Why does entire bitmap move with bones?

[banjar]

slowtiger in another thread brought up this question that I would like to find an answer to:

"I took a character from Sailormoon but when I bind it to bones, everything is moving!"

I have had a similar problem with an imported bitmap. Even when I cut out the arms and legs seperately, after binding the bones and setting up the parenting, the bones move the surrounding bitmap as well as where they were binded. Even when the arms and legs are on separate layers the character's body warps as the arms or legs are moved. And legs on different layers warp together and don't move separately like they're stuck on the same layer which they are not. What's with this?

[GCharb]

Hello banjar

Could you post the file, so we can have a look?

GC

[slowtiger]

If you just use flexible binding, every bone effects the whole image (or the whole project area if you use vector shapes). That's because the images has its "warp image with bones" box checked (see image layer attributes). AS can only treat the image as a whole and not exclude any area of it from any bone influence.

If you build a character with images, you need to separate the body parts. Then you have to decide wether a certain body part is rigid (like the head) or flexible (like a tail or tentacle). If rigid, bind that image via layer binding to one bone. If flexible, keep that "warp image with bones" box checked and use several bones in a chain.

Because bone influence of every bone which does not region or layer binding theoretically is infinite, it is useful to place body parts in frame 0 far away from each other, create the bones at those places, bind everything and then use the "offset bone" tool to grab the top bone of a body part to move it to where it finally belongs to the character.

See the manual for all of this.

[banjar]

If you just use flexible binding, every bone effects the whole image (or the whole project area if you use vector shapes). That's because the images has its "warp image with bones" box checked (see image layer attributes). AS can only treat the image as a whole and not exclude any area of it from any bone influence.

If you build a character with images, you need to separate the body parts. Then you have to decide wether a certain body part is rigid (like the head) or flexible (like a tail or tentacle). If rigid, bind that image via layer binding to one bone. If flexible, keep that "warp image with bones" box checked and use several bones in a chain.

Because bone influence of every bone which does not region or layer binding theoretically is infinite, it is useful to place body parts in frame 0 far away from each other, create the bones at those places, bind everything and then use the "offset bone" tool to grab the top bone of a body part to move it to where it finally belongs to the character.

See the manual for all of this.

So, why does your concise explanation work perfectly and the manual doesn't explain it so well? Thanks to your help, the bitmaps animate nicely.

Now I will be able to save my Flash animations into a PNG file and animate those instead of having to re-draw everything into the AS vectors. (A prospect I was dreading.) I'd buy you a beer but Germany is too far away from Califonia.

There is another problem, though. The character is all rigged and moves nicely but it won't move into Z depth. I click the four view button and try to set up side and top views but every window will only show the front view. No other view is available and the orbit camera won't work, either. Do you know the solution to this, mein freund?

[slowtiger]

So, why does your concise explanation work perfectly and the manual doesn't explain it so well?

*blush* aaahw shucks, you're just flattering me ...

The character is all rigged and moves nicely but it won't move into Z depth.

Check if you have 3D camera enabled in the project settings.

[banjar]

The character is all rigged and moves nicely but it won't move into Z depth.

Check if you have 3D camera enabled in the project settings.

Okay, two beers. Maybe a barrel. When's Oktober Fest? In October?

Man, this software is starting to make my hair stand on end ... it is so darned cool. Wow! Looky here, I can orbit around the little dancing cartoon like Walt Disney on steroids.

Okay, a barrel, definitely a barrel of beer. Thanks!!!

[heyvern]

When's Oktober Fest? In October?

Man, this software is starting to make my hair stand on end ... it is so darned cool. Wow! Looky here, I can orbit around the little dancing cartoon like Walt Disney on steroids.

Wow... I just had a flash back of visiting the German pavilion at Epcot center in Walt Disney World years and years ago... 1986 I believe. I remember having big pints of beer with bratwurst and sauerkraut. There were these wonderful serving ladies in dirndls. Ah... such a nice memory...



-vern

[slowtiger]

Uhm, of course you know that this is by no means representative for today's Germany? I'm in Berlin, Kreuzberg ...

[Farbklecks]

That means you prefer Curry-Wurst?

Living very close to the "Ruhrgebiet", I can full understand it.