When working on molecular presentations or dynamic studies in SAMSON, it’s common to encounter an unexpected shift in the camera view between animation frames. You may have carefully adjusted the orientation of a complex biomolecular system, only to find the viewpoint disrupted in later frames. This might not be due to a mistake — it could simply be the absence of any explicit camera control at specific frames.
This is where the Hold camera animation effect becomes extremely useful. It allows you to freeze the camera parameters between two frames, maintaining a consistent point of view—even when making edits or adding other animation effects elsewhere in your timeline.
Why you might need a static camera
Imagine you’re building an animation of a protein docking simulation. You create a nice zoom-in on the binding pocket, but after adding additional keyframes for ligand motion, you realize your perfect angle has shifted. This typically happens unless you’ve told SAMSON to hold the camera still.
Freezing the camera ensures that the viewer sees exactly what you intend — no drifting angles or unwanted view changes. And you don’t need to reorient constantly. It’s particularly helpful in long or complex animations where the scene setup might evolve across many frames.
How to freeze your viewpoint
Using the Hold camera effect is straightforward. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
- First, set your desired start frame in the Animator’s Track view.
- Orient the camera precisely as you want it using mouse controls or predefined views.
- Open the Animation panel in the Animator.
- Double-click on the Hold camera animation effect.
- Set the end frame for the effect. This defines how long the camera must remain static.
Once added, you can always adjust the start and end frames later by dragging them directly in the Animator’s timeline.
What it looks like
The animation effect doesn’t generate flashy camera movement — its power lies in preserving stillness. Here’s how a resulting animation using Hold camera might look:
A tip if you’re updating old projects
If you’re referencing older tutorials or example scenes using the now-removed Animation menu, don’t worry. All the camera effects, including Hold camera, are now available in the Animation panel of the Animator. You can access it via the interface or use Ctrl+7 (or Cmd+7 on macOS) to quickly open it.
Including a Hold camera effect is a subtle but essential step when you want granular and reliable control over your molecular presentations. Whether you’re preparing a high-stakes research video or teaching molecular concepts in classrooms, consistency in camera views will help you tell your story more clearly.
To explore all options and learn more about using Hold camera in your projects, visit the official SAMSON documentation: https://documentation.samson-connect.net/users/latest/animations/hold-camera/
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can get SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.