2D Animation History June 2015
This is a small blog on 2D animation as a whole, I shall be declaring my understanding of: 2D animation the history of the media, exsisting animations etc. Starting with a bit of history:
Animation has advanced tremendously throughout centuries. One of the most spectacular 2D animations is called “The Magic Lantern”, it was made in the 1650's and as been recollected as an animation from the very first stages of 2D animation. During this time they would reflect light upon one of the first projectors, giving off a super-natural aspect/presence. Advancing to the 1800's,
2D animation become more popular and widely used by cinematography, another technique animators created was the “Thaumatrope”.
This technique involves having cards placed upon string, on either side.
Then the string is twisted, causing the cards to collide and create one image, creating a phenomenal animation.
Here is an example! >
Animation now is more commonly used, a prime focus is in adverts, for example such adverts as the Lloyds Bank have a whole charade of characters and stories of which is all along the animated, cartoon theme. This advert is actually animated following a flip-book, each scene drawn upon paper or even a computer, it is then flipped to reveal a whole story, after flipped, the animators have edited it and then published the advert for us to watch, This here is an example of how animation is used in advertisement.
Rotoscoping is a form on animation of which the animator draws or edits the footage, the most iconic example of this in media terms would be the music video for “Take On Me” of which a man from the comics is drawn as an animation in real footage that had been taken, upon this time, in the 80’s this will have rowed attention, relating animation to a trend that most will have endorsed this idea. For the music video, this was purely getting the idea of the band, AH-a to be revelled as individual and stand out as a new form of conveying individuality.
Persistence of vision is the phenomenon of the eye by which an image is replicated for approximately one twenty-fifth of a second in the retina, this phenomena is often claimed to account for our ability to perceive a sequence of frames as a continuous moving picture. This is now taught in schools as the illusion of movement.
 |
|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
The Zoe-trope is a device of which gives of the ideal of immersion that the image is moving that is upon the trope, the actual device displays a sequence of drawings and photos that revel motion when the trope is spun. The trope consists of a cylinder, of which has separate cuts vertically. In the surface the image is placed, as it is spun, the user looks through the slits at the picture across, providing the illusion of movement.
The idea of this mechanism is by the William Horner, a British mathematician. The works of William have impacted the industry of animation precipitously, because of William Horner, the animation industry was able to go on and develop the idea that images moving faster than the retina can register create the illusion of movement. This is all because of the Zoe-trope he invented.
The Praxinoscope was an animation device, the actual successor to the Zoe-trope, the device uses a strip of pictures placed around the inner surface of a spinning cylinder, the device proved itself to be better than the Zoe-trope by replacing its narrow viewing slits with an inner circle of mirrors, placed so that the reflections of the pictures appeared more or less stationary in position, when turned. The creator of the Praxinoscope is Charles- Emille Reynaud, a French watch repairer and medal engraver.
Reynaud devised the Praxinoscope, patented on 21 December 1877, a cylinder with a band of coloured images set inside. There was a central drum of mirrors, which were equidistant between the axis and the picture strip, so that as the toy revolved the reflection of each picture seen in the mirror-drum appeared stationary, without the necessity for complex stop-start mechanisms. The images blended to give a clear, bright, undistorted moving picture without flicker.
There are multiple software's that can be used to create a animation, I shall be specifying the two software's I find most reliable. The first being Flash.
Adobe Flash is a software that is a part of the Adobe Master collection, the software specifies in animation creation with its vast tools and large range of features, including action script. The Software is really easy to learn and use when the user knows at full capacity of the basics. The layout is a simplistic work space, with a canvas for the actually project and a working station outside the canvas, ensuring each creation the user creates is of the utmost construction.
Upon the vast tools, the software allows anyone to harness and shape any creation you are wiling to animate, from cropping, colouring and even reforming, the software allows you to literally create anything the user desires.
Action Scripting allows more opportunity's for the user to focus primarily on animating and enhancing these skills, the scripting also encompasses the idea of more things to be covered in Flash, not just animating, the scripting allows the user to even create a small game, or movie. Allowing endless opportunity's from just one software.
Upon it's animating capacity, the software has a large variety of customisation and enhancements, from adding effects to an existing clip, to even creating a new entire animation, from tweening, scripting and customising, the software is a must for any animator to be.
~ My work created within Flash
Besides Adobe Flash, there is the Microsoft Presentation, although it may have limited capacity, the software can actually animate and process animations, within it.
Microsoft Office is a package, like the Adobe Master collection, the Microsoft office, uncovers more text based software's and such, Microsoft Presentation basically covers all within the presentations and basic reports for businesses and other such ideals, upon the software, it has full support of most animation formats and is fully operative with said animations,
Upon the software's animating capacity, the software can master such techniques such as transitions, adding after effects is the main capacity, limited actual creation within the software. Presentation is a simplistic software that anyone can use with great strength. The actual transitions that can be used range from motion paths to opening and cut scenes, This is the maximum that presentation itself can handle due to animation and after effects.
