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Flex Endpoints
The flex’s endpoints must be “nailed down” so that the flex can not just shrivel up along the length of the curve, or pour off the end. The ends are controlled by one of several different means:
1. the end of the flex can stay even with its initial position,
2. the end of the flex can stay even with a specific 3-D location, typically the position of a tracker, or
3. the end of the flex can exactly match a 3-D position, typically the position of a tracker.
The first method is the default. The other two are possible when you can identify a specific 3-D location, for example if you have a tracker at that location. This arises most often when several lines intersect. You can track the intersection, then force all the flexes to meet at the same 3-D location.
To specify a 3-D location, click Start Pt or End Pt. That will enable the end point and a simple “place mode.” With the button lit up blue, you can click a tracker, and the end point will be moved to the tracker’s 3-D location. That will work in a 3-D view (Front, Top, etc) or the perspective mode. (Only the current 3-D location of the tracker will be saved, so if you re-track or re-solve, you will need to reset the endpoint.)
To set the endpoint a different way, click the button again to turn off the simple place mode, then re-position the point manually in the perspective view or any 3-D view.
Alternatively, with the simple place mode off, turn on the real Place Mode in the perspective view, and put the endpoint on a mesh surface or vertex (with snapping); see Place Mode.
The flex will end “even” with the specified point, meaning so that the point is perpendicular to the end of the flex. To match the position exactly, turn on the corresponding Exact checkbox.
The Exact checkbox is active only when a corresponding start or end point is present. The tooltip text of the Start Pt and End Pt buttons will show the exact coordinates.
To remove a start or end point, right-click the Start Pt or End Pt button.
©2024 Boris FX, Inc. — UNOFFICIAL — Converted from original PDF.