I thought it would be fun if everyone listed all software/animation resources they used from the time they got interested in animation up till now- here's my list:
1) Animator - I don't think I had the etch-e-sketch one, but I had something very similar. I think it actually had a stylus and allowed you to do like 25 frames of pixel animation.
2) Mario Paint for SNES- I was a happy kid when this game came out. I wish I still had the VHS tape that I saved all my animations to.
3) Pro-motion- This software is still around- but when I first got it, it was a free program. I worked at a grocery store at the time and started making funny cartoons of everyone that worked with me. I'd have a new cartoon like every week or so and everybody looked forward to seeing them=- unfortunately they pissed off a lot of people too (I did to my co-workers what South Park does to celebrities lol)
4) Macromedia Flash - This is what I started using after promotion. It didn't help the quality of my cartoons much- although I wasn't putting much effort into any serious projects.
And from Flash I moved onto Anime Studio. Something really good is going to have to come out for me to replace this software...
Your orgins of animation software?
Moderators: Víctor Paredes, Belgarath, slowtiger
1) Old Tarzan Paperback books - Not exactly "software" but there was no software at the time... there weren't computers actually. I would draw flip book cartoons in the margins of books around the house when I was a kid. Tarzan had the best ones I did.
2) Bleached 16mm film and a pen - I loved that. Bleach old film stock, draw on each frame with a pen. Load up the projector.
3) Hypercard - Old Apple product. It may still be around not sure. This program had limited drawing tools. It only really supported black and white bitmap artwork but could be used quite effectively to do cell animations. It was mainly designed for creating interactive projects with it's simple programming language. It was the "Flash" of its day. (The original block buster selling game "Myst" was created using Hypercard. True. Look it up).
4) Macromedia Director - Used that for years. Loved it. Loved programming with it. So much fun. Did all kinds of scripted animations, interactive projects for work. At the time it was like Hypercard on steroids. I could actually use full color with alpha channels! Woohoo! It might have had a different name when I first started using it.
5) Strata Studio - the BIG expensive one. This was years ago when it first came out and there was only one version. That was my go to 3D tool for a while. It could do anything. I only dabbled with animation in it. I used it mostly for commercial print work... like putting back packs made of Cordura on the Statue of Liberty and the Easter Island heads.
6) Adobe Dimensions - Remember that? It was a vector based 3D tool. Very nice, easy to use. Created Adobe Illustrator files. Came free with a copy of Illustrator some years back. And yes. A buddy and myself actually used it to produce animations. Nothing exciting, it was hard work exporting frames. I still have version 1 on my old computer.
7) RayDream Studio - 3D software. Now called Carrara which replaced Raydream and Infini-D. Used RDS for AGES. Loved it. Had such cool effects tricks using image masks. I miss it sometimes
. Did a lot of print work and hobby animations with it for quite a while. At the time I was on a tight budget working from home as a freelancer. RDS was only $300 compared to $1200 for Srata.
8 ) Macromedia Flash - I remember when it had a different name from a different company (before Macromedia and Adobe even). We got one of the first versions where I worked. It was similar to MM Director (limited scripting. That came in later versions) but the web was just starting to catch on and Flash produced VERY SMALL FILES. It was cool.
9) Animation:Master - The LAST 3D application I will ever buy or use. That's it. No more. Raydream got sold... twice. They lost my registration and I couldn't upgrade for less than full price so I told them to go... uh... I said bad thngs. I tried Pixels 3D for about a week. They pulled a "bait and switch". Sold the "low end" version promising features that cost extra. I told them to go... uh... I said bad things. Then I found Animation:Master and never went back. Cheap, easy to use, Mac/Win on the same disk. Loved it.
10) Flash - it's here twice. I used it at work years ago but not much. I then bought Flash MX 2004 pro. That is my current version. I don't use it much these days.
11) Moho - The LAST 2D tool I will ever buy or use. Really cool cheap 2D program I bought about 3+ years ago. This thing was AMAZING and then it got a name change, became Anime Studio and... uh... er... wait... that's what started this story isn't it? I lost my train of thought.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
-vern
2) Bleached 16mm film and a pen - I loved that. Bleach old film stock, draw on each frame with a pen. Load up the projector.
3) Hypercard - Old Apple product. It may still be around not sure. This program had limited drawing tools. It only really supported black and white bitmap artwork but could be used quite effectively to do cell animations. It was mainly designed for creating interactive projects with it's simple programming language. It was the "Flash" of its day. (The original block buster selling game "Myst" was created using Hypercard. True. Look it up).
4) Macromedia Director - Used that for years. Loved it. Loved programming with it. So much fun. Did all kinds of scripted animations, interactive projects for work. At the time it was like Hypercard on steroids. I could actually use full color with alpha channels! Woohoo! It might have had a different name when I first started using it.
5) Strata Studio - the BIG expensive one. This was years ago when it first came out and there was only one version. That was my go to 3D tool for a while. It could do anything. I only dabbled with animation in it. I used it mostly for commercial print work... like putting back packs made of Cordura on the Statue of Liberty and the Easter Island heads.
6) Adobe Dimensions - Remember that? It was a vector based 3D tool. Very nice, easy to use. Created Adobe Illustrator files. Came free with a copy of Illustrator some years back. And yes. A buddy and myself actually used it to produce animations. Nothing exciting, it was hard work exporting frames. I still have version 1 on my old computer.
7) RayDream Studio - 3D software. Now called Carrara which replaced Raydream and Infini-D. Used RDS for AGES. Loved it. Had such cool effects tricks using image masks. I miss it sometimes
. Did a lot of print work and hobby animations with it for quite a while. At the time I was on a tight budget working from home as a freelancer. RDS was only $300 compared to $1200 for Srata.8 ) Macromedia Flash - I remember when it had a different name from a different company (before Macromedia and Adobe even). We got one of the first versions where I worked. It was similar to MM Director (limited scripting. That came in later versions) but the web was just starting to catch on and Flash produced VERY SMALL FILES. It was cool.
9) Animation:Master - The LAST 3D application I will ever buy or use. That's it. No more. Raydream got sold... twice. They lost my registration and I couldn't upgrade for less than full price so I told them to go... uh... I said bad thngs. I tried Pixels 3D for about a week. They pulled a "bait and switch". Sold the "low end" version promising features that cost extra. I told them to go... uh... I said bad things. Then I found Animation:Master and never went back. Cheap, easy to use, Mac/Win on the same disk. Loved it.
10) Flash - it's here twice. I used it at work years ago but not much. I then bought Flash MX 2004 pro. That is my current version. I don't use it much these days.
11) Moho - The LAST 2D tool I will ever buy or use. Really cool cheap 2D program I bought about 3+ years ago. This thing was AMAZING and then it got a name change, became Anime Studio and... uh... er... wait... that's what started this story isn't it? I lost my train of thought.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
-vern
-
synthsin75
- Posts: 9972
- Joined: Mon Jan 14, 2008 11:20 pm
- Location: Oklahoma
- Contact:
I actually only got my first computer about three years ago. I'd been interested in animation for years, but I don't have the patience for traditional animation.
I checked out 3DS Max on the word of a friend, and quickly found out that I disliked 3D modeling. Once again a shortage of patience. Checked out Blender just long enough to give up on its UI.
Then I decided that maybe 2D was where I needed to be. I checked out The Tab, Toon Boom Studio, Flash, and Moho. I worked with TBS for awhile, and damn it all if I couldn't find the patience for it. I though Flash was very interesting, with its interactive capabilities, but I wasn't hooked enough to want to learn the scripting to exploit that.
I had toyed with AS some, but it wasn't until I found this forum as a resource that I was hooked.
Aside from looking for more intuitive 3D apps, I'm totally hooked on ASP. I may never find a 3D app I like, but ASP is more than enough to accomplish my animation dreams.
I checked out 3DS Max on the word of a friend, and quickly found out that I disliked 3D modeling. Once again a shortage of patience. Checked out Blender just long enough to give up on its UI.
Then I decided that maybe 2D was where I needed to be. I checked out The Tab, Toon Boom Studio, Flash, and Moho. I worked with TBS for awhile, and damn it all if I couldn't find the patience for it. I though Flash was very interesting, with its interactive capabilities, but I wasn't hooked enough to want to learn the scripting to exploit that.
I had toyed with AS some, but it wasn't until I found this forum as a resource that I was hooked.
Aside from looking for more intuitive 3D apps, I'm totally hooked on ASP. I may never find a 3D app I like, but ASP is more than enough to accomplish my animation dreams.
1. Some article about the animation of the first Lucky Luke feature ("Daisy Town", 1971) in my favourite comic at that time, Fix & Foxi (I was 9). An article about animation in "Wie funktioniert das?" from Meyer's Enzyklopädischer Verlag. I made a cutout skeleton character after that and wanted to animate it, but my uncle refused to lend me his Super8 camera. There's still footage of me shifting around the skeleton parts on his table.
2. The telephone books we had at that time. About A4, about 700 pages. Did a lot of flipbooks on the corners.
3. A Super8 camera without single frame. Did my first animations with that, moving Lego blocks and stuff. No tripod, just fixed it to a chair with a vice.
4. The library had some books about animated films, but not about animation. I browsed through some "how to do animation" books at the local photo dealer, they were expensive but not good, still contained useful information. Animated on paper, with pegbar (2 pegs). Also tried objects, cutout, clay.
5. A Super8 camera with single frame, a Bauer C5. This one I used until 1981, it broke after I made my first festival entry film. Luckily I won enough money to buy a new one, a Nizo S800.
6. Last Super8 film in 1989. Started in an animation studio in Berlin, stayed there for 5 years. Crass 35mm camera. Quantel Paintbox. Macintosh. Hypercard! Got professional animation training for the first time.
7. First animation program: Animo.
8. Change to multimedia company. Director. Future Splash, which became Flash. After FX. Poser. Elastic Reality.
9. Moho. Mirage. Both still in use, now as ASP and TVPaint.
2. The telephone books we had at that time. About A4, about 700 pages. Did a lot of flipbooks on the corners.
3. A Super8 camera without single frame. Did my first animations with that, moving Lego blocks and stuff. No tripod, just fixed it to a chair with a vice.
4. The library had some books about animated films, but not about animation. I browsed through some "how to do animation" books at the local photo dealer, they were expensive but not good, still contained useful information. Animated on paper, with pegbar (2 pegs). Also tried objects, cutout, clay.
5. A Super8 camera with single frame, a Bauer C5. This one I used until 1981, it broke after I made my first festival entry film. Luckily I won enough money to buy a new one, a Nizo S800.
6. Last Super8 film in 1989. Started in an animation studio in Berlin, stayed there for 5 years. Crass 35mm camera. Quantel Paintbox. Macintosh. Hypercard! Got professional animation training for the first time.
7. First animation program: Animo.
8. Change to multimedia company. Director. Future Splash, which became Flash. After FX. Poser. Elastic Reality.
9. Moho. Mirage. Both still in use, now as ASP and TVPaint.
Nice Topic!
Paper and Pen - I like doing the flip book animations back when I was in school.
Mario Paint - I was pretty excited when I got this. I spent many hours creating simple animations with it.
Gif Animation - I used various gif animation programs to create simple and sometimes complex animations. Gypsee was one of my favorites. Although most art work was done in other paint programs, such as ArtGem or ms paint.
KoolMoves - This is my favorite flash program and I still use it. Have been for about 6 years.
Hash Animation Master - One of my favorite animation programs. I no longer use it as I got tired of long rendering times. That happens with any 3D program though. I also used many other 3D animation programs but I just like the splines in A:M.
I now just pretty much use AS Pro. I love it. Has all the needed features and rendering times are much faster then 3D.
Paper and Pen - I like doing the flip book animations back when I was in school.
Mario Paint - I was pretty excited when I got this. I spent many hours creating simple animations with it.
Gif Animation - I used various gif animation programs to create simple and sometimes complex animations. Gypsee was one of my favorites. Although most art work was done in other paint programs, such as ArtGem or ms paint.
KoolMoves - This is my favorite flash program and I still use it. Have been for about 6 years.
Hash Animation Master - One of my favorite animation programs. I no longer use it as I got tired of long rendering times. That happens with any 3D program though. I also used many other 3D animation programs but I just like the splines in A:M.
I now just pretty much use AS Pro. I love it. Has all the needed features and rendering times are much faster then 3D.
My first love, and first animation program for over a decade was 3DS Max (nee' Studio). Paid a lot of bills and bought a lot of toys with the money I made from using it.
I used 3D animation because it overcame a limitation of mine -- the inability to draw. However, 2D animation was always a first love, I just thought I'd never be able to do it.
In my retirement I found AS and suddenly my drawing limitations were eased (not erased -- my characters are still pretty bad, but AS at least allows me to animate them without a lot of drawing skill using cutout style). Best of all, I can do a TV series (on our second season now) in a reasonable period of time (with 3D and even a render farm we thought in terms of minutes of animation per month, versus hours per month with AS).
I love AS so much I haven't even reinstalled my 3D software (very $$$$ software, I might add) back on my machine after a crash. While I always love the look of 3D, it's a world that needs many many animators to make it look good -- you will find very few 3D one man shops. In my retirement I can putter around and create whole shows with AS that get a pretty wide distribution.
I used 3D animation because it overcame a limitation of mine -- the inability to draw. However, 2D animation was always a first love, I just thought I'd never be able to do it.
In my retirement I found AS and suddenly my drawing limitations were eased (not erased -- my characters are still pretty bad, but AS at least allows me to animate them without a lot of drawing skill using cutout style). Best of all, I can do a TV series (on our second season now) in a reasonable period of time (with 3D and even a render farm we thought in terms of minutes of animation per month, versus hours per month with AS).
I love AS so much I haven't even reinstalled my 3D software (very $$$$ software, I might add) back on my machine after a crash. While I always love the look of 3D, it's a world that needs many many animators to make it look good -- you will find very few 3D one man shops. In my retirement I can putter around and create whole shows with AS that get a pretty wide distribution.
Adobe Dimensions was my introduction to 3D when it first came out (when was that, early 80's, 90's?). Didn't really do much with it, but it was an intro to 3D lighting and texturing.
Infini-D was really the first actual 3D modeling and animation program I used. I learned a lot about texture mapping, modeling, learned a lot of 3D jargon, and how to navigate in 3D in a 2D environment. Cool program, but limited.
RayDream Designer, and then Strata 3D.
Finally, I discovered Cinema 4D, version 4. It wasn't available in the US then, except from a reseller. I got it, convinced my employer this was the way to go, and still use it - now version 10. Fantastic!
I found Moho about 6 years ago or so. Also convinced my employer to buy it for me (for $99), and am still using it, as ASP now.
I've tried various other programs, but Cinema 4D and ASP remain my staples for animation.
Jack
Infini-D was really the first actual 3D modeling and animation program I used. I learned a lot about texture mapping, modeling, learned a lot of 3D jargon, and how to navigate in 3D in a 2D environment. Cool program, but limited.
RayDream Designer, and then Strata 3D.
Finally, I discovered Cinema 4D, version 4. It wasn't available in the US then, except from a reseller. I got it, convinced my employer this was the way to go, and still use it - now version 10. Fantastic!
I found Moho about 6 years ago or so. Also convinced my employer to buy it for me (for $99), and am still using it, as ASP now.
I've tried various other programs, but Cinema 4D and ASP remain my staples for animation.
Jack
Before the mid 80's I was using onion skin paper and a super 8 camera.
In the late 80's it was programming in basic on a Vic 20, Commodore 64 and later on the Amiga. Writing programs that animated sprites
In the early 90's I was using Autodesk Animator Pro http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autodesk_Animator
In the early to mid 90's it was Imagine, RayDream Studio and TruSpace. I was partial to Imagine because of it's Amiga roots. There's actually still a following for this 3D program (http://www.imagine3d.org/)
In the late 90's I started using Autodesk 3D Studio (which later became 3D Studio Max) and Macromedia Studio. I was swept up like everyone else developing web applications with Flash. There weren't any other software packages that I knew of other than Macromedia Studio that were good for authoring Flash.
From 2000 on I started using Maya, Moho (now Anime Studio), Adobe Premiere and Adobe After Effects.
My primary occupation has always been computer programming but I've always been an artist at heart. Taking life drawing classes, working on side art projects along the way.
In the 80's and into the 90's it was primarily 2D animation work. Then computer became a bit more powerful and 3D animation was possible. I've been dabbling in the 3D animation world since. I've only been returning to 2D animation in the last 5 years or so on and off.
So far, the only paid gigs I've gotten are:
- 3D modeling (not animation but the models were later animated by the buyers)
- some spot animation work in Flash and animated GIF's for websites
- 2D character design
- some video spots for websites
In the late 80's it was programming in basic on a Vic 20, Commodore 64 and later on the Amiga. Writing programs that animated sprites
In the early 90's I was using Autodesk Animator Pro http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autodesk_Animator
In the early to mid 90's it was Imagine, RayDream Studio and TruSpace. I was partial to Imagine because of it's Amiga roots. There's actually still a following for this 3D program (http://www.imagine3d.org/)
In the late 90's I started using Autodesk 3D Studio (which later became 3D Studio Max) and Macromedia Studio. I was swept up like everyone else developing web applications with Flash. There weren't any other software packages that I knew of other than Macromedia Studio that were good for authoring Flash.
From 2000 on I started using Maya, Moho (now Anime Studio), Adobe Premiere and Adobe After Effects.
My primary occupation has always been computer programming but I've always been an artist at heart. Taking life drawing classes, working on side art projects along the way.
In the 80's and into the 90's it was primarily 2D animation work. Then computer became a bit more powerful and 3D animation was possible. I've been dabbling in the 3D animation world since. I've only been returning to 2D animation in the last 5 years or so on and off.
So far, the only paid gigs I've gotten are:
- 3D modeling (not animation but the models were later animated by the buyers)
- some spot animation work in Flash and animated GIF's for websites
- 2D character design
- some video spots for websites
My animation path is very similar to Slowtiger's.
1) My first film was made on Super8 using a Kodak Instamatic camera that didn't have single frame facility I just had to 'buzz' the trigger as fast as possible! The subject was an Action Man figure supported by fishing line and the result was the most jerky stop-motion short ever!
2) I got a Chinon and later Bauer camera with single frame facility and advanced to drawing on paper after seeing Richard Williams on Bob Godfrey's 'Do It Yourself Film Animation Show' on BBC. Does anyone else remember that? I made several 3 minute films that way.
3) I got work for a company that released feature films and shorts on Super8 but still yearned to create animation. I sent some idea's off to a BBC Producer and ended up doing animation for a series called 'Hartbeat' with Tony Hart. That was Cel and paper again. I sent the artwork to the BBC for shooting.
Actually, none of this is really computer software is it??...Oh well, others have cheated too
....Hang on, here's the software bit.........
4) I got an Amiga 1200 for linetesting and soon found several animation programs that were brilliant! Brilliance 2 was one and DPaint another. I used both of those to create a short film for Central TV in the UK. I edited it using MainActor by MainConcept. This played the animation at broadcast quality and full speed on an Amiga A1200 no problem! I also dabbled with Cinema 4D, Personal Paint, Imagine, Lightwave etc.
5) Managed to get work on the Stop-motion series 'Bob the Builder' and 'Rubbadubbers'. There we used 16mm film but for video assist had another program that started on the Amiga called 'DPS PVR' or something like that...my brains not working!
I was using Animation:Master, Mirage and Moho in my spare time whilst working on 'Bob' in the day.
6) I now use Maya every day at work. I'd still use Animation:Master for any personal 3D work though. However, most of my time I use Anime Studio at home as it's a nice change from the 3D stuff. I find I'm using it quite a lot for creating artwork lately too.
That's the animation story so far...
1) My first film was made on Super8 using a Kodak Instamatic camera that didn't have single frame facility I just had to 'buzz' the trigger as fast as possible! The subject was an Action Man figure supported by fishing line and the result was the most jerky stop-motion short ever!
2) I got a Chinon and later Bauer camera with single frame facility and advanced to drawing on paper after seeing Richard Williams on Bob Godfrey's 'Do It Yourself Film Animation Show' on BBC. Does anyone else remember that? I made several 3 minute films that way.
3) I got work for a company that released feature films and shorts on Super8 but still yearned to create animation. I sent some idea's off to a BBC Producer and ended up doing animation for a series called 'Hartbeat' with Tony Hart. That was Cel and paper again. I sent the artwork to the BBC for shooting.
Actually, none of this is really computer software is it??...Oh well, others have cheated too
....Hang on, here's the software bit.........4) I got an Amiga 1200 for linetesting and soon found several animation programs that were brilliant! Brilliance 2 was one and DPaint another. I used both of those to create a short film for Central TV in the UK. I edited it using MainActor by MainConcept. This played the animation at broadcast quality and full speed on an Amiga A1200 no problem! I also dabbled with Cinema 4D, Personal Paint, Imagine, Lightwave etc.
5) Managed to get work on the Stop-motion series 'Bob the Builder' and 'Rubbadubbers'. There we used 16mm film but for video assist had another program that started on the Amiga called 'DPS PVR' or something like that...my brains not working!
I was using Animation:Master, Mirage and Moho in my spare time whilst working on 'Bob' in the day.
6) I now use Maya every day at work. I'd still use Animation:Master for any personal 3D work though. However, most of my time I use Anime Studio at home as it's a nice change from the 3D stuff. I find I'm using it quite a lot for creating artwork lately too.
That's the animation story so far...
-
technoweasel
- Posts: 16
- Joined: Wed Aug 20, 2008 10:44 pm
My animation history is simular to Heyvern's.
1. I began making flip books on the back of my dad's order forms, 1959.
2. My dad then bought an 8mm (the old format) camera for vacations and special family events. Between vacations and events, I borrowed the cameras to make cut-out animation on the floor of my room. (1960-64)
3. Between 1964 to 68 a was a guest of the U.S. Navy, I bought my own 8mm camera from a pawn shop and continued cut-out animation along with puppet animation.
4. After the navy there was a stretch where I did nothing until 1973. Then I bought my first Super 8 camera and started making cartoons again.
5. I didn't get a computer and my first animation program until 1993. I was interested in game programing when I saw this program; "Walt Disney Animation Studio". I still have it on 3-1/2" flopies (I'm a pack rat, I don't throw away anything.) It was a great little 16 bit program that taught the frame-by-frame animation.
6. In 1995 I bought a new computer and Autodest's Animation Studio (a 2D program) It was OK, but had problems importing sound tracks.
7. Then in 2003 some artist friend of mine told me about MOHO and I down loaded the demo program and bought it a short time later.
As everyone knows MOHO became Anime Studio and Studio Pro. Will I ever buy another program? It's hard to say. I'm not getting any younger. And I'm still waiting for the program that responds to my brain waves to create the animation. Does anyone have news about this?
FCSnow
1. I began making flip books on the back of my dad's order forms, 1959.
2. My dad then bought an 8mm (the old format) camera for vacations and special family events. Between vacations and events, I borrowed the cameras to make cut-out animation on the floor of my room. (1960-64)
3. Between 1964 to 68 a was a guest of the U.S. Navy, I bought my own 8mm camera from a pawn shop and continued cut-out animation along with puppet animation.
4. After the navy there was a stretch where I did nothing until 1973. Then I bought my first Super 8 camera and started making cartoons again.
5. I didn't get a computer and my first animation program until 1993. I was interested in game programing when I saw this program; "Walt Disney Animation Studio". I still have it on 3-1/2" flopies (I'm a pack rat, I don't throw away anything.) It was a great little 16 bit program that taught the frame-by-frame animation.
6. In 1995 I bought a new computer and Autodest's Animation Studio (a 2D program) It was OK, but had problems importing sound tracks.
7. Then in 2003 some artist friend of mine told me about MOHO and I down loaded the demo program and bought it a short time later.
As everyone knows MOHO became Anime Studio and Studio Pro. Will I ever buy another program? It's hard to say. I'm not getting any younger. And I'm still waiting for the program that responds to my brain waves to create the animation. Does anyone have news about this?
FCSnow
Precise Planning And Timing
Never Suceeds Like Dump Luck.
Never Suceeds Like Dump Luck.
Interesting read! My animation history is not as expansive or as interesting but here goes.
1) Another Amiga man(boy), Deluxe Paint and AMOS Basic, making simple games with animated sprites. I even bought a piece of hardware that plugged into the Amiga to grab frames from the TV which I could then rotoscope.
--- Sadly I did no animation for the next 10 years --
2) Blender in about 2003-2005 but I could never animate with it, although I learnt a lot of the functionality (and 3D GFX theory) which would come in handy later
3) 2006+ Anime Studio. The first program that made animation a possibility for me.
4) Recently started learning Blender again and I've already made my first character animation piece thanks to lessons learnt from working with Anime Studio.
1) Another Amiga man(boy), Deluxe Paint and AMOS Basic, making simple games with animated sprites. I even bought a piece of hardware that plugged into the Amiga to grab frames from the TV which I could then rotoscope.
--- Sadly I did no animation for the next 10 years
--2) Blender in about 2003-2005 but I could never animate with it, although I learnt a lot of the functionality (and 3D GFX theory) which would come in handy later
3) 2006+ Anime Studio. The first program that made animation a possibility for me.
4) Recently started learning Blender again and I've already made my first character animation piece thanks to lessons learnt from working with Anime Studio.
ShoePie.co.uk - My animations.
