A combination of Motion Path + Grow/Shrink is an animation I often use. The default setting for the Grow/Shrink behavior is "Natural Scale" which is great. But the default setting for the Motion Path behavior is "Constant". Combined as-is, the results are often completely off.
In combination with Grow/Shrink "Natural Scale", I find that the better setting for Motion Path is "Decelerate".
Monday, November 27, 2017
Apple Motion Wobbling Text in PDF
I animated a PDF page of Text created in Adobe Illustrator, exported as PDF into Apple Motion, and even though I unchecked "Fixed Resolution" for the Media, it animated badly. The text was all wobbling and unstable as I scaled up/down and moved around.
I was cursing Motion again, until I read the chapter on PDF (p.240) in the Motion User Guide:
I was cursing Motion again, until I read the chapter on PDF (p.240) in the Motion User Guide:
Mixed Content Within PDF Files
Although PDF files can simultaneously contain PostScript-based art, PostScript text, and bitmapped graphics, all of these types of image data do not scale the same. PostScript-based art and text scale smoothly, but bitmapped graphics that are embedded in a PDF file are subject to the same scaling issues as any other bitmapped graphics format. As a result, they may soften if scaled larger than their original size.
Ah, ah! Spot on! I was using an Adobe TypeKit font. As soon as I changed it to an OpenType font... Perfect!
User beware!
Although PDF files can simultaneously contain PostScript-based art, PostScript text, and bitmapped graphics, all of these types of image data do not scale the same. PostScript-based art and text scale smoothly, but bitmapped graphics that are embedded in a PDF file are subject to the same scaling issues as any other bitmapped graphics format. As a result, they may soften if scaled larger than their original size.
Ah, ah! Spot on! I was using an Adobe TypeKit font. As soon as I changed it to an OpenType font... Perfect!
User beware!
Thursday, November 16, 2017
Gmail crapped on me!
Was writing a long email with a bunch of specific notes that relate to a cut I was ready to send a client.
I lost connection somehow, couldn't get Gmail to respond for a long while. I had to restart the computer and my draft email was EMPTY! Except for a couple of lines, all GONE.
This is the old ghost creeping in, what's not on your computer... Can you really trust it? Does it really save your work all the time? Answer: NO! IT DOES NOT!
We are offered a convenience with no guarantee in exchange for our personal data. No guarantee.
Lesson learned, I will type my emails in TextEdit before I Copy n'Paste and send at once.
I lost connection somehow, couldn't get Gmail to respond for a long while. I had to restart the computer and my draft email was EMPTY! Except for a couple of lines, all GONE.
This is the old ghost creeping in, what's not on your computer... Can you really trust it? Does it really save your work all the time? Answer: NO! IT DOES NOT!
We are offered a convenience with no guarantee in exchange for our personal data. No guarantee.
Lesson learned, I will type my emails in TextEdit before I Copy n'Paste and send at once.
Wednesday, November 8, 2017
Emojis on macOS Sierra
Call on emojis on Mac by punching: Control + Command + Spacebar. Boom, the emoji/symbols window pops-up.
As demonstrated by Ben Mercer and Jan Willem den Bok among others, it's a great way to quickly visualize information in FCPX. For example I like to add a ❌ to my "do not use" cuts, and a ✅ to my current cuts.
This way I see immediately that FCPX has opened the proper cut or an old cut in the Timeline without deciphering the names themselves.
I'm still experimenting, and I suppose if you use too many emojis, things start to get blurry again, so it's a balance.
[Control, ⌘, Spacebar]
As demonstrated by Ben Mercer and Jan Willem den Bok among others, it's a great way to quickly visualize information in FCPX. For example I like to add a ❌ to my "do not use" cuts, and a ✅ to my current cuts.
This way I see immediately that FCPX has opened the proper cut or an old cut in the Timeline without deciphering the names themselves.
I'm still experimenting, and I suppose if you use too many emojis, things start to get blurry again, so it's a balance.
Thursday, November 2, 2017
Adobe Illustrator CC 2018 Export Bug Fixed in 11-2-17 Update
Today Adobe offers an upgrade to Illustrator CC to fix an export bug:
https://helpx.adobe.com/illustrator/kb/troubleshoot-export-issues.html
New stuff in Illustrator CC 2018 (It's called October 2017 Release - Am I the only one to find this confusing?):
https://helpx.adobe.com/illustrator/using/whats-new.html
Da main Illustrator User Guide page:
https://helpx.adobe.com/illustrator/user-guide.html?topic=/illustrator/morehelp/introduction.ug.js
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
FCPX 1.4 announced at FCPX World - Also link to macOS Sierra installer (via fcp.co)
FCPX 1.4 announced at FCPX World:
http://www.fcp.co/final-cut-pro/news/2011-final-cut-pro-x-10-4-announced-with-new-wheels-and-curves-colour-controls-and-360-tools-built-in
Geez, so much about 360º stuff.
Remarkably, Michael Hancock gives us a link to macOS Sierra installer from Apple. For the ones of you who forgot to download it from App Store before the update to High Sierra. Thanks MH!
Michael Hancock ·
http://www.fcp.co/final-cut-pro/news/2011-final-cut-pro-x-10-4-announced-with-new-wheels-and-curves-colour-controls-and-360-tools-built-in
Geez, so much about 360º stuff.
Remarkably, Michael Hancock gives us a link to macOS Sierra installer from Apple. For the ones of you who forgot to download it from App Store before the update to High Sierra. Thanks MH!
Michael Hancock ·
Works at CROP Creative Media
Here's how to get Sierra from the app store, since Apple unlisted it. Scroll down an click on "Get Mac OS Sierra" and it will open the App store and you can download it and upgrade from El Capitan. https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208202
No more Dolby AC3 in Adobe Media Encoder 2018
I can confirm that AME 2018 lacks Dolby AC3 settings.
I installed the new version and forgot to uncheck "Remove Old Versions", so I re-installed AME 2017 from CC App Manager.
If you need AC3, go get AME 2017 now while it's still available, and remember DO NOT REMOVE OLD VERSIONS next time you update.
AME 2018 - No more Dolby AC3. Only Mpeg and PCM
I installed the new version and forgot to uncheck "Remove Old Versions", so I re-installed AME 2017 from CC App Manager.
If you need AC3, go get AME 2017 now while it's still available, and remember DO NOT REMOVE OLD VERSIONS next time you update.
AME 2017 - With Dolby AC3
Interestingly, after two installs of AME 2018 and 2017, I cannot install another older version. Only option now is to Uninstall.
Are we limited to installing two versions of the same App?
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