Array3

Support Animation and Rigging
1

Well, me being the total newb, I am completely puzzled as to how to create something like array3.blend. I found it on the blender website, and it is AMAZING! Even without the compositing, I am comfused on how it works. I’ve just figured out that the white crossy things are controlling the positions of two boxes, but thats as far as I’ve gotten.

Can someone teach me how to recreate this? Doesn’t have to be as awesome, but I just want the concept down.[ATTACH]137503[/ATTACH]

2

You’ll find good tutorial on youtube or vimeo. Personnally I 've learnt how to use array from a youtube video tutorial. I don’t remember which.
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=blender+array+tutorial&aq=f

3

Hi Kaddon,

That is a cool blend.
Have you visited Neal Hirsig’s “Blender 3D Design Course” website? Fantastic resource. His excellent introduction to the array modifier can be found in the “Blender Video Tutorials” section under “duplication”.

Cheers!

4

I’ve figured out the logistics of the array modifier, but not in animations. Also, another inconvenience is that YouTube and Vimeo, and such are blocked by the Great Firewall. If someone could just explain in words the basics, that would be awesome.

Thanks for the site snowglobe, and I unfortunately can’t watch that YouTube thing without my really slow VPN, which it takes like an hour to buffer 10 minutes of YouTube video… ;(

5

Use this example-blend:
array3.blend

now check the setup of the 2
array-modifiers for the big cube

both array-mods are set to act according a special object:
Empty and Empty.001

Now select one:
Empty or Empty.001
and then with the select-menu
select the inverse, so you end up
with all objects selected excluding the Empty.

Now press “h” to hide all those objects and
your scene shows only one object, the Empty.

Now run Alt-A for animation and watch
the moves of this empty.
The array-modifier changes its values for rotation, offset
according to these moves of the empty.
You may change the animation-keys (the yellow bars in the timeline)
for this empty-object and thats the way you modify
how the array is constructed at every frame.

remember: Alt-h is to Un-hide all the previously hided objects …

6

Thanks for the help test-dr!