Because motion graphics often means showing us the world in some new way, your technical skills often must be outside the box-and even outside After Effects. You would happily spend hours perfecting a few seconds of motion.
You can create a still frame that looks amazing on its own. Mastery of motion graphics requires mastery of multiple complex skills: This is precisely where I do not recommend most editors get started, despite the number of job postings asking for motion graphics skills. After Effects delivers results with these latter types of shots that are hard to get in any other application, thanks to its layer-and-keyframe–based UI that permits complex choreography of elements.
Usage ranges from simple credit rolls and lower thirds all the way to full 3D composites with intricately choreographed type, dynamic layer effects, elaborate camera moves, integrated 3D elements-you name it. Motion graphics is the primary area where After Effects is considered the go-to application. But at the high end, there's an awful lot of motion design in a visionary VFX shot, and plenty of VFX in a cool-looking graphics sequence. After Effects people often call the eye candy of an attractive title sequence motion graphics, and the realism of a VFX shot visual effects. There's no clear definition of "motion graphics," other than that it involves design and animation working together. After Effects, the Motion Graphics Application Extra credit: Color correction with secondariesīefore we focus on After Effects as a visual effects (VFX) application and problem-solving tool, let's look at where editors often think of After Effects being used-motion graphics.Fixes and cleanup using masks and split-screens.Simple "greenscreen" composites-with some kind of foreground to be placed over some kind of background.Motion graphics-title design, backgrounds, even character animation.Let's take a look at the three types of composited shots that come up most often for editors, assuming a typical Hollywood (or Hollywood-quality) production with an aggressive budget and schedule: In this article, I'll call out a few specific shot types that come up all the time and don't require advanced skills or days of turnaround to complete.
Recent editions of the book have included material and pointers to help the first-timer to get started. But when you're an editor who cares more about story and aesthetic than layers, keyframes, and selections, where are you supposed to start?Īdobe After Effects CS6 Visual Effects and Compositing Studio Techniques (try to say that title five times fast) is explicitly not a book for beginners, but editors are not beginners when it comes to video. If you can comp a shot with a short turnaround, you add value and cost savings to the production-the magic combo that gets you rehired. Whether you choose Avid, Final Cut, or Premiere Pro, it adds special linking capabilities with After Effects to the mix. There's no better job security for editors these days than to add complementary skills outside the non-linear editing system (NLE). If I had to pick one group that most wants to do more in After Effects, yet avoids even opening the application, it would be film and video editors. But, let's face it, that awesome level of creative and technical power can be downright intimidating. It can also be used to solve common problems with moving footage.
Adobe After Effects can enable you to create anything you can imagine.