12 Principles of Animation: Timing and Spacing

Timing: Selecting the best moment for something to happen in the frame. Choosing the best moment will have the optimum effect on the audience. This is also recording an action, which is done in animation when filming reference for movement, and creating your animation with precise or exaggerated timing.

Spacing: Placing the necessary about of spaces between frames.

1. Linear spacing: Frames spaced equally apart. The animation will happen at a constant speed, which will make it look mechanical or unnatural.
2. Ease in spacing: Used for deceleration and halting an object. The spaces are further apart at the beginning of the movement.
3. Ease out spacing: Used during acceleration, so the frames are closer together at the start.
4. Easy ease spacing: Combinstion of ease in and out. The frames are closer together at the start and the end, making this a good motion for animating a pendulum or a clock.

"What happens inbetween each image is more important than what's in each image." The animation won't be believable if the movement is inconsistent.

Testing Timing and Spacing

Blinking Character

My designed character has a scarred eye and so in my animation I thought that a longer blink would be the best characteristic for him. This also shows how tired he is, as a constant neighbouring character in the shadows of the night. I thought a quick blink of his scarred eye would be best too as it might be harder for him to focus with that eye. Though there isnt much difference between my two attempts, I thought that the first was too quick and it felt like his eye was twitching, but faster than humanly possible. 

Saluting

Fudging the timing: I tried this with 12 frames per drawing at 24fps, and then at 6 frames per drawing at 24fps. This helped me to understand how mechanical my arm movement was in my drawings and how many frames I would need to turn it in to a smooth motion.

I think the final outcome had good motion to it, but my line work could have been a bit smoother in places. I like the smooth transition in each frame of the arm and I think the pause before the hand salutes is realistic to life.