5.5

530Motion User Guide
Apply behaviors to particles in Motion
Applying behaviors to particle systems is a quick and easy way to move emitters in your
project and to create nearly limitless animations.
There are two ways to apply behaviors to a particle system:
• To the emitter: Behaviors applied to emitters affect the emitter itself, not its individual
particles. For example, using the Throw behavior to send an emitter flying across the
canvas creates a trail of particles.
• To the emitter cell: Behaviors applied to cells are in turn applied to each particle
generated from that cell. This can result in extremely complex animations with dozens
of particles moving according to the behaviors you’ve defined. Behaviors applied to
cells have no effect on the position of the emitter.
Apply a behavior to an emitter
In Motion, do one of the following:
• Drag a behavior from the Library onto an emitter in the canvas, Layers list, or Timeline.
• Select the emitter, click Behaviors in the toolbar, then choose a behavior from the
pop-up menu.
• Select an object in the canvas, Layers list, or Timeline, then select a behavior from the
Library stack and click Apply in the preview area.
In the canvas, the emitter begins to move according to the parameters of the applied
behavior.
Note: Not all behaviors instantly activate an object when applied. For example, you must
adjust the Throw Velocity parameter of a Throw behavior to cause an object to move.
Apply a behavior to a cell
Behaviors applied to cells are in turn applied to each particle generated from that cell.
In Motion, do one of the following:
• Drag a behavior from the Library onto a cell in the Layers list.
• Select a cell in the Layers list, click Behaviors in the toolbar, then choose a behavior
from the pop-up menu.