-
Problems with mask path
Hi,
Trying to animate several different circles with text on a laptop screen, but struggling to get the effect I want.
I want them to come in from outside the mask, on to the screen and then circle the laptop screen and end in a circle – so the 6 shape layer circles sit nicely equal distance apart on the laptop screen. I will then animate a character in the centre.
I’m struggling getting them to come from off screen. When I create a solid and create a mask path from outside the laptop screen and then going into a circle, I cannot get the circle to be a perfect circle. So I’m thinking instead of creating a perfect circle mask and then trying to align a second mask with the first and duplicating items at the point they end the first mask and go into the 2nd circle mask. But this seems messy!
For clarify, so far I’ve…
masked out the laptop screen and placed a shape layer behind it.
created a shape layer and created a circle mask within the laptop screen
copied and pasted the mask path to the position property of the first circle
done the same with the 2nd, 3rd etc, moved them in time and adjusted the end keyframe so they create a circle (although not perfect distance apart)Now I’m going to dry and create a 2nd mask coming from outside the mask of the screen and meeting the first position keyframe of the first animated move of the circle mask, then dialling down the opacity to 0.
But wanted to post here first and see if there is a better way?
The other thing I am conscious of is how to get the circles to appear from outside the mask of the laptop screen – like a real monitor – if not they’ll fly from the comp onto the screen and won’t appear that they are in the screen.
Olly Lawer
-
5 Replies
-
I’d create a pre-comp for all the on-screen animation that matches the aspect ratio of the computer display itself.
Animate there, then bring that pre-comp into the main comp containing the laptop and position it in 3D or with the Corner Pin effect as necessary.
Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events -
Thanks.
Right I’ve done that, but now I have a new problem. A more serious one that I have tired multiple things to do to solve with no luck.
I’m using Vector based art work so having to continually rasterise. I’ve created a ‘laptop screen’ comp and made it the same size as my main comp.
The ‘laptop screen’ animates the circles. I’ve nested it in the ‘laptop comp’ which is nested in the ‘office’ comp which is nested in ‘section 1’ which is nested in ‘Main Animation’ – Seems complicated (probably because it is!! – although I thought this would save time later).
I’ve continually rasterised and set to 3D all layers as I’m using a camera in the main comp. The circles animate perfectly all the way up the stack until I get to the main comp, where it appears tiny in the corner of the laptop screen.
I’ve posted some pictures.
Why would it work all the way up the stack until we get to the main comp? Too many nested comps?
3D turned on – all layers
3D turned off on the ‘Laptop Screen’ layer
Section 1 comp with 3D turned on – all layers – showing correctly
Olly Lawer
-
Hmm, when I scrub the Z position of the null object (camera), the desk moves in and out (zooming) but the circles and screen doesn’t.
Aaaaah! Sorry, just figured it out – seems I had another level down – the circles I had duplicated from the main circle comp and hadn’t set to 3D!
Thanks again!
However, why I am here. Even though I have continually rasterised, the edges seem blurred still. No where near as bad as if I turn it off, but not as sharp as I would expect.
Olly Lawer
-
If you are not using the screen pre-comp at more than 100% scale, you don’t need to collapse its transformations. Without transformations collapsed but with 3D on, it will behave as a single piece of 2.5D footage.
When you do check collapse transformations, then that’s almost as if you had all the individual 2.5D elements in the main comp.
Walter Soyka
Principal & Designer at Keen Live
Motion Graphics, Widescreen Events, Presentation Design, and Consulting
RenderBreak Blog – What I’m thinking when my workstation’s thinking
Creative Cow Forum Host: Live & Stage Events -
Also view your Comps at 100%.
The display will play tricks with your eyes at less or more.
Reply to this Discussion! Login or Sign Up