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Importing image


ebrown1972

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I have just started messing with images in superstar. Every time I try to add the image action I get the error that the start and end times cannot be the same (x,y). I do not have the start and end times set to be the same. This only occurs while trying to import an image. If I draw my own image I do not have the error. Can anyone help me with this? I am using v4.3.14. Thanks

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ebrown,

I'm using 4.3.18 but it should be the same. I have had this error and do not remember why. I will detail how I get images into SS maybe that will help.

Step 1 Import the Image

Step 2 Set Grid Bitmap from Image File

Step 3 Add Image

ss%20image3.png

Step 4 Change the x,y Coordinates (in my example, this will cause the image to enter from the left and exit on the right - matrix - your prop may vary)
The x coordinates are for up/down movement, the y coordinates are for left/right movement.

The coordinates set at Start 0,0 and End 0,0 will make your images appear centered in the prop.

ss%20image4.png

Step 5 Add the image to the sequence timeline, then play for results. The shorter the time for the effect the quicker it will appear. I suggest using 3-5 seconds until you dial it in, then adjust time to your sequence.

ss%20image5.png

Step 6 If desired, The PreRamp Time will fade the image in, and the PostRamp Time will fade the image out.

ss%20image6.png

Hope this helps.

Alan...

 

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10 minutes ago, default said:

ebrown,

I'm using 4.3.18 but it should be the same. I have had this error and do not remember why. I will detail how I get images into SS maybe that will help.

Step 1 Import the Image

Step 2 Set Grid Bitmap from Image File

Step 3 Add Image

ss%20image3.png

Step 4 Change the x,y Coordinates (in my example, this will cause the image to enter from the left and exit on the right - matrix - your prop may vary)
The x coordinates are for up/down movement, the y coordinates are for left/right movement.

The coordinates set at Start 0,0 and End 0,0 will make your images appear centered in the prop.

ss%20image4.png

Step 5 Add the image to the sequence timeline, then play for results. The shorter the time for the effect the quicker it will appear. I suggest using 3-5 seconds until you dial it in, then adjust time to your sequence.

ss%20image5.png

Step 6 If desired, The PreRamp Time will fade the image in, and the PostRamp Time will fade the image out.

ss%20image6.png

Hope this helps.

Alan...

 

Thanks Alan but every time I hit add in step 5 I get the error "start and end times cannot be the same" no matter what I have the x and y set at. I just don't get it. When I draw my own image I do not get this error. Thanks

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I am trying to reproduce this error, I know it has happened to me before, but can't seem to make SS do it again. It may have been a bug fixed in later versions than you have.

Here are the "What's New" files for prior LOR versions.

http://www1.lightorama.com/downloads/4.3.18/help/whats_new.htm

Alan...

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Sorry for the problems. You could try updating to 4.3.18. Another thing you could try is to find the file:

c:/ (your lightorama folder) / Superstar / SSEdit.cfg

Shut down superstar.

Rename SSEdit.cfg to something like SSEdi_backup.cfg

launch superstar

try importing an image.

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16 hours ago, default said:

I am trying to reproduce this error, I know it has happened to me before, but can't seem to make SS do it again. It may have been a bug fixed in later versions than you have.

Here are the "What's New" files for prior LOR versions.

http://www1.lightorama.com/downloads/4.3.18/help/whats_new.htm

Alan...

Ok I got it to work. Now after the grid enlarges and I click standard and then play it I do not see the image. If the grid mode is on large I see it just fine. Am I missing something here? Thanks

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Does the same for me also, I have never tried that option. If it works in Grid Mode  - Large then you should be good. Is there some reason you need/prefer standard mode?

Maybe Brian will jump in and explain.

Alan...

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2 minutes ago, default said:

Does the same for me also, I have never tried that option. If it works in Grid Mode  - Large then you should be good. Is there some reason you need/prefer standard mode?

Maybe Brian will jump in and explain.

Alan...

Nope. Just wanted to make sure it didn't have to be standard mode for the effects to appear correctly. I have never used the import image option and just wasn't sure how it all worked. Thanks for your help.

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Sorry for the problems some have had with "import image". It shouldn't matter which mode you are in when using "import image." 

ebrown1972, which version are you running? If you are using 4.3.18 let me know and I will see if I can reproduce it.

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47 minutes ago, BrianBruderer said:

Sorry for the problems some have had with "import image". It shouldn't matter which mode you are in when using "import image." 

ebrown1972, which version are you running? If you are using 4.3.18 let me know and I will see if I can reproduce it.

Brian I did install that version today. I do have the importing image working correctly but if I choose the standard view and then play the image nothing appears on the element I have placed the image on. Also when importing an image earlier I would get the error I spoke of. The fix for that was simply not choosing the time first but rather doing that last. I often highlight the time first before I make an effect which works for all of my other sequencing in superstar but not with images....The imported images turn out great by the way.

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Brian,

To illustrate what ebrown and I are talking about, I made a quick little gif. (ebrown if this isn't what you are referring too, then I missed your point.)

To me, this isn't an issue, I use the Large Mode anyways.

I thought it was drawing a pixel on the grid, but now that I have watched it again, that pixel was already there.

This is in 4.3.18

ss1.gif

Alan...

Edited by default
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Thank you for the information. I am currently on vacation returning home tomorrow. I will look into this next week.

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  • 2 weeks later...
21 hours ago, BluMan said:

Any more info on this?  I'm having the same problem.

BluMan,

other than it happens, you can still use the Large Grid (without clicking Standard) and it should work ok for you. Is there some reason why it would be important to you to use the Standard grid? I have used the large grid for years without issue. So I am curious if there is something I am missing.

Alan...

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Sorry it took so long for me to respond to this. And thank you for the movie, it makes it clear what the problem is.

As "default" has indicated it all works if you stay in "Large" grid mode. But what you have pointed out is indeed unexpected behavior. For what it is worth, the history of this is as follows:

I coded it primarily to work in "CCR mode". In "CCR Mode" large grid becomes large. But when when you are in visualization mode the grid does not become larger. I confess that the reason is simply because it would be difficult to code it so that the grid becomes larger because It would be hard to know how to change the visualization. But the end result is that when you are in visualization mode specifying "Large" grid mode doesn't make the grid any larger. So the steps to follow are:

1) Click on "Import Image File (JPG, GIF, BMP, PNG, ICO, etc.)".  If you are not already in "Large" grid mode it will automatically change to "Large" grid mode and you must stay in "Large" grid mode while doing the following steps.

2) Move and/or squish/stretch the image.

3) When you get the image the way you want you click on "Set Grid Bitmap from Image File" and it applies the bitmap to the grid.

4) You can further modify the pixels manually if you want

5) In the Image section type in a name for the image. Click on "Add" in the Image section to add the image to the image list

6) You can now click on "Standard" grid if you wish but when you are in visualization mode it turns out that there is no difference between "Large" grid mode and "Standard" grid mode 

 

Also, as a side note, the tiny white dot in the corner appears whenever you have "Default Image" selected in the image list. The "Default Image" is a white dot so that is what you see when it is selected. If you have another image in the list and select that image then you will see that selected image. 

 

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3 hours ago, default said:

BluMan,

other than it happens, you can still use the Large Grid (without clicking Standard) and it should work ok for you. Is there some reason why it would be important to you to use the Standard grid? I have used the large grid for years without issue. So I am curious if there is something I am missing.

Alan...

Well, to be honest, I've never imported anything before and when I tried to import a gif (7 images), I followed your directions, and I could get it to work but when I played it back, the image "stuttered" for lack of a better explanation.  What I mean by that is the gif file is of a man walking across the screen from left to right.  I simply import the image, set grid bitmap from image file, add it to the image section and then rinse and repeat for all images.  When I play it back, the image starts on the left, then heads the right, then the next image comes in on the left and flashes as its heading right, and so on for all 7 images.  I'm not getting a smooth animation.  Bit of a learning curve for me to get it smooth.  Then, when I copied the images to my normal tree and played it, I couldn't see any of it because it was too far to the right.  So, naturally, I though the problem was I was using large grid (which looks like a matrix to me) instead of Standard, which is what my tree looks like.

 

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1 hour ago, BrianBruderer said:

Sorry it took so long for me to respond to this. And thank you for the movie, it makes it clear what the problem is.

As "default" has indicated it all works if you stay in "Large" grid mode. But what you have pointed out is indeed unexpected behavior. For what it is worth, the history of this is as follows:

I coded it primarily to work in "CCR mode". In "CCR Mode" large grid becomes large. But when when you are in visualization mode the grid does not become larger. I confess that the reason is simply because it would be difficult to code it so that the grid becomes larger because It would be hard to know how to change the visualization. But the end result is that when you are in visualization mode specifying "Large" grid mode doesn't make the grid any larger. So the steps to follow are:

1) Click on "Import Image File (JPG, GIF, BMP, PNG, ICO, etc.)".  If you are not already in "Large" grid mode it will automatically change to "Large" grid mode and you must stay in "Large" grid mode while doing the following steps.

2) Move and/or squish/stretch the image.

3) When you get the image the way you want you click on "Set Grid Bitmap from Image File" and it applies the bitmap to the grid.

4) You can further modify the pixels manually if you want

5) In the Image section type in a name for the image. Click on "Add" in the Image section to add the image to the image list

6) You can now click on "Standard" grid if you wish but when you are in visualization mode it turns out that there is no difference between "Large" grid mode and "Standard" grid mode 

 

Also, as a side note, the tiny white dot in the corner appears whenever you have "Default Image" selected in the image list. The "Default Image" is a white dot so that is what you see when it is selected. If you have another image in the list and select that image then you will see that selected image. 

 

Thanks for the explanation.  It's that "2) Move and/or squish/stretch the image" that I'm not getting in my head how to do yet.  I want to add these animations to my tree but, so far, not much luck.

 

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Yes, it can be confusing.

When using a gif with multiple images, if you move and/or squish the images, you want to move and/or squish each image the same amount. Keep track of how many times you click on move or squish and then do it the same amount for each image.

But I think the main reason your images are stuttering is that each image is being moved as an action image. In your case you want to do an animation, in other words each image is to "sit still" and not move. To do that do the following:

1) click on "Apply x, y in Preview (for animations)". This will gray out the second set of x,y coordinates, and you only use the first set of coordinates.

2) set the first set of x,y coordinates to 0,0

3) click on "add" in the image action section

4) do this for each image in the animation, you will probably want to make each image be about .20 seconds in length. You can speed the animation up by making each image shorter in length. You can slow it down by making each image longer in length.

If you have further questions let me know.

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