Animating

[BlueMonkey5]

I am currently preparing to begin classes for graphic arts. I'm looking ahead though at a project I'm planning. It is in 2D side scrolling format, yet I'm wondering... what am i going to do to have to animate the main character? Can anyone tell me the proper protocol and procedure for this, as a graphic artist? thank you.

[avansc]

there are multiple ways.

1. draw each individual frame.
2. make a model in 3dmax or whatever, and animate it like that, getting all your angles that you want and making a sprite.
3. make a procedural modeling and texturing program// may be a bit advanced.

im sure there are 1000's of ways.

[Moosader]

Yo.

http://kadotuksen-lusikka.deviantart.co ... 1-74501692
http://kadotuksen-lusikka.deviantart.co ... 2-74501799

And to a lesser extent, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_qLL-_m2gs, which I need to finish.


*runs away*

[programmerinprogress]

I always use sprite clipping.

Basically, draw out a spritesheet, one frame after another, then program a rectangle(rect, SDL_Rect, whatever you're using) to 'clip' a certain part of the sprite, then use a variable to move the rectangle along the sprite, by incrementing and decrementing it!

If you're using SDL, I recommend you try the sprite clipping tutorial at lazyfoo.net, it got me started.

The way I think about it is like getting a piece of paper, with pictures on it, and then getting a bigger blank piece of paper, cuting out a certain size square, and then dragging the paper along, gradually revealing the images frames one after another from the sheet of images underneath

To put it another way, the rectangle is like your camera, and your pointing your camera at a certain part of the spritesheet, to skip through frames, you simply change the location of the camera, get it ?

[BlueMonkey5]

I see now how to make sprites, but how do you arrange them in a finalized way for the programmers to use?

Btw, LusikkaMage has some awesome sprite tutorials :D

[dandymcgee]

Like programmerinprogress said, you usually just put them in a sprite sheet and take clips from that in the program.

A quick (and bad) example I just drew in paint:

Dodgeball.PNG (1.4 KiB) Viewed 2352 times

NOTE: The black outline around each frame is just there to show there are multiple frames. The actual sprite sheet would not have this.

The other way to do it (if you're using something like visual basic where clipping a tile sheet isn't feasible if even possible) would be to separate each frame into its own image file, then load and draw them in the order of the animation.

If this is in C++ the first one would DEFINITELY be the way to go, but if it's a much higher level language that lacks the ability to clip images (easily) then you may want to consider separate files to save your programmer a lot of time.

[BlueMonkey5]

If this is in C++ the first one would DEFINITELY be the way to go, but if it's a much higher level language that lacks the ability to clip images (easily) then you may want to consider separate files to save your programmer a lot of time.

what languages are higher levels than C++ that I should be lookin out for? and you can make a sprite sheet right there in the graphics program, like graphicsgale for example?

[Ginto8]

#1. Most languages are higher level then C/++. That's not to say there are lower-level languages, but most are higher level. The main ones to look out for are VB and other BASIC-based languages.

#2. The graphics program you use doesn't matter, you just have to there is a set of sprites the right size (if the sprite itself is smaller, make the area that it's in the right size).

I may have said some of the stuff in a confusing way; if you don't understand, just ask.

[deryni21]

#1. Most languages are higher level then C/++. That's not to say there are lower-level languages, but most are higher level. The main ones to look out for are VB and other BASIC-based languages.

#2. The graphics program you use doesn't matter, you just have to there is a set of sprites the right size (if the sprite itself is smaller, make the area that it's in the right size).

I may have said some of the stuff in a confusing way; if you don't understand, just ask.

define highher level?

[Ginto8]

Higher level = less control (usually easier)
Lower level = More control (usually harder)

Hope that cleared it up.

[deryni21]

Higher level = less control (usually easier)
Lower level = More control (usually harder)

Hope that cleared it up.

so c/c++ is like in between then

[Falco Girgis]

Higher level = less control (usually easier)
Lower level = More control (usually harder)

Hope that cleared it up.

so c/c++ is like in between then

No, compared to just about anything but assembly languages, C/++ would be considered "low level." For pretty much anything you are familiar with, Java, C#, Perl, Python, Ruby, Lua, etc, C/++ is lower level.

[deryni21]

Higher level = less control (usually easier)
Lower level = More control (usually harder)

Hope that cleared it up.

so c/c++ is like in between then

No, compared to just about anything but assembly languages, C/++ would be considered "low level." For pretty much anything you are familiar with, Java, C#, Perl, Python, Ruby, Lua, etc, C/++ is lower level.

now with "lower level" that would imply its not as good. i know that is not true and from gintos description it seems almost backwards? a lower level language has more capability but is harder to use while a higher level language is easier to use but doesn't have the same capability. also what is a lower level then c/++?

[Falco Girgis]

now with "lower level" that would imply its not as good.

Hell no. You just defined lower level:

a lower level language has more capability but is harder to use while a higher level language is easier to use but doesn't have the same capability.

Does that sound shittier to you?

C/++ is way harder than something like a scripting language, but is way more powerful.

also what is a lower level then c/++?

No, compared to just about anything but assembly languages, C/++ would be considered "low level."

[Kros]

also what is a lower level then c/++?

Assembly and Binary.