Flutter Animations

10 min

10 min

Ashutosh Rawat

Published on May 23, 2024

Flutter Animations: Exploring Implicit Animations in Flutter.

Explore implicit animations in Flutter for dynamic UI enhancements. Learn common widgets and performance tips for smooth interactions.
Explore implicit animations in Flutter for dynamic UI enhancements. Learn common widgets and performance tips for smooth interactions.

Understanding Implicit Animations

Overview of Implicit Animations: Implicit animations are a powerful feature in Flutter that automates the process of animating UI elements. These animations automatically adjust properties over a specified duration, allowing for smooth transitions without the need for extensive coding. By defining the initial and final states of an animation, Flutter handles the intermediate steps seamlessly, resulting in fluid and visually appealing UI changes.

Fun Fact: Implicit animations in Flutter leverage the framework's powerful animation system under the hood, allowing developers to achieve impressive animations with minimal code. By utilizing widgets like AnimatedOpacity, AnimatedContainer, and AnimatedAlign, developers can effortlessly create fluid and dynamic UI elements that captivate users.

People Also Asked:

  • What is the difference between explicit and implicit animation?

  • How many types of animation are in Flutter?

  • How do you navigate with animation Flutter?

  • How can I run implicit animations between Routes?

  • How can you create a custom animation using implicit animations in Flutter?

Question: What creative ways can you leverage implicit animations to enhance the user experience in your Flutter apps?

Common Use Cases and Scenarios:

Implicit animations are widely used to enhance the user experience in Flutter apps. They are handy for creating smooth transitions between different screens, states, or UI elements. Some common scenarios where implicit animations are applied include:

  • Enhancing User Experience:

    Implicit animations play a crucial role in improving the overall user experience by providing visually pleasing transitions between different app states. For example, they can be used to animate the opening and closing of menus, dialogs, or pop-up notifications, making interactions more intuitive and engaging.

  • Simplifying Animation Creation:

    One of the main advantages of implicit animations is their simplicity and ease of use. Developers can leverage implicit animation widgets provided by Flutter, such as AnimatedOpacity, AnimatedContainer, and AnimatedAlign, to create complex animations with minimal code. This simplifies the animation creation process and reduces the development time required to implement dynamic UI elements.

Implicit animations are a powerful tool in your Flutter development arsenal, allowing you to create visually appealing and dynamic user interfaces with minimal effort.

As part of the Flutter learning roadmap series, this blog builds on concepts covered in our previous entry, "Flutter Animation Fundamentals: Enhancing User Experience." Stay tuned for more insights and tips to master Flutter animations and take your app to the next level!

Mechanism of Implicit Animations

Implicit animations in Flutter work by automating the transition between the start and end states of a widget’s property over a specified duration. The Flutter framework handles the animation details, making it easier for developers to implement smooth transitions with minimal code. Here's a closer look at the mechanism behind implicit animations:

Key Components

  1. State Management:

    • Implicit animations rely on state changes. When a property changes, the animation automatically begins.

    • Widgets such as AnimatedContainer, AnimatedOpacity, and AnimatedAlign watch for changes in their properties and animate accordingly.

  2. Tweening:

    • Tweening refers to calculating intermediate values between the start and endpoints.

    • Implicit animations use predefined tweening to transition between these values over the duration smoothly.

  3. Duration and Curve:

    • The duration specifies how long the animation should take to complete.

    • Curves define the animation's rate of change, such as linear, ease-in, or bounce. Flutter provides a variety of curves for customizing the feel of the animation.

  1. Rebuilding Widgets:

  • During the animation, Flutter rebuilds the widget with the intermediate values provided by the tween.

  • The framework ensures that these updates are performed efficiently to maintain performance.

How It Works

  1. Initial Setup:

    • You start by defining a widget with its initial properties. For example, an AnimatedContainer with a set color and size.

    AnimatedContainer(
  duration: Duration(seconds: 2),
  color: _color,
  width: _width,
  height: _height,
  curve: Curves.easeInOut,
);

  2. Triggering Animation:

    • When a property changes (e.g., color or size), Flutter detects the change and begins the animation.

    • You can trigger changes using setState in a StatefulWidget:

    setState(() {
  _color = Colors.blue;
  _width = 200.0;
  _height = 200.0;
});

  3. Tweening and Rebuilding:

    • Flutter interpolates between the starting and ending values, creating intermediate frames.

    • The widget is rebuilt multiple times per second, updating its properties smoothly over the specified duration.

  4. Completion:

    • Once the duration is complete, the widget reaches its final state.

    • The animation stops, and the widget remains in its new state until further changes are triggered.

Example

Here’s a simple example illustrating the use of AnimatedContainer:

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';

void main() => runApp(MaterialApp(home: MyAnimatedWidget()));

class MyAnimatedWidget extends StatefulWidget {
  @override
  _MyAnimatedWidgetState createState() => _MyAnimatedWidgetState();
}

class _MyAnimatedWidgetState extends State<MyAnimatedWidget> {
  Color _color = Colors.red;
  double _width = 100.0;
  double _height = 100.0;

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return Scaffold(
      body: Center(
        child: GestureDetector(
          onTap: () {
            setState(() {
           _color = _color == Colors.red ? Colors.blue : Colors.red;
           _width = _width == 100.0 ? 200.0 : 100.0;
           _height = _height == 100.0 ? 200.0 : 100.0;
          });
       },
          child: AnimatedContainer(
            duration: Duration(seconds: 3),
            color: _color,
            width: _width,
            height: _height,
            curve: Curves.bounceOut,
          ),
        ),
      ),
    );
  }
}

In this example, tapping the container triggers a change in color and size, and the AnimatedContainer smoothly animates the transition over two seconds.

Common Widgets for Implicit Animations

In Flutter, several widgets facilitate implicit animations, enabling smooth transitions and enhanced user experiences with minimal code. Below are some of the most commonly used implicit animation widgets, along with their mechanisms, code snippets, and examples.

  1. AnimatedOpacity

  • Mechanism: Animates changes in opacity.

  • Example:

    AnimatedOpacity(
  opacity: _isVisible ? 1.0 : 0.0,
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  child: Container(
    height: 100,
    width: 100,
    color: Colors.blue,
  ),

  • Usage: Use AnimatedOpacity to fade elements in and out based on a boolean state.

  1. AnimatedPadding

    • Mechanism: Animates changes in padding.

    • Example:

      AnimatedPadding(
  padding: EdgeInsets.all(_padding),
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  child: Container(
    height: 100,
    width: 100,
    color: Colors.red,
  ),
)

  • Usage: Adjust the padding value to transition the spacing around a widget smoothly.

  1. AnimatedAlign

  • Mechanism: Animates alignment changes within a container.

  • Example:

    AnimatedAlign(
  alignment: _alignment,
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  child: Container(
    height: 100,
    width: 100,
    color: Colors.green,
  ),
)

  • Usage: Use AnimatedAlign to animate the movement of a widget to a new alignment.

  1. AnimatedSwitcher

  • Mechanism: Smoothly transitions between two widgets with a cross-fade effect.

  • Example:

    AnimatedSwitcher(
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  child: _isVisible
    ? Container(
        key: UniqueKey(),
        height: 100,
        width: 100,
        color: Colors.yellow,
      )
    : Container(
        key: UniqueKey(),
        height: 100,
        width: 100,
        color: Colors.orange,
      ),
)

  • Usage: Swap between widgets with a smooth transition by changing the key and widget.

  1. AnimatedContainer

  • Mechanism: Animates multiple properties like color, border, and size.

  • Example:

    AnimatedContainer(
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  height: _height,
  width: _width,
  color: _color,
)

  • Usage: Modify properties such as size and color for dynamic UI updates.

  1. AnimatedCrossFade

  • Mechanism: Animates the transition between two widgets with a crossfade effect.

  • Example:

    AnimatedCrossFade(
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  firstChild: Container(
    height: 100,
    width: 100,
    color: Colors.purple,
  ),
  secondChild: Container(
    height: 100,
    width: 100,
    color: Colors.teal,
  ),
  crossFadeState: _isVisible ? CrossFadeState.showFirst : CrossFadeState.showSecond,
)

  • Usage: Use to smoothly transition between two distinct widgets.

  1. AnimatedDefaultTextStyle

  • Mechanism: Animates changes in text style properties.

  • Example:

AnimatedDefaultTextStyle(
  style: _isLargeText
    ? TextStyle(fontSize: 30, color: Colors.black)
    : TextStyle(fontSize: 20, color: Colors.grey),
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  child: Text('Animated Text'),
)

  • Usage: Animate font size, color, and other text style properties.

  1. AnimatedPositioned

  • Mechanism: Animates changes in the position of a widget within a stack.

  • Example:

    Stack(
  children: [
    AnimatedPositioned(
      duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
      left: _leftPosition,
      top: _topPosition,
      child: Container(
        height: 100,
        width: 100,
        color: Colors.blue,
      ),
    ),
  ],
)

  • Usage: Use within a Stack to animate positional changes.

  1. AnimatedPositionedDirectional

  • Mechanism: Similar to AnimatedPositioned, but supports text directionality.

  • Example:

    Stack(
  children: [
    AnimatedPositionedDirectional(
      duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
      start: _startPosition,
      top: _topPosition,
      child: Container(
        height: 100,
        width: 100,
        color: Colors.blue,
      ),
    ),
  ],
)

  • Usage: Use for animating positions in layouts supporting text direction.

  1. AnimatedPhysicalModel

  • Mechanism: Animates physical properties like elevation, color, and shape.

  • Example:

    AnimatedPhysicalModel(
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  shape: BoxShape.rectangle,
  elevation: _elevation,
  color: _color,
  shadowColor: Colors.black,
  child: Container(
    height: 100,
    width: 100,
  ),
)

  • Usage: Animate physical model properties to add depth and shadow effects.

  1. AnimatedSize

  • Mechanism: Smoothly animates changes in a widget's size.

  • Example:

    AnimatedSize(
  duration: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  vsync: this,
  child: Container(
    height: _height,
    width: _width,
    color: Colors.green,
  ),
)

  • Usage: Animate size changes for a widget to make dynamic resizing visually appealing.

By leveraging these implicit animation widgets, you can create smooth and engaging user experiences in your Flutter applications with minimal code. Experiment with these widgets to see how they can enhance the interactivity and visual appeal of your app.

Step-by-Step Example

Building an Animated Profile Card with Circular Image.

In this example, we'll create an animated profile card that expands and collapses with a button click. We'll use several implicit animation widgets such as AnimatedContainer, AnimatedDefaultTextStyle, and AnimatedCrossFade.

Detailed Code Walkthrough

Step 1: Import Required Packages

We begin by importing the necessary Flutter packages:

import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
Step 2: Create a Stateless Widget for the App

We define a stateless widget MyApp as the root of the application:

void main() {
  runApp(MyApp());
}

class MyApp extends StatelessWidget {
  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return MaterialApp(
      home: ProfileCardScreen(),
    );
  }
}
Step 3: Define the StatefulWidget for the Profile Card Screen

We create a StatefulWidget called ProfileCardScreen, which will manage the state of the profile card animation:

class ProfileCardScreen extends StatefulWidget {
  @override
  _ProfileCardScreenState createState() => _ProfileCardScreenState();
}
Step 4: Implement the State for the Profile Card Screen

In the state class _ProfileCardScreenState, we define the _isExpanded variable to control the expansion state of the profile card:

class _ProfileCardScreenState extends State<ProfileCardScreen> {
  bool _isExpanded = false;

  // Function to toggle the expansion state
  void _toggleExpand() {
    setState(() {
      _isExpanded = !_isExpanded;
    });
  }

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    // Widget build method implementation
  }
}
Step 5: Implement the Build Method

Within the build method, we define the UI layout using Flutter widgets:

@override
Widget build(BuildContext context) {
  return Scaffold(
    appBar: AppBar(
      title: Text('Animated Profile Card'),
      backgroundColor: Colors.deepPurple,
    ),
    body: Center(
      child: Column(
        mainAxisSize: MainAxisSize.min,
        children: [
          // AnimatedContainer and Profile Card Widget
          // Expand/Collapse Button
        ],
      ),
    ),
  );
}
Step 6: Define the AnimatedContainer for the Profile Card

We create an AnimatedContainer widget to animate the profile card's size and appearance:

AnimatedContainer(
  duration: Duration(seconds: 1),
  curve: Curves.easeInOut,
  width: _isExpanded ? 350.0 : 250.0,
  height: _isExpanded ? 450.0 : 300.0,
  decoration: BoxDecoration(
    color: Colors.white,
    borderRadius: BorderRadius.circular(20.0),
    boxShadow: [
      BoxShadow(
        color: Colors.black26,
        blurRadius: 10.0,
        spreadRadius: 1.0,
      ),
    ],
  ),
  // Profile card content
),
Step 7: Implement the Profile Card Content

Inside the AnimatedContainer, we define the content of the profile card, including the image, name, occupation, and additional details:

Column(
  mainAxisAlignment: MainAxisAlignment.center,
  children: [
    // Profile image
    // Name
    // Occupation
    // Additional details (email, phone, address)
  ],
),
Step 8: Define the Expand/Collapse Button

Finally, we create an ElevatedButton widget to allow the user to expand or collapse the profile card:

ElevatedButton(
  onPressed: _toggleExpand,
  child: Text(_isExpanded ? 'Collapse' : 'Expand'),
),
Example:

https://dartpad.dev/?id=6c23f45a73bde2d94152cff310cccedd

Performance Considerations

Optimizing implicit animations is crucial for smooth user experiences. Here are some tips:

  1. Shorten Animation Duration: Keep animations brief to maintain UI responsiveness.

  2. Simplify Animations: Avoid complexity to reduce computation overhead.

  3. Use Specific Widgets: Opt for widgets like AnimatedOpacity for precise control.

  4. Moderate Animations: Don't overwhelm users with excessive motion.

  5. Batch Changes: Combine multiple animations to minimize rebuilds.

Best Practices and Pitfalls

  • Avoid Nesting: Complex nested animations can cause unintended behavior.

  • Efficient State Management: Optimize state handling for better performance.

  • Device Testing: Ensure consistent behavior across various devices.

Implicit Animation Practice

To reinforce your understanding of implicit animations, here are five questions for a practice project:

  1. Implement a simple implicit animation to animate the opacity of a widget.

  2. Create a button that expands and collapses a container with a smooth animation.

  3. Build a profile card with implicit animations for resizing and transitioning between different profile details.

  4. Design a custom loading indicator using implicit animations to convey progress.

  5. Experiment with implicit animations to create a unique UI interaction, such as a draggable slider or a rotating card.

By practicing these, you'll master implicit animations for engaging Flutter apps.

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Resources and Key Summaries

Blog Series: Mastering Animations and Transitions in Flutter.

Blog Series: Mastering Animations and Transitions in Flutter

1. Introduction to Animations in Flutter

2. Exploring Implicit Animations in Flutter

3. Diving into Explicit Animations in Flutter

4. Advanced Animation Techniques in Flutter

5. Leveraging Animation Libraries in Flutter

6. Creating Seamless Transition Animations in Flutter

7. Optimizing Animation Performance in Flutter

8. Real-world Examples and Case Studies of Flutter Animations

Conclusion

In this blog, Implicit animations in Flutter offer dynamic UI enhancements. Through understanding their core concepts and common widgets like AnimatedOpacity, AnimatedPadding, and AnimatedAlign, we've learned to create engaging user experiences. With performance optimization tips, we ensure smooth animation execution. This journey equips us to elevate Flutter app interactions effectively and efficiently.

Table of content

-

Understanding Implicit Animations

-

Understanding Implicit Animations

-

Mechanism of Implicit Animations

-

Mechanism of Implicit Animations

-

Common Widgets for Implicit Animations

-

Common Widgets for Implicit Animations

-

Step-by-Step Example

-

Step-by-Step Example

-

Performance Considerations

-

Performance Considerations

-

Download Our Flutter-based App Builder - Blup

-

Download Our Flutter-based App Builder - Blup

-

Resources and Key Summaries

-

Resources and Key Summaries

-

Conclusion

-

Conclusion

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