Key Frame Animation

A key frame is a frozen image in the sequence of an animation. Each "key" frame shows the transformation of an object. The remaining frames, known as “in betweens,” are figured out automatically by Inspire Render. When you play all of the frames together, you have a simple animation.

Create a Key Frame Animation of an Object

Use the Move tool to animate an object’s movement by changing its position and rotation along a trajectory path.

First you need an object to animate.

  1. Select an object.
  2. Open the Move tool:
    • Press W.
    • From the Home tools, click the Move icon.

  3. Select the channels you want to change.
    By default, Auto Key Frame is turned on for all channels. You can turn off Auto Key Frame to create key frames only for a specific channel.
    • Position: Change the location of the object at a selected time during the animation.
    • Rotation: Change the orientation of the object at a selected time during the animation.
    • Scale: Change the size of the object at a selected time during the animation.
  4. Create the key frames:
    1. To create the first key frame, move the object by translating, rotating, or scaling it.
      The key frame is added at the Current Time position on the timeline at the bottom of the modeling window.
    2. To create another key frame, on the timeline, move the Current Time slider a few seconds over. Then move the object again.
      The key frame is added at the Current Time position on the timeline at the bottom of the modeling window.
    3. Repeat the previous step as desired.
    In the modeling window, the dots on the trajectory path mark each second. On the timeline, the diamonds mark each key frame.
  5. To view the animation, drag the Current Time slider left or right on the timeline.

Change the Trajectory

Change the trajectory of the key frame animation so that the object moves along a custom path.

  1. Turn off all channels.
  2. Move the object outside the current trajectory.
  3. Click the Set Key Frames button to the left of the timeline.
  4. In the dialog, turn off all channels except for Position.

Animate the Camera

In addition to animating an object’s movement, you can also animate the camera to create a more complex animation.

First you need to create a custom camera.
When animating a camera, there’s no Auto Key Frame option, so you cannot select which channel you want to change; you can make small changes to the camera’s position and rotation by panning, zooming, and rotating it. If you need the camera to follow a precise trajectory path, it is better to use the Move tool to move the camera. If you select the camera in the Model Browser, you can see the trajectory path in the modeling window.
  1. In the view controls, select a camera.
  2. Create the key frames:
    1. To create the first key frame, move the camera by panning, zooming, or rotating it.
      On the timeline at the bottom of the modeling window, a new key frame is added at the Current Time position.
    2. To create another key frame:
      • To add another key frame with the current camera position and rotation, click the green diamond icon in the view controls.
      • To add another key frame with a different camera position, reposition the camera, and then click the green diamond icon in the view controls.
      Note: The Set Key Frame button is for the currently selected object, not for the camera.
    3. Repeat the previous step as desired.
  3. You can drag the Current Time slider left or right to see how the camera and object will be animated.

Rotation Types

In key frame animation, you can choose from two types of rotation: Euler or Quaternion. You need to choose one or the other for the entire animation; you cannot have some key frames in Euler and some in Quaternion.

Euler Rotation (Default)

Define the rotation of the object along the x-axis, y-axis, and z-axis by entering precise values. Rotation is applied first around the x-axis, then around the y-axis, and finally around the z-axis.
Important: Because applying rotation around all three axes simultaneously may result in some unexpectedly jerky movement, you should rotate the object along one axis only. For example, in one key frame, enter a rotation of 90 for X, 0 for Y, and 0 for Z. In the next key frame, enter 180 for X, 0 for Y, and 0 for Z.

Degrees: Define the angle of rotation in degrees.

Turns: Define the number of turns the object rotates between each key frame; you can enter a non whole number. Select this option if you want the object to do multiple turns between each key frame.

When you switch from Degrees to Turns or vice versa, the angles in degrees are automatically converted to the number of turns or vice versa.

Quaternion Rotation

Rotate the object freely in space using the Move tool's rotation handles in the modeling window. Compared to Euler rotation, Quaternion rotation generally results in smoother, more natural movement.