How To Make Things Look “good” In After Effects

ecabrams 02.04.2012 Blog 0
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Today I talk at you from my living room about making things look “good” and though that’s a matter of taste it won’t get me down! Certainly there are many things you could do and I’ve thought of only three because I have a lot of other things going on in my day to worry about. So check out those tutorials and I’ll see you around the Internet.

Tutorials:
Learn about gradients?

Learn about Layer Styles?

Learn about Textures?

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http://evanabrams.com
http://twitter.com/ecabrams
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Extrude 3d Letters

ecabrams 06.03.2012 Tutorials 4
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Make your words, letters, whatever 3d inside adobe after effects! No plugins or fancy expensive 3d programs needed! All boring vanilla after effects. All you need is a little expression and a lot of duplicating. So we can’t actually make something “really” 3d but we can make it “fake” or “imaginary” 3d using many layers like plywood or 3d printers. 3d printing is so hot right now right?

The expression used is:
value+[0,0,index*thisComp.layer(“Controls”).effect(“Slider”)(“Slider”)]
BUT the “thisComp.layer(“Controls”).effect(“Slider”)(“Slider”)” needs to be changed to whatever your slider control is… so use the pick whip to make it happen.

For those who are wondering duplicate is ctrl+d or command+d as a short cut and I use it a lot of a lot of times in this one. I really need to watch my short cut slips. How about I do a series on JUST short cuts so we can all learn them together.. as a team?

Anyway, people have been asking for more typography tutoirals so here’s one just for you… yes you. And if you have any comments or questions or suggestions for upcoming tutorials holler at me in the comments or on twitter or facebook or even my own site right here?

http://twitter.com/ecabrams
http://.facebook.com/pages/ECAbrams/193708234045591

The Wiggle Expression

ecabrams 27.02.2012 Tutorials 2
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It’s the wiggler! Not just a really greasy hairless wrestler from the 70s but a really commonly used expression in Adobe After Effects. Everyone uses it but who really understands this strange creature. You’ll learn how to wrangle the wiggler and wiggle your way around riding it like a sand worm.

Want to download the project file? Go for it!
http://www.mediafire.com/?1cswft6b4ttuxny

The expression is correctly spelled wiggle() with a comma in between it’s respective parts.

here are the expressions used:
COMPLEX FANCY PANTS WIGGLING
seedRandom(1)
x= wiggle(effect(“X – Interval”)(“Slider”),effect(“X – Amout”)(“Slider”));
y= wiggle(effect(“Y – Interval”)(“Slider”),effect(“Y – Amout”)(“Slider”));
[x[0],y[1]]

SIMPLE WIGGLING
wiggle(1,500)

If you have any questions hit me up in the comments or on twitter and facebooks
http://twitter.com/ecabrams
http://facebook.com/pages/ECAbrams/193708234045591

How to Fake Tilt Shift Photography

ecabrams 10.02.2012 Tutorials 1
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So you want to make tilt shift video but don’t own a tilt shift lens? What a coincidence neither do I but I don’t let it get to me. Here’s is how to fake it till you make it, and by make it I mean go to a thrift store and get an outdated piece of camera technology… or buy a lensbaby, that’s a thing too.

Anyway tilt shift, aka tiny town, or tiny toy effect is about messing with the focal plane for strange results. It makes a normal city look like miniatures and really robs the life and detail from a shot in ways some people find appealing. Don’t ask me who, I don’t know them.

If you have any questions leave them in the comments or tweet at me.

Follow me on twitter @ECAbrams
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See more of my crap around here 🙂

The Time Script

ecabrams 21.01.2012 Tutorials 6
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Want to make things faster? Save time? Turn back the clock? Well it’s time for the “time” script to change your life for the better. It can’t fix things like how old you’re getting before you’re ready but it can help you beat project deadlines and make quick revisions. Also it’s just great for lazy bums like me!

Leave any questions in the comments below and I’ll help you out best I can.

Here’s the project file I promised! http://www.mediafire.com/file/1cswft6b4ttuxny/Time Tut Project Files.aep

Scripts used in order of appearance:

time

Math.round(time)

n = time;

d = 100;

Math.round(n*d)/d

time*360

time*30

wiggle(time,time)

Follow me on twitter @ECAbrams or check me out on the Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/ECAbrams/193708234045591

Get Loopy wit LoopOut

ecabrams 06.11.2011 Tutorials 1
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Let’s get loopy with the loopOut. A simple script with many possibilities. Also it’s a good way to ease yourself into scripting things to save time, which is the first step to making the computer do all your work for you. And when you figure that out I’ll be out of a job and go back to living in my mom’s basement.

The correct spelling of loopOut is just like that and it should look like:
loopOut(“cycle”)
loopOut(“pingpong”)
loopOut(“continue”)
loopOut(“offset”)
and that’s about it. If you have trouble just let me know and I’ll do my best to helo you out in the comments below!

And you can see the loop out hard at work in my cat keyboard animation *plug* here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FhE0XFlNQtM

Chroma Key

ecabrams 10.10.2011 Tutorials 13
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Here are the keys to successful chroma keying… and terrible pun making. All you need is one chromatic green bed sheet. Which you can get at most swedish bedding stores. And then someone to stand infront of it while you point a camera at them!

Tips for actual success:
1. Evenly light your green scree! The fewer wrinkles, shadows, and etc it has on it the better things will be later.
2. Make small changes in the number. Fine tuning makes the best matte, you want to be just at the limit that makes the image good.
3. Have fun. It might seem like a stupid step but after 5 hours of looking at the same dude in front of that screen you better be having fun or getting paid a whole lot of moneys!

If you have any questions leave them in the old comments section below and have fun!

Vignettes

ecabrams 01.10.2011 Tutorials 0
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Vignettes are those fancy pants gradients around the edges of the frame in hipsters photographs. They make you look cool and like you know what you’re doing. So let’s fake that in post! There are 3 simple Vignette methods:
1. Using a solid layer and mask
2. Using a Shape layer and a fill
2.a. Calling someone else to do it for you
3. Using a solid layer and the circle effect

I’m sure there are other less simple ways but I think you’ll like these ones. I know I sure do because I use them all the time. I hope you enjoy my terrible instructions on how to make these things happen and if you have any questions just leave them in the comments and I would love to help you out!

Custom Transition

ecabrams 01.10.2011 Tutorials 0
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Impress your friends, family, and only moderately appease your producers or clients with these custom transition techniques. I’m just going to be blah blah blahing and showing some of what you’ll be making while I in turn, make terrible transitions based puns and bit gags. Really if you take anything way from this it’s that I really should not be in front of the camera if it can be helped.

Stick around after the break to see what Evan does when the camera is just left on… the results will not surprise you.

Cross Dissolves are weak! You need to step your transition game up son! Get it going with the luma matte and some turbulent noise! Or not, it’s totally cool if you don’t want to but I’m just going to put it out there. If you don’t like it you just put it right back…

Wipe on, wipe off young grasshopper! Sometimes the linear wipe isn’t good enough. You want to use the alpha channel to make some cool stuff? It starts here. Radial wipe? You can do it! Heart wipe? You can do it! Butt wipe? You’re on your own, get out of here.

I’m over here! Now I’m over here! Wow this guy is all over the place with the new camera whip tutorial.

Though the simple version just requires that you plan ahead the important thing is that you can fake it in post even if your DP didn’t think it was a good idea to shake his 10,000$ camera around on set. And they might be right. But then to have the nerve to ask you to do it later when all the filming is done and there is no way to go back and get the shot again well that sir takes some brass ones.

But I digress. Now you can fake it if you need to but I would urge you to do the right thing and plan ahead. Because planning is cool! Or you know what just spontaneously get the shot anyway just for fun so you might use it later.

You know that time when some real jerk walks in front of your shot and ruins your day? Well before you throw your lighting kit at them just remember, you can turn that crisis into an opportunity with this wicked cool transition!

Or you can intentionally do it using people, cars, lamp posts etc to switch from one scene to another as seen in CSI and other such poorly written shows. Does anyone even watch that any more? Guess what, the bad guys did it, and spoiler alert, they get caught!

But here is how to mask out an object and use it in the scene to cover and edit and cover your shame…

Muzzle Flashes

ecabrams 01.10.2011 Tutorials 0
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For those who like to shoot each other on video, this one’s for you, Make muzzle flashes,flares, front gun explosions things blam blam! This uses a little null object and some 3d action to make it faster and a little bigger and better.

This technique uses some pieces from the action essentials pack from video copilot but you don’t have you. You could make your own if you want to I suppose, but this is quicker.

If you have any questions, leave them in the comments and I’ll try to help you out.

If you want to see what it looks like head back and look at the ol intro http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRZRhGsT3KA

Thanks for watching and have a nice day!