Jim, i get the idea, and find it sincerely fantastic, since points transformation (mesh deformation) adds realism. It is quite obvious that the starfish needed a technique like that.
As Eshirey said, the manual technique you commented seems to require a lot of work, patience, and testing, until you see the starfish moving properly. It is a bit rudimentary (please don't get me wrong, i'm not criticizing your work in any way), but as we can see, it works very well.
Now i'm just figuring out what the selection sets are for.
I distinguish two types of animation (please let me know if i'm wrong with this):
- Keyframing animation, also called offline animation. It consists of "key-frames" containing different model transformations. A frame between two consecutive "key-frames" is calculated as a transition of both (interpolation).
- Dynamic animation, also called online animation. This is where magic takes place
. The model is moved, rotated, scaled and deformed in a free way. This often implies math calcs behind the movement. This is a powerful feature if you want your 3D model to express something, like feelings or gestures.
A right balanced usage of both types results in an optimal relation between the effort applied and the realism obtained.
Jim, i suppose you are using keyframing animation for some sequences, like when the fishes swim. Nevertheless the starfish uses dynamic animation, and this is what i find really interesting.
Edgar, i wish you the best luck implementing that dynamic animation technique. If i could help, let me know.
Jim, i also hope that you achieve what you have in mind. Go for the selection sets!!