How to generate a morph

To start off, open the Paint Action Sequence (PASeq) editor and erase the current PASeq by pressing the Erase button in the PASeq editor toolbar.

Choose the first source image you will be using for your morph sequence and open it as the current source.

Then, record a Morph Context action step by running the Action : PASeq Timeline : Record Context : Morph menu command.

After running this menu command you will see a single Morph Context action step recorded in the PASeq editor.

Now switch to Bezier Draw operation mode. An easy way to do this is to use the Operation : Bezier : Bezier Draw menu.

Once you are in Bezier Draw op mode, you can draw in a series of Bezier paths that will anchor features in your source image.  Turning on the source onion skin is a good way to do this. Or you could drag the source image into the canvas if you wish.

For example, if you are morphing a series of faces, try drawing a series of Bezier paths around the facial features like the eyes, nose, mouth, and head.

When you are done drawing your set of Bezier anchor paths, option click the first keyframe in the Morph Context action step in your PASeq Timeline.

Now choose your second image for your morph and open it as the source image. The onion skin will turn off when you open the new source image, so turn it on again. Now switch to Bezier Edit op mode.

Note how the original Bezier anchor paths are still displayed, but they no longer correspond to the facial features of your new source image.

You now need to edit the existing Bezier paths so that they correspond to their associated facial features in the new source image you just loaded. An easy way to do this is to use the new e hotkey function available in Bezier Edit. 

First select a single Bezier path. Then hold down the e hotkey and redraw the selected path where you would like it to be located. The old selected path will vanish and appear as the new path you just drew in.

You can now quickly select the remain paths one by one, and then redraw them in their new locations while holding down the e hotkey.

Once you have edited all of the old anchor paths to their new locations, option click a new keyframe in your Morph Context PASeq action step.

At this point you’ve defined a morph between 2 still images. The frame capture below shows the mid frame of the simple morph we defined in this example between the 2 face images.

You can continue adding additional morph context keyframes for additional source images if you want to morph between a series of images. For each additional image, you would open it as the source image, edit the Bezier anchor paths to correspond to the new source image, then option click record a new morph context keyframe.

Generating a morph animation movie file is the same as generating an animation movie from any other PASeq.  You just run the Action : Animate with Paint Action Sequence : to Movie menu command.

A Bezier morph animation example created using the same technique described above with a different starting source image is below:

bezier morph example

Bezier Warps or Filtering

Bezier warps or Bezier defined spatially variant filters are created using a similar technique to that described above.  They use Warp Contexts or Filter Contexts depending on whether you are warping or filtering.  As described above, the movement of Bezier paths over time defines the warp or spatially variant filter operation.

Each Studio Artist layer has an associated bezier path frame. The bezier path frame is a buffer for bezier vector paths.  Studio Artist has a unique internal graphics model for paint strokes that paints raster paint over vector paths.  The nice thing about vector paths is that they are resolution independent and in the case of bezier paths smoothly editable via control handles when in Bezier Edit operation mode.

Path Generation and Editing via the Path menus

There are a large number of different path generation and editing menu commands located in the main Path menu. The screen snap above shows the result of running the Generate Paths : from Source Edges menu command. The Generate Path commands provide different ways to automatically generate sets of bezier paths from the source or canvas images.

The Path Layer Commands provide different ways to automatically modify the existing bezier path layer.

Path Generation and Editing in Bezier Operation Mode

You can use the popup at the top of the Editor Palette to switch between manual drawing or editing of bezier paths in the current layer’s bezier path frame. Normally the bezier path frame is hidden from view. When in Bezier operation mode the current bezier path frame is displayed on top of the current layer in the main canvas.

Path Layer Record Options

Bezier paths can be generated automatically from your manually drawn paint strokes. Or from auto-drawn paint strokes created by the synthesizer actions. Or from the output of the Vectorizer.  You just need to turn on the appropriate check menus in Path : Path Layer Record Options as shown above.  

Things to do with Bezier Paths

Bezier paths can be used in many different ways in Studio Artist. You could run the Path : Paint Paths : Full Layer menu command to paint the bezier paths with the current Paint Synthesizer paint preset.

A complete set of bezier paths can also be encapsulated in a paint synthesizer preset using it’s internal bezier path memory.

There are different uses for this. One is to provide a way to keyframe interpolate between different sets of bezier paths in a single paint action step to build up fluid paint animation in a Paint Action Sequence.  

encapsulated bezier keyframe paint animation example

Another is to use the bezier paths as a hatching texture while interactively drawing.

This is done by recording the bezier path frame into the paint synthesizer internal bezier path memory and then using that as the path shape in autodraw interactive pen mode.

Or the paint synthesizer can use the individual bezier paths as internal keyframes that are interpolated over time in an animation or while drawing.  

bezier path shape interpolation example

When used with the region Fill as Brush pen mode this provides a way to generate a dynamic brush shape from the interpolating animation of the individual bezier paths.

bezier brush shape interpolation example

The movement of bezier paths over time can be used to specify warps or morphs or spatially varient filtering. This is done using PAseq Context action steps.

bezier morph example

For more information

Here’s a tip on encapsulated bezier keyframe animation derived from hand drawn sketches.

Here’s a tip on automating encapsulated bezier animation.

Here’s a tip on PASeq Contexts.

Here’s a tip on generating a morph animation.

Studio Artist 4 has a new Paint Action Sequence (PASeq) feature called Contexts. PASeq Contexts can be recorded as individual action steps in a PASeq. Contexts can be used to record source, content, bezier, warp, morph, and filtering keyframes within a PASeq.  

Contexts provide an easy to use way to replace a large amount of functionality that in previous versions of Studio Artist was implemented with multiple Layer Timeline keyframes and/or Timeline Animation operation mode functionality. Because of this both the old Layer Timeline, it’s associated keyframe types, and the old Timeline Animation operation mode are no longer available in version 4.  

The screen snap above shows how to access the menus to record all of the various Context types in a PAseq. Running the specific record Context menu will insert that Context as a new action step in the current PASeq. You don’t need to have PASeq record turned on to record Context action steps via these menus.

When the Record Context menu is run to insert a new Context action step the pertinent associated state of the interface is recorded as well. For example, if you insert a Source Context then a reference to the current source image or movie is recorded within the source context action step.

Context Types

The specific types of contexts are briefly explained below

Source Context – records source keyframes. When recorded stores a reference to the current source. When played back will load the source with the source reference stored in the context.

Content Context – records content keyframes. When recorded stores a reference to the current source. When played back will load the current layer with the image or movie frame reference stored in the context. The specified content is resized to fit the current layer if it’s not the same size.

Bezier Context – records bezier keyframes.  When recorded stores the current layer’s bezier path frame. When played back the current layer’s bezier path frame is replaced with the bezier paths stored in the context.

Morph Context - records a source reference and a bezier keyframe. When recorded stores the current layer’s bezier path frame and the current source reference. When played back a morph is generated based on the source reference and bezier paths stored in this and the next morph context keyframe.

Warp Context - records a source reference and a bezier keyframe. When recorded stores the current layer’s bezier path frame and the current source reference. When played back a warp is generated based on the source reference and the variation from the recorded bezier paths to the original bezier paths stored in keyframe 1.

Inverse Warp Context - records a source reference and a bezier keyframe. When recorded stores the current layer’s bezier path frame and the current source reference. When played back a warp is generated based on the source reference and  the recorded bezier paths. The source reference is warped back to match the position of the original bezier paths stored in keyframe 1.

Filter Context - records a source reference and a bezier keyframe. When recorded stores the current layer’s bezier path frame and the current source reference. When played back a spatially variant filter operation is generated based on the source reference and the variation from the recorded bezier paths to the original bezier paths stored in keyframe 1.

Keyframe Editing for Contexts that Record Bezier Paths

If you record a new keyframe while in Bezier operation mode, then both the bezier paths and any additional information needed for the keyframe is recorded.  So a new morph keyframe would also record the current source reference.  However, if you are option clicking an existing keyframe to overwrite while in Bezier operation mode then only the bezier paths will be updated, not any of the additional information stored in the keyframe.

A similar situation existing when you are not in Bezier operation mode.  If you are recording a new keyframe then all of the information is recorded.  However, if you are option clicking an existing keyframe then the non-bezier path information only will be updated.