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View Full Version : animating a water drop

TheRealRaziel
11-02-2003, 11:25 PM
hi, i'm a n00bie when it comes to animating, right now i got a sketch done of what i want to do.

i want to have a water drop slide down a branch and drop of it's tip onto a leave and then splatter into a small rain that falls down of the leave so to speak, don't know how to describe it more properly.

was hoping to use metaballs but seeing how those aren't in 3dsmax :P

anybody care to pitch me a bone on this one ?

[edit] doesn't have to be all fancy and hi poly mind you, just the bare basics
Cullen
11-03-2003, 12:30 AM
Meta Particles?

Clay studio - if you have it.
cutcopypaste
11-03-2003, 01:34 AM
Max and water is like water and electricity... they really just don't mix too well.

This example (http://www.renderosity.com/uploads/BranchDropXmpl.avi) is made using what the person above suggested. Meta-particles bound to a spline path using a path space warp.

This is probably not worth the trouble to set up.

I suggest you simply animate some deformed spheres along a path setting them at different intervals. Animate thier scale and size as they move along the path. Apply motion blur to them and be done with it.

As for the splash... ummm... Max has never been able to get near a pool without shrieking in fear like a little girly. Max can't splash. You will have to push yourself into the pool of modelling and animating.

Seriously this can be done with particles and a few wind and gravity warps... motion blur and luck. Again, it'd probably be easier and more accurate to model and animate through keyframes. Time consuming, but, what the hell do I care.. it's your time not mine.

Using max 6 (?) there are other solutions.
dchavez
11-03-2003, 01:46 AM
Actually Max6 does now support metaballs (they are called BlobMesh's). I'd say that combined with a bit of nice PFlow effects should do the job nicely, no? :-)

DChavez out.
cutcopypaste
11-03-2003, 01:54 AM
Yes... this would be one method in Max6.... it's getting to the point now where it is going to become difficult to answer peoples inquiries in these online forums, when you know there are people out there still using Max3.

You'd think instead of there being a little call-out on the left that says "I'm a dork located in Bologna"... that it would be more appropriate to have the users software version(s) and hardware specs.... but alas... instead we will continue to give suggestions for how to do things using the 'new' advancements for people who are still unable to afford to upgrade and waste our time.

**HINT**

*I love a good rant*
Cullen
11-03-2003, 02:04 AM
Another dodgy way of doing it would be to animate the scale of a loft (to form the shape of a drip) down a path.

Ohh... I advise not doing it this way.
I suguest you do a few different quick tests. Doing it a few different ways. You might come up with the perfect solution.

Maybe there is a hidden water drop button in there somewhere.
cutcopypaste
11-03-2003, 02:05 AM
It's right next to the sponge tool.
SuperMax
11-03-2003, 06:23 AM
Play around with the Flex, Melt and Noise modifiers.
TheRealRaziel
11-03-2003, 08:27 AM
i got 3d studio max, so me thinks i'll have at the blobmesh :D
Rhid1en
11-04-2003, 12:26 AM
I've also had really good luck faking such a shot simply doing it the old fashioned way of creating a few quick key frames and some morphers..... guess it depends on the shot, but worked pretty well and quick for me...
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