Creating a 2D Composite

There are several scenarios where you set the compositing mode to 2D or 3D:

• When you create a composite branch
• When you create a composite as a new layer for an existing composite
• When you open footage into a composite

However, when you nest layers or a composite, the compositing mode of the nest uses the current composite mode. For example, if you nest layers in a 2D composite, the nested composite will be 2D.

You can always change the compositing mode later.

To create a 2D composite:

1. Choose File | New.

The New dialog appears.



2. Select Composite from the Type list.
3. Enable the 2D Mode button.
4. Click OK.

An empty 2D composite appears in the viewport.

Comparing 3D and 2D Options

2D composites have fewer options in the Composite Controls panel and Workspace panel than 3D composites. For example:

• There is no camera in a 2D composite, and therefore no Camera controls in the Composite Controls panel.
• There are no lights in a 2D composite, and therefore no Light controls in the Composite Controls panel.
• There are no Surface controls in the Composite Controls panel. Instead, four of the 3D Surface controls appear in the Layer controls, and all the controls that were in the Layer controls are removed. The options that appear in the Layer controls are Opacity, Transfer Mode, Preserve Alpha, and Stencil Layer.
• The Transform controls for layers and null objects do not include axes for 3D. Specifically, you cannot set Z Position, X Rotation, Y Rotation, Z Scale, Z Shear, and Z Pivot in 2D space.
• In the Settings controls, the options in the Quality and Render Effects groups are removed.

2D composites also have fewer options in the Toolbar than 3D composites. For example:

• In the View list, the only two views for a viewport are Layer view and Composite view.
• The five transform tools (Arrow, Rotate, Scale, Shear, and Pivot) are constrained to the axes for 2D space.

Since you cannot use the transform tools in Layer view, the following shortcuts apply to the 2D mode Composite view only. Procedures for transforming layers in 3D are found in Transforming Layers.

There is no Z Position and Z Pivot. For the Arrow and Pivot tools, you change X and Y when you left-click and drag, and only X when you right-click or Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Macintosh) and drag in the Composite view.

Z Rotation is the only Rotation axis, so no constraints are needed. For the Rotate tool, you change Z when you left-click and drag or when you right-click or Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Macintosh) and drag.

There is no Z Scale and Z Shear. For the Scale and Shear tools, you change X and Y when you left-click and drag or when you right-click or Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Macintosh) and drag.

To compare these shortcuts with those for 3D space, see Tool Constraint Shortcuts.