Cameras, Lights, And Points Of Interest; About Cameras; To Change The Camera Used In A View - Adobe AFTER EFFECTS 7.0 Manual

ADOBE AFTER EFFECTS 7.0
180
User Guide
Note: If you specify Orient Towards Point Of Interest and then change a camera's Orientation or X, Y, or Z Rotation
properties, the camera is offset by the new values. For example, you could set a camera up this way to depict the
perspective of a passenger looking out the side window of a car as it moves.

Cameras, lights, and points of interest

About cameras

You can view After Effects 3D layers from any number of angles and distances using layers called cameras. When you
set a camera view for your composition, you look at the layers as though you were looking through that camera. You
can choose between viewing a composition through the active camera or through a named custom camera. The
active camera is the topmost camera in the Timeline panel at the current time. After Effects uses the active camera
view when creating final output and when nesting compositions. If you have not created a custom camera, then the
active camera is the same as the default composition view.
Though you can add multiple cameras to any composition, the camera's views affect only 3D layers, or 2D layers to
which you've applied an effect with a Comp Camera attribute. A camera can be both a parent and a child of 2D and
3D layers.
B
A
C
Example of a camera
A. Point of interest B. Frame C. Camera
Note: If you import or open an After Effects 5.x project containing a 3D composition that used a default camera, After
Effects adds an AE 5.x Default Camera to the composition.
See also
"Effects with a Comp Camera attribute" on page 351
"About parent and child layers" on page 208

To change the camera used in a view

❖
Choose a camera from the 3D View menu at the bottom right of the Composition panel.
Before moving a camera, choose a view other than Active Camera so that you can see the point of interest icon and
the boundaries defining its angle.