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  • Multiple identical objects/windows collapse to one

    Posted by Ron Craig on November 21, 2009 at 7:24 pm

    Hey there…

    I’ve been using After Effects long enough (not as an expert) to know how I can manually accomplish what I want to do. My question is whether there is a faster/simpler way or, preferably, a plug-in that would handle this:

    I need to create an illusion of multiple objects (probably identical images) filling the screen, and then having them “collapse” into just one single version of the object, leaving the rest of the screen empty. Read “collapse” however you want: as a formulaic shrinking of all-to-one or a more uncontrolled collapse. That part isn’t yet decided.

    Perhaps there are previous threads on this but I did a search and perhaps I just didn’t think of the correct search terms. I didn’t find an answer.

    Any guidance — especially to applicable plug-ins — much appreciated.

    –Ron

    Ron Craig replied 16 years, 5 months ago 2 Members · 2 Replies
  • 2 Replies
  • Todd Kopriva

    November 22, 2009 at 4:57 pm

    My first thought is a general one: Use a particle effect. Have the particles be the object that you want to collapse. Create a scatter/explosion of these particles. Then run it in reverse.

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    Todd Kopriva, Adobe Systems Incorporated
    putting the ‘T’ back in ‘RTFM’ : After Effects Help on the Web
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  • Ron Craig

    November 22, 2009 at 5:28 pm

    Sounds like an interesting idea. Now I’ll have to learn how to use the particle effect. Ha! Told you I wasn’t expert at this. But I’ve located some tutorials on that.

    While I proceed with those, if anyone has any other thoughts I’d appreciate them.

    Thanks Todd.

    – Ron

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