Switch layer folder problem - rescaling, rotating a layer affects other layers, why?

[Kasia]

This happens to me constantly so I am just going to ask the smarter people here.

I use moho to animate a film with only png files, I often put them in a folder and make the folder a switch layer folder.
It works great at the setup, but then as the scene progresses sometimes I have to adjust one of the png files in the folder, the adjustment is usually done to the scale, rotation and location of the png file. Now, the problem is that now the other png file in the same switch folder is also moving and scaling and rotating and I don’t want that, I need it to stay as it is. What can I do to avoid this or how do I go about making changes to one png file without it affecting the others in the same folder.

I hope I expressed it clearly, thanks for any tips and advice.

[Lukas]

Are you scaling the scaling the actual switch layer?

In that case: Expand the switch layer in the layer panel and select the child image layer and scale that one instead.

[Daxel]

yep, I thought the same, you seem to have changed the properties of the switch layer instead of the individual layers. With the transform layer tool selected you can visualize the properties like scale, and position up on the tool settings bar for the selected layer. That way you can check if you animated the entire switch layer. If that is the case, you can actually animate the switch layer at a specific frame and have those properties reset at the next frame so the other layers keep looking the same or you can change the png layers individually instead.

[Kasia]

Are you scaling the scaling the actual switch layer?

In that case: Expand the switch layer in the layer panel and select the child image layer and scale that one instead.

The switch folder has only two layers, I rescale one and the other one gets affected. Isn't the one layer in the folder a child layer? I don't understand what you mean by 'expand' the switch layer, where and how do I do that?
Thanks.

[Kasia]

yep, I thought the same, you seem to have changed the properties of the switch layer instead of the individual layers. With the transform layer tool selected you can visualize the properties like scale, and position up on the tool settings bar for the selected layer. That way you can check if you animated the entire switch layer. If that is the case, you can actually animate the switch layer at a specific frame and have those properties reset at the next frame so the other layers keep looking the same or you can change the png layers individually instead.

Thanks for your reply. Isn't the settings bar showing me the properties of that one switch layer-the one png I want to rescale and reposition? How do I know if it's showing me one png or the entire folder?

[Maestral]

^ The Layers panel tells you what is selected - a Group (folder) or Layer. In your case, a Switch Group/Folder or individual .png's. On the screen, you would not notice the difference whether it's a folder or a layer selected (since both are in the same place) but on the Layers panel you will.

If you apply changes to a Group, all of its content (layers) are changed accordingly.
If you transform a Layer within that Group, the rest of the layers are not affected.

[Daxel]

Thanks for your reply. Isn't the settings bar showing me the properties of that one switch layer-the one png I want to rescale and reposition? How do I know if it's showing me one png or the entire folder?

The tool settings bar will always show you the properties of the selected layer at the current frame, so be sure to have the layer selected on the layers panel to check it's properties, and go to the frame you want to check to see if those properties change or not. You can press on the reset buttons to reset them, again, at the current frame for the selected layer.