Reordering Layers

The order in which a layer appears in the Workspace panel determines whether it is in front of, or behind, other layers. You can move a layer forward or back in the composite by moving it up or down in the stack.

Note: You cannot reorder layers in the Schematic view; you must use the Workspace panel or Timeline.

You can also use the Depth Order options to force a layer to appear behind all others in the composite, or to always appear in the foreground, regardless of where the layer is placed in 3D space.

To reorder a layer:

Select the layer, and then do one of the following:

• In the Workspace panel, drag the layer name to a new position.



A line appears to indicate where the layer is being moved.

• Choose an option from the Object menu.
  
  

  Choose:	To:
  Bring to Front	Move the layer in front of all others in the composite.
  Bring Forward	Move the layer forward one level.
  Send to Back	Move the layer behind all others in the composite.
  Send Backwards	Move the layer one level back.

  
  
  

To change the depth order:

1. Select a layer.
2. Click Layer in the Composite Controls panel.
3. Select the required Depth Order option.
   
   

   Click:	To:
   Background	Lock the layer to the background, forcing it behind all other layers in the scene.
   Normal	Move the layer freely.
   Foreground	Lock the layer to the foreground, forcing it in front of all other layers in the scene.

   
   
   

Locking Layers to the Background

Lock a layer to the background to prevent it from changing perspective when you move the camera. For this feature, the layer stays behind what the camera otherwise "sees", so its position is called the background.

This is useful when you have footage with real camera motion and you want to composite elements into the footage and "matchmove" the virtual camera to the real one. In this case, lock the original footage to the background (of the camera's viewpoint) so that it does not change perspective. Any other footage you import into the composite changes perspective normally when you move or rotate the camera.

To lock a layer to the background of the camera's viewpoint:

1. Select the layer.
2. In the Layer controls, click Background Depth Order.



The layer always appears behind other objects (unless they are also locked to the background).

3. Enable Lock Orientation.



The layer always appears perpendicular to the current viewpoint.

Note: You can lock as many layers as you require to the background. If you have more than one layer with Background Depth Order and Lock Orientation enabled, the stacking order of the layers in the Workspace panel determines the priority of the layers in the background.