IWP-Test Animation

Learnt how to use Keyframes, Paint Skin Weights, and Playblast.

IWP - Problem solved

Until now, there was a problem with my model. Maya crashed every time I applied 'Smooth'/'Smooth Preview' to the model, and I couldn't figure out why.

 And today everything has been finally fixed.

It seemed that the program had a hard time applying smooth because the 'face normals' were disorganised.

The green lines showing the face normals should always point outwards.

Maybe I shouldn't have stitched the eyeballs to the body.

The model gets scrunched up around the eye socket when I apply 'Smooth'.

The 'Soften Edge' tool seems to do a better job cleaning up the model. 

IWP-Rigging a Character

 

Joints have been built from the side-viewpoint first.

I moved the joints around to fit them to the mesh.

 

The leg joints have been 'Mirrored' to be duplicated. 

 

 

IK handle tool has been applied to the legs.

 

Posing the character after binding the skeleton and the skin.

 

I'm not sure if the mesh is suppose to screw up so badly like this.

I wanted the beak to open and close, but putting joints in the beak just stretched the whole face.

Maybe there's a different rigging method for facial features?

Autodesk Maya Tutorial: Maya Rigging Basics

This is the guide I followed to rig the character.

IWP - Colours!

 

Colours applied by changing the material attribute for each section of the body.

IWP-Modelling After 24th April Demo

 

I got some tips from the tutorial to make my model much faster and properly, so I'm building my model from the very start again. I've rotated the axis point of the body polygon and kept the number of division as less as possible this time.

 

Much simpler, logical, stable structure.

 

 

I've tried 2 different apporoaches to adding the beak to the duck, the first way was to use extrusion.

It was hard to make the shape of the beak symmetrical.

 

 

Another(easier) way was to create a separate sphere polygon, make it squat and cut it in half, then insert the beak to the body polygon. I've also stitched the beak to the body this time.



 

The leg is fun to make.

 

 

 

Managed to make the foot this time. I've sewn it to the leg as well.

 

I've created a mirrored duplicate of the complete leg by using the 'Mirror Cut' tool.

I don't know why and how, but the same method does not work the second time.

Using the 'plugging in' method to stick the legs to the body.

Remembered that I needed to make a gap between legs for the crotch, before making holes to the body polygon.

 



 

Added in the Under-beak.

All merged to the face.

 

Side-shot

 

 

Now the eyes. This character does not need eye socket, nor does it need eyelids.

The eyes are just small spheres.

 

Sewing the eyeballs in was tedious. But here it is, the Duck.

 

 

My Maya would crash when I apply 'Smooth' to the model, so I might need to do that later.



Maya Hotkeys / Keyboard Shortcuts Tutorial HD

Tutorial: Rigging in Maya

should be useful for my duck character particularly.

IWP - First modelling attempt

Successfully imported image planes. The drawings are not perfectly measured and are asymmetrical, but wouldn't matter because this is just a practice.

 Although my ultimate goal is to produce a 3D model of a humanoid character, I'm just a beginner and had to keep the design for this activity simplistic in its form and design.

 For now I've used my duck with human legs character, which I've made in my high school days. Sorry if it seems very bizarre but it shouldn't be a big issue at the moment.

Started off by creating a sphere polygon mesh as the main body.

After some shifting around of the wire frames.

Beak added by adding edge loop & extrusion.

Leg made separately from the body.

Ankle. 

The feet were the most challenging part, which I actually had to put aside for another day.

Coloured straight in Maya, legs are not actually attached to the body yet.

Fascinated by how bizarre this character actually is now I look at it this way.