shortcuts: the axis mode
Work smarter and faster with this simple tip
W hen you are working with such a large and comprehensive piece of software as Cinema 4D, it can take a while for the muscle memory to set in and for the shortcuts to settle into daily use. Some elements like viewport navigation tend to stick pretty quick, but others less so.
In this Shortcut I’m going to talk about the Axis mode, which is more helpful than you might think. You can activate Axis mode by hitting the L key, and once on it means your control widget no longer affects the geometry, but the point around which the associated geometry rotates. The most common use for changing an object’s axis is for its interactions with other objects. For example, imagine the axis is on one corner of a cube. The rotation of that cube would then happen in a natural way, thus making for much simpler animation of that motion.
It can also make for a more intuitive process when animating a parent and child relationship. Having the axis at the point of interaction between two objects often ‘feels’ more natural than when the axis is centred on the geometry’s volume.
01 ACCESS THE AXIS
You can simply tap the L key to activate this mode, but if you use a Cintiq or similar without a keyboard to hand, then the Axis mode icon can be found on the left-hand side, as seen in the grab here.
02 SPEED BOOST
It’s also worth combining this with geometry snapping so that you know it moves to the correct part of the object. For quick adjustments hold down the L key while making changes for temporary Axis mode access. Every click counts and it’s little helpers like this that add up to make you as efficient as you can be.