How do I adjust timing and easing for a camera move?
Once you have a move block between two anchors, you can fine-tune how the camera movement feels by adjusting timing and easing. Smooth Operator gives you precise control over move duration, acceleration, and deceleration.
Adjusting move duration
On the timeline
The easiest way to change a move's duration is to drag the edges of the move block on the timeline:
- Select the move block (tap or click the colored rectangle).
- Drag the left edge to change when the move starts.
- Drag the right edge to change when the move ends.
- The timeline snaps to 0.5-second intervals on iOS and 0.1-second intervals on Mac.
Using the properties panel
For precise control, open the move block's properties:
- Select the move block on the timeline.
- On iOS, the properties panel appears at the bottom.
- On Mac, the Inspector panel on the right shows the properties.
- Adjust the Duration slider (range: 0.3 seconds to 30 seconds).
Understanding easing
Easing controls the "shape" of the camera movement over time:
- Linear (no easing): The camera moves at a constant speed from start to finish. This can feel robotic.
- Ease In: The camera starts slowly and speeds up. Good for moves that begin from a resting position.
- Ease Out: The camera slows down as it approaches the end. Good for moves that land on a subject.
- Ease In + Out: The camera starts slow, speeds up in the middle, and slows down at the end. This is the most natural and cinematic feel.
How to set easing
In the move block properties:
- Ease In slider (0-100%): Higher values mean a slower, more gradual start.
- Ease Out slider (0-100%): Higher values mean a slower, more gradual landing.
The easing curve preview shows a visual representation of how the speed changes over the move.
Recommended easing values
| Style | Ease In | Ease Out | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick cut | 0% | 0% | Instant, no easing. Good for fast transitions. |
| Natural | 30% | 30% | Subtle easing. Good for most general moves. |
| Cinematic | 50% | 50% | Smooth start and finish. Film-like feel. |
| Dramatic push | 70% | 40% | Slow build-up, faster landing. Good for reveals. |
| Gentle landing | 40% | 70% | Normal start, very slow finish. Good for resting on a subject. |
Camera weight
The Weight slider (found in the "Feel" section of move block properties) controls the "mass" of the camera:
- Light (Snappy): 0% — The camera responds quickly and reaches its target fast.
- Heavy: 100% — The camera feels massive and takes longer to start and stop.
Weight acts like a global modifier on top of easing. A heavy camera with low easing still feels sluggish; a light camera with high easing still accelerates smoothly.
Speed adjustment (Slo-Mo / Timing mode)
In Slo-Mo (Timing) mode, you can also adjust playback speed:
- Speed Adjust toggle: When enabled, the video plays slower when zoomed in to create a slow-motion effect.
- Output Duration: Set exactly how long you want the final exported segment to be.
If the requested slow-motion requires a higher frame rate than your source video, the app shows a warning:
"Needs N fps but source is N fps. Optical flow interpolation will fill missing frames during export."
Viewing the timing curve
Tap or click the move block to see the timing curve overlay, which shows:
- A white curve representing the camera's progress over time.
- An orange dashed curve showing the speed profile (where the camera speeds up and slows down).
Tips
- Use the timing curve overlay to understand your movement at a glance.
- Ease Out is more important than Ease In for natural-looking camera work — most real camera operators ease into landing.
- For talking-head videos, use moderate easing (30-40%) and medium weight — too much movement distracts from the speaker.
- Test with a short custom range export before exporting the whole video. See How do I export only part of a video?