Experience Level: Beginner to advanced
Running Time: 12 Hours, 3 DVDs (ROM)
Project Files: Included

Disc 1- Advanced Text, Mastering 3D & Expressions

Lesson 1 - TYPE ÜBERANIMATION (60 min)
1. Working with the Text Panels
2. Using the Range Selector to Animate Position
3. Using the Range Selector to Animate Rotation
4. Using the Range Selector to Animate Fill Color
5. Animating Text On Screen
6. Looking at the Character O.set Animator
7. Animating the Character O.set
8. Adjusting Scale & Tracking within the Range Selector
9. Adjusting the Range Selector O.set
10. Looking at the Range Selector Advanced Shape Options
11. Easing the Shape Options & Adding a Fill Color
12. Using the Ramp Down E.ect & O.set
13. Looking at the New Blur Options for Text
14. Fading Text Using Blur & Transparency

Lesson 2 - WELCOME TO 3D (57 min)
1. 3D Position & Orientation
2. Rotating a 3D Layer
3. Viewing & Moving Objects on an Axis in 3D Space
4. Understanding the 3D Coordinate System
5. Introducing the Camera Tools
6. Changing View Layouts & Options
7. Exploring the Axis Modes
8. Parenting, Ordering & Rendering
9. Using OpenGL to Accelerate Graphic Processing
10. Fast Preview Options & OpenGL

Lesson 3 - CREATING & CONTROLLING 3D CAMERAS (59 min)
1. Adding a 3D Camera to Your Scene
2. Working with Di.erent 3D Camera Presets
3. Point of Interest, Position & Camera Tools
4. Using the Auto-Orientation Options
5. Animating a Camera from Side to Side
6. Animating a Camera 360 Degrees
7. Using a Null Object to Animate a 3D Camera
8. Creating a 3D Camera "Fly-By" E.ect
9. Animating the Point of Interest
10. Auto-Orienting Objects Toward a Camera
11. Adjusting the Depth of Field
12. Adjusting F-Stop, Aperture & Focus Distance

Lesson 4 - 3D OBJECTS, LIGHTS & MATERIALS (72 min)
1. Setting Up Your Workspace for Working with 3D
2. Building a 3D Airplane
3. Spinning the Propellor
4. Collapse Transformations
5. Animating a Pre-Composed 3D Object
6. Creating a 3D Cityscape
7. Looking at Lighting Options
8. Working with Multiple Colored Lights
9. Casting Shadows
10. Realistic Lighting: Daytime
11. Using a Layer as a Gobo
12. Realistic Lighting: Nighttime & Sunset
13. Disabling Shadows for Speci.ed Objects & Lights
14. Adjusting the Shadow Map Resolution
15. Introducing Material Options
16. Fine-Tuning the Material Options
17. Creating a Volumetric Solid Object
18. Using Layer Blending Modes to A.ect a 3D Object

Lesson 5 - INTRO TO EXPRESSIONS (64 min)
1. Rotating an Object Using an Expression
2. Duplicating a Rotating Layer & O.setting Orientation
3. Tying the Point of Interest of a Camera to a Layer’s Position
4. Using the Rotation of a Layer to Drive the Scale of Another
5. Retaining Keyframe Information while Using Expressions
6. Tying Geometric Values to E.ects Using Expressions
7. Looping Keyframes Using Expressions
8. Inverting an Expression
9. Animating with the Motion Sketch & Smoother Panels
10. O.setting Duplicate Layers Based on the Same Motion Path

Lesson 6 - A WORLD OF CONTROLLED RANDOMNESS (58 min)
1. Using an Expression to Randomize Opacity
2. Using an Expression to Randomize Scale
3. Assigning a Variable to the Script
4. Using an Expression with Time-Remapping
5. Applying Expressions to E.ects
6. Using the Slider Control to Keyframe an Expression
7. Understanding Perlin Noise
8. Using the Wiggle Script
9. Wiggling along a Motion Path
10. Expressions, Split Layers & the Random Seed
11. Applying Wiggle across a Single Axis
12. Understanding & Simplifying Expressions

Lesson 7 - EXPRESSION DESSERT (18 min)
1. Applying the Circle Fun Expression
2. Applying Parenting to an Expression
3. The Write-On E.ect & Tracking a Child Expression
4. Looking at the Bounce & Squash Expressions

Lesson 8 - TIPS & TRICKS FOR INCREDIBLE 3D & EXPRESSIONS (41 min)
1. Creating a 3D Cube
2. Adjusting Anti-Aliased Layers
3. Inverse Kinematics
4. Forward Kinematics
5. Using the Random Seed to Build an Animation
6. Creating a Smoke E.eect
7. Transforming the Smoke into 3D
8. Adjusting the Lights to Create a Nighttime

Disc 2 - Keying, Rotoscoping, Color Adjustment & Tracking

Lesson 1 - COOL KEYING WORKFLOW (63 min)
1. Creating a Garbage Matte
2. Using Linear Color Key & Spill Suppressor
3. Color Correcting a Keyed Image
4. Compositing a Keyed Image onto a New Background
5. Looking at the Multi-Cam Edit Source File
6. Setting Up a Green Screen Shot
7. Keying Solutions
8. Splitting the Layers
9. Applying the Keylight Filter
10. Re.ning the Key
11. Adding a Matte Choker & Channel Blur
12. Saving Animation Presets
13. Adding Saved Presets from Adobe Bridge
14. Fine-Tuning & Rendering

Lesson 2 - COLOR ADJUSTMENT & COMPOSITING TECHNIQUES (69 min)
1. Using the Color Stabilizer E.ect
2. Creating a Sepia Tone & Adjusting Levels
3. Hand Colorizing a Black & White Movie
4. Introducing the Chrome Re.ections Comp
5. Creating the Chrome Re.ection E.ect
6. Adding a Blue Tone to the Chrome E.ect
7. Correcting a Color Cast with the Channel Mixer
8. Matching Colors with Hue/Saturation & Color Balance
9. Working with Colorama
10. Using the Depth Matte E.ect to Create 3D Fog
11. Using Shift Channels to Change Color Temperature
12. Creating a Convincing Composite
13. Inserting Fog Using a Linear Wipe & Fast Blur

Lesson 3 - ALL ABOUT ROTOSCOPING (87 min)
1. Single Mask Rotoscoping
2. Setting Up for Multiple Mask Rotoscoping
3. Creating & Rotoscoping the Torso Mask
4. Creating & Rotoscoping the Arm Mask
5. Creating & Rotoscoping the Head Masks
6. Creating & Rotoscoping the Nose & Mouth Mask
7. Creating & Rotoscoping the Hand Mask
8. Creating & Rotoscoping the Thumb Mask
9. Animating Mask Opacity & Feathering Edges
10. Applying Motion Blur & Add/Subtract Modes
11. Colorizing & Blurring with an Adjustment Layer
12. Combining Multiple Rotoscoped Elements
13. Rending a Movie to be Used as a Luma Matte

Lesson 4 - DYNAMIC MOTION TRACKING (56 min)
1. Introducing the Motion Tracker Controls
2. Tracking the Motion of an Object within a Layer
3. Applying the Motion Track Data to Another Layer
4. Setting Up a Layer to Motion Track O. Screen
5. Tracking the Motion of an Object O. Screen
6. Using Expressions for Better Motion Tracking
7. Using a Perspective Corner Pin Tracker
8. Using E.ects with the Motion Tracker
9. Using the Motion Stabilizer

These instructional videos hosted by Steve Holmes, an award-winning British designer and animator, are indispensable for learning the basics of the industry-standard tool for motion graphics and special effects design and production. With over 14 hours of indexed tutorials, you will learn incredible ways to control keyframes, use parenting and time remapping, understand and use powerful masking and blending modes, create mattes, and use adjustment layers to add complex, yet simple, impact to your animations.

PART 1 - Interface, Footage & Animation Essentials

Lesson 1 - THE GRAND TOUR (38 min)
1. Applying a Mask & Transforming the Properties
2. Keyframing & Easy Ease
3. Layer Effects & Motion Blur
4. Animating & Organizing Layers in the Timeline
5. Working with Video & Track Mattes
6. Inserting & Animating a Text Layer
7. Completing the Animation

Lesson 2 - THE PROJECT PANEL & WORKSPACES (24 min)
1. Navigating the Interface
2. Customizing, Saving & Loading Workspaces
3. Using the New Maximize Feature
4. Opening & Closing Windows & Projects
5. Working within the Project Panel
6. Organizing Files in the Project Panel
7. Tips for Utilizing the Project Panel
8. Adjusting the Working Color Space

Lesson 3 - THE NEW & POWERFUL COMP PANEL (59 min)
1. Adjusting the Composition Settings
2. Creating a Comp from Existing Footage
3. Creating a Comp from Stills
4. Working with Multiple Composition Viewers
5. Using the Zoom & Scroll Tools
6. Changing the Preview Size
7. Splitting the Composition Viewer
8. Changing the View Options
9. Selecting Composited Layers
10. Using the Snapshot Feature to Store Frames in Memory
11. .e New Color Channel Viewing Options
12. Adjusting the Viewer Resolution & Pixel Aspect Ratio
13. Exploring the Flow Chart Option

Lesson 4 - THE TIMELINE & PREVIEWING (56 min)
1. Importing Footage
2. Fitting an Image into the Comp Window
3. Snapping the Position of Layers in the Timeline
4. Introducing the AV Panel in the Timeline
5. Labeling, Selecting Label Color & Arranging Layers
6. Renaming Layers in the Timeline
7. Hiding Layers with the Shy Switch
8. Using the Quality & Effects Switches
9. Applying Motion Blur
10. Zooming, Viewing Switches, Modes & Duration Columns
11. Moving the Time Indicator & Applying Markers
12. Positioning & Trimming Layers Using Markers
13. Previewing Audio & Setting Up a RAM Preview
14. Setting Up a Work Area & a Region of Interest

Lesson 5 - IMPORTING & ORGANIZING FOOTAGE (53 min)
1. Using Adobe Bridge
2. Importing Movies & Sequences with Bridge
3. Interpreting Alpha Channels
4. Importing Adobe Photoshop(R) Files
5. Interpreting a Photoshop Sequence
6. Using Edit Original & Importing Layer Effects
7. Exploring Importable Layer Effects
8. Creating a Photoshop File in After Effects
9. Importing Adobe Illustrator(R) Files
10. Using Placeholders & Proxies
11. Proxies & the Render Queue
12. Working with Camera Raw Files
13. Using a Proxy with Camera Raw Files

Lesson 6 - VIDEO STANDARDS & THE CLIP PANEL (21 min)
1. Composition Settings & Pixel Aspect Ratio
2. Fixing Interlaced Video Issues
3. Solving 3:2 Pulldown Issues
4. Making Insert & Overlay Edits
5. Working with Split Layers & Extracting a Work Area

PART 2 - Masking, Mattes, Effects & Text Animation

Lesson 1 - PARENTING, NESTING & TIME REMAPPING (59 min)
1. Setting Up the Car Speeding Along Comp
2. Adding Wheels to the Car Comp & Rotating .em
3. Introducing Parenting, the Pick Whip & Parenting to a Null
4. Common Challenges with Parenting Elements Together
5. Working with Nested Compositions
6. Pre-Composing & Animating the Car
7. Enabling Time-Remapping vs. Time-Reverse Layer
8. Time-Remapping, Frame Blending & Time-Reverse Keyframes
9. Easing Keyframes & Time-Remapping Audio
10. Using the Graph Editor to Time-Remap Slow Motion Footage
11. Sequencing Layers & Time-Remapping a Nested Comp
12. Easing In & Adjusting the Speed in the Graph Editor

Lesson 2 - INCREDIBLY COOL MASKING (60 min)
1. Introducing the Masking Tools
2. Animating a Mask to Reveal Text
3. Using Guides & Feathering Masks
4. Adding & Subtracting Masks
5. Creating a Circular Mask
6. Adjusting Masks on Photoshop® Files
7. Pasting In Masks from Illustrator®
8. Correcting & Controlling Mask Interaction
9. Time-Reversing Keyframes
10. Creating a Morph Target in Illustrator

Lesson 3 - INTRODUCTION TO EFFECTS & PRESETS (32 min)
1. .e Snow Effect
2. .e Fast Blur Effect
3. Creating & Saving Animation Presets
4. Using Fast Blur to Change the Depth of Field
5. Using the Color Emboss & Snow Effects
6. Creating a Chrome Reflection in a Pre-Comp
7. Changing the Blend Mode & Sharing Presets

Lesson 4 - MATTES & LAYER BLENDING MODES (45 min)
1. Using Layers as Mattes for Other Layers
2. Using the Luminance of a Grayscale Image for Transparency
3. Creating & Pre-Composing an Animated Matte
4. Manipulating Transparency with Layer Blending Modes
5. Using RGB Channels for Convincing Mattes
6. Transitioning between Comps with a Stencil Alpha Matte

Lesson 5 - TRACK MATTES, ADJUSTMENT LAYERS & EFFECTS (53 min)
1. Applying a Luma Track Matte
2. Duplicating a Layer & Replacing It with a Matte
3. Looping Multiple Layers Using Apply Interpretation
4. Introducing Adjustment Layers in Photoshop
5. Using Adjustment Layers to Blur & Colorize
6. Using Layer Blending Modes
7. Bringing in Illustrator Files to Use for the Title
8. Creating a Custom Luma Matte
9. Creating a Custom Adjustment Layer
10. Animating a Mask on an Adjustment Layer & Adding a Blur
11. Animating a Blur & Adjusting Transparency
12. Adjusting the Timing of an Animation
13. Pre-Composing Layers into a Nested Composition

Lesson 6 - CREATING & FORMATTING TYPE (43 min)
1. Text Effects, Panels & Workspaces
2. Creating a Type Layer
3. Selecting, Aligning & Building Type Layers
4. Populating & Scaling Type Layers
5. Formatting Text with the Character Panel
6. Changing the Stroke, Fill, Height & Width
7. Adjusting the Tracking, Leading & Kerning
8. Baseline Shift & Other Character Properties
9. Using the Paragraph Panel
10. Paragraph Panel Fly-Out Menu Options

Lesson 7 - BASIC TEXT ANIMATION & PRESETS (73 min)
1. Introducing the Basic Text Animation Presets
2. Applying Text Animation Presets to Animate In & Out
3. Animating Text Properties: Scale & Inter-Character Blending
4. Adjusting Rotation, Anchor Point Grouping & Alignment
5. Animating the Tracking & Adjusting the Line Anchor
6. Positioning & Animating Text on a Closed Path
7. Animating Text on an Open Path
8. Animating Text on a Spiral Path
9. Animating a Paragraph on a Path
10. Introducing Wiggler & the Wiggly Selector
11. Adjusting the Wiggly Selector Options
12. Taking a Closer Look at the Wiggler
13. Adjusting Correlation & the Temporal & Spatial Phases
14. Setting Up for Temporal & Spatial Phase Animation
15. Animating a Bullet-Time "Matrix"-Style Effect
16. Saving an Animation as a Preset

Lesson 8 - OUTPUT & EXPORT (32 min)
1. Exporting a Flash(TM) Movie for the Web
2. Previewing in a Browser & Changing Frame Rate
3. Saving a RAM Preview & Exporting Multiple Movies
4. Changing the Render Settings
5. Changing the Output Module Settings
6. Adding Multiple Output Modules

Lesson 9 - PREFERENCES (29 min)
1. Looking at General Preferences
2. Setting Preferences for Nested Comps
3. Setting Preferences for Layers & Colors
4. Setting Preview Preferences
5. Setting Display Preferences
6. Setting Import & Output Preferences
7. Setting Up Grids, Guides & Labels
8. Memory, Cache & Video Preview Prefs
9. User Interface Colors & Auto-Save Prefs