HOW to make bird flying in AS

[MR. Hesham]

What is the best way to make a bird flying in a side profile
like this pic

[jahnocli]

Well...the simplest way would be to copy each of these images into a switch layer, and then switch between them.

[BunyanFilms]

Here is an example of what Jahnocli was saying however in this TV ad sequence of a bird not only did I do some switch layers but boned some and then on others I did some point animation.
check the animation http://www.bunyanfilms.com.au/hightower ... _final.mov

[MR. Hesham]

Well...the simplest way would be to copy each of these images into a switch layer, and then switch between them.

thanks jahnocli
nice idea but i want a smooth animation to be more real

did I do some switch layers but boned some and then on others I did some point animation.

nice animation
any more detail about this animation
what is the switch layers keys?

[heyvern]

Take a close look at the image you posted. Look at each frame and study how the wings change over time. Look at the other animation sample that was posted... study it.

This is the concept of animation, making subtle changes over time to mimic the motion of real objects.

One way to do that is just use a series of still images that pass by in a sequence. Each image is a unique static drawing in a different position but as you said it isn't "smooth".

The other way would be to draw the bird shape in AS and then move points to new positions on progressive key frames.

You seem to want some... magical step by step tutorial that won't require any effort. You have everything you need... you have a perfect reference of the bird in motion, you have AS and the help and tutorial files to learn about interpolation of key frames and/or switch layers.

What you need to do now is give it a try. Try tracing the image of the bird you posted. Draw a simple bird shape and move the points around on different frames.

There simplest solution would be to find a bird animation and buy it from the artist or hire one of us to do it for you. If you truly want to learn to animate you must try it on your own. We can critique your work, give you pointers.

Give it a shot. Try it. You might enjoy the process.

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p.s. My sister illustrated a book she wrote but she is not an artist... in the traditional sense. I told her the illustrations were good but a couple needed to be redone or revised. She groaned and complained constantly about how much work it was... and her hand hurt... blah blah.

I told her that creativity IS hard work. If it wasn't it wouldn't be a special talent. If she didn't like doing it herself she should hire someone like me to do it for her.

At the end... she redid the drawings and they were ten times better... and she was happy she put in the effort... she also learned from this. I showed here simple techniques but I didn't do the work for her... she had to do it.

-vern

[Genete]

Beyond the wise words given by heyvren you should consider this:
A bird wing (or simply a wing) has two faces. It means that one face is shown when the other is hidden. This happen in the extreme positions. In the middle positions both faces of the wing are shown at the same time. That's the more difficult moment. The only way I think to solve that is use this technique:

Use a switch layer with two vector layers on it. Both vector layers must be a duplication of each other. The only difference between them is the stack order of the shapes. The precise moment to change between one vector layer and other is the around middle point of the wing movement (but not exactly the middle. You should look for a moment where it doesn't matter if the upper side of the wing is first on the shape stack or the first in the shape stack in the lower side of the wing. That's the exact moment when you have to make the switch change.
Once done that you just should make a point motion of the lower / upper side of the wing frame by frame.

Before make any line in AS think carefully the composition. Think in therms of shapes and its overlapping. Consider that shapes are there although you don't need them. In some way you must hide them (behind other shapes). Then you'll understand my odd words.

[Rasheed]

I also think you shouldn't rely on animation to create animation. With that I mean you should go through the same development as the original animator. He or she has studied real birds, learned how to draw them and referenced some bird footage as a reference, together with some live observation.

Because (s)he knew how to draw birds, the animator only needed a few lines to indicate the pose of the bird's body during each stage of the fly cycle, based sketches on that and --after cleanup-- produced these fine drawings. The beautiful part is that, once you can do this, you'll not be restricted to the side view, but can draw from any angle.

Simply said, if you can't draw it, you can't animate it. Drawing is largely this cycle: observe, think, draw (in an endless loop). The advancement of your skills is done in the thinking phase, how to integrate what you just saw with what you have observed and drawn in the past.

It then become an engineering problem of how to use the limited tools available in Anime Studio to produce a somewhat passable vector drawing replica of your own fine animation drawings. After that, you will be modifying the animation to make it more entertaining. Imitating what you can reproduce with video isn't really artistic. You should really go beyond that.

My crappy 2 cents.

[DK]

Here's a bird I just did in AS flying in slow motion if it's any use I can send you the AS file.

http://www.wienertoonz.com/slowbird.swf

D.K

[GardenGuy]

You can also take a look at a cardinal I have flying and flapping his wings. I did it with three switch layers for flight with his body straight and legs tucked in (wings up, wings mid-body, and wings down) and two more layers for him sitting there (one with wings flapping and one with wings at rest.) I didn't bother with a front on view so when he turns around he hops directly to face the opposite direction which is just a copy of the switch and all it's layers flipped with the mirror tool. (change transparency at that point from one switch to the other), that way I could have him fly or sit in either direction. I also used the sitting and flapping wings layer for when he first takes off to look more realistic for his body position.
The file is:
Happy holiday scene. mov file at:

www.gardenguy.keepandshare.com

[MR. Hesham]

thank you toooooo much heyvern
your post was really useful to me
I want to do it myself
but I was asking about the right method for the bird fly in AS

Take a close look at the image you posted. Look at each frame and study how the wings change over time. Look at the other animation sample that was posted... study it.
-vern

and you give me the right way really thanks again
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In some way you must hide them (behind other shapes). Then you'll understand my odd words.

my main problem was this part because there was different shapes for the wing
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Simply said, if you can't draw it, you can't animate it.

great words rasheed
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thanks for the help GardenGuy
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Here's a bird I just did in AS flying in slow motion if it's any use I can send you the AS file.
D.K

great sample DK that move exactly what I was trying to do in AS
if you can put the AS file it will be very useful

[DK]

Hi MR. Hesham.

Here's that fle.

http://www.wienertoonz.com/slowbird.anme

EDIT:
The bird is divided up into 3 layers layer 1 = front wing, Layer 2 = body, Layer 3 = back wing. Create a switch file and Load all your reference drawings into this layer then make tem into a sequence on the timeline, image 1(frame1), image2(frame2), image 3 (frame3)etc....then use each picture as a background reference for point animation. After you have moved your points for each layer, move the timeline along and tweek the points again. Don't be afraid to experiment, I used the flip points tool at the point where the front wing transfers shapes from upper position to lower position and then just kept on tweeking the popints after that. The magnet tool helps a lot when moving groups of shapes like the feathers.

Cheers
D.K

Cheers
D.K

[Víctor Paredes]

DK, i have modified your file a little. It's just to show how you can use a layer order cycle for the wings.

here is the file (right click, save as)

[DK]

WOW!! Nice work selgin!! I did'nt even think to use the layer cycling...I just did it as a quick example using point manipulation.

Great stuff!!
D.K

[MR. Hesham]

thanks DK for the the AS file
I used the flip points tool. It was great to fix the flip pose for the wing

thanks again