This page uses ToyMt sample data to describe settings made when applying color animation to a material under CreativeStudio.
CreativeStudio can apply color animation to a material using the CurveEditor panel.
There are five parameters associated with material color. The reflectivity of light and color of a material can be changed by setting these parameters.
Table 1. Types of Material Color
Material color | Content |
---|---|
Emissive | Emission repesents a color that can be seen to emanate from the model itself. |
Ambient | Ambient is a color that evenly affects the entire model. Note that this differs from the global ambient created using ambient lights. |
Diffuse | Diffuse is a color influenced by the direction of light. The more a model faces the light source, the more light is reflected and the brighter it appears. |
Specular 0 | Specular 0 is a highlight color that reflects off of objects. Two specular colors, 0 and 1, are available with CreativeStudio. |
Specular 1 | As with Specular 0, Specular 1 is also a hightlight color that reflects off of objects. |
Use the CurveEditor panel to create and edit color animations for materials.
For details on the CurveEditor panel, click here.
Table 2 gives the settings for the horizontal and vertical axes on the CurveEditor panel used to create material color animations.
Alpha can only be set for diffuse.
Table 2 Setting the Horizontal and Vertical Axes in CurveEditor When Creating Material Animations
Setting | Vertical Axis and Horizontal Axis | Description of Setting |
---|---|---|
MaterialColor.Emission ( R G B ) | Vertical axis | Emission can be set in the range 0 to 1 for each RGB. The RGB color component becomes stronger as the set value approaches 1. |
Horizontal axis | Number of frames (number of frames to animate the material color) | |
MaterialColor.Ambient ( R G B ) | Vertical axis | Ambient can be set in the range 0 to 1 for each RGB. The RGB color component becomes stronger as the set value approaches 1. |
Horizontal axis | Number of frames (number of frames to animate the material color) | |
MaterialColor.Diffuse ( R G B A ) | Vertical axis | Diffuse can be set in the range 0 to 1 for each RGBA. The RGB color component becomes stronger as the set value approaches 1. For A, the alpha becomes more transparent as the set value approaches 1. |
Horizontal axis | Number of frames (number of frames to animate the material color) | |
MaterialColor.Specula 0 ( R G B ) | Vertical axis | Specular 0 can be set in the range 0 to 1 for each RGB. The RGB color component becomes stronger as the set value approaches 1. |
Horizontal axis | Number of frames (number of frames to animate the material color) | |
MaterialColor.Specula 1 ( R G B ) | Vertical axis | Specular 1 can be set in the range 0 to 1 for each RGB. The RGB color component becomes stronger as the set value approaches 1. |
Horizontal axis | Number of frames (number of frames to animate the material color) |
This page describes how to configure material color animations using the ToyMt sample data of TutorialToyBlock.
On the CreativeStudio menu, select File > Open > Intermediate file and open toy_mt.cres.
" %NW4C_ROOT%/SampleData/Graphics/Intermediate/ManualResource/TutorialToyBlock/ToyMt.cres"
Confirm setting information for the Toy_Mt sample data.
ToyMt uses four materials.
Material settings have been made using a 3D CG tool and placed in an intermediate file using a plug-in prepared for CreativeStudio.
Table 3 Material Properties Set Using the 3D CG Tool
Material | Content |
---|---|
Toy_Mt1 Lambert | The Toy_Mt1.tga texture is applied to the color of Lambert nodes. |
Toy_Mt2 Phong | The Toy_Mt2.tga texture is applied to the color of Phong nodes. |
Toy_Mt3 Phong | The Toy_Mt2.tga texture is applied to the color of Phong nodes. |
Toy_Mt4 Phong | The Toy_Mt2.tga texture is applied to the color of Phong nodes. |
Two material color animations are used with ToyMt.
Table 4 The Material Animations Being Used
Animation Types | Content |
---|---|
Color Animation | A color animation is set under CreativeStudio for the body parts of the model. |
Alpha Animation | An alpha animation is set under CreativeStudio. |
The following animations are also used with ToyMt in addition to material color animations.
Table 5 Other Animations
Animation Types | Content |
---|---|
Rotate Animation | The rotate animation applied to the model has been created using a 3D CG tool. |
Visibility animation | The model's visibility animation has been configured using CreativeStudio. |
This page describes only the material color animations.
At this point, check the animation settings for the ToyMt2 material on the CurveEditor panel.
Select Toy_Mt2 displayed in the Content panel to open the CurveEditor panel.
Figure 1 Select Toy_Mt2 on the Contents panel.
In CreativeStudio, select Window > CurveEditor to open CurveEditor.
Figure 2 CurveEditor panel for Toy_Mt2
Parameter settings configuring the curve are displayed in bold in the graph tree view of the CurveEditor panel.
Table 6 Setting Parameters Configuring an Animation for Toy_Mt2
Setting | Content |
---|---|
MaterialColor.Emission ( R G B ) | An animation has been set for all RGB of the emission. |
MaterialColor.Diffuse ( R G B A ) | An animation has been set only for the alpha of the diffuse. |
This page describes how to create and edit material color animations by actually using Toy_Mt2.
The editing method for color animations is basically the same for all material colors.
Selecting MaterialColor.Emission in the graph tree view on the CurveEditor panel will display the emission color animation curve shown in Figure 3 in the graph view.
Figure 3 Emission Color Animation Curve
Select the graph view and press the A key. The display will be arranged to show all keys currently set.
If more than one curve has been set for the selected setting parameter, all curves currently set are displayed simultaneously as shown in Figure 3, and can be edited.
If you want to display a curve by itself, select the curve set inside a setting parameter from the graph tree view.
Only the selected curve is displayed and can be edited.
Figure 4 RGB Curves Set for Toy_Mt2 Emission
The settings given below have been made for the Toy_Mt2 emission color animation.
Table 7 Emission Color Animation Settings
Frame | Color components | Description of Setting | Result |
---|---|---|---|
0 ~ 20 | R | The R color component is not applied to the model because its value is 0 until Frame 20. | The G and B color components make Toy_Mt2 appear aqua. |
G | The G color component is 1 until Frame 20. | ||
B | The B color component is 1 until Frame 160. | ||
21 ~ 30 | R | The curve for the R color component is created so that it approaches 1 between Frame 21 and Frame 30. | Because the R color component and G color component are swapped for each other, the color animation makes Toy_Mt2 appear to change from aqua to purple. |
G | The curve for the G color component is created so that it approaches 0 between Frame 21 and Frame 30. | ||
B | The B color component is 1 until Frame 160. | ||
31 ~ 110 | R | There is no change to the curve during this period. | Toy_Mt2 remains purple and is rotated. The model itself disappears midway by applying a visibility animation. |
G | There is no change to the curve during this period. | ||
B | The B color component is 1 until Frame 160. | ||
111 ~ 120 | R | The curve for the R color component is created so that it approaches 0 between Frame 111 and Frame 120. | Because the R color component and G color component are swapped for each other from Frame 111 through Frame 120, the color animation makes Toy_Mt2 appear to change from purple back to aqua. |
G | The curve for the G color component is created so that it approaches 1 between Frame 111 and Frame 120. | ||
B | The B color component is 1 until Frame 160. | ||
121 ~ 160 | R | There is no change to the curve during this period. | Toy_Mt2 remains aqua. |
G | There is no change to the curve during this period. | ||
B | The B color component is 1 until Frame 160. |
At this point, let's try some simple edits to the Toy_Mt2 color animation.
On the CurveEditor panel, make settings so that the R and G curves for MaterialColor.Emission are swapped for each other.
Figure 5 Setting Example 1
Confirm that the color animation for Toy_Mt2 changes from going from aqua to purple and then from purple to aqua, before editing, to going from purple to aqua and then from aqua to purple, after editing, by reversing the shape of the R and G curves for MaterialColor.Emission and then playing the animation.
On the graph view of the CurveEditor panel, you can copy a selected curve using Ctrl+C.
Use Ctrl+V to past a copied curve.
Note: Copy does not copy only the keys that are set, it copies the entire curve. To use copy & paste, you first need to click on the graph view (area where the graph is displayed) to make it active.
This page describes how to create and edit an alpha animation using MaterialColor.Diffuse for Toy_Mt2.
Selecting MaterialColor.Diffuse in the graph tree view on the CurveEditor panel will display the diffuse alpha animation curve shown in Figure 6 in the graph view.
Figure 6 Alpha Animation Curve for Diffuse
Select the graph view and press the A key. The display will be arranged to show all keys currently set.
Only an alpha animation is set for MaterialColor.Diffuse.
Table 8 Alpha Animation Settings
Frame | Color components | Description of Setting | Result |
---|---|---|---|
0 ~ 10 | A | A curve where the value of diffuse approaches 1 between Frame 0 and Frame 10 is created for the alpha component. | Software creates a curve where the vertical axis on the CurveEditor panel (representing transparency) runs from 0 to 1. This results in an animation where the model becomes opaque approaching Frame 10. |
11 ~ 145 | A | A curve is created where the alpha component is fixed to 1 during this period. | The model continues to be displayed from Frame 11 to Frame 145. Visibility animation is used to make the model disappear in the middle. |
146 ~ 155 | A | A curve where the value of diffuse approaches 0 between Frame 146 and Frame 155 is created for the alpha component. | Software creates a curve where the vertical axis on the CurveEditor panel (representing transparency) runs from 1 to 0. This results in an animation where the model becomes transparent approaching Frame 155. |
At this point, let's try some simple edits to the Toy_Mt2 alpha animation.
On the CurveEditor panel, edit the curve for the alpha of MaterialColor.Diffuse.
Figure 7 Setting Example 2
The original curve was created so that it goes from transparent to visible in a short period from Frame 0 to Frame 10. Now, we will edit the curve so that the alpha animation goes more slowly.
Confirm that the model becomes visible more slowly than before changing settings by playing back the animation after editing.
Application of this method makes it easy to make a model go from transparent to semi-transparent or even opaque in all kinds of situations.
CONFIDENTIAL