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large layered Pshop files – hwlp w/ workflow
hi there
I have some large 8k layered illustrations, to be used in a camera fly through
ive had the RAM issues and have turned down the RAM cache size and cranked up the disk cache size ( i think thats the way to avoid the cache error messages)
running a 8-core 2.8 macpro / 6gb ram
for the layered P-shop files, I wonder if proxies are the way to go
couple of questions –
when i select one of the layers in the .psd layered import, and ‘create proxy’ it gives me a new precomp/comp icon of the same name
which is wierd because now my folder containing all of the layers have precomps with them
what is the best way to do this? i was going to manually create a proxy for all 20 of the layered elements at like 1/8 of the size of the 8k artwork to work out the moves
ive seen proxies used on footage items but not as much with layered things. im just amazed how AE bogs down when i even just open the photoshop layers in the container comp that comes when i import them as a comp
any help would be great – thanks
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1 Reply
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What is the average, actual file size of your PSD files? One thing to keep in mind (I touched on this in another thread just days ago) is that After Effects can easily handle a 10GB animation codec quicktime, because the datarate per frame is only around 2MB or so. But with a large single-frame item like a PSD file, it is my understanding that it loads the full size of the image per frame. This means that a 100MB PSD file is treated as a 100MB per frame video file (50x the data rate of an animation codec video) which leads to drastic throughput issues.
Either way, using smaller versions of layers as proxies is not ideal. You will need to create sub-comps for each layer that is the size your “real” layer will be, scale up the small proxie item to match the final size, animate them all within a master comp, then go in and replace your small proxies with the full size layers when done. At this stage, your renders will be painful at best.
The best method might be to export each layer of your PSD (from within Photoshop) to PNG files or other lossless format, import them into AE, and reassemble them into comps/subcomps as needed. With 8k images (I assume you mean 8,000×8,000 pixels) you will hit AE’s image buffer wall eventually. A strategy for this is to use Photoshop’s guides to grid out your document into, say, 2,000×2,000 squares, and output each layer as a series of chunks that you then reassemble in a subcomp within After Effects. This way, each file it has to manage is much smaller but the end result is identical. Combine this with using PNGs for each chunk and you might get some usability back in AE. It sounds like a lot to go through, but it’s quicker and less frustrating than most of the alternatives.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com
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