Choose to have anchor point in middle when created?

[Defineyourgoal]

Hi, 

Is it possible to have the anchor-point on a new null "pre-set" to the middle instead of the upper left corner? I know how to move it afterwards with scripts or manually, yet would love to skip that.

Thanks

[Mylenium]

Not that I know. There's no preference to set this, not even a hidden one.

Mylenium

[ShiveringCactus]

It's probably best to think of Nulls that they only appear to be 100x100 layers (unless you drag them into a comp from the project panel) when in reality AE treats them as a single point.  Is it a personal preference to control them from the centre or do you need them to be anchored around the midpoint for an operational reason?

One possible solution might be to make a shape layer set as you wish and then save it as a preset.  That would give you pretty much the same end result.

[Defineyourgoal]

Thanks for clarifying. It's only for the visual guidance I want it in the middle and your idea of a pre-made layer with that look is great. Could add that to kbar or something. 

[Rick Gerard]

A null layer contains no pixels. It does have a width that you can measure, but the default position for a null layer is always at the comp center. Any layer you parent to a null will be locked to the Anchor Point and where that Anchor Point is on the null makes no difference. All expressions tied to the Position of a null are tied to the Anchor Point. I can't think of any practical reason to move the Anchor Point from the top left corner of the layer to the center of the layer because there are no pixels created from a null, the anchor point is the center of all transformations, and if there is any reason you need to reference the layer size for a script or and expression, the math is easier if you do not have to deal with the Null's layer width. The only possible reason that you would want to have to Anchor Point of a null in the Center of the layer is so you had a perfect little box around the center of the layer boundary when you look at the null layer. There would never be a change in the behavior of another layer linked to the null's transformation properties.

[Defineyourgoal]

Thanks Rick! No pixels, got it. I only want it for the reason you meantioned: a perfect box around the anchor point 🙂 Do you mind explain what you mean with "There would never be a change in the behavior of another layer linked to the null's transformation properties"?

[Rick Gerard]

All transforms happen around the Anchor Point. It doesn't matter where the parent layer's anchor point is. The child will move, scale, and rotate around the Anchor Point of the Parent layer. Changing the Anchor Point of a Null to the layer center will not change the Position value of the Null unless you use the Pan Behind tool in the Composition Panel.

The Anchor Point for a Shape Layer, a Null, and a Text layer is always at 0, 0 to begin with. Baseline shift and Paragraph Justification change the relative position of the content in a Text layer. Contents/Shape/Position and Contents/Shape/Transform Shape changes the relative position of the Shape layer Contents to the Anchor Point. None of those properties change the position of the Anchor Point. 

I hope that helps.

[Defineyourgoal]

Such an in-depth answer Rick, thanks! It most def helps. 

One thought that pops up is "Why does the text get the anchor point in the bottom left corner vs a shape layer that gets it in the middle?". The only reson I can think of is that the most common text-animations happens from left to right. If that's the case, right to left languages would then benefit with a pre-setting that let's you choose the anchor point to the bottom right corner. 

[Rick Gerard]

A new shape layer and a new text layer has the anchor point set to 0, 0 because the layer has no size until you add something. The text anchor point is at the bottom left corner of a Left Justified Text Layer with the Baseline Shift set to 0 because that's how Text works in all applications that use text. If you change the Baseline value, the Anchor Point moves up and down. If you set Paragraph Justification to Centered, the Anchor Point moves to the Center. Change the Justification to Right Justified and the Anchor Point moves to the right. 

There is an option in Preferences to make the Anchor Point shift to the center of a new shape, but this does not change the Anchor Point value, it changes the position. The Anchor Point will still be at 0, 0. The only way to change the anchor point on a layer without changing the Position value of a layer is to use the Pan Behind tool (y). It's that way for all layers. 

I hope this helps.

[Defineyourgoal]

You sir, are like a living dictionary! Whenever you release a Ae-course: take my money 😂