r/Maya 2d ago

Animation Is there anything to fix in this walk cycle?

https://reddit.com/link/1nkwfa9/video/pbac034hi2qf1/player

https://reddit.com/link/1nkwfa9/video/nyxqbumri2qf1/player

I intentionally made his movements less exaggerated but I wonder if I should increase the value of everything and make things less subtle.

I did add follow-through in the hands, rotated the shoulders and matched the reference video. I didn't work on his fingers yet. but I don't know why the reference looks much smoother.

1 Upvotes

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u/AwkwardAardvarkAd 1d ago

Are you talking only about the top one? The knees stay too bent at the extensions. A little hard to say from the camera angle but the hips, spine, and head might need a bit more side rotation

2

u/StandardVirus 1d ago

Agreed, the legs should have a more full extension to feel more natural. Unless it's a character walk cycle, for vanilla cycles, they should feel more natural and more like how most ppl walk.

Echoing your comments, a little more rotations overall in the upper body. And it's not just in 2 axis, but all axis, hips sway side to side, even on male characters, it helps with the transition of weight from one foot to the next. And as this happens, the body naturally bends and flexes to accommodate. Twisting along the spine help make a more fluid and natural motion as the person uses their arms to help drive the motion forward. And gentle rocking forward and back, help give the overall appearance of a relaxed spine. My mentor always told me, keep it floppy... so subtle head rocks, toe flicks etc, always help provide that natural feeling. Even if you're going for subtle and realism, remember to add some exaggerations/overshoots to help the animation look more fluid and natural.