Calamari Cakes

they're worth learning! 😊

That's a question with too many variables to answer! I mess around and learn new stuff all the time, but I have a few decades of drawing practice under my belt so my experience isn't the most helpful. All I can say is that /eventually/ the practice pays off, and it's so good when it does 😊

a little WIP that I think looks cute already~💖

Ty! When it's this zoomed-in it's easier to smooth out, at least in my experience 😊

He is very cute like that, I agree 🥰

eheh tyty! Those little interactions and moments are some of my fav parts to draw 🥰

Thanks! That second step really helps to make sure the proportions are all set up properly, so it helps a ton to keep things where they need to be 😊

I mean her element IS called Icefire, so she contains multitudes 😊

Neither do they, so that seems fitting 🤭

the Section Chief is in heat again 😔💦

Tyty, glad it could be helpful! 😊

I usually just do a static sketch and then blob in motions overtop (step 1 in the video) until I have a loop that feels fluid and conveys the movement in the way I want, then I just draw bodies overtop of that!

I don't really do software tutorials, but I'm sure there's a bunch of videos out there!

Clip Studio Paint EX 3.0! I use it for comics, animation, and just drawing in general 😊

😊 Thanks Zlay!

I appreciate that! I'm mostly self-taught with regard to animation, and I'm just happy to figure out a workflow that works for me 😊

I appreciate that so much! Step 2 is the really tricky part, but if you can nail down the timing/spacing/proportions of the movement with those rough blobs, the rest is muuuuch less of a headache 😅

I'm glad! 🙏💙

Honestly the trickiest and most-rewarding parts all happen near the beginning, when I'm drawing in the blob-like rough animations ('step 2' in the video), which doesn't take too long! It can require some trial-and-error, but it's worth giving a shot 😊

Thanks! It's really about how many frames there are honestly; it doesn't feel like that big of a difference, but every extra frame is an extra drawing at every single step of the process, which can add up! 😩

I use Clip Studio Paint EX (currently using v3.0, haven't upgraded to 4.0) for animating as well as my comics and sketches, so I keep it all to one software. The time this sort of thing takes is highly variable based on frame count, but if it's simple maybe a few full working days? A week? Depends!

Thanks Rael! Always hope it's helpful to look at 😤

tyty Suzanne! I feel like I'm using some of my painting/comp-planning skills for figuring out animations, so it's fun to see the skills all cross-pollenating like this 🥰

eheh thanks Mari! 💖

Thanks! I definitely find the basic shapes to be the easiest way to nail timing and spacing before moving on to linework, almost like blocking out a painting to get the composition right before adding any details.

I appreciate that! It's not an especially complicated process, just a few challenging steps and lots of figuring things out early-on 😊

Thanks! It's definitely challenging work, and I've been really happy with the results 🥰

I share more in-depth process and longer timelapses on my Patreon/SubStar, but thought this little snippet would be bite-sized enough for socials~ 💙

A little rapid-fire breakdown of how my animations come to be! 🤗

Eheh, they're on a tight schedule but they won't pass up the opportunity! 🥰