Merging layers in a mask-like way Topic is solved

[johnfromncl]

Hi

(In the image, please ignore the dots when reading this first paragraph.) That half J is me zoomed in on a single frame part way along a layer where each new frame adds to the previous, so when played the layer creates a ‘handwritten’ piece of writing.

Now for the dots. I also have a layer which is a single frame that is held which has dots appropriately placed that also spell out the full piece of writing.

I want to create a third layer that ‘inlays’ the dots as texture to the writing, so that instead of the solid black it is the dots that are written. In attempting to use FX > Render > Inlay texture to achieve this, there is an offsetting that goes on that I can’t seem to readily and precisely eliminate by altering the HUD settings. So, either I need to fix that offset issue, or else use an alternative easier method.

My questions are:
1) Does anyone know an easy way of achieving my aims in some way that the solid black writing acts as a mask to the dotted layer, so that each frame in the created layer has dotted writing growing at the same speed that the solid writing grows.
2) If FX > Render > Inlay is the way to go, how is that offset prevented?

(My eventual aim is to create a number of layers like this dotted one (and the solid one), and successively offset them, so that as the animation is played, the writing kind of crystallises like ice patterns on a car windscreen, going from dots to lines to the solid. This is for an animated logo where this will be in colour instead of the black – I’m wanting to do this in TVPaint (rather than some other specialised software) since I can see these ideas also applying to other TVPaint projects I’m interested in.)

Any help with this would be much appreciated – I have tried a lot of things, but without luck so far, and have a feeling that there must be some way of doing this.

Many thanks
John

[slowtiger]

Let's see if I understand correctly. You want the result of a line written with dots, right?

Easy. Create 1 frame with the dotted writing. Extend it over the whole timeline.
Create the layer with the progressing writing in black.
Set the dotted layer to mask, invert the mask.
Select the complete writing layer, hit delete.

[johnfromncl]

Slowtiger - thanks a lot. I'll give that a go. Yes, I think you did understand - my aim is the line of dots written progressively, as its new layer is played.

It now occurs to me that I could also do this by:
Copy the single frame (the dots) to a brush
Copy the structure of the multi-framed layer (the black progressive writing)
Make the multi-framed layer (the black progressive writing) a mask sitting below to the copied-structure layer
Paste in place the brush over the whole copied-structure layer.

(I also suspect I was trying to use the Inlay Texture in a way that is not intended...)

Many thanks
John

[slowtiger]

I think we can do it even faster:

Create a guide layer with the dotted writing.
Set your brush to stamp/dot.
Create new layer, set behavior to hold
Stamp some dots, advance 1 frame, add more dots, advance (with arrow key)

[johnfromncl]

Hi

I'm in a bit of confusion or puzzlement - I was so sure I'd arrived at something that would work quickly and easily!

1. In my previous post (the 2 Jan 14:56 one) when I wrote 'Paste in place the brush over the whole copied-structure layer' I didn't mean the following which does work: my 'v' keystroke (which for me maps to "Tools: Custom brush stamp in place"), followed by right arrow to move to the next frame, and repeat these two keystrokes until everything is filled on the layer. (This produces the first image below when part-way along the layer - the image whose name starts with "1 Using manual stamp"). This is my intention of how it should look at this stage.

2. What I meant by 'Paste in place the brush over the whole copied-structure layer' was my 'v' keystroke (my "Tools: Custom brush stamp in place), followed by u ("Undo last action") then select the whole layer and hit enter (to apply my last action to the whole layer). When I do this, I do see TVPaint display "stroke in progress". But when that is finished and I look at what it has done, it has not produced the identical result to the above. The set of dots on the brush (i.e. the brush) has been offset in some mysterious way. It is the same brush for both of these results - which was created by selecting outside the canvas frame that held the dots, then copy to brush. (It produces the second image below when part-way along the layer - the image whose name starts with "2 Using stamp")

For clarity, I have also displayed the mask layer at lower opacity in my two screen captures, even though that will not be part of the final animation. (What you see here without the mask is not the final animation either!)

Any thoughts? Is this a misunderstanding of something on my part, or (less likely by far) a bug? I can't see why my quick second method in this post did not work - and obviously would like to get it to work. (If needed, I'm happy to share the TVPaint file...)

A kind of p.s. I'm aware that slowtiger also suggested an invert mask solution in his first reply, but I don't understand where or when 'the actual work' is done for the steps he wrote. So two puzzles currently...

Many thanks
John

[johnfromncl]

Mmm, in trying to sort the paste brush in place, undo, select all, enter, I can't get even the wrong pattern of dots now. Maybe the brush was over the image (even if off the canvas) and that way of repeating never worked at all???
At the minute I'm developing tired fingers (paste brush in place shortcut key pressed, move to right, repeat over 100 times) and may (in years hence) investigate a George script to do that for me to reach the end of the line. An easy way that would reliably work!
For now, I think it is the long way...
Sorry this has all been so confusing - it certainly has been for me!

[johnfromncl]

Finally worked out what I was doing wrong. It was expecting the brush and stamp in place to be similar to apply a stroke when wanting to repeat something over many frames.
In the past to get something to repeat over many frames I have done: draw a single stroke, undo, select whole layer, enter (= shape: apply), and then watch TVPaint display "stroke in progress" as it does the work of repeating that stroke on all frames. (I'm aware that that undo step is not always necessary, I can skip it if I don't mind the original brushstroke happening twice on one of the frames.)
Repeating the above idea with something copied to the brush does not work for me - at least most of the time, perhaps never. So the following produces an undesired result: copy to brush, stamp in place on one frame, undo, select whole layer, enter (shape: apply). Doing this is bad news, producing a "random" result (most of the time, if not always).
The following for a copied to brush does work. Copy to brush, select whole layer (with 'auto break instance' set to off to prevent a complex structure from being altered), stamp in place.
Very simple (though it took me four days and some help to work it out), instantaneous as far as I can see, and with the use of a mask on a lower layer, I get the actual results I was after in a mere handful of brush strokes.

[johnfromncl]

Not 'brush strokes' but key strokes.