Nearby drawings can guide a movement, but a crowded canvas can hide the drawing you are editing. Start with a small onion-skin comparison.
Use nearby drawings as a reference
Pencil2D’s manual describes onion skin as a view of earlier or later drawings while you work on the current one. It is a reference for spacing and position, rather than a substitute for playing the animation. Our suggested exercise uses a few drawings of a simple shape so you can understand the overlay before tackling a detailed character.
Keep the overlay readable
The manual recommends showing one or two drawings and explains that their transparency is adjustable in Preferences. Start with a small number, then adjust visibility until the active drawing remains easy to identify. In Display Options, earlier and later drawings can use different colours. Our suggested check asks whether you can tell where the shape came from and where it is going without tracing the wrong drawing.
Notice frames and keyframes
The manual distinguishes showing nearby keyframes from showing nearby frames. When a drawing is held across several frames, those comparisons can look different. If the overlay is not revealing the movement you expect, check the timeline’s onion-skin mode and where the drawings actually change. Do not assume an unchanged overlay proves that the feature is broken.
Play, compare and save
Our suggested practice is a short movement across the camera field, followed by normal playback with the reference overlay out of the way. Compare the result with your intended spacing, adjust one drawing and play it again. Save an editable project before exporting a preview. A useful first exercise is one you can revise and understand; onion skin does not automatically generate in-between drawings or guarantee smooth motion.
Go straight to the people who make it.
Official Pencil2D user manualOfficial reference manualSource check: 2026-10-02. General guidance; follow your device’s current instructions.