When visualizing dynamic molecular systems—whether it’s a protein-ligand interaction or a dramatic conformational change—one common frustration among molecular modelers is having to constantly adjust the camera to follow a region of interest. Losing track of the moving part you’re studying not only disrupts the workflow but can also make it harder to communicate results clearly in animations or presentations.
The “Look at atoms” animation effect in SAMSON helps address this exact pain. With this simple yet highly effective animation, you can ensure the camera focus remains firmly on the atoms you’ve selected—even as their positions change over time—without altering the camera’s viewpoint.
Why this matters
Imagine you’ve selected a binding pocket on a protein to monitor ligand movement during a molecular dynamics trajectory. If your camera keeps drifting or you have to manually adjust it every few frames, it becomes cumbersome to analyze, let alone generate a clean animation. The Look at atoms effect solves this by keeping the camera’s target point locked on the geometric center of your selected atoms while the actual camera position stays fixed.
How to Set It Up
Using this animation is straightforward:
- Select the atoms you want the camera to look at.
- Adjust your camera view to the desired orientation.
- In the Animator Track view, choose the starting frame.
- Double-click on Look at atoms in the Animation panel.
- The camera will then keep its position fixed, while its focus follows your selected atoms.
You can set the end frame as needed, and even move the keyframes afterward for fine-tuning.
Useful Tips
- If you switch the grid on or off, it might affect how the animation behaves, especially when the Keep camera upwards option is enabled. You can inspect and toggle this behavior as needed by inspecting the animation object.
- You can also override the default behavior that applies the animation to the active camera. Just inspect the animation settings and modify the Apply to active camera property.
- Want to make small adjustments to the camera position during the animation? Use the animation controllers—but note that the target will still follow your selected atoms.
When to Use This
This feature is particularly useful when you want to:
- Track a ligand or binding site while running a simulation.
- Present a conformational change without the distraction of a moving camera.
- Create educational animations where the focus should remain on one functional site.
To explore more and see complete details, visit the official documentation: Look at atoms – SAMSON Documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.