As a video content creator, you might sometimes want to add and integrate images or animations in your videos. This could be due to many reasons that essentially enhance your videos. Adding pictures and animations in between your videos will definitely improve the effectiveness of your storytelling and visual elements. In this article, we will talk about 12 tips to add images and animations while making a video.
Let’s dive right in!
1# Know when to use them
It is an established fact that animations or images make the videos eye-catchy. But this visual effectiveness may sometimes lead to a negative outcome if they are not placed properly. It is very important to first understand when to use them in your videos. The right timing and utility of images or any animations would lead to proper effectiveness. Having a few pictures and animations play out at the right time will add much more sense to the videos. This will make sure that you do not over-utilize or under-utilize the features of additions.
2# Have a Script or Plan
Having a script that acts like a plan is always helpful. Even if it is for adding a few images or integrating animations into your videos. This is like a map or compass that saves you from getting lost in the process. Often when you are focusing on adding images or transitions, it is quite obvious that you could easily get distracted from the big picture. Having a script beforehand will make it easy for you to come back to check for utility and see why and when you must place these animations or images in the videos.
3# Choose the Right App
There are a variety of applications that are available to serve your purpose of adding images, transitions, and making animations. These apps serve various purposes, and pricing templates as well. They are web tools, online makers, free services, premium software, etc; Apps like Blender, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Animator, Animaker, Premiere Pro, and Final Cut are just a few popular names that are leading the market in terms of animations and additions. Choose the app that suits you best and serves your purpose.
4# Optimize for Quality
Be it images, texts, transitions, or even animations. As a professional video maker, you need to make sure that you provide your audience with the highest quality possible. The quality of output should always be a major factor while operating through these processes. Always try to maximize the outputs of the images and animations that you are adding or making. Try to avoid compromising for the cheap, fake tools and transitions that just destroy your video in terms of quality. Maintaining standards in terms of story, scripts, images/animations, and video rendering will in turn affect the quality of Storytelling. In short – Always Optimize for Quality.
5# Consistent Design
Ensure that the images or animations are consistent with regard to the overall video design. To make sure that this consistent design is maintained, you must carefully look at a few important factors. Having the same layout and crop length for images, that’s on par with video layout and formats. When you color grade your videos, or even if you have a certain color palette for the overall video or certain clips, you must make sure the animations or images must be in contrast and on par with that color theme. Having consistency checked in terms of formats, sizes, layouts, colors, and relevance is always a good step.
6# Integrating the right effects
You will have to integrate a few transitions or effects into the videos. These are with respect to how the images and animations that you have added will play out on the screen. Choosing the right set of transitions between images that looks good on screen, without giving a childish impression. Professional standards have certain effects through the animations as well. This decision of choice depends on your intention of keeping those pictures or adding those specific animations. Ways of integrating them with effects shall vary for each case. Just make sure to integrate with the right effects or transitions.
Let’s continue ahead with the rest of the 12 tips to add images and animations while making a video.
7# Plan the Entry and Exits
The images or animations that you are going to add are not always going to stick around on the screen. They are just an addition to complement the effectiveness of your video. This means that these will play out only for a certain time at a specific time. So you must make sure that these will play out properly with proper entry and exits. An animation must start at the right moment in the video, and should stop at the correct time before it is overdone. Similarly, the images must pop up, display, and transition out of the screens at the right times with regard to the video and story scripts.
8# Layout and Animations
If we talk specifically about the animations in your video, the layout and animation itself are two major points to keep in mind. Layout refers to the positioning, placement, and timing of the animation. This is quite important as we already discussed above. The second part is the animation itself. Ensure that the animation is properly drawn out and plays out well in the video. Merely placing animations is not enough. Ensuring that these are of good quality and proving their effectiveness in the video in terms of story-telling, designs, and aesthetics.
9# Synchronization and Rendering
This tip is with regard to the outputs of animations. In video lingo, this is called as rendering. Synchronizing and rendering outputs of the animations in your videos directly affect the final quality hallmark. Having the proper sequence for the individual elements playing out on the screen is important.
10# Type of Animations
There are various types of animations available. You must choose the correct type or format that suits you best and serves your purpose. You can integrate 2D renderings and overlay animations. These will play out on top of your video screens, along with other video content. Another option is to implement 3D visuals by separately creating them and framing them on the screens.
11# Learn Editing
Though it might sound trite, editing is an art. And you must learn these editing skills properly to make sure your video looks awesome. Regardless of whatever you are working with, editing the video is a significant skill that changes the course of the whole video and output. Cutting clips, adding images, transitioning frames, adding effects, and merging animations are all part of a good editing skill-set.
12# Review for Utility
Now that you’ve seen almost all the 12 tips to add images and animations while making a video, let’s look at the final tip here. That’s related to reviewing the work done. Once you have implemented the above-mentioned tips in the process of making the video great, by adding in images and animations., we will finally take an outlook at the work done. You should review your final output to see if all the additional elements are contributing to your purpose. Check if the elements are eye-catchy enough and that they are being utilized properly. In short, review for utility.
Happy Reading!
