3ds Max :: Properly Animate Material Color Change Using AutoKey And Curve Editor?

correct process for animating a Material color change using AutoKey and the Curve Editor.

Right now, I am only able to crudely manipulate the color change by setting the material color change while the AutoKey is active.

The problem is that I am unable to control the speed/time at which the color change actually transpires in the scene.

So far, the only solution I have found, is to set the color change hundreds of frames after the point at which I want the color change to actually occur.

Normally, I would go into the curve editor and and manipulate the keys for the color change to slow or speed up the transition, and to control the exact timing.

However, even though I am able to locate the color change key(s) in the Curve Editor, I either do not know how to properly manipulate them, or I don't know what keys I actually want to manipulate.

I am accustomed to sliding keys left and right and using null keys to hold a key frame (in the this case the color prior to change, which is grey, and then the color after the change, which is fuchsia. however sliding keys around in the curve editor, when I have the "fuschia" key(s) selected (I misspelled the name, so in the file it is "fuschia" not "fuchsia"), does not seem to affect the actually timing of the color change.

FYI, the material that I am attempting to animate is the "fuschia" material in the Compact Material Editor.