Thread: Simple Animation -Develop A Simple Timeline Motion Tween

The term "Tweening" means "in between". Animations can be created in Flash with the help of the Tweening method. By using this method, changes can be made in the animations very easily. The movement from one keyframe to the other becomes convenient with the use of the Tweening method in Flash. Tweened animation also helps in decreasing the size of the files. In Flash, it is the most effective way of creating movements. There are two types of Tweened animation in Flash. One is the Motion Tween and the other is the Shape Tween.

Motion Tween in Flash is primarily used to change properties of a group, types or instances. Properties like the size, position and rotation of the symbols can be defined at one time by a motion Tween. The same can again be changed if needed, at another point of time. A motion Tween can also be created along a path. By using the Motion Tween, color changes can also be made to instances or types.

Motion Tweens can be created in two ways in Flash. These are:
• Using the Motion Tween option
• Creating the Motion Tween along the path

Using The Motion Tween Option

There are certaip. steps to be followed for using the motion Tween option for creating the animation. To do this, first:
1. Make a layer active by clicking on it.
2. On this layer, select an empty keyframe. It will be here where the animation will begin.
3. Next, the first frame of the motion Tween is to be created. This' can be done either by drawing a graphic object ;tnd converting it into a symbol or by dragging an instance of a symbol from the Library Panel. This can also be done by creating on the stage a group, an instance or a text block.
4. Keep the new keyframe selected.
5. Now, choose another keyframe where the animation is suppose to end.
6. At times, the item or the object in the last frame needs to be changed. To do this, either the position of the object can be changed or the size can be modified. Change in color for text block and instances can also be done.
7. Next, from the entire frame span of the Tween, choose a frame.
8. Now, select Motion as Tween in the Properties Inspector.
9. At the time of Tweening, the object can also be made to rotate.
This can be done by attributing any of the rotation options. You can select Auto to make the object rotate in that direction where the motion required is least. The Clockwise and Counterclockwise options can be used to specifY the number of rotations. If no rotarotation is desired, then choose the 'none' option.
10.In the Properties Inspector, choose the option sync in order to match the Timeline and the animation of graphic symbol instances.
We can also create Motion Tween along a path. This process is discussed next.