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Rule of thirds

The "Rule of thirds" is a way to make pictures and animations look more interesting and balanced. You must imagine your image being divided into three parts horizontally and vertically. Then, you place important parts of your picture where the lines cross.

The rule of thirds is a basic principle of composition used in visual arts, including animation. It involves dividing an image or screen into three parts both horizontally and vertically, creating a grid with nine equal parts. The four points where the lines intersect are called the “power points”.

In animation, using the rule of thirds can help create visually engaging compositions that guide viewers’ attention within a scene. By placing important elements at the power points or along the lines, the animator can draw viewers’ attention to specific areas and create dynamic shots.

For example, if animating a character walking across the screen, placing them on one of the vertical lines instead of directly in the center can create a more interesting shot. Similarly, positioning a character’s face at one of the power points can draw attention to their expression.

Moreover, the rule of thirds also helps animators to balance their shots. A well-balanced shot has a focal point that draws the viewer’s eye while also having other elements that support it. By using this principle, animators can create balanced compositions that are pleasing to look at.

Additionally, animators may also use this principle to create tension or drama in their scenes. Placing characters or objects off-center can create a sense of unease or imbalance that adds tension to a scene. This technique is often used in horror or suspense animation.

To summarize, the rule of thirds is a fundamental principle of composition that animators can use to create visually engaging compositions. By dividing an image into thirds both horizontally and vertically, animators can draw attention to specific areas, create depth, balance their shots, and even add tension to their scenes. Ultimately, this principle allows animators to tell more compelling stories through their visuals.

Animation Terms

2

2D Animation

3

3D Animation

A

Alpha Channel

Ambient sound

Animation

Anti-Aliasing

Anticipation

Aspect Ratio

B

Bezier Curve

Bitmap

Blue Screen

Bone Animation

Bounce

Broadcast Standards

C

Camera Angle

Camera Shake

Casting

Cel Animation

Character Animation

Character Design Sheets

Cinematic lighting

Claymation

Clean-up

Close-up

Color Correction

Color Grading

Compositing

Composition

Concept Art

Continuity editing

Cross-cutting

Cut

Cutout nimation

D

Depth of Field

Dialogue

Dissolve

Distributed Rendering

Dolby Atmos

Dope Sheet

Dutch Angle

E

Easing

Emitter

Exaggeration

Eyedropper

F

Foley

Follow through

Forward Kinematics

Frame Rate

Frame

Framing

Freeze Frame

G

Ghosting

GIF File Format

Golden Ratio

Graph Editor

H

High key lighting

Hue and Saturation

I

Inertia

Infographic Animation

Inverse Kinematics

J

Joint

JPEG File Format

Jump cut

K

Keyframe Interpolation

Keyframe

Kinetic typography

L

Layers

Lens distortion

Level of Detail

Lighting

Line of action

Lip syncing

Low key lighting

M

Match cut

Matte painting

Montage

Morphing

Motion blur

Motion capture

Motion graphics

Motion path

Motion trail

Mouth shapes

MP3 File Format

MP4 File Format

N

Network rendering

Non-linear editing

O

Occlusion culling

Onion skinning

Overlapping action

P

Pan

Parallel rendering

Particle system

Persistance of Vision

Phonemes

Playback speed

Plot

PNG File Format

Pose-to-pose animation

Props

Puppet animation

R

Render farm

Rendering

Resolution

Rigging

Rotoscoping

Rule of thirds

Run cycle

S

Safe zone

Scene

Score

Screenplay

Script

Shot

Silhouette

Skeletal animation

Slow Motion

Smears

Sound Design

Sound effects

Soundtrack

Special Effects

Split screen

Squash and Stretch

Staging

Stop Motion Animation

Storyboard

Straight-ahead Animation

T

Time Remapping

Timeline

Timing

Title Card

Title Sequence

Tracking shot

Tweening

V

Vector graphics

Visemes

Voice acting

Voice-over Narration

W

Walk cycle

WebM File Format

Weighting

Wide shot

Z

Z-depth

Zoom

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