How to Animate in Procreate is easier than you might think! Procreate, the popular drawing app available for iPhone and iPad, is not only great for illustrations but also offers powerful tools to create simple animations. Whether you’re a beginner or looking to refine your animation skills, learning how to animate in Procreate can open up a world of creative possibilities. With a little practice, this could even turn into a career in professional animation.
In this guide, we’ll show you the basics of how to animate in Procreate. From drawing individual frames to setting up smooth transitions, we’ll walk you through each step so you can bring your ideas to life. Ready to start? Let’s jump into how to animate in Procreate and get your animation journey underway!
Part 1 Creating an Animation
Step 1: Open a New Canvas in Procreate
First, launch the Procreate app on your iPhone or iPad. To create a new canvas, tap on an existing one in the Gallery or tap the plus (+) icon located in the upper-right corner. Next, choose the canvas size that fits your project.
Step 2: Tap the Wrench Icon
Once your canvas is open, tap the wrench icon in the upper-left corner of the screen, next to where it says Gallery. This will open the Actions menu.
Step 3: Tap Canvas
Within the Actions menu, tap Canvas, which is represented by an icon that looks like a screen with a curvy line on it. This is the second tab at the top of the menu.
Step 4: Toggle on “Animation Assist”
Under the Canvas tab, toggle on Animation Assist. This option, located at the top of the menu, will display the timeline at the bottom of the screen, which is essential for creating your animation.
Step 5: Draw Your First Frame
Now, it’s time to start your animation! Use Procreate’s drawing tools to create your first frame. Think of this as the starting point of your animation. Draw exactly how you want your first scene to appear.
Step 6: Tap Add Frame
To create the next frame, tap the Add Frame button at the far right side of the timeline at the bottom of the screen. This will add a new frame to your animation.
You can also add frames by adding new layers. If your animation contains multiple objects, you can use grouped layers to treat them as a single frame.
Step 7: Draw Your Next Frame
Tap the second white square in the timeline to select the next frame. Once selected, draw your second frame using the drawing tools. You’ll notice a faint outline of the previous frame; this is called the onion skin, which serves as a reference for drawing your next frame.
Step 8: Add More Frames
To continue animating, tap Add Frame again, and draw your next frame. Keep adding frames and adjusting them until your animation is complete. The more frames you add, the smoother your animation will look.
Step 9: Open the Frame Options Menu
To make adjustments to your frames, tap on a frame in the timeline. Then, tap it again to open the Frame Options menu, where you can customize the timing and other settings.
Step 10: Tap Play to Preview
Once you’ve completed all your frames, you can preview your animation. Simply tap the Play button on the left side of the timeline at the bottom of the screen. This will let you see your animation in action.
Reference and Further Reading
For more detailed guides on animation and Procreate tips, check out this helpful wikiHow article.
With these simple steps, you now know how to animate in Procreate. Experiment with the features, add more frames, and refine your animation skills to create stunning animated content in Procreate!
Part 2 Adjusting the Settings and Options
Step 1: Adjust the Frame Options
To adjust the properties of each frame, open the Frame Options menu by tapping on a frame in the timeline and tapping it again. Here are the available options:
- Hold Duration: Use the slider below Hold duration to control how long the current frame is held. This will create a pause in your animation, giving a still effect before the motion continues.
- Duplicate: Tap Duplicate to make a copy of the current frame, which is useful if you want to reuse the same frame in your animation.
- Delete: If you need to remove a frame, tap Delete to remove the current frame from your animation.
Step 2: Tap Settings
On the right side of the timeline, next to Add Frame, you’ll see the Settings icon. Tap it to open the Settings menu, where you can make further adjustments to your animation.
Step 3: Edit Your Animation Settings
Once in the Settings menu, you’ll see several options to customize your animation:
- Loop: Tap this option to make your animation repeat after it reaches the last frame. This is great for continuous animations like GIFs or short clips.
- Ping-Pong: If you want your animation to reverse direction once it reaches the last frame and play again, select Ping-Pong. This creates a back-and-forth effect.
- One Shot: Tap One Shot if you want your animation to play only once and stop at the last frame without repeating.
- Frames Per Second (FPS): Use the Frames Per Second slider to control the speed of your animation. The higher the FPS, the faster your animation will play.
- Onion Skin Frames: Adjust how many previous frames will appear as onion skins (faint outlines) when you select a new frame. Use the slider to increase or decrease the number of frames displayed.
- Onion Skin Opacity: Use the Onion Skin Opacity slider to adjust how faint or prominent the onion skin frames appear. This helps you see previous frames more clearly when drawing the next one.
- Blend Primary Frame: Tap this option to dim the opacity of the current frame, making it blend with the other frames. This can be helpful for visualizing how your current frame relates to the animation’s flow.
- Onion Skin Colors: To change the color of the onion skins, tap this option and use the color wheel to pick the color you prefer for the onion skins.
Part 3 Exporting the Animation
Step 1: Tap the Wrench Icon
To begin, tap the wrench icon in the upper-left corner of the screen, next to where it says Gallery. This opens the Actions menu.
Step 2: Tap Share
In the Actions menu, tap Share. This is the third tab at the top and is represented by an icon resembling a square with an arrow pointing up.
Step 3: Scroll Down and Tap Your Desired Format
Scroll down in the Share menu and choose your preferred file format for exporting:
- Animated GIF: A widely supported file format for short animations, though with slightly lower image quality.
- Animated PNG: Similar to GIFs but offers better image quality, although it’s not as widely supported.
- Animated MP4: The most commonly used video format, perfect for sharing on platforms like YouTube.
Choose the format that best suits your needs.
Step 4: Adjust the Speed
If you want to change the speed of your animation, adjust the Frames Per Second slider. By default, it will use the same FPS settings that you configured in the Settings menu earlier.
Step 5: Toggle Dithering On or Off
For GIFs with limited colors, you can toggle Dithering on to blend pixels in a way that simulates more colors. This can help improve the visual quality of your animation in lower-color file formats.
Step 6: Select Per-Frame Color Palettes (Optional)
If you’d like each frame in your GIF to have its own unique color palette, toggle the Per Frame Color Palette option on. This allows you to customize the colors for each frame individually.
Step 7: Activate Transparent Backgrounds (Optional)
If you’re working with GIF or PNG formats and want your animation to have a transparent background, toggle the Transparent Background option on. This will remove any white background and make it transparent instead.
Step 8: Tap Export
Once you’ve made all your adjustments, tap the Export button located in the upper-right corner of the screen. This will export your animation in the chosen file format.
Step 9: Tap Save Image
Finally, tap Save Image to save the animation to your iPhone or iPad. You’ll be able to find your animation in the Files app.
