Blender for 2D Animators

Trying this again.

November 2020 (updates when I find them)

Blender: Observations and Discoveries

I was surprised to learn that yes, indeed, Blender is a very good 2D animation tool as well - if you can get used to using it. Here are my observations, which will be randomly updated as I encounter them.

ETA Now by category!:

The User Interface

So, what's with the two timelines on the bottom of the window? One is the "Dope Sheet" where you can see the keyframes you've made, and the other is the "Timeline Panel" where you operate the controls (unless you just key arrow up/down to view the keyframes). You can't just have one. That's an odd decision!

Keyframing

Also, you have to remember to keep the mouse pointed at the keyframes when you duplicate them (shift-D) or they'll be off somewhere in space on a different screen. Same goes for duplicating selected art on the display panel.

Now to tweening: first your keyframes have to be all drawn and set up on the Grease Pencil timeline, so the stuff you want to animate is on the timeline. If you try to add keyframes after tweening is done, it'll be a big headache. Next, you have to select Multiframe on the buttons on the top of your workspace (two or more keyframes have to be selected). 

Now the big gotcha: for each tween, make sure the cursor scrub on the Grease Pencil timeline is between the keyframes, preferably mid-range - say your keyframes are at frames 0 and 20? Your scrubber bar should be at frame 10. If it's not, you get an error.

Once your scrubber bar is where it should be, you can select the Interpolate button right next to the Multiframe pulldown button, select Sequence, and tweening commences.

The Camera

On to a more complex topic - it's at it's heart a 3D animation thing, which means that it's built to create things that you move a camera around. So here you are drawing, say, a flower with the grease pencil, and you want to pan or move the camera to a compelling angle.

So you have to use a keyboard with a number pad (which I have) or a mouse with 3 buttons (WTF? No, I just use an Apple mouse plus the Wacom tablet). And you get into camera view with keypad: 0. First of all, it looks weird because the camera view is squished to the top of my window. But I press on, moving the camera...and I lose the view of the camera.

No guys, you can't move a camera by touch. I don't know how to move the view of the camera, let alone do a keyframed pan or angle shift. I can work around it, but I should still know how to do this, and I can't figure it out.

Typographical Concerns

Finally, text - what an absolute pain. You only see the button in Object Mode, hidden behind the Add button. Then you wiggle it into place, and then write what you want to write...somehow? And, you know, guys....FONTS?!?!?! I'm working on this.

But it's promising. I never liked 3D animation, although doing it in a post-claymation style could be fun, a la the Cuphead series of cartoons. I have used Blender to make 3D printing designs, and might pursue that as a old-age Etsy side hustle. You know, like animation in general.

A belt clip for your phone

Here's the instruction manual for more info. All your procrastivation needs in one place!

To be continued...