Have you ever had to render an animation from multiple camera angles? I know I have, and in the past this has been very difficult to achieve. SolidWorks Composer offers an innovative solution. Unlimited Animation Cameras can be set to record the same animation at different angles, and the timeline can specify at a fixed position in time which cameras are being used. Here’s how:
Step 1.
Animate the scene as you normally would, but don’t worry about camera placement. In the Collaboration tab there is an option to view which cameras are currently active in the animation. By default, there is only 1 camera. Add as many cameras as you need to this list by going to the Home tab and using the drop down menu “Attach Camera”, then click on “Add Camera”. Each time this is clicked a new camera will be added to the Camera list in the Collaboration Tab.
Step 2.
Specify the time at which the scene changes from one camera to another. Select any position in time on the Timeline. In the “Environmental Properties”, specify which camera is active at this moment in time. This camera will remain active until another camera key is created for a different camera.
Step 3.
Each camera can be animated independently like any other actor, or rules can be added to individual cameras. In this example I’m adding a “Rigid Attachment” “Move-With” rule to the currently active camera by selecting any actor in the scene and specifying the type of attachment from the “Attach Camera” dropdown list.
Step 4.
As long as no keys specify the animation to switch cameras, the animation will continue to play with this camera active; as long as the actor the camera is attached to moves, Composer will automatically create a fly-through animation.
Attachment Descriptions:
- Fly With: Camera will keep a constant distance and fly with the object it’s attached to without changing camera angles.
- Target: Camera will keep its current position in space but will follow the object it’s attached to throughout the animation.
- Move With: Camera will keep a constant distance and fly with the object it’s attached to, changing camera angles depending on the position of the object.
- Free: No attachment.
Want to see more animation in action? Click here to watch a 3 minute video on creating animation easily with SolidWorks Composer.