Animate a "Take" with the Luxo Lamp

Animate a "Take" reaction shot with the Pixo Jr lamp

In this simple free tutorial we show how to animate a "take" (a reaction shot), with the Pixo Jr lamp rig which you can download from highend3d.com. 

The tutorial is a simple one, aimed at animation beginners, but it helps if you are already familiar with the Maya Interface.  Follow the thumbnails below to replicate the tutorial.

Reaction Shots

Lamp "take" reaction shot - Thumbnails

Reaction shots are the bread-and-butter of junior animators.  On a feature film, once an animator has graduated from walk cycles and crowd shots, they get given reaction shots.

A reaction shot is where animators first start to get to grips with acting and performance. Just like live-action actors, animated characters on a screen must listen - and react.

Animating a "Take"
An exaggerated reaction shot is also sometimes called a "take". To follow the tutorial, use the thumbnails to the right. 

Lamp Rig

Our tutorial uses the Pixo Jr lamp rig, which you can read about here. You can also find a tutorial on how to animate the lamp hopping here, and a troubleshooting video (2024) here.  If you can't find a copy of the Pixo Jr lamp rig, email us at info@animationapprentice.org and we'll send you a copy. You can also use this free lamp rig created by Mangesh Kondalkar.

Lamp Take Tutorial

You can watch the free tutorial below:

Work Method

The steps below map on to the video above. 

1. Create a project in Maya, and set to it.
2. Download a copy of the Pixo Jr lamp rig and file/import the rig into your shot.
3. Visit Turbosquid.com (or any similar website) and find an office set. Copy it into your scenes folder in Maya, and then file/import it into your shot.
4. Create a shot camera (watch this video to see how to do this) so the Lamp sits comfortably in the camera view
5. Set a keyframe at frame 1 on the head and base.
6. At frame 25, have the lamp move forwards, as if it sees something. 
7. At frame 29, bring the head down as an anticipation
8. At frame 31, following the thumbnails, lift the lamp head way up in the air.
9. At frame 37 have the lamp hover in the air
10. At frame 41 bring the lamp base down to earth
11. At frame 45 bring the head down
12. At frame 49 settle in to a final pose
13. Add a side-to-side wiggle on the pole vector control (controls the "elbow" of the lamp) to give the impression of fear

More "Take" Resources & Tutorials

Read about Pixo Jr lamp rig here

To see more about animating "takes", watch the videos below:

• Animate a "take" with "Monty"
• Animate a cartoony "take" with Mr Buttons

Beginner Animation Tutorials in Maya

To see more free basic tutorials in Maya, aimed at animation beginners, see below:

• Animate a Telephone Ringing in Maya
• Animate a UFO on a Motion Path
• Animate a Candle with Blend Shapes
• Animate a Simple Head Turn with Monty
• Animate a Flickering Neon Sign in Maya
• Animate a Foxy Tail in Motion
• Animate a Flag Waving in Maya
• Animate Two Dice Falling and Rolling
• Animate a Cartoony Vehicle Coming to a Sudden Stop
• Animate a Traffic Cone Being Knocked Over
• Animate a Submarine Underwater with Caustics
• Animate a Lamp Hopping with Pixo Jr

To find out more about Animation Apprentice, click here for a link to Frequently Asked Questions. To sign up for our next classroom at Animation Apprentice, follow this link.