The first thing I would like to start with is to explain what animation is in three-dimensional graphics and what is its main difference from classical (two-dimensional) animation. Animation in 3D computer graphics is the process of changing the properties (parameters) of a three-dimensional object over time. In classical animation, the animator has to draw every frame of his creation in order to make the object come to life on the screen.

Image source www.angryanimator.com

In 3D animation, we need to set the so-called key frames, and the program will calculate (interpolate) all other frames of the animation itself. In fact, the animation process is not as simple as it may seem erroneously. Perhaps it is for this reason that the profession of animator in the field of three-dimensional computer graphics is one of the highest paid professions in the industry, and there are not so many real professionals.

What is 3D animation used for? There are several areas that cannot do without three-dimensional animation. It:

• Animation of object transformations (moving, rotating, scaling);
• Camera animation;
• Animation of technical processes;
• Dynamic deformations of objects;
• Character animation;
• Dynamic simulations (fluids, tissues, particles).

In each of the above areas, there are different ways to create (obtain) 3D animation. We can reduce them to the following:

1. Keyframe animation;
2. Animation along the trajectory;
3. Creation of animation in dynamic simulations;
4. Animation obtained by motion capture.

So, let's slightly open the veil of secrecy over each method of creating animation.

Keyframe Animation

Creating animation in 3D graphics packages by keyframes can be represented as follows:

• At the right moment in time, for example, in the 1st frame of the animation, you set the properties of your object (size, position, rotation angles) and set this frame as the key frame. The program records all information about the properties of the object in this frame.
• Next, you select another frame of your animation, for example the 10th, and in it again set the new properties of your object. After, again make this frame the key.
• Now the program will calculate how the object should behave when moving from the 1st animation frame to the 10th. This process is called animation interpolation.

Image source http://brendanbody.blogspot.com/2008/12/walk-cycle.html

This type of animation is ideal for: animation of object transformations, animation of cameras, animation of technical processes and even character animation. Industrial Light & Magic's Rango Animation is a perfect example of the perfect keyframed character animation.

Copyright 2011 Paramount Pictures

Path Animation

Animation along a trajectory requires, in addition to the object that will be animated, be sure to set its trajectory (path of movement). Path animation is very often ideal for animating moving technical objects, animating cameras, and animating technical processes.

Image source http://tanawadeethep.tumblr.com

Having selected the object that you would like to make move along the path, you need to assign it a path for animation (trajectory). The 3D object is then transferred to the path line and associated with it. The program itself will create two keyframes for you, one of which will store the position of the object at the beginning of the path, and the second the position of the object at the end of the path. The rest of the frames are interpolated by the program for you. As a result, your object will start moving along the specified path when the animation plays.

Creating Animations for Dynamic Simulations

This way of creating animation is associated more with the profession of a dynamics specialist than with the profession of an animator. Animation here is a way to save the result of a dynamic simulation. The terrible phrase "dynamic simulation" refers to the process of calculating the behavior of an object in a physically real environment. environment. For example, we all know that if a glass goblet falls on the floor, then most likely it will break into many pieces. This is familiar to us and we all understand it. But the three-dimensional environment does not know which object should have certain properties. In order for each object to behave as it does in our world, dynamic simulations are used. Such simulations are run by 3D graphics packages and after the simulation is completed, they create animation keys that store information about the behavior of each piece of our broken glass. Dynamic simulations are very often used to calculate the behavior of fluids, tissues, hard and soft objects. Thanks to dynamic simulations and the animation created after them, we can enjoy watching apocalyptic blockbusters in cinemas.

Copyright 2009 Sony Pictures / Columbia Pictures

Motion capture animation

Motion capture (from English motion capture) is a fairly young way to get animation, but is quickly gaining popularity due to the realistic animation that it allows you to get. What is the essence of this method of obtaining computer three-dimensional animation? As a rule, to get animation in this way, you need a specially equipped studio with motion capture equipment, an actor from which the animation will be captured and special software. The motion capture system works as follows:

1. Special sensors are put on the actor;
2. The actor performs the necessary animation movements;
3. Cameras around the actor capture the movement of sensors;
4. Specialized software analyzes the movements of the sensors and creates a skeleton with exactly the same animation as a real actor and saves the result in the form of keyframes;
5. The resulting animation can now be used in 3D graphics packages.

This technology is expensive, but allows you to get very realistic animation. Basically, it is used for character animation.

Image source http://lukemccann.wordpress.com/motion-capture

Vivid examples of obtaining animation by motion capture can be such film projects as: "Polar Express", "Avatar", "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn".

This concludes our overview of animation in 3D computer graphics.

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A few years ago, Russian animation film producers began to think about creating 3D pictures. The first Russian 3D cartoon "Our Masha and the Magic Nut" was released in 2009, and the first big success in this market came to the cartoon "Belka and Strelka. Star Dogs, released in 2010. The 3D series "Masha and the Bear" and "The Fixies" are now very popular and even successfully compete with Western children's cartoons. As a result of the explosive growth of the industry, it needs 3D animators more than ever.

Professions in the field of 3D graphics are not only incredibly promising and highly paid, but also very diverse: for example, 3D modeling and 3D animation require different skills. About 3D modeling we, this time Look At Me understands what skills and talents a person who decides to devote his life to 3D animation should have.

Denis Buieabout education and dreams of animators

I decided to become a 3D animator when I was 15 years old. Every weekend, the training channel showed a program about special effects in cinema: puppets, green screen and the basics of 3D. It seemed to me something amazing, magical. Then I started testing different effects with my bad webcam. Together with my brother, we simulated explosions or did optical illusions He was gigantic and I was very small. It is not at all necessary to have expensive equipment or special education somewhere to start doing 3D animation. Of course, if you want to work in the industry, you need to learn to understand how to do everything right, but this is the next stage.

In general, academic education is important: you learn everything faster and acquire the connections you need in the industry. When choosing a higher educational institution for yourself, you need to pay attention to the work of students and graduates of this university. But even having entered a university, one cannot refuse self-education, one must constantly motivate oneself, work on something, create something new. Each 3D animator needs his own collection of inspiring work of colleagues - you need to collect the pictures you like, store them in one place, look at them constantly. Firstly, it can inspire you to do something of your own, and secondly, it can push you to even more active work on yourself: you always want to learn how to do it the way supermasters can.

Ivan PshonkinAbout, that computer
won't help those with no taste

Ivan Pshonkin

3D animator and director of the Aeroplan studio, works on the animated series Fixies, participated in the creation of the cartoons Belka and Strelka, Alyonushka and Erema, Dunno and Barabas

My first teacher was Leonid Kayukov, to whom I am very grateful - he took me to his animation team at Soyuzmultfilm practically from the street, as a draftsman. Around 2005, I took part in the project "Masha and the Magic Nut" - this was the beginning of my work in three-dimensional animation. At this time, there were very few 2D cartoons, so I had to retrain from a 2D animator to 3D. Now I am a director and animator at the Aeroplan studio, in this moment We are working on the Fixies project.

Some people think about 3D animation: "The computer will do everything for me." This is not true! Keep in mind that 3D software won't make the animation process much easier. To make a good scene, you will have to follow the laws, to know them, to have an artistic taste, just like in hand-drawn animation. In general, now computer animation is trying to look more and more like a hand-drawn one, and it is doing great.

Stills from the cartoon Ivan Pshonkin The devil knows

It is important to understand that a 3D program, be it Maya, 3d max or XSI, is just a tool, like a pencil or a brush, with which you create your work. Therefore, it is necessary to study these programs well so that later the technical component does not become a problem - there are plenty of courses and literature now. First you need to install the program and find training material. Then download a free character (there are some on the Web) and try to animate it.

For those who dream of working on full-length cartoons, I note that in the industry, compared to previous years, the emphasis has shifted from full-length cartoons to the production of series. The rhythm of production has changed: work on a full meter is more measured, while the series has strict deadlines - this disciplines.

Marat DavletshinAbout, how important it is to be
observant and not stop learning and learning new things, even getting a good job

Marat Davletshin

Assistant animator at Disney Studios, worked as an animator on The Walking Dead: The Game project, as well as an animator on the feature films Smeshariki. Beginning" and "Squirrel and Arrow"

I studied at a technical school, completely unrelated to art. AT Last year I was so engrossed in my studies computer graphics that he completely abandoned his main activities. With difficulty, he defended his diploma and began to prepare for admission to VGIK. I started making my first short film in 3D, did some testing of characters, locations and posted a short trailer for everyone to see on the cgtalk.ru forum, which, unfortunately, no longer exists. I was in a hurry to finish the film in order to send it for the entrance exam to VGIK, but suddenly I received a letter from the St. Petersburg studio "ALS-group", which was engaged in 3D games for slot machines - they offered me a job and training at the studio. I agreed without hesitation. Thus began my professional journey, I was 19 years old.

Growing up, I went to study in San Francisco, at Animation Collaborative - this is an animation school that is located directly opposite the Pixar studio, artists from there came to teach us. I'm currently working at Disney Studios as an assistant animator, and our animated film Frozen is due out in November. At the same time, I do not stop my education: the studio constantly holds master classes and courses for animators.

It is very important for the future animator to decide why he chose 3D: there are a million other techniques you can use to express your idea, and 3D is one of the most difficult of them, especially if you master it alone. But by the way, I can say that Disney and Pixar do not look at all whether you know how to use a computer when applying for a job. The main thing is that your animation should have life, originality and interesting acting.

If we are talking about a narrow specialization, the profession of a character animator, then 3D is the most flexible tool in the hands of an artist, with which you can express any emotion and any feeling, adding to this the artistic style and purity of execution.

A couple of weeks ago, I watched people picking books at the book stand. It seems nothing special, but if you look closely, you can see the character behind each of them. One, important and proud, goes through the books without opening them - it is immediately clear that he judges by the covers. The second reads carefully, flips through and holds the book close to his face, squinting. Probably a bookworm. The third one generally talks on the phone and sorts through books without looking, apparently, he just found something to do with his hands during the conversation. The animator should notice this - he should be inquisitive, observant and open. It is impossible to become an animator if you just sit at home and watch cartoons - so you just start copying what you watch. Life is in full swing around us: in the park, in a cafe, at the airport, visiting friends - this life must be captured, and drawing is a great help in this.

Animation techniques are constantly evolving, and game developers and film studios are constantly looking for talented and creative people who can apply these methods.

Here are the main types of animation that can be used to create digital characters for television shows, commercial applications, company logos, movies, videos or games.

• traditional animation.
• 2D vector animation.
• 3D computer animation.
• Motion graphics.
• Stop motion.

Traditional animation

Have you ever seen images that appear like fast-paced frames drawn on transparent sheets of paper with colored markers? This type of computer animation is called traditional. It is used for preliminary character sketches.

This process can be quite costly and time consuming as the animators have to create a set of different frames based on 24 frames per second. This method used mainly on PCs, as well as tablets using special computer programs, allowing you to create animations in the style of old Disney cartoons.

2D vector animation

The most commonly used animation style. Her shots are created on a relatively flat surface. In addition, vector animation has adopted some of the methods of traditional animation. In fact, this is the same traditional animation, except that the frames are processed, known as drawing and painting.

During this process, animators place thin transparent sheets of celluloid on paper on which the animated characters are drawn, and then redraw them onto film. At the end, frames with different characters are superimposed on each other, and due to the high transparency of the film, this allows you to create a composition from various elements and characters.

3D computer animation

3D animation is completely different from other types of animation in computer graphics. Although they use the same principles of composition and movement, technical methods used to solve various problems differ significantly. In 3D animation, the animator does not need to be a graphic artist. It's more like playing with dolls than drawing.

This is also called computer generated images ( CGI). They occur when computer animators create a stream of images that are brought together to form an animation. Combining dynamic and static images performed using computer graphics. 3D-created characters are digitally displayed on screen and then combined with a wireframe, allowing each model to be animated differently.

Animation is formed by creating models in separate keyframes, after which the computer performs their "multiplication", interpreting the animation by adding intermediate frames between the keyframes.

In addition, a lot of time is spent working with curves representing different parts of the object at different time periods. In 3D animation, all characters must be considered, even those who are in certain moment time are blocked by something and are not visible.

The main difference between these types of animation is that in traditional and 2D animation the artist works on individual frames, while in 3D animation there is always a continuous flow. If it stops, it is perceived as an error. Even when the character remains in place, there is always a continuous stream of frames that creates the illusion of reality.

Motion Graphics

Have you ever wondered how promo videos, animated logos, movie opening credits, and app ads are created? This is done with moving graphic texts and elements, or as I call it, motion graphics.

This is a process that uses "multiplication" of animated frames to create smooth motion between frames. Frame multiplication programs support scripts that automatically change animation to create multiple effects.

3D compositions are created from flat elements moving relative to each other, which creates the illusion of volume. They may also be accompanied by sound effects or music. Such objects are often used in multimedia projects.

If we compare 3D with other areas of graphics and design, then not only creative people will find a place here, but also inveterate techies, I would even say that creative people will have to face a technical approach - if we compare Photoshop, for example, with Maya, then that's all it's like picking up a pair of pencils and a pen against the assortment of an entire art supply store. When you have to study a large number of materials, you would not want to waste time and from the very beginning you should choose the best program for creating 3D models and 3D animation.

I used to work in 2D and when I first opened the 3D package I was surprised by the 5 menu options with a huge list of different tools, commands for modeling and animation. In Illustrator or Photoshop, one row of menus was enough for the main work, and then a small part from its list.

You will be lucky if you immediately sit down at the 3D package that you will use further in the profession, retraining will be long and painful. First of all, it is worth choosing a specialization and a program suitable for it. You should pay attention to well-known and commonly used products, so it will be easier to find lessons to study, plugins, scripts and, most importantly, work.

The best programs for 3D modeling and animation.

There are a number of programs that successfully perform most of the daily 3D work tasks, moreover, specific tools are already built into their functionality, for example, for sculpting, 3D drawing (3DPint) and visual effects (VFX). In the article, these are the first 3 programs for 3D modeling. And I will talk about more specialized programs at the end.

I am an animator who likes to model sometimes, so I use Cinema4D, Autodesk Maya and Zbrush.

3D Max is the very first 3D modeling and animation package I have seen in my life. I was 9 years old when I spied how my father was studying on teapots, spheres and cubes. Then it seemed to me inconvenient to use orthogonal cameras when there is one perspective one.

This program is chosen by modelers, interior designers and those associated with industry and architecture. At the moment, the most common 3D modeling package among all. Many new versions of plugins and rendering engines are released for it earlier than for other programs.

The main advantage in modeling is the presence of modifiers, thanks to which you can layer changes in geometry and in the future remove, change or reduce the effect of the modifier you need on the object. Frees you from the problem of erasing history and the inability to roll back changes.

After I switched to as the main program for 3D modeling and animation, especially in Extension 2 animation tools for motion design appeared (the beauty of C4D).

It has a node structure (what does it look like?) and allows you to connect things that are not related to each other in the ordinary world, for example, by changing the color of the sphere, you can change the speed of rotation of the cube around it. Such flexibility of relationships opens up a lot of options for the application of creative imagination. Maya is used by major animation studios to create games, cartoons and movies.

Often new 3D technologies are written first for Maya and only then adapted to other packages, so they work in it as the developer intended. It slows down heavy scenes less, and it is great for both modeling and animation, it also has VFX tools, but most importantly, the "shirt" is a leader in character animation, which is why I switched to it.

With this program, I started mastering 3D modeling and animation. Bribes simple and user-friendly interface, many say that it is easier to learn. It is mainly used by motion designers (Motion Design) and animators who make commercial videos. It costs less than analogues and is developing quite actively, making up for the backlog in functionality from the dinosaurs of the 3D industry - and . The main beauty of Mograph effectors, which allow you to animate a large number of objects at the same time with just a couple of mouse movements, is great for creating unusual visual effects. It also has several built-in render engines that do a good job with the main tasks of the users of this program.

Votchina VFX. If you want to create atmospheric phenomena, destruction of objects, tornadoes, storms, flames, smoke and other parametric effects, then you are here. Basically, the work process will be tied to programming and working with the node tree. Modeling here is also possible, but not as convenient and pleasant as in other packages, so it's better to keep one more program in conjunction.

- this is the maximum creativity - the best program for high-poly (Hi-poly) 3D modeling or sculpting (Sculpting). The work process is built in such a way that in front of you there is an imaginary piece of clay from which you sculpt the object you need.

Here you can also simulate equipment (Hard-surface), but I, like many others, prefer to use Maya or Max. In you will be able to create fantastic creatures, animals, people with maximum detail right up to the pores on the skin. It has a unique interface that is very different from anything on the 3D market, but you will get used to it with time.

To work, you need to buy Graphics tablet, mouse precision is not enough. The most interesting thing is that in order to sculpt well, it is not at all necessary to be able to draw well. ZBrush included has ways to simplify initial modeling, similar to real sculpting work. You can use the frame, set the initial volume, bend, cut, dazzle various parts. It is an essential part of the quality character modeling process.

Be prepared for a lot of information and constantly improving your skills, in 3D you can often do the same things. different ways and the correct one is the one that solves the problem the fastest.

What we have?

So if you want model buildings, equipment, parts, create Interior Design, then start your journey with .

If you worried about the cost and complexity of learning 3D and in the future you want to be a motion designer and create commercials then it will suit you Cinema 4D.

If you don't be afraid of a long study and want in the future engage in 3D character animation, animation for games and movies, while having all the possibilities for full 3D modeling put .

For those who want to get away deep specialization in 3D VFX ( visual effects) , tuning every day destruction or whirlwinds of a tornado that blows away houses, create parametric materials