Vegas and After Effects at DVinfo.net

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 12:17 PM

I have After Effects but don't know how to use it...where is a good place to start? I have the turorial by Adobe, but even that seems a bit overwhelming...

Emre Safak · October 19th, 2007, 12:33 PM

The web is not edited for conciseness. You will learn faster with a book or video. Total Training is very good.

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 12:35 PM

Thank you also Emre...I guess help is where we find it...eh?

Jim Montgomery · October 19th, 2007, 01:23 PM

http://www.videocopilot.net (a little more advanced)

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 01:38 PM

Excellent Jim...thank you

Daniel Ross · October 19th, 2007, 01:38 PM

It really depends on learning style, but whatever yours may be, you need to start doing tests and practice as much and as early as possible.
If you are like me, just dive in with some tutorials or whatever you feel like and figure it out as you learn.
Others need to read a book then apply that, which is fine, but the learning will still need to take place after, and others learn best by example (video tutorials).
Find something that makes the principles clear to you, but then just start doing it.
There's no wrong way to practice FX.

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 01:42 PM

I really like the Billfishes adventure site as well as AE Basic training...I'm going to try it out...

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 06:15 PM

Hey guys, I have a very specific use for AE in mind. I need to find info, but do not know what what I want to do is called!

For slideshows I want pics and cutouts of figures to come from background and appear to move towards screen, and for them to appear to in front or behind each other in a 3d sort of way...

Generally I suppose this is compositing...but is there a specific term for this use of images?

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 06:26 PM

I gotta tell ya, I've just begun to play with AE, it is amazing...I've got two pics and I clicked on 3d thingy and a rotational tool...wow...If keyframing works in AE at all like Vegas I can do it I think....just can't get the keyframing thing figured out just yet.

Carl Middleton · October 19th, 2007, 06:27 PM

Good news, AE can do that. :)

This is a VERY rudimentary way to describe it, as I know there are tutorials out there, but this is the basic process.

It takes a bit of getting used to, but down next to the timeline, next to the name of each clip there is a row of switches for different properties of the effect. One is 3D. Look for what appears to be a cube above the column, and once you do that, you can control that clip in X, Y, & Z space, instead of just X and Y.

You will be using the Z axis to move the clip towards the camera, and then opacity and effects to make it all pretty.

And a big word of advice : before you get annoyed at AE, the first few attempts at projects with AE is going to be troublesome. It's a very complicated piece of software, but able to do some really nifty things for that very reason. Don't get disheartened. Track down a few good tutorials on using after effects on 2D graphic projects, and get a feel for the basics first, 3D is one of the more complicated aspects of after effects, second only to using high level math to control your effects, something I've never had to do but I know it can. =D

Carl

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 06:50 PM

Thanks Carl, I'm on it!

Jim Montgomery · October 19th, 2007, 06:57 PM

Jeff

Just keep plugging away and here is what you can get, all AE

http://www.sfgmedia.com/uwol/five/JM_UW5_civilized.html

Jeff Harper · October 19th, 2007, 08:17 PM

Amazing stuff, Jim....as I mentioned earlier, I started messing with it earlier, and I can't do anything in it yet, but I'm hooked....

Carl Middleton · October 20th, 2007, 12:22 PM

I personally was lucky, my first large number of projects in AE were doing the titling for commercials edited in FCP. And then titling and color correction in the same manner. Small projects that gave me reasons to tinker.... easiest way to learn it :)

Find tutorials of cool things you want to do to small clip(s). Do it, and enjoy :D

C

Margus Lillemagi · October 29th, 2007, 06:33 AM

I recommend to invest to books, especially written by Chris & Trish Meyer.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/...0Trish%20Meyer

Margus

October 19th, 2007, 12:17 PM	#1
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Vegas and After Effects I have After Effects but don't know how to use it...where is a good place to start? I have the turorial by Adobe, but even that seems a bit overwhelming...

October 19th, 2007, 01:23 PM	#4
Jim Montgomery Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Vero Beach Posts: 392	http://www.videocopilot.net (a little more advanced) __________________ http://www.billfishadventures.com \| http://www.sfgmedia.com \| http://vimeo.com/2015915

October 19th, 2007, 06:57 PM	#12
Jim Montgomery Major Player Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Vero Beach Posts: 392	Jeff Just keep plugging away and here is what you can get, all AE http://www.sfgmedia.com/uwol/five/JM_UW5_civilized.html __________________ http://www.billfishadventures.com \| http://www.sfgmedia.com \| http://vimeo.com/2015915

October 29th, 2007, 06:33 AM	#15
Margus Lillemagi Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Overijse, Belgium Posts: 28	I recommend to invest to books, especially written by Chris & Trish Meyer. http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/...0Trish%20Meyer Margus __________________ Visual-Angle http://www.visual-angle.com

October 19th, 2007, 12:33 PM	#2
Emre Safak Trustee Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brookline, MA Posts: 1,447	The web is not edited for conciseness. You will learn faster with a book or video. Total Training is very good.

October 19th, 2007, 12:35 PM	#3
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Thank you also Emre...I guess help is where we find it...eh?

October 19th, 2007, 01:38 PM	#5
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Excellent Jim...thank you

October 19th, 2007, 01:38 PM	#6
Daniel Ross Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Marin & Davis, CA, USA Posts: 418	It really depends on learning style, but whatever yours may be, you need to start doing tests and practice as much and as early as possible. If you are like me, just dive in with some tutorials or whatever you feel like and figure it out as you learn. Others need to read a book then apply that, which is fine, but the learning will still need to take place after, and others learn best by example (video tutorials). Find something that makes the principles clear to you, but then just start doing it. There's no wrong way to practice FX.

October 19th, 2007, 01:42 PM	#7
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	I really like the Billfishes adventure site as well as AE Basic training...I'm going to try it out...

October 19th, 2007, 06:15 PM	#8
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Hey guys, I have a very specific use for AE in mind. I need to find info, but do not know what what I want to do is called! For slideshows I want pics and cutouts of figures to come from background and appear to move towards screen, and for them to appear to in front or behind each other in a 3d sort of way... Generally I suppose this is compositing...but is there a specific term for this use of images?

October 19th, 2007, 06:26 PM	#9
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	I gotta tell ya, I've just begun to play with AE, it is amazing...I've got two pics and I clicked on 3d thingy and a rotational tool...wow...If keyframing works in AE at all like Vegas I can do it I think....just can't get the keyframing thing figured out just yet.

October 19th, 2007, 06:27 PM	#10
Carl Middleton Major Player Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Fernandina Beach, FL Posts: 562	Good news, AE can do that. :) This is a VERY rudimentary way to describe it, as I know there are tutorials out there, but this is the basic process. It takes a bit of getting used to, but down next to the timeline, next to the name of each clip there is a row of switches for different properties of the effect. One is 3D. Look for what appears to be a cube above the column, and once you do that, you can control that clip in X, Y, & Z space, instead of just X and Y. You will be using the Z axis to move the clip towards the camera, and then opacity and effects to make it all pretty. And a big word of advice : before you get annoyed at AE, the first few attempts at projects with AE is going to be troublesome. It's a very complicated piece of software, but able to do some really nifty things for that very reason. Don't get disheartened. Track down a few good tutorials on using after effects on 2D graphic projects, and get a feel for the basics first, 3D is one of the more complicated aspects of after effects, second only to using high level math to control your effects, something I've never had to do but I know it can. =D Carl

October 19th, 2007, 06:50 PM	#11
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Thanks Carl, I'm on it!

October 19th, 2007, 08:17 PM	#13
Jeff Harper Inner Circle Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Cincinnati, OH Posts: 8,425	Amazing stuff, Jim....as I mentioned earlier, I started messing with it earlier, and I can't do anything in it yet, but I'm hooked....

October 20th, 2007, 12:22 PM	#14
Carl Middleton Major Player Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Fernandina Beach, FL Posts: 562	I personally was lucky, my first large number of projects in AE were doing the titling for commercials edited in FCP. And then titling and color correction in the same manner. Small projects that gave me reasons to tinker.... easiest way to learn it :) Find tutorials of cool things you want to do to small clip(s). Do it, and enjoy :D C