Dog Walk cycle C&C please

[krugar]

No dog lovers in here ehh :shrug:

Anyway for those who are interested here is a quick update

Dog Walk 2 (http://www.sendspace.com/file/c1lxxu)

Thx

[travishowe]

Hey there, Krugar,
I think you're off to a good start here, but I do think it needs a lot of loving.

-My first problem is actually the model itself, it's hard to tell from this angle, but the upper torso looks significantly higher than the rear torso, which is not too typical of dogs. I dont know if you made the model yourself, but that's the first thing that really throws me with the walk is that it's hard to be accurate when the proportions are off.

-The timing of the front legs in relation to the back legs seems off. Not the biggest quadruped expert, but I think the front and back leg of each respective side should be somewhere close to opposite each other.

-Notice how the legs are taking a long time to move backward, and then practically pop forward. I'd speed up the backward movement and slow down the forward movement.

-The head, in my opinion, is following the body too much on it's up/down/right/lefts.

Anyway, there's quite a bit of cleanup that could be done, but I think this'll get you off to a good start.

Good luck,

Travis

[krugar]

Hey travis,
Thanks for your comments, about the model I think its supposed to be a wolf or something I downloaded it from someones site. (I couldn't find a decent dog rig for maya anywhere)

Anyway back to the scene I played around with the timing abit with the legs and head

Side View (http://www.sendspace.com/file/7lcz4t)

Persp View (http://www.sendspace.com/file/x8pxmc)

Thx

[LiannaS]

good start but like travis mentioned it needs alot more love. I'd highly reccomend you check out the animator's survival kit by richard williams, it has a great guide for four legged walks. Your poses don't seem that far off, though if I had a tip it'd be to think of it as two sets of hips walking instead of just four legs. The back legs need a bit of work in the 'push-off' position, it seems like the hind legs jut out in an unnatural way. Also, the head and tail have some timing issues. Remember, the head goes up in the contact position (of the forelegs) and down in the contact position of the hindlegs.

With the tail, remember all that jazz you learned about wave action, reversal of C curves yadda yadda...basically the dog's bum moves the top of the tail first then the tip follows. Check out this awesome picture I made if it helps.

[travishowe]

Hey,
I can't download the video right now, as I'm on a slower connection, so I'll have to critique it later, but in response to your comment about not being able to find a good dog rig, check out www.3dfiggins.com (http://www.3dfiggins.com). There's a pug on there that I really like. There's also a cat (which walks much different from a dog, I know, but is a quadruped nontheless). You might also try highend3d.com, I don't remember if they've got a quadruped there or not, but it's worth a look. Also, this one's way too cartoony for me, but try googling lowdog or Lowman Dog. If you can find the page that Lowman is on, there's a dog rig there. His head is retardedly huge, but he does have four legs :)

Good luck!

Travis

[travishowe]

Hey Krugar,
After seeing the side view and getting a better look at the model, I can't tell you how imparative it is to the quality of your walk to get a new model. Even if you make this model walk like it would were it a real living being, it wouldn't look like a dog's walk cycle. The rear hips are just WAAAAAAAAAAAY off (among other things). Please look into the links I suggested. I know somewhere online there's a free wolf rig, but you'd have to google around for it.

Okay, now for critique. Again, it's really hard when the model is so off to begin with, but here are a few things. First of all, download this movie:

http://creative.gettyimages.com/source/Film/filmresultsmain.aspx?source=quickSearchFilm&txtSearch=dog+walk&doRF=True&doRM=True&usePrefs=False

-One of the things I want you to notice is how little the head is moving. It bobs with the stepping, but it's very minimal. Subtlty is key, my friend. That's what'll sell something as believable.

-The whole torso area on your animation needs to be brought upward. Notice how the dog in the video looks very steady, balanced, and altogether he doesn't feel like the weight of his torso is killing his legs. On your animation, the torso is so low, it feels like he's got a bag of bricks on his back.

-The legs are coming up too high. Notice in the video, on the way back to the front, the feet practically slide along the ground. Have you ever seen how a cat reacts when you put boots on it. It's walk becomes awkward, the feet raise extremely high and to the sides, as though with each step it's attempting to shake the boot off... that, to me, is how your animation feels, like this is the first time this dog's ever walked, nad his steps are awkward and unnatural.

Anyway, gotta get to work. Good luck on this, and keep us posted.

Travis

[travishowe]

Shoot, just realized that link didn't work.

Follow the link, then go to page 2, third column, 12 down should be a black and white Great Dane from a side view. That's the video I was referring to. If you are unable to find it, let me know and I'll get it for you.

Travis

[krugar]

Wow thanks for the feedback guys

Travis thanks for the links for the different rigs but I'm kinda stuck with this one because of time constraints :sad: the video you pointed out really helped alot (the video i was using for referance was a bad quality youtube one).

Anyway on this version I have re-worked the timing of the tail (although i've still got alot more to do on it) and the head and raised the body off the ground abit so hopefully he looks more balanced. I also lowered the legs in their passing positions

Thx

P.S. Oh and nice pic Lianna it really cleared things up for me.

Side V2 (http://www.sendspace.com/file/qytv53)

[krugar]

^ Sorry double post

[LiannaS]

hope to see some more updates if you have time

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