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MOTION GRAPHICSwith After Effects
Trish & Chris Meyer
ELSEVIER
Amsterdam • Boston • Heidelberg • London
NewYork • Oxford • Paris • San DiegoSan Francisco • Singapore • Sydney • Tokyo
Focal Press is an imprint of Elsevier
Table of Contents
Introduction xiv
How to Use This Book xv
Parti Animation Techniques 2
Part 2 Layer Management 108
Part 3 Modes, Masks, & Mattes 140
Part 4 Cameras! Lights! Action! 220
Part 5 Building Hierarchies 312
Part 6 Text Animation 364
Part 7 Effects & Presets 394
Part 8 Color & Keying 440
Part 9 Time & Tracking 474
Part 10 Drawing, Painting, & Puppetry 528
Part 11 Working with Audio 596
Part 12 Expressions 606
Part 13 Importing & Integration 626
Part 14 Exporting & Rendering 688
Credits 731
Index 732
Resources 752
Animation Techniques1 AfterEffects 101 2
An overview of the major user interface elements in After Effects, as well as how
projects are organized. Includes tips on how to customize the user interface
and save the resulting layouts as Workspaces.
2 Creating a Composition 14
Creating a new composition 14
A tour of the Comp and Timeline panels 16
Adding footage to a comp; the Layer panel 18
Managing multiple romps 20
Navigating in space 22
Solid layers 23
Resolution and Quality 24
Navigating and zooming in time; the work area 26
Safe areas, rulers, grids, and guides 28
Frame rate; displaying time 30
Channel switches; color picker; background color; alpha appearance 32
Preview Possibilities sidebar (Interactive and RAM previews; OpenGL) 34
3 Basic Animation 42
Position, including spatial keyframes and motion paths; keyframe types 43
Keyframe navigation; editing values numerically 48
Opacity values and keyframing 50
Scale values and keyframing 51
Rotation values and keyframing; 3D Orientation 54
Auto-keyframe mode; flip horizontal and vertical 58
Working with the Anchor Point; transitions, arcs, and orbits 60
Motion control moves 64
Keyboard shortcuts; keyframe tips 66
Quality issues; subpixel positioning; resampling 68
4 Keyframe Velocity 70
Easy Ease; Auto Bezier keyframes 70
Working with the Graph Editor; Value Graphs 72
Velocity (Speed) Graphs; editing velocity numerically 76
Coordinating multiple values; keyboard shortcuts 78
Position graphs 84
Separate X, Y, and Z; graph gotchas; 81
Hold interpolation 89
Roving keyframes 92
5 Animation Assistance 94
Keyframe tips and tricks; copying, nudging, and scaling motion paths 94
Motion Sketch and Smoother keyframe assistants 98
Auto-Orient Rotation 101
Wiggler keyframe assistant 102
Time-Reverse Keyframes and Exponential Scale keyframe assistants 105
Layer Management6 The Layer Essentials 108
Selecting and moving layers 1 OH
Duplicating, soloing, renaming, and replacing layers 110
Comp and layer markers 1 i2
Replacing footage; snapshots; Align panel; edit original; color-coding 11 -1
Beswitched sidebar (layer property switches in the Timeline panel) 118
7 Trimming 120
Trimming in and out points; slip ediling 120
Sequence Layers keyframe assistant 12(i
Trimming by work area 127
Splitting layers 128
Overlay and Ripple Insert Edits 130
8 Motion Blur and More 132
Applying motion blur; Samples Per Frame and Adaptive Samples 132
Shutter Angle and Phase; Blur and Masks 13-1
Blur and nested comps; Render Settings 135
Echo-style effects; Cycore CC time effects 130
Modes, Masks, & Mattes9 Blending Modes 140
Blending modes explained; applying blending modes M0
Overview and example of each mode 14-1
10 All About Masking 156
Masking basics; creating simple masks; shortcuts for creating shapes 150
Transforming masks; selecting mask points and segments 1 (50
Mask Feather, Mask Expansion, and Mask Opacity 1H2
Creating and editing Bezier and RotoBezier masks Kvl
Animating masks; mask velocity and blur; mask-animating advice 1 til
Inverting masks; mask seams 172
Managing multiple masks; mask modes 173
Auto-trace 17!)
Rotoscoping advice 179
Panning layers inside masks 180
Masks for effects 182
Interchanging masks with other paths; Illustrator paths 182
Mask Interpolation keyframe assistant 186
11 All About Track Mattes 190
Mattes explained; luma versus alpha mattes 190
Inverting mattes; improving matte contrast 195
Choosing a matte channel 198
Using the Set Matte Effect sidebar 200
Animated mattes; using parenting and null objects 201
Mattes and effects 203
Building a track matte hierarchy 204
Unmultiplying mattes and other tips 210
Mattes for custom transitions 212
12 Stencils and the "T" 214
Stencils explained; luma versus alpha stencils; silhouettes 214
Preserve Transparency; glints; Alpha Add mode 217
Cameras! Lights! Action!
13 3D Space 220
The Z dimension 220
Rotation and orientation in 3D 223
Z scale; offsetting the Anchor Point in 3D 224
Camera and orthogonal views; multiple comp views 226
Layer axes handles; Local, World, and View Axis Modes 230
3D motion paths; accelerated previews; auto-orient in 3D 232
Rendering order issues; intersections; mixing 2D and 3D layers 236
14 Cameras 242
Camera basics 242
Pointing the camera; Unified Camera tool; view options 244
One-node cameras; animating the camera; Auto-Orientation 248
Camera rigs; animation advice 252
Editing between multiple cameras 256
Camera settings; angle ofview; depth of field 257
15 Lighting in 3D 262
Light basics; rotating lights 262
Light parameters and types of lights 268
Layer Material Options 273
Creating and managing shadows 276
Light Transmission; creating gels and gobos 280
Faking reflections 285
Adjustment Lights; relighting footage 288
16 Parallel Worlds 290
2D versus 3D layers 291
Different types of 3D layers 292
Casting 3D shadows onto 2D layers 294
3D Shadows for 3D Effects 296
Vanishing Point Exchange 298
3D model import using Photoshop Extended 301
Adobe Repousse 304
Digieffects FreeForm 306
Third-Party 3D Plug-ins sidebar 310
Building Hierarchies
17 Parenting Skills 312
Parenting basics 312
Parenting exercises 314
Parenting: Under the Hood sidebar (the math behind parenting) 316
Null Objects 318
A Skewed Perspective sidebar (nonuniform scaling issues) 321
Parents in Space sidebar (grouping 3D layers) 322
Jump parenting 323
18 Nesting Compositions 324
Nesting basics 324
Effects and nesting 327
Nesting and editing a video sequence 328
Using oversized comps (motion control techniques) 329
Creating and navigating chains of nested comps 330
Edit this/look at that; flowcharts 333
Nesting options and tips 336
Rendering order issues; problem solving 338
19 Precomposing 342
Precomposing to group layers 342
Leave All Attributes versus Move All Attributes 343
Fixing render order problems 346
Clipped layers; trimming "empty calories" 348
20 Collapsing Transformations 350
Maintaining resolution 350
How collapsing changes the rendering order 352
Special cases and interactions; recursive switches 354
Collapsing nested 3D comps 358
Continuous rasterization of vector artwork, text, and solids 361
Continuous rasterization and effects 363
Text Animation
21 Textacy 364
Creating, editing, and formatting text using the Type tool 365
hill & Stroke Options sidebar 367
Paragraphs of text 368
Text along a path 369
Creating a Text Animator; the Range Selector 370
Randomize Order sidebar 372
More on animated properties 373
Cascade-style animations 374
Per-character 3D including auto orientation; text in 3D space 376
Source Text 'Dicks sidebar (Source Text keyframes, expressions, and scripts) 381
Animator Shapes; Ease High and Ease Low 382
More on the Advanced section; animating property values 384
Anchor Point Grouping and Alignment; blending modes 385
The Wiggly Selector 386
Modes ofConfusion sidebar (selector modes) 387
Managing multiple selectors and animators 389
Exporting text to SWF; converting Photoshop text 392
Create Outlines 393
Effects & Presets
22 Applying and Using Effects 394
Applying effects 394
The Effects & Presets panel; searching for effects 395
Common effect controls 397
Animating effects; effect point paths 401
Copying and Pasting Effects sidebar 403
Effects that use mask paths 404
Render Settings 404
CC Composite sidebar 405
Adjustment Layers including masks, alpha channels, and blending modes 406
Applying effects to solids 410
Layer Styles sidebar 412
23 Effects Roundup Overview 414
A quick reference for which chapters discuss which families of effects.
23B Effects Roundup (Sonus Chapter PDFon DVD)
Tips on well over 100 of the effects that come with After Effects CS5, organized
by category. Includes a sidebar on 16-bit-per-channel mode and effects.
24 Compound Effects 416
How compound effects woi'k 416
Compound Blur 418
Texturize; managing maps using nesting and precomposing 418
Displacement Map 422
Troubleshooting 424
25 Presets and Variations 426
Saving and applying Animation Presets 426
Presets and masks 430
Presets and effects 430
Browsing the factory presets using Adobe Bridge 432
Text presets; saving text styles 434
Behaviors 436
Brainstorm 437
Color & Keying26 Color Management 440
Overview of color management; Project Working Space 440
Input profiles 442
Output profiles 444
Display management; output simulation 44")
Apply Color LUT (look-up table) 446
Scene-referred profiles 447
Luminance range issues; Match Legacy Gamma sidebar 450
Linear blending 452
32-bit floating point and HDR images 454
Camera Raw sidebar 455
Cineon log space 458
HHD R3D Settings sidebar 460
Broadcast safe colors 460
27 Keying 462
Keying approaches 462
An overview of the different keying plug-ins 464
Keylight tutorial 467
Color correction and edge improvements 470
Light wrap technique 473
27B Color Difference Keyer (Bonus Chapter PDFon DVD)
A tutorial on how to use the most powerful ofthe Adobe keyers.
Time &Tracking28 Frame Rate Manipulation 474
Time stretching 474
Reversing layers 476
Time Remapping; freeze frames 478
Manipulating the timing of clips 482
Manipulating keyframed animation, sequenced layers, and nested comps 485
The Real Out Point sidebar; frame sequences and step-frame animation 488
Frame Blending, including Pixel Motion and Timewarp 490
Render Settings; blending advice 492
29 Motion Stabilization 494
Overview ofthe motion tracker/stabilizer, including options and settings 494
Tracking and applying a stabilization 499
Masking and Motion Stabilization sidebar 501
Stabilization practice and advice 502
30 Motion Tracking 506
Tracking Position, including working with the Attach Point 506
Tracking Scale and Rotation 509
Effect Track sidebar (applying a track to an effect point) 510
Exercise on multipart tracking 511
Motion Blur sidebar 514
Corner pinning exercises 514
31 mocha 518
Performing a track 520
Perfecting the track using AdjustTrack mode 522
Exporting a track to After Effects 523
mocha shape workflow 524
Drawing, Painting, & Puppetry32 Shape Layers 528
Shape tools and options 529
Working with parametric shapes 530
Shaping as You Drag sidebar (keyboard shortcuts while creating shapes) 532
Working with pen path shapes; free transform; open paths 533
Strokes, Fills, and Gradients 535
Line caps, corners, and segments (dashed lines) 537
Managing multiple shapes; Intersections and Holes sidebar 538
Grouping; Merge Paths 540
Shape effects 542
The Repeater 544
Wiggle Transform 547
Create outlines from text 550
Pasting shape paths from masks and Illustrator 551
Brainstormed Shapes sidebar 553
33 Paint and Clone 554
Getting started, editing and managing strokes; Paint on Transparent 554
Transforming Brush Strokes; Channels; Modes 558
Eraser tool; erase Paint Only and erase Last Stroke Only options 560
Animating strokes; using Write On mode; replacing strokes 562
Painting (rotoscoping) frame by frame 564
Brushes and Tablets sidebar 565
Interpolating brush strokes 565
Effects and Paint sidebar 567
Clone Stamp tool; Clone Presets; Clone Source Overlay; Source Time Shift 568
Using motion tracking and expressions to automate cloning 572
Other tips including painting in a straight line and revealing a title 575
34 Roto Brush 576
Roto Brush workflow 576
Creating a base frame 577
Propagation settings 580
Techniques for spanning an entire shot 582
Refining the matte 584
35 The Puppet Tools 586
Puppet Pin tool 58fi
Keyframing pins; motion sketching pins 50H
Overlap tool 590
Starch tool 592
Mesh Issues sidebar 593
Multiple shapes in a mesh; deforming text exercise 594
Working with Audio
36 Working with Audio 596
Reading audio waveforms; spotting audio 596
Controlling audio levels 600
PreviewingAudio sidebar 601
Mixing audio including fades; avoiding clipping distortion 603
Trimming audio layers 605
36B Audio Effects (Bonus Chapter PDF on DVD)
An overview of the most useful audio effects.
ressions
37 Expressions 606
Creating expressions, including using the pick whip; basic math 607
Convert. Audio to Keyframes sidebar 609
Mixing and matching parameters, ranges, and dimensions 612
Interpolating This to That sidebar (matching value ranges) 613
Controlling expressions; saving expressions as presets 618
Building more complex expressions 621
Expression Language Menu sidebar 623
The wiggle expression 624
37B Deeper Modes of Expression (Bonus Chapter PDF on DVD)
An extensive review of useful expression methods, JavaScript math functions,
and programming tips. Includes numerous examples.
37C Scripting Overview (Bonus ChapterPDF on DVD)
Controlling After Effects with scripts. By Dan Ebberts.
Importing & Integration38 Import and Interpret 626
Importing different media types; alpha channel types; missing codecs 627
Importing from Photoshop & Illustrator 634
Importing projects 638
Interpret Footage settings; Interpretation Rules 639
39 Integration 101 644
Web integration tips, including GIF, PNG, SWF, FLV, and F4V 644
Flash Professional integration 647
NLE integration tips, including Premiere Pro, Avid, and Final Cut Pro 650
Adobe Dynamic Link 652
Buttons forAdobe Encore sidebar 653
Device Central integration (mobile media) 654
40 Integration with 3D Applications 657
Importing camera moves 658
Aligning objects and coordinate systems 660
Creating mattes; frame rate and size issues 662
Videowall exercise, including Cinema 4D export 664
Multipass Rendering sidebar 669
Integrating shadows exercise 670
40B 3D Channel Effects (Bonus Chapter PDF on DVD)
A review of the 3D Channel Effects for file formats with extra data channels.
41 Video Issues 672
Fields and interlacing, including field flicker 672
Frame rates and timecode 674
3:2 Pulldown 675
Frame sizes; non-square pixels; anamorphic widescreen; working square 676
Clean versus Production Aperture 681
Safe areas 682
Moving between 4:3 and widescreen aspect ratios 683
Safe colors; composite dot crawl 685
Monitoring your work on a real video monitor 686
Creating web video 687
Exporting & Rendering42 Render Queue 688
Rendering overview, including movies, stills and RAM Previews 688
Render Settings 692
XMP Metadata and Markers sidebar 697
Output Modules 69fl
Render Queue panel 704
Creating and editing templates 706
43 Advanced Rendering 708
Consolidating, removing unused footage, and reducing projects 708
Collect Files 709
Multiprocessor rendering; distributed network rendering 7)0
Name Templates sidebar 713
Render Scripts sidebar (helpful render helpers) 714
Converting sequences to movies; merging projects for rendering 714
44 Prerendering and Proxies 716
Creating footage and comp proxies 717
Applying proxies; RED Proxies sidebar 7111
Working with proxies 719
Rendering with proxies 721
45 What's Your Preference? 722
A review of each of the After Effects Preferences, including suggested settings.Also includes a brief overview of the text preferences file.
