Creating a "Reveal" Type effect

[fadedjosh]

So I am trying to create a effect that would be similar to a reveal. Say there is a picture of a flower, and I want it to grow in a sense. The object is already there... but i dont want the entire thing shown at once. So I would need to create a mask type thing that goes up the stem and as it goes up the flower in reveals more of the picture.

What would be the best way to achieve this effect?

Thanks in advance

 

[tcindie]

Well, you could use a gradient and tie the opacity to that, and then move the gradient to reveal more of the object. But if you want it to actually "grow" into its final form you'll have to do some 3d animation

 

[fadedjosh]

Im kind of AE handicapped well I guess not just with AE but.. so something like create a new layer> gradient like black and white? and change the transfer mode to Alpha and link the opacity to that? I am probably making this way more difficult than it actually is. And thanks for your help

 

[grahamdunn]

I'm not sure what your comp looks like and whether your flower is already a separate element or if it's in a photo or something, but you could mask around the flower so it's now a separate element (draw a mask using the pen tool and just follow around the contours) and then keyframe another mask that just reveals the whole thing. It could be a large rectangular mask covering the whole flower element, set to subtract. That way you see nothing. Then keyframe the mask upward from the bottom over time to reveal the flower. You could also use a wipe transition and animate its completion. This is going to be a very basic reveal, however, so it might not look a lot like growth without some more work...