How To Delete All Keyframes in Blender

Keyframes are an essential part of creating animations in Blender. They define the start and end points of motions and allow you to control the timing and smoothness of transitions.

However, you may sometimes want to remove keyframes, whether to clean up your animation or start fresh. Fortunately, Blender offers several methods to delete keyframes efficiently.

Understanding Keyframe Types

Before deleting keyframes, it helps to understand the different types that exist:

  • Regular Keyframes – The standard keyframes used to denote start and end poses.
  • Breakdowns – Keyframes between the start and end poses to show intermediate transitions.
  • Extremes – Keyframes that depict the maximum extent of a motion.
  • Jitters – Small variations added to prevent robotic stiffness.

Knowing the purpose of each keyframe type allows you to remove the right ones to achieve your desired animation flow.

Why Delete Keyframes?

Here are some common reasons you may want to remove keyframes in Blender:

  • Fix mistakes – Deleting unwanted keyframes is an easy way to fix animation errors.
  • Clean up the workflow – Removing redundant keyframes streamlines the editing process.
  • Start fresh – Deleting all keyframes lets you build the animation from scratch.
  • Change timing – Removing specific keyframes alters the timing of motions.
  • Simplify motions – Deleting certain keyframes can smooth out complex movements.

Methods to Delete Keyframes

Blender offers several quick methods to remove keyframes:

1. Delete in 3D Viewport

  • Select the object(s)
  • Press Alt + I
  • All keyframes for the selection on the current frame are removed

2. Delete Using Dope Sheet

  • Select desired objects
  • Go to Animation workspace
  • Hover over Dope Sheet and press A to select all
  • Press Delete to remove keys

3. Delete in Action Editor

  • Press B and drag to select keyframes
  • Let go of mouse and press Delete

4. Delete in Timeline

  • Click on keyframe to select
  • Press Spacebar for menu
  • Choose “Delete Keyframe”

5. Clear All Keyframes

  • Select object(s)
  • Object > Animation > Clear Keyframes
  • All keyframes on object(s) are removed

These methods allow you to remove keyframes based on your specific editing needs.

Tips for Effective Keyframe Removal

Follow these tips when deleting keyframes in Blender:

  • Review animation flow before removing keys
  • Delete keys between major poses first
  • Retain extreme and breakdown keyframes if possible
  • Use Dope Sheet to verify removed keys
  • Save iterations in case you need to backtrack

Careful keyframe removal keeps your animation visually smooth.

Common Issues with Deleting Keyframes

Some common problems when deleting keyframes include:

  • Unexpected pauses or jumps in animation
  • Loss of important motion keys
  • Strange distortions in character movements
  • Removal of keyframes on wrong objects

Understanding keyframe types helps avoid these issues.

Conclusion

Learning how to properly delete keyframes in Blender removes clutter from your animations. Use the right method for your editing needs, review the results, and allow enough time to fix any problems that arise.

With practice, deleting keyframes becomes a quick and useful weapon in your animation arsenal. Master it to improve workflow and creativity in your Blender projects.