No Fancy Frills :)

Was told the bouncing on the screen edge wasn't allowed.
Also tweaked quite a bit of the tail, and the pacing.

Getting Closer

The animation is getting refined, with a few extra pauses and some better roll at the end.

Not sure if the tail is actually long enough..i'm trying to think of things to change, and that might be hte most beneficial...though i think the tail is in relation to the ball.
Might do another test with this included...

Tweaked Bits.

Have had a quick go cleaning up stray lines, and getting some of the pauses sorted.

I think this is nearly there, there's a little more cleaning needed...possibly some more squash and stretch if i decide to. But i'm very happy with it now.

[edit] I think i'm going to focus on that 'pause' at the top, where he's losing balance. It's a bit off. Might make him fall slowly, while he's trying to grab on to the edge...

Fox Tail Test

The planning stages were fairly short, though i'd made quite a few tests.
This is the main plan for the animation.

This is the first fox-tail test.
I'm struggling to find something i can tweak on it.

I kinda like the pause at the top..though perhaps there's not enough follow through on the tail...

Showing off :(

We were told not to show off, and i made the decision to start again, as the tail wasn't really in-brief and there were too many 'background actions'.

This is the animation where too much is going on.

Will start again with a more fox-like tail. (note: also forgot the tail in the cut).

The First Full Attempt

This was my first go at the whole animation, which due to the little pauses and breathing, made it to 540 frames.
I was told in class that i wasn't allowed to make him swing around the middle column, as it wasn't part of the brief.
This is the first one, where he (it's male) swings.

I really like the little effects, the stones that come out of the column and add to the solid nature of the ball. (though that's something i WON'T be using in maya...)

Squirrels!!

Some extra research on squirrels' tails.

It's a lot more to think about, as the tail looks to be longer, and more cumbersome. Possibly a little less inherent 'spring' than my 'tadpole' one. Though i do like the dimensionality to the squirrel tail, the inner lines suggesting form, though worry about animating it smoothly.
Also going to play with extra scenes and a few mini effects :)

This is a video of a squirrel tail i found on youtube
This is another, though it's only at the end, when the fox is on a lead, that there's a little 'bounce' of the tail.

Eek!

Something I've just noticed about the first test is the floor. The video seems to cut it off.
This isn't intentional. Will have to see where the camera edge/title safe is again...

This is hard.

I think i had quite a good time with the bouncing ball...it was a fairly easy task. Though when adding a tail, there's quite a bit more to concentrate on. I've made a quick storyboard, with some notes on the character, how i'd like it to act and a few things to focus on when animating.

I started by animating the ball on it's own, after having a good idea of what i wanted the character to do, and to act like. Afterwards, and after tweaking the animations on the ball, i added the tail. This was a really long process of animation, and i don't think i helped myself with the length i wanted the animation.
In terms of design, it wasn't a concious decision to go with the 'sperm-looking' tail. But this is what came about, and was easier to draw. I also wanted to concentrate on 'solid drawing', though found that the most challenging part of the animation, as the tail changed in size quite a few times. (though i think it's allowed to...i like the full stretch on it sometimes).
This is the first test.

This is a little extra research with a squirrel tail, something with a little more thickness...just to exaggerate the tail movement.  

Tops n Tails

Had a quick go doing some reference for the tailed ball..though came to the realisation that it was fairly pointless.
The video was too quick, and the tail was (obviously) limp and devoid of life...which i wanted to inject into my animation.
This was one of those attempts...

More tests..this time mucking about :)

I've been playing with a few different ways of animating the ball, and showing off a little to give variety to the weight :) and also to have a go at giving the ball direction and spin.

Tennis Ball. 

Magic ball.

I think i've got something i'm happy to submit for the final, but i'll keep it on me for a while, just in-case im missing something.

Test.

This is another test, with a few notes for the frame duration for the main arcs/bounces. 

The arc is for a vague guide, that got slightly ignored as i tweaked a few curves that were leaning in odd directions.

First Test with Toon Boom

This is the first test done in class.

It was a bit ambitious, with a few bounces, though needs quite a bit more playing with to be any decent.
Problems to address: Timing - use the research a little better, and plan the keyframes.
Creativity :) try something a little extra..a real tennis ball has stripes...
Removing the test background before rendering :P

Video

This is the reference video used in one of the earlier drawings/notes.

Through this, i can see there isn't much, if any, squash and stretch. though i do like the motion when it comes to a halt, and turns direction completely. I might think about including something like that in my final animation.
I'm glad i chose the tennis ball, after analysing this video. It has this great spring, which gives the ball a slight texture, as if you can feel it's solidity.
Next update will be some tests from Toon Boom. :)

Decisions

I've decided to use a tennis ball to research the timings etc, of the bounce. The floor is a polished wood floor, so it'll have a decent bounce.
It's also bright green..so i can see it in the video.

I've drawn over each frame of the videos i've taken, and studied the timings and spaces. I've also made a few notes on things i've found out; like the missing 'contact' frame from the first bounce. The ball was going so fast the camera didn't pick up the moment it hits the floor. Another is the smooth curve, showing deceleration.

On the second sketch i've drawn over the frames of another video again, and this time focused much more on the spacing and the 'easing in and out'.



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