User Guide

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ADOBE AFTER EFFECTS 5.0
User Guide
If the light is auto-oriented toward the motion path, then the light points only in the
direction of the motion path. You could use this option to the depict a driver’s perspective
in viewing his own headlights while travelling down a dark road.
If the light auto-orientation is turned off, then the light rotates freely along the motion
path independent of the orientation of the motion path or the location of a point of
interest.
To move a light or point of interest in the Composition window:
1 In the Timeline or Composition window, move the current-time marker to the point in
time where the light you want to transform is active, and select the light layer you want to
transform.
2 Choose the selection or rotation tool.
3 Do one of the following:
• To move the light and, if applicable, the point of interest, position the cursor over the
axis you want to adjust and drag the axes.
• To move the light along a particular axis without moving the point of interest, hold
down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS) while dragging the axis along which you
want to move the light.
• To move the point of interest, drag the point of interest icon ( ).
Using 3D compositing with effects
Though all After Effects effects are 2D effects, you can apply them to any 3D layer except
light and camera layers.
With some effects, called Comp Camera effects, you can use the active composition
camera or lights to view or light an effect from various angles in order to simulate more
sophisticated 3D effects. For more information on using Comp Camera effects, see “Using
cameras and lights with effects” on page 277.
Note: Because After Effects effects are 2D, effects that appear to cause protrusions in a layer,
such as Bulge or Wave Warp, do not have Z space values and do not give you the option of
viewing layers through a camera. So, when a layer with those effects applied is rotated and
viewed from the side, the effect does not protrude into 3D space.
UG.book Page 301 Wednesday, February 21, 2001 12:05 PM