How to Make a Website Wave Animation

Open the Image

Open your image in GIMP. You can really use any image. In this case we will use a picture of a birthday cake to make an abstract animation. You can use a logo or any image of a person or object. Broad landscapes are good for creating abstract art, but generally become too muddled.

Waves Control Panel

From the FILTERS menu, select ANIMATION and WAVES to open the control panel. The FRAMES option determines how many frames will be in the animation. The larger the number, the longer the animation will run. When you render the animation you can select a LOOP option which will cause the animation to play in a loop repeating itself. The AMPLITUDE is the height of the wave. The larger the number, the larger the distance between waves. The WAVELENGTH determines the length of the wave. Experiment with these settings and study the impact on your animation. Once you are finished, click OK.

Save Image

You can play your animation inside GIMP by reselecting the animation button and selecting PLAY ANIMATION. This will open a separate window with the animation. When you are satisfied, save your image to open up the GIMP save panel. Give your animation a name and select GIF from the expanded file menu. When you are done click SAVE.

Export Image

Saving will open the EXPORT window. Select SAVE AS ANIMATION and then click export. Your image will be saved as a GIF animation to your selected directory.