Apple Motion 4 User Manual
Page 821
• Closed Spline: A closed path in which the last point is in the same location as the first
point. You can choose to work with Bezier or B-Spline control points. Option-click (or
double-click) anywhere on the path to add points.
• Circle: A simplified version of Closed Spline, in which the X radius or Y radius can be
adjusted to create a circle or an ellipse.
• Rectangle: A closed path in which the width and the height can be adjusted to create
a square or a rectangle.
• Wave: A wavy path (a sine wave) defined by one point at the beginning and one point
at the end of the path and controlled by the End Point, Amplitude, Frequency, Phase,
and Damping parameters.
• Geometry: The layer travels along the edge of a shape or mask that is used as the source
for the path. An animated shape can be used as the text path source. For example, use
a circle shape with an applied Oscillate Shape behavior as the source shape.
Path Type:
When Path Shape is set to Open Spline or Closed Spline, the Path Type pop-up
menu becomes available, allowing you to choose one of two ways to manipulate the
shape of the path: Bezier or B-Spline.
• Bezier: Lets you manipulate the keyframe curve manually by dragging the handles. For
more information about creating and adjusting Bezier curves, see
.
• B-Spline: B-Splines are manipulated using only points—there are no tangent handles.
The points themselves do not lie on the surface of the shape. Instead, each B-Spline
control point is offset from the shape’s surface, pulling that section of the shape toward
itself as if it were a magnet, in order to create a curve. B-Splines are extremely
smooth—by default, there are no sharp angles in B-Spline shapes, although you can
create sharper curves, if necessary. For more information about working with B-Spline
curves, see
Editing B-Spline Control Points
Radius:
When Circle is the defined path shape, the Radius slider becomes available. This
slider allows you to change the size of the circular path. Click the disclosure triangle to
individually adjust the X radius and Y radius.
Note: When the Text tool is selected, you can also use the onscreen control points to
resize the circle. Press Shift to resize the X and Y radii uniformly.
Size:
When Rectangle is the defined path shape, the Size slider becomes available. This
slider allows you to change the size of the rectangular path. Click the disclosure triangle
to adjust the X scale and Y scale individually.
Note: When the Text tool is selected, you can also use the onscreen control points to
resize the rectangle. Press Shift to resize the X and Y scale uniformly.
821
Chapter 13
Creating and Editing Text