Preview and apply fonts

You can choose a font before you enter text, or just start typing text and then modify the font later. You can preview available fonts in the Library. You can apply fonts from the Library, from the Format pane of the Text Inspector, or from the HUD.

Motion uses supported fonts (OpenType, Type 1 or PostScript, and TrueType) located in the following folders on your computer:

/Library/Fonts/
/Users/username/Library/Fonts/

For information on installing fonts, see Mac Help (in the Finder, choose Help > Mac Help).

Find a font in the Library

You can find specific fonts in the Library.

Do one of the following:

Select any font name or thumbnail in the font stack of the Library, then quickly type the first two letters of font name you want.
The font you seek is highlighted in the stack.
Click the magnifying glass icon at the bottom of the Library, then type the name of the font in the Search field.
Only fonts containing the search term appear in the stack.

Preview fonts in the Library

In the Library, click the Fonts category.
Click the font subcategory to preview available fonts.
Note: The first subcategory, All Fonts, contains all fonts from the other subcategories.

If you’re in list view, the font list appears in the stack. If you’re in icon view, font thumbnails appear in the stack, as shown in the image below.
In the stack, click a font thumbnail or name.
The font is displayed in the preview area, with the font name and type.

Preview and apply fonts in the Canvas

If you’ve already added text to your project, you can preview different fonts in the Canvas.

Select text in the Canvas, Layers list, or Timeline.
In the Format pane of the Text Inspector, click the Font pop-up menu.
The menu of available fonts opens.
Drag the pointer up or down in the menu to preview fonts.
As you drag through the menu, the text changes in the Canvas.
After you choose a font, release the mouse button.
Note: You can also use the wheel of a three-button mouse or a two-finger swipe on a Multi-Touch trackpad to move up and down the menu.

For more information about controls in the Format pane, see Format controls in the Text Inspector

Preview and apply fonts in the HUD

Select text in the Canvas, Layers list, or Timeline.
In the HUD (press F7 if it’s not already open), click the Font pop-up menu.
The menu of available fonts opens.
Drag the pointer up or down in the menu to preview fonts.
As you drag through the menu, the text changes in the Canvas.
After you choose a font, release the mouse button.
Note: You can also use the wheel of a three-button mouse or a two-finger swipe on a Multi-Touch trackpad to move up and down the menu.

Change the font of text in your project by dragging a font type to the Canvas

In the Library, click the Fonts category, then click a font subcategory.
Drag a font from the Library stack onto the existing text in the Canvas.
As you drag the font over the text, a transparent thumbnail of the font appears and the pointer becomes a green add pointer (+). When you release the mouse button, the text is changed to the selected font.

Change the font of text in your project using the Apply button

In the Canvas, Layers list, or Timeline, select a text layer to modify.
In the Library, click the Fonts category, then click a font subcategory.
In the stack, click a font.
In the preview area, click Apply.
The text is changed to the selected font.