The Blender software is used by many of the professional 3D animators and 2D animators working today. It is popular for producing 3D animated movies, TV shows, and videogames. This software tutorial can help a beginner get started in Blender animation, by teaching you how to do character animation and lip syncing. The tutorial also teaches you how to make a simple cartoon that has its own background music.
Get to know the free Blender software. You’ll have access to step-by-step tutorials on how to create your own animations, an exclusive workflow section and useful tips that show you how to model a chimp character in Blender. The course is designed for beginners with little or no previous knowledge of 3D animation software.
Get StartedPrimitive Animals: Owl
Turn the default cube into a cute owl!
Watch the perfect complement to the Blender Fundamentals series in this 4-part tutorial.Blender Fundamentals 2.8x
The ultimate guide to get up to speed with Blender 2.80. In this official series you will learn every corner of the new interface and concepts through short, clear and concise videos.
This series is also available for Blender 2.7x.Learn Grease Pencil Basics
After watching this tutorial by Matias Mendiola you’ll have covered the basics of the new 2D workflow in Blender 2.80. From drawing to coloring, animating, adding modifiers and even FX!Modeling & SculptingStylized Character Workflow
In this tutorial, Julien Kaspar will walk you through his process of creating a stylized character, using only Blender.Python & ScriptingScripting for Artists
These are the free chapters of Scripting for Artists, in which Sybren teaches how to automate things in Blender. The entire training series can be found on Blender Cloud.Download
How to Animate in Blender
Want to use Blender, but don’t know where to begin? These tutorials give you a solid foundation to help you get started.
Surfaced Studio’s Blender for Absolute Beginners Series
Are you starting from the very beginning? Surfaced Studio’s Blender for Absolute Beginners series walks you through downloading the program and cracking in for the first time.
If you’re looking for a completely comprehensive rundown on how to get set up the right way, we encourage you to sit through the above hour-long video. Nothing goes unexplained—few Blender tutorials feel this dedicated to showing ordinary users how to emulate a professional experience without having to invest in new hardware.
After spending about 30 seconds watching this tutorial, one thing becomes apparent immediately: Surfaced Studio knows Blender inside and out. We learned a lot, even about some of the most basic parts of the program. If there is anything about Blender that confuses you, we urge you to watch all of the videos in this series.
2D Animation in Blender by CG Geek
One of the many claims to fame that Blender enjoys is its suitability for traditional, 2D animation. If you want to learn how to 2D animate in Blender, this tutorial by CG Geek will definitely be something worth checking out.
In Blender, you can draw 2D characters and scenes with the Grease Pencil tool; you can even use the program’s onion skins to track your 2D character over several frames, emulating the feeling of animating in a more traditional 2D animation program. CG Geek shows us how to draw keyframe poses and in-betweens on the Blender timeline, how to animate a basic run cycle using Blender’s tools, and goes over various modes.
Overall, the tutorial showcases how Blender’s unique functionalities can be applied to 2D animation, as well as highlights the versatility of the system.
Sebastian Lague on Character Creation and Rigging in Blender
Rigging characters for action is the process of giving a 3D animation model “bones”—a simplified set of controls that allow you to move the arm or the leg on a jointed connection. Sebastian Lague’s straightforward and fearless approach is perfect for a beginner who already has a character in front of them.
He does much more than build a simple skeleton for his character. Everything from weight painting, adding constraints, and creating control bones, is demonstrated clearly. The nuance with which he explains each part of the process goes above and beyond, making this Blender rigging tutorial extraordinarily valuable for beginners.
We can’t tell if it’s his level of expertise or the dulcet sound of his voice—these Blender tutorials fly right by, and they’re incredibly useful.
Blender Fundamentals
This collection of Blender tutorials for beginners comes straight from the source itself. If you want to start your journey doing things the official, Blender-approved way, this series is the one for you. It covers everything from how to make animations in Blender, as well as how to render animations in Blender, front to back.
It’s worth mentioning that this series was made using Blender 2.8. Luckily, in your recommendations sidebar, you’ll probably find this quick explainer on everything that’s changed with Blender version 2.93. These versions are different in many subtle ways—if you can learn Blender 2.8, you’ll be able to figure out Blender 2.93 just fine.
Sure, you could just crack into the Blender documentation and learn many of the same lessons. There’s just something about listening to an expert that makes everything so much easier, though.
Beginner’s Guide to Blender
The purpose of this instructable is to teach some who has never used blender before, how to use it. We will go over the basics of modeling and navigating in blender.
First download blender from
www.blender.orgAdd TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 1: Opening
This is what blender looks like when you open it.
You are faced with a toolbar to the left an right, file operations to the top, timeline on the bottom, and the 3D view in the center.
Blender’s default starting mesh is a cube, we will be demonstrating basic functions on this.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 2: Basic Navigation
To rotate around in the 3D view, hold down the middle mouse button and move the mouse.
To move up and down or to and fro, hold shift+middle mouse, and and move the mouse.
Use the scroll wheel to zoom in and out.
To select an object right click, to de-select right click away from the object.
To select multiple objects, hold “SHIFT” and select the objects.
To select everything press “A” or to de-select everything press “A”
Notice that when you select something, it will be highlighted orange.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 3: Object Mode and Edit Mode
The two modes we will be using in this tutorial are:
Object Mode
This lets you select objects and move them around as you please.
Edit Mode
This allows you to select individual vertexes, lines, and planes. you can modify the mesh in this mode.
to switch between these two modes you can either go down to the menu below, or just press TAB.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 4: Rotation Scaling and Translating
First I want to make note of the arrows that appear when you select an object.
those are the Axes. The red arrow is the X axis, green is the Y axis, and blue is the Z axis.
These arrows allow you to move things more accurately.
Translating
There are three ways to do this, one is to simple right click and drag. Another is to just select the object and press “G”
Or, you can left click on the axis you want to move the object on, and drag.
Rotating
Rotating is very simple, all you have to do is select the object to be rotated, and press “R”
If you want to rotate around a specific axis, first press “R” then “X”, “Y”, or “Z”. Each letter corresponds to it’s respective axis.
Scaling
To scale an object, simply press “S”. if you want to stretch an object along a certain axis press “X”, “Y”, or “Z”, after pressing “S”Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 5: The 3D Cursor
The 3D cursor is exactly what it sounds like, it’s a cursor in the 3D view. By default it starts in the origin, but you can move it by left clicking.
If you add an object, such as a cube or sphere, it will appear where the 3D cursor is.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 6: Adding a Mesh
to add a mesh, go to the “Add” menu, from there you will find many sub menus, the top one being “Mesh”.
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Step 7: Selecting in Edit Mode
In edit mode there are three ways to select things, you can either select individual vertexes, lines or planes.
To switch, click the three buttons at the bottom.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 8: Merging
In edit mode you can select two or more vertexes, and merge them together.
To do this, go into edit mode, select the vertexes you want to merge, press “W”, then, merge.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 9: Extruding
In edit mode, you can select a line, vertex, or plane, and extrude, or, extend it.
to do this, select the thing you want to extrude, then press “E”Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 10: Edge Loop Slide
This allows you to make a “cut” in a mesh, letting modify it further.
to do this, press “CTR+R” and select the spot you want to cut, then it will allow you to slide that cut, then place it.
This is handy when you want to extrude only a certain part of a plane.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 11: Modifiers
Switch back to object mode.
Modifiers modify your mesh (go figure).
One that you will use often will be the “subdivision surface” modifier.
This modifier makes your model all smooth.
The modifier properties are in the right tool bar.Add TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 12: Stuff I’ve Made
GDI logo
NOD logo
Light HouseAdd TipAsk QuestionCommentDownload
Step 13: Additional Sources
http://www.blenderguru.com/
http://cgcookie.com/blender/
Conclusion
This tutorial will guide you through the Blender software from installation through using it for animation.