Here’s a term that hasn’t been heard too often, phenastoscope. If you are familiar with him, he may be revealing his age. Actually, this was the technique used to give the animation effects. They were simple drawings that were made to move simultaneously.
Today we do the same but with much more advanced methods. The general concept is still there, it is the way the results are achieved that is so dramatically different. Fenadistoscope techniques died out in the late 21st century when a more exciting and innovative way of doing work emerged. If you haven’t guessed what it is, then it’s the computer. Naturally, these dynamic pieces of technology never end with what they can do.
What happened now in the world of animation was that drawings could be scanned on the computer or even better created on it. The computer has the ability to quickly display all those images that represent movement at a very fast rate. These are images created from 2D or 3D illustration models. They are then placed in a sequential order, which the computer takes and is able to create the illusion of movement.
The characters in today’s animation have taken on a dramatic, realistic look thanks to the ability to view them from all angles.
The computer is successful in achieving these great results by being able to perform a variety of techniques.
It is capable of making a comic or cartoon character look like hand-drawn. This is done using a technique known as cel-shading. To achieve the animation characteristics of skin and facial expressions and clothing, a technique called morph animation is implemented. This means that movements are stored as vertex positions. In each main frame, the vertex will move to a different position.
However, the works are not finished yet. There is a skeletal animation that needs to be included, i.e. rigging, which is a vertebrate technique. It involves the bone design that included a part of the character to allow for visual representation.
Once this was done, a procedure had to be put in place to register the movement. Like in video games, it’s called motion capture. Then another cool aspect is known as crowd simulation. You know those photos in which you see crowds of people; Well, this is the technique that takes care of the realism of these shots.
Often people think that 3D animation only relates to cartoons. They don’t realize that many other moving objects, as seen on the computer, for example, are also animation. You may have seen the beating heart on a medical site, or you may have seen a 3D plan in a decorating program on the Internet. What you are seeing through the presentation is due to the incredible capabilities of 3D animation. So, as you can see, this technology goes far beyond just entertainment use. It has a place in many different industries.