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Intro to Flash MX/8

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to create a Flash fade-in effect.

Please note: You must have the Flash Player installed to view the Flash animation. Flash MX or Flash 8 must also be installed.

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Open Flash

Create a new file by clicking on File >New. Flash displays the New Document dialog window. Select Flash Document from the options and click OK. From the main menu, click Modify>Document and assign a file size of 300px by 300px.

Locate the images you want to use and import them to the Flash Library. Select File>Import to Library from the Menu Bar to display the Import To Library dialog window. Select the file and click Open. Repeat these steps for each image. If the panel isn't visible, you can display it (and any other hidden Flash panels) by clicking on Window>Library in the main menu.

Drag the picture from the Library panel to the Stage. Select the image. Click Modify>Convert To Symbol from the main menu. Flash displays the Create New Symbol window. Name the image. Confirm that the Movie Clip option is selected and click OK.

Click on the Movie Clip object to select it. In the timeline, insert a Keyframe at Frame 60. Also in the timeline, right+click on layer 1 somewhere between frames 1 and 60. On the shortcut menu, click Create Motion Tween. Flash displays an arrow extending between the keyframes.

In the timeline, click on Frame 1 to apply the initial image color setting. Select the image. In the Properties panel, click on Color>Alpha and assign a value of 0%.

Now click on Frame 60 to apply the effect. Select the Movie Clip. In the Properties panel, choose Color>Alpha and assign a value of 100%.

Repeat the steps to add more layers and images. To create new layers, click on the New Layer button or right+click on an existing layer name and choose Insert Layer from the shortcut menu. Add images to the new layers. Be sure to create keyframes which do not overlap with the existing motion tweens.

Press Ctrl+Enter to test your movie. When you are finished, export the movie (File>Export>Export movie...) to the desired folder.