Shade

Got a copy of Shade LE version 7 off a cover disc with a magazine this month. I'm always on the lookout for modelling packages with a nice, easy interface - there are a load of modelling programs on my computer now, many of which I've tried, and just given up on because you have to press a combination of keys on your keyboard, rotate your mouse precisely 180 degrees, touch the tip of your nose with the big toe on your left foot and perform the secret handshake before you can extrude a face. Okay, that's a bit of an exaggeration, but as a guy with a full-time job, I really don't have the time for a huge learning curve before being able to do any modelling.
However, Shade, so far, seems pretty blinking simple, and it "seamlessly interfaces with Poser" - I have yet to explore that aspect of it, but if it enables me to make props, import them into Poser and toon-ify them without any complication, then brilliant.
Have decided to aim for producing one image per week to post on the Animotions site.

Have posted a few of my "Mr Snout" pictures on the Animotions website (www.animotions.com) and have had some positive responses. It's so nice to finally get some images out there - I spend so much time agonising over whether my pictures look finished enough or not that nobody else ever gets to judge them.
They've been done using the technique that I described in my post of 27/11/2005. The one above was done using Poser 6's toon shading facility, but I'm not entirely sure about it. The outlining on the character looks a bit weak, but when I try to increase the size of the outline, Poser refuses to comply beyond a certain thickness.