Lesson Task 5.1 (Green Screens)
We hope you like the colour green because you’re about to see a lot of it.
And, if all goes well, by the end of this task, you won’t be seeing any green at all!
Step 1
Find a piece of green screen footage online or shoot your own with a nicely lit green screen.
Step 2
Import your footage into After Effects and follow the steps in the lesson to pull a key. Remember to use these effects:
- Keylight;
- Key Cleaner;
- Advanced Spill Suppressor.
Step 3
Once you’ve pulled a key, find a background that matches your footage and place it beneath your footage.
Step 4
Render out your video and upload it to your blog!
FINAL RENDER:
Lesson Task 5.2 (Kinetic Typography)
It’s your turn to make a piece of kinetic typography!
Visit websites like www.freesound.org or https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary to find a piece of music or dialogue to animate to.
Step 1
Download and import your audio into After Effects.
Step 2
Select 15 to 30 seconds of music or dialogue to animate.
Step 3
Create a background and start adding text that matches the music or dialogue.
Step 4
Add camera moves or animation to the text to make your project dynamic and fun.
Step 5
Once you’re happy with the results, upload your video to your blog.
FINAL RENDER:
Lesson Task 5.3 (12 After Effects tools, effects and plugins)
You have now learnt 12 new tools and effects inside After Effects! Here’s the project file containing the files from the examples in Lesson 3.
We’re sure you have your favourites, so we’ll ask you to pick at least three of the effects you learnt today and make a short animated sticker!
Step 1
Choose at least three of the following:
- Trim paths;
- Tracks mattes;
- Four-colour gradient;
- Turbulent displacement;
- CC sphere;
- Posterize Time;
- Wave warp;
- Bend it;
- Numbers;
- Camera lens blur;
- Drop shadow;
- Corner pin.
Step 2
Create a short animation that incorporates them into your workflow.
Step 3
Once you’re happy with the results, upload your video to your blog.
Lesson Task 5.4 Photo collages, textures, strokes and gradients
You will be creating a motion design piece that incorporates one or more photos, textures, strokes and gradients. Bonus points if you include a piece of footage!
Step 1
Find your photo assets. Visit sites like unsplash.com to source some material for your motion design piece.
If you’re struggling to find an asset, try incorporating this strawberry.
Step 2
Design the rest of your assets in Photoshop and Illustrator.
Once again, if you’re struggling to illustrate something then just use some text.
Step 3
Import everything to After Effects.
Step 4
Composite and animate it all together. Keep it short! 5 seconds of animation is the perfect amount of time.
Step 5
Render it out and upload it to your blog.
Module 5
For this assignment, you’re going to animate a 30-second motion design piece for ‘Scoops Ice Cream’.
Use the artboards we’ve created that are already set up in After Effects for you. It’s pretty straightforward. Simply download the folder below and start animating!
Keep this animation simple! Let the voice-over and the visuals carry most of this piece, and use subtle, small animations to drive it home.
FINAL RENDER: