Adobe AFTER EFFECTS 6.0 User Manual
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dobe Systems, Inc. provides complete documentation in the Adobe PDF Help system.
The Help system includes information on all the tools, commands, and features for both
Windows and Mac OS. The PDF format is designed for easy navigation online, and support
for third-party screen readers compatible with Windows. The Help can also be printed as a
desktop reference.
avigating in Help
he Help will open in an Acrobat window with the bookmark pane open. If the bookmark
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ontents
allery of effects 4
Effects included with After Effects 34
3D Channel effects (Pro only) 35
Adjust effects 39
Audio effects 46
Blur & Sharpen effects 51
Channel effects 55
Distort effects 68
Expression Controls effects 89
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Image Control effects 90
Keying effects 101
Matte Tools effects (Pro only) 113
Noise effects 115
Paint effects (Pro only) 123
Perspective effects 138
Render effects 142
Simulation effects 168
Stylize effects 208
Text effects 219
Time effects 228
Transition effects 234
Video effects 241
Legal Notices 243
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Gal lery of effects
3D C hannel effects
“3D C hannel Extract (Pro only)” on page 35 Or iginal (left), with Texture UV selected, and then used
with the Set Matte effect as a Luminance matte (right)
“Depth Matte (Pro only)” on page 36 Original (left) and with two different depths selected (center
and right)
“Depth of Field (Pro only)” on page 36 Original (left) and with variations of Depth of Field applied
(center and right)
“Fog 3D (Pro only)” on page 37 Original (left), Gradient Layer (center), and with Fog 3D applied
(right)
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Adobe After Effects Help Gallery of effects
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“ID Matte (Pro only)” on page 38 Original (left), with ID Matte applied using the near alien as the
ID Selection (center), and composited over a new background (right)
Adjust effects
“Brightness & Contrast” on page 39 Original (left) and with variations of Brightness & Contrast
applied (center and right)
“Channel Mixer” on page 39 Original (left) and with variations of Channel Mixer applied (center
and right)
“Color Balance” on page 40 Original (left) and with variations of Color Balance applied (center and
right)
“Curves” on page 41 Original (left) and with variations of Curves applied (center and right)
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“Hue/Saturation” on page 42 Original (left) and with variations of Hue/Saturation applied (center
and right)
“Levels” on page 44 Original (left) and with variations of Levels applied (center and right)
“Levels (Individual Controls)” on page 45 Original (left) and with variations of Levels (Individual
Controls) applied (center and right)
“Posterize” on page 45 Original (left) and with variations of Posterize applied (center and right)
“Threshold” on page 45 Original (left) and with variations of Threshold applied (center and right)
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Blur and Sharpen effects
“Channel Blur” on page 51 Original (left) and with variations of Channel Blur applied (center and
right)
“Compound Blur” on page 51 Original (left), with Compound Blur applied (center), and with
Compound Blur applied and the cloud layer made invisible (right)
“Directional Blur” on page 52 Original (left) and with variations of Directional Blur applied (center
and right)
“Fast Blur” on page 52 Original (left) and with variations of Fast Blur applied (center and right)
“Gaussian Blur” on page 53 Original (left) and with variations of Gaussian Blur applied (center and
right)
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“Radial Blur” on page 53 Original (left) and with variations of Radial Blur applied (center and right)
“Sharpen” on page 53 Original (left) and with Sharpen applied (right)
“Unsharp Mask” on page 54 Original (left) and with Unsharp Mask applied (right)
Channel effects
“3D Glasses” on page 55 Two variations of 3D Glasses
“Alpha Levels (Pro only)” on page 57 Original (left) and with variations of Alpha Levels applied
(center and right)
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“Arithmetic” on page 58 Original (left) and with variations of Arithmetic applied (center and right)
“Blend” on page 58 Originals (left and center) and with Blend applied (right)
“Calculations” on page 59 Originals (left and center) and with Calculations applied (right)
“Channel Combiner” on page 60 Original (left) and with variations of Channel Combiner applied
(center and right)
“Compound Arithmetic” on page 62 Originals (left and center) and with Compound Arithmetic
applied (right)
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“Invert” on page 63 Original (left) and with variations of Invert applied (center and right)
“Minimax” on page 64 Original (left) and with variations of Minimax applied (center and right)
“Remove Color Matting” on page 64 Top: Remove Color Matting used to remove a halo (center)
from imported text (left) with the result (right) Bottom: Two source layers combined (left and center)
and Remove Color Matting used to refine the result (right)
“Set Channels” on page 65 Original (left) and with variations of Set Channels applied (center and
right)
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“Set Matte” on page 66 Original (left) and with variations of Set Matte applied (center and right)
“Shift Channels” on page 67 Original (left) and with variations of Shift Channels applied (center
and right)
“Solid Composite” on page 67 Original (left) and with variations of Solid Composite applied (center
and right)
Distort effects
“Bezier Warp (Pro only)” on page 68 Original (left), with Bezier Warp applied and Bezier curve
highlighted (center), and resulting layer (right)
“Bulge (Pro only)” on page 69 Original (left) and with variations of Bulge applied (center and right)
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“Corner Pin (Pro only)” on page 70 Original (left) and with variations of Corner Pin applied (center
and right)
“Displacement Map (Pro only)” on page 70 Original (left), displacement map (center), and with
Displacement Map applied (right)
“Liquify” on page 71 Original (left) and with variations of Liquify applied (center and right)
“Magnify” on page 73 Original (left) and with variations of Magnify applied (center and right)
“Mesh Warp (Pro only)” on page 74 Original (left), warp grid (center), and resulting layer (right)
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“Mirror” on page 75 Original (left) and with variations of Mirror applied (center and right)
“Offset” on page 75 Original (left) and with variations of Offset applied (center and right)
“Optics Compensation (Pro only)” on page 76 Original (left) with Optics Compensation applied to
correct the image (center), and exaggerates lens distortion (right)
“Polar Coordinates” on page 77 Original (left) and with variations of Polar Coordinates applied
(center and right)
“Reshape (Pro only)” on page 78 Original with masks selected (left) and with variations of Reshape
applied (center and right)
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“Ripple” on page 80 Rippling a layer
“Smear” on page 81 Original with masks selected (left) and with variations of Smear applied (center
and right)
“Spherize” on page 83 Original (left) and with variations of Spherize applied (center and right)
“Transform” on page 83 Original (left) and with variations of Transform applied (center and right)
“Turbulent Displace” on page 84 Original (left) and with variations of Turbulent Displace applied
(center and right)
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“Twirl” on page 86 Original (left) and with variations of Twirl applied (center and right)
“Warp” on page 87 Original (left) and with variations of Warp applied (center and right)
“Wave Warp” on page 87 Original (left) and with variations of Wave Warp applied (center and right)
Image Control effects
“Change Color” on page 90 Original (left) and with variations of Change Color applied (center and
right)
“Change to Color (formerly Change Color HLS)” on page 91 Original (left), with Correction Matte
(center), and with Change to Color applied (right)
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“Color Balance (HLS)” on page 92 Original (left) and with variations of Color Balance HLS applied
(center and right)
“Color Link” on page 92 Original (left) and with variations of Color Link applied (center and right)
“Colorama” on page 94 Original (left) and with variations of Colorama applied (center and right)
“Equalize” on page 98 Original (left) and with variations of Equalize applied (center and right)
“Gamma/Pedestal/Gain” on page 98 Original (left) and with variations of Gamma/Pedestal/Gain
applied (center and right)
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“Grow Bounds” on page 99 Original (left); the Wave Warp effect is constrained by the dimensions
of the layer (center); Grow Bounds fixes this problem (right).
“PS Arbitrary Map” on page 99 Original (left), a map created in Photoshop (center), and with PS
Arbitrary Map applied (right)
“Tint” on page 100 Original (left) and with variations of Tint applied (center and right)
Keying effects
“Color Difference Key (Pro only)” on page 101 Original (left) and background layer (center) are
combined using Color Difference Key (right).
“Color Key” on page 103 A nonstandard key color (left) and the background (center) are combined
using Color Key (right).
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“Color Range” on page 104 A poorly lit green screen (left) and a background layer (center) are
combined using the Color Range Key (right).
“Difference Matte (Pro only)” on page 105 Original (left), Matte Only view of keyed-out subject
(center), and composite of subject with new background (right)
“Extract (Pro only)” on page 106 Original with glare (left) and background layer (center) are
combined using Extract (right).
“Inner/Outer Key (Pro only)” on page 107 The original masked layer (left) and the background
layer (center) are combined using Inner/Outer Key (right).
“Linear Color Key (Pro only)” on page 108 Features such as these eyes (left) that closely match the
background (center) can become transparent when using keys; Linear Color Key keeps them opaque
with the Keep This Color control (right).
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“Luma Key” on page 110 A white background of the original (left and center) is removed using
Luma Key (right).
“Spill Suppressor (Pro only)” on page 111 The original green key (left) leaves a green glow when
keyed out (center). Spill Suppressor removes the glow (right).
Matte Tools effects
“Matte Choker (Pro only)” on page 113 Original (left) shows areas of unwanted transparency after
using Color Key (center) that are removed with Matte Choker (right).
“Simple Choker (Pro only)” on page 114 The original (left) contains unwanted edges after keying
(center) that are removed with Simple Choker (right).
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Noise effects
“Dust & Scratches” on page 115 Scratches (left), enlarged view of scratches (center), and scratches
removed with loss of clarity (right
“Fractal Noise (Pro only)” on page 115 Original (left) and with variations of Fractal Noise applied
(center and right)
“Median” on page 119 Original (left) and with variations of Median applied (center and right)
“Noise” on page 120 Original (left) and with variations of Noise applied (center and right)
“Noise Alpha” on page 120 Original (left) and with variations of Noise Alpha applied (center and
right)
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“Noise HLS, Noise HLS Auto” on page 121 Original Layer (left), Noise HLS (center), and two appli-
cations of Noise HLS with low Saturation values (right)
Paint
“Vector Paint (Pro only)” on page 123 Two strokes in different colors painted on the robot's
antenna, using three variations of Vector Paint
Perspective effects
“Basic 3D” on page 138 Original (left) and with variations of Basic 3D applied (center and right)
“Bevel Alpha” on page 139 Original (left) and with variations of Bevel Alpha applied (center and
right)
“Bevel Edges” on page 139 Original (left), background layer visible (center), and with the Bevel
Edges applied to the background layer (right)
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“Drop Shadow” on page 140 Original (left) and with variations of Drop Shadow applied (center and
right)
“Radial Shadow” on page 140 Original (left), with Radial Shadow applied once (center), and with
the effect applied twice (right)
Render effects
“4-Color Gradient” on page 142 Original (left) and with variations of 4-Color Gradient applied
(center and right)
“Advanced Lightning (Pro only)” on page 142 Multiple applications of the effect using the
Breaking lightning type (center) and the Bouncey lightning type (right)
“Audio Spectrum” on page 145 Original (left) and with variations of Audio Spectrum applied
(center and right)
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“Audio Waveform” on page 146 Original (left) and with variations of Audio Waveform applied
(center and right)
“Beam” on page 147 Original (left) and with Beam applied (right)
“Cell Pattern” on page 147 The crystal cell pattern creates a displacement map (center) that is used
with the Displacement Map effect (right).
“Checkerboard (formerly Checker)” on page 150 Original (left) and with variations of Checker-
board applied (center and right)
“Circle” on page 151 Original (left) and with variations of Circle applied (center and right)
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“Ellipse” on page 152 Original (left), with Ellipse applied once (center), and with Ellipse applied
multiple times (right)
“Eyedropper Fill (formerly Color Picker)” on page 152 Original (left) and with variations of
Eyedropper Fill applied (center and right)
“Fill” on page 153 A mask (left) is used with the Fill effect (center); a different mask is used (right).
“Fractal” on page 153 Original (left) and with variations of Fractal applied (center and right)
“Grid” on page 155 Original (left) and with variations of Grid applied (center and right)
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“Lens Flare (Pro only)” on page 156 Original (left) and with variations of Lens Flare applied (center
and right)
“Lightning” on page 156 Original (left) and with variations of Lightning applied (center and right)
“Paint Bucket (formerly Basic Fill)” on page 158 Original (left) and with variations of Paint Bucket
applied (center and right)
“Radio Waves” on page 160 Original (left) and with variations of Radio Waves applied (center and
right)
“Ramp” on page 163 Original (left) and with variations of Ramp applied (center and right)
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“Scribble” on page 163 Original with masks (left) and with variations of Scribble applied (center
and right)
“Stroke” on page 165 Original (left), with mask (center), and with Stroke applied (right)
“Vegas” on page 165 Original (left) and with variations of Vegas applied (center and right)
Simulation effects
“Card Dance” on page 168 Top: Original (left) and with Card Dance applied using different rotations
(center and right) Bottom: Original (left), gradient layer (center), and with Card Dance applied using
the gradient layer (right)
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“Caustics” on page 172 Bottom layer (left), water layer (center), and with Caustic applied (right)
“Foam” on page 175 Original (left), with Foam applied (center), and with a robot layer used as the
Bubble Texture Layer (right)
“Particle Playground (Pro only)” on page 180 Effect with variations of Canon (left), Particle
Exploder (center), and Layer Exploder (right)
“Shatter” on page 197 Original (left) and with Shatter applied over time to reveal another layer
(center and right)
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“Wave World” on page 204 Top: Wireframe view (left), Height Map view (center), and the resulting
image used as the water surface of the Caustics effect (right) Bottom: Wireframe view (left), Height
Map view (center), and the resulting image used with the Colorama effect (right)
Stylize effects
“Brush Strokes” on page 208 Original (left) and with variations of Brush Strokes applied (center
and right)
“Color Emboss” on page 209 Original (left) and with variations of Color Emboss applied (center and
right)
“Emboss” on page 209 Original (left) and with variations of Emboss applied (center and right)
“Find Edges” on page 209 Original (left) and with variations of Find Edges applied (center and
right)
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“Glow (Pro only)” on page 210 Original (left) and with variations of Glow applied (center and right)
“Leave Color” on page 212 Original (left) and with variations of Leave Color applied (center and
right)
“Mosaic” on page 212 Original (left) and with variations of Mosaic applied (center and right)
“Motion Tile” on page 213 Original (left) and with variations of Motion Tile applied (center and
right)
“Roughen Edges” on page 214 Original (left) and Edge Type set to Roughen (center) and Rusty
Color (right) with all controls set to maximum values
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“Scatter (Pro only)” on page 216 Original (left), after applying Scatter (center), and then applying
the Noise effect (right)
“Strobe Light” on page 216 This effect is difficult to illustrate. See the online Effects Help for infor-
mation on using this effect.
“Texturize” on page 217 Original (left), a layer used to create texture (center), and the texture
applied to background layer (right)
“Write-on” on page 217 Three strokes are animated through time (left, center, and right).
Text effects
“Basic Text” on page 219 Original (left) and with variations of Basic Text applied (center and right)
“Numbers” on page 220 Original (left) and with variations of Numbers applied (center and right)
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