The steps of creating

animation
Create Beautiful 3D Videos l Work Smart
Why animations?
We live in an increasingly fast-paced world. As a society, we struggle with time
management and want everything to be quick and easily accessible. If you think
about this, what gives us the greatest time-saving advantage in finding information
today?

Without a doubt, it's a video.

In real estate, like in other industries, the most effective way to market new designs
is through video, specifically animation. Animations can convey ideas to viewers
much more effectively than still images simply because they have more frames.
This means the story can be told in greater detail, and the atmosphere and
character of the place can be shown from different perspectives and in various
ways.

Looking from another perspective, with the increasing accessibility of AI tools that
allow amateurs to create visualizations, the demand for marketing content will
drastically shift from still images to film and animations. These AI tools are
becoming more user-friendly, enabling individuals who may not have a background
in graphic design or animation to produce visual content easily.

As a result, marketers will likely, even more, prioritize dynamic and engaging
content, such as short films and animated sequences, to capture and retain
audience attention more effectively. This shift will also open up new opportunities
for creative expression and storytelling in the marketing industry.

On the other hand, the ability to create stunning visualizations still will be crucial.
Producing amazing animation requires a solid base, which means having strong
foundational skills in creating still images. High-quality animations rely on detailed
and well-crafted still images as their starting point, serving as the framework upon
which motion and additional effects are built.
Creating a Storyboard
Regarding real estate, animations can be a powerful marketing tool, often more
persuasive than still images. To effectively capture the viewer's interest, it's
important to use methods that influence them the most. Creating a story through
video is a powerful technique to achieve this. By doing so, we can influence
emotions, engage viewers, and generate their interest.

For any animation project, always start with an idea. Think about the concept you
want to convey, the elements to focus on, the target audience, and the emotions
you want to evoke. Designing a narrative that resonates with viewers allows us to
create immersive 3D experiences that bring together design concepts, project
guidelines, technical specifications, and the human experience.

An experience in this context refers to the perception shaped for the users
according to the vision. It's all about focusing on elements that interact with the
user's emotions. By integrating design communication and storytelling elements,
we can connect viewers with the atmosphere, local history, and culture of the
designed space.
Before working on the animation's story, start with a thorough analysis. Ask
questions about your audience, their demographics, lifestyle, and the emotions you
want to evoke. Also, consider the specifics of where the animation will be
presented and any relevant backstory.

The more you understand the place and the audience, the better and more
engaging your output will be. This is a perfect starting point for brainstorming the
video's idea. Once you know who it's for, you can begin to craft a vision.

When moving to the next step, it's important to create a storyboard. Different
artists have various approaches—some make manual drawings, while others use
online tools. Regardless of the method, the concept remains the same. A
storyboard is essentially a graphic representation of how your video will unfold,
shot by shot. It consists of blocks that represent each shot's idea, accompanied by
important notes for each shot. Think of a storyboard as your roadmap for creating
an animation; it visually guides you throughout the production process.
Animation Basics
As mentioned previously, creating animation is a different level of the arch viz art.
You need a solid foundation in visualizations and must know how to achieve the
expected results for stills. Once you have this, creating animations will be about
adding an extra 'effect'—motion turning the image into an animation.

The first thing you need to do is get familiar with key topics like Frame Rate,
Animation Length, and more. These concepts are the foundation upon which you
will build your animation skills.

For instance, what does it mean if your animation is set to 24 FPS (Frames Per
Second)?

This means that for every second of animation, there are 24 individual frames.
Understanding this is crucial because it affects how smooth your animation will
appear and how much work is required. If you want to create a 5-second animation
at 24FPS, you will need to render 120 frames (5 seconds x 24 frames per second).
Knowing how many frames you need helps you plan the rendering time and
resources accurately.
Another important aspect is understanding how long it will take to render these
frames. Rendering time can vary depending on the complexity of your scene and
the power of your rendering hardware. This knowledge is essential not only for
planning the project timeline but also for quoting animations accurately. Clients
often want to know how long a project will take and how much it will cost, so having
a good grasp of these details will make you more professional and reliable.

Once you have a solid understanding of these foundational topics, you can move on
to the actual process of animating. Animation involves adding motion to still
objects, and this is where your creativity comes into play. You'll need to get
accustomed to using the timeline and setting keys. The timeline is where you
organize your animation, deciding when and where each movement happens.

The process of animating is not complicated but requires attention to detail. You
start by choosing a frame and setting the object’s position in that frame. Then, you
save it on the timeline. You can animate basic parameters like position, rotation,
and scale. But you can also animate different parameter values to achieve more
interesting and complex movements and effects.

For example, you can animate the focus length in camera settings, the noise value
in the texture, or the color to change the object’s appearance over time.
To have more control over your animations, you need to start working with the
Curve Editor. The Curve Editor allows you to manipulate the graphs that represent
the changes in your parameters over time. Understanding these graphs is crucial
for creating smooth and natural-looking animations. The Curve Editor gives you the
ability to fine-tune your animations, making them more polished and professional.

In summary, mastering these fundamental concepts and tools is essential to start

creating animations. Once you have a good grasp of frame rate, animation length,
and timeline, you can begin to explore more advanced techniques and create more
complex and engaging animations. This foundational knowledge will set you on the
path to becoming an accomplished animator.
Camera Settings
Similar to visualizations, setting up the camera is very important. The position, focal
length, and F-number all affect how we perceive the space. But in animations, also
adding movement to the camera is crucial as it is the foundational motion in your
video. Camera movements are part of storytelling too. By strategically combining
different types of cameras, we can guide viewers through the story.

Here is a list of 10 camera movements you can use in your animations:

THE ZOOM
It’s one of the easiest camera movements because you zoom in or out. It gives the
impression of moving closer or further away from the subject.

PAN
You can achieve this movement by moving your camera horizontally - left to right
or right to left. However, you don’t move the camera’s position itself, just the
direction it faces so the camera’s target.

TILT
You move the camera vertically - down to up or up to down. The same as in the pan
movement, the camera is stationary but you move the camera target.

DOLLY
In this example, the entire camera (both the camera and camera target) is moving
at the same time, going foreground or backward. The dolly movement gives the
impression that we are walking towards or away from the subject.

TRUCK
The same as in the dolly movement, you move the entire camera but now instead of
going in and out, you move the camera left to right or right to left.

PEDESTAL
The same as in the previous examples, the entire camera is moving, but now you
move the camera vertically up or down.

JIB/CRANE
In this case, we imitate the movement of a jib or a crane. So the camera goes from
the higher level - bird view to the lower - human eye level view, or vice versa.
 ORBIT
We move the camera around the subject 360 degrees keeping more or less the
same distance and pointing out the subject.

TILT/PAN
It's a combination of the two basic movements - so we tilt and pan the camera at
the same time.

DOLLY TILT
Another combination of two movements. Here, you push in or pull out with a tilt up
or down at the beginning or the end of the shot.

Additionally, in animations, a particularly important effect to consider adding is

motion blur. While it’s typically not very visible at first glance, it significantly
enhances the overall quality of the animation. Motion blur plays a crucial role in
making movements appear more natural. Our eyes are accustomed to seeing
motion blur in real life, so when it is incorporated into animations, it tricks our brains
into perceiving the motion as more realistic and believable. This subtle yet
impactful effect can greatly improve the viewer's experience by making the
animation feel more lifelike and immersive.
Animating Objects
Animation breathes life into a static architectural model, infusing it with an added
layer of realism and dynamism in 3D-rendered scenes. Incorporating moving
elements, such as people walking, vehicles driving, trees swaying in the wind, and
water flowing, can create a vibrant and dynamic environment that closely mimics
real-life scenarios, thereby assisting clients in visualizing how the space will
function and feel in reality.

In architectural visualization, it is not necessary to animate every single element;

sometimes even just one or two moving objects can have a significant impact. Of
course, this doesn't apply to all types of shots. The decision to animate depends on
the length of the shot, the elements included, and the overall concept or idea
behind it. Sometimes only the camera movement is enough if the shot is super
quick, so it’s all about strategic thinking and deciding where it’s worth and where it
is needed to add more motion

There are numerous methods to animate objects. While we can solely rely on
software like 3ds Max as the foundational tool, for more complex animations, it is
generally more effective to utilize various plugins.
Here are a few popular examples of objects that can be animated and the different
methods we can use to animate them:

For trees and plants, GrowFX is an excellent choice, provided that the tree is
created with the plugin. We can also utilize Forest Pack to animate entire
groups of plants, such as grass or a green wall. If necessary, or if the desired
effect is sufficient, we can also animate using the noise modifier in 3ds Max.
For a demonstration of adding wind animation to a tree, check out the video.

Marvelous Designer is a fantastic tool for animating curtains, as it is specifically

designed for digital cloth creation.

Water flowing from a tap is one of the most common objects to animate in
architectural visualization. This effect can be effectively created using Phoenix
FD.

TyFlow is a suitable choice for creating bubbles, for example, in a champagne

glass.
To learn how to animate bubbles using TyFlow, check out this tutorial.

Anima is an excellent choice for simulating 3D crowd animations, especially if

you need to include many people in your scene. In such cases, using individual
3D people would be an extremely time-consuming task.
Rendering
When it comes to creating animations, one of the most significant obstacles you will
encounter is the render times and render costs. These factors can greatly impact
the efficiency and feasibility of your projects.

While it is possible to use real-time software to streamline the process, the current
state of real-time rendering technology does not yet provide the quality required
for high-end animations.

Therefore, you must be strategic in your approach. Without a well-thought-out

strategy, you risk exceeding your budget quickly due to unforeseen complications.
It is crucial to anticipate and calculate potential mistakes and rendering issues. The
primary goal should be to minimize the risk of these problems in advance.

One of the worst scenarios would be completing the final render of your animation
only to discover flickering issues. This would necessitate re-rendering the entire
animation, which would be costly and time-consuming. Even worse, you might send
this flawed output to your client.

Hence, it is universally agreed that flickering is highly undesirable and most cases
should not be present in your final product. If flickering appears in your animation, it
indicates an issue in the scene setup or possibly a bug within the software.
If flickering appears in your animation, it indicates an issue in the scene setup or
possibly a bug within the software.

How can you prevent flickering?

Here are some guidelines:

Ensuring the correct render settings.

Verifying that objects do not have double surfaces, which means avoiding
situations where two polygons overlap each other.

Avoiding the use of very bright lights, especially small ones, as they can create
fireflies, which are single bright pixels that can ruin the visual quality.

Opting for environment lighting with larger, less intense light sources to reduce
fireflies in reflections and refractions.

Controlling the glossiness of reflective materials and lowering it where fireflies

appear, slightly blurring them to make them less visible.

Consider rendering more passes and at a higher resolution to improve the

overall quality.

Probably most artists, when working on animations, think about how to optimize
rendering times. Many end up sacrificing quality, for instance, by avoiding the
addition of motion blur effects.

There is, however, a method to drastically reduce render times and consequently
cut costs, especially if you are using a render farm, without compromising on
quality.

If you are interested in learning more about this method, watch the video, where all
the steps you need to take are demonstarted.
Combining a real clip with animation
To achieve the highest level of animation quality, it is beneficial to employ a
technique that integrates real footage with 3D-rendered scenes. A prime example
of this is an aerial shot. Without this technique, you would need to model an
extensive number of objects and add numerous details. Even then, it might still be
obvious that it is computer-generated imagery (CGI).

Using the mentioned composing approach makes the outcome significantly more
realistic because your focus is only on a small portion of the scene — our
highlighted area. This method allows us to dedicate more time to refining the most
crucial space of the project, enabling us to present it in the most convenient and
realistic context.

Taking the aerial shot as an example, this is indeed a complex task, but as
mentioned, it is worth investing the time.

Here are the steps we have to take during this technique:

We have to get the real photage - the drone shot, we propably hire someone for
this task. Here, we will have to give a guideance for the drone operator what
footage we need after explioring the side in 3D and anylisic the surroundings.

We would have to export the footage as a image sequance to add it to the 3D

software as a background.
 To be able to correctly set up the camera to the footage, we need to have a 3D
model that we can match to the clip. We can use Google Earth data for this for
instance.

We have to track the drone footage camera and import it to 3D software.

If you want to know how to do this, watch my tutorial.

Then, we have to adjust everything to our 3D model.

We would have to compose the render with the footage in the Video Editing
Software.

Next, adjust the scene lighting to the footage.

Post-production in Video Editing software.

The match doesn’t have to be perfect here but the more precise you will be, the
better and more convenient it will look. This technique is a very powerful tool and
can give extraordinary results.
Video Editing
Video editing skills are another crucial aspect that significantly contributes to
creating captivating and interesting animations. Developing your proficiency in this
area will undeniably make a difference in the overall quality and appeal of your
animations. The better you become at video editing, the more engaging and
fascinating your animations will be to your audience.

Video editing is a multifaceted process that includes several important steps:

organizing your rendered animation and/or clips to ensure they flow seamlessly,
adjusting clips to synchronize perfectly with the music to enhance the emotional
impact, performing color correction and grading to ensure visual consistency and
appeal, adding extra effects to enrich the visual experience, and generally polishing
and putting all these elements together cohesively. This comprehensive approach
ensures that the final animation is not only technically good but also visually
stunning and compelling.

After careful consideration, we made the strategic decision to transition from using
Adobe Solutions to DaVinci Resolve for our video editing needs. The switch was
motivated by several factors, including the better stability of DaVinci Resolve, its
efficient workflow speed, and the capabilities of a color corrector. Also, the pricing
structure of DaVinci Resolve played a role in our final decision-making process.

If you're interested in a comparison of these two software options, check out the
video on the Arch Viz Artist YouTube channel, where you can find out about the
specifics of each program.
Project Timeline & Budget
Another crucial aspect of creating animations is managing the production timeline
and the budget. Animations tend to be significantly more expensive than single
images, so monitoring and controlling costs closely is essential.

Factors such as production costs, rendering expenses, additional services, and the
profit margin you aim to achieve all contribute to the overall budget. If you fail to
plan your project meticulously in advance, you could face substantial problems. Not
only might you fail to make a profit, but in the worst-case scenario, you could end
up covering the expenses out of your own pocket.

The positive news is that careful planning can significantly minimize the risk of
potential issues. An important aspect of this planning is clear communication with
the client to set expectations. This ensures that both you and your client are on the
same page regarding what will be done when it will be completed, and at what cost.
Don't forget to establish not only the timeline for your production but also the time
needed for the client to provide feedback.

We recommend adding some extra buffer time to accommodate unexpected

issues, ensuring you complete the project on schedule.
3ds Max Exterior & Interior Animations 2.0
If you want to learn about this steps in detail, join our online training.

Learn more

Extra Free tutorials on the animation topic:

10 Tips On How To Create Amazing Architectural Animations

Create Animation From Still Image In A Few Seconds With A Use Of AI!

Creating Satisfying Loop Animation in 3ds Max

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