Andy Neil
Forum Replies Created
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It’s a little difficult understanding the circumstances that cause the problem. Can you upload the project so we can look at it?
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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They are designed for essentially the same purposes: to create motion graphics. This leads them to being compared to one another.
They have very different workflows however, and are at completely different levels of refinement. Motion is on it’s 4th version in 6 years. After Effects is on its 10th version in 17 years.
Most professionals will find reason to use both even if one or another is preferred.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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Ok. First of all, regarding your “light tracks”:
If you want to manipulate the paint strokes writing on, you’re NOT going to want to use a shape style from the light category. Often times, those styles have animated properties in the color and opacity that will be contrary to what you’re looking to do, and extremely difficult to manipulate how you want. You’re better off creating the effect from scratch so you’re in control of everything.
Secondly, I wouldn’t bother with the write on behavior for this particular effect. The write on behavior manipulates the First/Last Point offset. Since you need to keyframe the write on, I would just use the last point offset parameter to animate on. Fewer moving parts. Your previous problem with last point offset was likely due to a shape style. Building the light track from scratch will eliminate that problem.
However, to check your problem with the Custom Speed setting in a write on effect, I find it helpful to open the keyframe editor so I can see what’s going on. You should be able to see the animation line of the Last point offset. Then if you apply keyframes to the custom speed parameter, you should be able to see it working properly or not in the editor. But that’s more of an aside. As I said, I would skip the Write On behavior, and just keyframe the Last Point Offset.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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Ok, here’s what I discovered.
First, the easy problem. The reason your reflections aren’t turning out right with the replicator is because you have the Face Camera button turned on for the replicator. Apparently, that button is causing the reflections to flip around. I would probably classify this as a bug since the face camera button shouldn’t cause this issue. However there is a work around.
You can turn off the face button camera, and then turn the replicator sources on the Y axis. This will reposition them in the replicator in the same manner that the face camera button does. Then, when you rotate the replicator, apply the same rotation to the source layers (it helps if they’re grouped together), but in the opposite way. In other words, if you rotate the replicator 60 degrees, then rotate the source pics -60 degrees.
As for the dotted line, the clone idea works. The reason you thought it disappeared was because the clone wasn’t created in the same part of the timeline as the original so it wasn’t showing up. Here’s what I did:
First, I took the 2-color ray, and the circle used to mask it, out of the group that it’s in. I put it in its own group and made that group 2D. In the generator tab, I turned off the opacity for the white layer since you don’t need a white layer (this is optional, I just noticed that you colored one ray the same as your bkg and floor). I reset the transformation for those layers so that they were at 0,0. Then I cloned the entire ray group. It’s important to clone the group and not just the ray because the ray has the image mask applied, and that will affect the clone during animation causing it to be invisible unless it occupies the same space as the masked layer.
I drop the clone into the group where the ray used to be. Now I have a reflection for the dotted line.
Hope this helps.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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Well, the reason you can’t see the reflection with the dotted line is because you have that layer masked.
Reflections don’t work with masked layers. You can work around that limitation a bit by cloning the masked layer. The clone will retain a reflection.
As far as your phones…well, all I can say is that it’s not a bug. I can’t reproduce your problem, reflections work fine with replicators.
Perhaps there’s something in the makeup of the project that’s causing it to behave this way. Without seeing the project it’d be hard to say.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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There is a workaround. Use two text objects in Motion as Mark suggested. Add a third text object and call it null. Turn the layer off.
Apply the link behavior to the 2nd text object (the one that represents the last name. Use it’s X position as the target parameter. Drag the null into the source object and use the text size as the source parameter. Change the scale to 2:1. Use the size offset to align the the first two text objects. Save your template.
In FCP replace your “John Smith” with whatever long name you have. When the 1st name overlaps the 2nd name, just increase the size of the null text to slide the 2nd name over.
Hope that makes sense to you. If not, I’ll post a sample project.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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There’s a pre-animated Ant in the Motion Library. Might work for your needs.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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I never use field rendering with a progressive project, and only rarely use it with interlaced; usually when an animation isn’t moving smoothly.
Also, the Best rendering setting is what’s causing the extraordinary render time. Normal setting is fine for almost all renders, the exceptions being what Mark stated above. I’d always render Normal to begin with and only switch to Best if I had to for quality.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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Not sitting at my Mac, so you’ll have to help me help you. What do you get when you drag Ornament 6 into your project? A group with a paint stroke that is animated on with a behavior/keyframes? Or a QT movie (one layer).
If the paint stroke, it’s likely a write on behavior. You can change the speed of the write on by shortening the behavior. You can keep it on the screen by lengthening the stroke layer.
If it’s a qt movie, add a set speed behavior or change the speed in the timing parameter of the inspector. Also change the end duration to hold if you want the ornament to remain on the screen after it’s drawn on.
Again, I’m not at my Mac so I can’t tell you exactly what might help.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com
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The easiest way to do that is to export your video clip as an image sequence in Quicktime Pro. Then delete all the unnecessary images from the resulting sequence.
Andy
https://www.timesavertutorials.com