I would really like to get into poser animation.  The problem is lack of tutorials.  I'm looking for a tutorial that will explain the in's & out's of a complex  poser animation. 

Complex Animation

• Two figures walk towards each other, shake hands, give each other a hug and then walk away.

I'm looking for a tutorial that will show you step by step how to perform a complex animation similar to the above.  Walking towards each other, doing something, then walking away.  It is very important this tutorial be a video and not a web page that involves heavy reading. 

Preferably a tutorial that explains the difference between the splines with a visual explanation.  It's hard to believe poser has been out this long yet there is absolutely no in depth animation tutorial for the software package.

**I am NOT looking for a tutorial that shows a figure raising their arm then lowering it. LOL.
**
My budget is $250.00 for tutorial DVD's/videos/mpg for poser animation.

http://my.smithmicro.com/tutorials/index.html

look for the section entitled Poser: Animation Tutorials, which will explain the basics of animating. Unfortunately it doesn't explain the different spline types - which affect the way an object accelerates or decelerates into / out of a keyframe (sorry , I cant think of any other way to explain it).

When searching, try to generalize your search from Poser - perhaps explanations of other apps can provide insight to the way Poser works.

Finally, I highly suggest the following book:

http://www.amazon.com/Animators-Survival-Kit-Richard-Williams/dp/0571202284/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1219893676&sr=8-1 

It won't tell you how to work Poser, but it will teach you how to see, which is just as important and translatable as learning how to use a camera.

Attached Link: Dr Geeps university.

Have you read Dr.Geeps tutorial?

Quote - Have you read Dr.Geeps tutorial?

I went to this website and there was no animation tutorial.

Man i can't believe there isn't one video out there that just shows one scene of complex animation for poser, explaining all the splines, etc.

What should take a few weeks will now spiral INTO YEARS............ I hate learning on my own because it's a waste of time.

This video tutorial on Poser animation may help:-
http://www.philc.net/animation1.htm

Quote - This video tutorial on Poser animation may help:-
http://www.philc.net/animation1.htm

LOL !! that is hilarious. :P

There are several good tuts on Youtube, under the name of ExpertVillage. 
Just type Poser Expertvillage in the search blank of Youtube and you'll see them.

"I went to this website and there was no animation tutorial."

Did you look in the P4 catagory? It's the first thumbnail listed and it teaches you all about the difference in the splines and most everything else you need to know about the poser animation. The only thing it does not do is teach you about the layers if your using P7 and that is in the manual.

You need to remember that most of those older tutorials are still the same way of doing things in poser now.

Quote - "I went to this website and there was no animation tutorial."

Did you look in the P4 catagory? It's the first thumbnail listed and it teaches you all about the difference in the splines and most everything else you need to know about the poser animation. The only thing it does not do is teach you about the layers if your using P7 and that is in the manual.

You need to remember that most of those older tutorials are still the same way of doing things in poser now.

I have some friends who work for MIT. I'm going to have them fly in next week.  We're going to spend a few days analyzing this website you speak of and try to find where those animation tutorials are.

You asked for a tutorial showing the difference between the splines with a visual explanation. The free tutorial that I gave you a link to do did exactly that. If you want to spend $250 on other material that will tell you exactly the same information then that is up to you.

I do not appreciate being insulted. If you failed to grasp that the information being presented went in some way to answer your question then a simple "Thanks but I need more information", would have sufficed.

If you treat well meaning replies with derision you may find that folks will start to simply ignore your questions.

You may be interested in the recent publication Character Animation with Poser Pro by Larry Mitchell. Although I do not have a hard copy I am familiar with its contents since I was the technical editor.

Quote - You may be interested in the recent publication Character Animation with Poser Pro by Larry Mitchell. Although I do not have a hard copy I am familiar with its contents since I was the technical editor.

I have been waiting for that book to come out. I have the author's Linda tutorials but he doesn't touches upon anything that I don't already know. If I may ask Phil, would you say that the book could help intermediate/advanced Poser animators. I'm interested in finding ways to link two figures together or finding ways to use IK to help me with complex animation like fights, wrestling where one character's weight is transfer to the other and where a hand contact from one character to another character's bodypart will be driving the motion. Possible ways to code constraints etc.

I have seen messages here that the mitchell book has less content than the promos
indicated, that most of it is not about animation in poser, and that there are
errors and/or omissions in the CD or DVD.  however, i only know one guy who
has bought it so far, hence the above may be incorrect.

my feeling is for folks to forget about searching endlessly for the magic tutorial
that will reveal all to them.  just dive in and try to do an animation in poser
without even reading the manual.  if it seems to work to some extent, keep trying.
if desired, read the manual and all the info already linked here.
if it's baffling and impenetrable, then try something else other than animation.

For those who are interested, I've posted a review of Character Animation in Poser Pro at the Posermocap.com website.

Summary of the review: The book is quite good for beginners, but is missing a lot of information that could have been added in there. It will cover off the basics of keyframing and keyframed animation, but does not have much discussion of motion capture, talk designer and expressions, or animation layers. I gave it a 3 out of 5.

Considering that there is precious little information on Poser Animation, however (Phil's excellent tutorial above notwithstanding), this book may be well worth a look for people just starting out.

 

Zanzo, here's the direct link to the Animation page on Dr. Geep's site. I can't believe you couldn't find it, especially after being told where to look on the second try. I found it on the first try.

http://www.drgeep.com/p4/anim/anim.htm

You should also apologize to Phil. The man has done more for Poser users than most and I think his video is a fine start for learning the basics.

Quote - You asked for a tutorial showing the difference between the splines with a visual explanation. The free tutorial that I gave you a link to do did exactly that. If you want to spend $250 on other material that will tell you exactly the same information then that is up to you.

I do not appreciate being insulted. If you failed to grasp that the information being presented went in some way to answer your question then a simple "Thanks but I need more information", would have sufficed.

If you treat well meaning replies with derision you may find that folks will start to simply ignore your questions.

You may be interested in the recent publication Character Animation with Poser Pro by Larry Mitchell. Although I do not have a hard copy I am familiar with its contents since I was the technical editor.

Damn Phil i'm so sorry!  I thought you were joking by posting that link.  If you read my original post I said:

"I am NOT looking for a tutorial that shows a figure raising their arm then lowering it. LOL."

But then you provide me with a tutorial link in which someone is showing how to do an animation of raising a figures arm & lowering it.  I thought you were kidding with me! i'm sorry.

I really am sorry I didn't mean any offense.

Quote - Zanzo, here's the direct link to the Animation page on Dr. Geep's site. I can't believe you couldn't find it, especially after being told where to look on the second try. I found it on the first try.

http://www.drgeep.com/p4/anim/anim.htm

You should also apologize to Phil. The man has done more for Poser users than most and I think his video is a fine start for learning the basics.

Thanks so much. This link is the perfect reference.

But I must say everyone. Isn't it odd that there is no intermediate-advanced level poser animation material in the form of a video or dvd?

It's one thing to raise an arm.

It's one thing to throw a ball.

It's one thing to use the talk & walk designer.

BUT it's an entirely different thing to bring all these elements together in a COMPLEX scene. 

Complex Scene:

• Figure walks into view and see's a ball.
• Figure says "I am going to pick up the ball".
• Figure walks towards the ball.
• Figure bends down to pick it up.
• Figure throws the ball.
• Low and behold another figure catches the ball and throws it back.

No one has done this in the form of instructional video tutorial.  

I don't mind learning on my own but I try to avoid that at all costs.  The internet is a powerful tool and I wish the people who developed poser would provide some intermediate to advanced level instructional videos. 

How long did it take before man discovered "The Wheel"?  I don't have 10,000 years to learn complex poser animaton, instead I would like someone to teach me AND I"VE GOT THE MONEY.

I guess now I'm just venting.

Quote - But I must say everyone. Isn't it odd that there is no intermediate-advanced level poser animation material in the form of a video or dvd?

No. Anyone with skills to do decent animation in poser doesn't stay in the poserverse long enough to do a DVD. And who would they sell the DVD to anyway, the 7 people doing animation in poser ?

Even apps like MAX or Maya, which have tens of thousands of users, barely get maybe 1 DVD a year on the subject.

Well if you do learn on your own, feel free to produce that DVD. Who knows? Someone might pay you!

OK nuff said.

I think the main reason why there are no tutorials in the form you are looking for is because once you understand the basic principles of how to use the applications animation tools then the rest is more art than science. Think of it like a painting. I can say, "Here is a brush, there is a canvas and you can apply paint with strokes like this and that." but then it is up to you to try it for yourself an practice.

Follow this by more practice, and more and more..... There really is no short cut.

Other topics you may want to research are using motion capture (BVH) files and rotoscoping.

However make sure you understand the basics as outlined in my video and Dr Geeps excellent tutorials, If you haven't got the basics down then there will be no point in trying anything complex. As a suggestion start by creating an animation of a man rising from a chair to a standing position. Consider how his weight moves and is redistributed as he stands up. Think about the way he will use his arms to push off from the arm rests. Think about the way the chair will react to the motion. It is the summation of all the small details that will make the animation believable.

No amout of money will allow you to purchase ability, you have to buy it through experience.

I feel the same thing.......
The creator of poser are genius because they are the creators, and idiots because there are not really  improvement. No offense please. Maybe they just dont want the idea that we can create movies, because thats the work of disney pixar for example.........I dont know what think about it....I am just a newbie but I have a little experience.

by the way, in the walk designer there was a fake step in the left buttock if you use aiko models.......how to fix it?

I made this two videos, two parts, see here.......please specially PhilC

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoNxaJI80_o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtIa3D4IoR4

OK will watch those now.

Do you have IK's turned on for the legs? If so try turning them off. You'll see the option in the Poser Figure menu.

Thanks, really appreciated your answer. I try what you said but is not the solution, you can try too.
Here is the result. I can't fix it with IK on or off....what you think?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7pmVT2yxyE

I've been struggling with animation (in general, not just Poser animation) for years now, with varying results. As Phil said, after a certain point, it's not science, it's art. The basics are pretty simple and straightforward -- once you know the essentials of the various types of spline, from there it's sometimes best to just dive in on your own and find your own way of doing things.

Best way to handle the scene you describe? Look at real life. Shoot a quick video using a couple of friends, then rotoscope it -- and in the process, look at it with an analytical eye. Honestly, tutorials cant teach you much beyond basic mechanics. To go beyond that, try virtually any animation book, because the techniques are all pretty much the same, whether it's Poser or Maya.

I think the best Poser animation I've seen was over at DAZ. Sorry I dont have a link. It came out about the time Victoria 3 did. So it was a few years ago. It was of V3 and M3 kung fu fighting. They were both wearing body suits, one red, one black. I dont think it was done in DAZ Studio because I think that was before Studio had very advanced animation tools. But I could be wrong on that. NEway, I suspect that there is a lack of Poser animation tuts because once you get that far into animation you realize it might be better to switch to a more Advanced App. If you want to keep going in Poser, then I agree with Miss Nancy, just jump in there and animate. If you have problems this is a great site to get help!

Quote - I've been struggling with animation (in general, not just Poser animation) for years now, with varying results. As Phil said, after a certain point, it's not science, it's art. The basics are pretty simple and straightforward -- once you know the essentials of the various types of spline, from there it's sometimes best to just dive in on your own and find your own way of doing things.

Best way to handle the scene you describe? Look at real life. Shoot a quick video using a couple of friends, then rotoscope it -- and in the process, look at it with an analytical eye. Honestly, tutorials cant teach you much beyond basic mechanics. To go beyond that, try virtually any animation book, because the techniques are all pretty much the same, whether it's Poser or Maya.

I totally agree with you. But you don't give me a solution. I want just a simple aiko walk.....I want too much ?. Thanks in advance.

Quote - NEway, I suspect that there is a lack of Poser animation tuts because once you get that far into animation you realize it might be better to switch to a more Advanced App.

Thanks!. Please tell me which app is better than poser, just for especify.

Max, Maya, XSI, C4, Lightwave to name a couple. But you would have to learn those too.

*"But you don't give me a solution. I want just a simple aiko walk.....I want too much ?. Thanks in advance."

Here's a thought, learn how to use the walk designer. It's in the manual and on the sites that you have already been given. There is even a tutorial at Daz that shows how to create walk cycles for different figures in the Walk designer. Don't forget there is also bi-pede and quadrapede, did I spell them right?, by PhilC.

It doesn't sound like you want to learn but instead have someone do it all for you.

For what it's worth, my suggestions once you get to the 'art' stage are

• read about old time disney techniques;
  http://www.amazon.com/Animators-Survival-Kit-Richard-Williams/dp/0571202284

• watch television with the sound off;

• practice;

• realize it is largely about the eyes, and you don't need anything more than Poser for that.

http://jrdonohue.com/lbd.mov
Large file, quicktime required
first half is mocap with massive cleanup but shows off Poser cloth
second half is hand keyed
lo-res render as this was not a final for release

::::: Opera :::::

Quote - Here's a thought, learn how to use the walk designer. It's in the manual and on the sites that you have already been given. There is even a tutorial at Daz that shows how to create walk cycles for different figures in the Walk designer. Don't forget there is also bi-pede and quadrapede, did I spell them right?, by PhilC.

It doesn't sound like you want to learn but instead have someone do it all for you.

I think there is a misunderstanding here. Did you read my post above?
You have to see this little's videos... I just made it for better understanding ...
If you have to use aiko models in the walk designer naturally you will get a little awful fake step in the left buttock or both. You know how to fix it?
Out of the walk designer, the left buttock (for example) can be modified from the curve or the palette or etc, but in the walk designer it can't be modified (with IK on or off) from the curve or the palette or etc. why?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoNxaJI80_o
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtIa3D4IoR4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7pmVT2yxyE

I know about the walk designer and the poser manual and the tutorials....
thanks.

Quote -
http://jrdonohue.com/lbd.mov
Large file, quicktime required
first half is mocap with massive cleanup but shows off Poser cloth
second half is hand keyed
lo-res render as this was not a final for release

::::: Opera :::::

Really beautiful animation! . Is a lot of effort, thanks!
But isn't aiko. I have no problem with victoria o poser's models.

Attached Link: http://www.auroratrek.com

Another problem with finding tuts on Poser Animation is that it seems like there are so few people really doing it in any serious capacity (trust me, I've looked). 99% of Poser animations I've seen are about 10 seconds long, and are something simple like "V3 waving" or a character walking. I don't mean that as a dis to these people, because--to paraphrase Churchill--Poser is the worst character animation application except for all the others (tho I suspect it's not real easy in any program). I've been banging away at it for years with mixed results, but at the end of the day Poser/Daz animated characters is about the only way I can imagine one person at the consumer level--or a small group--being able to produce 3D character animation of any length without it taking a million years. As noted here earlier, the basics of Poser animation are pretty simple, but actually getting decent results is a *lot* of work, so the first tutorial you see better say that this is not easy--it's nudge and test, nudge and test, nudge and test...

--Tim

Do you get the hitch if you 'walk in place"?

Quote - Do you get the hitch if you 'walk in place"?

Yes. 
I give up, there is not solution.

Quote - Another problem with finding tuts on Poser Animation is that it seems like there are so few people really doing it in any serious capacity (trust me, I've looked). 99% of Poser animations I've seen are about 10 seconds long, and are something simple like "V3 waving" or a character walking. I don't mean that as a dis to these people, because--to paraphrase Churchill--Poser is the worst character animation application except for all the others (tho I suspect it's not real easy in any program). I've been banging away at it for years with mixed results, but at the end of the day Poser/Daz animated characters is about the only way I can imagine one person at the consumer level--or a small group--being able to produce 3D character animation of any length without it taking a million years. As noted here earlier, the basics of Poser animation are pretty simple, but actually getting decent results is a lot of work, so the first tutorial you see better say that this is not easy--it's nudge and test, nudge and test, nudge and test...

--Tim

great words!,
and awesome movie, waiting for the part3!!!!

Another point: I could use Lightwave (a fairly serious 3D app that I know fairly well) but I use Poser because of the vast range of cheap stuff : fully rigged characters, clothes, props, scenery, etc.
For the level of stuff I'm doing (animated ecards), that outweighs the fact that it's a buggy, cobbled together idiosyncratic pile of crap that's extremely irritating to learn to use compared to the more "elegant" and powerful serious 3Dapps.  In spite of it's infuriating shortcomings, Poser still actually saves time because of it's merits.