[Mike Clasby]

Add a Null (Layer>New>Null Object). Put Effect>Expression Control>Slider Control on the Null.

Add you wiggle expression to the camera’s position (Copy the expression, Alt-click the Position Stopwatch, Paste, click outside the box). Typical wiggle expression follows:

wiggle (5,50)

Then highlight the 5 (frequency) or the 15 (amplitude) and pickwhip to the slider on the NULL to get an expression like this:

w = wiggle(thisComp.layer(“Null 1”).effect(“Slider Control”)(“Slider”),15)

Now the slider controls the frequency so you can keyframe from zero to whatever you want.

For a camera shake you might want just wiggle the x and y, the original expression would look like this:

w = wiggle(5,15);
[w[0],w[1], value[2]]

This modified from Dan page here:

https://www.motionscript.com/design-guide/wiggle-1-dimension.html

and linked to the slider, this:

w = wiggle(thisComp.layer(“Null 1”).effect(“Slider Control”)(“Slider”),15);
[w[0],w[1], value[2]]

To put a slide on the amplitude of how big the shake/wiggle is just highlight the 15 and pickwhip to the slider. That’s probably what you want.

The pickwhip is that middle symbol the look like a “@” under the now red expression controlled values.

Also, wiggling the camera’s Z rotation a bit can give it a nice (and queasy) feel.

[Mike Clasby]

Are the pixel aspect ratios of the comp and the layers the same? Like a D1/DV NTSC (0.9) comp and layers with square pixels. That can make for mismatches.

Also, there might be less than one pixel gaps that become apparent upon rotation.

Here is a link to a script that makes cubes from your own layers or solids, very spiffy. It’s worth a try. Just keep those pixel aspect ratios the same for the layers and the comp.

https://forums.creativecow.net/readpost/227/10249

This script gives me seamless cubes, amazingly.

[Mike Clasby]

I think as Dan suggested in the aforementioned thread, this is Inverse Kinetics. Aside from the centrifugal forces you talk about, is not the puppets hand-forearm-upperarm-torso, such a connection as you describe?

Here’s Dan’s IK, and I think when the “effectors have no parents” (see the middle figure just above the heading “Anchor Point”), the IK puppet does what you describe”:

https://www.motionscript.com/design-guide/ik.html

A few well placed keyframes on the hand could give you the illusion of the centrifugal forces you desire, methinks.

Or if this doesn’t answer you question, maybe be more specific as to what exactly you’re trying to do.

[Mike Clasby]

Audio Waveform and Audio Spectrum make lines animate to the beat.

Convert Audio to Keyframes and expression can do many things, see Dan’s tut here:

https://www.motionscript.com/design-guide/basic-audio.html

What would you like to do to the line or object?

[Mike Clasby]

Methinks Particle Illusion had so decent splash/sprays. The SE Trial version was fully functional for 30 days.

https://www.wondertouch.com/default.asp

And there is a Cow PI Forum here:

https://forums.creativecow.net/forum/particleillusion

[Mike Clasby]

You could build a quick cube with the Script described in this thread, then Alt-Drag assets from the project window onto the cube faces to swap in your PhotoShop Stuff. Might work, if your sides and back are all the same size.

https://forums.creativecow.net/readpost/227/10249

There is also a Script for createBox.

[Mike Clasby]

Trevor,

Set a mask shape keyframe (M reveals), then down the timeline, double click the mask and move it, setting a new keyframe. This just moves the mask without moving the layer.

You can also actually change the shape by moving individual vertices.

[Mike Clasby]

The easiest way is to download the script, createCube, put the .jsx file in your AE script folder, then select the 6 sides, 6 layers in AE, and File>RunScript>Create Cube. Check the top box (it’s French, yikes!), and it creates a cube from your layers (with expressions) with a null, so you can rotate that Null.

https://www.nabscripts.com/Downloads/downloads_en_1.php?id=7

It can also create a cube with new solids.

Lots of other cool scripts there too.

[Mike Clasby]

Here is an earlier post with lots of info.

https://forums.creativecow.net/thread/2/922407#922418

To keep swf files small they need to not use raster effects which is almost all the Effects, but as mentioned above there are some that are way cool, like Audio Spectrum as a Stroke substitute.

Also, as in the tut by Lee you, can use AE Text to make very small swf’s and if you can use wingdings to get custom shapes to animate you can do a lot. Otherwise it’s AI files, solids and Masks.

[Mike Clasby]

To make the text pop off the video, try a little stroke (2 pixel?)of a contrasting color on the text, using the Character Palette (Window>Character).

If your not scaling the text, making it larger, it should look fine.

Just read about your PDF problem. I think I’d try to pull the text out of the pdf and then use AE’s text tool. Googling “pdf to text” gave lots of options.