Apple Motion 2 Tutorials - Manual (Page 197)

Tutorial 4 Working With Particles 197
Emitter Shapes
The shape of the emitter plots where particles appear as they are generated. If the
emitter shape is set to a point, all the particles are generated from the same point. If
the emitter shape is set to a line, particles are generated along the path of a line.
Change the shape of the emitter to change the distribution of particles in this system.
To change the shape of the particle emitter:
m In the Emitter tab, choose Line from the Shape pop-up menu.
Now the particles are emitted along the path of a line. Edit the line either by adjusting
the Start and End Points directly, or by changing the X and Y parameter values for each.
To move the Start and End Points of the line emitter:
1 In the Toolbar, click and hold the Select/Transform tool.
The tool options appear.
2 Select the Adjust Item tool (the last tool in the list).
The emitter’s onscreen controls appear in the Canvas, as circled crosshairs at the
endpoints of the line emitter.
Note: You can also Control-click the Canvas (on the selected emitter object) and
choose Emitter from the shortcut menu to display the Emitter Shape’s onscreen
controls.