After Effects Apprentice Free Video: Working with Nested 3D Compositions

As we mentioned awhile back, we’ve been busy the past year and a half creating an extensive, multi-course video training series based on our popular beginner’s book After Effects Apprentice. Buried in the shuffle of the release of After Effects CS6 is that we concluded this series with a 3+ hour course dedicated to that book’s Final Project. Several movies from this course are available for free preview from lynda.com; we’d like to share those with you here - including this movie that includes a selection of small but useful tricks.

Putting the After Effects CS6 3D Camera Tracker to the Test

Since the announcement of the Adobe CS6 Production Premium was made, there are a lot of great tutorials and examples made with the product to show off the new features. Most use nicely shot footage with dolly shots or smooth steady-cam work with lots of great contrasting detail to track, which provide great results. Naturally had to try it with some of my own horrendous handheld DSLR video clips to see if I could put it to the test and how it held up. Let’s see how it did.

Making a Matte Painting with Elements in Motion in After Effects

In the days of early motion picture making the art of “matte painting” was a process of actually painting with oils on a plate glass that was then shot in position in front of a scene on location or in the studio where the film would be exposed by the combined images through the camera’s lens, creating an illusion that the actors int eh scene were in a totally different location or that the surrounding set or location was enhanced greatly. This process has evolved over the years and with modern day digital compositing and illustration/animation techniques, there’s little that can’t be created or replicated with computer graphics or manipulation. In this video tutorial, I show you how I used simple photographic components, combined with masked elements extracted from the original footage and re-timed - all using After Effects & Photoshop, along with some CG elements from a simple plug-in call Psunami from Red Giant.

After Effects CS6 Tutorial: Exporting 3D Camera Tracker Data to Cinema 4D

One of the major new features in After Effect CS6 (which we previously previewed here) is a built-in 3D Camera Tracker. Rather than track a specific object or point, the 3DCT automatically tracks hundreds of points in a clip, and uses that information to reverse engineer where the camera was during the scene. This opens up all sorts of interesting workflows.

Product Review: Tiffen Dfx v3 Video/Film Plug-in

Tiffen has released the latest version of their popular sophisticated filter effects. Unlike most other plug-in effects for After Effects, Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro that often cater to creative whimsy and visual effects, the Tiffen Dfx v3 Video/Film Plug-in offers more real-world simulation of glass filters, lens effects and film stocks in a sophisticated and easy-to-use UI. This filter set will bring back memories of film cameras and glass filters we’ve all be familiar with in days gone-by, but with much more control, finesse and options beyond your wildest dreams!

Adobe CS6 Announce Date Revealed

Want to know what’s up with Adobe Creative Suite 6 and the Creative Cloud?

NAB 2012:  Eizo 4K Monitor

At NAB 2012, when you see a crowd of people clotted around a small booth, it’s a sign you should pay attention.  The Eizo full 4K monitor I found there was easily one of the most beautiful I saw all week, with a price tag to match.  Also:  A belated “Thanks!” to my colleague Erik Higgs for letting me edit on his laptop while in Vegas.

Adobe Production Premium CS6 FREE Hands-on Workshops @ NAB

Adobe announced the unveiling of their latest video production tools this week prior to the NAB Show, featuring the CS6 Production Premium suite, which includes After Effects, Premiere Pro, Audition, Encore, and the newest additions, Prelude & SpeedGrade.

I will be giving hands-on mini-workshops for After Effects CS6 and Premiere Pro CS6 for the Manhattan Edit Workshops several times a day during the show. Of course you can stop by any time and just watch, but to get a seat and take CS6 for a “Test Drive” yourself, be sure to sign up ahead of time!

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