An Illusion of Space
3D Animation is a concept, which portrays or gives an illusion of a space. Simply, it is a technology where movements and placing of the objects resemble a real life scenario, as in the actual world. Before the advent of an advanced technology, 2D technology was used by drawing pictures on multiple pieces of paper and subsequently drawing every single movement of an object. Now, computers can easily manipulate these movements of objects in real time.
There are six steps that are needed to create such a 3D illusion in cartoons and films.
Modeling
The idea of modeling evolves from the fact that every object in nature has three dimensions, which are height, width and depth. If we draw a ball on a piece of paper, it will normally have a height and a width. Computer technology has made it easier to draw another dimension, which is depth. Add depth to the ball and anyone with the right software can view the ball from all directions, which cannot be done on paper, even if we try to draw the depth.
Texturing
Texturing is basically done to differentiate one part of the object from the other part. A ball can have a number of cubes of different colors like in a soccer ball. Each cube will represent a part in the whole, the football. Likewise, textures are not only restricted to colors but also play an important role in determining the amount of glow, reflection and transparency.
Scene Setup
This is a process where the creator of the image rotates the object to provide only that particular view of the object, which is desired. A good example will be two different logos on either side of the football. If each logo is imbedded in one single cube then the creator of the image can rotate the ball to show only the logo that is needed to be viewed by the audience.
Lighting
It is a process where a light is lit to expose certain parts of the object. Without any light, the entire 3D animation will be dark. Sometimes, the creators of a scene use multiple lights to illuminate a certain spot. It can take many lights to light up a scene in order to reach the desired effects.
Rendering
Rendering is one of the most time consuming of all the jobs. To create a movement in multiple objects and synchronize them accordingly, a large quantity of drawings is required. Fortunately, computers have made the job much easier but still it is a painstakingly difficult task.
Compositing
It is the last but the most enjoyable process for 3D Animation design. The process involves playing around with several different contents to draft a final image. In the final phase, creators change and modify the shape to construct a concrete single coherent image.
It should be noted though that 3D Animation is although much more advanced representation of an object but the basic principles are the same as any 2D model. A 3D model is actually a mathematical illustration of the model, which could not have been made possible without the fast calculating computing machines of today.
For more information on animation, visit http://www.3dtoon.com.
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