Chapter 8

Getting Bent Out of Shape: Blend Shapes

The next step in preparing your character for animation is to create a deformer set and attach it to your main model. Deformers, known in Autodesk® Maya® software as blend shapes, change the surface topology of your model in ways that you can mix, match, and control.

  • Understanding blend shapes and how they work
  • Creating deformers for your character
  • Setting up the blend shape interface

Understanding Blend Shapes and How They Work

Blend shapes are frequently used for creating facial expressions—smiles, frowns, eyebrow raises, blinks, and so on. They are essentially copies of your main character geometry with specific, focused changes to a small part of the geometry.

Deformer Order

A quick word ...

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