Molecular animations are a powerful way to explain complex ideas—especially when presenting dynamic molecular processes such as docking, conformational changes, or molecular interactions. However, many researchers and educators struggle with getting things to appear exactly when they want during a molecular animation. If you’ve ever found yourself wishing that just some atoms or molecules could suddenly pop into your scene at the right moment—without the hassle of layering multiple transitions—then the Show animation in SAMSON may be exactly what you’re looking for.
Why “Show” Helps
Many molecular modelers use Hidden or Shown animations to control what appears during an animation. Unfortunately, coordinating those separately can be tedious, especially when you’re trying to time transitions just right. The Show animation in SAMSON combines both into a single step, making the workflow simpler and faster.
What does “Show” actually do? It makes selected nodes (molecular entities) appear at a chosen point in your animation timeline and keeps them visible until the end.
How It Works
To use the Show animation:
- Select the nodes you want to make appear during the animation.
- Open the Animation panel from the Animator.
- Double-click on the Show animation effect.
The animation then creates three keyframes:
- Between keyframes 1 and 2: selected nodes are hidden
- At keyframe 2: nodes appear (toggle visibility)
- Between keyframes 2 and 3: nodes stay visible
You can then adjust the timing by simply moving the keyframes along the timeline. This lets you control exactly when molecules become visible, ideal for synchronizing with narration, music, or other visual elements.
Customization and Easing
Although the Show animation toggles visibility instantly (i.e., not via opacity), it’s useful to know that you can control how parameters evolve between frames using easing curves. While easing curves might not affect visibility shows directly, they’re worth exploring for other animation tweaks in SAMSON, especially when combined with other animation types like Appear or Pulse.
Before You Go
A quick note: older versions of SAMSON used an Animation menu, but this has been replaced by the Animation panel. So when you’re following this tutorial, be sure to use the panel, not any legacy menu features.
Animations like Show are especially helpful for presentations, educational videos, or scientific illustrations where crisp control over visibility is required. If you want a molecule to glide into view exactly when you’re describing it—or a set of atoms to appear in sync with a voiceover—the Show animation is for you.
Learn more about the Show animation in the SAMSON documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can get SAMSON here.