The one rule
Things arrive fast and settle slowly. Something entering the frame should start with speed and ease to a stop, because that is where the viewer's eye needs to land. So entrances mostly use an ease-out curve, and things leaving mostly use an ease-in. Linear motion, at constant speed, reads as mechanical, and is best kept for things that never stop, like a slow camera drift.
Curves to start from
| Name | Bezier | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
standard | 0.4, 0, 0.2, 1 | A layer moving from one place on screen to another |
emphasized | 0.3, 0, 0, 1 | A hero move you want people to notice |
decelerate | 0.05, 0.7, 0.1, 1 | An entrance that is already moving as it appears |
quart-out | 0.25, 1, 0.5, 1 | Titles and cards rising on |
expo-out | 0.16, 1, 0.3, 1 | A sharp, confident arrival |
back-out | 0.34, 1.56, 0.64, 1 | A small overshoot, for something playful |
When to use a spring
A bezier curve has a fixed length. A spring has a mass, a stiffness and a damping, and takes as long as it takes to settle. Springs suit things that should feel physical: a logo landing, a badge popping on.
Dailies ships springs by feel. spring-smooth (stiffness 144, damping 24) settles without a bounce, spring-bouncy (stiffness 180, damping 12) overshoots visibly, and spring-snappy (stiffness 560, damping 40) is quick and firm. They land the same on every play.
Timing matters as much as the curve
- Small things move quickly, large things slowly. A badge might take half the time of a full-screen move.
- Offset related layers by a few frames, so they read as a group arriving rather than one block.
- Move fewer things at once. If everything moves, nothing is the focus.
- Land important moves on a beat, if there is music.
How to tell it is right
Watch it at full speed, not frame by frame, and watch it several times. If your eye is pulled to the motion itself rather than the thing that moved, it is too much. In Dailies you can pick a named ease on any key, or draw your own curve.
Try Dailies
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