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How to substitute footage, etc…
I’m a die hard Shake & Nuke user since waaaay back, but there are some things about AE I just love, especially plugins (Magic Bullet, etc…) and Premiere Pro CS3 integration.
However, even though I’ve dabbled in After Effects for a bunch of years (even when it was still CoSA!), I feel like a complete stranger/fishoutofwater/moron. I just can’t get my head around the AE workflow.
So here are a few questions that have been plaguing me:
1) How to substitute footage in the comp. Say I’ve already put clipA on the comp, added a mask, done some effects, and now I’d rather use clipB. I don’t want to do this from the Project window with ‘replace footage’ because I’m using clipA in another comp and don’t want to mess that up. What do I do? I’ve looked in the docs, no luv…
2) Masks. If I create a mask directly on an image layer I feel like I’m reducing my options way too much. I’d like to create a separate mask layer and plug it into my footage… how do I accomplish this? I’ve tried a lot of different things, incl. RTFM, still no luv for me. Seems that when I use set matte it just doesn’t work as expected (i.e. work at all no matter which channel I’ve selected).
3) Tracking – results are weak. Almost no adustment options and the results are jittery even on relatively easy footage to track. Is there something I’m missing or should I just track & render in other software?
4) Editing keyframes. Is the timeline the only place to edit keyframes? Curves with knots & tangents to play with? If so where?
That’s all I can think of for now, thanks in advance…
cheers,
john t.
https://www.crossoverco.com
https://www.lunacie.com————————–
john tissavary
luna cie, inc.
digital film
hollwyood
http://www.lunacie.com
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3 Replies
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1. import the new footage, then alt-drag it onto the layer in question.
2. use a track matte: mask a solid, place it above the footage, then set the matte for the footage to “alpha”.
3. I don’t track much. Others may be more useful here.
4. Value & speed curves, yes, in the timeline. Path curves in the comp window, but that’s probably not what you want. In the help under fine-tuning animation …?
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“1) How to substitute footage in the comp. Say I’ve already put clipA on the comp, added a mask, done some effects, and now I’d rather use clipB. I don’t want to do this from the Project window with ‘replace footage’ because I’m using clipA in another comp and don’t want to mess that up. What do I do? I’ve looked in the docs, no luv…”
See “Replace layer sources with references to another footage item”.
“4) Editing keyframes. Is the timeline the only place to edit keyframes? Curves with knots & tangents to play with? If so where?”
You can edit keyframes in a few ways: in layer-bar mode in the Timeline panel, in Graph Editor mode in the Timeline panel, in the Composition panel for spatial properties, in a spreadsheet, and more. See ” Editing, moving, and copying keyframes” and other sections in the “Animation” chapter.
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Todd Kopriva, technical editor, Adobe Systems Incorporated
putting the ‘T’ back in ‘RTFM’ : After Effects Help on the Web
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Thanks so much Steve & Todd, I really appreciate the pointers. I’m sure more questions will pop up on this project, as I’m using AE more than I ever have before. I do miss the node approach from Shake & Nuke, but I’m so thrilled at being able to shuttle projects back & forth between Premiere Pro CS3 and AE (7 & CS3).
cheers,
john t.
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john tissavary
luna cie, inc.
digital film
hollwyood
http://www.lunacie.com
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