Applying Adobe(R) After Effects Studio Techniques [Paperback]

Rod Harlan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 22, 2000

Applying Adobe After Effects Studio Techniques is for the digital video specialist who says, " I saw this neat effect in a television commercial. How do I do that?" The answer is in this book. Each chapter covers a specific technique along with the appropriate screenshot for each step. Each technique not only shows how but when to use a technique. And each technique is independent of others within the book so you can zero in on a specific technique. A Technical Questions Answered section at the end of the book gives expert answers to the most common questions you have about After Effects.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

About the book Although this book walks readers through the basic steps of setting up a project in After Effects, the focus is on learning the software quickly. By following along with each chapters project, beginners will be able to create sophisticated effects while learning the software. The accomplished artist will also be able to quickly learn some of the most popular techniques used in television and film today.

This book assumes you want to make money working with Adobe After Effects. It also assumes you want to have a good time while you are making that money. However, if you are looking for a replacement for the manual, you’ve come to the wrong place. There are no long explanations of every possible menu selection nor are there any deep retrospective analysis of how this application came to exist. Instead, you’ll find this book packed with tips, tricks and shortcuts to make your After Effects experience the best it can be.

How This Book Is Organized

Section I - Transfer Modes The projects in Section I show you how to transfer files from Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Premiere into After Effects. These chapters will show you how to best prepare your files before exporting them to After Effects, and what to do when things don’t go exactly as planned. You will also look at working backwards in time, copying settings betwwen layers, relinking lost media files, creating seamlessly looping scenery, animating layers from other programs, replacing effects that don’t import from other programs, and much more.

Section II - Text and Numbers FX Most After Effects projects use text and numbers to some extent to communicate their message. That’s why this section shows you how to create floating text on water, make text follow a complicated path, create an animated signature, and create a animated numerical gauge. You will also learn how to apply displacement maps, create a path with the pen tool, work with open and closed masks, add blurs, glows and drop shadows, understand linear acceleration graphs, and change velocity controls among other items.

Section III - Web FX While this is the shortest section in the book, it is also one of the most relevant to our time. In this section you will learn how to create an animated web banner. In the process, you will set and animate the position of Photoshop layers, set Color Palette, Transparency, Dithering and Looping options, save to the animated GIF format directly out of After Effects, see how exporting still images can make file sizes even smaller, and learn how to present a call to action in a web banner to generate the most click-through traffic.

Section IV - Video FX In these lessons, we’ll look at a few down & dirty video effects that are popular today including giving animation a handheld camcorder look and quick & easy promo creation. You’ll learn how to use special After Effects features like the The Wiggler and The Smoother (Adobe spends a lot of time naming things), controlling chaos, lessening your render time, reversing video, and the best keyboard shortcut in all of After Effects.

Section V - Background FX While it is fine to use a still photo as a background plate for an animated sequence, it is even better when you can bring that still photo to life. In this section you will make a waving flag from a still photo using the Displacement Map effect. Specifically you’ll learn how to apply a displacement to only a portion of the image, create a mask, precompose a layer, and use Mask Feather.

Section VI - Particle Playground FX

Section VI contains a lesson about the advanced features found in Particle Playground. While it may sound creepy, you’ll specifically learn how to make blood drip off of the text "Happy Halloween". You’ll accomplish this by learning specific techniques like using the Pen tool to draw a mask, animating a Producer Point, creating a Ramp and then applying a track matte to that Ramp.

Section VII - Motion Math FX

Motion Math is another area of After Effects that gives many users pause. In this project you’ll use an audio clip to animate a graphic file thanks to Motion Math. You’ll also apply stock video/animation as a texture, assign transparency modes, create alpha mattes, animate a logo to the beat of the music, and get an understanding of the Comp Audio script.

Section VIII - Misc FX

As the section name implies, this is a "catch all" area of the book where an assortment of great down&dirty tricks are stored. The lessons in this section will show you how to create an animated jigsaw puzzle, animating an opening iris, creating an animated station ID, and even create a smokey haze without having to buy an expensive plugin. You’ll also learn how to slice an image into pieces, use color keys and matte chokers, rotate layers on their anchor points, loop imported footage, keyframe Opacity for an fluid look, and even how to animate the amount of displacement that takes place in a composition.

Section IX - Evolution FX

One of the free plugins bundled with this book comes from the Atomic Power Evolution plugin package. This plugin, known as Multiplane, allows you to place your After Effects layers in a 3D space. In this section you’ll learn how to install third party plug-ins, import Illustrator files for use with Multiplane, fix gradients imported from Illustrator, set up layers in 3D space, cast shadows correctly in 3D space, animate camera position in 3D space and much more.

From the Author

Just like After Effects, this book is setup in a non-linear manner. You may turn to any chapter in the book and complete that project without having to refer to any other section of the book. You’ll find this book packed with tips, tricks and shortcuts to make your After Effects experience the best it can be. All of the tips, tricks, techniques and explanations are right in front of you, where you need them most. The chapters were designed in this manner because I didn't want you to miss any timesaving information simply because you missed a note from an earlier chapter. I don’t expect readers to read this book sequentially. Just dive in, get the technique you need to finish your project, and go outside and play.

On the Book CD you will find all of the artwork you need to re-create the technique for that chapter. You will also find a video clip in QuickTime format of what your final rendered project for that chapter should look like. Use this clip before you start on a chapter to see where you are going and after you have finished a chapter to compare it to YOUR rendered movie.

On the Goodies CD you will find hundreds of dollars in full size, broadcast quality stock video, audio, and images fully liscensed for your use from companies like Digital Vision, NASA, Eyewire, ArtBeats, Digital Juice, and Eyeidea.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 300 pages
• Publisher: Sams (December 22, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0672318563
• ISBN-13: 978-0672318566
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,325,439 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you think in a non-linear fashion, this is a great book, March 10, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Applying Adobe(R) After Effects Studio Techniques (Paperback)

As others have stated previously, many AE users consider Trish & Chris Meyer's "Creating Motion Graphics..." the best book in the AE field. I would have to argue that while the Meyer's book is a genuine tour d' force work -- this book is no slouch either. To compare the two: "Creating Motion Graphics..." is a very linear (start at the beginning and work to the end) learning experience that will give you an incredible understanding of AE. Rod Harlan's book was purposely designed to be a "nonlinear" experience. Just jump into whichever chapter addresses an issue you are interested in exploring and start there. In my opinion, each writing style is valid. I think that the Meyer's book excels with those who are very disciplined and have the time to go through a book methodically and purposefully -- in that, you'll get an education par excellance. But this book is for those situations where you don't have the time to go through the step-by-step process; it is for those (like most of the students we've trained) who just flat-out aren't that disciplined or else are just too busy and need to get at the answer *now!* It's also great when you are dealing with "know it all" trainees in your business -- which happens often with many of today's interns. Some here have complained that this book repeats itself; but that's because it's been designed on purpose to be a work into which you can dive into anywhere. The sidebar notes and tips do appear often. (But hey, how many times have you read a book and remembered the tricks from Chapter 2 when you're finishing Chapter 12?) But for me, I have learned more than a couple of tricks from this book and I've been using AE since 1994 and have taught more than a few classes in it.

The intro to this book tells you that this is NOT a book to read in your easy chair sipping a glass of your favorite wine. (Or to take it to the gym and read it while working out on the stairmaster, either.) This is a book for reading while at your computer dissecting the lessons -- oftentimes using the course as the basis for your own creative tweaks and turns (like in the post from the woman previous). Will this book teach you everything that's in "Creating Motion Graphics.."? Hardly. But it will teach you an awful lot in a short amount of time. I remember reading Frank Capria on the AE Listserv saying that he recommends this book to his students at the famed Rockport Workshops and (to quote him) "...none have complained."

It amazes me how some people in the reviews below seem to think that no one should be allowed to write an AE book other than "Creating Motion Graphics..." Like them, I have a lot of respect for CMG -- but I would also say that about this book. I think that CMG is absolutely the finest for giving an incredible AE education, especially to disciplined and methodical students. But Harlan's book is a high speed jump-start for both those whose situations don't give them the luxury of such a disciplined learning process -- or those whose attention span is lacking. Or in a production business where you need to experiemnt with a new technique and don't have time to read an entire book to find it or go through a 14 tape series like Brian Maffitt's Total AE.

This book simply was not designed to be like CGM or Total AE -- both great works in their own rite. But don't kid yourself; there's alot of meat in the pages of "Applying Adobe After Effects Studio Techniques."

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AF4 StudioTechniques is a Great Learning Tool, January 23, 2001

By 

Benjamin Weeks (Greenville, SC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Applying Adobe(R) After Effects Studio Techniques (Paperback)

After Effects 4 Studio Techniques by Roderick Harlan is a welcomed addition for those of us working in the broadcast and new media fields! I've been an AE users for several years and found Roderick's book to be a great learning tool.

Each chapter is its own project, complete and self contained. This is the first techniques book I've seen that guides you through the process without having to cross-index...a nice touch! There is nothing more annoying than having to search endlessly for techniques that have previously been explored.

I also found AE4 Studio Techniques helpful with all the screenshots that correspond with each step. With as many menus and options that the end user much learn, I found his use of screenshots a huge advantage over most "teaching" manuals. This step by step method alone makes Roderick's book a must have for all AE users...regardless of skill!!

AE4 Studio Techniques is a well constructed and well thought out book. The effective use of the projects and artwork files at a size of 320x240 pixels makes it usable on any hardware. Building projects is further made easy by the excellent content found on the included CD.

AE4 Studio Techniques by Roderick Harlan is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I feel a bit ripped of - sorry, January 27, 2002

By 

Matt Barker (Wellington New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Applying Adobe(R) After Effects Studio Techniques (Paperback)

Man, I can't believe I bought this book. It is only for total beginners but it doesn't say that on the editorial. Not only does it lack anything but simple everyday techniques but it also uses tacky project examples (not that I insulted my self by trying any).

Just goes to show, you should always read the Amazon reviews.