2D Animation Class - Back to Basics - Week 1 (14/10/11)

Today was the last class of the week - 2D animation.

Simple and fun =)

Ok, so my course is 3D Animation and Games, but 2D is fun too, so I'm not complaining! Plus more stuff for you to read and watch.

Today we went back to basics; 2D traditional light boxes and the bouncing ball.

The bouncing ball task is probably the most basic animation that can be done; you start off with it in most animation classes, whether it's 2D or 3D. I've done this task before on Maya (3D) and on Flash (2D), so today I completed my little circle of 'beginners animation' and made the sequence on plain paper using a normal pencil and a light box.

I used 33 pieces of paper to create about a 1 1/2 seconds worth of animation, with 25 frames (each drawing/piece of paper) being a second worth of animation.

Bearing this in mind, when Disney Studios created the first Disney Princess film, Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs, they too used the traditional light box technique. If it's 25 frames per second, that's 1500 frames per minute and 90'000 frames per hour!

I then scanned each piece of paper, using a software called Dragon and a camera, on to the computer and exported it as a Mov. file.

I'm uploading both my animations I did today to show you what the first class of 2D animation in Middlesex University is like. The bouncing ball is 12.5 frames per second, purely because I wanted it slower so you can get a closer look at how the ball is drawn though-out the animation but also have it playing a good sequence at the same time. The rocket one is 25 frames per second; it may look a little 'bleh' but I wanted it completed, scanned and exported in time so I could bring it home and upload it for you.

So, here you go, enjoy =)

(On an unrelated note... Its my birthday tomorrow! =D Woo!)

See you next week for more lessons on 3D Animation and Games! =D