Operation Manual

142 Stopframe/Keyframe Animation
Getting started with animation
A clear distinction has to be made between two types of animation
techniques, both possible from within DrawPlus:
• Stopframe animation: also known as Stop motion animation,
involves the animation of static objects frame-by-frame. In the film
industry, Stopframe animation is used within widely known
productions based on figures made of clay or other bendable
material.
• Keyframe animation: performs movement of computer-generated
objects from basic shapes to cartoon characters (used traditionally
in Stopframe animation). Using the power of computing, smooth
playback of animated objects is easily achieved between key
moments in your animation, defined by the user as Keyframes.
DrawPlus lets you export Stopframe or Keyframe animations to a variety
of different formats. For more details, review Exporting animations (see
p. 151).
For now we'll look at how to set up both Stopframe and Keyframe
animations within DrawPlus.
To begin a new Stopframe or Keyframe animation:
1. Start DrawPlus (or choose File>Startup Assistant if it’s already
running).
2. Select New Drawing>New Keyframe Animation or New
Drawing>New Stopframe Animation from the Startup Assistant.
3. In the right-hand pane, review the document types available.
4. Select a document type thumbnail from a category in the right-hand
pane.