A Simple Trick To Getting More Out Of Watching Motion Design Videos

We all get sucked into the black hole of Vimeo inspiration from time to time.

It can be very overwhelming, and frankly discouraging at times, to watch amazing video after amazing video and hope that you can absorb them all by osmosis and be able to make your own work even more awesome and win the Internet some day!

Instead of mindlessly watching (and drooling over) motion design videos for hours, make a conscious effort to take a look at very specific characteristics in each video you watch.

Things to Watch for in Each Video

Here's my suggestion. Put together a list of your favorite 5-10 motion design videos, queue them up and watching them all... only looking at the different transitions they use through the whole video. Did the motion designer use the same type of transition throughout the whole piece? Did they mix it up? 

Now, watch the same group, but only watch for morphing objects. Are they smooth, slow morphs? Quick? Jarring? What seems most effective? 

Choose one design element to focus on... transitions, morphing, color, shape, rhythm, sound, timing, etc. each time you rewatch the videos.

This little hack will help you identify how different motion elements and decisions make pieces effective. Take note how you can use the transitions from one video and color from another and morph styles from yet another to make a really great video of your own. Start building your library of motion elements.