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To Work with Camera Position, and Component Opacity and Visibility

Camera and component opacity and visibility provide the means to manage scene content and how it is displayed.

You can use the camera, opacity, and visibility tools at any time according to your need. Changes are represented as timeline actions. The actions do not populate in the Tweak folder. Edit the timeline action to manage its properties.

Capturing Camera Position

  1. In the timeline, position the playhead at the point where you want the camera position to occur.
    Note: The capture duration spans from the end time of the nearest timeline action, regardless of the action type, to the current time position.
  2. Modify the view orientation to get the view you want.
  3. Right-click in the graphics display area and click Capture Camera. You can also access Capture Camera in the Presentation tab, Camera panel.
  4. The camera position and orientation are recorded and a camera instance is placed in the timeline at the playhead position.

Component Opacity

Components can have a varying degree of opacity. Opacity changes are maintained as actions in the timeline giving you control over start, end, and action type - duration or instant.

  1. Set the playhead to the desired time position.
  2. Select components that will have their opacity changed.
  3. Right-click in the display area and click Opacity. Or, on the ribbon in the Presentation tab > Component panel > click Opacity.
  4. Click the appropriate choice for associativity, Break or Override. If you routinely use one method, such as Override, you can click the Prompts button and turn off or manage notifications for this command.
  5. In the mini toolbar, change the opacity slider or enter an explicit value and click OK.
  6. An Instant opacity action populates the timeline. Because it is an instant action, duration is not available during creation. Edit the timeline action instance to change it to a duration action.
    • Instant opacity action:
    • Duration opacity action:

Use the same process regardless of whether you are making a component transparent or opaque.

Component Visibility

Component visibility, On or Off, can be changed for an animation. Visibility changes are recorded as an Instant action in the timeline. Visibility actions cannot be changed to Duration. The following describes the steps to reverse a component visibility setting.
  1. Place the playhead at the desired time position.
  2. Right-click the component and click Visibility. An action is placed in the timeline at the playhead position and the component visibility setting is reversed.

Editing or Deleting Camera, Opacity, or Visibility Actions

Typically, changes are managed by editing the timeline action.

Important: Storyboards created with Start from end of previous inherit actions from the source storyboard. The actions are not visible and cannot be edited. If you use Delete Actions from the storyboard panel node all current and inherited actions are deleted.
Note: Undoing the deletion of an action for a component having multiple actions, restores the action to the former timeline position. If the deleted action was the only or last action for a component, it is restored at the bottom most position in the Storyboard panel.
Common Editing Techniques for Camera and Opacity Actions
  • Explicit Edit: Double-click the action to display the edit mini toolbar. You can also right-click the action in the timeline and click Edit Time to display the edit mini toolbar.

      For Duration actions

    • Edit the Start, Duration, or End timing.
    • Change to an Instant action and specify the timeline position. When you change from Duration to Instant, the Instant action is set to the Duration start time.

      For Instant actions

    • Edit the timeline position.
    • Change to a Duration action and specify the start and end times.
    • Delete the action.
  • Implicit edit: Use the action manipulators to change the start, end, or time position for an action.
  • Right-click the action and click Delete. You can also select the action and press the Delete key.
Visibility Action
  • Explicit Edit: Double-click the Visibility action to display the edit mini toolbar. You can also right-click the Visibility action in the timeline and click Edit Time to display the edit mini toolbar. Visibility is only an Instant action.
    • Edit the timeline position.
    • Delete the action.
  • Implicit edit: Use the action manipulator to change the time position for an action.
  • Delete
    • Right-click the action and click Delete.
    • Select the timeline action and press the Delete key.
    • Move the timeline playhead to the time where the action occurs. Select the component in the storyboard panel. Right-click in the graphics area and click Visibility.
Parent topic: About Presentations, Exploded Views, and Publishing

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