3D Modeling & Animation Reflections

2025-2026

Quarter 1

Why I Chose 3D Modeling and Animation

Sep 3

I Chose 3D Modeling and Animation because of my love of computers and the path I want to take following the class. I have always found computers interesting ever since I was in elementary school and my friend let me play computer games and I was captivated. While I did not own one myself I found myself researching them and how they were used like how video games were made and the modeling that was done. While I tried to find other mediums that could replicate what you could do with 3D modeling like 2D animation and drawing but it was not what I was looking for. So when I saw that CHHS had a 3D modeling and animation course an amazing recommendation and seeing what he had made I requested the course. I am very excited to see what the course has and I am ready to work hard to fully utilize the knowledge the course will give me.

Module 1 - The Basics

Sep 11

This was the Beginning I had no experience in any way relating to 3D modeling, But I completed the videos assigned and followed the steps on my own. I began to understand and make some models. I started to understand many of the basics like the transform tools, much of the menu and basic primitives. I built my first simple block models and made a temple from references. Module 1 is the foundation for the 3D modeling I will be doing in the class.

Module 1 is very important while many 3D modelers will not learn the same way as me they will all eventually learn the same things. the lessons in module 1 are the fundamentals the basic tools I will use in the rest of my 3D modeling career. The move, rotate transform, selection, and the modification of primitives are something that every modeler needs to know and now that I know them I have taken the first steps of my journey. The basics will only be built upon the further I continue to learn in this class.

Module 2 - Managing Your Scene

Sep 15

While in module 1 we learned the basics and even started 3D modeling, but in module 2 we learned more about tools. With us also dipping our toes in the technical aspects of the software. Like project folders, reference coordinate systems, pivot points, all of the selection tools, parents and children, layers, and a more in depth understanding of the scene explorer. with us also learning more tools for precision like the angle snap and the snap tool. These tools were vital in the final project of module 2 with the precise placements.

The new module is very important because the more in depth dive into the software and how to use it in more precise ways. With Alfie being our first precise project where we had to make sure it was correctly made and saved properly or else it would be gone because it was over more than just one day. To use more than just the necessary basics and get into where things that we will use the most like layers and children. these tools are important for my future because we learned about how to use 3dsmax like folders and saving. We will be using it for this semester the knowledge to correctly use it is necessary for the rest of the class and my building of experience and understanding.

Module 3 - Modeling

Oct 10

This Module was a huge leap of skill and precision. With the modifiers, editable polys, ProBoolean, splines and lofts. The number of assignments also increased. With every assignment we learned a new tool. The Lego Minifigure we learned the basics of ProBoolean and edit poly and how its versatile and essential. When modeling the screwdriver and chess pawn we learned how to use splines and the loft compound object. The field scene was were we where allowed to start to do things on our own. With us having to make 3 unique mushrooms, 3 unique rocks and 3 unique flowers using the array tool. We learned more modifiers and how to combine them to create the desired effect. With the submarine we practiced with ProBoolean and more of the array tool making a hollow submarine with multiple windows. With the spaceship we pushed edit poly to its limits making a whole spaceship from one box primitive. Finally we made our own project from scratch using all the tools we had learned through this module and the ones before it. I chose to do the video game prop, where I made a helmet and explosive mine from the game Helldivers 2. The helmet was the most difficult part because of the precise and small adjustments I had to make many times over to get the correct look.

While the first 2 Modules were about knowledge and first steps this module is all about the new skills and understanding of the situations where tools should be used. The many different skills we learned are all valuable and some can be used interchangeably, but after learning the tools I started to understand what tools to use when. saving me time and making the result more precise. Using the right tool at the right time is a skill I started to understand the importance of. using ProBoolean instead of messing around in edit poly could be the difference between a good looking model and an exemplary one.

Module 4 - Lights & Cameras

Oct 15

In this module we learned about and how to use lights and cameras. This module we learned what each type of camera and light did and its specialty. Like photometric lights and physical cameras. Which aim to look as similar to cameras and lights in real life. We also learned about targeted vs. free on cameras and lighting and their use cases. Using lighting and cameras we rendered for the first time and how it was a process of trial and error to get the image you wanted.

The use of lighting and cameras will be essential for future projects when we render and make the render look as precise as possible. For example the screwdriver from a previous module was given new light threw the new lighting I learned this module. With the Citizen Cane scene I imitated the light from a movie practicing how accurate I can get the lighting. Helping with the way I will use rendering in the future. Creating the lamp was to recreate the lighting and look of an object in real life and using my context to create the lighting of an actual lamp.

Module 5 - Rendering

Nov 5

Module 5 introduced us to whole new menu and system of 3ds Max, materials. While also tying rendering back in to make objects have similar looks to real life. This unit introduced us to a new menu containing all the tools needed to create and edit materials with the goal of making them seem lifelike. For example metals or crystals, gloss and wax. In tandem with new insight into rendering learning the in-depth settings and different types of rendering engines. Combined with past lessons we created multiple realistic items and a scene to present them.

In module 5 we only made one project, but it was the sum of all of the knowledge we learned in the course of the lesson. Firstly we made the one ring using the physical materials preset to make a metal and fine tuning many settings to make the ring look older and rough. Secondly we made the heart of the ocean from titanic learning about transparency and depth to make the diamond have refractions and reflections. Finally we made a bowling ball from The Big Lebowski using the shellac material combined with a map to imitate the slight glossiness of the bowling ball. Despite the small amount of differing projects the still life taught much with a wide variety.

Quarter 1 Reflection

Oct 31

In my reflection I will cover some my progress on how to create 3D models as well as the new skills and techniques I learned. Additionally some challenges I faced and goals I have for next quarter. In just one quarter I learned so much and uncovered my love for 3D modeling. I also went from basically knowing nothing about it to have done many projects and understanding many of the systems in 3DS Max. For example modifiers like edit poly, I learned how to change basic primitives into the shapes I wanted. Continually I learned lighting and cameras, bringing new life to my scenes and imitating real life lighting. Additionally I learned how to give objects materials and render them to looking very life-like.

I also faced many challenges. For example when modeling my Hero Prop Project in module 3 I had too design it mostly on my own with no video tutorials. With this new territory I faced some road blocks. When designing the bottom of the visor I had trouble making my two parts of the helmet look like they were one object also when making the vents on the side of the helmet they were warping but I fixed that by adjusting the vertices manually to counteract the strange effect. Furthermore when making the still life in module 5 I lost the .Max file to fix this I simply restarted and reconstructed the scene and materials and even improved. Finally my goals for the next quarter is to finish brain buffet early and spend as much time as possible on the PBM making sure I am satisfied with it being my final project of the class.

Quarter 2

Module 6 - Materials & UVWs

Nov 14

In this module we finally control the materials from the previous lesson with a new menu, coordinate system, and many differing tools. Module 6 covered UVWs a new set of coordinates similar to XYZ but for applying maps to an object. This new coordinate system comes with its own set of tools to manipulate them to make materials appear in the correct placements. For example the Indian Jones Lego figurine we made had to have its face, jacket, and belt show on the front of the model giving us new control over how our models will look. While the UVWs sound simple on the surface they are very hard to create while avoiding distortion especially with more organic shapes, but we have a tool made specifically for them. This tool is the pelt tool it basically pulls on the ends of the UVW and stretches it out like a pelt.

These new skills are very versatile and will be used for most of the things I will create in the future. the pelt I will use for the organic models and the mapping for most of the original models I will make. This module is very essential for the future if I wanted to create any character they would most likely require a UVW assigned. Also UVWs are very in-depth there are jobs for just creating them so if it was in my interest this could be a career. UVWs are the way to control materials and materials are how you make an object become what you envision it to be making it a pillar of this class.

Module 7 - Rigging

Nov 21

Module 7 is about rigging which is adding a system of links inside of our characters and using them to position and manipulate them in a consistent way similar to the human body using the aptly named bones. Although rigging is mainly used for characters it can be used for other things that move in a consistent way like machinery. A bone is the object with hierarchies that are used to control the character. Bones defaultly use forward kinematics, but that might make them look robotic in some situations for that task is Inverse kinematics. Forward kinematics go from the root to the end in hierarchy, but inverse kinematics go from the end of the chain to the root trying to imitate how real humans move.Heatmaps dictate what bones distort parts of the model using values adding up to 1 also imitating human bodies. Combining different bone movement types and imitating real human bodies is the basis of rigging.

Rigging is a very expansive part of 3d modeling with it being complex with many tools and an understanding of the human body needed to make correct heatmaps and bone placements. Another part of 3d modeling with its own careers and opportunities. We just scratched the surface in this module, but it is very easy to see why rigging is hard to learn and even harder to master. While rigging may not interest me as much as other parts of 3d modeling I still find it enjoyable to rig characters. Rigging is going to be essential in the next lesson of animation allowing us to control our more complex characters.

DRIVE.avi

4 Corners - Path Constraints

Dec 2

How did organizing your project folders and keeping backups in Google Drive help you access your work for this assignment? If you had difficulty finding your file, what could you do differently in the future to stay organized?

It was very easy I have all of my previous projects zipped and stored on my device.

How did adding a Path Constraint change the car’s movement? What adjustments did you make to ensure it followed the path correctly?

The path constraint made the car follow the premade spline but, we have to make adjustments to the modifiers of the path constraint checking the boxes of follow and flip on the x axis because the car was facing the wrong way. To add realism we turned on banking and changed it to not be as extreme

After extending the animation to 24 seconds, how did the car’s movement change? Why was it necessary to use the Re-scale Time option instead of just increasing the frame count?

After extending the animation the car did not rush to get to its key frame and changed from looking like it was racing to a normal drive. It was necessary to rescale because instead of just adding frames onto the end we needed to make the animation keyframes at the end which time rescaling did.

How did setting the frame rate to 30 fps instead of 29.97 fps (NTSC) impact your animation? What did you learn about how frame rate choices affect animation timing?

Because we want out animation to be 24 seconds long we have to change the frame rate to be 30 Frames per second because with 720 as our length of the animation it will end up being 24 seconds long.

DRIVE free camera LIGHTSCAMERAS.avi

DRIVE targeted camera LIGHTSCAMERAS.avi

4 Corners - Lights & Cameras

Dec 2

How did adding different types of lights (Spot, Omni, Skylight, etc.) impact the look and feel of your scene? What challenges did you face in adjusting their settings?

It added the atmosphere and changed how I viewed the scene it felt more realistic instead of just a plane in a blank void. I faced the challenge of focusing while putting in the settings if I lost focus and put in the wrong setting I would have to go back and check all of them.

What effect did linking the headlights to the car body have on the animation? How did using the Align tool help ensure accurate placement?

Before using align i tried to put them in place without it but, when I started using align it only took 3 seconds. It also made it look like real headlights.

How did animating the lights to transition between day and night affect the overall atmosphere of the scene? What key adjustments were necessary to make the transition look realistic?

It changed it from being a normal drive to a road trip that happened over multiple days visiting all the places on the 4 corners map. making sure to adjust the position correctly on the keyframes.

Why was it important to enable shadows for your lights? How did this affect the realism of your final render?

without shadows it would feel 2D, shadows may not be noticed in real life but, if they just disappeared that would be pretty noticeable. mimicking realism is a core part of many systems in 3d modeling shadows sho depth and how light is affecting the environment.

What role did cameras play in your scene? How did positioning and linking the cameras change how your animation was viewed?

Without the cameras it would feel still but, with the camera you are traveling with the car and you get to see from its perspective giving life to the animation being the cherry on top.

Module 8 - Animation

Dec 12

In Module 8 we put together almost everything we made into one Big Premier using the Temple of the Primitives, Indian Jones UVW lego figure, and Frankenstone's monster. I learned how real movies and how animation works. All animation is just a series of images that play at a certain rate per second known as FPS (Frames Per Second) with them moving fast enough for our brains to view them as moving images. To actually make animation in 3DS Max we use keyframes where we place objects where we want them and set a keyframe we then transform or change parameters and set another keyframe and the computer generates an animation transforming or parameters in between the keyframes making a transition between the keyframes. After creating the keyframes we needed more control so we learned about the dope sheet editor and the curve view editor controlling the parameters and the acceleration of transformations.

All of these animation tools are necessary to animate without a single one. My animation would look incomplete or not work at all. For example the curve and dope sheet editor without either one animation would technically be possible but for any movement to actually feel alive you would need both. Animation relies on all previous modules but it is the final product of all the hard work. All of the modules I have completed in this class feel like I have just scratched the surface of how many possibilities there are in such an expansive and diverse form of art. I am very exited for my PBM and am going to work hard and diligently to culminate all that I have learned.

FINAL BIG PREMIER (1).mp4

Quarter 2 Reflection

Jan 15

This quarter I finished brain buffet and passed the 3ds max certification showing that I am now able to use 3ds max. While I am very proud of this achievement I believe I have a lot to learn but here are some of the skills I learned this quarter. I learned UVWs, rigging, and animation. In UVWs we learned how to create them and to get our desired affect with no distortion and accurately creating a textured model. We also learned bones and hierarchy for Rigging letting me create movement for Frankenstone's monster. With animation we learned key-frames and the curve editor letting us control motion and acceleration creating The Big Premier the culmination of all of the knowledge we collected so far.

My knowledge has definitely improved I believe. When creating the character for the PBM I decided to follow a video tutorial to understand how to make human models and through that series I learned so many tools I had forgotten about or had not gone in depth with. For example edit geometry and how edit poly works allowing me to create things more efficiently, understanding the process better. With the current PBM I am using all of the things I previously learned to create my dream project and animation with a cool fight I hope this project will turn out well using all of the skills I have. In conclusion I Learned so much and still find myself learning new techniques and hope to finish the class strong.

Page updated

Report abuse