Create a soft body from an image with Newton.

Welcome to our tutorial on how to create soft body from an image with Newton! The process is straightforward and fun. Follow these steps to achieve realistic and fluid animations:

Step 1: Create a Mask

First, you need to create a mask that defines the edge of your image. You can use the Auto-trace function in After Effects to quickly generate a mask from your image. Don't forget to precomp your image! This step is crucial as it sets the boundaries for your soft body animation.

Step 2: Create Layers Based on Vertices

Use our free tool "PrepareSoftbodies" (provided with the latest version of Newton or available on our website) to create layers based on the vertices of the mask. This tool will help you set up the animation in Newton. Then, add a circular mask to each of those layers.

Step 3: Setup the Reshape Plugin

Duplicate the original mask on your image and remove the expression on one of your mask. Then, set up the Reshape built-in plugin from After Effects to manipulate the original image. This plugin allows you to adjust the shape and form of your image, making it easier to animate.

Set the mask without the expression as the Source Mask and the other one as the Destination Mask. Set the percentage to 100%. If you move one of the layers that control the mask, the image will be deformed!

Step 4: Animate with Newton

Create objects that will collide with your image. Hide your original image. Now, it's time to animate with Newton. Launch Newton and select all your "controllers" to add joints. You'll notice that we used a "blob joint" in this tutorial, but you can use different joints (or combination) depending on the animation you want to create. In my example, I set the other objects to static. Set the Sub-Steps to 10 at least .

Step 5: Render Your Animation

Once you're satisfied with your animation, render it.
Back to AE, open the new composition created by Newton, hide the "controllers," unhide your image, and you should have your animation!

Conclusion

That's it! You've now created a dynamic soft body animation based on an image with Newton. Have fun experimenting with different shapes and settings to create unique and captivating animations.

Stay tuned for more tutorials and updates. Follow us on social media for the latest tips and tricks on using Newton. Happy animating!