After Results is Adobe’s strong program for creating visible results and movement graphics. The primary in a sequence geared toward serving to newcomers be taught this system, this text will evaluation key components of the After Results interface and present you how you can start a mission, open a composition and create layers in a timeline. Open the software program in your laptop and comply with alongside; let’s get began!
Starting a brand new After Results mission
Whenever you open this system, a splash display will seem. Right here, you may select to be taught from a wide range of tutorials, open an present mission or start a brand new mission. You may also shut out of this display with out selecting something.
Subsequent, arrange the workspace to your liking. The Window menu exhibits the accessible panels you may open, and they are often aligned subsequent to different panels or nested inside an present panel. Nonetheless, I like to recommend you go to Window > Workspace > Commonplace to pick out the usual preset workspace. My customized workspace is proven under:
Whatever the workspace you select, crucial panels embrace Instruments, Undertaking, Composition and Timeline. The Instruments panel is on the highest left. Of most use for this text would be the Choice Instrument (your essential device that’s to the best of the “Residence” icon) and the Textual content Instrument (the “T” icon).
The mission panel is under the instruments panel and can maintain all of the property on your mission. This consists of information you import into this system in addition to components you generate inside After Results. You possibly can create folders right here for higher group. A mission holds your composition, which is the gathering of layers that you simply work on in a timeline.
Opening a composition
To raised see this, let’s create a composition. Go to Composition > New Composition. The Composition Settings field will seem. Kind a reputation on your composition. Then, select a preset or create your individual settings. My typical workflows are both 1920×1080 or 1280×720 at 29.97 body price with a sq. pixel ratio. Then, kind the period of your composition and choose OK.
Now you will note the composition within the composition window, though will probably be a black display by default. When you spotlight the composition within the mission panel, you may at all times return to Composition Settings to vary something.
Creating layers in a timeline
Discover that the underside timeline panel now exhibits your composition title. Layers are managed within the timeline panel and represented visually within the composition panel. Layers might be components that you simply import, corresponding to a photograph, or stuff you create in After Results itself, corresponding to a textual content layer or a coloured strong.
Let’s create a coloured strong layer. Click on in your timeline panel space to verify it’s energetic (it is going to turn out to be outlined in blue). Then, go to Layer > New > Strong. Select the title, dimension, and shade of your strong. When you choose OK, the strong will seem as a layer in your timeline. You’ll additionally see it within the mission panel in a folder entitled Solids.
Now, let’s create a textual content layer. Click on on the textual content device within the instruments panel. Then, click on in your composition and sort a phrase (don’t fear about font choices for now). Discover how the textual content layer seems on the highest of your timeline. Identical to Photoshop, the layers on high seem over the layers on the underside. Within the timeline, drag the strong layer above the textual content layer and you will note within the composition that it covers the textual content. Then, drag the strong layer again beneath the textual content layer within the timeline.
Working with timelines
The After Results timeline that holds layers has some similarities with the Photoshop layer panel. The largest variations are that you’ve got much more choices and time extends out to the best. By clicking and dragging the time indicator, you scroll ahead in time. When you hit house bar, the timeline will play ahead. When you hit the Web page Down button, you’ll advance one singular body.
In video, frames make up time within the timeline. The timecode and body numbers are seen in blue textual content on the highest left of the timeline panel. Keep in mind the body price you chose in your Composition Settings? When you chosen 29.97, then mainly 30 frames equal one second of time. You can also make changes to your layers on a frame-by-frame foundation.
Click on on the textual content layer’s coloured bar (pink by default) within the timeline panel and drag to the best till the start of the bar is on the 1-second mark (1:00f). Alternatively, you might choose the layer, transfer the time marker to the 1-second mark, and hit the Left Bracket key to maneuver the layer in time. Now, drag your time indicator again to the start of the timeline (0 seconds). Press the house bar to play the timeline. Notice the way you solely see the strong layer through the first second of playback. Then, as soon as the time indicator hits the 1-second mark on the timeline throughout playback, the textual content layer seems as a result of that’s the place we dragged its place to begin. That is the way you place layers within the timeline to look at sure factors in linear time.
Let’s have a look at a layer and evaluation all choices (comply with alongside on the above picture). On the far left of a layer is the present or cover layer button. Click on the attention icon to toggle the visibility of the layer. Subsequent is the audio choice to activate or off the audio in a layer. Our layers would not have sound, so this feature is just not accessible. However, in case you introduced a video with audio, sound impact or music in as a layer, this feature would seem. Subsequent is the solo button. If you choose this, you’ll solely see the clip that’s soloed. Lastly, you’ll see the lock button. Choosing this is not going to permit any modifications to the layer.
To the best of the lock is the label. You possibly can choose the colour of your layer. In Preferences>Labels, you may choose default colours for various kinds of property, corresponding to compositions, audio, video, stills, and so forth. This helps you acknowledge what kind of asset the layer is. Subsequent is the layer quantity (in our case, Layer 1 and Layer 2).
Subsequent comes the supply title and icon. For the textual content layer, we see the “T” image subsequent to the title to indicate a textual content layer. For the strong layer, we see a strong shade image. The supply title for a textual content layer often defaults to no matter phrase(s) your kind. If the supply was a file out of your arduous drive, you’ll see the file title right here. When you click on the place it says Supply Identify on the timeline (above the layer), it is going to toggle to Layer Identify. You possibly can spotlight the layer and rename it to no matter you need. The supply title will stay the identical, however renaming the layer title to one thing extra useful is helpful when coping with tons of of layers in a composition.
To the best of the layer title are a sequence of switches. Since it is a newbie lesson, we don’t want to fret concerning the switches now. Simply know that some switches which are turned on for a layer will solely activate when a grasp button (above, to the best of the search bar within the timeline panel) is chosen. Notice that on the underside of the timeline panel, there’s an choice to Toggle Switches/Modes. When you click on this, the switches will disappear, and you will note mixing mode and observe matte choices for the layer. You can be aware of most of those from Photoshop.
Lastly, you’ll see the Mother or father & Hyperlink possibility. This lets you have a layer comply with the actions of one other layer. For instance, say you need 10 completely different layers to revolve round a center layer. You simply have to animate one layer to do the motion after which have the opposite layers linked to that layer in order that they’ll transfer the identical approach.
Within the subsequent article, we are going to discover the properties of layers and introduce keyframes, which set parameters for properties/motion.