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2D Animation Camera Movement Suggestions
Hello,
I’ve done a handful of 2D animations in after effects and have never really felt I’ve found an optimal solution for camera movement. What I’ve opted for lately is creating a huge composition, currently 20,000×8,000px, and then nesting that in a 1080p sequence to do the camera motion. This is fine until you run out of real estate, like I just did today, and have to manually move relevant layers to a new comp and align it with the previous comp, thereby extending the workspace.
I’ve watched a few videos on using a 3D camera parented to a null to handle camera movement, but this required all layers to be 3D, which seems like an added media nuisance.
I’m curious if there is an industry standard technique that uses smaller resolution comps more fluidly and does not necessarily rely on nested (pre-comped) layers? I know AE is really a compositing not animation software, so maybe this is just the way it is.
I’d be happy to watch some tutorials, but so far my searches have been fruitless. Thanks for any help!
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2 Replies
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3D layers aren’t really a nuisance; they are what’s required to get a working camera system and a (practically) unbounded design space. It will open up a world of new techniques to you.
You could work in 2D entirely in 1080p comps, and parent everything to a single main null. Animate/scale the null around however like and the rest of the scene will follow. Add elements where you need, as you need. It’s easy to build up when you work straight through, but it’s much harder to maintain: you have to compose your entire scene through the 1080p output window without the benefit of multiple cameras like you’d have in 3D.
Walter Soyka
Designer & Mad Scientist at Keen Live [link]
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
@keenlive | RenderBreak [blog] | Profile [LinkedIn] -
Thank you very much for your response!
I guess I was hoping there might be some magic solution I was ignorant of, but it sounds like just checking the 3D box and using the camera tool is a good bet.
Does 3D space increase RAM preview/Render time? Does every layer in every comp need to have 3D checked, or just each precomp in the final composition?
I use null object parenting frequently, but it wouldn’t work for this animation currently as I have a very large vector background scene that the animation moves through. It’s 30,000px and is a real bear to RAM preview, event at 1/8 resolution. Perhaps you could use a low res photo of the vector and then replace with the actual vector for the final render to speed thing up.
As for running out of real estate, so to speak, does anyone know of a tool that can auto-align compositions with the same content? I’ve used HDR photo software that aligns handheld bracketed photos, so I know it’s a possibility, but not finding much for AE. Even with a 30,000px comp, if there’s a lot of motion through the scene, it doesn’t take long to have the scene extend beyond the boundaries.
I’ve noticed 3D rendering software works in an unconstrained 3D plane for this reason, but I suppose since AE wasn’t designed for this, we have to bumble through with the tools we have.
Thank you again!
Zane
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