• Adobe After Effects

  3D Layers, Transparency and Z Space

  Posted by Chris Wade on August 21, 2012 at 9:11 pm

  Hello All,
  I’ve got a problem that’s giving me a hell of a time. Basically, I’m trying to make a title system featuring text rotating in 3D space…think like a slot machine wheel, with multiple lines of text rolling on the outside of a cylinder. I’m setting each individual title as a separate 3D layer, each with a common anchor point and different X Rotation, parenting them to one layer and making them spin vertically by animating the X rotation.

  The part that’s giving me trouble is I want the text to fade in and out as it comes in to and leaves the center reading position, and not be visible at all when it’s on the opposite side of it’s rotation, and then have the whole title on top of my actual footage. I’ve been able to pre-comp and mask the text so the fading in and out is fine, but I cannot for the life of me figure out a masking system to make them hidden/transparent in the 3D background, while still keeping the whole background of the title transparent to lay over my footage.

  TL;DR: Is there any way to “hide” a 3D layer behind another layer in Z-space, but keep that 2nd layer ALSO transparent so actual footage can be seen behind it?

  THANKS IN ADVANCE!
  -c

  Angelo Lorenzo replied 14 years, 1 month ago 2 Members · 1 Reply
• 1 Reply

• 

  Angelo Lorenzo

  August 22, 2012 at 11:09 pm

  How large is the cylinder? If its larger than the comp (so you don’t see the text clip another 3d layer) why not just turn on the 3d switch for the footage layer? If the z position of the cylinder isn’t crazy the the footage layer can sit inside the cylinder and hide the back position of the cylinder.

  Angelo Lorenzo
  Fallen Empire Digital Production Services – Los Angeles
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