Posted on May 26, 2021, 7:16 p.m. by Salaryman • Last updated on May 26, 2021, 7:23 p.m.
When you first found this great selection of free 3D models on the web, you probably thought it was gonna be easy. You might have thought you were just going to download the models and learn how the software works. But the reality is not so simple. There are two elements that go into learning 3D animation. Yes, learning the software is essential. But it's just like any other tool. A 5000 dollar camera is not going to instantly make you a better photographer. Learning the software will do you no good on its own. You need to learn the theory to truly understand what you're doing.
Of course, there are many tutorials that teach you how to use software like Blender. These tutorials are incredibly easy to produce, since they show how to perform a practical task in the software itself. If the lecturer is exceptionally lazy, this boils down to just showing steps. Click this, open that. You're not learning anything about the task you're doing. You're just being shown how to perform it. You're learning without understanding. Rarely do these tutorials dive into broader and less tangible concepts like composition and animation theory. While those are the skills that are the most difficult to master.
And these aren't just skills that you learn by a watching a video. You learn these skills by understanding fundamental concepts, observing them in other people's work and spending countless hours on practicing and refining your own.
Even if you would like to just jump in and start doing an activity, you should learn the fundamentals. Like being told the general rules of a sport before playing your first real match. Animation has fundamental concepts that you should learn too. And while these are not set in stone, they do teach you a lot about how objects and people should move, and how those motions can be enhanced for a great lively animation. Start by looking at the "12 basic principles of animation" as described by Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston in their 1981 book "The Illusion of Life" - or at the expanded "21 Foundations of Animation" by Dermot O' Conner. These are two great resources, describing in broad terms, how characters should move, and how you can time and ease certain movements to make them more believable.
Another important element is gathering and looking at reference material. That is to say; video or animation that show the motion you're trying to create. Not just looking for the sake of enjoying or copying. But pausing, and stepping through the video frame by frame. To really critically see and understand how people and objects move in the real world, or how movements are enhanced by the animator.
These concepts are key for any kind of animation you want to make. Realistic or cartoony. Regular animation or sex animations. Doesn't matter. These concepts will apply to some extent. Knowing and understanding them, and most importantly, applying them, will make your animations better and the process itself a lot less painful. No matter what you are animating.
You don't need a tutorial on animating sex.
You need to learn the basics.