| Feature | Morph Targets | Skeletal Animation | |---------|---------------|---------------------| | Memory | High (multiple full meshes) | Low (bone transforms + skinning weights) | | Control | Per-vertex precision | Coarse, bone-driven | | Deformation types | Any (including volume changes) | Rigid bones + smooth skinning | | Common use | Facial animation, corrective shapes | Body movement, limbs | | Combination | Can be used together (morphs on top of skinning) | Often the primary rig |
For anatomy like the bicep, a single "Flex" target is insufficient. Artists create : flex along X, flex along Y, twist CW, twist CCW. The animator or physics system blends between these four targets to achieve any arbitrary muscle bulge direction. morph target animation
Where ( \Delta_i ) is the delta for the ( i)-th target. This additive approach is powerful, but it introduces a major risk: . If you add a smile and a frown simultaneously, vertices may move twice as far as intended. This is why professional pipelines use corrective blendshapes and pose-space deformation to fix additive errors. | Feature | Morph Targets | Skeletal Animation
For example, consider a character’s face: Where ( \Delta_i ) is the delta for the ( i)-th target