Okay so we’re getting a good idea of what Adobe After Effects plug-ins each other uses on a regular basis. It’s quite understandable that so many of you use utility effects like Curves and Levels, and 3rd party effects like Particular regularly, which is such a versatile plug-in. Now let’s share thoughts on effects we avoid, prefer not to use or just plain hate.
Do you prefer to do all of your 3D in a dedicated 3D application rather than use Zaxwerks 3D Invigorator or ProAnimator? Perhaps you think something is particularly cheesy and overused? Of course it all depends on ”how” an effect is used because even a great effect can look cheesy. Personally I tend to avoid using any of the “Transition” effects as actual transitions, but will often use something like “Linear Wipe” without keyframes to mask a section of another layer. If you have a link to something cheesy you may have done or seen, share it with us, we promise not to laugh (much) 
16 Responses to this post
August 1, 2008 at 1:00 am |
Transition presets look awful, even the one’s that come with Sapphire plugins, a simple opacity 0 – 100 works for me!
August 1, 2008 at 1:07 am |
Grow Bounds. I hate having to many precomps, but when it comes to using Grow Bounds or precomping – I choose precomping. Grow Bounds works, but works slowly and most of the time doesn’t get the job done the way I’d expect.
August 1, 2008 at 3:34 am |
This may sound dumb and I have heard of a lot of people using this effect… but I can never find a use for Colorama. I mean, I try, I really try but I just think that me and Colorama… well our chemistry doesn’t really mix.
oh and the transition presets.. those suck too hahaha… way too hokey.
August 1, 2008 at 5:56 am |
What transition effects?! LOL
August 1, 2008 at 7:17 am |
Coloroma is a big mystical thing to me,too.
August 1, 2008 at 10:06 am |
you ask for it, you’re gonna have it. I’m going to record a tutorial on Colorama, but keep in mind that right now I’m working on MILG5, so I don’t know when I’ll deliver the tutorial.
August 2, 2008 at 12:26 am |
Igor, things like Block Dissolve and such.
August 2, 2008 at 2:04 am |
Effects are for kids, I strictly use AE for the great solids.
, JK. I would have to say Im intimidated by the echo effect. It just kinda boggles me.
August 2, 2008 at 2:22 am |
Thank GOD Maltaannon… FINALLY hahaha… I mean I have always heard Colorama can be really useful… I’m just never in the right place at the right time for it…
I probably just don’t understand its potential like a lot of the effects I don’t use…
August 2, 2008 at 6:03 am |
I hate to use pre-packaged effects unless absolutely necessary. Example, I love 3D Invig but use it strictly for the seemingly limitless edge styles it provides. I then export .obj files and use those in Maya. I think that in the process of making some effects easier to create, I feel like I’m being spoon fed creativity. I’ve seen so many “reels” on YouTube that consist of someone simply taking a VideoCopilot.net tutorial and simply slapping a new color on it and call it their own. I like to be able to have more control over what I create.
August 2, 2008 at 5:54 pm |
Pedro, thanks for the explanation LOL,
But I was just been sarcastic…
August 5, 2008 at 6:51 am |
I have to say I don’t like Invigorator. Not to say some good things haven’t come out of it, but something about it just irks me. But I do use it for projects that need text to be updated quickly and easily.
August 8, 2008 at 1:41 pm |
I really avoid the Zaxwerks plugs…they render tooooo slow in any Hardware…
August 29, 2008 at 7:05 am |
Sorry to keep this OT going, I use Colorama often, probably one out of every ten projects have at least one item that benefits from Colorama.
November 25, 2008 at 8:08 pm |
anybody found any used of “Fractal” anybody use?
November 26, 2008 at 1:27 am |
In the 13 years I’ve been using After Effects I’ve never used Fractal.
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