Wednesday, April 4, 2012

No animation yet

I've been playing around with the animation functions in DAZ Studio, but I still haven't got it. I did make the swordswoman and the beast dance, and that was fun - but not what I was going for. And when she swung the sword harmlessly straight through her torso, I felt I had to abandon the project for a while. After I stopped laughing.

I've done another couple of series of pictures in DAZ. The first subject is a dragon hunter - in a futuristic metropolitan setting. Here are two versions.





And here's a picture from another series I've started. For the time being I'm calling this "With Her Familiars".






I also went back to the cruiser that I modeled in Bryce and played with camera angles and sky settings. Here are a couple of those.
There are still some things about all of these pictures that I'm not 100% satisfied with, but I'm not going to beat myself up over it. I may be my biggest fan (other than my wife), but I'm probably also my harshest critic. All in all, considering that I've only been using Bryce and DAZ for a couple of months, I'm pleasantly surprised that they are as good as they are.

Sometimes, using models that other people have built seems like cheating. Especially having grown up with "Don't trace, just draw freehand. Don't copy, just express yourself. Don't plagairize." being drummed into my thick skull. And sometimes it feels like building something out of LEGOs. But then I remind myself that it's more like putting together a model car kit where you have several options and decals and paint colors from which to chose. The end result can turn out to be something very unique and individualistic. Hopefully, some of that comes through in these pieces. And, hopefully, at some point maybe I will advance beyond this current plateau where I find myself and transcend even my own expectations.