Camera pan and zoom with Null object: After Effects Tutorial 

Thank you - 6 years later.

GENIUSSSS!!! I LOVE PEOPLE LIKE YOU THAT TEACH WITH PATIENCE! THANKSSSSS FROM ARGENTINA!

That is what I was looking for - very easy and clear! Thank You!

Hi there, can I use the Camera pan on a composition? The problem is that I have around 20 compositions that moves on the same direction to the right. What I do right now is by using Null Object, but the effect is not smooth enough. Any idea? Thanks!

Clear and simple, thanks!

IDK why i am watching an 11 years ago video

zoom?

thank you!

thank you 2017

wow! very helpful. thanks.:)

@Dudeinadrama what's funny is that he says to speak with proper dictation and pronunciation, when he who said this can not even properly type. lol

fail

Thanks bro, its 12 years later, still a reference on how to pan camera in AAE. Respect..

Thank you so much man.. for the camera tip(3D) i was strugling from 1hour to zoom in... Now it works!!

"Pick whip" it's funny they used that term and associated it with parenting in after effects! funny thing is in real life when parents pick whips that's when the children obeys! that's what it does in after effects as well- when you parent the null to the camera, the null obeys the parent through pick whip lol- good tutorial btw!

I understood your tutorial better than most. You actually took the time to zoom in and/or highlight the things you were talking about as you were showing how to use the camera. Much appreciated. Only uneducated people would have had an issue understanding you. So ignore them.

Hey dudeinadrama i would love your response cuz i have a problem! :( I used this, and it worked, i then did the same thing to another clip in the same video. Now my first camera is not working, i can see the red little box moving on the screen the way its supposed to but the video isnt moving :S but the second camera panning in my current IS working. Ive checked settings on both and they are the same but only one of em are working... yes i have linked camera & Null right on both.

Lol before this, I was once a prehistoric caveman changing the position of every object in my composition to make a panning effect. Now I am civilized!

this is not even a pan, it's a jib... panning is when a camera sits steady on the same spot and rotate on the horizontal plane, like turning our head

you don't know how much this means for me! thank you so very much! you're a lifesaver!

Hey, do you know "Photo SFXart Tricks" (just google it)? On their website you can watch a useful free video demonstrating how you can create brilliant photos. It made it easier for Joe to take photos that leave you with that jaw-dropping-effect when you look at them. I hope it helps you also.

Hi, are you familiar with "PhotoSFXart" (just do a Google search for it...)? On their website you can watch a smart free video explaining how to create fantastic photos. This helped Matt to shoot pictures that have that wow-effect whenever you look at them. Perhaps it will help you out as well...

How do you set an end point of a null object after you've already set the start?

so it actually doesnt move at all. i dont know how you got that straight line to go from the begining to end. i have the null object box sitting there but when i move it it doesnt go from the start to end position. it doesnt do anything.

Thank you, also you sound like chris martin of Coldplay haha :D

The null object view doesn't move when I try drag the red arrow along the x-axis...help?

My god... the first undestandable video I've seen on this. NO ONE ELSE MENTIONS THAT THE OTHER LAYERS NEED TO BE 3D AS WELL. Plus, none of them have the zooming and highlighting effects. They just mumble a lot and click shit.

I've followed your steps and was enable to move the camera. But now I want to move the camera again, it's not letting me. The null object won't even move, and the layer isn't locked. Anyone got any help?

hey nice movie ;) but i have one question when i make something in illustrator or photoshop and i save it and dragg it in AE i cant add stroke to it :S how can i fix this problem ?

can you provide better video, its getting pixelated, not very sharp to view

Still found this useful after more than a decade, thank you!

Learn how to speak english with proper diction and pronunciation before trying to teach people or else just use your local language

OMG I was just doing a school project and i couldnt find that little cube thingi>_

@LovelyDisast3r No problem! I learnt what I know from free tutorials and I like to take what I've learned and put it together into something more accessible :3

for some reason though my box (x/y/z tool) doesn't let me move it....why might that be?

This didn't work for me, but you can pan and zoom by holding alt + scroll the mouse wheel. When the video is zoomed out (via scrolling down the mouse wheel), hover your mouse over the region you want to zoom into, hold alt + scroll mouse wheel up

My camera WILL NOT zoom, I've set it up exactly how you have, can you help me out?

Not fake but not so good.

I wonder how to do this with video footage instead of a picture.

OMG! Are you Chris Martin? :0

but what's the advantage of using null object rather than camera itself?

You are brilliant, thank you very much. I was crammed on time for a project I was doing and this was short and straight to the point. Thank you very much!

very bad quality but very good explaining thank you

thank you very much 10 years later

@StandingWhy no the way of pronouncing 'z' in Canadian is 'zed'

Great job, it was very informative.

every time I click on the 3d box my null disappears and can't see the 3d cursor anyone know whats going on ?

why such low quality? I'm not able to see what is written on the screen

Appreciated. Just picked After Effects CC 2014 up recently after spending the longest time with Sony Vegas and CS3. I'm planning on learning a lot and this video helped lay down the foundations of a very long but enjoyable road.

How do I do multiple separate pans in a composition?

How do you do that cool zoom on your mouse?

شكرا اخي لقد استفت منك الكثير

@jPaulsson Zooming is explained right at the end.

@rerednawkrad I have a feeling you're from india.

Wow, this is a lifesaver!. It is still relevant in May 2021.

thank you, 10 years later

@Dudeinadrama When I tried to make a tutorial my voice got abit like yours, (dont mean to offend) very salivating and sloppy, but I found that after much practice, my speaking techniques improved and now I am clear in speaking with a mic

Could you do the same thing with a large solid as the background that you're panning?

@rerednawkrad nice punctuation.

@princessmarije press period .

please i want to know how to apply zoom that u use in the tutorial, not that the tutorial for (i mean when u spotlight and zoom to show us a tip for ex: layer -New -Null object) plz respond and thank u soooo much

2 dislikes don't have after effects

my effects are not moving?

@rerednawkrad local language?????

A new fan here. 😊 Thank you for this very clear, direct and easy tutorial.

Nicely done, I understood what you were doing. Thanks !

good video. thanks. 5

Thank you very much, now I'll be able to create my own movie intros :)

Wow that was nice, i was able to replicate the effect. Off the growing vine tut now to combine them effects as well. Many thanks.

@StandingWhy a magic place

Cameras can get a bit funky in AE - by parenting it to the null object, you're giving yourself extra control over the camera without animating directly on the camera layer.

Thank you!!!

Lol Pickwick...

Nice photoshop brush! :)

thx a lot u are the best

Thank you!

The 'Zed' axis... XD I forgot he was Canadian. That's just plain awesome.

nice one

nice its helpfull

Life saver!

@rerednawkrad I'm English and live in England this is how English people speak in England.

great tutorial .

This is exactly what I was searching for... Thank you soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much .......

How do you pan smoothly in a straight line?

Thankuuuuuu

Thank you - (almost) 10 years later

Gill Sans.... :)

Many thanks!

what if the picture is a lot? ( more than one )

I'm wondering how you get that smooth 3D camera rotation? everytime I make a new camera and try to use it to orbit a subject the rotation doesn't take effect until I let go of the mouse button :(

thanx

Thanks so much you are saving my ass for class today! I've been searching for like a week to find out this very simple info.

thanks men ! really clear and it work for me 10000x thanks !

@rerednawkrad That's actually painfully ironic.

Thank you - 9 years later

thank you so much. this is going to be really helpful

Finally explanation of why usin camera with null object cheers :)

thsi is exatly what I was looking for XD thank you soooo much!

Thanks for the tutorial. This is just what I needed for school. :D