Book Image

Real-Time Animation with Adobe Character Animator

By : Chad Troftgruben
Book Image

Real-Time Animation with Adobe Character Animator

By: Chad Troftgruben

Overview of this book

Adobe Character Animator is a power app for non-animators that provides easy rigging and easy-to- understand tools that enable you to create entertainment or business videos in no time. This guide to Character Animator gives you a comprehensive overview of the app, helping you learn the entire process—from importing a character designed in Adobe Photoshop to animating a sequence. Complete with background art, multiple character rigs and Character Animator project files, this book will show you how to animate a scene in Character Animator from start to finish. Starting with a character PSD from another artist, you’ll organize and condense the file to prepare it for rigging and animation. From there, you’ll systematically rig the character while exploring advanced behaviors and triggers to animate a complex scene that takes advantage of the app’s best features. By the end of this book, you’ll be able to create appealing animations in Character Animator for any purpose.
Table of Contents (19 chapters)
1
Part 1: Preparing Character Art for Rigging
5
Part 2: Rigging Character Art for Animation
11
Part 3: Animating and Refining Your Scene

Modifying a walk cycle

Once you tag the character appropriately for a walk, the hard part is over. Now, it’s time to personalize the animation. Luckily, you have several options to accomplish this.

Let’s click on the Record tab and start adjusting the parameters. Here are a few of the main ones:

  • Mode: This allows you to adjust how the rig walks. You can loop the animation, control it with the arrow keys, or use a position-based parameter to move the rig. This provides several ways to record the animation. Try switching the modes and trying it for yourself:
Figure 9.10: You can control the walk with three different functions

Figure 9.10: You can control the walk with three different functions

  • Style: This allows you to change how the animation looks. Walking, running, strutting, and slumping are just some of the presets you can implement, providing a base for you to customize and personalize:
Figure 9.11: Each style can be adjusted for maximum customization

Figure 9.11: Each style can be adjusted for maximum customization

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