Complex Camera Moves

[Chase]

I always set keyframes for postion and rotation for the starting keyframe and then the final resting keyframe. Then I pick portions in the middle and reset the camera to the angles / postions I want. Then it’s just lots of pre-renders and tweeks fom there.

One trick I learned is to render the same keyframe timings only change the cameras perspective or lens. Then render a quicktime. Do this a couple of times and cut the quicktimes together in Final Cut Pro (or whatever you use). This helps giving you new ideas for your motion and/ make something you haven’t imagined.

[Richie Grasso]

the new graph editor for keyframes in ae 7 helps a lot, but getting the motion smooth and really spot on takes practice. i would suggest trying to imitate how real camera moves are done in movies. the trick is to keyframe as little as possible. if you are having problems with your camera bouncing and jerking when it hits a keyframe, you need to modify the velocity curves for the keyframe. ease it in or out. its a lot more than just hitting F9 to get it right – the curves need to be smooth. with some practice youll know what works naturally and what doesnt.

[Richie Grasso]

i thought id add a reference as well. while this is in no way perfect and needs lots of tweaks to improve the camera’s movements, it is about 10 seconds of a continuous movement between 3 scenes:

https://71.18.60.52/upload/cloud_love.mov

here are the keyframes:

https://71.18.60.52/upload/keyframes.jpg

[Jonathan Alexander]

Very helpful example, thanks! Now why did you parent the camera to the null, is it easier to animate the null as opposed to the camera?

And just curious, do you have any precomps in your comp there, or do you have all of your individual elements in this comp? If there are precomps, do those have their own camera movements, or is this comp contain all that camera movement I just saw in the example?

Really cool animation by the way! Do you freelance?

Thanks for all the tips everybody.

–Jonathan

[Steve Roberts]

The wisdom of the ages is contained in this sentence:

[banjomamo] “… the trick is to keyframe as little as possible”

🙂

[Richie Grasso]

When I first started using cameras I read somewhere that you should let the null animate the camera’s position. I find this way I have more control. I can always animate the camera on its own in conjunction to the null. It isnt required its just a technique I use. The butterflies were all precomped. The two main ones have their own camera movement in their comp to make them flutter in their own space. Its just a 360 spin.

Thanks for the kind words. And yes I freelance for lots of shops – you can email me – richard (at) madfaction (dot) com

[Jonathan Alexander]

I agree and think that those are good words to live by, but I find that they apply much more to After Effects than other animation applications. Would you agree?

[Steve Roberts]

It depends on the motion, not the app. (I use Lightwave, too)

But if you want smooth motion, keyframes are best applied at points of inflection, where the equation of a curve changes … say, from left curve to right curve. If you tweak the bezier (or whatever) curves just right, you often find that you can do without a lot of keyframes.

At any rate, it’s good to try to do with very few keyframes then add them only if necessary, rather than add them willy-nilly then wonder why the animation isn’t smooth.

my 2 cents,
Steve

[Jonathan Alexander]

Worth every penny, thank you guys for the advice! I’ll approach my animations with your tips in mind and hopefully I can make something of this bumpy ride that is my camera movement right now. Thanks again!

–Jonathan

[Chris Smith]

I shut off the camera’s POI. Then layer groups of animation to nulls. One null is position only, next null is rotation only, next null is shake/vibrate only, then lastly the cam. All of these in a parent/child chain.

This way everything is in it’s own layer of motion and not all mixed together. Also each null works relative to 0,0,0 so any expression writing is easy.

Chris Smith
https://www.sugarfilmproduction.com