Rendering
The rendering stage is usually associated with computer-generated animation, although rendering can also refer to the process of creating final animation frames in traditional hand-drawn animation.
Rendering is used in both 2D and 3D computer animation. It is the process of getting the final assembled animation scenes or pieces out of the computer in the format of a sequence of individual frames.
The aim of rendering is to generate a series of individual pixel based frames or a video clip.
Example of a rendered frame
The rendering process can involve the creation of individual elements of an overall animation which will then be merged at the compositing stage. These individual elements are often rendered out using 'Alpha transparency' or 'Alpha channels'. This means that each element is on a transparent background so that each element can be brought together and overlaid upon a background scene or graphic.
The image below is an example of a rendered frame. The transparent background is represented using checker pattern. See the Compositing section (next) to see how this image is incorprated.
