Getting Started with Adobe After Effects CC 2019

Video clips are the main assets used in After Effects. Learn how to import and manage them.

   •  Find video assets

   •  Create a folder for assets in the projects panel

   •  Import your video

Compositions are the core document component in After Effects and are used to composite and manage clips. Learn how to create and nest compositions.

   •  Create a new composition

   •  Add one composition into another

   •  Learn about the preview panel and the timeline

Working with layers successfully is the key to building an After Effects project. Learn how to create and manage these layers.

   •  Add a new layer

   •  Pre-compose a layer into a composition

   •  Learn about layers and layer options

Adding Effects is the heart of the After Effects program. Learn to add some basic effects to your layers.

   •  Apply an effect to a layer

   •  Learn to use the effects panel

   •  Adjust the settings of an effect

When stretching or shrinking a video clip, keyframes distances can also stretch and shrink. Learn how to add keyframes for animation and use the Responsive Design feature.

   •  Animate the Opacity later option by adding keyframes

   •  Protect the keyframes with the Responsive Design feature

   •  Stretch the footage to see how to slow down footage

The pen tool is in many of the Adobe Creative Suite products and is essential to making vector-based shapes. Learn how to use the pen tool and edit vector shapes.

   •  Use the pen tool to create shapes with corners

   •  Use the pen tool to create a circle

   •  Use the pen tool to create complex shapes

Often, you will need to mask an object out of its background. Using the pen tool techniques, like you learned in the previous video, you will mask out the sting ray from its background.

   •  Create a mask for the main body

   •  Continue masking by creating overlapping shapes for the wings

   •  Create a mask for the sting ray’s tail

Once you have a mask, you will need to modify it as the frames advance. Learn how to Rotoscope, a technique that allows you to mask parts of footage out of a clip frame-by-frame.

   •  Move the CTI (Current Time Indicator) to four sections of the timeline and adjust the mask

   •  Go in-between the existing key frames and adjust the mask

   •  Go key frame by key frame, making final adjustments

To create realistic composites, you need to track footage to match an objects movement. Learn how to quickly track footage.

   •  Create the asset you want to attach to the sting ray

   •  Add Boris FX Mocha effect to the footage

   •  Open Mocha AE CC effect window and track the motion of the sting ray

Often, you will want to composite one asset onto another. Learn how to attach an asset to tracked footage.

   •  Open the effects control panel and create tracking data

   •  Select the layer you want to export to

   •  Adjust asset and key frames to make the asset look attached

Adding and stylizing text is an important part of motion graphics. In this video, you will learn to use the text tool in After Effects.

   •  Use the text tool to create text

   •  Add animation

   •  Explore text animation presets

After Effects comes with a version of Cinema 4D Lite. Learn to create C4D files and extrude text to create dimension in your project.

   •  Create a new Cinema 4D file

   •  Continue masking by creating overlapping shapes for the wings

   •  Create a mask for the sting ray’s tail

Once your C4D file is imported, it is important to understand the settings in the Cineware plugin so that you can easily integrate your 3D asset with After Effects. In this video, you will learn how to work with Cineware.

   •  Add art and extrude text

   •  Add cameras to the scene

   •  Import the C4D file and explore the Cineware settings

3D channel effects are used on assets that contain information in addition to the image, such as depth. Learn how to create RLA files and apply effects to them in After Effects.

   •  Add Depth Pass to your render settings

   •  Import the RLA file

   •  Apply a 3D Fog effect to RLA layer

If you do not have a full version of Cinema 4D or access to RLA files, you may need to change workflows to create the same effect. In this video, learn how to create Depth of Field without an RLA file.

   •  Create a copy of your C4D layer

   •  Change the settings to show depth pass

   •  Apply depth pass layer as a mask to your effect

Adding animation in Cinema 4D is very similar to animation in After effects. Learn how to work with keyframes.

   •  Animate camera

   •  Save file to allow it to sync with After Effects

   •  View C4D layer in After Effects

Often, you will need to create an animation with a single image. Learn to use pins to add life to your artwork.

   •  Add pins to a transparent PNG image

   •  Animate the pin keyframe

   •  Loop the keyframes

Position pins aren’t always what is required for creating clean animations. Works with advanced pins to change scale and rotation.

   •  Add advanced pins to a transparent PNG image

   •  Animate the pin keyframes, adjusting the rotation

   •  Select multiple keyframes and loop them

Initial animations can be mechanical. Learn to smooth out your animations by changing the keyframe interpolation.

   •  Select keyframes and change the interpolation with the keyframe assistant

   •  Explore the graph editor

   •  Change keyframe interpolation in the graph editor

Once you have your assets, you will need to bring them on and off the screen and choreograph your assets.

   •  Roughly adjust the assets in the timeline

   •  Animate opacity and position, moving assets on and off stage

   •  Transform assets to turn them around on stage

Now that you have the rough timing of your assets, you will need to refine it using additional timeline techniques.

   •  Expand the C4D layer by freezing the last frame

   •  Speed up or slow down the timing

   •  Slide and trim layers to get them to the correct timing

With a complete composition, you may want to add some finishing effects. Add some polish with a lens flare, color toning, and vignettes.

   •  Add a lens flare

   •  Add color toning

   •  Add a vignette

When working on a composition, you’ll often want to preview your compositions. After Effects allows you to do a render preview, allowing you to see your effects in real time.

   •  Select the composition you want to preview

   •  Press play or select Composition > Preview > play current preview

   •  Once all of the render preview bar has turned green, you can see your composition loop in real time

Often you will want to render your 3D elements to a .mov file. You can do this by using the RGB+Alpha settings in the render queue.

   •  Add the Cinema 4D file you want to render to the Render Queue

   •  Change the render settings to RGB + Alpha

   •  Render composition by pressing play

Once your composition is complete, you will want to do a final render. After Effects allows you to do complete renders directly in the program using the Render Queue.

   •  Add the composition you want to render to the Render Queue

   •  Adjust the render, and Output To settings

   •  Render composition by pressing play

When you are rendering your compositions, you may want to continue your work in After Effects. Rendering using Adobe Media Encoder allows you to refer without slowing down your work in After Effects.

   •  Add a composition to Adobe Media Encoder

   •  Adjust the settings or change the presets

   •  Render composition by pressing play