy, architecture and more.
DAZ
DAZ is another highly popular 3D modeling service. The only downfall is they are only compatible with DAZ software. However, they are known to be extremely affordable. Their work produces high quality 3D models. People who are interested in human and non-human figures will find comfort and satisfaction with this company. They are very good with mythical creatures. Their models are very life like. If you are looking for human or mythical characteristics then DAZ is probably the best choice for you.

Learn to Draw Cartoons: Keep It Simple

Drawing is a wonderful hobby, and drawing cartoons can be a fun hobby for anyone, at any age! You can draw cartoons anywhere - on the bus, in the subway, waiting at the airport, sitting in the doctor's office. It's great to carry a small sketchbook with you, but you can also draw cartoons on just about any scrap of paper you find. There's no need to start a "masterpiece." You can just get out your favorite pencil and begin.
Learning to draw cartoons, like any other art, is all about doing. Yes, you need some basic instruction to get started, but you have to apply those instructions by practicing constantly. You may have noticed that people who love to draw are constantly drawing! They don't just think about it, dream about it, talk about it, or wish they could do it. They spend time at it every day - very often they will grab a pencil and a piece of paper anytime their hands are not busy with something else.
When you learn to draw cartoons, the whole world becomes your model. Cartoons are based on real life. A good cartoon will highlight or exaggerate some aspect of every day life that we can all recognize and relate to, bringing out the humor beneath the surface. If you find yourself chuckling over ordinary things, or seeing the hidden joke that no one else "gets," you might make a very good cartoonist. Learning to draw cartoons gives you the tools to open up that world of hidden humor for others, helping them to see the ridiculous and the unexpected.
Learning to draw cartoons can be a great personal outlet. Some people like to keep a journal, or write poetry, or compose songs; maybe your thing will be drawing cartoons, developing characters of your own that become unique and familiar friends. If you would like to share your art with other people there are so many great ways to do that nowadays. It's fairly easy to set up your own website or blog where you can post your drawings; there are even special WordPress themes for posting cartoons. You can begin with a service that doesn't cost anything.
You can also scan your drawings into a computer and compile them into a digital book that can be shared with anyone who has a smart phone, a digital reader or tablet computer. There are so many ways to share your art that don't cost anything. If you find that many people enjoy your drawings, or you get lots of comments on your skill, then you can explore other possibilities for getting them published.

How to Make a Cartoon on the Computer the Old Fashioned Way

Animation is ingrained in modern culture and media very deeply. Few children from anywhere in the world do not spend their formative years being entertained and often inspired by the animated motion pictures and television shows that dominate the screens of the 21st century.
What started as a curious experiment by the likes of Fleischer and Disney has now become an expansive industry that not only shapes the art of entertainment, but has also contributed to the advancement of seemingly unrelated fields of science! Few people can honestly say that at some point in their youth, they did not want to try to make a cartoon. For a long time, even if we had the artistic merit to pull it off visually, this was something that would be a pipe dream for most.
That was, before the digital age took full root in society. Computers have changed a lot about how we do things, and they have also brought the power to accomplish great and beautiful works to our hands. Now, it is very easy to learn how to make a cartoon animation on the computer. It is so easy in fact, that we're presented with a veritable cornucopia of choices in how we want to go about it.
But, let's look at a more conventional way to animate, especially for those of us who still feel at home with pens and paper, rather than vectors and inverse kinematics. Animation has for the longest time been the art of taking a series of sequential sketches, painting over them with transparent cells, and photo-implementing them against backgrounds.
This used to involve lots of expensive resources and equipment, fail to mention teams of specialists to operate the processes. Now, a single multi-talented individual can do this very easily. First, it's a good idea to storyboard your animation. This is done in a style similar to a comic strip, but each panel being what is known as a "key frame". These key frames are examples of distinct poses within the animation, between which a smooth series of animations should transition.
Upon designing your key frames, it is best to use thin, non-pulp paper to create your animations. Determine how many frames are between each key frame, and stack your key frames, from the bottom up, with the corresponding amount of blank paper between them. Now, begin tracing your key frame, making minor changes for a frame of movement. When you get to the next frame, trace the previous one, making further changes.
If you've done it right, by the time you hit another key frame, you should have a perfectly smooth transition from the last. This takes time, so be patient, relax, and be precise. Use heavy ink lines, bearing in mind what your next step will be.
Once you have your inked (or pencil if you prefer) animation frames completed, you should scan them, using a common naming convention like "frame01" etc. to preserve order in your files. Be sure to scan them all at the same DPI and dimension!
Now, you want to color your animations, and omit the paper backdrop, right? You can do this with Photoshop. Open an image, and use the magic wand tool to select the ink lines themselves. Adjust its tolerance until it gets all of it. Now, copy it, and paste it in a new payer. Delete the original layer.
Uh oh, the inks are jagged now, aren't they? To solve this, select the layer, and go into channels, and create a new layer. Fill it with white, and a white version of the jagged inks will appear. Now, go to effects, and do a Gaussian blur of less than one percent. Then, adjust the levels until the inks smooth out. Copy this channel layer, go back to your normal layers, and just fill it with black.
Now your inks are beautiful, and over a transparency. You are now free to color your cell as you see fit.
Having made your backgrounds beforehand, you have choices in what you assemble your animations with. The easiest one is Flash, which can import your images in series, if you remembered to always save your scans and colored finals with a sequential name system. Once in flash, you can position the backdrop in a layer beneath the animation cells, and export the movie. It will export as Quicktime. You can use any number of free programs to convert it to any number of formats from this point.

3D Animation Software - A Quick Look At How It Is Used

3D software these days is limitless it seems, there are several types on the market and they all vary in capability, functionality and of course, price. From an amateur to a professional, there is a piece of software out there to suit your every need. Making sure you download animation software that's right for your needs is crucial, or you could end up paying more than you need to.
The first movie that ever to use computer animation software in making the film was 'Westworld' in 1973. This really set the trend in the movie industry by wowing audiences and influencing directors and gave us movies such as 'The Abyss', 'Terminator', 'Forrest Gump', 'Jurassic Park' and 'Toy Story' only to name a few. Video games make use of computer animation software, in a slightly different way, to help the consoles running them cope with the massive frames per second. With 3D animation, the world will quite literally never be the same again. Download animation software to begin creating projects like this and more, depending on your style.
Mostly it used to be just objects that are being used for the process of computer animation, but as technology has developed, many films have used powerful software such as IllusionMage to create stunning human movement including; Beowulf, The Incredibles and Avatar. Things can only get better for the film industry, with the latest craze of 3D being added to movies, the possibilities truly are endless. The existence of animation software has produced an extremely positive effect in the movie industry, today's films would not be the same at all, since almost every one has some form of computer animation involved. This really gets movie enthusiasts more excited about the latest movies, because the realism and stunning effect of the 3D animation really pulls the viewer in and makes for a more dramatic and brilliant cinema experience. To make use of these traits yourself make sure you download animation software that is right for your uses.
There are various types of animation software; the most popular types are computer generated imagery (CGI), Claymation and stop motion. These options should help you see what is used in many TV programs and movies, such as Avatar and Wallace and Gromit.
- Using computer generated imagery, (CGI) objects are modelled with a 3D software package and then rigged up to be able to virtually move them around. The objects can be manipulated and controlled to create the required movements, and the software creates a frame (image) for every slight movement and creates the video to play back at 25fps (UK) or 30fps (US)
- Stop motion uses physical models that are modelled by hand and an image is captured for every movement and again, set to play back at 25fps (UK) or 30fps (US)

Best 3D Modelling Software - What to Look For

I think we are all aware and amazed by the leaps and bounds made by the 3D animation industry in the past few decades. Like Walt Disney and now you have movies such as Avatar and Tin Tin and the list goes on and on. Cartoons and mixed media. Fluid movements, brilliant colors and spectacular sounds. Just amazing!
And now it's so east for a person to get a piece of software and learn the basics of animation and if you like take it to the next level of making it a career.
For some who don't have an artistic bone in their body, like myself, but an incredible desire to create some form of art, computer software is a god send! You can spend literally hours and hours creating and learning in your spare time just to please yourself. It's typical that once you learn a few things, people start to notice and want to have you create something for them. " that sort of thing. It wasn't very long before I was being noticed by the owner of the company I worked for and asked to take over the duties of updating and modifying the company website - and I might add, making a nice additional income! I did a self-study course over a 14 day period and managed the website for 8 years. It was great.
Nowadays, the software available for you to learn with is so exciting. Designing new games and making super graphics etc. Has gone straight up and vertical in its progression. Fantastic and so mobile and lifelike! I once sat down with a friend and was enjoy a soccer game with him and when I finally realized I didn't recognize the teams I asked him who was playing. The guy I was watching with couldn't believe I was asking who was playing. It's a video game I'm playing!! " and laughed. I didn't know it was a video game. Unreal! but so Real! It was not the only time that has happened to me. Is it just me or do other people feel that this new reality in animation is simply awesome. Young people are so good at these games and don't seem at all awe-struck by the realism.
Well if you're like me and want to learn how to use this type of software for fun and your own entertainment or you would like to take it to a whole new level and adopt it as your career, well there are some awesome programs and software suites out there that will knock your socks off. It's a new adventure just waiting for you to give it a try. Some of the things to look for when shopping for animation software. are as follows:
1] 3D Modelling / Animation / Game Design Software for Home Users
2] Quality 3D Content, 3D Figure Design and Animation, Rendering
3] Real-time Interactive 3D and Games Creation with Live Playback
4] Completely illustrated tutorials and lots of step-by-step video training.
5] Can be used to make high-end game characters and scenery
6] Lots of tools for high-end 3D production this software is forever improving
These are just some of the features that come with software of this kind. This is fun and creative not difficult. The support and tutorials for this stuff are extreme. It always helps a company to have satisfied customers and these guys deliver great support. Very fun and enjoyable. You'll be amazed at how fast you learn this new art.

Computer Animation Graphics: A Popular Career Choice

The 2012 Academy Awards have reinforced the love affair that Americans have with computer-generated animation. Computer animation is used in the films that are nominated and win, reinforcing the importance and place of these type of programs in American life. It's not just feature-length films like "Rango" and "Puss in Boots." Computer animation shows up in non-animated films as well to create dazzling special effects. Animation is also on television in shows and commercials. Video games would not be nearly as popular without realistic animation programs. There is also the industrial market of corporate and training films that can feature computer animation. There are a lot of places and lot of opportunities in the computer animations field.
The problem is, it is difficult to find opportunities to get the specialized training in this field. Courses are offered at traditional colleges, but they often go very quickly, because people want in on this popular field. The same situation can exist for profit schools, whether they offer classroom or online training. It is possible to learn about this field on your own. It can be done if a person has the right software and support materials for instruction.
Self-instructional animation software should give a user who is serious about learning computer animation fully featured 3D animation that can rival what the professionals do. Illusion Mage provides those capabilities while providing the user with the type of instruction that they need to get started, and to which they can refer when working on animation projects. Illusion Mage provides that support with six hours of video instructional material to guide a user step by step through a computer animation course. This course guides a user through using powerful software without costing a small fortune. The company that provides this software should also believe in the product and be willing to back it. While some animation programs can costs $1,000's, the software program Illusion Mage is reasonably price and provides a 60-day money back guarantee for its product.
Major films and independent productions use 3D computer animation as do commercial and industrial video producers. Whether users want to make a demo reel for a company, or want to start making independent releases as an independent producer, Illusion Mage can help them start on that path on an animation course. Illusion Mage can help people make good-looking animation and provides the support materials that people need.