I have recently been taking more time to try and get more familiar, and also get faster, at making different animations in Adobe After Effects.
I started with some basic tests mainly focusing on transitions that could be applied to pre-comps to keep things visually interesting from one screen to the next. After this I started looking at some tutorial videos where I saw one guiding on how to put together a 2D character that gives a 3D feel. I then gave this a go myself. I was reasonably happy with the result. I put this together using a plugin called Duik Bassel, which lets me determine the rotation of the head using a custom x and y axis slider. I wasn't, however, very happy with how the face on this rig looked, with the rotation angles not quite matching what my brain said looked right. Looking further into this I then decided that the best method for this might be with the utilisation of the actual 3D layer toggles in After Effects, not for the whole character, but just for the face itself. Using this approach I put together a very quick character and tried it out. I am very happy with how the effect looks. The face is labelled 3D, which means although it is still a 2d image I was able to move it further towards the camera than the other layers, and have it rotating on the x and y axis as the head turns. However, the head itself is a completely stationary 2D layer with a 'set matte' effect on it to mask the other layers to it. Similarly the hair layers making up the front and back of the hair are 2D layers, masked to the head layer, that simply move left and right. and up and down, depending on the angle of the head slider. While putting this together I also tested and confirmed the ability to set up the eyes on a different slider than the head, while still being affected by it, allowing me change where he looks independently.
The culmination of these tests is that I was now able to take what I learned and apply it to an earlier character rig I put together for Break The Mould. I now have two fully rigged characters with IK rigging on the limbs, a slider to move the hair and shirt for the Aaliyah model, independent sliders for the eyes and eyebrows, flip toggles for the noses, two mouth options for open and closed and now finally the ability to angle the heads in all directions and angle the bodies slightly left and right to help with any animations where they need to be facing to the side. I am very pleased with them, and while I will likely continue to build on them, or even rebuild them from the ground up if I feel I have learned enough that they would benefit from that, I think I can get some really fun use out of these new upgrades and will now be putting together a little library of chroma keyable animations for use in Break The Mould projects by other volunteers.
1 Comment
15/11/2022 09:52:56 pm
Rule any still probably. True beyond remember expert.
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