8

Editing Active Footsteps 729
2.
If necessary, expand the Objects listing to
display footstep keys.
To move selected footsteps in ti me:
• In Track View, drag any selected footstep key to
drag all selected footstep k eys in time.
To change the duration of a footstep:
1.
In Track View, click the left or right edge of a
footstep key.
In addition to a white border, a small white dot
appears to indicate the edge is selected.
2. Dragtheselectededgetomakethefootstepkey
longer or shorter.
You can adjust a selection of m ultiple footsteps
this way.
You can also adjust any combination of left edge,
right edge, and center selections. Dragging in
Track View adjusts any combination of edge or
center selection.
To change t he d isplay of number s of footstep k ey s:
1.
InTrackView,right-clickthefootsteptrackto
display the
Footstep Mode Dialog (page 2–853) .
2. Choose the values to display from the Footstep
Number Display group.
To scale key s i n t ime:
1.
On the Track View toolbar, click Scale Time.
2. In the Track View window, click and drag to
indicate the beginn ing and end of the time
period you want to scale.
3. Move the cursor over the selection region until
a scale cursor appears. Drag to the left to reduce
time,ordragtotherighttoincreasetime.
See also
Adjusting Body Keys in Track View (page 2–733)
Editing Active Footsteps
One of the most powerful features of footsteps
is the ability to adapt keyframes automatically
to edits you make to your footstep pattern. By
analogy, the footsteps b e come a kind of
gizmo
(page 3–1043)
for manipulating the keyframes of
your character’s animation. In most cases, edits
you make to footsteps act upon your keys in an
intuitive fashion.
In order to understand what happens when active
footsteps are edited, you must first understand
what happens to biped keys when footsteps are
activated. See
Understanding Footstep and Body
Keys (page 2–725)
.
Key Adaptation for Footstep Placement
Edits
Whenyoumoveorrotateactivefootsteps
as described in
Editing Footstep Placement
(page 2–726)
,thebiped’skeysareimmediately
influenced by the edit. The following keyf rame
tracks are influenced in the vicinity of the edited
footsteps:
• Body H orizontal k eys change to step or hop
within range of new footstep locations
• Body Vertical keys change to match possible
changes in stride length, since the center of
mass must move lower to step longer distances
• Body Turning (Body Rotation) keys change
to bank into turns created by changes in path
curvature or body speed
• RightorleftlegkeysinaMovestate(when
the leg is not in a footstep) are adapted to step
between new locations
Other keys are preserved in the adaptat ion process.
For example, if you animate the body to kneel
while turned to the right, altering a nearby footstep
wi ll maintain the biped’s height and turning
motion as much as possible.