Photoshop Animation

Animation Palette

• Photoshop CS3 has new capabilities in
  • animation
  • video (special video layers into which video can be imported).
• Open the Animation Palette in Photoshop: Window>Animation
• Animation palette has
  • frame mode shows animations frame-by-frame. Does NOT work for video
  • timeline mode
    • works for video and can work for animation of Photoshop layer content.
    • shows the frame duration and animation properties of PSD layers
• to switch, click down arrow at right of palette and select
  • convert to timelind e if in frame mode
  • convert to frame animation if in timeline mode

Create a frame-by-frame animation

Use Warped Text in Photoshop to create a title animation for a Premiere movie

• Change the background color to green or blue in the toolbar -- then green-screening will work in Premiere
• Create a new file: File>New:
  • Use the same dimensions as your movie: 160x120 or 320x240 pixels
  • Use the background color
• create warped text animation
• Export the animated text as an anmiated GIF in the same way as above
• Import the text animation into Premiere and add it to your movie

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Warped Text

• Select the Text tool
• In the text option bar, choose:
  • Arial Black or some other thicker font
  • 48 px
  • Bright pink or red web-safe color
  • Center alignment
• Place the text tool in the middle of the file and type your name or CIS 421

Style the Text

• Add a style to the text layer
  • preset styles can be used to create animated gifs that can be used in Premiere movies
  • to import PSD files with animation into After Effects, preset styles cannot be used. Style has to be:
    • Drop Shadow or inner shadow
    • Inner Shadow
    • Outer glow or inner glow
    • Bevel & Emboss
    • Satin
    • Color or Gradient overlay
  • With the text layer selected, apply a style

Create the layers

• Right-click the layer and select duplicate layer
• Click this layer, and select the "Create Warped Text" button at the right of the text tool options bar
  • Choose "Bulge"
  • Type 10 in each of the input boxes (bend, horizontal distortion, vertical distortion
  • Click OK
• Click the layer you just created and create a new duplicate layer
  • select the "Create Warped Text" button at the right of the text tool options bar
    • Choose "Bulge"
    • Type 20 in each of the input boxes (bend, horizontal distortion, vertical distortion
    • Click OK
• Repeat, but type 30 in each of the input boxes
• You should now have 4 layers, which we can animate and save as an animated GIF
• Save the file as a PSD file in Photoshop to preserve the layers.

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Open the animation palette from the window dropdown menu

• Animation (Frames) should be open. If it displays Animation(Timeline) switch to frames by clicking the right-most icon at the bottom of the palette.
• Display the first text layer in frame 1
  • Select the first Text layer, and turn off the eye in the layers palette for the other layers to put the first text layer in frame 1 of the animation
• Click the insert new frame icon at the bottom of the animation palette (to the left of the garbage can) to insert Frame 2
  • Turn off the eye next to the first text layer
  • turn on the eye next to the second distorted text layer to put it in Frame 2
• Repeat for frames 3 and 4
• Play the animation with the VCR control at the bottom of the animation palette

Copy & reverse the frames

• To create more frames that reverse the animation, do the following on the animation pop-up menu (which you open by clicking on the right arrow on the animation palette):
  • Select All Frames
  • Copy Frame
  • Paste Frame -- choose after
  • Select second group of frames by holding down shift key and clicking on them
  • Reverse Frames
  • Play by clicking VCR control

Add Tweens to lengthen the animation

• Since it is very short, tween to add more frames to smooth out and lengthen the animation
  • Click right arrow, select tweening:
  • Choose all layers, tween with next frame, add 2 frames.
  • Continue until all frames are tweened
• If your images have drop shadows or anything that continues from one frame to the next, you can dispose of image in previous frame before next one displays
  • Select all frames
  • Right-click on one of frames and click on Dispose

Save as an animated GIF

• to save as an animated gif
  • Click File>Save for Web or devices
  • Change optimized images to GIF format
  • Color bit level can be fairly low
  • You can play different versions by VCR controls
  • Click the Save button to save the animated GIF of your choice
  • In the file save Optimized as window, choose Images only in Save as Type dropdown list.
• To preserve your original file with layers, you also need to save it as a PSD file.
• Note: this example is not set up for a green screen.
• If you want to use in Premiere, the background should be green so it can be removed in Premiere by green screening.

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Example of text animation

You can now import the animated GIF into Premiere and insert it in the superimposition channel.

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Animate Shapes

Set-up in Photoshop

• Create a new file: File>New:
• Use the same dimensions as your movie: 160x120 or 320x240 pixels
• Use the background color of fully saturated blue or green if you want to make the background transparent in Premiere

Shape Tool

• Click the shape tool (right below the text tool)
• select a shape on the shape options toolbar (choose one that is solid)
• Choose a contrasting color for the shape
• Draw the shape in its own layer.
• Select the shape layer and duplicate it.
• Move the shape to a new place on the new layer, and possibly change the size (Edit>Transform>Scale)
• Create about 3 or 4 more duplicate shape layers and alter the size and location of the shapes
• then procede to animate the layers as in the text example above.

Examples of animated shapes - 2 with blue screening