Tips to find switch layer

[Hamedss]

If you are frequently working on a switch layer you know it is so annoying go to find them between all character layer!
Here is a few tips to find them easier:
1- use smart bone action that control switch layer:
This is standard method but needs to set up Smart bone for it. This will take a little time but saves you nerves! you can easily find tutorial about it. Just Google it .
2-use filter on layer window
At top of layers widow is a drawer menu that is " name contains" by default ( or may be "no filter" may). Change it to "kind contains" and type to the next box" sw". Now the list is filtered and only shows switch layers
3- take out switch of the character layers:
This is not usual way but you can reference switch layer and then take out the original layer out of character layer and put it in sme folder like switches. Then hide this layer because it will not move with character bones and stays still on the screen. If you switch this layer the duplicate in the character layer will also do the same.
4- and a method that is similar to face rotation set-up that I will send a video soon. Wait for that.

[Greenlaw]

Some additional tips...

The fastest way for me to find/select a nested Switch Layer is to use a hotkey and click the artwork in the viewport. The official hotkey selects the parent layer of the image, which would be the Switch layer. I described the technique in this video:



This technique won't work when the art exists inside a sub-group, but you can work around this problem by using the technique described here:



This method requires a script that finds the selected artwork's Switch layer. The link to the script is in the video description. Be sure to watch the video so you know how to set up the script and custom shortcut.

I sometimes use a Smart Bone to control the Switch layer. This technique works well, but Interpolate Sublayers does not work with it. If you don't need that option, a Smart Bone is a good technique. I like to go one step further by having Smart Bone control a second Switch layer with synchronized Note layers that describe each drawing layer. This can help with lip-sync animations.

These days, however, I don't typically bother with the Smart Bone setup because using the direct shortcuts and the Switch Selection Window (as shown in the two videos,) is faster for me and doesn't require a special setup. Since the Switch Selection Window shows the image along with the layer name, the Notes layers are not needed.

[Greenlaw]

Another trick I've used is to make a 'selection zone' for each artwork layer, that exists outside of the main region of the art. This can help when the artwork is hard to select because it's small or obscured by other artwork layers.

[Hamedss]

Another trick I've used is to make a 'selection zone' for each artwork layer, that exists outside of the main region of the art. This can help when the artwork is hard to select because it's small or obscured by other artwork layers.

I always learn from you my friend. tha's amazing but what is selection zone?

[Greenlaw]

what is selection zone?

Hi Hamedss!

To select an artwork layer in the Working Area, Moho needs something to click on. In a vector layer, that would be a vector shape with a fill. This shape doesn't necessarily need to be visible; it just needs to be present and clickable.

So, one way I use this is to add a 'selection zone' shape inside another layer for the drawing's group, and I set this layer to Do Not Render. After click-selecting this layer, I use the Select Switch Layer command (as described in Part 2,) to select the parent Switch layer.

The location of this 'selection zone' can be anywhere, but I like to keep it consistent for each Switch Layer. Sometimes, the zone is off to the side of the character, and sometimes, it's a semi-transparent shape over the drawing. This latter method works well for mouth switches, especially when the mouth is tiny or when the layer is a 'blank' drawing. ('Blank' mouth is something I do in my cartoons when a character has nothing to say.)

Note: When you hide a layer, it is not clickable. However, if you make the fill of the shape 100% transparent, it is invisible but still clickable. I sometimes make a click zone that's 100% transparent but has an opaque border to illustrate the boundary of my 'selection zone.'

'Selection Zone' is a very useful technique, and I'll make a video about this later.