Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Post your tips & tricks here for creating slide shows with ProShow Producer. This could include suggestions for style and content in addition to working with the software itself
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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby anitaemile » Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:16 am

.. Or use the grid option.. Works too.. :D

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby BarbaraC » Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:28 am

Anita, you're so correct. I often don't remember the grid until after I've struggled with my usual guess-and-by-gosh method. Thanks for the reminder.

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby anitaemile » Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:33 am

Or.. a sticky note.. That one is the fastest !Has a sharp edge and is easily to use. Keep it coming..... :D

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby BarbaraC » Wed Jul 13, 2011 6:20 am

I'm wondering about that sticky note. If you physically move slightly to the left or right, the image on the monitor visually shifts in relation to the paper's edge.

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby im42n8 » Wed Jul 13, 2011 8:25 am

The sticky note method just requires that part of it be positioned at the edge of and inside the layer. That way you can see the layer's edge move left or right of (or above or below) the sticky note' edges (and not be obscured by the sticky note itself).

As for the "grid" method, I have no idea how that'd work. You can't see the grid when scrubbing or playing the slide so you have no idea if your layer's edge is moving relative to the grid line. Additionally, aligning the grid to the edge of the image is often just a labor of love since the grid is selected in whole number increments. So, figuring out the right number of grid lines that will get one of the lines on the layer's edge can often take much more time than the other methods. But then, you're still left with trying to figure out if that layer's edge is stationary relative to where the grid line is located. :? (Maybe I'm missing a key setup step? I initially tried to use this approach but couldn't get it to work for me ... I still needed something that showed where the edge was during play/scrub).

Dale
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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby anitaemile » Wed Jul 13, 2011 10:40 am

You don't need to see the grid while playing. You only need it for positioning . Place the image as one layer, set a grid and just one with quite some lines will do. It's not on the micromillimeter :lol: , remember the grid line that is on the image' edge and then reduce the x to or y to 3 and move it. ( you can't manually move when the x is 0, so I use x=3 and then change it to 0 once in place ) . But you can also do it this way: (EASIEST.. ) put the image there, duplicate the image, reduce the x or y from the top image to 3 and move it to right on the edge of the image that is underneath , once positioned change the x=3 to x=0 . That is even easier than working with a grid. Just remove the image underneath when you're done. There are many -easy-ways to get this done.

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby BarbaraC » Wed Jul 13, 2011 11:07 am

That's a good one, Anita--using a duplicate. I'm going to remember it. I like simple solutions such as this and the grid.

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby im42n8 » Wed Jul 13, 2011 2:51 pm

Interesting. The grid alignment process can a bit clunky to use tho. The idea of using another layer is an excellent one tho! MUCH better than just using a line of some sort. Quick and Easy to use! But you don't need a duplicate of the image at all. Any layer will do. Add a temporary gradient or solid layer, reduce its size and opacity (to make it easier to use and see things below it, say 30% zoom and 0% opacity) and then change the pan to align the rotation center marker over the image edge. The pan value of the temporary gradient/solid is the value the layer needs to use to keep the edge in place while the other side approaches it. The Show Layer/Caption Controls needs to be on and the Show Motion Path off (the motion path markers would hide the rotation center marker located in the middle of the layer).

Dale

ADDENDUM
Apparently there's a misunderstanding about the purpose of the temporary layer. It's sole purpose is to find the pan value of the image layer's keyframe that has its zoom axis value (axis = x or y) goes to 0. Once that is found there's no reason to keep it around. All the temporary layer does is to give you the pan value of the image's edge, that's it!

As Anita said, there is more than 1 easy to use and quick method to find the value to use to hold one side stationary as the other side approaches it.
Last edited by im42n8 on Wed Jul 13, 2011 7:21 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby BarbaraC » Wed Jul 13, 2011 3:20 pm

Am I the only one who turned off the motion path a long time ago? It does nothing but get in the way and tell me what I already know. :D

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby anitaemile » Wed Jul 13, 2011 4:35 pm

The option Dale mentioned about adding a solid layer instead of a copy of the image you are working with seems too cumbersome for me, as you need to work with the image itself, why would you create another layer and tweak it to get the same edge as the image when you can just simply duplicate the layer itself?

Barbara: The motion path feature is very useful when you want to make a layer follow a path that isn't straight, but has a set beginning and ending spot. Just set the first kf at 0 and the second kf at the end point and determine the time in between. Go to Motion Precision Preview and add some kf's in between on the timeline. You can now see the motion path and the kf's, and if you want the layer to kind of make a circular motion, just pull the kf;s icons on the motion path where you want them so the motion path looks like half a circle. Or maybe you need to space the keyframes evenly over the motion path, which is easy to do this way too.

The Motion Precision Preview is a great tool as well when your layers come in, or leave the slide . When I work with masks ( which is mostly the case) I first work with just the masks to create what I want , and then add the image afterwards. If I need to tweak something afterwards I simply unlock the mask ( unmask it) , disable it's image so I can see the mask in the preview window and that way I can easily arrange them .

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby im42n8 » Wed Jul 13, 2011 7:41 pm

I still use the motion path too. I find it useful for some of the effects. But, when those little numbers obscure what I need to see, I turn it off for awhile. :)

Anita, the way I noted the use of the solid/gradient layer is to only find the screen location where the image edge is located. I don't often have the luxury of re-manipulating a duplicate of the image layer because of what may be going on with the slide. Sometimes it's because of the number of layers or the number of keyframes on a layer or the use of modifiers (which I often use extensively). So, finding the pan location separately and then putting that value in the layer's appropriate keyframe is much easier (and safer, not to mention less confusing) for me.

If the layer I'm trying to find the edge of has modifiers that depend on other layers or other layers depend on the image layer itself, making a copy if it will only muck things up (all or many of the modifier references would be reset). Then I'd have to recreate (or try to recreate) all of the settings again and the potential for disaster is greatly heightened! I hate causing myself extra work! (I do that enough as it is!) :D

Not everyone works the same way to achieve an effect. So, what we've all done is to provide a number of options that effectively achieve the same result and which are appropriate to a variety of different workflows. Some will work better than others.

Dale
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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby Anna J » Wed Jul 13, 2011 9:06 pm

Y'all are all so smart. Makes me a little dizzy. :(
Anna

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Re: Expanding or collapsing an image on one side

Postby BarbaraC » Thu Jul 14, 2011 3:32 am

The motion path does nothing for me, but this is probably because my area is special-effects graphics where motion doesn't enter in quite so often.

Barbara
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