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How to Keep Clones from Going Through the Camera in Cinema 4D 72 Comments


In this quick tip, I show you how to keep clones and particles from intersecting your camera during physics calculations.

Quick Render Just For Fun

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City Kit

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72 Comments

  1. Josh Pigford

    I haven’t fired up Cinema yet to try this, but seems like you could also use a cone with the pointy end pointed towards all the spheres and have it bit really skinny, then it would sort of slightly redirect the rolling spheres if you wanted to avoid them bumping the camera at all.

    Reply

  2. AJ Goin

    I did this the other day on an animation im uploading now. I used an invisible sphere to help explode a glass to make it look a little more realistic.

    Reply

  3. Dave Glanz

    Nick – that’s a great solution to a problem I didn’t’ even know I had :) Awesome.

    While we’re on the subject of cameras, I have a suggestion for another quick tip and/or tutorial: working with depth of field in C4D.

    I’ve always had problems with getting good DOF results (anti aliasing, depth passes showing up where I don’t want them, etc). I’d be curious to hear yours and others’ thoughts on this.

    Reply

    • Stef

      DOF in C4D is verry render intensive and it’s easier achieved in After effects. It’s also easier adjustable in AE.

      I usualy just export a depth pass. I do have issues with motion blur exporting because i do not have a plugin for this.

      Reply

    • Dave Glanz

      I should have been clearer – I always render a depth pass, but tips on how to do it properly (and composite inAE) for different circumstances would be a great thing to see.

      For motion blur – I use Real Smart motion blur. Great plugin.

      Reply

  4. Linkan

    “I am the Gorilla” and at the same time giving us the finger? haha =)

    Reply

  5. hhgregg

    a good way to move the sphere instantly to the camera’s position would be to create the sphere, select it, click functions / transfer, and click the camera. just an easy trick thaz all.

    Reply

  6. Lawrence

    Awesome quick tip… Glad you’re feeling better dude!

    Reply

  7. Gonets

    Cool tip! Very usefull to immerge the camera ( and the watchers ) into a big colorfull explosion!! wouhouu

    Reply

  10. coyote37

    i finaly got my new pc able to run C4D properlly and when i see tips like that, you can’t imagine how exited i’m to start learn C4D!

    Reply

  11. HorsePower Studios

    I thought I was just being lazy when I was doing the same thing. I use a cube and have the corners pointing outward so that objects just move to the side. Glad to see I’m doing it in a way that isn’t just plain wrong. Cheers

    Reply
    • The Gorilla

      The Gorilla

      I’m finding that there is rarely a “wrong” way to do things. As long as it looks good and you hit the deadline, there is no wrong way.

      Reply

  12. Scrub

    What about a tip to prevent clones and particles from intersecting in each other??

    That one would be cool!

    Reply

  13. Alan

    Hi nick! great tutorial..

    nick, you have a macbook 13 inch?

    please answer i have this dude…

    Reply

  14. Christian Zschunke

    Hey Nick,

    thanks for that little quick tip, I’m sure it will help quite some people to make their animations even sexier.

    Naturaly I tried to experiment a bit with MoDyn and cameras, as this is an awesome way to add real camera movement to the otherwise very CGheavy looks of motion graphics.
    Simply making the camera child of the Mesh I quickly sew together didnt work to well for me though. The camera was not updating, neither in the viewport nor in the in the render.

    The reason for that was, that the Mesh I build didnt actually move, neither did the fracture object I put it in. The movement we see in the viewport and the renderer is a simulation wich is calculated seperatly.
    So if you want to bind your camera to a mesh that is reacting to MoDynamics you need a little Expresso.

    I uploaded a little screenshot from my setup, wich worked just fine.

    http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/1623/c4dkameramodyn.jpg

    Hopefully that’ll save someone a few minutes and hairs.

    best regard
    Christian

    Reply

  16. Ameen Ali

    After you make the sphere , if you go to cameras -> link active object

    then you start moving the sphere itself as a camera

    I believe its much easier way to put it in the place you want :)

    Reply

  18. RyT

    That’s really quick tip Nick. And you are not look sick at all in the video. I’m happy for you man. :)

    Reply
    • The Gorilla

      The Gorilla

      Feeling way better. Still coughing if I do anything longer than 10 minutes though. Hope to have some longer tuts soon! Have a good weekend!

      Reply

  21. ogonnokaba

    Nice one, Nick.

    You totally rockin’, dude!

    Greets from Germany

    Reply

  22. Fabrice Noel

    Hey, Nick
    keep up the good job !!!!!!!!!!!
    I was wondering if you can do a tutorial on modeling in
    Cinema 4d from a reference image.

    Reply

  23. Claus Daniel Herrman

    Just in case, someone is interested. One can turn on and of both “traffic lights” at the same time when holding “alt” while clicking. Nice tip btw!

    Reply

  24. Wesley

    What is the diference between use the traffic lights do turn off the sphere in the render and use a composition tag (seen by camera) off?

    Reply

    • Christian Zschunke

      There are many ways to skin a cat.
      At first glance I’d say, the traffic lights are a more accessable and intuitive way of hiding objects. While the compositetag does the same job, its best suited for more precise adjustments of the way your scene interacts with an object. It also doesnt hide the object from your viewport, wich can be quite unconvenient.

      Reply

  25. Dave

    Great Tip!

    Current animation I’m working on-
    WIP
    -Lit with GSG Light Kit

    Reply

  26. Keith

    On a related note, I use a quick Xpresso script when I want the camera to actually behave as a physics object and be affected by collisions and so on.

    For example I used it here:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4CBTvXA8v0

    This is all off the top of my head but… First I created a cube, added it to a cloner with just 1 clone, added rigid body tag. Then I added an Xpresso tag. Then I configured the Xpresso tag with these nodes:

    1. The cloner object (just drag it from the object tree), add an “Object” port on the right

    2. A MoGraph Data object (New Node->Mograph->Data), create out ports for Global Position and Global Rotation

    3. The camera (again drag it in) and connect the position & rotation from the MoGraph Data

    It’s that simple, now the cube will be affected by MoDynamics, and the camera will simply follow the cube. Don’t forget to make the cube invisible as in GG’s tutorial.

    If anyone’s interested I could probably make a screencast of this.

    Reply

    • AJ Goin

      I was thinking about that after Nick talked about cracking the glass. I was trying to figure it out in my head how to create it in xpresso, nice.

      Reply

  31. tuiste

    there is any similar effect in after effects?
    can do something similar?

    :)

    Reply

  32. MarcyVF

    Nice quick tip Nick!

    Here’s a project for DB Schenker Logistics me and my brother did. Contains Mograph and Cinema 4D stuff as well as the awesome lights of the GSG Light Kit!

    Reply

    • Fynn Daniels

      Wow, i love it o:
      Really good picture, how did you the deformations on the character? With an Displacement-Map or with Softselections? : D

      Fynn

      Reply

    • David Godwin

      Yeah, it’s an image of card board with a color and bump. I copied the bump onto the displacement channel.

      Reply

  34. Marco

    You are a genius man! Simple stuffs but really creative and cool.

    Reply

  37. juan carlos

    Hi I am writing from Colombia is the first time I dare but there is something that is causing discomfort when I export to after effects and I pass the camera + light comp let me know if I can say how to make me not go this component I’ve tried many ways but always comes in after thanks

    Reply

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Comment Rules

This is a friendly community. Please treat everyone with respect. We don't all have to agree, but we do have to be nice. Criticism is fine, but rude comments and name calling will be deleted. Use your real name and don't be spammy. Thanks for adding to the conversation.