Train Animation

Integrating 3D models with photography

Interested in integrating your 3D work with the real world? This might help

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# 1 01-08-2010 , 12:29 AM

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Thought I'd go ahead and post this project so I could get some good feedback. I'm wanting to focus on doing some animations for awhile since my community is put on hold. Basically I'm going to animate a train going around a curve and then approaching an old wooden bridge. As the train approaches a boulder falls and destroys part of the bridge. The train stops just in time. But after a few seconds past and all seems ok, the bridge collapses under the train. Here's the storyboard.

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# 2 01-08-2010 , 05:45 AM

EduSciVis-er
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Looks good! Good to see it all storyboarded out, and the concept seems like it should be fun. Though it might be interesting with the opening credits right after the end credits? user added image

Only joking. Looking forward to the progress.

-stwert

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# 3 01-08-2010 , 08:21 AM

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Wow...ambitious Perfecto!!!!!!!!!!! I wanna see this!!! Good fortune in the making of it!

cheers bullet

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# 4 01-08-2010 , 08:50 AM

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nice project and start with the story board, look forward to progress.

Camrat

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# 5 01-08-2010 , 09:22 AM

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I've actually been working on this for a few days. I just got all the cameras set up. Here's a link to my animation test. I've been watching lots of train videos for train speed. The speed looks good but after rendering it all out, it seems a little fast. Here's a screenshot of the landscape. Not really sure how to go about doing outside environments so I'm just kinda winging it. I like the look of the environment in the Pixar movie Cars..except without the plateaus.

Anyway, even though this will be a simple animation, I really want it too look good so I'll be open to any and all suggestions.

@stwert I almost didn't even add that beginning credits to the storyboard so I just numbered it as 0.5 hehe.

Here's the link to the animation test. Camtasia had trouble converting it to a mpeg4 so I uploaded it as a quicktime movie. So you might have to refresh the video several times before it actually plays.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z__--jpPZGk

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Exceed Expectations!

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# 6 01-08-2010 , 09:28 AM

The thin red line
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That looks great, you realy thought out well all your camera angles and have cut it together well...............dave user added image

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# 7 01-08-2010 , 09:32 AM

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Good start Perfecto, im new to animation but the speed of the train looks okay maybe a tad fast not sure, only thing I can see really is how fast the train stops when the rock breaks the tracks? im guessing it would take alot longer? im not sure tho this could be what your after? lol. Again im still new soooo lol.

Camrat

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# 8 01-08-2010 , 09:34 AM

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@daverave Thanks. That's where the storyboard came in handy. Storyboarding really helps in planing all that out. All I'm doing now is keeping to the storyboard as much as possible which makes it soooooooooo much easier. Changing things on paper is faster and easier than changing things in Maya.

Don't be satisfied with what you can do but rather strive to do the things you can't do!
Exceed Expectations!

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# 9 01-08-2010 , 09:37 AM

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@Camrat Good call on the fast stop. But it's totally the camera angle. From a side view, the train makes a pretty decent stop for only towing a couple of cars but the camera angle makes it look like it's stopping way faster than it actually is. I'll be slowing it down in my next test. Thanks.

Don't be satisfied with what you can do but rather strive to do the things you can't do!
Exceed Expectations!

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