I have completed the videos for Learning Unit #1 and have begun making the Yellow Submarine as part of the lesson by following the PDF Tutorial.
While my submarine does not quite look like the lesson picture, it is good enough.
I do not know if anyone in this forum has done these lessons or made the submarine. There seem to be so many places to start learning and these lessons seemed really thorough. I will provide any more information if someone asks for it.
I have finished the submarine and done the animation part. Now I am ready to turn on the camera.
Here comes my problem: The directions tell me
“We will now set up the Blender camera and complete the animation. Go to Left Side view. With your cursor in the 3D viewport Press CTRL-ALT-0. This will align Blender’s default camera with the Left View. It will also change the viewport to Camera View.”
I am pretty sure I did that very thing. But nothing happened. A square of light should have appeared around the submarine. None did. Nothing happened.
I went to another(abandoned) Blender version that I had started with the submarine and performed that very operation and the aligned camera appeared.
But it does not appear on the version that I am now working on.
So my question is…How can I activate the Camera? Could I have done something to hinder the activation? I need this help before I can try to complete the tutorial.
I am a very very new Blender user and am willing to work hard to make things right. I am surprised I have made it this far with the tutorial. :spin:
Try clicking in the scene before using [ctrl]+[alt]+[0] as the viewport (area) might not be active. (I even think it works just hovering above the viewport, but the mouse must at least be over the viewport for it to work).
Just tried it out and had the same issue. This applies if you’re running Ubuntu or some other Linux distro:
The problem seems to be that the shortcut ctrl-alt-0 is already in use by Compiz (window manager), so doesn’t work in Blender. Assuming you don’t use the shortcut for window management, the easiest option is to just disable the shortcut in the CompizConfig Settings Manager, under Window Management > Grid > Bindings > Maximize.
I just had a similar problem and found that the ‘NUMLK’ key needed pressing. The numpad was working fine for other commands, but CTRL 0 and CTRL ALT 0 only work if the NUMLK is correct (on my keyboard).
Thank you Farmfield, Nat and John Howard for your responses. The most important thing your answers told me was that I must have made sense as you seemed to understand what I was asking. I was not even sure if I understood what I was asking.
Yes, my cursor was focused inside the window and I am using a Linux OS.
What seems to be strange is that the ctrl 0 or ctrl/alt/0 does work when I try it in the submarine project that I started earlier…but left and started a new one. And it works when I just bring up a New Blender screen. I am sure I have just pressed something here or there and unraveling the deed would be a challenge no one would want to take up. :no:
I think instead of fretting about it, I will just go on to something else. I am not going to redo the sub at this point. I feel good about getting this far and need to stay positive.
Perhaps you can suggest some simple projects that use the latest Blender set up that I might try. I did make Gus the Gingerbread Man years and years ago, but with the old set up. (But he didn’t look very tasty after I got through with him.)
If it works in earlier versions of your project file, it is possible that you’ve accidentally deleted the camera object from the scene. To add a new camera just hit shift-a and select camera, then hopefully everything will work fine
As for tutorials to follow, the tutorials section of the Blender website is probably a good starting point, and Blender Cookie, which I believe has some good beginner projects.
I am sure glad I didn’t delete the whole project. Your suggestion brought back the camera and I see it now listed in the Outliner. And the Ctrl-Alt-0 did focus the camera. I am not sure about the “hopefully everything will work fine” part. :no:
The way the camera focused on the object doesn’t quite look like the example, but as long as I can just keep moving through the tutorial…that is good. And I think one remembers things better when some mistakes are made. Plus I am getting lots of practice with the keyboard shortcuts.
Your suggestion brought back the camera and I see it now listed in the Outliner. And the Ctrl-Alt-0 did focus the camera. I am not sure about the “hopefully everything will work fine” part. :no: