MILG 6 and 7 host Tim Clapham recently completed a beautiful animation for 3D World magazine, created using Cinema4D and Adobe After Effects. The even cooler news is Tim recorded a tutorial.

Trish Meyer has granted Motionworks permission to post the Story of CoSA – the original company behind After Effects. Written by After Effects team member, Dave Simons, and originally published in Creating Motion Graphics Volume 3, it gives a wonderful insight into the early days of After Effects and the team behind it. Download PDF SFMoGraph Pics

In this Adobe After Effects: Effects A-Z tip, special guest host Eran Stern demonstrates Bilateral Blur.

Watch tip (6mins, 12MB)

In this recorded e-seminar, learn how to create a stylish and moody, Sopranos–style 3D text look. Main tools covered include Adobe After Effects and Zaxwerks ProAnimator. Check out Making It Look Great for more Zaxwerks workflow training.

Watch tutorial (34mins, 60MB) Download project (6MB)

Design skills are important but good workflow is also critical when working with Adobe After Effects. In this tip learn how a seemingly simple technique can be simplified further, saving keyframes, expressions and, most importantly, time!   Watch tutorial (5mins, 15MB)

In this Adobe After Effects: Effects A-Z tip, special guest host Topher Welsh demonstrates Bevel Alpha and Bevel Edges.

Watch tip (6mins, 15MB)

If Harry Frank recommends these 5 Adobe After Effects expressions, then you know you need them!

Robert Redman has some useful Cinema 4D and After Effects tutorials including this one on global illumination and reflections in Cinema 4D.

In this screen capture of a recent Adobe After Effects e-seminar learn how Adobe Illustrator and Maxon Cinema 4D were used, along with stock footage from Video Copilot’s Action Essentials 2, to create explosive TV promo graphics. [Read more]

Nick Campbell (The Gorilla) demonstrates various tips for dealing with banding in Adobe After Effects.

In this screen capture of a recent Adobe After Effects E-seminar, learn how Trapcode Soundkeys was used to control the look and feel of a boxing promo. Other topics include a technique for using Trapcode Shine along with CC Glass to create a stylistic impact effect, and various real-world workflow techniques. [Read more]

For this Adobe After Effects project the brief was pretty open but I had to include graphic elements from the Crime and Investigation network’s existing identity along with key words and footage from various “ci” programs. The channel tagline is “look closer” so I decided to use glass panels similar to the glass slides one uses to examine specimens under a microscope. Read more

Motion Sketch is one of those Adobe After Effects tools that is often forgotten (at least by me) but is still a handy addition to the After Effects toolset. In this quick tip we look at how you can use Motion Sketch to add natural, organic motion to your layers.  Watch tip (7 mins)

AEtutsplus has a nifty script by Mathias Mohl, that allows you to link Adobe Kuler themes (and other .ase files) to your Adobe After Effects layers.

In this short tip, learn how to set up your Adobe After Effects composition to rotoscope footage imported with fields. (Note: please excuse the room ambience included with the audio, my regular microphone failed during this recording).  Watch tip (5mins)

In this screen capture of a recent Adobe E-seminar we take a look at the Adobe Photoshop Brush Panel and learn a technique for creating cel-style animation in Photoshop Extended using the Onion Skin feature.

Watch tutorial (18mins)

In this screen cast of a recent Adobe E-seminar, learn how to incorporate Adobe Photoshop Extended into your Adobe After Effects workflow, by preparing video in After Effects, exporting to Photoshop and adding Filters, then reimporting back to After Effects for final compositing. [Read more]

In just a few short years Video Copilot has skyrocketed to become the dominant force in visual fx and motion graphics training online, with it’s founder, Andrew Kramer, becoming an industry icon. In part 1 of this riveting interview Andrew discusses his fascinating journey from high school student to industry leader and what that has meant to Video Copilot [Read more]

Cycore FX, makers of the “CC” effects bundled with After Effects have a resource page with the full manual and example After Effects projects.

In this Adobe After Effects: Effects A-Z tip, special guest presenter Topher Welsh gives a brief tour through the Auto Color, Auto Contrast and Auto Levels effects.

Watch tutorial (4mins, 5MB)

CC Time Blend FX was originally published as part of the Final Effects plug-in set, but is now included in After Effects as one of the Cycore (CC) plug-ins. In his recent Unplugged interview, Total Training founder and After Effects legend Brian Maffitt discusses the Total FE (Final Effects) training series and how he used Time Blend FX to make realistic smoke and plasma. [Read more]

While researching for this teaser spot for Women’s Murder Club, I noticed that police tape was a common theme throughout existing graphics. My suggestion to the client was to construct a simple crime scene in 3D where the camera pulls back, revealing evidence and resolving in the title on police tape, with the channel identity and times below. [Read more]

Did you know that the first 3rd-party effect to be bundled with Adobe After Effects was “Lightning”? Or that the Psunami water simulation plug-in was originally designed for the military? In Part 2 of the conversation with Brian Maffitt, Brian reveals these little-known facts and plenty more; including an in-depth, frank discussion about Total Training and how [Read more]

Adobe has released a new AIR application containing a database of all of the keyboard shortcuts for all of the applications in Creative Suite 4.

Brian Maffitt is co-founder of Total Training and a legend in the Adobe After Effects community. I regard Brian not only as an industry leader but as a mentor, with his Total AE training series the corner stone of my After Effects knowledge. In part one of this two-part, candid interview we discuss Brian’s early years as an actor with a love for technology, leading to [Read more]