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Question

Dots to follow paths on a map - Use After Effects or Animate?

Forum|Forum|8 years ago
September 29, 2017
4 replies
10048 views

I have a map in the background and want dots from all the states to follow paths to, say, California. I tried AE using particle generators and not enough control. I want the dots to be different colors for the states. Then I tried a null object with a whippic from the dot. But not sure how to make the dots keep flowing on the same path and how to group the path and the dot. So was wondering if I should be using Animate instead. Then I want a little image where all the dots have congregated to, to blow up big and then the background fade away. Please help, I have done many tutorials. I just want advise for the best app to use for that purpose so I dont spend the next month learning the wrong app.

thanks!

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R

Rick Gerard

Community Expert

You just start another path, copy it, and pasted to the position property of a second ball. As long as the first vertex is lined up with the first or ne everything will match up.

If the ball ends up at the wrong end of the path use the key frame assistant to time reverse the key frames.

tonofpixelsAuthor

Participating Frequently

Thank you for your patience with me. This will be huge so I just wanted to make sure I am doing it the most efficient way.

I have flopped the keyframes as you mentioned, I understand that part.

When you say "start another path, copy it" Am I to make a copy of just the path and paste it in the same layer, or am I copying the whole layer and having 2 or 3 layers that say "Texas", for example, for all the balls coming from Texas? Or on layer that is called Texas with 3 paths on it? thank you, thank you.

P.M.B

Legend

Holy Cow.

You gettin paid for this, Rick?

~Gutterfish

angie_taylor

Legend

If sounds like you need to persevere with a particle effect if you want a series of bouncing balls. I recommend that you use Particular in After Effects. You will need to look at tutorials regarding Flow paths. These will allow you to Control the areas that the balls travel along.

R

Rick Gerard

Community Expert

Unless I am completely misunderstanding your design idea I would use a shape layer path with only stroke applied. You can set the end caps to round, enable dashes and even adjust the gaps. You can make the lines appear to be drawn on with trim paths and you can make the dots march with offset.

The other option is a text layer with type on a path and punctuation. Adjust the kerning and baseline and you should have something you can use. You can also animate the offset the margins in the Path Options and you can make the line appear to be drawn on by adding an opacity text animator.

Text on a path gives you more shape options for your dots.

I hope this helps.

tonofpixelsAuthor

Participating Frequently

Thanks for your reply, but this does not apply to my question. I don't want a line or dotty lines.

R

Rick Gerard

Community Expert

Sorry, I I am really confused. While I was writing my post more discussions going on. You said dots to follow a path. I gave you a path and dots. You can make them move along the path with either technique. If you only want one or if you want them to draw on or if you want them to move like marching ants. Either technique will work. Carefully read my explanation and match the modified properties on the layers and mess with the offsets or margins.

You can have as many paths on a shape layer as you want and individually animate the offset with each one. You can only have one line of text following a path on a text layer so each path you want your dots to follow must be a separate layer.

You'll have to draw the paths and then do the animation.

If you are creating a video then use After Effects. If you are creating a web page use Animate.

Please try and put your comments in a single post.

Ok, so if you want one ball and that ball needs to be something that looks like a ball and that object is just a dot you can use text on a path. Create a new text layer with a period, draw a mask path on the text layer, enable text on a path and animate the margin.

If you want to draw something then create your ball in Illustrator or Photoshop or use a Shape layer, then draw a mask path using the pen tool or a shape layer path using the pen tool, then set a keyframe for the path, then Cut the keyframe (Ctrl/Cmnd + x) then, after you have made sure the anchor point of the image you want to animate is in the exact center and the CTI (current time indicator) is where you want the motion to start press Alt/Option + p to set a position keyframe and then Paste (Ctrl/Cmnd + v) to turn the vector path into a motion path. Your layer will immediately snap to the starting point of the mask and you will have a bunch of rove over time keyframes applied to position. You can grab the last keyframe and adjust the timing of the move. You do this for each ball you want to animate along the path.

Mylenium

Legend

Create paths using shape layers or masks and use strokes or dingbat fonts on them. then you can have all the kinds of regulalrly spaced dotty lines you want/ need. The transition will simply have to be a separate animation. Nobody would make things endlessly complicated by trying to do everything with the same layers and compositions.

Mylenium

tonofpixelsAuthor

Participating Frequently

Which app should I use? My question has to do with which app and how to animate the dots on the paths and group the layers together.

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