The thing I've wanted in AS Pro since I got the program; the bezier curve tool.
Like you see in Photoshop, in Flash, in Illustrator. It would make designing my characters SOOOO much easier. The pencil is always wobbly for me, and the add point tool rarely makes good shapes; for example, when i'm trying to add a nose shape to a circle, the add point tool completely distorts the whole shape, and I'll have to add a million other points to counter it. And if I have a pre-existing shape, and need to fix it by adding some points, they are always dragged out of place...
Right now, I draw my characters in Flash and export them. It makes it massively easier.
The brush in flash is unbelievably smooth; lines are crisp and perfect no matter how they're drawn. I would LOVE to see something like this in the next AS Pro. It would make for better mouse drawings, which is what I do.
And last, maybe there's a way to toggle this and maybe not... I'd want to be able to turn off point visibility when drawing. This way I could actually see what I'm doing instead of nothing but red dots obsuring the plane.
This sounded like a rant, sorry for that!
Crisp Brush and Bezier Curve tool
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Blade_Rain
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synthsin75
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As far as I've heard Bezier curves are not possible in AS without as a complete overhaul of how it handles curves internally. But never fear, many of us have actually come to enjoy how AS works. The first trick is to install Fazek's tools ( I cannot live without them). Using his curvature tool, you can select a line segment along which to adjust the curve. It's basically just another way of thinking about bezier.
Aside from that is the split curve menu script. Also indispensable. (I still need to make this a button on my tool palette, I use it that much)
As far as vector point visibility, the freehand tool allows you to auto-outline. So if you turn off construction curves in the display quality, it only shows you the actual, rendered lines.
I've heard that importing from other vector programs produces too many extra points in AS. Do you spend alotta time cleaning them up?
Aside from that is the split curve menu script. Also indispensable. (I still need to make this a button on my tool palette, I use it that much)
As far as vector point visibility, the freehand tool allows you to auto-outline. So if you turn off construction curves in the display quality, it only shows you the actual, rendered lines.
I've heard that importing from other vector programs produces too many extra points in AS. Do you spend alotta time cleaning them up?
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Blade_Rain
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There is something that most people don't realize with AS. The curves are designed to work the way do specifically to make the animation easier and in many ways better with fewer points.
One thing that is a problem with Flash IS the massive number of points. Working the way it does you don't have to interact with all of those points. Flash is as much a painting tool as a drawing tool.
AS is strictly a drawing tool. AS has a unique way of working with points and curves. This "simplistic" approach is it's strength.
If you add bezier curves to AS you would end up with... another version of Flash and the problems it has. It would change AS more than you think. It also poses more problems in how points and curves move around and change during motion.
Mike has talked about this many times before. Another member some time ago wrote a script that "fakes" the appearance of bezier curves in AS. There are issues with animation, how do the curves adjust to keep their shape, to maintain smooth animation. What happens to curve handles as the shape's points rotate and move. We have all seen what happens in programs like Adobe Illustrator when pushing and pulling points around with exaggerated bias handles.
Flash handles this by just adding more and more points. I think of it as a "brute force" solution. Those who convert from EPS or AI format to Anime Studio usually use WAY MORE points than are needed with AS. WAAAAY more points.
Most artwork in AS can be drawn and animated with very few points. A small fraction of points that flash uses. Flash's brush tools just create a mess of points. Anime Studio's approach is more "direct". The curves are the way they are to create smooth animation.
Bezier curves were invented for PRINT work, not animation. The curves in AS were designed SPECIFICALLY for animation. That is why they are the way they are.
I too sometimes wish AS had the same bezier control that Photosho, Illustrator and Flash have... however I would never want to give up the control I have now in AS to gain that. I have learned to work around those issues.
Bezier curves would also have to be a new type of vector layer. All artwork created from day 1 in Moho or AS would be not be compatible with bezier curves. There would be no forward compatibility nor backwards compatibility. All projects would have to be redone if that was the only vector type... thus a new layer type would have to be created. A "bezier" vector layer... and you would still have to redraw anything done prior to take advantage of it. You would have to "relearn" a new style of using AS. It would not be a "magical" transition.
To gain any advantages of bezier curves you have to give up something.
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I've used this example before... In the 70's TV show "The Six Million Dollar Man" a mad scientist wanted to build a "bionic robot". Silly idea since a robot is a robot and it can't be "bionic"... bionic implies a biological component... it was just plain silly.
Adding bezier curves to AS would be like trying to create a bionic robot in my opinion.
Someday I hope to be proven wrong. In the meantime I would like to see a dozen other features before needing bezier curves.
-vern
One thing that is a problem with Flash IS the massive number of points. Working the way it does you don't have to interact with all of those points. Flash is as much a painting tool as a drawing tool.
AS is strictly a drawing tool. AS has a unique way of working with points and curves. This "simplistic" approach is it's strength.
If you add bezier curves to AS you would end up with... another version of Flash and the problems it has. It would change AS more than you think. It also poses more problems in how points and curves move around and change during motion.
Mike has talked about this many times before. Another member some time ago wrote a script that "fakes" the appearance of bezier curves in AS. There are issues with animation, how do the curves adjust to keep their shape, to maintain smooth animation. What happens to curve handles as the shape's points rotate and move. We have all seen what happens in programs like Adobe Illustrator when pushing and pulling points around with exaggerated bias handles.
Flash handles this by just adding more and more points. I think of it as a "brute force" solution. Those who convert from EPS or AI format to Anime Studio usually use WAY MORE points than are needed with AS. WAAAAY more points.
Most artwork in AS can be drawn and animated with very few points. A small fraction of points that flash uses. Flash's brush tools just create a mess of points. Anime Studio's approach is more "direct". The curves are the way they are to create smooth animation.
Bezier curves were invented for PRINT work, not animation. The curves in AS were designed SPECIFICALLY for animation. That is why they are the way they are.
I too sometimes wish AS had the same bezier control that Photosho, Illustrator and Flash have... however I would never want to give up the control I have now in AS to gain that. I have learned to work around those issues.
Bezier curves would also have to be a new type of vector layer. All artwork created from day 1 in Moho or AS would be not be compatible with bezier curves. There would be no forward compatibility nor backwards compatibility. All projects would have to be redone if that was the only vector type... thus a new layer type would have to be created. A "bezier" vector layer... and you would still have to redraw anything done prior to take advantage of it. You would have to "relearn" a new style of using AS. It would not be a "magical" transition.
To gain any advantages of bezier curves you have to give up something.
----
I've used this example before... In the 70's TV show "The Six Million Dollar Man" a mad scientist wanted to build a "bionic robot". Silly idea since a robot is a robot and it can't be "bionic"... bionic implies a biological component... it was just plain silly.
Adding bezier curves to AS would be like trying to create a bionic robot in my opinion.
Someday I hope to be proven wrong. In the meantime I would like to see a dozen other features before needing bezier curves.
-vern
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DarthFurby
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Synfig, a free vector animation program, has animatable bezier curves, a clear advanatage for that program's point animation system and drawing tools, so this is definitely a valid feature request as long as it doesn't disable/break other features within Anime Studio.
I don't need bezier curves but having it would be nice.
I don't need bezier curves but having it would be nice.
I remember that LM commented once that don't have beizer curves in AS is mainly to make bones feasible. If you automatically calculate the tangents based on surrounding points of the lines you only need to keep track on the points when use the bones over them. If you allow bones to modify curvature handhelds and not the point handheld you would end with a strangely deformed curve.
But as DF commented, point animation is totally feasible including tangents handhelds and Synfig is the proof. Even more, you need less points in your mesh to draw your shape and get more expresivity in your drawings with use of beizer curves. For example, curved peak corners are possible only with a pair of points. In AS you need lots of them to simulate high curvatures.
Only if you overlap bones influences (like you Vern and me have done several times) the tangents handhelds becomes a problem. For cut-out animation there is not reason to not have beizers in Anime Studio.
I believe that if a tangent handheld should be bound to the bones its points are bound, and not to other, then you can make use of bones in a beizer curves world.
But as DF commented, point animation is totally feasible including tangents handhelds and Synfig is the proof. Even more, you need less points in your mesh to draw your shape and get more expresivity in your drawings with use of beizer curves. For example, curved peak corners are possible only with a pair of points. In AS you need lots of them to simulate high curvatures.
Only if you overlap bones influences (like you Vern and me have done several times) the tangents handhelds becomes a problem. For cut-out animation there is not reason to not have beizers in Anime Studio.
I believe that if a tangent handheld should be bound to the bones its points are bound, and not to other, then you can make use of bones in a beizer curves world.
