Need lots of advice for character setup

[Alltech animator]

Hi all,

I am an animator in the feed industry for a biotechnology company and am just learning MOHO. I would like to get some opinions regarding the best way to set up a character. For example, how do I line up the back of the character's leg with the lower back/buttocks and still make them look like one piece when animating? (especially when the texture of the leg needs to match the texture of the torso it is attached to, such as zebra stripes or the black spots on a cow). This part has confused me, and as I approach the rigging of my character (a cow) I wonder how I will be able to pull this off. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for your help!

Joel Miller (new MOHO user)

[WillBellJr]

Tyically, it's best to create your characters all in one part (depending on angle) this way your coloring or texturing will deform properly with the objects when posed.

If you're doing cutout animation (like South Park or with images) then you'll just have to spend more time on the seams or perhaps you can create a part on a higher layer that covers the seam between the two differing parts and texture that part to make the seam less noticable.

As you become more familiar, you'll see different ways to accomplish what you need with the tools Moho provides.

-Will

[myles]

Hello Joel,

what sort of movement will your cow be doing - in particular, what will be the most extreme positions?

Some techniques might work for smaller movments (e.g. cow-like walking) but may not work for more stretched cartoony positions (flying Supercow).

Secondly, what views of the cow are you animating - straight side-on profile, three-quarters, three-quarters and from above ?

Regards, Myles.

[Alltech animator]

I think I have it figured out. Just recenlty hit a breakthrough. I guess MOHO just takes some practice. Thanks for the help!

JM