Using the Timeline

You can use the timeline to create, edit, and play 3D animations. The timeline uses a keyframe-based interface. You create keys to capture actor properties and positions, and then Composer smoothly animates the transitions between keys.

This task shows you how to:

Before you begin:

To display the Timeline pane, click Window > Show/Hide > Timeline or Home > Show/Hide > Animation .

See Also
Creating and Using Animation Markers and Milestones
About the Timeline
Timeline Commands
Animate Tab

Handle the Timeline

The timeline shows some or all of the animation timeline. The vertical bar, called the timebar, indicates the current animation time.

  1. Change the current animation time, click on the timeline or key tracks.

    You can also drag the timebar to change the animation time.

    The animation plays as you drag the timebar.
  2. To pan the timeline, click the mouse wheel and drag.
  3. To zoom (scale) the timeline, roll the mouse wheel.

Set Keys

You can set location, properties, viewport, camera, and Digger keys to capture actor properties and positions at given moments.

  1. Move the timebar to the desired time.
  2. To set location keys:
    1. Move (translate or rotate) one or more actors.
    2. With the modified actors still selected, click Set Location Key .

    Selecting an actor with location keys shows the animation path in the viewport:





    Here, the brace actor has three location keys (t=2, t=3, t=3.5, t=4). The dotted red line shows the animation path. Red dots () correspond to location keys. You can change a key location by dragging .

  3. To set properties keys:
    1. Select one or more actors.
    2. In the Properties pane, set one or more property values.
    3. With the modified properties still selected (use Ctrl+click to select multiple properties), click Set Keys .
    The properties are now set to apply at the specified time in the animation. If you defined opacity-, materials- and events-related properties, the related keys are shown in the dedicated timeline track. Other properties keys not related to opacity, materials and events are shown in the Properties track.

  4. To set viewport keys:
    1. Click in the viewport.
    2. In the Properties pane, set one or more property values.
    3. Click Set Keys .
  5. To set camera keys:
    1. Change the viewport camera orientation (zoom, pan, or rotate the viewport).
    2. Click Set Camera Keys .
      Selecting a camera with camera keys shows the animation paths of the camera and its target (center of interest):



      • The blue dashed line is the camera path and the yellow dashed line is the camera target path. Red dots () correspond to camera keys. You can change a key location by dragging .
      • The camera center anchor shows the current interpolated position of the camera. Changing the camera location by dragging creates a camera key (red dot ) when Auto-Keys is selected.



      Notes:
      • Camera properties, such as Lock distance to target being selected, can cause the camera to deviate from the path:



      • To attach the camera to an actor, press Alt while dragging onto an actor. To detach the camera, press Alt while dragging onto empty viewport background.
      • The camera target (center of interest, or COI) anchor shows the current interpolated position of the camera target. Changing the target by dragging creates a camera key when Auto-Keys is selected.
      • To attach the target point to an actor, press Alt while dragging onto an actor. To detach the target, press Alt while dragging onto empty viewport background.
      Tips:
      • Use Home > Navigate > Attach Camera commands to facilitate attaching the camera, camera target, or both, to an actor. See Navigate Commands.
      • Set camera keys after setting all your property and location keys.
      • To change the camera path style, set the camera Path property. See Camera Properties.
  6. To set Digger keys:
    1. Activate the Digger.
    2. Use the Digger tools to zoom parts of your model, or change opacity and visibility, for example.
    3. Click Set Digger Keys .
    Tips:
    • You cannot change Digger opacity and therefore cannot fade Digger in or out of an animation. To avoid abrupt appearance of Digger, make Digger initially small and then enlarge it at a slightly later time. Similarly, to simulate fade out, make Digger small before hiding it completely.
    • Set Digger keys after setting all your property and location keys.

Manage Keys

Once you have created keys, you can move, copy, delete and scale them.

  1. Select a key and perform either of the following operations:
    To...Do this...
    Move a key Drag it.
    Copy a key Ctrl+drag it.
    Note: Copying keys by dragging copies key locations; to copy key transformations, use Copy Selected Keys of the Selected Actor.
    Delete a key Right-click it and click Delete Keys.
  2. Select multiple keys by dragging the mouse, and perform either of the following operations:
    OptionDescription
    Move the keys Drag the bar.
    Copy the keys Ctrl+drag the bar.
    Scale the keys Drag a bar endpoint. To scale while keeping the original keys, Ctrl+drag an endpoint.
    Delete the keys Right-click in the selection and click Delete Keys, or press Delete.

Notes:
  • Copy keys by dragging copies actor locations represented by the keys. To copy actor transformations instead, use right-click commands. See Right-Click Commands. For example, when you copy two keys that define a 45-degree rotation of a screw using right-click commands, the new keys apply the transformation a second time, resulting in the screw rotating 90 degrees in total. When you instead copy by dragging, the original screw location is restored and the 45-degree rotation is reapplied.
  • Selections can include location, properties, viewport, camera and Digger keys. You can modify your selection by dragging the sides or corners of the selection rectangle.
  • Some time selection commands are available from the right-click context menu, such as Delete Time Selection and Invert Time Selection .
  • When the time selection contains several keys, the multiple-key manipulator appears under the key tracks.

  • You can scale the time selection by dragging the small triangle in the upper-right corner of the selection. All the selected keys are scaled, and keys to the right of the selection shift accordingly. You can insert time in your animation by selecting a time period that does not contain keys and then scale the selection.