So i thought i’d let people know that rhys-works.com will soon ™ be taking on a new look. I’ve decided to re-angle the site into something a little more fashionable with the web 2.0 movement and social networking era, as i’ve changed directions slightly with what i originally intended for the site.
The site will be (and is) a visual effects and technology blog (don’t worry, the tutorials aren’t going anywhere and there *will* be more). I also intend to maintain the idea of the occasional guest speaker, but hopefully in future i will be able to make more general posts than large sweeping updates.
To start the ball rolling i’ll be hangin’ on twitter and will be keeping the world up to date with any progress on the site via tweets, and will also be throwing out any other “cool stuff” i come across.
Hey guys. I thought i’d drop in with an update with how things are here. As you can see, i managed to get some work done on the firefly model over Christmas, and the ultimate goal will be to drop it into a nice little animation that i’ll be able to put up here and show you. It better be good, because it’s taken around a year.
I also came up with a cool little effect in AE recently for making some interesting intro titles, so as soon as i retrieve the project files for that i seem to have mislaid and my new mic turns up, i’ll hopefully be able to tutorialise that.
Hope everyone had a good Christmas and New Year’s, now get back to work! (Also, check out Daniel Broadway’s blog for a cool tip on compositing fog in After Effects)
Hi guys. Thought i’d just pop in here and mention that we got to the one million hits milestone recently. I’m not entirely too sure from when i started counting (it’s not since the start of rhys-works.com, as i’ve since swapped hitcounters) so it might have happened a lot sooner, but regardless, i feel at least it’s worth mentioning. Woo.
I also must apologise for the lack of updates here. I really must get some new content - i had anticipated the lack of time to make new tutorials in this period and arranged for a few guest pieces, but for largely similar reasons to my own, none have yet materialised. I shall however, persevere. I’m still working on releasing my secret project website for you guys. And the Firefly is coming along, too.
I don’t believe i mentioned the work i had used in Hollywood at Universal Studios for the CA Border Governors conference over the summer, hosted by Arnie Schwarzenegger, which was cool, too.
Hi guys, i share a forum with the gents from Aurellia.net who have set up a site in a similar vein to my own to bring you guys even more video tutorials. There’s some tutorials already available and more sure to come, so add it to your vfx video tutorial bookmarks and check it out.
Speaking of tutorials, there should be a new one here before very long, so look out for that too.
First off, for the aspiring visual effects artist there was a great live podcast of geekza this week featuring Teague ‘Fig’ Chrystie (of Zoic) and Ryan Wieber (of Stargate Digital) which you can check out the recording of at Geekza.com. Yours truly was in the chat room, as was upcoming guest speaker Nate Caauwe (TBA), and good times was had by all. This is a really interesting episode i highly recommend you guys go check it out; it contains all sorts of goodies about getting into the industry, vfx, payment, freelance work and so on.
Secondly, sorry about the lack of posting for a while, i’ve been working hard on new and upcoming projects. If you happen to be at Universal Studios in Hollywood in the coming days, you might just stumble upon my Rain Over Water animation. I’ve got some guest speakers lined up for the site which should be really interesting, and a surprise guest tutorialist (yes, that is a word) with something you guys will definitely like.
Myself i’ve been working on a new site which will hopefully launch in a couple of months that you guys will be hearing all about, and also working on some really cool 3D stuff. I’m still thinking of ways i can turn some of this stuff into tutorials, but mostly i’m holding back at the moment because i’d rather make sure i’ve covered all the ground i can before i dive in and try and tell you guys how to do it.
And now for the java version. My personal favourite (since i’ve worked so hard on the damned thing to get it where it is). Unfortunately, it’s quickly becoming apparent that this will be unviable for my future plans (or at least, what i’d planned it for). Which is a shame since it’s got great potential, especially to build upon. So check it out, you’ll need java installed, but apart from that it’ll load slow the first time as the initial openGL libs are downloaded. Subsequent loads should be faster, and you can follow the on-screen instructions for how to use.
As you can see, this is a lot more versatile and dynamic, so it’s pretty unfortunate i’ll probably not be able to employ it in what it was originally designed for. Although, it actually has a hand in the process of creating the quicktime version, so it’s always going to be useful. Anyway, check them out and tell me your thoughts - which is better; did it work; did it not work; did it blow up your computer, etc.
Hello party people. Today i’m releasing a look into two sides of one coin that i’ve been working hard on for a while now. First up, we’re taking a look at a quicktime virtual reality of part of the Firefly model i’m working on that you guys can check out. You’ll need the quicktime plugin installed to view this, so click on the image and let me know what you think. You can click and drag to rotate around.
This isn’t as dynamic as the Java version, but it’s a lot more portable since the Java requires getting non-standard openGL libraries to your computer on the fly which is tricky, and it’s also fairly clunky. Unfortunately the QTVR approach is limited and this particular VR only lets you pan horizontally - i could have rendered out some more pictures for vertical pan, but not on this occasion. Anyways, let me know what you think of it. I’ll probably be employing this in a new site i’m working on which i’ve been hinting about for a few months now.
The TFn LCCV6 results are online and available for downloading and voting. For those who don’t know, every so often at theforce.net a choreography competition is held and this year’s competition has just past the hand-in stage and into the voting stage, so check it out. Personally, my favourites lie with Ryan Wieber/Brandon Flyte’s entry and Whiteley’s.
Things have been a little slow around here lately i’m afraid, but hey, it’s all been in a good cause. I’m working pretty solidly on more technical coding projects and other time consuming activities (like degrees). In the intervening month i’ve had my head buried in code; html, javascript, php, css, ruby, perl, flash, java - you name it.
But fear not bretherin, forgotten about you i have not. Above is a little update on the firefly project which is going slowly, but it’s a cool sideline and i’m having fun with it. Hopefully over the summer i’ll actually have some free time to finish it. But where are the freakin tutorials i hear you cry. Well, i’ve got a couple of ideas for when i get some time, but i’d really like to hear from you guys with what you’re interested in seeing. Any particular tutorial you really like and want to see more of? Or want me to expand on some of my 3D stuff? Or perhaps something totally different with web development. Anyway, let me know. Meanwhile, i have a couple of big projects that i plan on really getting moving in the next few months that should have a big impact for you.
In other misc filler news, i’d like to point out that the myspace page is still available here and rhys-works actually has a youtube page you can check out here. Incidently, in the interests of user input, are there any other features you’d be interested in seeing on the site, like a forum perhaps.
And for the sudden influx of visitors we’re magically having today, hi. I don’t know where you’re coming from, but wherever it is, i salute you.
Hey guys, it’s been a little while, but with easter coming up i’ve got something to show you all i’ve been working on for some time. Presenting: The Online 3D Model Environment. Basically, as previously mentioned, it’s website embedded 3D world which will ultimately allow you to export your models from Max, Maya, Lightwave etc. to the website so friends and colleagues can check them out in full 3D online. You will need the latest version of Java installed to run it, which i suspect many of you will have since more and more software these days requires it (many have it installed without even knowing) but ultimately, the trick was to make non-standard openGL libraries available to those who don’t have it installed without requiring them to manually install them. Anyway, check it out, and let me know what you think.
