To reconnect Motion Tracker in After Effects

Question

I want to reconnect my Motion Tracker. But I cant "Edit Target". For example: I track the video and forgot to create a null-object for the connection with the tracker. When I do this, there is no more possibility to connect the tracker with the null-object and the only chance for me is to track the motion again (but the former tracking path is visible, but no more connectable). Anyone an idea?

Answer 1

Steps:

1. Add your footage.
2. Go to the Tracker panel
3. Select the layer to be tracked
4. Click Track Motion
5. Position your track point (or points if you're doing Scale and Rotation as well)
6. Click the Play icon in the Tracker panel
7. If it mis-tracks, manually reposition the markers, and continue playing from the Tracker panel.
8. A load of motion tracker keyframes appear in your footage
9. Add a null to your comp
10. Go back to the Tracker panel.
11. Click 'Edit Target'
12. Select your null and press OK.
13. Click 'Apply' and choose whether you want X and/or Y coordinates applied.
14. Your null now has position keyframes derived from the tracker marker.
15. If you delete the null and make another one, you can repeat the process.
16. Select your footage layer
17. Go to the Tracker panel.
18. Choose the correct Motion Source (your footage layer).
19. Choose the correct Current Track (probably Tracker 1).
20. Choose Track Type - probably 'Stabilize'.
21. Click Edit Target, choose your Null, and hit Apply as before.

I suspect the 'Track Type' pull-down is working differently, and this is what you had to do, in order to be able to re-apply to a new null.. I don't remember it working like that before?