3 answers
Eryx
Student
Glendale, California
8
Questions
Asked
459 views
How can I effectively use timing in animation?
I am not sure when a character or object should move in some situations. #animation
Login to comment
3 answers
Glenn Fitzgerald
Federal Account Executive (Sales)
18
Answers
Hatboro, Pennsylvania
Updated
Glenn’s Answer
I use timing in advertising to attract attention to a point on the screen and then again to draw their attention to another topic. It should be very subtle so the user does not feel Jared. If you watch TV commercials so many things move on screen almost imperceptibly.
Stephen Ramirtha
People Manager
18
Answers
Scottsdale, Arizona
Updated
Stephen’s Answer
Hey, Eryx! While I'm not an animator, I do take on writing projects, so my answer might help if you approach this from a writer's perspective. Before you animate, think of the story you're trying to convey and what you want the audience to feel.
For instance, if it's more comedic, a sudden movement near the end can elicit a laugh (this tends to be the trend for many TikTok videos). If you're looking for a more reflective piece, slow movements can help draw out the tension and then a big movement can really make an impact, almost like a volcano erupting.
Before hitting the animation program, write up your scene and use that as a guide for your animation, no matter how short your content will be. Hope that helps!
For instance, if it's more comedic, a sudden movement near the end can elicit a laugh (this tends to be the trend for many TikTok videos). If you're looking for a more reflective piece, slow movements can help draw out the tension and then a big movement can really make an impact, almost like a volcano erupting.
Before hitting the animation program, write up your scene and use that as a guide for your animation, no matter how short your content will be. Hope that helps!
Thank you for the help !
Eryx
Benjamin Hall
Animator
12
Answers
Cicero, New York
Updated
Benjamin’s Answer
Hello Eryx,
For Timing in animation, we want to use it to convey motion convincingly and to place emphasis on certain actions. A fast motion could emphasize the action that follows it giving it more power or slow-motion can emphasize the importance of an action. To change the timing, you have to understand that animation is just a series of images played in sequence and the distance that a character or object is between one image to another determines the speed they are moving, for instance, a character that has only small changes in position from one image to another is moving slow while a character that has moved a lot from one image to another is moving very fast. In general, you want to remember the principles of ease in and ease out also referred to as slow in and slow out, this means that any motion will begin at a slower speed then become faster as the motion continues through then slow back down as it comes to a stop. It's important to note that for character animation you rarely want even timing meaning it speeds up as fast as it speeds down or an action taking the same amount of time every time the character does it, changing things up is key! Many 2D animators used timing charts to track their animation timing they could be useful to help you grasp the idea behind http://brianlemay.com/Pages/animationschool/animation/lipsyncbook/timingcharts.html
Other useful resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86tqKH3zxuM&t=2s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rp3zXBEhCE&t=190s
For Timing in animation, we want to use it to convey motion convincingly and to place emphasis on certain actions. A fast motion could emphasize the action that follows it giving it more power or slow-motion can emphasize the importance of an action. To change the timing, you have to understand that animation is just a series of images played in sequence and the distance that a character or object is between one image to another determines the speed they are moving, for instance, a character that has only small changes in position from one image to another is moving slow while a character that has moved a lot from one image to another is moving very fast. In general, you want to remember the principles of ease in and ease out also referred to as slow in and slow out, this means that any motion will begin at a slower speed then become faster as the motion continues through then slow back down as it comes to a stop. It's important to note that for character animation you rarely want even timing meaning it speeds up as fast as it speeds down or an action taking the same amount of time every time the character does it, changing things up is key! Many 2D animators used timing charts to track their animation timing they could be useful to help you grasp the idea behind http://brianlemay.com/Pages/animationschool/animation/lipsyncbook/timingcharts.html
Other useful resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86tqKH3zxuM&t=2s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rp3zXBEhCE&t=190s