|
|
Animating Transparency
About Truespace Archives
These pages are a copy of the official truespace forums prior to their removal somewhere around 2011.
They are retained here for archive purposes only.
Animating Transparency // Archive: Tech Forum
Post by Capng // May 19, 2008, 6:58am
|
Capng
Total Posts: 8
|
Hello Thanks for all your help,
In an animation, I've got an object that I'd like to fade-in, do it's thing, then fade-out. The object has it's own animation and multiple parts with in it. There are multiple colors involved. I'd like the whole object to fade in and out . . .
How to? |
Post by prodigy // May 19, 2008, 8:16am
|
prodigy
Total Posts: 3029
|
Workspace or Model Side? |
Post by Capng // May 19, 2008, 8:29am
|
Capng
Total Posts: 8
|
Sorry, I should have said . . .
Model Side
Thank you |
Post by TomG // May 19, 2008, 10:57am
|
TomG
Total Posts: 3397
|
Open the Material Editor. Choose the simple transparency (gives you a slider beneath the color shader). Now open the animated material timeline (icon in top left of the Material Editor).
Now set your desired transparency for frame zero, and hit record. Now use the Material Editors animation timeline to move to (say) frame 30. Adjust the transparency. Hit record.
Now paint your object with this animated material. Now move the main animation timeline, and you'll see your object fade in or out. Note you can record as many keyframes for the material as you like, so it can fade out and in and part way out and back in again, and so on. You can also keyframe color changes etc too.
HTH!
Tom |
Post by TomG // May 19, 2008, 11:01am
|
TomG
Total Posts: 3397
|
Option 2
Using the main Animation timeline. Paint your object with the starter material. Click record at keyframe zero in the main timeline.
Now edit your material to the next one, and move the main animation timeline to your next keyframe time (this is just a static material in the Material Editor, no need to open its timeline).
Now use the Paint Over tool. It must be Paint Over Existing Material, you can't use Paint Object or Paint Face etc :) That's the key for this approach to work. Hit record in the main animation timeline.
Again your material will animate on playback. Depends on whether you prefer to animate the material (which can then be painted onto lots of objects, giving them an identical animation, if you set it up in the Material Editor), or just prefer to work with the main timeline and not worry about the Material Editor timeline.
HTH!
Tom |
Post by Capng // May 19, 2008, 1:37pm
|
Capng
Total Posts: 8
|
Thanks Tom,
I think I get it. I like the main time line approach. I'm looking to fade in and fade out at times controlled at the top level.
I was hoping for some transparency control for the whole object. I guess I've got to key frame the color change for each of the materials . . . .
The scenario is this: I'm making an instructional video clip. I'd like to show time elapse using a clock face with hands spinning around. This whole clock object needs to fade in, dwell for a while, then fade out, all the time with the hands spinning. The clock is made up of four sub-objects which I've glued together and each has it's own material.
If I understand you right, I've got to key frame color change (transparency) for each sub-object. Is there not a better way? |
Post by prodigy // May 19, 2008, 1:54pm
|
prodigy
Total Posts: 3029
|
I know the same workflow as Tom mentioned.
And yes, you need to make the fade in and fade out for each material. :o
The best way to do that imo is in postprocess, render the clock with alpha background and then in Premiere or another soft (don't know if movie maker support that) make the fade in and fade out.. |
Post by TomG // May 20, 2008, 1:21am
|
TomG
Total Posts: 3397
|
Since it's an attribute of the material (and of course stored separately for each material), you would indeed need to keyframe each material independently.
You could keyframe invisibility but then it will just snap in and out, and not fade. Only material transmission is variable in intensity.
As Prodigy notes, might be worth doing this externally in that case in a video application, rendering two passes, one with clock and one without, then blending those together and the clock layer in and out.
You could even do that in tS if your video editing software doesnt do it - render the two videos (with clock, and without), then make a new tS scene with two planes, with the videos painted on them. Now you can use the transparency animation as before on one of the planes (but now it is just one material). You'd have to use lossless compression on the first videos to avoid adding compression quality reduction twice though.
HTH!
Tom |
Post by Capng // May 20, 2008, 3:36am
|
Capng
Total Posts: 8
|
Thanks for your suggestions.
I really appreciate your willingness to help.
I will now go and do likewise . . . |
Post by kena // May 20, 2008, 5:05am
|
kena
Total Posts: 2321
|
this tutorial may help:
http://forums1.caligari.com/truespace/showpost.php?p=24854&postcount=3 |
|
