2017

All transformations that you apply to the selected axis are applied to the objects connected to the axis. For
example, if the position of a surface's axis is set to 500, 100, 0, then its surface is placed at 500 on the X-axis,
100 on the Y-axis, and 0 on the Z-axis.
(a) Surface is placed in the scene at 500, 100, 0
You can also add an axis manually to the scene from the node bin.
Action Views
Front, top, and side view are orthographic views used to position an object's axis in the scene. These views
are useful for viewing the scene from another angle than the camera. From the View box (on the
viewing/layout toolbar under the viewports), select an option to set the view in the image window.
Creating a Look-At Connection from an Axis
You can attach a
look-at connection (page 466) between Action objects with axis characteristics (Axis, Camera,
Light). The connection allows the parent object to rotate to face the child look-at object, no matter where
it is positioned. Look-At links can be animated; therefore you can link different objects from the parent at
different frames. In the channel editor, you can see a lookAt channel for every look-at parent.
Selecting an Axis
You can select an axis in any of the following ways:
■ Click directly on the axis in the scene.
TIP If you have numerous overlapping axes in the scene, press and hold Q while clicking to cycle through each
axis until the axis you need is selected.
■ Go to Schematic view and click the node for the axis.
494 | Chapter 15 Compositing in 3D Space with Action