New Participant

Answered

Tracker won't allow target - can't apply. Help!

Forum|Forum|15 years ago
November 6, 2010
5 replies
43645 views

Totally new to after effects. Trying to track an animated file in MP4 format using tracker. I've got the tracking portion figured out, but I never get the "apply" button to activate - it stays greyed out. Also under "motion target" I can't select either button.

Would appreciate any help very much - I have a project I'm doing for my son's soccer team and I have to present it next week!

I do note that if I select stabilize it then allows both fields to be active and apply be clicked, but I don't want to stabilize, I want to create a motion tracker so I can insert a face into the moving area. Message was edited by: pprioroh

Correct answer Rick Gerard

Every problem described in this thread is the result if improper workflow.

To figure out how to use Track Motion, Camera Track or any of the other built in tracking features that come with AE just type the name of the technique you are trying to use in the Search Help field at the top right corner of the app and check out the community resources. They are filtered and in almost every case you'll get vetted training that teaches you the proper techniques for using the tools.

T

That Tiny House Show

New Participant

I just found a workaround for the problem. I was using a "replace with after effects comp" file generated in premiere.

!!! I opened a totally new AE comp and dragged my clips in from the finder and set the ins and outs. Then added a null. Motion tracked my clip. And tada! The "set target" dialogue was enabled!

I know how to motion track. I've done tons of it.

So it's a glitch, one of several that come out with every update.

R

Rick Gerard

Adobe Expert

If you had a footage layer in the comp that was created by Dynamic link you should be able to open the Motion Tracking workspace, select the footage layer, then do your tracking. The target will automatically be created. I know of no bug that would prevent this from happening.

The comp Dynamic Link create does not know that it came from premiere so there is no difference at all between one that you create from Premiere and one that you create from scratch.

If there are a bunch of layers selected in PPro or a bunch of cuts, sometimes you can end up with nested comps and it's a little harder to get those selected to do some tracking and to get the Layer Panel opened up, but, once again, I know of no bug that would make motion tracking fail in a comp created from a selection in a Premiere Pro sequence.

A

Anonymous

i had the exact same problem when i wanted to stabilize motion of my video layer.

exactly like griestopf has pointed out: the problem was that initially the the tracker wasn't set to "stabilize motion".

SOLUTION is to copy the old tracking points keyframes and paste them to a second "stabilize motion"-tracker

Steps:

1: select the tracking point(s) from "tracker 1" and copy (CTRL+C)

2: create a second tracker by clicking "track motion" once more, but this time click on "stabilize motion" in the tracker settings.

3. edit target should now work.

4: paste (CTRL+V) the tracking points from tracker 1 to the new tracker. and delete the old ones which are empty of keyframes

5: click apply

6: you can now delete the old tracker 1

Z

zachgeorgegigantic

New Participant

For me, I duplicated all my layers and and deleted the track points on my duplicated layer. Then I went back into the tracker and target layers could be selected. Pretty simple, but extremely annoying.

R

Rick GerardCorrect answer

Adobe Expert

Every problem described in this thread is the result if improper workflow.

To figure out how to use Track Motion, Camera Track or any of the other built in tracking features that come with AE just type the name of the technique you are trying to use in the Search Help field at the top right corner of the app and check out the community resources. They are filtered and in almost every case you'll get vetted training that teaches you the proper techniques for using the tools.

L

Luke30197880swsj

New Participant

This is suggested as the correct answer? It's not a solution to the issue at hand, just some condescending drivel about "correct workflows". AE is a complex piece of software, but it is also idiosyncratic and counterintuitive and opaque in many of its machinations, and encountering this kind of resolution to a well formed technical question like the OP only further maddens those of us who have been dealing with After Effect's myriad problems for years (more than a decade for me).

G

Griestopf

New Participant

Possibly you forgot to set "Track Type" to "Stabilize". It's probably set (by default) to "Transform". I had the same problem and spent two hours on that... Unfortunately Todd's answer, "RTFM", wasn't very helpful.

H

Hizamie_Omar

New Participant

thanks for your help mate! :-) i'm using AE CS5.5 and i have a same problem as pprioroh. After you mention about "Track Type" . Thank's again.

Todd_Kopriva

Inspiring

Follow the instructions on this page. If one of those steps doesn't work for you, report back here. There are also tutorials (including video tutorials) that show the process here.

By the way, if you're totally new to After Effects, you shouldn't start with motion tracking as the first thing that you do. It's somewhat complex for a first project. I strongly recommend that you methodically work your way through the getting-started materials here.

http://blogs.adobe.com/toddkopriva/2010/01/getting-started-with-after-eff.html

P

ppriorohAuthor

New Participant

I've been through that page - It doesn't work as of step 2.

I've got a single file in my timeline, which is selected. I click track motion, but under edit target I can't select anything.

And I realize it's not a great first step, but it's what I've got in mind for this project. I've used FCP in the past for editing, but this year bought cs5 so I'm learning premiere and AE at the same time. My son's soccer end of year party is in a couple weeks and it is what it is

Todd_Kopriva

Inspiring

> I've got a single file in my timeline, which is selected. I click track motion, but under edit target I can't select anything.

If you've only got one layer in your composition, and that's the one that you're tracking, what do you expect to be able to change the target to? The point of motion tracking is that you track motion in one layer and assign that motion to a different layer. If there's not another layer to assign the motion to, then you can't edit the target.

> And I realize it's not a great first step, but it's what I've got in mind for this project. I've used FCP in the past for editing, but this year bought cs5 so I'm learning premiere and AE at the same time. My son's soccer end of year party is in a couple weeks and it is what it is

I understand your desire to get started on doing something "real", but the truth of the matter is that you have to learn the basics before you can be successful with this program. Please, read this page. All that I've done for the past six years is teach people how to use After Effects, and that page summarizes that experience.

If you insist on starting straight into a project involving motion tracking, at least watch the tutorials that I pointed you to in my previous post (here).

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