Chapter1.The Effects Toolset


Chapter 1. The Effects Toolset

Good surfing is power, speed, and flow. The rest of it doesn't matter to me at all.

Gary Elkerton, Australian surfer

After Effects is, above all, a visual problem-solving tool. It is complete and logical in its ability to help you solve visual effects problemsso complete that many advanced users feel as though they are thinking with it, using the program's interface and workflow to dissect and analyze tricky situations.

Not everyone reaches that point, however, and experienced artists, especially those used to working in other applications, can miss the core logic of how things operate in After Effects. Others become frustrated stumbling through specific steps in the user interface, not knowing that their needs have been anticipated and that a better alternative is readily available.

This first chapter, then, is a tour through the user interface as a whole, pointing out specific opportunities for you to take full advantage of the best working methods available to you in After Effects.

We're not, in fact, starting at the very beginning (although I've heard it's a very good place to start). I assume that you've used After Effects beforeperhaps just a few times, perhaps hundredsand you've sensed that there are options you're missing and better ways to work. This chapter will provide some strong suggestions as to how you can make your use of the application lucid and efficient, and how to overcome some of the stumbling blocks that seem to trip up many users, beginning and advanced alike.

If you feel this book is beginning at too advanced a level for you, check out After Effects Classroom in a Book (Adobe Press) and After Effects Visual QuickPro Guide (Peachpit Press), two excellent beginner's resources.


True, there is no single "best" approach, and After Effects offers many different ways to accomplish a task. In the end, work the way that is most comfortable and effective for you. For now, however, consider the options as they are laid out for you in this chapter, and throughout Section I of this book.

I find great pleasure in streamlining processes, in accomplishing tasks with the fewest steps possible. In over a decade of using After Effects, I have developed my own set of approaches that I find not only most efficient but also most pleasing to use. There is something truly energizing about having banged your head against what you perceived to be a flaw in the way software is designed, only to find out that there is a different approach available that anticipates your needs perfectly. Even if you consider yourself an experienced user, therefore, I encourage you to look through this chapter and the rest of Section I to see if there's anything you've been missing.



Adobe After Effects 6. 5 Studio Techniques
Adobe After Effects 6.5 Studio Techniques
ISBN: 0321316207
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 156

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