You might frequently hear Blender being referred to as “Blender 3D”. That’s no surprise, as it is an extremely versatile 3D modeling, animation, and rendering tool. You might be asking, can I use Blender 3D for 2D animations? I remember being shocked when I learned the answer is yes, you can.

This guide will walk you through everything regarding Blender and 2D animation, such as why you might want to use it for that purpose, down to how to finish up a 2D animation in the program.

Why Use Blender for 2D Animation?

You might be wondering why you should use Blender for 2D animation instead of some of the other options available and custom-built for that. 

The first reason is that Blender is free and open-source, and with that comes a rich community that always offers new tips and tricks to improve your workflow. You also might not be aware of it, but the program comes with a large selection of tools which can come in handy for 2D animation.

Finally, Blender is one app that will make it incredibly easy for you to combine 2D and 3D elements in a scene, which can come in very handy. Some 2D elements might be way too arduous to animate manually, so why not just make them 3D? If you're new to Blender and need a solid foundation before diving into exports, our Complete Guide to Blender 3D for Beginners will help you get started with the basics.

Setting Up Your Workspace for 2D Animation

Now, let’s begin this 2D animation tutorial for Blender. I’m going to start by teaching you how to best set up your workspace for a 2D animation workflow. Quite naturally, quite a few things will need to change since Blender is set by default for 3D workflows.

Here’s how to launch Blender right into the 2D animation workspace. It doesn’t even take that many steps. There are quite a few ways you can access it.

1. Launch Blender.

2. Once the application has launched, under the New File section in the landing window, choose “2D Animation”.

3. This will launch you straight into the 2D animation workspace which looks very different from the 3D one.

If you already have Blender opened, you can click on “File” in the menu bar at the top, “New”, and then “2D Animation. You can also directly access the 2D Animation workspace in any project by clicking the plus icon at the far right of the workspace tabs and choosing any of the 2D Animation options.

Understanding the Grease Pencil Tool

The Grease Pencil is the default drawing tool that Blender equips you with in the 2D animation workspace. You can also use the Grease Pencil to draw directly onto the viewport in 3D workspaces, which is great when paired with the 3D cursor and drawing over a 3D object.

The Grease Pencil is powerful because of all the features it comes with. Apart from being able to draw over both 2D and 3D scenes, you can also organize your drawings into layers (as with most major 2D art programs), change your strokes and brushes, and so much more.

The Grease Pencil tool comes in handy for pure 2D animation, when drawing and animating the movements of characters. However, you can also use it to draw over 3D props and background elements. It also comes in handy for rotoscoping, as well as storyboarding right in the Blender app.

Creating Your First 2D Animation

Now, this part will mostly depend on your pre-existing 2D art and animation skills. However, with a good foundation here, especially with other digital art programs, you should have an easy time.

On the 2D animation canvas, you can use the Grease Pencil to draw your character. You can adjust the brush type, thickness, opacity, and so on, as you would in other art programs. It’s best to draw a relatively simple character, as you’re planning to animate it. Once you’re done, press “I” to set a keyframe for the character’s current position. Now, manually move the timeline at the bottom to a new frame.

Now, you can draw the character into another pose, and Blender will even help you by “onion skinning” which shows you a transparent highlight of your previous frame. This will help with keeping things consistent. Once you’ve drawn the new image, press “I” to set another keyframe. Repeat this until you have enough set keyframes. 

Press the Play button in the timeline to watch your first 2D animation in Blender!

Adding Color and Final Touches

Now, it is great as it is, but you can add a little of razzle dazzle to your animation. Don’t be afraid to add color to your animation to make it look more lively. There’s a fill bucket tool that you can use to instantly add color to a closed-off shape and you can also change the color of your strokes before you make them. It’s also great to explore different stroke thicknesses and so on.

Don’t be afraid to add shadows that move as your character moves. With simpler 2D animations, a shadow that is generally oval-shaped tends to suffice, but you can use a more detailed shadow for more complex animations. You can also add visual effects like a blur for fast-moving objects to make your animation more polished. If you want, you can even add textures to objects.

Exporting Your Animation

The final step is to export your 2D animation so you can share it or continue your editing in another application. Let me quickly take you through the steps of exporting your animation once you’re done.

1. From the Blender interface, look towards the properties section on the right side and click on the icon that looks like a TV. This will open the Render Properties. Ensure that you’re set to Eevee render engine, though it usually will be by default. There are other render engines available for Blender, but Eevee is what you need for 2D art.

2. Next, click the icon with the printer with a picture coming out of it. This will open the Output Properties.

3. The first thing you can do is set the resolution that you desire from the Format tab. It is 1920x1080, which is Full HD, by default. This is great, but if you want to render faster, you can reduce the resolution.

4. This is a crash course, so let’s skip straight to the Output tab in the Output Properties. The first thing you should do is set where you want the rendered file to save to by clicking the folder icon.

5. Now, in the File Format section, choose “FFmpeg Video”.

6. Expand the Encoding tab and select the Container. MPEG-4 is MP4, which I recommend for its compatibility. 

7. Set the Output Quality under the Video tab to “High Quality”. Lower qualities can help speed up your render and will result in a smaller file.

8. Now, press Ctrl + F12 to start rendering the animation (one of the most useful Blender shortcuts!). Once it is done, you will find it in the location you specified earlier.

Practical Applications of 2D Animation in Blender

So, a big question you might be asking is, when might you want to actually use 2D animation in Blender? That’s a good question and there are quite a few creative examples.

• Storyboarding: This is the technique of planning out how your animation will unfold, represented in concise panels. You can storyboard for both 2D and 3D animations, and being able to do that right in Blender is efficient.

• Concept Art: When trying to design characters that you want to model in 3D, you can use the Grease Pencil and 2D canvas to create your concept art.

• Hybrid Animation: Some very creative animations combine 2D and 3D elements, and it is known as hybrid animation. Since the Grease Pencil can be used to draw directly on the 3D viewport, it is relatively easy to do this in Blender.

• Traditional 2D Animation: Finally, you might simply be used to Blender already and you can use it to create a purely 2D animation without using any of its 3D tools.

Conclusion

Creating a 2D animation in Blender starts with setting up the right workspace, learning your way around the Grease Pencil tool, then understanding how to set keyframes, and finally, exporting your finished product. The Grease Pencil is pretty exceptional since you can use it to combine 2D and 3D animation, allowing your creativity to have no limits.

To get better at animating in 2D with Blender, I recommend checking out the Blender community forums or the wealth of free YouTube videos available. These will help you learn more and get past common bugs and issues. While learning, you can test out your new knowledge using Vagon’s cloud-based solutions hosting Blender. You’ll be able to use Blender from anywhere and on any device.

FAQs:

1. What is Blender 3D?

   • Blender 3D is a free and open-source 3D creation suite that can be used for 3D modeling, animation, and rendering. It contains other tools related to video editing, 2D animation, and Python scripting.

2. Is Blender 3D suitable for 2D animation?

   • Blender 3D can be used for 2D animation and specifically contains tools that can be used for these purposes, despite its reputation for 3D art.

3. What are the benefits of using Blender for 2D animation?

   • Blender can be particularly useful for 2D animation as it can be combined with 3D tools for hybrid animation. It can also help your storyboard and conceptualize your 3D art without needing a separate application.

4. Which software is best for 2D animation?

   • Blender can help out with 2D animation but it usually isn’t the first and sole choice of professionals. Options like Adobe Animate and Toon Boom Harmony are full-featured 2D animation suites.

5. What file formats does Blender 3D allow for 2D animations?

   • You can export your 2D animation in file formats such as MP4, AVI, MOV, WebM, and MKV.