How to Animate on Mac- Have you ever wanted to learn how to animate on mac? There’s a lot of tutorials online on how to get started. So we want to share our knowledge, and give you tips and tricks on using free animation software for mac.
Have you ever thought about animating your photos on Mac? An image can tell a thousand words, and when you animate it, it can tell even more. Today, I’d like to share some free animation software for Mac. These software make it easier for me to create animated images.
Table of Contents
Lightwave 3D
Lightwave 3D is a state-of-the-art 3D animation maker, developed by NewTek, that is a powerful suit for the entire pipeline of rendering, modeling, sculpting, rigging and VFX. This is a favorite of top professionals. Literally, its users include Emmy Award winning animators that have worked on Hollywood productions. Lightwave 3D is supported by 32-bit MAC UB 64. Purchase the tool pack from the website of NewTek.
Pencil Animation Tool
Pencil 2d is an animation software for Mac beginners that is open source. It is best for vector and bitmap style animation.
In Pencil 2d you can use tools like pencil, brush, and pen to create attractive animations. Its interface is pretty easy to navigate and also user friendly.
Further, you can customize the function and features on Pencil 2d to best suit your needs. So, you don’t have to adjust with the default interface.
Another feature that makes it suitable for animation is its clean and clear timeline. Apart from Mac, this software is also compatible with Windows and Linux computers.
Pros:
- Beginners will benefit from its user-friendly interface.
- In Pencil 2d you can easily switch between vector and raster files.
Cons:
- Setting for some of the tools gets set to default automatically. So, you may need to change it every time you use those tools.
Blender Animation Software
Blender is one of the best animation software for Mac. This is because it is both free in nature and open source.
Using an OpenGL Blender ensures a steady performance while animation. You will be able to create outstanding 3d animations out of even ordinary stills. In Blender, the walk cycles can be automated along the animation paths.
If you want you can modify your characters with the help of a special editor in Blender. In addition to this, you can generate independent character movements with the help of linear animations.
Another useful feature in Blender is its mirror functionality. This lets you mirror your animated character or object and see both sides.
Pros:
- Blender has match moving, simulating particles, body simulating, rigging simulating smoke, fluid, good skinning quality features.
- There is an intuitive interface for editing and composing videos in Blender.
- Blender has an integrated game engine that lets you evolve video games.
- Since it is open-source you can customize it according to your requirements.
Cons:
- Beginners will need some time to learn all the features on Blender.
VideoScribe
This program is produced by Sparkol and it remains one of the best whiteboard animation software programs for both Mac and PC. You can also use it on a number of mobile devices including devices that run android. There are elements of the program that works through the cloud making it very simple to upload and edit video wherever you might be.
Videoscribe works quite intuitively for building business presentations, TED talk style videos, tutorials, creative marketing solutions and more. What is produced out of this program looks hand-drawn and extremely professional for any type of marketing campaign. The best part is that you can use many of these tools to create these effects with very little animation knowledge.
Even children enjoy using this program because of its ease of use. There is a full library of stock images, animation and more as well as an extensive voiceover soundtrack that can be used with the solutions here.
The yearly and monthly subscription also ensures that there is a flexible use for the program. It also comes with a seven-day free trial with features to try before you buy.
Autodesk Maya
Maya supports sophisticated 3D motion graphics, modeling, rendering, simulation, CAD drawing and visual effects, supplying to many native Mac products. A wide range of products, full support and workflow enhancements like UV editor and vector graphics is available for Mac devices. This product can be a comprehensive toolset for an entire animation project. Purchase the software from the website Autodesk’s website. A free trail is available.
Stykz Animation Program
Stykz is a free animation software for mac that is best for beginners. You can convert vectors into eye-catching 2d animations with the help of stick figures. The stick figures style animation can become the base for your major animation projects.
Animators having experience in working with pivot stick figures always prefer Stykz above any other animation software.
Further, you will be able to add transitions in your animated videos with the help of Stykz’s onion skin feature. Stykz offers you several frames for the purpose of animation.
Pros:
- Even kids can use Stykz as it is so easy to use.
- Regardless of being simple, this software is pretty powerful.
Cons:
- This software only supports animation with 2d stick figures which are pretty basic.
PowToon
This is a fantastic online presentation maker for academic use, presentations and infographics.
The program is completely free to use and has a number of animation effects on board that can make anything exported out of the program seem extremely professional.
The free templates available in the program as well as the quality of the animations that are presented within the platform make it a true favorite amongst many brands.
A number of major companies now almost exclusively trust their creative tools to Powtoon and it can be used almost anywhere where there is an Internet connection with mass compatibility.
As a fully cloud-based system there’s no use for installation or downloads to take full advantage of it. Its available for free use on any Macintosh computer as long as you are willing to use the watermark.
Cinema 4D
Maxon’s Cinema 4D Studio, is a hit amongst Mac users. This extremely powerful 4D animation and VFX toolset comes with an intuitive interface and procedural workflow inspiring quick and hassle-free production. The software is randomly updated, and with latest, Cinema4D Release 19 version, there is a promise to make the animation experience faster and dependability to count on. 64-bit Mac 10.11.6 or higher OS versions are recommended. Buy it or Try it, from the website of Maxon.
DAZ Studio Animation Tool
DAZ Studio is considered to be one of the best free animation software for Mac with which you can change pose, render or animate your 3d characters. The design engine of this software is really fast and smooth. In addition to this, it has an easy-to-use interface.
You can make use of DAZ studio’s library for creating superior quality animation. You will be able to create almost human-like characters on this software.
There are several tools to help you create animations with studio-like qualities.
Pros:
- You can create any type of character with the help of DAZ studios character creators.
- Capture the entire body animation in just one take.
- You can draw realistic images using human figures that are available in 3d format.
Cons:
- You may face inconvenience in fine-tuning your animations.
Toon Boom Harmony
This is a program that actually deserves some surprising recognition. The company has partnered with major film companies like Warner brothers, Disney, and Nickelodeon and it’s currently one of the best and most powerful 2-D animation suites for commercial use.
With the use of this program you can build anything from traditional animation all the way to amazing drawing tools that can produce the future of 3-D animation. The 3-D cameras and integration available in this platform can provide fundamental solutions for drawing, rendering and building beautiful projects.
There are tools and tasks available here that can suit small hobby animators all the way up to professional uses. The premium version delivers the top tool professional solutions that you might expect at of any major animation suite. The essentials level of the harmony program is designed more for hobbyists and it delivers a scaled down version of some of their more high and customization techniques.
Toon Boom not only remains one of the best 2-D animation programs for mac but it is a regular fixture in the animation world today.
Conclusion
To create an incredibly cool animation in the blink of an eye, I will take you through four steps – open your photo in variety of ways, open your final animation software, load the picture onto it and record your moves. Then you can easily make any computer animated with different characters or objects. This process would cost you nothing because the applications used are free to download.