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618 Chapter 12: Animation
2. Create the transition with this timing. You can
also optimize the transition to fine-tune it.
3. Change the tr ansition focus.
4. Per form a mixdown.
Study both clips to find a start t ime and range for
the transition that will result in smooth motion.
Look for times when each foot has the same
planting or f ree status in both clips. For example,
atimeperiodwhenbothclipshavetheleftfoot
plantedandtherightfootfreeisagoodtimerange
for a transition.
Youcanfine-tuneyourchoiceoftransitiontimeby
optimizing the transition. This features searches
each clip, either in its entirety or near an existing
transition, to find the best t im ing for the transition.
You can improve a transition between foot-based
clips by changing the transition focus on the
Transition Editor dialog (Biped Object) (page
2–636). In the example described above, the left
foot would be chosen as the transition focus,
because this would keep the left foot planted while
the animation move s around it.
When t ransitions cause a planted foot to slide or
pop slightly, or force a leg to straighten unnaturally,
you can use a mixdown (page 3–973) to correct
these problems. See Exporting Animation to the
Biped (page 2–624).
Foot-Based Transitions with 3ds Max Objects
For foot-based motions, follow this overall
workflow:
1. Find a good place to start and end the
transition.
2. Create the transition with this timing.
3. Choosetheparentobjecttobeavelocityblend
object.
4. Choose the model’s feet to be sub-blend
objects.
5. Optimize the transition.
Procedures
To create a tr ansi tion between two clips:
1.
Right-click an existing track to insert a
Transition track or convert the current track
to a Transition track.
2. Right-clickthetrackandchooseNewClips>
From Files from the pop-up menu. Choose at
least two clips to load.
Theclipsareplacedonthetransitiontrackwith
transitions between them.
3. Drag the transition to move it, or drag its ends
to resize it.
4. Before adding the next clip, move the last clip’s
transition bracket to the next desired transition
location, and then load the clip.
To optimize a tr ansition:
With foot-based clips, you can use the Optimize
command to help you find the best timing for a
transition. The Optimize command exhaustively
searches the specified time period for t imes w hen
the foot positions match most closely.
Tip: A good workflow is to look at the clips
individually to find the b est approximate time for
a transition, then use Opt imize to fine-tune the
timing.
1. Create a transition between clips at
approximately the right location on the track.
2. Right-click the transition and choose Optimize
from the pop-up menu.
The Transition Optimization dialog (page
2–641) appears.
3. Choose Search Near Existing Transition and
click OK.
The best transition is calculated, and the
transition changes position and/or length in
the Mixer to reflect the change.