Nice.
you bring a unique feel to the stylized models, will be nice to extend the feel to the other prop items.

good going.
would have love her in braids tho, she feels distinctly african.

Nice bro, real nice.
Can't wait for a ruff clip.

Tip tho, if he's snooping or tip toeing, the legs lead the body (and head) not vice versa.
That is assuming he's walking on two as ur initial pose suggests.

When he bends to squeeze under the barrier, if he's a biped, the legs should provide more balance and shouldn't be too far behind the head (and rest of body); or if he's a quadruped, the hands should already be on the ground. That pose isn't quite balanced, unless the animation is the zippy Johnny Bravo style, and that pose is an inbetween that will take less than half a second.

Great poses, pls do a playblast even if in stepped mode.
Well done!

Hi, sorry about your file.

A few questions to clarify,
what version of photoshop are u using?
is it the original file that was corrupted or a recovered file? (most versions have recovery options, though what is recovered depends on your auto save time interval)
do you mean the recovered file only shows a small portion of the original work done? (you may need to check and decrease your autosave interval. it usually defaults at 10mins, though i set mine to 5mins)

Morning, will be real tough to get a professional who is as good as you require at 80k. That may be why the position is still open.

Sure, people will apply, but their skill level will match ur proposed salary.

I know a couple of really good ones and if u consider reviewing ur pay structure, u can get in touch.

Good luck tho.

@yung
That's d kind of thinking that robs us of originality and uniqueness. We also need to develop respect for intellectual property. If u r a creative and ever find urself on d receiving end, u will get d point.

Some crooks and armed robbers also haven't gone to jail and maybe never will, is that reason enough to join their vocation?

Underneath all Marvel hype is the posters business plan to sell branded t-shirts...simple. BlackPanther is just a means to that end.

My opinion is that he can either achieve that legally, or explore other, more creative avenues to print stuff on his shirts.
We have a wealth of untapped potential even within our own culture that will offer superior opportunities, if we are willing to think outside our mental box.
Have a good day.

friendly advice...dont set urself up for a lawsuit u cant survive.
find out ur legal boundaries with someone elses intellectual property.
cheers

@tirigbosa
sorry i have been quite busy, so havent been following the thread daily. have u resolved the issue?

u could explore baking the animation into the bones of ur character directly, then u can create a generic rig format that u can use for both characters.
then u can transfer the animation from the skeleton to the rig u have created, and then use that to drive the second character.

the down side to this method, is that u need to delete the previous rig/create ur own rig, but if the characters are bipeds, i suggest using Human IK in Maya, as its the fastest/ easiest way to get a pre-made rig that can drive multiple characters.

if u can share the file with me, i can try several options.
its quite an interesting problem.

Hi man, just seeing this....been busy.
To retarget the animation there are several options, but the first step is to ensure both rigs follow the same naming convention.

Maya has a format for naming the bones in the rig and u have to make sure both characters follow the format or u create a custom template for them.
That's ur first step. I suggest u read up on retargeting using HumanIK in maya.
If ur rig isn't based on HumanIk, then it gets a bit complicated tho.

Confirm the nature of ur rig. Are both rigs similar?

Well to each his opinion, but like I said earlier, I only forsee an issue when terms are not spelt out before money changes hands.

My policy is 3 revisions per job, 80% payment upfront and a total fee that I am comfortable with, so releasing source files is not a problem for me.

Others may charge less, and therefore see the revenue gained from future alterations as a possible justification for taking a slightly lower initial fee. That arrangement also works for some clients, especially the non tech savvy ones.

So again, like I earlier said, the choice of an artist is one of free will....for every one artist who bills for source files are a bunch who don't. One should just find what works for them, that's capitalism for u, lol.

For minor alterations, u really don't need the source files, but when we build d habit of allowing synergy in our projects, I think we will all b the better for it.

I have also had issue with programmers hoarding back end codes for sites, rather requiring a fee for management....photo studios refusing to release ur images after printing the hard copy....i make sure I determine every firms policy before engaging.

Cheers

There really is no single answer to that.
Both have excellent cards, and it depends on the specific card model u r referring to, or using to benchmark performance.

When u settle on a specific card, google user reviews from reputable sites to draw an opinion from a wider user base.
Several variables come into play, and for certain budgets or intended use, one manufacturer may have a better option- which may change with a different budget or requirement.
Also, a deeper understanding of the technology behind graphic cards may help. For example, NVIDIA manufactures the basic chip in their cards, but several other vendors buy the chip and develop their own technology around the chip, greatly improving the features depending on what they wish to sell.
Oddly enough, I have obtained better performance from MSI cards utilizing NVIDIA chips, than the same offering from NVIDIA direct. There was also a marginal cost difference in favour of the MSI, and the MSI cards ran less noisily and consumed less power. However, this was based on a specific card model, and would not necessarily be the case across board.

So make ur comparison on a card by card basis and consider all the brands, while assessing/drawing from the experience of users generally.
Cheers

Hi, u refer to ur self as an IT guy so I am a bit surprised at how strongly worded the thread title is.

That aside, u also state that ur experience with graphic artists is limited to ONE transaction, and in that transaction u obtained ALL u required, and u were satisfied.
U have a CHAT with ONE artist, and based on that u mass insult graphic artists in general?! I may be wrong, but i think the statement unfair. And would argue that u have not had enough experience with varied artists to form an opinion of their general conduct and practices

Personally I don't think there is a strict format to follow, but I do think that all terms and conditions must be clearly stated AT THE BEGINNING of the transaction BEFORE ANY PAYMENTS or commissions. Several artists do this, and u find that the more skilled d artist is, the more stringent the terms are.
It is free enterprise and there is an artist for every budget and work style, one just needs to find his artist and not generally condemn all of them.

I would also suggest adjusting the thread topic to something less offensive, if u want meaningful entries, unless it was deliberately meant to incite.

Cheers.

A photo should be used exclusively for those captured by a camera.
A picture refers to a painting or drawing/illustration.
An image though widely used for any photo or artwork, traditionally refers to the artwork in a computer file.

However, since they all refer to pics and images they are often used interchangeably.

u probably hit the xray button in error.
Refer to attached diagram.

U can access it either thru the shortcut icon (highlighted in yellow) or thru the shading menu.
cheers.

glad u r making progress!

@adegeye
nija's post is actually more accurate. the specs u outline will not even let u install Maya 2017 and use it optimally.
it also depends on which years version of the particular software u wish to install.

i had to upgrade my 4gb nvidia quadro fx5800 when i installed Maya 2014, and now i have to upgrade my GeForce GTX 650 to the GeForce GTX1050 because the 650 isnt certified for Maya 2017 and limits its use.

so it really does depend on what u wish to do with the software.
the last time i used a system with 4GB RAM was with Maya 8.5 i think, in 2007
unless you want to click a button and take a nap before it updates, lol
i never even touched fur, cloth or dynamics back then with my system specs

nice.
why don't you do another variation where u beef up his lower body to match the musculature of his torso.
it will make for an interesting comparison.
possibly let his loincloth show the wear and tear of battle

@nijabazaar
Thanks man.

Starting d blend shapes this weekend.
Will post progress.

Bro, answering ur questions as asked.

Any average computer with a decent video card that can run most graphic software will do for basic 2d animation.
The challenge is ur inexperience.

The only additional equipment u may need to invest in, is a graphic tablet. Several cheap brands exist, but Wacom series tend to top d list. Several models with varying costs r available under d Wacom brand.

A feature length cartoon will run at 24 frames per second or more, in layman terms that means for each second of animation, u need to create 24 drawings.

Depending on ur style, u can lower the frame rate to maybe 12.
With that approach a 1 minute video will require 720 sketches, a 5 min video will require over 3000 sketches .(3600 precisely)

Of course some elements will b reusable but the above calculation gives u a rough idea of d volume of illustration involved, so d duration of d project is how ever long it will take u to produce the above number of illustrations.

Beginner videos on getting started with 2d animation are available on YouTube.

Cheers

@africanman
Sure u can use Cinema4d to achieve the above, although it's real strength lies in motion graphics.

U don't really need after effects for any of what was shown above, possibly Photoshop to create d textures, but that's about it.

There are tons of YouTube videos showing how to model in Cinema4d.
You could explore them.

@Nijabazaar
lol, we both know u don't dig toons as I don't dig realism.

Should start d blendshapes next week if all goes as planned.

Yup.
Maya 2014 and mental ray.

Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt.
Lagos is home tho.

Finally, approx 8 hours later I could send off the final render of the character.

Eventually, I will need to work on creating blend shapes for bringing him alive, and create a robust rig for him.
At the moment however, he has fulfilled the first stage of his life and I look forward to further work with him.

If there's particular interest/comments/questions in any part of the process, Id be glad to share/listen or answer.
Thanks for reading!

At times I got caught up and would forget to document every step of the process (apologies)

STEP 5, 6 & 7
Because I was giving live feedback to the client, I had to combine texturing with the modeling process.
As soon as I modeled a section of d character, I would create a quick texture and send it off for comments/critique.

Once modeling the head, I always use a sphere for the eyeball to aid in shaping the eye sockets.
I have a handy texture that I apply to the eyeball, early in d process.
It helps keep me connected to the character, when we see eyeball to eyeball, lol

STEP 4
The process continued for the torso.
I extruded the arms and the wrist, adding a slight twist to the forearm.

STEP 3
Referring to the various images and basically free styling, I just modeled the head.
I did my best to keep it as African and toony as I could, without following the stereotypes for African characters.

STEP 2
Based on the style agreed, the character was to be three heads high (the popular standard for kiddies characters)

I used primitives as guides, and using the measuring utility I marked d different sections of the character with three cubes
Head
Torso
Legs

Had an urgent request for an African toon character, and decided to document the broad steps I employed, and share the process from start to finish.

Duration: 8 hours
STEP 1:
Ideally, I would have created an image plane in all the views but the time constraint for the job prevented this.
This was a same-day delivery job.

We searched Google for similar style images, n picked a few.
I saved the images n used them for inspiration.

nice renders bro.
i still sense a challenge with the lighting in a couple of them tho, especially the exterior shots.
sadly my blender knowledge isnt deep enough to suggest any help.

good job

That's d spirit.
Folks neglect d basics and it returns to haunt their work later in their career.

Start with simple goals, bouncing balls to get a feel for timing and spacing, shifting weights etc.

Google a list of actions that u can progressively animate to help u progress from simple to more complex moves.

When u have learnt how d basic principles r applied in these motions, combining them in character animation becomes easier.

In d meantime, also study posing. Go thru lots of comic books to compare dynamism in the poses. It helps a ton, both in ur animating n still compositions.

Ur Loganas pose could b pushed a lot more to capture d energy and action of d xter.
Possibly lower her upper body a bit more, arch her back some and extend her arms more, maybe increase d tension in her limbs.

Good going!

Bruv, surely u didn't expect to turn up a masterpiece based on two weeks of effort?

Frustration is a healthy part of d learning process provided it drives u forward.

Character animation is d culmination of all d lessons in animating, hence it's a challenging place to start, but as u already know, it takes time to polish ur game......so pick urself up, n reboot that system.

I'm sure u wouldn't expect a newbie to transition to ur modeling level after two weeks effort.

Good going bruv.
U could post ur wip for possible tips from artists either here or privately.

I do agree, not everyone is cut out for every area of animation, but ur case sounds to me more like d normal frustration of mastering new skills, rather than an inability to.

Ur varied skill set showcased so far, suggests a generalist. I do believe u can do this

U need to learn d bullet system in Maya, then u can incorporate the ragdoll effect.

U can checkout YouTube for tutes.
Good going.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttGUiwfTYvg

thought this was interesting...
with photo manipulation, u cant believe all u see in photos
now this!
this has the potential to create serious confusion, as to whats real or not.
and no high end equipment is used, just a webcam and the software.