Animation Basics

Animation is a captivating art form that brings static images to life through movement and visual storytelling. As Australia’s leading eLearning content designers, we believe that animation is a powerful tool for engaging learners and enhancing their understanding of complex concepts.

In this beginner-friendly animation blog, we will explore animation’s fundamental principles and concepts, various techniques, key terminology and tools used in the industry and provide tips for creating compelling animated content.

Principles of animation

The principles of animation are foundational rules that govern how objects move and interact in an animated sequence. Some key principles include:

Squash and stretch: Objects change shape to emphasise movement and impact.
Timing and spacing: The speed and rhythm of movement create a sense of realism.
Anticipation: Add a lead-in movement to prepare the audience for the main action.
Follow-through and overlapping action: Elements continue moving even after the main action has stopped.
Arcs: Movements follow smooth, curved paths to appear more natural.
Exaggeration: Enhancing movements to create a more engaging and expressive animation.

Animation techniques

Various techniques can be used to achieve animation, such as:

Traditional animation: Hand-drawn frame-by-frame animation, widely used in classic cartoons.
Computer animation: Using software to create and manipulate images for animation.
Stop motion: Creating animation by photographing physical objects in incremental positions.
3D animation: Building and animating 3D models in a virtual environment.

Key animation terminology

Understanding animation terminology is essential for effective communication in the industry. Some common terms include:

Keyframes: Significant frames that define the main positions or actions in an animation.
Frames Per Second (FPS): The number of frames shown per second determines the animation’s smoothness.
Tweening: Automatically generating intermediate frames between keyframes to create smooth motion.
Rigging: Creating a digital skeleton for characters to enable realistic movement.
Lip Sync: Synchronising the character’s mouth movements with dialogue or audio.
Storyboarding: Storyboarding is a crucial step in the animation process, where a sequence of sketches outlines the flow of the animation. It serves as a blueprint for the final product.

Animating characters and objects

Character animation and object animation involve giving life to inanimate elements. Character animation is ideal for employee training, while object animation is often used for special effects.

Animation tools and software

Numerous animation tools and software are available, ranging from beginner-friendly to professional-grade. Popular options include Adobe Animate, Toon Boom Harmony and Blender.

Hire Simply eLearning for your animated video needs

Though there’s so much more to animation that just can’t be covered in this short animation blog, those key concepts should get you started.

If you’re looking for a faster and more effective way to leverage the power of animation for your corporate explainer videos, employee training or product launches, let Simply eLearning’s expertise take your content to the next level. Our team of creative gurus and educators will skillfully design and develop animated eLearning solutions to inspire and engage your workforce.