Syphe

Covert Op (WIP)

Added 2025-05-18 15:28:41 +0000 UTC

Hey everyone! The wait is over, Ada's animation is finally here!

This animation was a blast to work on, and more importantly: I learned a lot from it. I'd like to share some of the stuff I gathered from the experience. If you're not interested, you can skip to the end of the post for more details on the animation.

This was my first time using EEVEE, Blender’s real-time render engine. It allowed me to render the full animation faster than some of my 8K stills in Cycles. The main challenge was learning how EEVEE's settings work and how to use them to achieve the same stuff you'd do in Cycles. There are still some things that I need to learn, but in general, I'm quite happy with the scene I came up with.

Working on this animation also taught me a lot about the importance of detailed blocking. I quickly learned how crucial it is to add plenty of in-between poses, especially for more complex movements (some of which you can see in the GIFs). These in-betweens help define the pacing and flow of the animation. Some professionals give so much detail to the blocking stage that you can almost see the final product.

You might also notice an improvement in the fluids. In the past, I struggled with Blender’s fluid simulation. It’s slow, unpredictable, and especially tricky in small-scale setups where things get pretty unstable. That's why I decided to try something different. Instead of fluid simulation, I used Blender's particle system, which is VASTLY faster, more predictable, and easier to deal with. It allows me to see the results of my settings almost instantly.

There are a several more details that I could get through, but it would make this post way too long for a quick Sunday preview.

The animation consists of a 30-second scene that works either as a seamless loop or can transition into a 10-second ending. As promised, the ending will be exclusive to members.

As usual, early access for this week's post will be available on Wednesday. Thank you all for your continued support!

All characters seen in my work are fictional and consenting adults over the age of 18.