Mastering Toon Boom Hotkeys for Efficient Animation

As an animator working with Toon Boom Harmony, having a solid understanding of hotkeys can greatly enhance your productivity and workflow. In this article, we'll delve into the various hotkeys available in Toon Boom Harmony, helping you to streamline your animation process.

Onion Skin Feature

One of the most useful hotkeys in Toon Boom Harmony is the Onion Skin feature. By toggling it on and off with the O key or using the Tools panel, you can adjust the range of drawings visible at any given time. This allows for a more precise understanding of your animation's timing and spacing.

Brush and Eraser Tools

The Brush tool (B) and Eraser tool (E) are essential for creating and editing shapes in Toon Boom Harmony. You can also use the Fill tool (F) to fill shapes with color, and the Lasso selection tool (L) to select complex shapes.

Zoom and Pan

To zoom in on your animation, click on the canvas while holding the Option key or use the Zoom tool (Z). To pan around the window, hold down the Spacebar or use the Pan tool (H).

Timeline Navigation

Navigating through your timeline can be done using various hotkeys. You can press and hold on a drawing to drag/drop it earlier or later in the timeline. Alternatively, you can add drawings manually by clicking 'Add drawing' in the Tools panel or use the following keyboard shortcuts:

* Going forward from the end of the timeline will automatically add a new drawing.

* Clicking on any drawing will take you to that frame.

* Dragging along the top bar of the timeline allows for scrubbing through drawings.

* Using the arrow keys steps back and forth through the timeline.

Drawing Duration

To extend the duration a drawing is seen when played back, drag the 'Drawing duration' slider or drag the edge between drawings on the timeline. You can also use F5 or the + key to increase duration or Shift F5 or the - key to decrease it.

Timeline Controls

Each drawing in the timeline is represented by a gray rectangle. To the left are sliders for controlling layer opacity and buttons for changing the layer order or deleting layers. The Background layer cannot be deleted, and you'll also see a default 'Layer 1' with one drawing.

Creating a New Project

To create a new project, go to the File menu or press the 'New project' button. Choose your desired resolution and framerate to start animating.

By mastering these hotkeys, you'll be able to work more efficiently in Toon Boom Harmony, streamlining your animation process and saving time. Whether you're a seasoned pro or just starting out, understanding these hotkeys will take your animation skills to the next level.

Toon boom hotkeys