Manual Reference Animation Timeline Menu
Edit
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| Moving or copying groups of keys via drag & drop. |
The Region Tool is basically nothing more than a floating selection that can be changed at any time and lets you edit key groups in either Key mode or in F-Curve mode. Large key groups can be copied and accurately pasted somewhere else. The selection frame has handles at all corners and on each side with which it can be scaled. The frame numbers at which the selection frame lies are displayed at the top left and right of the selection frame. Every key within a given selection frame will be selected.
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| The Region Tool as it can be applied in combination with the keyboard keys shown: Left when selecting a region; right when a handle is pulled. The CTRL-key can be pressed while moving keys to automatically duplicate them. |
Activate the Region Tool and drag over a selection of keys in the Timeline. You can drag as many selection regions as you like. Selection regions may even overlap.
How to use the tool, including keyboard shortcuts:
- Clicking and dragging within a given region will move only the region underneath the cursor, including keys.
- Click + drag + ALT within a given region will move all regions, including keys.
- Click + drag + SHIFT within a given region will move the region underneath the cursor, without keys.
- Click + drag + SHIFT + ALT within a given region will move all regions, excluding keys.
- Click + drag + SHIFT outside of a given region will create a new region.
- Click + drag + CTRL outside of a given region will remove regions or parts of regions.
- If keys within a region are copied, the region without keys is moved (horizontally or vertically / temporally extended) and the copied keys pasted into the moved region, the pasted keys will be scaled according to the length of the region into which they were pasted.
The same keyboard shortcuts apply to the region handles. The keys will also be scaled temporally and regions without keys will be scaled.
Simultaneously pressing the CTRL-key while performing any key move function will duplicate the selected keys.
It is also possible to copy keys within a given region using CTRL + C, move the keys to the desired position and paste the keys using CTRL + V.
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| From top to bottom: Initial state; without ripple; with ripple |
This option only works in Key mode. When keys are moved or pasted, subsequent keys located on the same track will be moved and will make room for the new keys. If keys are moved to the left or deleted, subsequent keys will be moved to the left. Ripple Edit also works in conjunction with the Region Tool.
Selected keys will be cut and copied to the clipboard.
Selected keys will be copied to the clipboard.
Keys will be copied from the clipboard and pasted at the desired location. A track (Key mode) or an F-Curve (F-Curve mode) must first be selected.
It’s better to select only the same type of keys to copy and paste. For example, the keys from a sphere’s radius track cannot be copied onto the keys of a HyperNURBS subdivision track.
Selected keys will be deleted.
Activate this option when selected keys should snap to a specific time in the animation while editing keys (moving, scaling, etc.).
No matter if the option is active or not, the prior state can be temporarily restored by simultaneously pressing the ALT-key.
Example: You do not like snapping. You let your keys land where they may, even if it’s on key 12.245, so you leave Enable Snapping deactivated. The first key of your animation, though, should lie exactly on the “Start” marker. No problem. Press the ALT-key while moving your keys and you can snap your first key to that marker (of course the corresponding option must be activated in the Snap Settings).
If this option is active, keys will snap to frames. If this option is not active, keys will not necessarily come to rest on the full frame number (e.g. a key may lie at frame 3.45).
Keys are selected via a rectangular selection box. This option defines the point at which a key is considered selected. If this option is selected, keys can merely be “touched” by the selection box to be selected. Otherwise, the full key must be included in the selection box in order to be selected.
Use the Snap Settings to define onto which position in time a key should snap (the General options apply to keys in both Key mode and F-Curve mode):
- Project In: The start of the project, as defined in the Project Settings menu.
- Project Out: The end of the project, as defined in the Project Settings menu.
- Snap to Current Time: The current time in the animation, as defined by the location of the Timeslider.
- Snap to Preview Range: Start and end of the preview range.
- Snap to Marker: Snapping will occur to markers.
- Snap to Key: Timeslider and markers will snap to keys.
- Distance: The time range before and after a given time in the animation to which keys that are moved will snap.
- Snap to Key Value: Vertical snapping for F-Curve keys. If a key exists with a value of 20 a key that is moved will also snap to 20.
- Snap to Y Grid Value: F-Curve keys will snap to horizontal grid lines.
- Distance Value: This reflects the vertical region at which an F-Curve key will snap to the grid line height or key value.
Use these options to fold or unfold hierarchies in the Objects Area. Alternately you can open or close the entire child hierarchy by CTRL + click on the corresponding + icon.
Selection
Selects all items in the Objects Area of the Timeline. This is practical if you want to display all F-Curves in F-Curve mode.v
All keys will be selected.
Inverts selections of objects, materials, shaders, tags, render settings and post effects. In order to invert a selection at least one of the aforementioned items must already be selected.
Inverts a key selection (i.e. keys that are selected will be deselected and those that were not selected will be selected).
This option applies only to visible (not hidden) keys in F-Curve mode.
Use this setting to select all keys within a specific time range within the animation. Define the From Time and To Time in the dialog window that opens. The Only Selected setting ensures that only selected keys will be affected. Select Range can also be used to temporally restrict an existing keyframe selection.
Marker (general)
Markers can also be created manually by clicking on the bottom half of the Timeline. Markers are visual reference points that can be placed at specific locations in the animation. Keys can also be snapped to markers.
The color of markers corresponds to the layer on which they lie. Markers can also be hidden in the Layer Browser.
Sets markers at both the left and right borders of the visible Timeline.
Sets a marker at the current frame, i.e. where the Timeslider is currently located.
Deletes all existing markers.
Sets markers on the first and last keys of a given selection. When in F-Curve mode, only the currently visible key selection will receive markers. Selected keys of hidden curves will be ignored.
Ebene
A new layer will be created into which all selected objects will be placed.
All selected items will be removed from assigned layers. These items will no longer be assigned to any layer(s).
Selecting this option will open a submenu in which all layers, including colors, will be made available for selection. Selecting a layer from this menu will select all items on that particular layer.
Opens the Layer Browser
Opens the preferences menu for the Timeline.