Questions about smart warp / 2D mesh

[Kasia]

Hi guys, I hope you can help me with some problems: I added points, triangulated 2D mesh, it worked great, then I added more points to the same vector layer but in a different place (so it wasn’t connected to the original 2D mesh) and tried to triangulate 2D mesh again for the new selection. It didn’t work, the points I added just disappeared.

Why does my drawing (on image layer) disappear when I go past frame 0, all I can see is the 2D mesh/smart warp.

What does ‘warp using bones’ function mean - it’s in the vector layer settings in image tab.
Thanks
-Kasia

[hayasidist]

I added more points to the same vector layer but in a different place (so it wasn’t connected to the original 2D mesh) and tried to triangulate 2D mesh again for the new selection. It didn’t work, the points I added just disappeared.

One explanation is that the new points didn't make a shape that could be broken down into triangles - for example a line.

Why does my drawing (on image layer) disappear when I go past frame 0, all I can see is the 2D mesh/smart warp.

The mesh is also a mask. If the image isn't over the mesh (e.g. it has moved) you won't see it. Also, only those parts of the image that are affected by the mesh are visible.

What does ‘warp using bones’ function mean - it’s in the vector layer settings in image tab.

It means that, when checked, if you have the image in a group that has bones in it (e.g. bone layer, switch layer, FBF) then the bones will also influence the image.

[Kasia]

Hi hayasidist , thanks for answering. First off, the new points DID make a shape that could be broken down into triangles, but secondly I saw in a youtube video someone drawing lines and being able to do so on the same layer as his previously drawn mesh - which is not happening for me. The video is this one, by Danny Sugar: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mBKIQk ... e=emb_logo

You said: ''The mesh is also a mask. If the image isn't over the mesh (e.g. it has moved) you won't see it. Also, only those parts of the image that are affected by the mesh are visible.'' =In that case how can I use the mesh for only parts of the image but for the rest of the image to be still visible? Is it possible to say, have mesh around a leg, but not the rest of the body and to have all body parts visible past keyframe 0?

[hayasidist]

on the "lost the extra points" -- they need to make a shape (not just be capable of being a shape) IOW not just a path but a shape with fil and / or stroke. (looks as though triangulate will accept a path on "first run", but after that, it needs shapes to work with.

on the "mask" -- if you take a closer look at the video you linked - the full face has its smart mesh that goes all the way out to the edges; but the teeth mesh is just the teeth; and the area covered by the teeth in the full face had the shapes deleted (or maybe fill removed from the shapes) in that part of the mesh. So, to answer your question about "just the leg" -- two straightforward ways with a mesh:
do as in the video to create two pairs of layers each with a mesh and the image - one for leg, one for the rest - but you'll want to animate the leg mesh (whereas the video wanted NOT to animate the teeth)
or make a mesh that covers the leg and has a surrounding "buffer zone" and just move the points the cover the leg (and leave the buffer zone points where they are)

[Greenlaw]

I don't know if any of this helps but a couple of ideas:

At any point, did you transform the Image Layer on the Timeline? If so, you may need to delete those keyframes. When using a Smart Warp mesh, the Image layer isn't normally transformed unless it's for a special animation in addition to what the Smart Warp mesh is doing. (Transforming the Image Layer on frame 0 is fine since that's the setup frame.)

Same goes for the Cropping tool: using this tool with Smart Warp mesh can displace the image from the location of Smart Warp mesh. If you're using a Smart Warp mesh, you'll want to click Reset and Center Image to remove the Cropping tool effect.

Warp Using Bones enables or disables the deformation effect of Bones on an Image layer. It doesn't do anything when you're using a Smart Warp on the Image
layer because you're deforming it with the Mesh layer. (You really don't want both the Mesh and Bones fighting to deform the image...that gets very messy.)

If you disabled Warp Using Bones and decide you don't want to use the Mesh layer and you want to go back to using Bones directly, remember to re-enable this option.

[Kasia]

Thank you so much for your help Greenlaw and Hayasidist