Preparing Assets in Photoshop
Can select the correct size appropriate for screen by selecting the right preset size. This does not need to be the same size as composition in After Effects... (if you want it smaller than full screen).
The title safe and action safe guides will be really helpful in each application so that I can create key frames in the areas of screen that will have most impact for my audience.
By creating the type inside the title safe area, I cropped my image down and made sure the backgraound was transparent.
With all the type on the same layer on Photoshop, it is hard to edit individual aspects of the word. This has been imported as Footage.
In Photoshop I created all aspects of this word into seperate layers and then imported into After Effects as a Composition.
By having these letters on seperate layers I could edit each of these individually in After Effects.
Photoshop import on After Effects from Hazel Gage on Vimeo.
Preparing Assets in Illustrator
Can also use Illustrator to create assetts to be imported into After effects. I think I would be more suited to using Illustrator for this project as I find it easier to use and I can edit the letters beofre importing. by the size I can select PAL with widescreen. No pixels (square or rectangular) need to be selected as Illustraor doesn't use pixels.
The Illustrator artboard uses the title safe and action safe areas also.
By having the letterforms on seperate layers, I can edit them individually in After Effects.
Illustrator import on After Effects from Hazel Gage on Vimeo.
Even though Illustrator uses vectors, assetts will still become pixelated if transformed in After Effects. This is because After Effects rasterizes it as it is pixel based. To diminish this, you can use they layer switches.
The layer switch (for vector layers; continuously rasterize) which looks like a little sun can be turned on for vector layers and will continuously rasterize that layer, this means it will not pixelate. This will not increase the file size but will increase how long it takes for a RAM preview. I will definately be using Illustrator to create assetts and then use this layer switch to make the animation look more slick.
By importing an assett into After Effects as Composition - Retain Layer Sizes teh anchor point for each layer in in the centre of that specific layer, and not the composition.
Masks
I wanted to stretch the individual serifs of a letterform in After Effects for one of my keyframe storyboard ideas. Mike suggested that I would need to outline my text in Illustrator before I imported it into After Effects. I need to create a new solid layer, the size of the composition and paste the path, from Illustrator onto this. I will now have all my paths from Illustrator and can drag edit them as I would do in Illustrator.
Mask from Illustrator to After Effects from Hazel Gage on Vimeo.
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