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Stop and start video in drop zones?
Hi,
My first time on the forum, so I hope I can ask this clearly.
I’m still a novice on Motion 4.
What I’m trying to do is create a photo book, where the camera swings
over the page and when it settles on a still, it then becomes video.We sit there and then when the video halts we move the camera to the
next still.So far, I can move the 3d camera from still to still using framing behaviours
and a technique from Mark Spencer for null objects to set my framing
at “artistic” angles.To get the video in the drop zones to be still and then play when the camera
gets there I am doing the following:From the video to play, I am grabbing a still from the beginning
as a single frame video.I put this in a drop zone and play it for the number of frames
required till the camera gets to it. It looks like a still this way.The moving video is in a second drop zone which is aligned to and
starts from the first.It plays and then holds. ( in the screen grab they are called
church mov & church mov stub )In the timeline, you can see how they adjoin.
This does work, but seems a bit complicated since I will have about
10 or 12 photos and videos to lay out spatially and temporally.Can anyone advise how I might improve and simplify my method.
Many thanks, Euan.
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9 Replies
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Euan,
Welcome to the COW Motion forum, it is great to have you hear.To simplify the project I would get rid of your still grab. Place a “Hold Frame” behavior to the video so it freezes the movie until you want it to play. If you want the hold to ease into movement then use the “Set Speed” Behavior. These behaviors are in the retiming category. Hope this helps and best of luck.
Stephen Smith
Utah Video ProductionsCheck out my Motion Training DVD
Check out my Motion Tutorials
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Hi Stephen,
Thank you for your kind welcome to the forum.
Sorry for the delay in answering your post.
1) I live in Scotland so am some hours ahead and didn’t get your reply til morning my time.
2) Been trying and applying your suggestions.So, the hold behavior works very well. Exactly what was required.
If the video is in a drop zone, I can just adjust the drop zone out point
such that when the movie runs out of frames it stills on the last frame.If the video is not is in a drop zone, then I can use the hold
in the end condition of the timing tab in properties.I have tried the set speed behavior, with limited success.
To get it to ramp up from the still created by the hold behavior
it seems I need to keyframe it.ie keyframe at the beginning of the set speed behavior to 0 and
then say 30 frames later keyframe to 100.Although it seems to accept these keyframes, I cannot see them to adjust them in the keyframe editor or showing keyframes in the timeline.
I can only find them using the next / previous keyboard shortcuts
or the dropdown menu in properties | speed | keyframe dislosure.The manual seems to suggest you can keyframe them.
I just can’t find them!Parameters in the Inspector
Speed: A slider that sets the speed of the clip as a percentage. The default is 100% (the clip’s normal speed). A Speed setting of 50% plays the clip at half speed.
Note: The Speed parameter can be keyframed to create variable playback rate changes.My other query relates to the overall expected length of the animation and included videos.
Each of the video segments which will play when the camera arrives at the initial hold generated still may be three or four minutes long.
I am thinking that this may be too long a motion project to sensibly make from a point of resources and final output.
Would it be better to create only the camera animations in motion and then cut up and overlay edit the video segments in FCP?
This would need me to be able to align videos in FCP over the motion animation in a lower video track.
Can you guide me as to the practicalities of this or indeed suggest a better method?
Once again, many thanks, Euan.
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You should not need to use keyframes for the “Set Speed” behavior. Here is a tutorial that mentions how to use the set speed behavior in it.
https://www.movingwithmotion.com/tutorial-8-wall-explosion/
Here is a link to a tutorial with the hold frame in it: https://www.movingwithmotion.com/tutorial-8-movement-through-time/
Hope this helps.
Stephen Smith
Utah Video ProductionsCheck out my Motion Training DVD
Check out my Motion Tutorials
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Thanks Stephen,
Those helped greatly.
In particular, I had misunderstood the set speed behavior and its operation.
I set the set speed to 0 and then carefully set the ease out time and ease out rate to match the length of the set speed behavior.
The set speed behavior lasts from frame 10 to frame 50 -> 40 frames long.
This gave me the required effect of speeding up from rest to 100% rate as the
behavior eased from 0 to full.Perhaps this image will help others:
Final question:
As I mentioned in the previous post, each of the videos in my “picture book” may last up to two or three minutes.
So, should I try to make this all in Motion, ie. a project that might be 15 mins or 22,500 frames? ( 720p25 )
Should I only animate the “picture book” in motion and in some fashion composite the video segments into it in FCP?
Many thanks, Euan.
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Why are you holding on a three minute clip? Or is it because that 3minute clip is an edited piece? If it is an edited piece just end the project on a hard cut that is easy to put the 3 minute project up to the motion project. Hope that is what you are looking for. Best of luck.
Stephen Smith
Utah Video ProductionsCheck out my Motion Training DVD
Check out my Motion Tutorials
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Hi,
If it is an edited piece just end the project on a hard cut that is easy to put the 3 minute project up to the motion project. Hope that is what you are looking for.
Yes, each of the videos is an edited piece.I have uploaded an animatic to show what I am trying to do.
The main difference is that I hold on each target for a two to
three minute video.https://reels.creativecow.net/film/animatic
So, as you suggest, export main moves from Motion and then superimpose the videos in FCP?
I do want to keep the angle views of the video segments, so I guess I’ll have to use the distort tool in FCP?
Or is there another workflow you can suggest?
Thanks, Euan.
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Oh, I see…in this case I think it would be easiest to do the whole thing in Motion and then export it out. Take a break or go to sleep while it works its magic.
Stephen Smith
Utah Video ProductionsCheck out my Motion Training DVD
Check out my Motion Tutorials
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Thanks Stephen,
I’ll give that a try.
Many thanks for your help this last week, it’s
much appreciated.Euan
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Happy to help and best of luck.
Stephen Smith
Utah Video ProductionsCheck out my Motion Training DVD
Check out my Motion Tutorials
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