The Walk Cycle
Ah, yes... walking. Putting one foot in front of the other. That thing we all learn when we’re small, and which comes naturally for the rest of our lives. That thing which is very easy to do...
Not so! Animators, babies, and the differently-abled alike know that walking is not to be taken for granted. If you want to know what it’s like for an animator to attempt their first walking animation, picture a baby taking its first steps. They look ridiculous; they stumble, fall, get injured – sometimes it gets so frustrating that they even cry and soil themselves... and it’s not so easy for the babies either.
Nevertheless, the characters in our animations can’t just stand in one place forever, and that’s why a whole chapter has been dedicated just to the peculiarities of getting a 3D character to move forward. We’ll start by doing the hard part first...
In this chapter, you will learn the following:
- Labeling...