After Effects Workshop 2

Project pain > where all the files that you may use  go, like a library. 

Time Line > Where you arrange your art work/assets.

Composition window > where you can watch back or/and to arrange assets (specially)

Every project must have at least one composition (similar to when creating a page in InDesign)

Pre set PAL (UK Standard) this will set a lot of the other options, dimensions; 1050px by 576px.
Frames set at PAL are 25 frames per second.  

Now there should be assets in the Project pain and more information on the time line. 

last week we only experimented with solid layers , explored key frames then animated them. 

Now we will look at how to use Photoshop and Illustrator files,  when using Photoshop create new document and setup so it is appropriate for screen resolution 72pdi, colour mode RGB, units of measurement pixels not cm/mm. Alternatively there are film and video pre sets that can offer the correct sizes and include guides, much the same as After Effects.

When using presets you get guides 'action safe zones' and 'title safe zones' anything inside these lines will be visible however the footage is viewed. (TV,LCD, Projectors). The title safe zone if for when you are working with text. 

Lowering the resolution will allow for quicker play back. 

Title and action safe guides are also available in After Effects. 

Using Photshop files is a good ideas as you get transparent background and that is needed in After effect.
using the preset background you get an exact idea of how big the background is but the white space could be cropped away. 

Opening files in After Effects

When importing the default for the import will be footage, this means it will occupy one layer. After Effects will ask again how you want to import (below)  

The file will be imported into your project pain, any images or file you import are linked much like Indesign.
Once imported drag and drop into composition pain. 

You may want or need to adjust the colour of the background you have the same options with the imported file as with the solid layer. 

it is also possible to have a multiple layered Photoshop document and import it into AE

instead of importing as footage import as composition, you get all the layers when importing as a composition.  

Double clicking the composition it will open in the time line with all the layers, then you can edit accordingly.  

To make the image look like it is shattering use the position key frames, select ll the layers, then shortcut 'p' setting multiple key frames for multiple layers at the same time. then individually edit afterwards.