Pan / zoom in on a target area?

Miggy

I have a project I just started working on. It includes a series of still pictures of different people that are displayed for 5 seconds, and I want to do a slow zoom in on the person's face, like they do on some TV shows. I can use the pan and zoom (think that's what it's called) but that goes to the center of the image. Usually I need it to go up and right or left. I tried to combine it with position slide up or down, but that doesn't look right as it brings down black areas that are apparently created by the zoom process.

Does this require the use of key frames, or is there some easy way to do it. If it requires key frames, I might have to finally get down to learning how to do that.

borate

Yes, keyframing is ... key.

You might use the MOTION effect. With the scrubber (red line) at the head of the project drag the pic in the preview window to the start position.

Or just leave it centered, as is. Click the small green + on the toolbar, to set a keyframe.

Move the scrubber to the end and then drag the image to the location where it will complete. Click the green +. That's the pan.

Click the SCALE item and move the slider to the right to scale up the pic. Click the +. This is the zoom.

Drag the pic up or down to reposition it, if desired. Click the green +. The result is a pan & zoom in. A tutorial.

There are a number of ways to manipulate the elements: drag the image or the handles in the preview window, drag the sliders in the effects window, or drag an animation line in the graph, which can also be used to create keyframes.

Miggy

Thanks, borate. I'll try that when I get to some days off so I have time to really get into it.

I only have a vague idea of how key frames work. Is it that you move an image and set a key frame every... so many frames... to show where it is moving within the timeline? If so, how many do you need to put in and what is the minimal frame interval to have an image move from point A to point B?

ETA: Oh.. I've watched that tutorial before. For some reason I'm just not getting it from that tutorial.

borate

A keyframe is but a point on the timeline; there's no min or max # and no set # to move from A to B.

e.g.: To move off-screen left to off-screen right would take only two keyframes. First keyframe at the head of the timeline - with the image off-screen left; second keyframe at the end of the timeline - with the image positioned off-screen right.

Or, let's say, pic moves from off-screen left to center screen, stops for a while, then moves off-screen right. The first keyframe would be set when image is off-screen left. Move the scrubber a few seconds later and position the image center screen. Set a keyframe. Scrubber is moved a few seconds more and another keyframe is set with exactly the same image positioning. Then, finally, a keyframe at the end of the timeline with image positioned off-screen right.

This logic applies to many effects, not just movement. Right-click on a keyframe square in the graph window to see options such as deleting a "curve handle" - a more advanced concept that adjusts linearity between keyframes. The closer keyframes are to one another for a specific action the quicker the action will complete.

Miggy

Okay, I had some time tonight so tested it out. To quote Sir Robin from Holy Grail: "Oh, that's easy!"

For some reason I got the idea that to do something like that, you had to add a bunch of key frames to move it step by step in half- or quarter-second intervals. That would be been tedious. But all I did was add a keyframe at the beginning, then added a keyframe at the end after zooming in to how I wanted it to end up. Turned out perfect.

Thanks, borate!

[deleted]

Hi Miggy

Use just the Zoom effect. but keep the AR 16:9

Open the keyframe pane to the right of the effects window.
Set the red cursor line to the start of the clip
Set a start keyframe by clicking the small green cross at the top left of the keyframe graph.
Move the cursor line to start of your zoom and create a second keyframe
Move the red cursor line to where you want your close up to complete.
Adjust the zoom rectangle in the preview window to outline the face of the subject.
Create another keyframe.
Move the red cursor line to a point where you wish to change the zoom position again (or to the end of the clip if you want to remain zoomed in on the face.)
Create another keyframe.

When played the clip will start out showing the whole frame and at the designated second keyframe point start a zoom into the subject's face. It will then stop at the next keyframe position and remain zoomed in to the end of the clip (unless you have chosen to move/alter the zoom rectangle with another keyframe.

The greater the time between the start and end of the zoom the slower the zoom will be.

Nat

Miggy

Nationalsolo,

Yeah, that's just how I found out it works!

Thanks to you and borate for your expert guidance!

Miggy

This is why I needed the targeted zooming ability. You may or may not be familiar with TCAP, but I think you'll get the idea.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ4KACLEmVU