Relationship between Window Comp, Camera, Render TOP and Perform mode

Beginners
1

Can someone clarify the relationship between these?
1 Window Comp, 2 Camera, 3 Render TOP and 4 Perform mode
ie
Is a WindowComp necessary for Perform Mode?

For a 3d scene to playback in Perform mode do you need WindowComp, Camera, and Render TOP?
What if its a 2d scene, is a Camera and Render TOP still necessary?

2

Yes, you need a Window COMP for perform mode. This controls how your perform window behaves, where it opens, if it has borders etc.

How you create your content is entirely open. You can create lots of interesting 2D content without using a Render TOP, but rather just chains of TOPs doing 2D compositing operations. Perform mode can display any TOP (or more likely, a TOP placed into the background of a Container COMP to help position it in the window. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Render TOP or some other one, it’ll all the same to perform.

If you are using a Render TOP, you do need a Camera COMP. And if you are doing 3D content, then yes you’ll need to use a Render TOP.
Hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions!

3

Thanks Malcolm. Appreciated.