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After Effects Solid Layer Problems
I am currently working on a test project in after effects, however, I recently encountered a problem. I was attempting to create scorch marks on a wall by using a mask to shape a solid black layer to what I wanted then turn up feathering to create the effect. I was adding the mask when I accidentally did something, and the mask didn’t really do anything. So I deleted the layer and was going to try again when I noticed that some other solid layers I had (containing the “beam” effect) made all layers above and below them black. Not black for their entire duration, just for the duration of the solid. When I deleted or hid the solid, the other layers become visible again. I’m not sure if I’m being very clear, as I am a bit of a newbie at after effects and am simply learning as I go, however, any help you can give would be appreciated.
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3 Replies
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It sounds like somehow you’ve made some (or all) of those layers into adjustment layers, or changed their blend modes.
First, in the timeline, look for this column:
See the one that looks like a half-white, half-black circle? That’s the adjustment switch. If that is checked, for your layer, that layer is an adjustment layer, which means that any effect applied to that layer acts as if it is being applied to all the layers below that one in the layer stack. (Watch some of Andrew Kramer’s stuff on Video Copilot to get a handle on how this actually works – it took me a while to understand it, and to understand the power of adjustment layers).
If that’s not it, look at the bottom of that column for the “Toggle Switches/Modes” button and click it to bring up the blend modes, which looks like this:
Check that you haven’t changed the blend modes to “Multiply” or “Linear Light” or any number of other things that could give you a weird look.
Good luck!
Steve -
I tried both of those methods, neither of which worked. However, in trying to fix my problem, I found a faster and better method to achieve my goal, so it all worked out in the end. Thanks for your reply!
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Well, I never actually did find a solution. I just re-did it. I was using the “beam” effect to create lasers when everything stopped working. So I deleted the beam effects and tried again, this time really looking into and using all the features of the effect. I ended up with a much better looking effect with a lot less effort. I still have no idea what I did to mess things up.
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