The Basics of Animating with Procreate

Procreate is a widely used digital painting app that has gained popularity among artists and designers. What many people may not know is that Procreate also offers animation capabilities, making it a versatile tool for creating both still images and dynamic animations. In this blog post, we will explore the basics of animating with Procreate and how you can make the most of its Animation Assist feature.

Getting Started

If you're new to Procreate, it's important to familiarize yourself with the app's interface and tools before diving into animation. Procreate offers a wide range of brushes, layers, and effects that can be used to create stunning artwork. Once you feel comfortable with the basics, you can start exploring the animation features.

Animation Assist

Procreate's Animation Assist feature is what sets it apart from other digital painting apps. With Animation Assist, you can easily create frame-based animations directly within the app. To access Animation Assist, simply tap on the wrench icon in the top toolbar and select the Animation Assist option.

Once you're in Animation Assist mode, you can start adding frames to your animation. Procreate allows you to create up to 100 frames, giving you plenty of room to bring your ideas to life. You can duplicate frames, delete frames, and rearrange them to create the desired sequence.

Animating with Layers

One of the advantages of animating with Procreate is the ability to work with layers. Layers allow you to separate different elements of your animation and animate them individually. To add a new layer, simply tap on the layer icon in the top toolbar and select Add Layer.

Once you have multiple layers, you can animate them by making changes to each layer in different frames. For example, you can create a character on one layer and animate its movement by adjusting the position of the layer in each frame. This gives you greater control over the animation process and allows for more complex and dynamic animations.

Using Onion Skin

Another useful feature of Procreate's Animation Assist is Onion Skin. Onion Skin allows you to see a faint overlay of the previous and next frames, making it easier to create smooth transitions between frames. To enable Onion Skin, simply tap on the Onion Skin icon in the top toolbar.

With Onion Skin enabled, you can see the previous and next frames as you work on the current frame. This helps you maintain consistency in your animation and ensures smooth motion between frames.

Exporting Your Animation

Once you've finished animating your project, it's time to export it and share it with the world. Procreate offers several export options, including GIF, MP4, and image sequence. To export your animation, tap on the wrench icon in the top toolbar, select Share, and choose the desired export format.

Before exporting, you can adjust the frame rate and resolution of your animation to optimize it for different platforms. Procreate also allows you to export specific frames or a range of frames, giving you even more control over the final output.

Conclusion

Animating with Procreate opens up a whole new world of possibilities for artists and designers. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced animator, Procreate's Animation Assist feature provides a user-friendly and powerful toolset for creating captivating animations. So why not give it a try and see what you can create?