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Jerron Smith/3 min read

Shy Switch and Timeline Optimization Techniques

Timeline Cleanup Tips

Shy Switch

Hide layers from view in timeline (still render); declutter complex comps.

Color Labels

Color-code layers by purpose for quick scanning.

Group with Pre-Comps

Pre-compose related layers for cleaner main timeline.

Solo Switch

Isolate a layer during preview without affecting render.

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Now, here's a problem. There's a lot of layers. The problem is, there's a lot of layers.

Now, here's a problem. There's a lot of layers. The problem is, there's a lot of layers.

This is annoying me, having to scroll up and down. Now, could I make the height of the timeline larger? Yes, I can grab the top of the timeline and drag it up. But that means everything up there gets smaller, which is not what I want either.

So, I want to use a feature in the program that's going to hide some of this stuff for me. The eye icon to the far left of each layer turns off the visibility of that layer in the comp window. The solo switch turns off the visibility of the other layer in the comp window.

But those layers remain visible in the timeline. My problem is, I want to hide them in the timeline. Okay, here's how to do that.

To the right of the layer names, there is a column, possibly two columns. These are the layer switches. Those are the layer modes.

You need the layer switches. If you look at the first switch, it looks like someone is sticking their head over a wall. It, in fact, is someone sticking their head over a wall.

That someone is named Kilroy. This is actually a thing. If you go look up, do a search on Google somewhere, Kilroy was here, okay? That's what it was.

Now, the switch is called Shy. Here's what it does. When a layer is highlighting, you turn on the switch, he sits his head behind the wall.

He is now shyed. Okay. There is a switch at the top of the timeline.

Hides all layers which the shy switch is set. They hide not from the comp window, but from the timeline. Now, there is one problem with that, by the way.

I'm going to turn them back on. The problem with that is that even though they're hidden from here, they're still selectable in the comp window. Which means you can move them around by accident up here if you're not careful.

Okay. So, what I'm going to do is this. Before I turn them off so I shy them, I'm also going to lock them.

Then I'll turn back on the shy switch on the top timeline, and they're gone. They're also not selectable, so I can't screw them up by accident. Now, if you ever use a template, and you look at the layer numbers, and they're not in order.

There are just layer numbers missing. They're shied. The only time layer numbers are not in order is if layers are being shied.

One other note on this. Once that shy switch is turned on for the timeline, if you click any of these other ones, they vanish. Unshy them.

Unshy their switch. And then shy again. A lot of times, template makers use the shy switch to hide layers they don't want you to affect.

So, there. So, layer names. The visibility eye, the solo switch, and shy, and the search field are basically your only ways of controlling how things appear.

Or what appears. It is very common to literally run out of vertical space very fast in a timeline. So, this is how it works.

So, these are the features.