Having Some Trouble...Can't Decide...

Hey guys,

So, I've been messing around with modeling a lot these last few weeks. Long story short, I'm always doing multiple projects at once. One idea leads to another and once it starts to build I have to work on it. It can be frustrating as I really don't like working on more than one thing at a time but when I get an idea I really like I have to work on it while it's hot.

That said, while working on Xam and Power Dog I've had other ideas for stories, none of them Xam and PD related, and therefore they have always been on the back burner. One of those ideas would work great in an animated medium so on a slow day I started building models for it. That lead to another idea that I thought would work great in an animated medium so on another slow day I started building models for it.

The problem now is that all this modeling has allowed me to get better at building models. So, what does that have to do with Xam and Power Dog?

Simple, I'm not sure I like these models now. There were little shortcuts I used when creating the Xam and Power Dog characters and since then have learned the proper way to deal with these problems and not rely on those shortcuts.

So, although I like the look of the characters, I can't help but feel I've created a unique look for the Xam and Power Dog world, I can't help but wonder what the characters would look like if I used my newly learned techniques for modeling.

This thought has become so distracting that I can't concentrate on completing the old models until I know if I could do them any better.

That said, I've decided to redo the T-Boom model (since I am still in the process of tweaking him) and see what that looks like. Once I've got him done I'll show him around to some people and see what they think.

I have no idea how long that will take. I suspect it will take the weekend. As always, I will let you know how that goes.

Had Time To Do Some Work On T-Boom!

Hey guys,

Had some time over the last couple of days to work on animating T-Boom. As you can see, there is no pic or video accompanying this post. :(

Not to worry though. I did a lot of work, just nothing noticeable. The problem is getting his clothing to move with his body and have it look right. It's funny, but T-Boom is the only character without form fitting clothing in this movie. His hood, vest and shorts all hang loose and that is giving me some trouble with rigging his movements.

So, despite there not being anything visually to post I feel I've done a lot of work this week. That said, I'm still not close enough to actually being able to animate him. I know, that sounds like a contradiction. I've done a lot but nothing noticeable, but it's true.

Got family in town this weekend so I don't think I'm gonna get a whole lot done this week.

As always, if I have anything to post I will post it.

Another Week of Not Doing Much!

Sorry guys,

I wish I could say I made progress this weekend but the truth is I as sick most of the weekend and didn't even touch the movie.

I hope to get more done this week and will certainly post anything worth reporting.

Hang in there. I'm still working!

Didn't Do Much This Weekend!

Hey guys,

Sorry, but I don't have anything new to report since I really didn't do much on the movie this weekend. I did work on the T-Boom model some more, touching up the hoodie and cleaning up the object mesh, but other than that I pretty much took the weekend off.

I did start working on rigging the hoodie with the rest of the model but I pretty much figured out it's gonna be a little more involved than I previously thought and the truth is that I was pretty worn out from a long couple of weeks at work.

So, I took the weekend off, for the most part. I needed a break and took advantage of a long weekend and just chilled.

No worries though, I'm still working on the movie and fully expect to hit it hard this coming weekend.

As always, I'll keep you posted.

Well, Still Working on the T-Boom Model!

Well, what can I say?

As usual, just when I think I'm getting somewhere I discover something is wrong.

Just like every other time I've tried to animate a newly finished model, I was working with animating the T-Boom model and I discovered the hoodie was completely messed up. This caused me to have to rebuild the hoodie model.

As far as I can tell, I've fixed the problems. So, how does it look?

You decide...



Not too different except I was able to add the stripe at the bottom of the hoodie, something I had done before but had to drop. This time I got to keep it.

So, now I have to rig the hoodie to match T-Boom's movements. Not terribly difficult, as long as this new hoodie doesn't have any problems.

As always, I'll keep you informed.

Think I'm Done With the Hoodie!

Alright guys,

I think I'm finally done with T-Boom's hoodie.



I know, I know. What's the difference? Well, actually, I softened up the hood quite a bit. If you look at the last pic posted, his hood has more of a sharpness to it and this hood lays more like cloth than leather.

Subtle change to be sure, but I think this looks more natural and that's the most important thing.

So, now what? Well, it's time to work with animation!

I honestly have no idea how long this will take. I will try to have something to show you next week, but I promise nothing!

Later...

Still Need to Tweak Hoodie!

Hey guys,

Sorry for the lack of updates. I've been doing nothing this last week but looking at T-Boom's new hoodie and all I've decided is it still needs tweaking. I'm not sure what exactly needs to be changed and that is the reason for the delays.

All I know is that I'm not quite happy with the look yet.

So, bear with me. I'll spend another week messing around with it and let you know how it goes.

Later.

Making T-Boom's Hood Look More Like a Hood and Less Like a Helmet!

Hey guys,

It's been a busy week. I thought the weekend would never get here!

Of course, the reason I look forward to the weekend (other than the obvious) is that I get to work on the movie!

This week, it was my goal to make T-Boom's hood on his hoodie look more like a hood and less like a helmet. I think I did that, but you tell me...



Not too bad if I do say so myself!

So, now what?

Well, I'm gonna stare at this model for the next week and make sure I like it. Once I do that I truly believe I will have run out of reasons to not start an animation test.

Of course, I'll let you know.

T-Boom with Hoodie WIP!

Hey guys,

It's getting late and I'm getting tired so I'm calling it a night on the T-Boom model.

Since it's been a couple of days since my last post I thought I'd show you what I got...



As you can see, I've got the hood stared. Now, I'm looking at it with tired eyes so I'm guessing I'm not as done as I think I am. That being the case, I'm calling this a work in progress and I'll pick up again tomorrow.

Till next time...

Had Some Time for T-Boom Today!

Hey guys!

I had some free time to work on the T-Boom model today!

I decided last night to give his look an update and instead of going with a black leather vest or a camo vest I would instead go with a yellow, sleeveless hoodie...



As you can see, I started the hoodie. The pain in the butt is going to be the hood, which he will be wearing to help cover his face. I suspect that is going to take me a while so I'm stopping here for today and will pick up again tomorrow.

Talk to you then!