When you press “Edit function” you will see an editor similar to RealFlow's → “Curve Editor”. The main element is the canvas. The a curve editor. The canvas shows a grid with a horizontal (X) and a vertical (Y) axis. Understanding the relation between these axes is important, because it is the key to the entire retiming process. The
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- it is often easier to work with retimed seconds instead of frames. You can toggle between both units with Alt + T (seconds) and Alt + F (frames)
- the adjusted → “FPS output” is considered
- we recommend setting → “Time factor” to Retiming Parameters > Time factor to 1.0.
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No matter which method you are using, you should always check the result of your operations from time to time with the built-in preview methods (see → “ Simulation Retime
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: Basics ”). Once you are satisfied, make your → “ Input/Output Settings ”, and press “Retime”.
Expressions
When you take a look at the input field at the bottom of the window you will see an entry “t”. This entry is a so-called → expression where “t” represents the current time. When you enter ‘f’ you can switch to frames, and you will see a stepped curve.
Expressions can be very complex, and it is possible to combine mathematic functions (sine, cosine, square root, etc.), and perform calculations (addition, multiplication, etc). Under “Insert” you will find drop-down lists with the entire range of elements. Expressions are a fast and convenient method, but it can be difficult to create specific behaviour by combining functions like sine or cosine. In situations like that you should consider → drawing curves.
Another effect you can see with predefined functions is that the curve is increasing or decreasing, as shown in the sine curve below:
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Now it is necessary to calculate the end frame of the retimed simulation, because this value has to be entered in “Last” field of the → “Retiming Parameters” tab:
- Let's say the length of the original simulation is 148 frames.
- The number of retimed frames is calculated this way:
148 / (1/3) = 148 * 3 = 444. - Close the editor and go to Retiming Parameters > Frame range.
- Deactivate “Use scene range”.
- Last = 444
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This option only affects the timeline under → “Timing Retiming Parameters > Timing example”: you can switch between frames and seconds.