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More About This Title After Effects CS5 Digital Classroom
English
Adobe After Effects is a leading motion graphics and visual effects program that allows you to create and deliver compelling motion graphics and visual effects. This full-color book-and-video training package gets you quickly up to speed using the capabilities of the newest release of After Effects and deciphers even the most complex After Effects tasks. Sixteen self-paced lessons explain how to edit and apply effects for stellar visual and special effects. The supplementary video lessons included with the book are each approximately five minutes long and demonstrate the concepts and features covered in the lesson.
Escorts you through the basics of editing and applying motion graphics and visual effects with Adobe After Effects CS5Deciphers even the most advanced After Effects tasks and makes them less intimidatingFeatures full-color book and video tutorials with step-by-step training that complement the topics covered in each lesson of the bookEncourages you to absorb each lesson at your own paceJam-packed with information, this book with videos and lesson files is just like having your own personal instructor guiding you through each unique lesson.
Note: DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file. These materials are available for download upon purchase.
English
The AGI Creative Team develops and delivers training programs for creative, marketing, and communications professionals through the American Graphics Institute.
English
Starting Up
About Digital Classroom 1
Prerequisites 1
System requirements 1
Starting Adobe After Effects CS5 2
Fonts used in this book 3
Resetting Adobe After Effects CS5 preferences 3
Loading lesson files 4
Working with the video tutorials 6
Setting up for viewing the video tutorials 6
Viewing the video tutorials 7
Additional resources 8
Lesson 1: Understanding Motion Graphics
Starting up 9
Defining motion graphics 10
Digital video basics 11
Understanding video formats 11
Understanding frame rate and resolution 13
Understanding transparency 14
Self study 15
Review 15
Lesson 2: Understanding the After Effects Interface
Starting up 17
Understanding and working with menus 18
Opening an existing After Effects project 18
Understanding the After Effects panel system 20
After Effects panels 21
Primary panels 21
Understanding the workspace 32
Viewing and hiding panels 32
Docking and undocking panels 33
Resizing panels 35
Saving a custom workspace 37
Resetting the workspace 37
Setting After Effects Preferences 38
Changing the default undo levels 39
Enable Auto-Save 39
Self study 40
Review 40
Lesson 3: Media Management—Images, Video, and Audio
Starting up 41
What is Media Management? 42
Projects, compositions, and layers: an overview 42
Creating a new project 43
Importing media files 44
Organizing the Project panel 46
Modifying the column displays 46
Creating folders and subfolders 47
Previewing footage 49
Previewing stills and video 50
Previewing audio 50
Trimming a video clip 51
Importing multiple files 54
Importing Photoshop and Illustrator files 55
Importing image sequences 58
Importing After Effects compositions 60
Locating missing files 61
Using the Interpret Footage dialog box 62
Looping an audio or video file 62
Using Remember Interpretation 63
Using the Collect Files command to consolidate files 64
Self study 66
Lesson 4: Animation Workflow
Starting up 67
Understanding the animation workflow 68
Creating and working with compositions 68
Creating a new composition 68
Understanding composition settings 70
Importing compositions from Photoshop and Illustrator 72
Working with layers 73
Understanding the layer switches 78
Understanding layer stacking order 80
Changing layer names 81
Creating Kinestasis by animating the Anchor Point 83
Animating rotation 86
Using layer parenting to ease repetition 88
Animating position 90
Understanding motion paths 95
Using layer motion blur 97
Adjusting Motion Blur settings 98
Using blending modes 100
Applying layer styles 103
Understanding nested compositions and precomposing 105
Adding nested styles 105
Pre-composing layers 108
Creating a fade-in by animating Opacity and Scale 110
Self study 111
Review 111
Lesson 5: Working with Masks, Track Mattes, and Keys
Starting up 113
Working with masks 114
Creating masks with the shape tools 117
Selecting and manipulating masks 118
Animating the position of masks 121
Creating freeform masks 125
Animating the shape of masks 132
Understanding track mattes 135
Creating track mattes 135
Creating mattes from animated Photoshop files 137
Creating a chroma key 140
Creating a garbage matte 142
Creating a chroma key 144
Refining the matte 147
Self study 150
Review 150
Lesson 6: Working with Text
Starting up 151
Creating text 152
Setting text properties globally 155
Formatting individual characters 158
Animating text properties 164
Saving an animator as a preset 169
Working with text animation presets 170
Modifying animation presets 172
Creating custom text animators 175
Creating a typewriter effect 175
Creating text on a path 178
Self study 180
Review 180
Lesson 7: Working with Audio
Starting up 181
Audio in After Effects 182
Previewing audio 183
Adding audio files to the Timeline 183
Viewing audio file metadata 186
Looping audio files 188
Animating audio levels 190
Working with audio effects 191
Using composition markers to set the beat 193
Naming composition markers 196
Refining the position of composition markers 198
Syncing animation to composition markers 199
Creating keyframes from audio files 203
Self study 207
Review 207
Lesson 8: Working with 3D in After Effects
Starting up 209
Previewing animation with RAM preview 210
Working the 3D capabilities of After Effects 211
Creating 3D layers 211
Using multiple viewports 213
Understanding 3D Transform properties 215
Understanding Material Options 216
Animating 3D layers 217
Creating and using lights 221
Understanding light options 227
Animating light properties 227
Creating and using cameras 231
Understanding camera options 234
Animating camera properties 234
Creating the depth-of-field effect 243
Creating a Rack Focus shot 245
Working with Live Photoshop 3D 248
Importing Live Photoshop 3D effects 248
Animating Photoshop 3D compositions 250
Adding a Glow and Lens Flare effect 254
Self study 257
Review 258
Lesson 9: Advanced Animation
Starting up 259
Animating with effects 260
Applying effects to layers 260
Animating effect properties 264
Saving animation presets 268
Applying and modifying effects presets 268
Time-reversing a layer 270
Using the Motion Sketch panel to capture motion 272
Controlling layer orientation 275
Using the Smoother panel to soften movement 276
Using the Wiggler panel to add frantic motion 277
Create acceleration and deceleration using Easy Easing 281
Changing spatial interpolation 281
Adding easing to keyframes 283
Using squash and stretch to enhance the animation 285
Animating with the Graph Editor 287
Create a strobing effect using hold interpolation 291
Automating animation with expressions 292
Finding expressions 293
Adding expressions to properties 293
Using the LoopOut( ) expression 294
Using the Random( ) expression 295
Using the Time property with expressions 297
Using the Wiggle( ) expression 298
Working with scripts 300
Installing and running scripts 300
Creating scripts 300
Finding additional scripts 301
Using and applying scripts 301
Self study 305
Review 305
Lesson 10: Outputting After Effects Projects
Starting up 307
Rendering files for output 308
Understanding the Render Queue 309
Adding compositions to the Render Queue 309
Adjusting render settings 311
Duplicating jobs in the Render Queue 314
Creating render templates 317
Exporting a project file 319
Trimming and cropping compositions 320
Rendering an individual frame 324
Self study 325
Review 326
Appendix A
After Effects Secondary panels 327
Appendix B
Importable media formats 335
Still images and image sequences 336
Project formats 337
Appendix C
Understanding formats and codecs. 339
Understanding bit rate 340
Understanding spatial and temporal compression 340
Appendix D
Understanding Video Displays 341
Understanding aspect ratio and pixel aspect ratio 341
Progressive display versus interlacing 343
