How to Turn 3D Illustrations into Lottie Animations

Have you ever seen a cool, animated picture on a website? Many of these are Lottie animations. They are very small files that move. This makes them great for websites and apps. Lottie animations are often made from 2D drawings. But did you know you can also make them from 3D art? This guide will show you how to take a 3D picture and turn it into a moving Lottie animation. We will use two main tools: Blender and Adobe After Effects.

Start with Animation in Blender

First, open your 3D model in Blender. You need to get your model ready for movement. Look at the top of the Blender window and click on the "Animation" tab. This changes your workspace to show you tools for making things move. For this example, let's use a simple windmill model. We want the blades to spin. In the animation view, you will see a timeline at the bottom. This is where you set the movement. Select the windmill blades, then you can make them spin from the first frame to the last. This is the first step to making your 3D art move.

Export as an Image Sequence

Once your animation is ready, you need to save it. You won't save it as a video just yet. Instead, you will export it as an "image sequence." This means Blender will save each frame of your animation as a separate picture. You can save them as PNG files. Make sure the pictures have a clear background. This is very important for the next step.

Work in Adobe After Effects

Now, open Adobe After Effects. This is where we will turn the image sequence into an animation file. Create a new "composition." This is like a blank canvas. Import all the images you saved from Blender. After Effects will see them as one moving piece. This is where the magic starts. You now have a moving picture in After Effects.

Export as a Lottie Animation

Here is the final step. To make it a Lottie animation, you need a special plugin. The most common one is called "Bodymovin." It's a free plugin for After Effects. Install this plugin. Then, you can use it to save your moving picture as a Lottie JSON file. This file is very small and works on websites and apps. It keeps the quality high while using very little space.

Start turning your 3D illustrations into motion magic

And that's it! You have now learned the basic process to turn a 3D illustration into a Lottie animation. Each part is simple. You can take your static 3D art and bring it to life. This opens up new ways to use your art on websites, in mobile apps, and more. Try it yourself with a simple object and see what you can create.