How to Make a Flag in Flash Animation

Adobe Flash CS3 or CS4 are two great animation tools, and the possibilities of what you can make in Flash are endless. A flag is a fairly simple project to make and can easily be one of the first projects you take on in Flash. An animated flag can help jazz up a website about a certain country or culture. They can be embedded in the website and serve a similar purpose as an animated .gif file. In just a few simple steps and in just a few hours, you should be able to make a fairly realistic-looking flag in Flash all your own that can even wave.

Things You'll Need

• Adobe Flash CS3 or CS4

Instructions

1. Open a new Flash file using Ctrl + N on a PC or Apple + N on a Mac.

2. Select the Rectangle tool from the toolbar, and draw a rectangle on the stage. Draw the details of the flag using the shape tools.

3. Hit F6 on the timeline three or four times to create a few new keyframes.

4. Create creases in the flag to emulate the wind blowing onto the flag using the Pen Tool in each keyframe.

5. Hit F5 to insert more frames after each keyframe. Add about two to three frames after each keyframe.

6. Select the flag on the stage and hit Apple + B or Ctrl + B to break the item up. Right-click the keyframe and select "Create Shape Tween," and do this for each keyframe. This will cause your flag to look like it's moving.

7. Hit Apple + Enter or Ctrl + Enter to export a .swf file, and upload the .swf file onto the webpage.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish