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scrolling text on a gradient
I don’t know why this is so hard for me. I’m sure I’m missing something really obvious, as is often the case.
I have a list of names (think closing credits) that are scrolling from bottom to top. There is a bit of vertical space in between each name (font size=32, leading=80). What I’m trying to get is for them to start a dark grey and then get whiter as they approach center, then go back to grey.
Seemingly simple, I thought. What’s happening is that the color shift is jumping versus a gradual shift. I’ve tried this in numerous ways, layer style gradient over the text, over a solid with the text as a track matte, you name it.
Is this something I need an expression to change the color value as it gets closer to the center position and then again as it gets farther away?
Thanks for the help.
Mike
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1 Reply
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That did the trick. My issue had something to do with using the Layer style>gradient overlay. I wanted the “reflective” setting of black to white to black. For whatever reason, even precomping the solid with the layer style would give me the popping that I was trying to avoid.
My solution (from your advice) was to make two solids with ramps going in opposite directions (again, black-white-black) and precomp them. I set my scrolling text (also a precomp) as the track matte for my Ramp precomp. Bingo!
What’s odd (at least to me) is that when I went into the Ramp precomp, I added a solid and applied the reflective gradient Layer Style to it. I turned off the two solids with ramps. Guess what? It still worked fine.
Is there something I’m missing about pre-comping layer styles?
Thanks for the help,
Mike
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