Final Product Evaluation

Overall I feel that my animation was a success based on the fact that I have never used 3DS Max prior to this module and really had no concept of what was achieveable in the 3D space at all.

In general I would say the overall quality of the final video production resolution could be a bit better, though this is also due to the limitations of the software.

The .flv version of the file wasn't good enough quality in my opinion so I created a .mov HDTV version which has worked a little more effectively.

On reflection, my idea is possibly a little bit safe. It is quite true to my initial storyboard drawings though the end result maybe isn't quite as visually appealing as other animations.

Though I feel i stuck well to my original ideas. Initially my idea was more expansive though after discussing with my tutor it was potentially a little too extreme for the brief and "biting off a little more than I could chew" for my first 3D animation.

The end result possibly suffered as a result of this in terms of visual aesthetics though it certainly was a lot more manageable, so I take this advice as a positive.

Maybe the first person concept inhibited my overall potential a little, though I feel it offers a different dynamic and take on the subject matter.

The positives that I take forward from the module are that I really like some of the models that I produced. I enjoyed manipulating the camera during the animation phase and I feel that I was able to stick to my initial concept quite well. The fact that I was able to continually reference the themes I had initially chosen and my ideas in the design phase continued through the entire body of work is quite satisfying.

The detail and texture element of the process was something that i immensely enjoyed exploring.

The negatives that I encountered were varied; firstly the main difficulty I found in transforming my paper ideas into visual reality were that some things didn't carry over quite as well as I hoped.

I struggled to make my final scene as effectively as I had planned. I hoped that I would be able to incorporate the final shot of the two bullet holes and the gun into a 007 look, it didn't quite work mechanically. I was a little disappointed I wasn't able to pull this off.

The snake movement in general could be better, really looking at it now the snake should probably continue to move throughout the entire scene, given more time this is something which I would attempt to rectify. Attempting to bone the snake proved quite a difficult movement to achieve. I spent a lot of time on it, yet I am still not entirely satisfied.

Given more time I probably would have introduced a biped for the hand movement, which may have improved the card turn element a little more effectively.

Overall, the final animation possibly could have been a little more realistic visually which might have exposed my potential with the program a little more, yet the overall feel was what I was looking for, so I'm very happy with my results.

Initially I had a few teething issues with editing the audio in Premier Pro, though I think I have succeeded with those difficulties now.

During the actual animating phase I spent a lot of time working to get the camera view right. When I bounced my final version, my rendered version would appear different to the actual camera window. This was rectified by testing a few different formats out while setting up a render. I did have to work on smoothing a lot of the transitions in the edit phase, though I feel that the development and experience with working with the key techniques helped make this more familiar.

In summary, I think my preconception of the animation medium was a bit stereotypical, in that my overall opinion before commencing this module was that everything "animated" had to have a cartoon feel with it. This module has changed that preconception for me. It has really opened my eyes to the potential of different animations and has given me the insight to appreciate on a much wider scale the amount of hard work and detail that goes into computer games and animated movies. It is amazing what can be achieved.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this module, which has completely surprised me in all honesty. Initially I felt that this was beyond me, I spent the first few weeks extremely frustrated, miserable and disheartened. I felt that my efforts were hopeless. So on reflection I am quite pleased with what I have managed to produce in quite a short space of time.

I will now also add the SEO techniques learnt in E-Business to this blog as I am quite proud of it as a body of progressive work. It is nice to gain a further understanding and appreciation of how elements of modules can be combined together towards a final creative package.