Apple Motion 4 - Manual (Page 901)

Generators are objects in the Library that you add to your project to instantly create solids
or patterns such as colors, bars, stripes, noise, or gradients. Some generators create
animated patterns, while most create static, patterned images.
This chapter covers the following:
• About Generators (p. 901)
• Adding a Generator (p. 902)
• Modifying Generators (p. 903)
• Generator Parameters (p. 916)
• Text Generators (p. 939)
About Generators
Generators are added to your project in the same manner as other files—you drag the
generator to your project from the Library. The generator becomes a layer in the Layers
tab (and Timeline layers list) and appears in the Canvas. The generator is set to the duration
and size of your project by default. For example, if you are working on an NTSC D1 project
and you add a generator, the generator will have a 720 x 486 (.90) pixel aspect ratio.
Once a generator is added to a project, you can modify its preset values as well as animate
nearly all of its parameters—whether the generator is animated or static. Once you have
modified a generator, you can save it to the Library for later use.
Note: The duration of the generator depends on the Project settings in Motion Preferences.
If Create Layers At is set to “Start of project,” the generator starts at the first project frame
regardless of where the playhead is when the generator is added. If set to “Current frame,”
the generator starts at the playhead’s frame.
Once a generator is added to a project, you can edit its parameters in the HUD or Inspector.
As with all objects, the generator HUDs contain a subset of the larger group of controls
located in the Inspector. Nearly all generator parameters can be keyframed, whether the
default generator is an animated texture or a static image.
901
Working with Generators 15