Hi Jason -

An animation like that can be made for PDR, rather than in PDR.

Here are some examples of the same kind of thing - https://directorzone.cyberlink.com/detail/126399284 and https://directorzone.cyberlink.com/detail/126399283

There are plenty of places online where you can purchase thos things, usually in alpha MOV format.

Cheers - Tony
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Quote Hi Jason -

An animation like that can be made for PDR, rather than in PDR.

Here are some examples of the same kind of thing - https://directorzone.cyberlink.com/detail/126399284 and https://directorzone.cyberlink.com/detail/126399283

There are plenty of places online where you can purchase thos things, usually in alpha MOV format.

Cheers - Tony

Thank you. I may have not explained so well. That is kinda what I am looking for but I want to use motion tracking with it. I want the text to stay in the same spot on the screen, and the line to move with the object I am tracking.

I didn't try the ones you are referring, but I don't think they motion track.

Is there a way to make that work though? I am pretty new so explanations are greatly appreciated.

Thank you. -Jason

The short answer is no

PDR cannot do what Ae does. Where Ae has separate elements with nodes that can be used to track (like the endpoint of the line tracking the subject's head), PDR does not.

You can use motion tracking to have a callout graphic track a subject... but the whole thing would move, not just the endpoint.

It could be manually keyframed, but I don't think you'd have much fun doing it!

Cheers - Tony
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Quote The short answer is no

PDR cannot do what Ae does. Where Ae has separate elements with nodes that can be used to track (like the endpoint of the line tracking the subject's head), PDR does not.

You can use motion tracking to have a callout graphic track a subject... but the whole thing would move, not just the endoint.

It could be manually keyframed, but I don't think you'd have much fun doing it!

Cheers - Tony

That answered my question. Thank you very much.

Can we add this to the wish list? -Jason

Hi Jason -

After I bravely asserted that "it could be manually keyframed", I thought I'd better put it to the test.

Bottom line: It can be manually keyframed but it's quite impossible to come up with a decent "Ae-like" result. In fact, the pain I went through doing this was enough to convince me to invest in Ae!

Here's the outcome:



If you're interested, you can download the packed project here. I used a combination of motion tracking and manual keyframing. Oh for a node!

Cheers - Tony
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Quote Hi Jason -

After I bravely asserted that "it could be manually keyframed", I thought I'd better put it to the test.

Bottom line: It can be manually keyframed but it's quite impossible to come up with a decent "Ae-like" result. In fact, the pain I went through doing this was enough to convince me to invest in Ae!

Here's the outcome:



If you're interested, you can download the packed project here. I used a combination of motion tracking and manual keyframing. Oh for a node!

Cheers - Tony

That didn't look half bad. Thank you for that.

How long did it take you to do?

I know After Effects is an Adobe product and as the name would imply, you use it after the movie is created to apply effects. Can this be used with PowerDirector? -Jason

Thanks Jason -

"Doesn't look half bad" is about how I'd describe it too. That line make me think of a the way a worm or leech moves to try to latch onto something

How long did it take? (I didn't time it - just estimations)

1. Making the graphics(text box, circle & line): ~10 min all up


2. Motion tracking stage (circle on backpack): ~30 min, after tweaking & re-tweaking


3. Manually keyframing line: ~2 hours, partly because PiP Designer would occasionally revert to previous position settings

Not being able to lock a node (endpoint of line) onto an object in the video is the most significant difference between PDR & Ae for this exercise.

Cheers - Tony
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