Creating a simple custom particle system, Motion blur and particles – Apple Motion 4 User Manual
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Motion Blur and Particles
To achieve the optimal look for the following particle emitters, it is recommended that
you enable motion blur in your project:
• Jelly Bands
• Light Transit 1
• Light Transit 2
• Light Transit 3
• Light Transit 4
• Rain Streaks
• Silly String 1
• Silly String 2
Note: To enable motion blur, choose Motion Blur from the Render pop-up menu (in
the Status Bar), or choose View > Render Options > Motion Blur (or press Option-M).
Once you have added a particle system from the Library, the system acts exactly as it did
in the Preview area. If necessary, you can edit a particle system’s Emitter parameters in
the HUD to tailor them to your own use.
Note: You can only modify a particle system after it has been added to a project.
The HUD displays a selected particle system’s most essential parameters, including the
size and number of particles that are created, how long they remain onscreen, how fast
they move, and the direction and area in which they travel. Select an individual cell in
the Layers tab or Timeline to edit its parameters in the HUD.
For more detailed information on using the particle HUD, see
. For more comprehensive information on customizing all of a particle
system’s parameters, see
Creating a Simple Custom Particle System
While Motion comes with a wide variety of particle system presets, many times you’ll
want to create something completely new. Creating a particle system begins with selecting
a layer in your project to use as the source for a cell within a new particle emitter.
You can use any layer in your project as a source for a cell in an emitter, including still
graphics, animation or video clips, or shapes created in Motion. The layer you select when
you create an emitter becomes the first cell in that particle system. In the Layers tab, cells
appear as a sublayer under the emitter layer. The cell specifies the look of the actual
particles generated in the Canvas.
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Chapter 11
Working with Particles