5

Drop Shadow
Drop shadows can be applied to a 2D particle system, to the emitter as a whole, or to the
individual particles in the system. To apply a drop shadow to the emitter as a whole,
select the emitter, then select the Drop Shadow activation checkbox in the Properties
Inspector.
Note: The Drop Shadow parameter is not available in the Properties Inspector for the
emitter when the Box or Sphere emitter shape, or the 3D checkbox, is selected in the
Emitter Inspector.
To apply drop shadows to individual particles in the system, select the (dimmed) source
object in the Layers list, then select the Drop Shadow activation checkbox in the Properties
Inspector. For more information on working with drop shadows, see Drop Shadows.
Timing
When you create a particle system, its duration can be as long or short as necessary,
regardless of the duration of the original source objects used to create the particle system.
The duration of a particle system is defined by the duration of the emitter object. Changing
the In or Out point of an emitter in the Properties Inspector, Timeline, or mini-Timeline
changes the duration of the entire particle system.
By default, particles are generated by every cell in a system for the duration of the emitter.
The duration of each generated particle is defined by the Life parameter of the cell that
generated it, and not by the duration of the cell itself.
The duration of the cell controls the duration over which new particles are generated.
You can change a cell’s duration by dragging its position or its In and Out points in the
Timeline. In this way, you can adjust the timing that defines when each cell’s particles
emerge.
687Chapter 14 Working with Particles