[Siew Kei]

Hi,

Typically, for motion tracking, you would have two layers in your composition. The first layer contains the video with the motion you want to track, and the 2nd layer is the one you want to apply the motion tracking data to so that it follows the motion. For example, the 1st layer may be a video of a moving signboard, and the 2nd layer may be some text that you want to stick onto the signboard.

If you don’t have a 2nd layer in your composition, or if you do not define the 2nd layer using the ‘Edit target’ in the motion tracker window, then the ‘apply’ button is greyed out.

If your timeline is zoomed out, then the keyframes on the tracker bar will merge together to look like a black line. Just zoom in the timeline and you should be able to see the individual keyframes.

Hope this is helpful.

SK

[Siew Kei]

Hi Brendon,

Just a suggestion – if your composition is complex enough such that the export is going to take 8 hours, it may be a good idea to export it out as a TIFF sequence. Then import the TIFF sequence back into AE, add the audio and re-export as a video clip in whatever format you want.

Although it seems like more work, the advantage is that in the event of an error during the export process, any frames that have already been properly exported don’t need to be rendered again, and you can just render the remaining frames. The final re-export to video from the TIFF sequence should be comparatively quick.

SK

[Siew Kei]

Hi,

You could try this (to solve the fade-out problem in general, but not to answer your question about auto-orienting shapes on same layer):

Select the arrow path and arrow head layers (making sure both are at full opacity without any fading), and pre-compose them.

The two layers are replaced by a single pre-comp layer.

Then adjust the opacity of that single pre-comp layer to do your fade out.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

SK

[Siew Kei]

Hi,

I assume the 4 layers are full frame so they cover each other?

Perhaps you can trying this:
Apply the Strobe Light effect on the 3 uppermost layers.
Set the strobe duration = 0.04 sec (1 frame in PAL)
Set the strobe period = 0.16, 0.20 and 0.25 sec (different for each layer)
Set the strobe to “Make Layer Transparent”.

This will make each layer appear for one frame (0.04 sec) and disappear for 3,4 or 5 frames (depending on what you set as the strobe period.

The frames are not truly random but will give that impression because the strobe period is slightly different for each layer.

You can also animate the strobe period for each layer so that the particular layer appears more frequently or less frequently over time.

Hope this is useful.

K

[Siew Kei]

Hi Richard,

Thanks for your reply.

Actually, what I should have asked is which of the bars generated by FCP is 75% and 100% bars. The ones that are in the generators menu do not indicate.

I had actually digitised a 100% bars signal off a tape recorded with colour bars. Is there a way to save this signal in FCP so that I could select it from the generators menu?

Thanks

SK

[Siew Kei]

Hi Jeremy,

I hope so too, although at the moment, the local reseller is also stumped as he has not ever encountered such a weird problem before.

Thanks.

Regards,

SK

[Siew Kei]

Hi,

I am able to see that the resolution has become smaller both in FCP (reflected in the clip information) and when I play the clip in Quicktime.

When I play the clip in Quicktime, the clip appears normal – just that it has a low resolution.

However, strangely, when I drop the clip into a FCP timeline (timeline is set to DVCPRO HD), the clip is not just smaller, but part of the image is also cropped off. (I checked the clip motion settings, but there is no crop activated.)

I tried capturing to another RAID drive (not the Editshare) and it appeared to worked fine.

So I am suspecting that the Editshare drive has something to do with the problem, but I just can’t figure why the resolution is being automatically reduced during capture, since the firewire capture should basically be a transfer of data off the tape.

Regards,

SK

[Siew Kei]

Hi,

Thanks for doing the maths – you’re right, the figure doesn’t look so large after all.

Regards,

Siew Kei

[Siew Kei]

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the suggestion. One of the concerns I am wondering about will be the limitation of the internal memory if the project is over a few months. Still trying to work out what sort of interval between shots.

Regards

Siew Kei

[Siew Kei]

Hi Tony,

Thanks for the tips.

Regards

Siew Kei