--- title: "Diamond Wave" url: "https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/html/diamond-wave.html" description: "A 3D transition that divides layers into diamond-shaped segments that rotate vertically or horizontally in an offset fashion to reveal a second layer." --- # Diamond Wave Universe ## DIAMOND WAVE [Video: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_hero2.mp4](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Multimedia/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_hero2.mp4) A 3D transition that divides layers into diamond-shaped segments that rotate vertically or horizontally in an offset fashion to reveal a second layer. --- ### Presets Four Diamond Wave presets mean waving goodbye to long effect setup times. Simply keyframe the **Mix** duration (see below) and tune to taste! Find these presets via the blue **Open Dashboard...** button or the **Choose a Preset...** button below it. ![Image: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_presets.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_presets.png) As with all other Universe tools, you can modify or create a Diamond Wave look and then save it under its own name by pressing the **Save Preset...** button. --- ### Getting Started in a Timeline ![Premiere_icon](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/premiere-pro_universe.png) ![FinalCutPro_icon](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/final-cut-pro-x_universe.png) ![Vegas_icon](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/sony-vegas-pro_universe.png) ![Resolve_icon](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/resolve_universe.png) ![Image: avidmedia_universe.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/avidmedia_universe.png) 1. Drag the transition over your edit in the timeline, placing it at the end or beginning. Alternatively, you can place it between two successive clips. 2. Modify the **Duration** of the transition either by entering a length in the field or dragging directly in the timeline. 3. You can choose the **Alignment** (**Center at Cut**, **Start at Cut**, **End at Cut**, or **Custom Start**) either by positioning the transition in the timeline or by choosing from the **Alignment** drop-down in some host applications. ### Getting Started in a Compositor ![AfterEffects_icon](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/after-effects_universe.png) ![Motion_icon](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/motion_universe.png) 1. Apply the transition to the layer from which you want to transition. 2. Choose the footage layer you would like to transition to in the **Transition B** drop-down menu. *(Note for Motion users:* Drag the footage layer up to the **Transition B** box.) 3. Animate your transition using the **Mix** slider from 0% to 100 percent. Set a keyframe for 0% where the transition should start, then set another at 100% for the end. --- ### Modify the Transition - The **Animation** drop-down menu offers multiple interpolation styles for your transition's animation. [Click here for more information about these animation presets](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/html/animation-tween-examples.html.md). - The **Tiles** control allows you to set how many sections the transitioning layers are broken into. In the example below, the difference between 3 (left) and 8 (right) is obvious, but also observe how value changes can alter what is visible in the scene, evidenced by how the wave is not visible in the right image. Note: The more sections you have, the longer the render time might be.\ ![Image: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_Tiles.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_Tiles.png) - The **Dolly** slider lets you move the camera closer in or farther away along the z axis from the transitioning layers. Bringing the control to 0 will move the layer directly to the camera. Increasing the slider value will move the camera away from the layer. - The **Direction** drop-down menu changes which direction the animation effect moves: **South East** (shown in the clip at this page's top), **North West**, **North East**, or **South West**. - **Motion Blur** - Add realistic motion blur by choosing a setting from the drop-down menu: **Off** (shown left, below), **Low**, **Medium**, or **High** (right).\ ![Image: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_MotionBlur.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_MotionBlur.png) - The **Motion Blur Shutter** angle default is set to 180 degrees. Raising it will spread the motion blur iterations, with a high number of blur levels. Lower values can help minimize banding artifacts. - The **Edge Smoothing** drop-down menu provides levels of edge anti-aliasing, giving edges a less jagged look. Options for the smoothing strength are **None**, **Low**, **Medium**, or **High**. Selecting **High** may increase playback and render time. - **Lights** adds lighting to your transitions. - Turn on the **Lights** from the drop-down by selecting **Local** or **Global**. - Choose the **Light Type:** - **Ambient** activates the Ambient color picker and affects the overall composition. - **Directional** allows you to use the **Light Diffuse** color and **Light Position X/Y/Z** controls. Below, we show keyframing a **Spotlight** position to correlate with the **North East** animation direction.\ ![Image: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_LightPosition.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_LightPosition.png) - **Positional** activates the **Light Specular** color and **Light Factor Constant/Linear/Quadratic** controls. - **Spotlight** gives you the most control, activating the **Light Direction X/Y/Z** sliders as well as the **Light Cutoff** and **Light Exponent** controls. - The **Light Intensity** slider controls the brightness. - **Light Ambient/Diffuse/Specular** color pickers allow you to control color tones that appear within the light. - **Light Cutoff** dictates the spotlight's range. - **Light Exponent** controls the illumination falloff from the light's center. Higher values increase falloff, thus shrinking the illuminated area. **Light Cutoff** and **Light Exponent** often need to be manipulated in tandem. In the following example, we show a **Light Cutoff** of 75 degrees with a **Light Exponent** of 2 (left), 5 (center), and 10 (right).\ ![Image: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_LightExp.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_LightExp.png) - **Light Factor Constant/Linear/Quardratic** are all falloff fade types and determine how your spotlight illumination diminishes from center to edge. To learn more about these falloff patterns, see our [Animation Tween Examples page](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/html/animation-tween-examples.html.md). - **Camera**allows you to enable the **Local** camera, then **Zoom, Rotate** and **Translate** its position in 3D space. The **Camera Ortho** checkbox allows you to see the transition in an orthographically projected view that has no depth, which means you can view the layer more accurately without the distortion of parallax. Playing with these camera parameters can create some intriguing effects. To illustrate, consider these two captures of the same animation frame, with the left example having a **Camera X Rotate** value of 30 and the one on the right at 80. Perhaps now the "diamond" in Diamond Wave makes more sense, eh?\ ![Image: Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_CamXRotate.png](https://help.maxon.net/rg/en-us/Content/Resources/Images/Uni_Transitions_DiamondWave_CamXRotate.png)