Why no 'Draw' feature?

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Shredder565
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Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by Shredder565 » 17 Sep 2016, 18:30

it would be far easier on the fingers and knuckles and wrist when rotoscoping things than clicking out a thousand dots each time for each image.


As i'm sitting here, simply drawing things out with the mouse or a touch pad would be so much more fun too and more accurate.

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myara
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by myara » 23 Sep 2016, 05:38

Get a pen tablet and use the M key. One of the best modeling tool SI have.
M.Yara
Character Modeler | Softimage Generalist (sort of)

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Shredder565
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by Shredder565 » 23 Sep 2016, 05:56

is it plug and play?

or do you have to buy anything extra? it'd make smoke shape animation SSOOO much easier!

I don't know how to program it with ice!

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myara
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by myara » 23 Sep 2016, 06:02

No I meant get a pen tablet (like a Wacom) or a pen tablet display if you can, and use the default Softimage Move Tool (M key) and combine it with Proportional Modeling so you can model without selecting points and just move like you were sculpting. Moving components can't be any easier.

We don't have any draw tool like the one you are describing, nor I've seen it in any other 3D package (other than polybrush ) and I don't think it would be that useful. I mean, nobody uses very often the freehand pen (vector) tool in 2D software.
M.Yara
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mc_axe
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by mc_axe » 23 Sep 2016, 23:27

If i understand correct, you just missing auto clicks and then you can draw inside a big polygon freely.
If that is the case try install auto clicker is very often used to "hack" clicker games on browsers, where you need to click millions of times.

It can run super complicated scripts but you need a simple one and you can do it i believe inside the ui.
For example click every 400 milisec and add 2 hotkeys to start stop.
Image
You need these hot keys otherwise you will have problems stopping it.

--

Or you might even find a script that clicks only if mouse is moved 10pixels or something

luceric
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by luceric » 24 Sep 2016, 13:55

really? auto-clicking with mouse?

If you wanted to work that way, imho you could use just what's built-in XSI:

1) Draw the curve freehand with Create->Curve->Sketch
2) Close it with Modify->Curve->Open/Close
3) Convert to polygon with Create->Poly. Mesh->Curve to Mesh

then at least it would optimize the number of vertices based on the shape.

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mc_axe
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by mc_axe » 25 Sep 2016, 02:01

You cant go full Picaso mode and draw any ninja turtle full frame with only curves. Shreder sometimes draws an entire frame on a single polygon and animates maybe only fire.
Imagine how hard it will be to draw a wall of bricks couple windows and 2 ninja turtles posters set on fire.

Of course if you only need to get outlines of something freehand curves and then convert back to polygons is the best option.

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Shredder565
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by Shredder565 » 25 Sep 2016, 02:13

The problem is Fire AND Smoke Animation.

I'm literally getting carpel tunnel syndrome trying to move aorund the same 500 or so dots in shape animation for 12 shapes.

Sometimes I can cheat with the Prop button and move a bunch at the same time, but not always.


If I can't draw dots onto a single polygon plate.....there has to be a simple way to create smoke that looks like a cartoon smoke cloud.

It would save alot of hand cramps ;o).


And sadly, things like scripts are too advanced for me. i only know simple stuff :(.

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mc_axe
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by mc_axe » 25 Sep 2016, 02:19

You definitely need proportional tool to move 500 points, why it doesn't work always can you give example?.

You can try what luceric suggested to get the outline shape of smoke or fire, then add any lines you want in it
Work with proportional.
And then have a back-plate polygon a little further back in your scene for the rest.
---
Alternative way for smoke ->low poly balls, maybe randomize their shapes with deformers, scale them, animate them etc.
You can even try ice, a particle generator and add instanced shapes.

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Shredder565
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by Shredder565 » 25 Sep 2016, 03:30

mc_axe wrote:You definitely need proportional tool to move 500 points, why it doesn't work always can you give example?.

You can try what luceric suggested to get the outline shape of smoke or fire, then add any lines you want in it
Work with proportional.
And then have a back-plate polygon a little further back in your scene for the rest.
---
Alternative way for smoke ->low poly balls, maybe randomize their shapes with deformers, scale them, animate them etc.
You can even try ice, a particle generator and add instanced shapes.

you mean, do a simple out line, get the basic shape you want, and then add in more shapes to the base shape?

I guess that would be the simplest way.
I'll look into the others.

that's the problem with learning all this alone, you are probably making it tougher than it needs be.

this was the latest 500 point smoke cloud i just did. thankfully i was able to use the prop tool on most of thme.

Image

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myara
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by myara » 25 Sep 2016, 06:46

For that kind of effect texture animation would be easier.
Draw something like 10 frames animation loop in Photoshop or whatever you use, use texture animation, and combine it with shape animation to get more variation.
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Daniel Brassard
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by Daniel Brassard » 26 Sep 2016, 14:56

How much interaction do you need between the cloud(s) and the characters?

Can it be done in illustrator, anim studio, flash or an other vector app and composited into your scene using the FX tree?

Sometime, a little bit of planning save a lot of time.
$ifndef "Softimage"
set "Softimage" "true"
$endif

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Shredder565
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by Shredder565 » 27 Sep 2016, 15:30

myara wrote:For that kind of effect texture animation would be easier.
Draw something like 10 frames animation loop in Photoshop or whatever you use, use texture animation, and combine it with shape animation to get more variation.

That leads up to another question.

I got Texture animation to work ONCE on an older version of softimage. I did what I did in 2014 and it didn't work at all.

I took JPG stills of all the frames that I dotted out, since I couldn't really do it in shape animation and make it look nice. I loaded them in, and...nothing.

a tutorial on that would help too :)

i must have missed a step.

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mc_axe
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Re: Why no 'Draw' feature?

Post by mc_axe » 28 Sep 2016, 23:56

I think you need to name the image sequence like that

random_name_001
random_name_002
.
.
.
etc

And then when you try to apply like normal texture Softimage will present them as a single item a thumbnail with brackets, and i think you just select the list instead of open it with double click.

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