Creating a grid of the same object?

[Kevin Camp]

you can do this with expressions… an expression in the position property of a layer could align it to a grid position, then duplicating the layer (or applying the same expression to a different layer) would align it to the next grid position… and so on.

so you would end up with separate layers all aligned in a grid, each would then be fully independent so you could add effects or adjust timing individually as needed.

i don’t have the time to come up with the expression right now, but if you post in the expressions forum and describe how you need the grid to work (like number of columns and rows, if you need the grid to be based on the height/width of the layer or the height/width of the comp, etc)

Kevin Camp
Senior Designer
KCPQ, KMYQ & KRCW

[David Bogie]

Using an expression is always the more elegant solution but distribute and align are my go-to functions for multiple layers. If I wasn’t interested in the fundamental scaling calculations, I’d just create a huge comp, reduce them all to 50%, distribute and align, and then nest the giant comp back into a proper working size comp.

bogiesan

This is my standard sigfile so do not take it personally: “For crying out loud, read the freakin’ manual.”

[Roland R. kahlenberg]

Take a look at my COW Tutorial, Fun in Particle Playground Lan. With Particle Playground, you’ll be able to create what you want – ie Time Offset and control other attributes of the grid components.

HTH
RoRK

broadcastGEMs.com – the leader in customizable royalty-free animated backdrops

[David Bogie]

I thought the OP wanted to be able to adjust the individual grid items independently of the source layer. It is my understanding that Particle Playground sees a Layer Map but only sees one layer at a time. The OP seems to want to be able to apply filters to each grid item. Maybe I misunderstood. Happens often enough.

bogiesan

This is my standard sigfile so do not take it personally: “For crying out loud, read the freakin’ manual.”

[Roland R. kahlenberg]

Hi Dave, I think he wants ceertain grid componenets to have different colors and Time Offset was mentioned. I’m assuming that TIme Offset refers to different frames within a sequence (Layer Map).

So, the Layer Map would be an animated sequence which will then be controlled by Property Mappes for scale, Time Offset, y-force, x-force etc.

I can’t think of a faster way yo do this than with Particle Playground. Of course that depends on the size of the grid, component wise.

Cheers
RoRK

broadcastGEMs.com – the leader in customizable royalty-free animated backdrops

[Martin Löfqvist]

Yes!!
The Particle Playground is doing exacty what I was looking for. First part is success!

But.
The ‘Time Offset’ under Layer Map is just… offset the next layer by the amount of time given there? Is there any way for more precise controls? randomness?
Is al that under Presistent Property Mapper? Any tips on how to use that? Moving footage?

Thank you cows!

[Roland R. kahlenberg]

Within the Layer Map section, there are lots of controls including creating a Selection Map to dictate which grid component is affected.

For random display for a ocmponent, set Time Offset Type to Relative Random. You’ll also need to set a value for TimeOffset. This value tells Particle Playground how much (in terms of time – in seconds) to sample the original movie.

For more info, check out the tutorial I pointed you to in an earlier post – No Pain No Gain. 😉

Cheers
RoRK

broadcastGEMs.com – the leader in customizable royalty-free animated backdrops

[Martin Löfqvist]

Thanks a bunch for helping out.

Appreciates it!

/M

[David Bogie]

Nice work, boys.
Martin, thanks for closing the thread with a successful story, hardly anyone ever does that around here.
Roland, thanks for pointing us all toward Particle Playground, perhaps the most misunderstood system in After Effects.

bogiesan

This is my standard sigfile so do not take it personally: “For crying out loud, read the freakin’ manual.”