Adobe After Effects CS4 - Manual (Page 220)

214 USING AFTER EFFECTS CS4
Animation and keyframes
Last updated 12/21/2009
Auto Zoom Height and Fit
Auto Zoom Height Toggles Auto Zoom Height mode, which automatically scales the height of the graph so that
it fits the height of the Graph Editor. The horizontal zoom must still be adjusted manually.
Fit Selection Adjusts the value (vertical) and time (horizontal) scale of the graph to fit the selected keyframes in
the Graph Editor.
Fit All Adjusts the value (vertical) and time (horizontal) scale of the graph to fit all of the graphs in the Graph
Editor.
Setting, selecting, and deleting keyframes
Set or add keyframes
When the stopwatch is active for a specific property, After Effects automatically adds or changes a keyframe for the
property at the current time whenever you change the property value.
1 Move the current-time indicator to the time where you want to begin the animation.
2 Set the layer property to the value you want at that point in time; for example, move the layer to a new position.
3 Do one of the following:
• Click the Stopwatch icon next to the property name to activate it. After Effects creates a keyframe at the current
time for that property value.
• Choose Animation > Add [x] Keyframe, where [x] is the name of the property you are animating.
4 Move the current-time indicator to the time where you want to add an additional keyframe.
5 Change the value for the property in the layer outline.
6 Repeat steps 4 and 5 as many times as you want to add more keyframes.
More Help topics
“ About animation, keyframes, and expressions ” on page 210
“ Keyframes and the Graph Editor (keyboard shortcuts) ” on page 751
“ The Graph Editor ” on page 211
“ Move the current-time indicator ” on page 198
“ Showing properties and groups in the Timeline panel (keyboard shortcuts) ” on page 748
Add a keyframe without changing a value
1 In the Timeline panel, select the layer that you want to animate.
2 Show the layer property for which you want to add a keyframe. The property must already contain at least one
keyframe.
3 Move the current-time indicator to the point where you want to add a new keyframe. If the current-time indicator
is after the last keyframe for that layer property, the new keyframe will have the same value as the preceding
keyframe. Otherwise, the value of the new keyframe will be an interpolated value based on the previous and next
keyframe values.