A corupted file destroyed an animation/clothroom file. Unfortunately I had not saved it on a DVD disk. However an earlier version was put into the pose file. The problem is when I try to reconstruct the project, although the poses are correct, there are random displacent and rotation changes that necessitate key frame by key frame corrections. Does anyone have a solution for this? It would be a great help also if the next edition of Poser would allow at least two PZ3 files to be connected and not be limited to connecting them using AVI.

It would be a great help also if the next edition of Poser would allow at least two PZ3 files to be connected and not be limited to connecting them using AVI. ?? what do you mean connecting two pz files by AVI? ::::: Opera :::::

"It would be a great help also if the next edition of Poser would allow at least two PZ3 files to be connected and not be limited to connecting them using AVI. " I agree. Been thinking the same thing. Poser 6 (or 5432242 or whatever) should be able to keep track of a sequence of PZ3 files, perhaps with a storyboard arrangement that could be controlled as an Excel spreadsheet.

what is the practical length of one pz/animation? I notice that the dial only goes up to 999 frames. Is that a barrier of some sort? ::::: Opera :::::

no it goes much higher (frames) but the counter only goes up to 999.....Realisticaly, I'd hate to try to render 999 frames anyways... I like to keep anims at about 30-50 frames....it seems manageable that way, and easy (faster) to render. then join them AVI... the existing BVH files that are out there 'tend to get huge...I've actually never tried to render a whole one... the multiple PZ3 does me no good as I dont really want to wait 3 days for rendering... (lol)

raz. what does "join them AVI" mean? are you rendering to AVI and then using some sort of sticher to put them together? The way I work is...I make very long animations...whatever a scene takes. But I render out to individual frames. That way you can start and stop, resume later, etc. There is also then no issue with problems "at the seams" because there are no seams. I pull the frames together into a video using QuicktimePro (plenty of others will do it also.) Also, what BVH files "out there" are you working with, if you don't mind sharing. I am always looking for more. ::::: Opera :::::

note: in P4, if you click on the 999 in the counter box, it will display the correct frame count... cheers

I have collected a number of BVH files, many of which are no longer available and in an earlier posting I was advised that I shouldn't that even sharing a highly modified version may not be legal. You might find some with a search on Goggle etc. Even then they have to be adjusted for Poser and especially if the cloth room is involved. More recent animations have been from scratch. As you might have acertained from other comments AVI is making a movie and what I was referring to was joining two movies.

Thank you doctor.

Well, 36000 frames is 20 minutes of footage.

Only Robert Altman makes no-cut tracking shots that long.

So, I see no reason, really, to not make a single pz file for each entire "shot" in a film. That eliminates all seam issues.

I guess we should consider it amusing that Curious Labs did not "up" the digits on the little 999 window for Poser5. They find it hard to believe anyone would actually work with long animations in their cute little program.

YET.

::::: Opera :::::

Message edited on: 01/07/2005 23:38

Let me ask this question.... Animation.... If I have a complex shot, say two characters sitting at a table with props on it, cloth, clothing, hair, background objects, etc. my render rate will be X Seconds. But I need to track -- not cut -- to something way less complex, say off the characters and onto a small poster on the wall...all one continuous sweep. My render time should go DOWN for the portion away from the complexity, right? Poser is only burdened by what is actually visible in the frame? Am I correct in that assumption? ::::: Opera :::::

"Am I correct in that assumption?" Sort of. It still transfers all the object data in the hiearchy, even if it's out of the camera's view, to the renderer unless you make the objects hidden by unchecking "visible" in their properties. However, it won't actually have to render those objects, obviously, to the screen.

Thanks max, and good morning! ::::: Opera :::::