Animation Fundamentals // Exercises
04.04.23 - 20.04.23 (Week 1 - Week 3)
Emelyne How Sok Hing (0352938)
Bachelor of Design (Hons) Creative Media
Animation Fundamentals // Exercises
LECTURES
Week 1:
We had a briefing on our module for the current semester. Our instructor went over our forthcoming assignments and what we should and shouldn't do. We talked about the 12 principles of animation and how they are used in animated movies or videos.
Week 2:
Animation Principles 1 (Timing & Spacing, Slow in & Slow out, Arcs)
In this week's lecture session, we did an in-depth learning of some animation principles. The lesson for today was related to our first exercise. We got an explanation on how each animation work as well as we got to watch some videos so that we would be able to understand the principles more clearly.
Week 3:
Animation Principles 2 (Squash & Stretch, Drag, Follow Through and Overlapping)
This week we took on other principles of animation. One thing mentioned by our lecturer for the principles of squash and stretch is that we must keep the volume of the objects even when they are squashed.
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| Figure 1.0 Squash and Stretch lecture, 18th April 2023 |
INSTRUCTIONS
Exercises
Week 2:
Before starting our new task, we also practiced in class on how to use Adobe Animate. Our lecturer told me that my first arc should be the highest and as the animation goes, the distance between each arc should be shorter.
To make an animation slower we can either add more drawings or extend the keyframes length. To add images in-between two keyframes, we can insert a frame and then add a blank keyframe.
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| Figure 1.1 Practical class on how to use Adobe Animate, 11th April 2023 |
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| Figure 1.2 Practical class on how to use Adobe Animate, 11th April 2023 |
Exercise 1: Bouncing Ball Animation
Using Adobe Animate, we are to animate a normal bouncing ball.
Here are guidelines to follow:
- Moderate timing of bouncing ball (Soccer ball)
- Applying the animation principles that we have learned on Week 2, Timing, Spacing, Slow in & Slow out and Arcs is required.
- The required frame rate is 24fps, 16:9 aspect ratio with resolution of 1280 x 720 (HD 720p)
- The final animation should be animated on ‘2’ with clean up stroke and output as .mp4 format.
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| Figure 1.3 Animation Process, 13th April 2023 |
Exercise 1: Bouncing Ball Animation (Before feedbacks)
Here's the final outcome of my exercise 1. I wanted to make the ball slow down as it bounced so that the video would look more dynamic and realistic.
YouTube video link: https://youtu.be/yVrlNE47QxU
Figure 1.4 Exercise 1: Bouncing Ball Animation, 13th April 2023
Final Exercise 1: Bouncing Ball Animation (After feedbacks)
After hearing some feedbacks on my work, I tried to make the spacing more consistent and linear.
YouTube video link: https://youtu.be/kZVjUsUTfSQ
Figure 1.5 Final Exercise 1: Bouncing Ball Animation (After feedbacks), 9th May 2023
Week 3:
This week we practiced the principles of squash and stretch using Adobe Animate. It was actually simple to complete and understand this assignment.
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| Figure 1.6 Practical class on squash and stretch, 18th April 2023 |
We also added a tail to the ball after we completed the squash and stretch technique in order to understand the concepts of drag and follow through.
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| Figure 1.7 Practical class on drag and follow through, 18th April 2023 |
Exercise 2: Bouncing Ball with Tail Animation
The next task was to use the squash and stretch techniques to make an animation of a ball. In order to apply the other principles we studied in class, we must also add a tail to the ball.
Guidelines given to us:
- Applying the animation principles that you have learned on Week 2, Timing, Spacing, Slow in & Slow out and Arcs is required as part of the process.
- The required frame rate is 24fps, 16:9 aspect ratio with resolution of 1280 x 720 (HD 720p)
- The final animation should be animated on ‘2’ with clean up stroke and output as .mp4 format.
Using Adobe Animate, I started by animating the ball first keeping in mind that I have to apply the squash and stretch principles.
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| Figure 1.8 Process of my animation, 20th April 2023 |
After being done with the first part, I sketched out the flow of the tail so that I would get something which would look smooth.
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| Figure 1.9 Process of my animation, 20th April 2023 |
After establishing an appropriate flow, I started drawing the tail of my ball using the brush tool because I thought that doing so would enable me to produce a more natural-looking design, despite the fact that the strokes were less precise and constant.
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| Figure 2.0 Process of my animation, 20th April 2023 |
Exercise 2: Bouncing Ball with Tail Animation (Before feedbacks)
Here's the outcome of my exercise 2. Despite the tail's lack of consistency and precision, I made an effort to create something fluid and flowy to look at.
YouTube Video link: https://youtu.be/iNcWXpCHouI
Figure 2.1 Exercise 2: Bouncing Ball with Tail Animation (Before feedbacks), 20th April 2023
As suggested by our lecturer, I refined the tail using the line tool so that it would have a cleaner appearance.
YouTube Video link: https://youtu.be/EbqlDFcEDEQ
Figure 2.2 Exercise 2: Bouncing Ball with Tail Animation (After feedbacks), 28th April 2023
Final Exercise 2: Bouncing Ball with Tail Animation (After feedbacks)
I made an effort to make the tail cleaner and maintain a more constant ball volume.
YouTube Video link: https://youtu.be/ict2QDkH8Lo
Figure 2.3 Final Exercise 2: Bouncing Ball with Tail Animation, 9th May 2023
FEEDBACKS
Week 4:
- Exercise 1: A bit inconsistent in the spacing. Try to divide the spacing, second part should be a bit higher.
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| Figure 2.3 Feedbacks, 25th April 2023 |
- Exercise 2: Movement wise is okay but try to make a cleaner stroke. Try to use the Bezier or Line Tool.
Week 5:
-Exercise 2: Keep the volume of the ball consistent and make it a bit thinner. Clean up the tail a bit more.
REFLECTIONS
Week 1-2 (Exercise 1:Bouncing ball animation):
It was not too difficult to learn how to utilise Adobe Animate. The tools' similarity to Adobe Illustrator is something I don't particularly enjoy because, in my opinion, they can occasionally feel restricting in comparison to Photoshop. Since I had to conduct my Design Research on this subject, learning the 12 Principles of Animation was already familiar to me. I think this is the one time when it came in handy.
Week 3 (Exercise 2: Bouncing ball with tail animation):
This exercise was a bit more tough and demanding as this time more frames and precision were needed. Animating the tail was pretty challenging at first to be honest. It was difficult to find the proper flow, but maintaining it's consistency throughout the animation was the most difficult part. The tail was not an easy challenge to illustrate, therefore I had a bit of trouble.
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