3d text animation - advice needed.
by adam taylor
on
Jun 5, 2008 at 12:42:20 pm
I try avoid using text on screen if i can avoid it, but for the current project i need to use some and i haven't a clue how best to achieve what i need.
I want to write a paragraph on screen, with each individual word flying to its final end position from the far distant centre of screen (obviously a pseudo-3d effect).
I realise i could have each word on a separate layer and animate each one individually, but that will take an eternity.
Does anyone know of a method that will allow me to automate some of the process....something that lets you pick a start position, end position and number of frames before the next word begins its movement would be ideal?
thanks in advance
Adam
Adam Taylor
Video Editor/Audio Mixer/ Compositor/Motion GFX/Barista
Character Options Ltd
Oldham, UK
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by Todd Morgan on Jun 5, 2008 at 1:33:29 pm
As far as I know, the best way is to create your paragraph, convert it to outline, and then switch to 3D. Make the text layer invisible, and do your position keyframe for your motion on the outline layer, then duplicate the layer how ever many words you have. Then double click the first layer, delete everything but the word you need, and repeat for all other layers. Once done, toggle on Continue Rasterize in your timeline for each and there ya go. Takes about 5 minutes to do.
Todd Morgan
Creative Director
morgancreative
www.morgancreative.ca
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by adam taylor on Jun 5, 2008 at 1:37:51 pm
thanks morgan - i see where you are going with this.
Wouldn't doing that put all the words on top of each other? Doesn't deleting all the other words put the remaining word back to the start of the paragraph?
adam
Adam Taylor
Video Editor/Audio Mixer/ Compositor/Motion GFX/Barista
Character Options Ltd
Oldham, UK
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by Todd Morgan on Jun 5, 2008 at 1:47:56 pm
If you delete the words in the text file, yes. But if you double click on an outline layer, it opens up its own window and you see all the masking for the outlines. Select all that is not needed and delete. What is left stays there and keeps the animation intact.
Todd Morgan
Creative Director
morgancreative
www.morgancreative.ca
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by Mike Park on Jun 5, 2008 at 1:45:42 pm
This is easier than you think. First create your text. Next, enable per character 3d under the animate tab of your text layer. Next, click the animate rollout again and choose position. Next, under Animator 1, set key frames for the range selector. Change start from 0 to 100 over whatever duration you need. Next, go back to frame 0 and change the z position of the text. If you scrub through, you will see the text animate forward into position one character at a time. The last thing you need to do is go under the Advanced rollout and change the "based on" from character to word. Now, the words should fly forward one word at a time from back in z space to their initial position. Finally, turn on some motion blur for the text layer for an even more polished effect.
If you really want to make it look good, try changing your comp from 8 bit to 32 bit. That way your can use high dynamic ranges and when your text blurs, it will leave cool color gradient trails. Andrew Kramer has a good tutorial on this on his website, www.videocopilot.net. It is one of the more recent ones.
I hope this helps. Let me know if you run into any problems.
Heck, it was so quick, I made an example file and uploaded it here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?gnyymtdi0yj
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by Mike Park on Jun 5, 2008 at 1:49:29 pm
Just a quick follow up. If you need to have the words fly in some other way than equal time, all you need to do is keyframe the range selector and you can sync the text movement to whatever you want.
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by Mike Park on Jun 5, 2008 at 2:02:09 pm
Yeah, it is a newer function. I can't remember exactly which version it started in. I am currently using CS3. It is the little things that sometimes make the upgrades helpful.
Re: 3d text animation - advice needed. by Darby Edelen on Jun 5, 2008 at 6:23:41 pm
[Mike Park]"Yeah, it is a newer function. I can't remember exactly which version it started in. I am currently using CS3. It is the little things that sometimes make the upgrades helpful."
It was new in CS3.
Darby Edelen Lead Designer Left Coast Digital Santa Cruz, CA
