Rigging Vectors vs Images

1The one difference that changes everything

Rigging is attaching art to a skeleton. What that art is decides how it moves. A bone over vector art grabs the points of the curves and drags them, so the drawing deforms and an elbow bends like an elbow. A bone over an image can only rotate the whole image around a pivot, so the picture swings like a plank on a hinge. Same bones, wildly different feel. Knowing which you are working with tells you what to expect before you drag a thing.

2How vector bones bend the curves

On a Vector row's Draw and rig surface, the drawing is made of points. When a bone moves, the points bound to it move with it, and the curves between those points stretch and bend to follow. That is why a vector arm folds as one continuous shape with a soft inner crease, instead of splitting into two straight halves. The art literally reshapes itself around the joint, which is the fluid look animators reach for.

3How image bones pivot at a seam

An Image row is a flat picture. To make it posable you click Rig this image, which adds a bone-mesh copy you can drive with bones. But a bone still rotates that image region around its joint rather than reshaping the drawing inside it. So a cutout upper arm and forearm each swing as solid pieces, meeting at a seam at the elbow. It reads as a paper puppet, jointed and charming, but not a smooth bend.

4When to reach for vector

Choose vector rigging when you want organic, squashy motion: a bending arm, a curling tail, a face that stretches into an expression, cloth that flows. Because you draw the character in the Draw and rig surface first, its points are ready for bones the moment you switch to Rig mode. Vector is also resolution-free, so a limb that flexes never goes soft or pixelated at the joint. If the motion should look drawn and alive, draw it in vector.

5When to reach for images

Choose image rigging when you already have finished pixel art, a painted or textured look, or a prop that only needs to swing, not deform. Import each part as its own Image row (in the Image source panel, use Import image and set Fit, Fill, or Stretch), then Rig this image on each. A jointed robot, a wooden sign, a mechanical arm, all read beautifully as pivoting cutouts, and you skip redrawing art you already love.

6Switch to Rig mode

Binding happens in Rig mode. On the vector surface, click Rig at the top; the banner reads Rig mode, meaning your edits shape the rest skeleton and nothing lands on the timeline. This is the safe workshop: build and bind freely without recording any animation by accident. You will hop between Draw (to select points) and Rig (to bind them) as you work.

7Build the bones first

Before you can bind, you need bones to bind to. Pick Add Bone and drag from joint to tip; select a bone before drawing the next so it becomes the parent, forming a chain like shoulder, then upper arm, then forearm. In the Bones panel, give each bone a clear Name, confirm its Parent, and set its Length. A tidy, well-named skeleton makes the binding step obvious instead of a guessing game.

8Bind Points: lock points to one bone

The first binding tool is Bind Points. Over in Draw, select the points you want on a single bone, switch to Rig, pick Bind Points, and click the bone. Those points are now locked to that one bone and move exactly with it, rigidly, no sharing. This is perfect for a stiff prop or a part that should never deform: a sword blade, a phone, a rigid boot, a solid chunk of the character that only travels and rotates.

9Flexi Bind: share points across a joint

The second tool is Flexi Bind, and it is where vector rigging earns its reputation. Instead of locking points to one bone, a Flexi Bind chain lets several bones influence the points near a joint, sharing them so the curve carries smoothly across the bend. Select the limb's points in Draw, then in Rig apply Flexi Bind along the chain. Now the elbow folds as one continuous shape, because both the upper arm and forearm bones tug on the crease together.

10Choosing between them, part by part

You will use both on one character, and that is normal. Flexi Bind the parts that should flex: arms across the elbow, legs across the knee, a tail, a swishing coat. Bind Points the parts that should stay solid: a helmet, a belt buckle, a held weapon, boots. Ask a simple question at each part, should this bend or just move? Bend means Flexi Bind, just move means Bind Points. That one question sorts the whole rig.

11Tune reach with Bone Strength

Sometimes a bone grabs too many points, or too few, and the bend looks wrong: a shoulder that drags half the chest, or an elbow that barely creases. Tune how far a bone's influence reaches with the Bone Strength tool, dragging outward on the stage to widen its region, or with the Strength slider in the Bones panel. Widen it and the bone claims more nearby points; narrow it and it lets go of points that should belong to a neighbour.

12Test the bend before you animate

Do not wait until you are animating to discover a bad bind. On the vector surface, switch to Test mode and drag a bone to preview the deformation; nothing you do in Test is saved, so wiggle freely. Watch each joint fold. If a vector elbow creases into a hard corner, its points want Flexi Bind. If a rigid prop wobbles like jelly, it wants Bind Points instead. Fix binds in Rig, re-check in Test, repeat until every joint moves the way you meant.

13Mixing vector and image parts

A character can be both. A vector body that flexes can hold an imported Image prop that pivots, or a painted texture can ride on a vector face. Each row keeps its own nature: vector rows bend, image rows swing. Rig each part with the tool that fits it, and parent the whole cast of rows into one coherent skeleton so they move together. The reader sees one character; behind the scenes it is a sensible mix of bends and pivots.

14What good binding looks like

You are done binding when every joint moves the way its real-world counterpart would. Vector elbows and knees fold as smooth continuous shapes thanks to Flexi Bind; rigid props stay solid on their Bind Points; no bone drags points it should not, because Bone Strength is dialled in; and a pass through Test mode shows no creasing, no jelly, no stray points left behind. That is a rig ready to carry a performance.

Binding questions