You want to learn about best graphic design programs free? Or about best free graphics editing software? Check out these free downloadable graphic design software. They can help you with card designing, brochure designing, animation making and many more things.
The best graphic design software is the one that’s right for you, but it can be hard to know what that is, especially with so many free options available. Before you go and download any, take a look at this list of free video graphic design software to see if there’s a perfect match here for you.
KeyShot
Image courtesy of KeyShot
KeyShot is a fast and user-friendly 3D rendering software with animation capabilities. This tool allows users to go from a simple model to a stunning visual in minutes. KeyShot is a completely free animation software.
KeyShot has a number of features to support animation and 3D rendering, including but not limited to:
- 2D animation and 3D animation
- HDRI lighting that allows you to light and adjust your scene as needed
- Camera control that enables users to simulate real-world camera behavior
- Dynamic texture mapping to simulate the real-world appearance of a landscape
- Focused caustics to ensure objects are properly lighted
What users like
“It’s fast and most of the results come [out] pretty good. And today they can do animation and VR in KeyShot, [which] makes the software even more powerful than ever.”
— Keyshot review by a user in higher education
What users dislike
“The animation configuration could be easier and also give more options of possible movements.”
— Keyshot review by Julia C.
K-3D
Image courtesy of K-3D
K-3D is an animation and 3D modeling software. It combines plugins with a visualization pipeline architecture to make it a powerful and flexible tool for artists. This free animation software allows users to create unique combinations in their work.
K-3D offers a number of features to make an artist’s work as easy as possible:
- An advanced undo/redo function
- Properties that can be adjusted interactively
- A node-based visualization pipeline
What users like
“This is the tool with the features, speed and stability for you.”
— K-3D review by a user in graphic design
What users dislike
The same K-3D reviewer said, “Great program all around, only complaint, just wish it had some sort of quick getting started guide, considering that’s my only complaint, always have this installed on my comp.”
Pencil 2D: Best free 2D animation software for beginners
Platforms: Windows, Mac and Linux
The excellent Pencil 2D is a powerful piece of software for vector and bitmap animation, making it the perfect free animation software for beginners.
The user interface of this open-source, free 2D animation software is simple and intuitive, letting you create your compositions in color, with a pencil, pen and brush tools. Anyone with little to no experience using animation programs — even total newbies — will be able to tell at a glance what they can do with this tool.
The tool features layers, a timeline with a simple keyframe manipulation system, onion-skinning, colors, pressure sensitivity, workspace toolbars and panels that you can rearrange to fit your animation needs and workspace.
Animators will appreciate the clean, uncluttered timeline where it is quite easy to add new keyframes on different layers, duplicate, change the frame rate and work quickly to create animations with minimal fuss.
Pencil 2D is true to its name, as it fully supports 2D animation only. But if that’s your thing, you can’t go wrong with this free 2D animation software.
To maximize the potential of Pencil 2D, and to see what’s truly possible even with free animation software, you could always post a project on Freelancer. Pro animators can work magic even with the most basic tools.
And the best part is, this animation software is free!
Pros: Intuitive interface; gentle learning curve; perfect for beginners
Cons: Lacking in advanced features
Autodesk Maya
Use on: Windows, Mac OS, Linux
Best for: Everyone, beginner to pro
Many beginner animators want to know: What animation software does Disney use? Well, look no further—while Disney artists use a variety of animation software, one of the most popular choices is Autodesk Maya. (If your question, on the other hand, is “What animation software does Pixar use?” it’s a proprietary software that’s not available to animators outside of the company.)
For many professional animators and animation studios, Autodesk Maya is the industry standard. This 3D animation software is ideal for character creation, modeling, simulation, motion graphics, and more. It’s been used to create animation for movies including “Finding Nemo,” “Monsters, Inc.,” and “Avatar.”
After a free trial, pricing begins at $122 per month (for a three-year license), although monthly plans are also available. If you’re a current student, you may be able to access Autodesk Maya for free.
Blender
Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux
Use Blender if you’re looking for the best video animation software for pro editors and creators. The free open-source 3D animation tool supports the “modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, video editing, and 2D animation pipeline.” The platform is a public project, and creatives from all over the world contribute to its ongoing maintenance.
Let’s talk features.
- Rendering: Cycles is Blender’s ray-trace based production render engine, FreeStyle is an edge- and line-based non-photorealistic (NPR) rendering engine, and real-time feedback speeds up the editing process.
- Modeling: Blender’s modeling tools include sculpting, retopology, modeling, curves, and more to help with editing models.
- Sculpting: Digital sculpting tools flexible for each stage of the digital production pipeline.
- Animation and rigging: These tools include a character animation pose editor, Non Linear Animation (NLA) for independent movements, IK forward/inverse kinematics for fast poses, and sound synchronization.
- Grease pencil: Draw directly in 3D and combine 2D/3D art.
- VFX: From camera and object motion tracking to masking and compositing, there are lots of fixes you can make in post-prod.
- Simulation: Create simulations for fog, smoke, rain, fire, liquid, and more.
- Pipeline: Choose from a long list of import/export options.
- Video editing: A built-in video editor allows for basic actions like video cuts and splicing and more complex tasks like video masking or color grading.
Yeah, that’s a lot. Blender is a comprehensive tool. And it’s all free.
Adobe Character Animator
Adobe Character Animator is a powerful tool that allows you to animate a character in seconds. Firstly, the software is easy to use. It also comes in handy for beginners that would like to make intuitive 2D cartoon characters and live animations. After importing art from Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop, or start with built-in templates (called a puppet), turn your microphone and webcam on. Then, the application matches your expressions from lip-syncing to eye-tracking to animate in real-time. After that, your performance can bring the character to life.
Image by Adobe.com
Main Features of Adobe Character Animator
- The timeline search filter helps track items. Besides, you can hide or isolate tracks, create groups for better organization.
- Control your puppet using your webcam, microphone, as well as mouse.
- Built-in triggers and functions make the character move, react, hold objects, and so on.
- Lip sync is more accurate thanks to improved Adobe Sensei machine learning.
- Ground detection makes your character jump, dance, as well as bend more naturally.
- Easily integrate with other Adobe applications, for example, to export a scene or puppet.
Price
Individuals plan costs $69.72/month/all apps.
The business plan starts at $50.50/month.
Students and Teachers plan costs S$26.30/month the first year and S$39.46/month after that.
Schools and Universities plan costs $51.99/month/all apps and $22.27/month/single app.
Conclusion:
Have you ever wanted to try your hand at graphic design? I love graphic design, working on graphics is definitely one of my favorite ways to pass the time and even make a little extra cash. You don’t need to spend any money to start learning and creating some great stuff, though! There are free graphics design software options if you know where to look!