After Effects CS6 3D Layer Hierachy Anomalies

[Jesse Richards]

Thanks for the reply Dave.

Yeah I’ve checked and it’s not that. I know that that 2D layers sort of ‘reset’ the hierachy but my comp is all 3D layers.

It seems like a bug of some sort but not sure if anyone else is experiencing it.

[Darby Edelen]

[Dave LaRonde] “Double-check your comps for 2D layers mixed in among 3D layers. They really mess things up.”

If any of your 3D layers are compositions with collapse transformations enabled and effects applied that also messes up 3D render order.

Layer Styles applied (or imported from Photoshop) on 3D layers will have the same effect.

Other gotchas to check would be whether your ‘Shy’ comp switch is on and there are shy 2D layers hiding in the composition.

If you’d like more detailed guidance share a project file or screen shot of your timeline and comp viewer.

Darby Edelen

[Jesse Richards]

I’m pretty sure I don’t have effects on collapsed comps but I’ll double check that.

Definitely no shy layers – I checked that already.

At the moment it’s not actually hindering me but it is annoying.

Thanks for your help.

[Darby Edelen]

Well, if you upload a sample file for folks to take a look at I’m sure the problem can be diagnosed 🙂

Darby Edelen

[Vishesh Arora]

Jesse

I don’t think its a bug in CS6. I have recently worked for a project in which I have used several 3D layers randomly displaced in Z – axis and it worked perfectly fine.

Vishesh Arora
3D and Motion Graphics Artist
Films Rajendra

Blog:
https://digieffects.wordpress.com

Demo Reel(3D):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHPgIJU_BR8

[Brian Charles]

I see this frequently. Here is a sample. No effects, no 2D layers, no shy layers.

3D Glitch

[Jesse Richards]

Yeah that’s the sort of thing. I’ve never had that error before until I got to CS6. I’m not going mad then.

Ps Sorry I can’t link an .aep file as it’s a professional job.

[Darby Edelen]

[Brian Charles] “I see this frequently. Here is a sample. No effects, no 2D layers, no shy layers.”

No layer styles? If you have Layer Styles applied, even if they’re not active, you’ll see this behavior. Try double checking this by selecting your layers and using Layer > Layer Styles > Remove All.

If I’m working in 3D with PSDs I’ll always select to merge the Layer Styles.

Darby Edelen

[Brian Charles]

Darby – thank you! You’re a genius!

You’re correct in my case. This has bothered me for ages.

There were no layer styles in the PSD file, nor any styles visible on any of the Composition layers, removing the layer styles as you suggested resolved the issue.

[Jesse Richards]

Yeah I think the layer styles are my problem too.

Cheers!