Feature Focus: Quick Set Anchor Point

[Brian C Carter]

In After Effects Beta 25.1 Build 36, we are pleased to announce Quick Set Anchor, a more efficient way to change the anchor point on your 2D layers to any of 9-commonly-used-points — all the corners and centers of your layer’s edges. And it's available both from the Properties Panel and anywhere else by keyboard shortcut!

Quick Set Anchor can be launched by selecting a layer (or layers!) and clicking the new Anchor Point icon next to the Anchor Point property in the Properties Panel, creating a temporary pop-over Quick Set Anchor Dialog that allows you to click your preferred anchor point location, automatically close the dialog, and be on your way!

Besides the Anchor Point button in the Properties Panel, you can also bring up the Quick Set Anchor Dialog by using the keyboard shortcut Shift + Tab to create the temporary pop-over right below your mouse, ready for you to click your anchor point of choice without taking your eyes away from your comp content. Press the shortcut. Click. Move on. 

(This is just a screenshot, showing you how the Quick Set Anchor Dialog can appear anywhere. Don't wait for it to animate.)

What we would love to know from you:

• How do you feel about the default Shift+Tab shortcut?
• Do you prefer the Properties Panel or the Shift+Tab shortcut?
• Do you want the same sort of functionality for 3D Layers? How do you imagine that looking?
• Is there any confusion if you've already applied a rotation to your layer?

Known issues:

• Currently we don’t support changing or removing the keyboard shortcut for Quick Set Anchor. Please let us know if this negatively affects your workflow.
• Currently, Quick Set Anchor only works for 2D layers. Please let us know if extending this functionality to 3D layers is something that would help your workflow.

[Richard van den Boogaard]

Wow, this IS a very helpful tool!

- Shift+TAB sounds good to me. Perhaps some others would prefer something else, but I guess you can always set your own preffered shortcuts, right?

- Both. Sometimes you work with the mouse, sometimes you prefer to handle the keyboard

- For 3D layers this could be handy, but you need to be able to determine whether the anchor is set to the middle of the 3D object or on the face that you're looking at. Perhaps by default it's set to the center of the object, but you provide a possibility to change it to one of the faces by "caging" the 3D object in a virtual set of minimum required faces to cover all angles and then letting the user decide on which face they want to change the anchor point.

- Have not tested that yet.

[nos3f1]

This is great! Shift+tab is easy and fast to remember.

However it would be nice if it doesn't create a new keyframe for the position, when you already have an animation in there?

Right now it does that unless you have the keys selected that you're on. And you have to change the anchor point for every keyframe that you already have placed, an approach like how the Motion plugin does it (by respecting the position of the object throughout the timeline), would be a bit more friendlier. I've attached a video to show 🙂

[sskaz]

This is a great addition. I 100% agree that it shouldn’t add a position keyframe. I also use Motion’s anchor point tool specifically because it adjusts the anchor “globally” w/o adding position keys. Though I am neutral on it adding a key if the anchor point is already animated (I rarely animate anchor points and usually use parent nulls). I do want to thank whoever coded this that it doesn’t remove existing expressions on the position or anchor point—other anchor point moving tools did this and had burned me so many times…

I also really like that this tool has a keyboard shortcut for a floating panel. Makes me wonder what other bits in AE should have something like this… But the keyboard shortcut should absolutely be customizable (previously shift-tab toggled some timeline columns? I definitely never used that intentionally.). I vote for having it in both the keyboard shortcut and Properties panel—shouldn’t it also be added in the Timeline panel for consistency? 

Personally, I don’t need it for 3D layers. Whatever UI changes that would require would most likely get in my way.

As for rotations, that is an interesting question. Visually it does make more sense to adapt to how it’s shown on-screen.

[jasonmoon]

I agree too! There should be a way to move the anchor point without adding or changing your existing keyframes at all. It would be very frustrating to have random keyframes added just because I changed my mind and want to move the anchor point somewhere better. I can't think of a case where anyone would want that.

As someone somewhat new to AE, when I first started animating in it a year ago, the short video you attached is exactly how I wished and expected the anchor point tool to work . I was very surprised something like this didn't exist already. So yes this tool will be a huge help! Just make it so it does not affect current keyframes/animation. And I would love this for 3D layers but I'm not sure how it would work exactly.

[_nicdean]

Super cool feature! Love that the pop-up shortcut works anywhere in the UI. Also love that it works for multiple layers at a time.

• How do you feel about the default Shift+Tab shortcut? Currently we don’t support changing or removing the keyboard shortcut for Quick Set Anchor. Please let us know if this negatively affects your workflow. 
  • Fine default, but 100% needs custom keyboard shortcuts.
• Do you prefer the Properties Panel or the Shift+Tab shortcut?
  • Shortcut > Prop panel
• Do you want the same sort of functionality for 3D Layers? How do you imagine that looking?
  • 100%. I imagine each Anchor Point corner matches the corner points visible on the layer's bounding box. Z value could either be the front or the middle-depth of an extruded layer.
• Is there any confusion if you've already applied a rotation to your layer?
  • Yes it's confusing. It would be nice if this anchor point shortcut took into account the Rotation of the layer. Either "just do it" or rotate the pop-up orientation to match the layer's rotation.
    
    • Ex. if a layer is rotated 180* and flipped upside-down, the Anchor Point shortcut for bottom-right should target the layer's top-left point because it is visually the bottom-right. Currently it does not compensate for rotation.
    • That said, this feature is still a win without the rotation update

[Shebbe]

Either "just do it" or rotate the pop-up orientation to match the layer's rotation.

• Ex. if a layer is rotated 180* and flipped upside-down, the Anchor Point shortcut for bottom-right should target the layer's top-left point because it is visually the bottom-right. Currently it does not compensate for rotation.

How exactly would that work? When is it rotated or not? How should it look if the layer is 45degrees? or 89degrees? Trying to match rotation with awkward UI behavior is less effective than learning that top left is top left of the object rather than how it is presented imo.

[nathanpizar]

Where is the option to alter existing position keyframes vs adding a new one? I've long advocated for a "pan behind" style tool where you can drag around the anchor, or click anywhere on the layer, to set the anchorpoint precicely without messing up any existing animation.

[Ben32553199f18a]

I use Shift+Tab shortcut for the FX Console plugin, so I would absolutely appreciate being able to change or remove this shortcut.

[Airweb_AE]

Why not open the Quick Set Anchor Dialog on the CTRL+DBLCLICK event, which allows centering the anchor point?

Or maybe a Quick Set Anchor icon on the right.

And for the keyboard shortcut, maybe pressing the Y key twice or A key twice.

[Shebbe]

I agree, it would make sense to keep the keyboard shortcut in line with established usage. Even something like Alt + Y could work since that seems to be not occupied yet.

[Shebbe]

I think Shift+Tab is a bad idea. There are many users that use FX Console with Shift+Tab as hotkey. Furthermore Shift+Tab is intended to jump back one value field when your typing cursor is active in such a field. Something that everyone needs regardless of using FX Console or not. Unless this behavior doesn't conlfict with it. Haven't tested yet.

[JohnColombo]

Currently, the new Quick Set Anchor shortcut does not interfere with using Shift+Tab to navigate back through active text fields.

[Shebbe]

That's good to know, I would still say that at least a keyboard shortcut needs to be exposed in the shortcut editor for users to override it. Many that use it for FX Console including me will be forced to switch it otherwise.

[Shebbe]

Adding my feedback as well. We need an option to modify existing keyframes when changing the location. For this reason alone I'll have to stick to the ancient Move Anchor Point script UI otherwise. The quick option is great, but maybe a native panel/properties section with some expanded options like modifying existing keyframes is the play ultimately.

[Kyle27374471yx5e]

• Shift+Tab is awesome
• I prefer shift+tab
• Yes, but no idea how that could be implemented
• Yes it's confusing if you've applied a few rotations and keep changing the anchor point, but I don't think that's the fault of the tool. It makes sense to default to the original relative sides of the shape when changing the anchor point. I've used a similar plugin for years and in practice, I always set the anchor point before animating any properties, so this issue has never been a problem for me until I just intentionally tried to create it.

[Warren Heaton]

• How do you feel about the default Shift+Tab shortcut?
  
  I would prefer ⌥+⇧+⌘+Home for Quick Set Anchor Point to correspond to the existing ⌥+⌘+Home for Center Anchor Point in Layer Content.
  
  
  
• Do you prefer the Properties Panel or the Shift+Tab shortcut?
  
  I prefer a keyboard shortcut, but would like see the option available in the Properties Panel.  The crosshair icon for "Quickly adjust this object's Anchor Point" helps new users to know the option exists as well as serves as a reminder to experienced users.  I would find it helpful to  see Layer > Transform > Quick Set Anchor Point below Layer > Transform > Center Anchor Point in the Layer pulldown menu and to have the crosshair icon next to Anchor Point property in the Timeline when the Transform properties are showing.
  
  
  
• Do you want the same sort of functionality for 3D Layers? How do you imagine that looking?
  
  Yes, it would be nice to have the same functionality for 3D Layers.  I imagine this looking like a 3d box instead of a 2d square with clickable points that can be transformed in 3d space via a Mini 3D Transform Gizmo inside the 3d box to aid in selecting a point in z-depth if needed. 
  
  
  
• Is there any confusion if you've already applied a rotation to your layer?
  
  I just tried using Shift+Tab to set the Anchor Point while a Preview is playing with rotation already applied.  The result is as expected. 
  
  
  
  
  

[1suky1]

Another amazing new feature. Love that it has a shortcut but we should be able to change it. As for properties panel, it's also useful that it's there for quick access.

One thing I would recommend is better UI obviously. Maybe a clearer representation of center, corner and sides. It could also be very helpful if it shows the current anchor point position. So if it's let's say bottom left, that box is highlighted or shown as active in some way. This could potentially also help with rotated objects.

Perhaps something like this. Blue icon is active position, while the blue box is current selection. I think overall icons would help a lot with readability.

And for 3D perhaps if we hold click on the button, a popup appears and we select front-center-back? Regular click still selects the center ones.

[mrjacobweber]

• Shift Tab seems fine.
• It would be nice if the position keyframes recalibrated themselves based upon the new anchor point, so the object doesn't move. Others have said this before me, but see Motion V4 for a good example of how this works. 
• There should always be options to change shortcuts and hotkeys. Too many items are stuck without hotkeys.

[ivezicm]

For sure give us the option to change the shortcut cause shift+tab is from finger movement perspective super close and handy shortcut. Maybe use shift+tab shortcut for all future popups. For example shift+tab over anchor point gives anchor point controls. Shift+tab over text gives font choice, shift+tab over transparent background gives color control of checkerboard color...

If it's too much, for sure give option to change shortcut. And give it as option in properties panel as well.