You may know that we have a number of projects in various niches, one of which is the VideoSmile.ru project. The video is dedicated to the topic (editing, special effects, 3D, etc.) and has been developed by our team since 2011.

I know that among my audience there are people who are directly interested in this, so I asked the guys from VideoSmile to prepare for my prepaid clients a series of lessons on the most popular video editing program - Adobe After Effects. This is a kind of “Photoshop” in the world of video.

We thought that there were practical lessons to be learned, after training some people could create some kind of animated elements for their videos. This series of lessons was successfully created, and today I would like to present it to you.

Getting to know After Effects

In the first video you will learn about the capabilities of After Effects programs and find out where you can download them.

Creation of 4 effective screensavers. Part 1

In this lesson you will learn about the program interface, adjust your workspace, and learn the main program panels. Also here you create your project and your first composition within the framework of your project.

Creation of 4 effective screensavers. Part 2

Here you will continue to create several versions of the startup screen and, in the process, learn many more important tools in After Effects.

Transitions and interruptions

With this video you will learn how to make clear transitions from the start screen to the video itself, and also implement a number of interruptions, which is great for you when editing. In addition, you will learn how to use standard transitions like those found in After Effects right away.

Lower Thirds and dies

You have already noted that in some videos, people feature animated signs, which display the person’s name and nickname, as well as the name of their company and type of activity. These slicks are easy to create in After Effects, and in this lesson you'll learn how to use them on your own.

Animated text elements

In the final lesson of this minicourse, you will learn how to create animated text blocks, with which you can add any important text information to your video.

First, we carefully move on to painting and change the working space to Paint.

The Paint, Brushes and Layer panels appeared. The Paint panel is used for setting painting parameters. We will select the size and hardness of the brush in the Brushes panel. Since it is not possible to paint without a center in the Composition panel, for which we will use the Layer panel. It's best to be tiny at 100% scale. To do this, select the item Maximize Frame / Restore Frame Size in the main menu of the panel, or by placing the cursor on the panel, press the key<~>on the keyboard.
Create a ball of white color. This will be our canvas on which we will practice. Select the Brush Tool. Let us paint a small butt.

This effect means that we have drawn up the painting to this ball. The little element appears in the power of the ball as a sublayer of Brush 1. This goes up to our circle of petals and stem, so that the final flower is formed.

Let's look at the power of the ball.

As you know, for the skin element, we have a semi-sublayer. As we can see one of the balls, we hope that a new element will replace the images. This happens manually, as you are trying to paint this song. You can give the name to the skin element so as not to confuse them. We see the element, press the Enter key, enter a new name, and press Enter again.

First of all, the effect of painting is Paint of Transparent. There is room for all the elements. If you put it in the “On” position, the background ball will disappear and only the background will be lost in the appearance of the checker gates (as they will not appear when you click on the Toggle Transparency Grid toggle, both in the Composition panel and in the Layer panel).

Now let's light up one of the elements. Here we have two groups of powers: Transform, Stoke Options, and the animated Path power itself. Rozgornemo group Stoke Options. If you want to adjust the painting parameters for an already painted element, work here, in the Paint panel, you set the parameters only for the next painting elements.

Animated power Start. Move the edit line to the 2 second position and click on the stopwatch icon. The first key has been created. Press the Home key to create another key. Please change this value to 100%. Take a look first in the Composition view panel. The element is gradually turned towards the opposite direction. To make sure you paint it the way you painted it, animate the End power yourself (don't forget to animate the Start power).
In the Stoke Options group, we can change the brush color (Color), diameter (Diameter), hardness (Hardness), roundness (Roundness), interval (spacing), opacity (Opacity) and flow (Flow). As you may have noted, all this power can be animated. Now we are preparing a changing color for the skin element.

Another tool is the Eraser. Having selected this element, the Erase item becomes available on the Paint panel, which specifies the item to be erased.

You can use the eraser not only to erase daubed elements, but also to remove the background.
Finally, I would like to describe a method that allows you to paint a perfectly straight line. Why do we need a ruler? Viscont the menu command View-\u003e Show Rulers. Two scales have appeared in the Layer panel: vertical and horizontal.
Now we move the cursor over one of the lines. The cursor must take the form of a double-sided arrow. Press the left mouse button and move the cursor to the place where you want to expand the line.

Sometimes there is a need to paint something over a video file, perhaps just to create a funny video, or for some serious project. In this small “manual”, I will tell you about this.

So let's finish:

1. Let's create a new composition (if you don't know the basics of working in Adobe After Effects, you can read about creating a new composition).

2. “Dragable” from the entire project using Adobe After Effects, and then into the composition itself, the video on which we will paint (in this case, Nature.mp4):

3. Now we “press” the ball of the video file twice and go to the next round ball (in this case, Layer: Nature.mp4), where we will draw:

4. If we go to the checkbox, then simply select the Brush Tool (Ctrl + B). Also in the lower right corner you can find the Paint toolbar, where you can adjust a variety of parameters painting:

5. Now you can try and paint something. I painted my hand on a gnarled tree :)

I would like to highlight the fact that the skin of the baby's line is being created on a new“Underlayer” in the middle of the video file. You can gnuchkoadjust the skin ball (Brush 1, Brush 2 ... Brush n) setting, for example, the hour of appearance of the skin of the baby, as well as other parameters.For which you need to light up the ball in the video file \u003d\u003e Effects \u003d\u003e Paint.

I, in great detail, having described the painting process in Adobe After Effects, let everything lie to your imagination. Before speaking, if there are problems with saving (rendering) the finished video in Adobe After Effects, I recommend that you familiarize yourself with cym material.

Since the beginning of 2016, I believe that AE began to work in the field of motion design, in addition to illustration.

I was preparing a lesson for the blog with a simple animation of shapes and lines. This lesson is for those who are more or less familiar with After Effects, since if you find it difficult, I recommend watching the basic lessons along the way. For example, this is my course: Introductory course Illustrator + After Effects.

Just recently I finished and published a project with animated callouts, and in my lesson I will tell you how I worked on the simplest example.

1. We create a vector file with a baby in Adobe Illustrator. We have a callout. All lines are without fill, just outline. Work like a little one so that you can finish the animation more intelligently. Save file to ai format.

2. Import into After Effects. There are many ways. Sub-click at the end Project and select the file from the drop-down window. Or through the explorer - select the file and drag the mouse over the window Project. More available in Menu File\u003e Import\u003e file, And select our file. Increase your respect! stand guilty footage near the field Import As We don’t tick any boxes.

3. Creating a new composition in After Effects. CTRL + N or through the menu Composition\u003e New Composition. We set the settings - we write the name, we have 30 frames (frame rate) and 15 seconds (Duration) the duration of the animation, we also set the size of the composition itself 1920x1080. Tisnemo - OK.

4. Dragable with a mouse to import a vector file from the window Project on time line- the lower section of the working area is more powerful and we will be able to animate our lines.

5. You can see the ball with the file. Go to menu Effect\u003e Generate\u003e Fill.

The color selected is white.

6. The ball has been seen. Next we press on a friend behind the icon Rasterize I give the name to the ball (if the icons are not visible, then at the bottom of the time line there is Toggle Switches/Modes- click and the type of ball will change - the right-handed icon will appear).

Now our lines are clearly visible. It is necessary to put it Scale scale. You can open the ball in the parameters Transform\u003e Scale enter the value, I set 450 to 450. Or hot key S- only one scale of all object transformation parameters is displayed at a time. Free access to all functions and even more easily. Thus, the skin ball or object can be transformed and the settings in the skin ball.

7. Then we will place our callout in the center. Just like in Illustrator: the arrow is visible from the beginning Selection Tool (V), Then the object collapses.

8. We see our ball, let's go to the menu Layer\u003e Create Shapes from Vector Layer.

And after this, we will already have 2 balls. Our first vector original ball can be displayed. The key is also visible DELETE. Let's not forget to save the project - Ctrl + Shift + S. Rada - periodically press the charmers Ctrl+S.

9. Now we need to break one ball into a splinter - even if we have a splint of lines. You can do it manually, but it’s too long and tedious. It’s better to enchant and install a cost-free script ZI_ExplodeShapesLayers(Colorized new version). We see the ball and go like in Illustrator File\u003e Scripts. emboss button Explode!

All faith has been shattered and you can again see our original ball, which is the smallest one. And I had to copy it manually (copying the ball - CTRL + D) The ball has as many different balls as lines, then delete the balls from the new copied ball and rename it.

More details for those who don’t know or don’t want to download the script:
We have 4 sublayers, which means we need 3 more copies, let’s face it. Then the first ball has 2,3,4 groups. And then by analogy. Then it is renamed - the ball is visible - ENTER - a new name is entered - ENTER or click in the empty place. There may be 4 balls with adjacent lines.

10. You can move the balls in the order of animation - first the circles, then the lines, then the square. And you can deprive it like that, for your sake. Well, all the preparations are finished. Now it's time to use vector animation. Let's start with the mug - with the callout marker.

Let's talk! You can zoom in - you can view the composition of an object in the window by clicking the mouse (the basic ctrl + - does not work here, and ctrl 0 is the same) or by selecting the scale in the window Composition - Magnification ratio popup(The axis is numbers with hundreds and a down arrow). And you can move around the composition with a pass - the same hand (like a chandelier). Also, when animating an object, focus on the central anchor point Anchor Point. You must be in the center of the object, otherwise the animation will show where the point lies, and in this case we need the center. How to fix it - press the hot key Y, And pull the point, place it in the required place. Well, let's go.

11. Animation stake. animated Scale.
You can turn on the solo on the ball, then only the ball will be visible (circle icon or dots). Then we put down the keys - this will be our animation. The hour indicator is re-waterable (the axis is a line with a blue tip - Current Time Indicator) For 0 seconds 15 frames and set the key - click on the stopwatch Scale, The value is lost (I have 450).

We reset the composition to zero and change the value to zero (the size value is immediately entered and a new key is automatically inserted). Then it is passed through for 3 seconds - 450, for 3 seconds 15 frames - 300, after another 5 frames - there will be 3 seconds 20 frames - 450, and repeated again at 6 seconds, 6.15 and 6.20 - set the same values ​​- 450/300/450. Then it’s the same at 9 and 12 seconds, approximately at one and the same distance. And now carefully fade out at the end of the composition - 14 seconds 15 frames - 450, at 15 seconds at the very end - 0. Then press F9- smooth the keys.

You can add a key in another way - click on the diamonds in the order with a stopwatch and then change the values). You can change the hour scale using the keys PAGE UP і PAGE ON. Handle the indicator carefully! Chi don't destroy the ball itself! Yakscho scho CTRL + Z I'll help you.

Well, the axis is now our colo has come to life - it appears on the cob, gradually shines in the process and gradually fades away at the end of the composition. To review, press zero 0 and to finish review, press zero 0.

12. Animation of the head line.
You can see the advancing ball with a head line. two people are pressing U And the entire ball opens up. Please check if you need to open the items that have been changed. Really handy. Close it again U. During the process, you will understand everything yourself. The sublayer is visible further Group 3 - Add - Trim Path.

Parameters are opened Trim Path and set the value END. I set it to 75%. This indicator indicates how many hundreds of hundreds of lines the line will be displayed in the animation: 100% - absolutely, 0% - the line line will not be displayed. Optimally - approximately 50 to 95%. The indicator is located on the beginning of the composition. Further animated. squeezed ALT and click on the parameter's stopwatch Offset(Right below End) І is entered into the row, which has appeared viraz - time*n(Where n is a number that indicates the number of wraps or the fluidity of the animation).

Play the song (zero) and marvel at what happened. You can change the values END And change the animation, in which case there is no need to change it. In this way, achieve the greatest possible and optimal result. Now we can add lines that also appear and fade. You can earn it for additional insight Opacity. The ball is visible - the key is embossed T and at 1 second, set the value to 100, at zero at the beginning of the composition - 0. Then it changes to 14 seconds - 100 and at the end of the composition set to 0. F9- smooth it out. Before speaking, to see all the keys at a glance, you can see them with a mouse and press them carefully F9 Or it’s easiest to see the parameter itself Opacity And all the keys can be seen at a glance.

13. Animation of another line.
We'll start working with you on the settings of the line itself. We create a straight dotted line and animate it. two U by ball with line, we know Stroke And we reveal its meaning by clicking on the arrow. known parameter Dashes and press on the plus sign + twice. appear significant Dash(Kіlkіst point), Gap(Stand between the dots), Offset(Animate the points). Let's enter, let's say, the values ​​5 and 5. Now I'll start again ALT+ Click on the stopwatch at the parameter Offset i enter time*n(My value is 35).

now it seems Contens - Add - Trim Path and for 1 second for End key 100, at zero 0, at 14 seconds 100 and at the end 0. Keys are visible and smoothed F9.

14. Animation of a square. Obertannya.
You can see a ball and a square, a hot key R (rotation). apparently rotation і ALT+ Click on the stopwatch. We write in the row where the virus is introduced time*n(My value is 250). You can use additional keys manually - at the beginning a key with zero cob values ​​and at the end a key (enter the number of revolutions 0x and degrees +0.0), for example 8 revolutions and 360 degrees. Virazis need to go easy and automate the robot. Well, by analogy, we add clarity to the beginning of appearance (at 1 second 100 and at zero 0) and at the end of extinction (at 14 seconds 100 and at the end 0) and F9. Otherwise, the appearance and attenuation through Trim Path.

Everything! The animation is ready! Our callout is alive! Now it is saved. Robimo render.
Pressing hot keys CTRL + M(Or go to the menu).

we are pressing on the contrary Output Module directly on the arrow and select the format from me MOV+PNG+ALPHA(or MOV+PNG). I'm pressing Render, Check it out while we go to render. Then we marvel at the result. The video will be saved in the same folder as your project.

Oksana Shilova especially for the blog

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