To reduce the size of a file that you're sending there are multiple options including cropping, file compression, reducing pixel dimensions. When cropping an image to reduce file size you cut out non essential parts from the edges of the picture and can be done in most image editing software (the simplest being paint) using the crop tool more often than not found in the edit menu.
File compression is a process carried out while viewing images or folders in your file explorer and is achieved by simply right clicking the data you wish to compress and selecting the compress option.
Reducing pixel dimensions of a picture, while providing a smaller file size does have negative effects in that it can reduce the overall quality of the image. There are software packages available that can do this automatically for you, all you will need to do is enter the desired pixel dimension.
When reducing the size of a video file, one of the the easiest ways is to use windows movie maker. After importing your video to movie maker, add it to video timeline then open up the save wizard and find finish project and save to computer. Though this menu you will be able to select a desired file size and after using this there may be some reduction in image quality however you will have a smaller file that will upload to the web quicker and load quicker when being streamed by other users.
Frame disposal is another method of diminishing file size that defines whether a user would like to discard a current frame before the next frame is displayed. To reduce the file size of an animation it is advised that the user discard a current, then work on the next.
Auto crop is an automatic tool that can be used to adjust the file size of an animation by cropping the background of an animation. This reduces the background colour behind the animation and as a result reduces the size of the file. Auto crop cuts any unwanted aspects of an image or animation so that less pixels will be used.
In this post I will only be mentioning a few of the different tools available to animators within a certain software package. The software that I will be comparing will be Adobe Flash, Autodesk Maya and Blender. Two of these I already have experience with, namely Flash and Maya, but I will be learning some of the features of Blender so that I can comment as accurately as I can.
Adobe Flash
Shape tween - The shape tween allows the user to create a shape that gradually morphs into another shape. This is done by using another one of the animation tools called insert keyframe, In each frame that is added the user changes the shape in the animation then by selecting the section between frames and selecting the shape tween tool, the program will automatically morph the shape from the starting image to the final image.
Layers - when creating an animation it is important to keep different elements on separate layers, this aids in the editing process as individual elements can be edited or removed with much greater ease. New layers are created by selecting the new layer button at the bottom left of the window.
Autodesk Maya
When first looking at Maya, the multitude of tools and functions can be very daunting and does tend to put off a lot of hobbyist animators. However there is a reason why this is an industry standard for animation in films, TV and games.
Keyframe/nonlinear animation
After animating a character with keyframes you can collect its animation data into a single, editable sequence. This animation sequence is called an animation clip. When an animation clip is created you will never actually use that "source clip" again, this is to preserve the current animation progress. What you will use when actually animating your model is and instance of the source clip called a "Regular clip".
this allows the user to move, manipulate and blend motion clips into a smooth animation. This feature is used through an aspect of the Maya program called Trax Editor.
Trax Editor
The Trax editor is an animation tool that allows the user a multitude of functions including layering and blending animation clips, selecting and controlling characters and their animation clips, synchronizing audio and video clips and also the ability to drag and drop animation clips between character models.
This feature gives the user options such as creating animation cycles and even editing animation speed and rhythm, for example if you had a clip of a character walking and you wanted to change it to a walking cycle in a marching rhythm, that would be entirely possible using this software.
Here is a video made using Autodesk Maya. Witcher 2: Assassins of kings
Blender
Blender, much like Maya is a piece of software designed to create high quality three dimensional images. However unlike Autodesk, blender is completely free and open source which allows for those without the funds to buy Maya to create stunning images and animations for use in animation show reels, portfolios and the creation of game animations.
Blender is not only a program, it is a foundation and a community, as a result whenever you use blender, you are not alone, hundreds of people around the world from programing hobbyists to professionals devoted to the Blender cause contribute enhancements and additional features on a daily bases.
With support ranging from a wide variety of available online resources to friendly irc communities, Blender will just keep getting better
When comparing these three different software packages, you first need to consider that one of them, namely Flash, is not as in depth as the Maya and Blender programs and is not capable of the same level of image quality and lacks the ability to build three dimensional models. The capabilities of Maya and Blender are very similar. Both can produce a high level of graphics detail as well as both possessing high quality rendering capabilities. However Maya is still the superior program due to the fact that Maya features a wider and more complex array of controls and features. Blender also has some problems with lag during the animation of large, detailed files. While Blender is capable of high quality 3D modeling and animation while coming at no cost to the user, the smoother operation, increased number of tools and features and the improved graphic capability of Maya make it a more suitable as a 3D animation tool for professionals. Flash animations, while much simpler than those that can be created with with the other two programs in this post are still used widely by amateurs and professionals alike, however not for the same purpose. Flash is more often used for animated shorts, web banners and small web games. This is a program that can't really be compared to the others as its capabilities are no where near as high, but it does feature many useful tools for the creation of basic animations such as the creation of layers, keyframes and automatic object movement paths.
Images, Video, Quizzes, Games, Text, Music, Sound FX, Menu
buttons, Search bar, Animation, GIF, Flash, Web banner, QR code, Forum, Login, Instant
messaging, Rollover image, Social networking
When referring to animation, there are many different kinds
of animation that can be used in multimedia. There is drawn animation, an example
of this would be the cartoons that we see on television or used in many children’s
films such as Snow White or The Emperor’s New Groove. Then there is 3D
animation’s which again has become adopted by the films industry mainly in the
production of children’s films and TV shows such as Star Wars: Clone Wars or
Monsters Inc
.
Stop frame animation which is created
by taking hundreds of pictures of real world objects or people and then linking them together as frames for a video. When these images are played in quick succession they give the illusion of a moving image. This is the same concept as making a normal video whoever with stop frame animation you can seem to bring inanimate object to life.
Another style of stop frame animation is called claymation which refers to creating an animation using clay models changing their positions ever so slightly between frames, effectively bringing the models to life on film.
There are also different techniques within animation such as Movement, Masking and Morphing. One of these which is fairly self explanatory is Morphing, making one image change to another. this is done with an animation tool called shape tweening.
Using a selection or even all of these multimedia elements
helps to engage the user by giving them a multitude of objects to provide
visual or audio stimulation as well as giving the user the option of
interacting with the site. In providing this interaction the user feels more entertained
and engaged rather than simply viewing multiple pages of plain text. Failing to
keep the users interest can, and most likely will, result in losing the user to
another site that features more entertaining images, colour schemes or videos.
Animation can be used for almost any purpose such as advertising, creative art, entertainment (films, TV cartoons), educational shorts or interactive programs and scientific visualizations. Examples of these can be seen on television, online, in classrooms and in professional offices.
In all of these different fields, the choice to use animation was extremely beneficial due to the fact that no matter what a persons age, the bright colours and amusing visuals work to hold the attention of the viewer which, in turn, increases the amount of information that a person will take in as they are actually paying attention and are interested in what is going on in the video. Also in terms of advertising you are selling an idea, a fantasy, which is much easier to do when the rules and laws of the real world do not apply. M1, Persistence of vision; There have been theories for what is persistence of vision although there is no definite scientific evidence. One is that when viewing multiple images shown in quick succession they can appear to be moving because of the fact that for a split second after you see an image it is retained in the retina and so when followed by the subsequent images in quick succession gives the illusion of a moving image. In the myth of persistence of vision it is believed that the human perception of motion is a direct result of the persistence of vision phenomenon however this theory was debunked by Max Wertheimer i n 1912 when he first described the optical illusion of Beta movement. The theory of Beta movement, which refers to the optical illusion which is centred in the brains ability to assume or perceive movement when shown multiple static images in quick succession. One of the pioneers in the field of animation using persistence of vision is the British mathematician William Horner who invented the Zoetrope, or as he first named it the Daedalum (Wheel of the devil). the Zoetrope featured the placing of a strip of images on the inside of a spinning open top drum with slots cut out of the side. If you look through the slots when the drum spins the picture on the inside appears to move.
When
creating animations for web the biggest factors are file size, file
compatibility with various browsers and ease of loading. Ease of loading is an
important one to consider as if the entire web page is slowed simply because of
a cumbersome animation; users will soon lose interest and look elsewhere and as
many users will have varying connection speeds their loading times may already
be about as long as they are willing to wait to view an animation. After that
you would consider user interaction and how to keep these animations or
functions interesting as well as positioning and dimensions because a poorly
laid out site can detract from any images or animations on the site that would
otherwise be quite impressive or entertaining.
One
way of both keeping things interesting and helping to reduce loading time is
rollover animations, rather than having something constantly playing that will
slow loading times, the animation only becomes active once the user interacts
with that particular image or button. Examples would be interactive menus,
small embedded games, animated site logos and web banners that react to the users’
cursor.
Another
factor is taking into account that not all people will be viewing your web page
on a computer, so compatibility with multiple hardware formats should be
included; such as PDA/smart phones and tablets/ipads.
When
it comes to cross hardware compatibility, considering apple products,
specifically the ipad and iphone, should be a given as they do not use a lot of
the same software as windows and android devices. For example the ipad, iphone
and mac do not use Adobe flash and therefore animations that are created in
flash will/may not work on these devices.
Tuesday, 30 April 2013
P3, M2
Animation formats
Advantages and disadvantages
GIF - A bit-mapped graphics file format that is widely used throughout the web, mainly for user avatars on forums or for animations in site banners. The GIF format is rarely seen on the more professional websites due to the low picture quality which is a result of the low file size of this particular format.
Pro's
- low file size, quick loading and good for web use - easy to create on a various selection of software packages - supported by most browsers - no plugins needed - lossless Cons - limited to 256 colours - no interaction - no sound - hard to change once created Dynamic HTML Dynamic HTML or dHTML has been used in the creation of small animations in web sites for functions such as rollover buttons, browser-based games and drop down menus although due to compatibility issues with different browsers has become superseded by the use of CSS languages used by themselves. Pros - no need for plugins - fast download speed with fairly good graphic effects Cons - platform problems due to the way different browsers read web languages - the same features are available with Flash - can be created with CSS languages Shockwave With fast streaming and a focus on 3D graphics, the Shockwave multimedia player (which was released before Flash) has the ability to compile several types of asset into a single multimedia project on a bigger scale than flash. Pros - built for 3D - fast streaming - allows for creation of versatile environments for a user to interact with Cons - requires the installation of additional software (plugins) Realplayer The multimedia player, Realplayer, has been around since 1995 and due to constant updates it has manged to stay one of the major players (no pun intended) in its field. This is due to its cross platform compatibility that can support both Quicktime and Windows media formats and is even used by the BBC on their Listen again section for radio shows. Pros - cross platform compatibility - has a advert free version for business use - simple and easy to use - provides the user with the ability to save video files straight from the web Cons - includes adverts in the UI - can be quite laggy - there are many lighter alternatives Quicktime A player that can be used on both Mac and PC and supports animation, video, sound and images... much like windows media player and does rival WMP in that it has many of the same functions. Released by apple it is a default program that is installed on Mac as a default player. Pros - supports a wide variety of media - allows for user to edit multimedia files Cons - much the same as Windows media player and if you have a PC there is not much use in installing it
When comparing the different file types, GIF and dHTML, the main differences are the file quality and compatibility. While dHTML does give the user higher quality animations the lack of compatibility is a major drawback where as GIF is usable in a much wider variety of browsers and due to smaller file size is much quicker to load. Because of this as well as the fact that GIF's are very easy to create in a short space of time, it has become the more popular file format.
With the different multimedia players it is quite difficult to say which is superior as these programs have been created with different users in mind. for example the Shockwave player, which has been around for some time is a fairly light program which allows for casual internet users to view different multimedia files online and while it does have other features for the accommodation of interactive multimedia it does require the installation of plugins in order to function with many online multimedia files. Then we have Realplayer and Quicktime, these multimedia players are slightly larger programs than shockwave but as a result of this do have many more features such as realplayer's ability to save files straight from web and Quicktime's editing feature. however when it comes to streaming video and image files from the internet, Realplayer has the advantage with compatibility whereas Quicktime isn't as frequently used in web however Quicktime does have the speed and reliability that Realplayer lacks.
