Is 3D Characters like 2D Characters you make all the animations in frames? Or is it different Also anyone know of any good 3D Articles?

Actual proper 3D animations and models share almost no resemblence to the way that sprite/2D animations are created. 3D animations and models tend to be defined in a more mathematical way (anything from a mathematical function of a surface through to just a simple list of numbers) and you don't just "paint" it in the same way you would with 2D.

Then again, I'm not the best to explain it thoroughly - programmer != artist [grin]

You can try looking at the FAQ's and asking the regulars in 'Visual Arts' about content creation as this forum is more about the technology than the content.

hth
Jack

Quote: Original post by ARC inc
Is 3D Characters like 2D Characters you make all the animations in frames? Or is it different

Also anyone know of any good 3D Articles?

So are you trying to make a 3D game and don't know where to start?

Yes and no, really. Games tend to define animation of 3D-models with a set of key frames that define the model at different points in time, similar to how a 2D-animation usually is set up.

There's a difference though. In a 2D animation, each frame is usually supposed to be shown for the same amound of time, that is to say, the frames of the animation are equally spaced over time, and you keep displaying the same frame until it's time to display the next. In 3D however, the time between key frames usually vary and when you are at a point in time between two key frames you interpolate between them, basicly displaying an "avarage" of the two frames to represent it's "in-between" state in order to achieve a smooth animation.

The method of representing the key frames of the model varies, but modern games commonly links the polygons of the model with a skeleton and each key frame holds the rotations of the bones in the skeleton at that point in time.