To animate or not to animate? When you create a website, that’s always the question. Proponents of animation in web design will tell you that it injects a sense of motion, generating a dynamic and flowing user experience. On top of that, animation has been a major web design trend over the last years, which means that your visitors will somehow expect to see them on your pages. The opponents, on the other hand, will argue that animation is distracting and can seem unprofessional to many viewers.
So who is right in this debate? Well, both sides are. The truth is that animations can be a wonderful addition to a website’s look and feel, but they have to be worked in the right way to fit your broader goals. Careless integration of animations into your web design scheme can be a real eyesore—and no one wants that! To help you see right from wrong, let’s walk together through the dos and don’ts of animation in web design, when it comes to learning how to make a website.
Know the basics of animation
First, remember that animations come in many shapes and forms. They can be as subtle as a slight motion of a button, or they can appear as spectacular as a fully animated background. Animation can be set up as interactive reactions to your visitors’ behavior (like objects being revealed when scrolling), or can be independent of visitors’ actions altogether. It can be applied to small elements, like an arrow, or to large ones like a video background that takes up the entire screen. Understanding the full spectrum of the capabilities of animation will help you use them in a more strategic way.
