Squash and Stretch

The aim of this exercise was to teach us the principles of squash and stretch in animation. I used a bouncy ball to demonstrate this. Before we started there were many things to think about. To animate an object, first you must think of it as a real thing. For example, is it heavy, soft, sticky etc. Once the nature of the ball is decided upon I had to think how these properties would effect the action it takes. This first video is a pencil test. To do this, first I created a template, which showed me how the spacing between each movement of the ball. From this I could better understand how acceleration and deceleration of an object affects the spacing. When moving fast the spacing grows much wider and visa versa. I numbered each of the balls on the template to coincide with frames, before tracing it.

Once I was happy with the test I inked the frames. This is the finished result! I added an obstacle at the end. This shows the principle of anticipation! As the ball bounces for the third time it gets stuck on some gum. The principle of squash and stretch also applies to the gum as the ball resists and tries to bounce away. As the action is unexpected this would be classed as surprise anticipation! The ball bounces up, pauses for a moment before it reacts by snapping back. This action follows through by wobbling, before it goes stationary!