A title can land abruptly even when its final position is correct. A generated camera move can spend too long accelerating and arrive after the story beat. Ease in and ease out describe timing choices that help you ask for the movement you actually need. Start by holding the path, distance and duration constant so you can compare the timing itself.
What ease in and ease out mean
With ease in, little distance is covered at first and more is covered later. With ease out, the beginning covers more distance and the final approach covers less. Linear timing covers equal distances in equal time intervals. A combined curve can slow both ends while giving the middle of the movement more speed.
These names describe a family of behaviors rather than one universal formula. For web animation, MDN documents CSS easing functions, including named cubic Bézier presets. Our lab uses explicitly different polynomial formulas so the numerical examples are reproducible. It is not an editor preset or a CSS curve converter.
Compare four timings on the same path
The free lab moves four markers from X 80 to X 560 in one second. The faint dots are samples spaced equally in time. Where the dots cluster, the marker travels a shorter distance during that time interval. Scrub the frame control rather than judging a single start or end position.
| Curve | Progress at normalized time t | Position at one quarter second |
|---|---|---|
| Linear | t | X 200 |
| Quadratic ease in | t × t | X 110 |
| Quadratic ease out | 1 − (1 − t)² | X 290 |
| Smoothstep ease in and out | t² × (3 − 2t) | X 155 |
Here t runs from zero to one and position equals 80 plus 480 times progress. Both endpoints are included in the 25-sample CSV at times 0/24 through 24/24 seconds. Those samples are an inspection plan, not a recommendation to append duplicated endpoints to a repeating loop.
Choose timing for a title reveal
Imagine a fictional archive title sliding into an empty area above a desk. The title should become readable before the character opens the envelope. Approve the composition first, then choose the arrival time. An ease-out approach can slow the final approach without spending the opening beat gradually getting started.
Use ease in when the growing speed is the point of the movement, such as an object beginning to leave the frame. Use a combined curve when both departure and arrival should feel controlled. Linear motion can suit a deliberately mechanical travel. These are creative choices to preview at the actual size and speed, not rules that every shot must follow.
Write an AI video timing brief
Preserve the approved archive composition. Move slowly at the beginning, accelerate through the middle of the camera move, then decelerate toward the final framing. Finish the movement before the courier opens the envelope and hold the final composition through that action.
This is an untested creative direction for a supported video operation in Clout Image and Video. A natural-language prompt does not impose these exact polynomial coordinates on a generative model. If the returned timing misses the beat, simplify the move or control the title and camera transform in an editor. Do not describe these CSVs as a native Clout animation import.
Inspect the end of the move
Review the approach, arrival and hold separately. A marker that slows at the end can still jump on the first held frame if the position changes. A moving prop can still distort even when its overall speed feels appropriate. Check silhouette and contact as well as timing.
Easing also differs from overshoot, which moves beyond a target before returning, and anticipation, which prepares an action. Our four curves remain between their endpoints. They do not include bounce, spring oscillation or a backward preparation.
Download and reproduce the study
Download the displayed SVG or any complete curve CSV from the lab. The original formula source provides the same calculations. Keep the selected curve, duration, frame rate and final hold in your production brief. Use the walk-cycle contact lab when timing also needs to preserve planted feet.
