Shape layer JUMPS when toggling '3D layer'

[SanDRO]

Hi, dear community,

I'm familiarizing myself (sloooowly) with various TRACKING methods in AE.
(Yes, MOCHA is by far the most reliable tool, but still ...)

After running 'TRACK CAMERA', when I

- draw a shape layer onto an object (frame around a monitor)

- and then toggle the layer as a '3D layer' 

--> it jumps to the right (see attached video).

I have already tried centering the anchor point in the shape; to no avail.

The footage / clip in the COMP is not scaled in any way.

Many, many thanks in advance & with my very best greetings from Switzerland,
Sandro

[Mylenium]

That's just a wrong appraoch. You don't match the shape with your path, you simply use a rectangle which will be able to move in 3D space and matches the clip, assuming you have a valid 3D track solve. For a 2D corner pin track it's even simpler because as the name implies, the corners will actually be moved into place and the image warped accordingly in 2D. You really have some severe misunderstandings about the different processes there.

Mylenium

[SanDRO]

I'm following tutorials by renowned artists (mainly on YouTube) with plenty of followers, likes & very little criticism - can't be that off, after all.

The solid I created simultaneously with the camera moves along in 3D space just fine.

I don't think I'm following your line of reasoning / explanations:
I then added - as you wrote - a simple rectangle (shape layer) and toggled '3D layer'. That's when the object jumps to the right ... and I still don't know why and how to avoid this.

Many thanks,
Sandro

[Rick Gerard · Accepted solution]

The shape layer jumps because it is not in the same 3D position that the Track Solid 1 layer. The proper workflow would be to make sure that the Track solid is perfectly attached to the screen in the shot and that the rotation and orientation is correct. The rotation of the Track 1 solid is a little off and that tells me that you might not have picked the right tracking markers when you created the solid. The only thing you should need to adjust is the Z rotation and probably the horizontal and vertical position using the Axis handles in the Comp Panel with the selection tool is set to Local Axis mode.  If the track is perfect you should be able to perfectly line up the horizontal and vertical edges of the Track Solid 1 rectangle with the horizontal and vertical edges of the screen because the screen is a perfect rectangle.

When Track Solid 1 is perfectly lined up with the screen by sizing or masking with the Rectangle Mask tool, not disproportionately scaling X and Y, it is time to add a new shape layer using the Layer/New/Shape Layer menu. After you add the new shape layer 3D, hold down the Shift key and Parent it to the Track Solid 1.  This will snap the new Shape layer to Track 1 Solid and perfectly match position rotation and orientation.

When that is done all should have to do is select the rectangle tool, make a guess at the stroke width, then click in the upper left corner of the tracked screen and drag to the bottom right corner. Finetuning the stroke width would be the last step.

I'm not sure what the design goal is for this shot, but if all you are doing is replacing the screen and adding a frame I would probably use Corner Pin tracking. It will render in about half the time and in most cases, it is easier to set up, especially if there is any lens distortion in your original footage.

[SanDRO]

Dear Rick_Gerard,

Thanks kindly for your thorough workflow. I made sure to copy-paste it for future reference and will certainly soon follow it closely as a training exercise. 

Say, you are omnipresent here - seemingly the quickest AE wizard to reply.

Best regards,

Sandro