Animating Clip Art for Custom Characters
http://evision-design.com/ClipArtDemo/ClipArtDemo.html
I know a lot of people have been resistant to using clip-art in their trainings, mostly because the clip art out there was poor resolution and didn’t have enough graphical value. But current clip art is worth a look. There are some fantastic vector images that can be ungrouped to offer more flexibility. And it’s free! In this economy, that’s hard to pass up.
All the World’s A Stage….Including eLearning
We love using stunning, custom photography as much as any other company but that gets expensive. By using Clip Art characters we save on our budget and create custom characters that create a virtual world that everyone can identify with.
Clip-art is now made up of many, many individual pieces that can be ungrouped, rearranged or replaced with other pieces, depending on our needs.
The concept is still the same – change the hair, try on a different outfit, add some glasses or a hat – and you’ve got a new character. We do the same thing in theatre when we’re running short of actors. Time to improvise and get creative!
Tom Kuhlmann, from Articulate’s team, did a recent blog on this topic
that gives you a great “how to”:
http://www.articulate.com/rapid-elearning/
what-you-need-to-know-when-working-with-grouped-clip-art/
So, speaking of the stage, in PowerPoint the slide is our stage. That is what our audience, the learner, sees. But the ‘wings’ are a great place to get your characters ready to come onto the stage, giving the illusion that there is more to the ‘world’ than what the learner is actually seeing.
Check out this demo to see a step-by-step demonstration of how to do this:
http://www.evision-design.com/ClipArtDemo/ClipArtDemo.html
By using a “freeform” motion path, you will bring your character ‘on-stage’, with a realistic walk. If you use a simple straight motion path the character looks a bit robotic. We can’t see his feet, but we get the idea that he’s walking, bringing us a little further into this virtual world.
Tags: Articulate Presenter, Avatars, Clip Art Avatars, PowerPoint, Vector graphics
