Tracing Light Around Objects

[Mike Clasby]

If your “music quaver” has alpha around it, do Layer>Auto-Trace with Tolerance and Threshold at 1. Then you will have a mask in the newly created AutoTrace layer. M reveals the Mask, Copy the Mask Shape. You can now Paste that into positional properties to make keyframes.

If you don’t have transparency around your quaver, then use the Pen Tool to create a mask that outlines the quaver. Then same thing, use the mask shape (copy) as positional keyframes (Paste). So you could paste that into the Flare Center for Fens Flare. Or the Center for CC Light Rays.

Note: If your position keyframes aren’t where you want them or they’re the same shape but smaller or larger, then you have copied from one sized layer and pasted into a different sized layer. The layers must be the same size for the mask shape to make Positional Keyframes that match correctly.

[Antoni Jones]

Hi,

I have tried what you suggested but I still cannot get it to work. I have simply the quaver object on a transparent background. I have used the pen tool to draw around the shape of the quaver to create the mask shape. I have then added CC Light Rays to the object, copied the Mask Shape properties and pasted it into the CC Light Rays “Center” property which gives the roving keyframes. The trouble is the light does not follow the shape of the mask, it appears to follow a “smaller” version of the quaver which doesn’t exist. I am not pasting it to a different layer so I don’t really know why this is happening or what I’m doing wrong. Anymore suggestions or tips would be greatly received.

-Regards