Hi people, i thought diving into houdini for a bit, after having done the basic sidefx and digital tutors tutorials.

I am especially interested in doing camera animation and adjusting motionpaths as thats where lightwave is lacking. A good start would be getting my work from lightwave into houdini and moving on from there.

Would be nice if this forum had a beginner section, would make me feel less stupid..

cheers

ric

We have considered setting up an Apprentice forum for newer customers but so far old and new customers have mingled very well in the Houdini forums. Everyone is very helpful and willing to answer questions at any level.

For cameras on motion paths, there are options on the camera node itself that you should look at. Draw a curve, create a camera then use the follow path tool (modify shelf) to attach the camera to the path. This will animate it from one end to the other based on your current timeline. You can adjust this animation in the curve editor.

You may also want to control the look at point. Set up a Null object then use the Look at tool to point the camera to the null. Then it can be attached to a different path or animated freely.

Actually this sounds like a good idea for a tutorial. I'll see what I can do….

allright, these things already sound lightwave ish and thats absolutely great, that would cover pathanimation, i saw a bit of that in doing a turntable animation on the digital tutors section.

Building on that would we be talking chops if i where to give a small offset to a traditional pathanimation i.e. giving it a casual shake?

thanks for the fast reply btw

cheers

ric

Partly i posted this question because when i downloaded your free version i got a mail thats mentioned:

“We have created a special forum for the Houdini Apprentice community, also available at www.sidefx.com. Feel free to look there for all kinds of tips and tricks and to have your questions answered. However, if you have any problems while installing and keying Houdini, please email us directly at support@sidefx.com.”

..which sent me to the main forum and i felt lost.. maybe dedicate a sticky note to that? Just a thought really..

cheers

I got that same mail and also came looking for the Apprentice forums… but as you mentioned they are nowhere to be found?? Maybe someone should change that e-mail thats being sent out to everyone … or actually create the mentioned forums

Good point.

We will look things over tomorrow at work and figure out the best approach. Thanks for the heads up!

thanks

The Houdini Apprentice forum is now up and running. You can see it on the main Forum index.

Robert