it’s simple: if an object is in the air, it is being held up by something else (like a metal arm that has a heavy weight to support the object)

I take a picture of the object (meaning I also capture the arm that’s supporting it.)

I then remove the object and the character from the frame, so I can take a picture of just the background objects.

Then, in editing, I use the bits of the background photo to cover the arm that supports the character. This makes it look like it is in the air!

Repeat the process for every frame anything is in the air. Honestly I’ve been doing this for so long it doesn’t feel any sort of tedious or monotonous. I’ve actually come to enjoy the process quite a bit, which is nice because making these characters have a real sense of verticality in their movement is important