Zooming the Camera In or Out

You change the field-of-view (FOV) of a camera when you want to zoom the camera in or out on a character or object in your scene. Use the Camera View window to make changes to the FOV of a camera and see how the change affects the framing of your scene.

When you want to give the camera one zoom level for the entire scene, your zoom level will be static. You can also create dynamic camera zooms throughout your scene.

To zoom a camera in or out:

1. Add a new camera element to your scene.

2. Activate the new camera by selecting the camera from the Camera List toolbar button.

3. Select the camera. Use one of the following methods:

Select Tools > Sceneplanning Tools > Select, and use the Select tool to click the camera frame.
Click the camera's name in the Timeline window.

In the Camera View window, the camera frame and background is highlighted in red. A handle appears on the bottom of the camera frame.

4. In the Camera tab, select the Static option for the FOV Type.

When you select this option, the FOV of the camera stays constant throughout the scene.

5. With the Select tool, use the handle on the bottom of the camera frame to change the zoom level of the camera.

Drag the handle to the left to zoom-in on the scene.
Drag the handle to the right to zoom-out on the scene.

As you change the zoom level, the value in the Static field on the FOV tab (in the Properties window) changes. You can also type a value in the Static field for a more precise FOV value.

When you change the FOV, you are actually changing the angle of view on your scene.

If you make the field of view smaller, the camera represents a smaller amount of the full scene in the same size camera, which creates the zoom effect.
If you look in the Top View window or in the Side View window as you change the field of view, you can see how the angle of your camera changes.