Unit 31 - P1 - Explain the different types of animation

What the term Animation means

Animation is [1] a simulation of movement created by displaying a series of pictures, or frames. This is basically to sum animation up in one sentence and an example of this is many cartoons you see on television. This movement is viewed from the persistence of the eye, this is when the eye sees an image and preserves it for a split second before seeing the next image which gives the pictures movement.

Two Non-Computer Types of Animation

Flipbook animation

Flipbook animation today is recognised all over the world as one of the earliest forms of interactive media (animation). Created by a man named Henry Van Hovenbergh from Elizabeth, New Jersey, these early ones just like today consisted of images drawn by hand but today by computer and hand stacked in sequential stages of movement and when flicked through by the use of a simple staple binding this would give the optical illusion of movement within the pictures. As you can see in the image to the right hand side these 4 stickmen would go on separate pages and when flicked through the pages fast enough his arms will give the illusion of moving.

Clay animation

[2] Clay animated films were produced in the United States as early as 1908 when Edison Manufacturing released a trick film entitled The Sculptor’s Welsh Rarebit Dream. But after this two people named Helena Smith Dayton and Willie Hopkins this was a huge hit but in the 1920’s cartoon animation using either cels or slash animation was firmly established and even though clay animation was still going on it wasn’t as big as it had previously been. The image on the right was a piece of clay animation from the early years of its development.

Computer Animation Techniques

There is a variety of software used when it comes to computer animation and the whole process of making it which takes patience and clever art work, you can use Photoshop to create animation flipbooks or for one of the best 3D animation software you could try Modo

or Cinema 4D which are both very professional when making computer animation. Movement is achieved through using frame by frame images just like when using flipbook animation, hut there is also morphing which is used to get from one object to another by not changing it straight away but by morphing it which is basically transforming it into another shape. There is also tweening which helps you choose where you want that object to move to in the end of its course after it has done either moving or morphing. For example the image on the right shows the frame by frame movement in which a character has to take in computer animation. There is also one other type of computer animation technique and this is masking, masking is when the animator covers part of the scene up where the animtion is taking place so he can change it later. After this the animation will be revealed.

References

[1] What is animation? - A Word Definition From the Webopedia Computer Dictionary. 2013. What is animation? - A Word Definition From the Webopedia Computer Dictionary. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/A/animation.html. [Accessed 08 October 2013].

[2] Clay Melting | CAWorld3. 2013. Clay Melting | CAWorld3. [ONLINE] Available at: http://caworld3.wordpress.com/tag/clay-melting/. [Accessed 08 October 2013].