Bringing or Flying in Some Text Directly Into the Center

[Dale Nicholson]

using After Effects...I’m trying to create an effect like the following:

We see a starfield sequence when suddenly text (the opening title) comes from the foreground into the shot (dead-center of the foreground) and continues to get smaller and smaller until it reaches the
vanishing point in the background.

I’m discovering that I can begin my keyframing and bring the text-in, either from the left, right, top, or bottom, but is there a way I can bring it in, in the direct center of the image---much like the 1978 Superman opening credits? Hope you can understand my explanation--in other words, I want the text to fly into the shot slowly--center orientation--and progress to its vanishing point into the background.

I must be overlooking something.

--Dale

[Vincent Croce]

If I'm understanding you correctly, Dale, you might want to scale the text really large so that the whole screen is filled only with the space between the center letters, keeping it's anchor point in the dead center, keyframe the scale, move an appropriate distance forward on the time line and then decrease the scale so the huge text slowly appears and eventually shrinks down to nothing. But I'm not sure if this is what you mean.

[Dale Nicholson]

Yes, I have to create this text effect in After effects and bring it into Vegas so that it goes over the video sequence created in Vegas. With that in mind, what project properties do I start out with in After Effects so that in the completed project only the text is seen on top of the video?

[Vincent Croce]

In AE I always set the alpha channel when I go to render it. In the Output settings, choose Lossless and rgb+alpha and when you bring it into Vegas, go to the avi's properties and select 'straight unmatted' in the alpha properties.
That will do it.

[Dale Nicholson]

I am so much more comfortable using Vegas and the Sony software....I'm having trouble keyframing this:

Beginning with a widescreen project setting, as you know, I would like to have my text (two words) "fly" into the screen from the foreground and continue to the vanishing point where it gets too small to read and finally disapears---Is there a link someone can point me to, to keyframe this?

Even after changing my font size to its maximum size, I cannot get the lettering big enough (in the foreground) so that it's not viewable. I tried using the text handles but that really distorts the text and produces too much graininess. I must be doing something wrong.
A "how to keyframe text" tutorial would be beneficial.


--Dale

[Kevin Penhorwood]

Dale,

I will try and help you with this although if you are unfamiliar with AE it might be difficult.

There are two ways you can acheive this or even using a combination of both.

First, create a composition the length you need in AE and add the text layer that you want. The text font doesn't really matter with the exception that I would make it probably large enough to fit the screen end to end.

Second, twirl down the transform properties. You will be working with the scale property. You can adjust the scale (size of the text) to be much larger than the original font you selected. Like Vincent said keep the anchor point at its center (default) location. Now along with using the scale you will need to turn the layer into a 3D layer using the switch on the modes panel (look in the help if you need to). Use the Z position to bring the text forward (towards you) and backward (away from you) in space clicking the stopwatch to set keyframes at specific points in the timline. This along with setting the scale keyframes should give you the affect you are looking for.

Render it out with the alpha channel as Vincent said and you should be good to go.

Hope this helps.

[Dale Nicholson]

Hey thanks! That's actually a big help. One more thing before I do this: When I select the text tool and type my text, I hit the space bar after typing the first word and create a wanted character space. The text cursor moves a space. But when I type the next letter, the letter typed doesn't skip the desired space? In essence, I'm unable to type two separate words right now.

How can I restore the defaults? I must have changed a setting I shouldn't have in the program.

[Kevin Penhorwood]

Hey Dale,

As far as the answer to this I can't say for sure what is happening. Go to Window - and open the Tools pallete you can select the type tools tab and set it to default from there or format your type the way you want.

Thanks,