Apple Motion 2 - Manual (Page 405)

Chapter 6 Keyframes and Curves 405
Animating in the Canvas
The easiest way to perform basic keyframing is to modify objects directly in the Canvas.
The most common effects that you can create with keyframes are changes to Scale,
Rotation, and Position. Additional parameters that can be keyframed in the Canvas
include Shear, Pivot, Drop Shadow, Crop, and Four Corner. While many of these
techniques can also be performed using behaviors, keyframing gives you the added
flexibility to set specific values on precise frames.
Ordinarily, when you make transformations to an object in the Canvas, the object
remains in the new position or shape for its entire duration. In order to create change
in an object over time, you must create keyframes. There are several ways to create
keyframes while working in the Canvas.
Using the Record Button
One of the simplest ways to create keyframes is to use the Record button. When Record
is enabled, a keyframe is created for any parameter that is adjusted.
Note: When Record is enabled, keyframes are created whether you adjust the object
onscreen, in the Dashboard, or in the Inspector.
When keyframing (Record) is enabled, the changes that you apply to the object are
applied at the current playhead position (viewable in the mini-Timeline at the bottom
of the Canvas). A keyframe is automatically added (though no indicator appears). If you
move the playhead to a new position and change the shape or position of the object,
you create a new keyframe. Motion automatically figures out the shape and position of
the object during the frames between the two keyframes you set.
Important: When Record is enabled, a red keyframe appears in the center of the
selected object. When moving the object in the Canvas, do not click the keyframe in
the center of the object as you are actually selecting and repositioning that keyframe
instead of the object’s current position.
To scale an object over time using the Record button:
1 Click the Record button (or press A) to enable keyframe recording. You can also choose
Mark > Record Animation.
2 Select an object in the Canvas.
3 Move the playhead to a new time position.
4 Scale the object up or down by dragging a corner handle.
5 Click the Record button (or press A again) to disable keyframe recording.
Record button on Record button off
01112.book Page 405 Sunday, March 13, 2005 10:36 PM