Animated Objects

(based on original text copied from tkfilter.bplaced.net/TKFilter%20tutorials%20animated%20objects.html , lost images recreated , originals credited in the text)

How to use TK's G´MIC filter Sequences / Object animation:

This filter allows you to generate sets of frames which animate objects choosen from your still image in multiple ways. First and most important: Select your object using any selection tool in GIMP and create a mask from it. Create the mask as a separate layer, not as a layer mask for any of your layers in the image file. Place the mask below your image, in case you do not work on a single image but on a frameset (Which is useful to animate more than one object) your layer mask must be on the bottom. To create a mask as a layer do the following: Create a new layer and fill it with solid black. Then activate your image and select your object with any selection tool of GIMP you like. Having done that click on the black layer, now your selection is active on this layer. Fill the selection with white and your mask layer is ready.

Now you can call the G´MIC animation filter and create animations like this from a single image:

JPEG img src=steampunk_animation.gif alt="animated gif" download wiki attachment if the image is not moving

When you open the filter interface the default preview shows the image as it is at the start of the motion; after you have made your settings you see the last image of your animation:

img src=animation_interface2.jpg alt="Sequences / Object Animation"

As you see I let the plane fly out of the upper left image corner. Please make sure that your image is activated when you call the filter and that the G´MIC input mode is set to Active and below.

To see your image moving call in GIMP: Filter / Animations / Playback. To store you image as animation Export it as .gif and choose option animation.

And here is how your animation looks like (stock from www.scx.hu), the plane I pimped a bit with the "Photoillustration" filter (the mask was already there, so it took a second to get the original sky back:

missing file - TK's site went down and we've been unable to contact him
1192087_21097245animation.gif

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Few more useful hints:

The filter uses a smart method* to reconstruct unwanted background areas. As in any context sensitive filling method there are limitations, you are constructing something which simply does not exist in the original image. (see update : resynth) Use the sliders at the bottom to reconstruct the background according to your taste. To avoid the whole problem, simply let your objects move directly towards the virtual camera.

• [COMMANDS inpaint and inpaint_flow]

Larger Z-movements in your viewing direction tend to decrease the objects sharpness. it might be useful to sharpen the object.

With larger Z-movements the object may easily get out of sight of the virtual camera. I may be a good way to adjust your settings by putting the Z-motion slider just a little forward first and see where your object appears. Next adjust the virtual camera on your object and finally little by little increase your objects X,Y and Z-movement.

To move around several objects in different directions just create the frameset for the first object. Next create a new mask for the next object and place it at the bottom of your frameset. Call the filter again and activate Work on frameset now. Make sure G´MIC input mode is set to All. Make your motion adjustments for the second object and let the filter do the rest again. Now the second object is set in motion too on each frame of your animation. Frame size and number remain unchanged in this routine. By repeating these steps you can animate as many objects as you like and make a whole movie from just one image. And now.....have fun!

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Updates: In the advanced settings section you find a new checkbox to activate the blue screen mode. If you tick this checkbox the filter allows you to combine any object from one image with another background image. You can use this mode for animated composites of two images like videos combined using the bluescreen technique. Your object image must be on top of the layer stack, your background image placed below and your mask at the bottom. Switch the G´MIC input mode to All when using this mode. Now the filter combines your background image with the animation of your object.

For complicated cases where the built in automatic background reconstruction does not show convincing results, use this mode by first making a layer with just your object, repair the background behind either:

• manually cloning or
• using GIMP's Resynthesizer-plugin or
• using G'MIC's -repair function, see Enhancement / Inpaint [patch-based] in the plug-in menu.

You may also use the blue screen mode on framesets. In this case you can animate another object from another image and compose it into your frameset. Let the original frameset be on top, place the new image below and your mask at the bottom. Using this method sequentially allows you to animate as many objects as you like within your image. You are not limited to "naturalistic" animations but you can also create your own animated comic strips or paintings by using other G´MIC filters on the created frameset. I made one example using G´MICs painting filter.

Also in this section you find a checkbox to enable the Camera motion only mode. This mode is useful if you do not want to animate a specific object but create an animation moving the virtual camera over a 2D image. This mode works without a mask, if you use it on one single image set the input mode to Active or if you work on a frameset use All. With the Closeup slider you select how much the camera zooms into your image at the starting point. Use the x,y and z-axis controls together with the camera position settings to define the motion in your animation.

THIS WIKI IS EDITABLE IF YOU CREATE A LOG-IN TO SOURCEFORGE YOU COULD ADD EXAMPLES OF BLUESCREEN BELOW AS TK's ORIGINALS ARE LOST