Adobe After Effects CC Level 1

After Effects Classes in New York City

Adobe After Effects is a powerful tool for animation and video post-production. It can be used to create stand-alone videos, animations, special effects, animated titles, and much more. Use it to create compelling video content for broadcast TV and web.

Create Motion Graphics & Animations

This After Effects training will take you from the basics of After Effects such as understanding the workspace and basic animation techniques, all the way through to advanced animation techniques, motion tracking, and particle effects.

Prior experience with Adobe Photoshop is recommended.

18 Hours
Mac or PC provided
Book included
Free retake

Register for a class

$975 Discounts • Policies

NYC or Live Online

What You’ll Learn

Create animations using graphics, text, and photos
Become familiar with the interface, timeline, and layers
Use video footage to create a movie title sequence
Create TV content and ads using real-world graphics
Sync and edit animations to audio
Create dynamic transitions
Learn animation principles to create fluid, realistic animations
Build 3D objects incorporating video clips
Add lighting and shadows using 3D properties and effects
Render your projects into manageable file sizes

View full syllabus

Adobe After Effects CC Level 1 Class Syllabus

What You’ll Learn

Section 1

Intro to After Effects

Topics

The Project, Composition, & Timeline panels
Splitting layers
Color correction
Previewing in real time

Fade-Ins & Working with Text

Topics

Creating a fade-in by animating the Opacity property
Creating & animating text
Adjusting clip lengths in the Timeline
Using Title Safety to ensure TV viewers can see the text
Copying & pasting styles

Styling Text & Rendering

Topics

Styling the main & secondary text
Adding a cross-fade between the video & title text
Working in the Render Queue
Using masks to create a vignette

Section 2

Anchor Points & Working with Images

Topics

Resizing images to fit the Composition frame
Setting layer in points using the In column
Aligning still images & changing anchor points
Adjusting animation timing

Cross-Dissolves & Working with Logos

Topics

Creating cross-dissolves (“fade-ups”) between layers
Pre-composing layers
Scaling up vector layers
Adding a fade to black using a solid color layer
How to find missing project files

Null Objects & Hold Keyframes

Topics

Scaling up multiple child layers using a Null Object
Creating a color wedge using a shape layer
Animating the Rotation property
Changing text values using hold keyframes

Alpha Mattes & Animated Colors

Topics

Using an alpha matte to hide/show the text based on the wedge’s movement
Bringing back the colored wedge
Animating instantaneous color changes
Ensuring the Logo stays in the Title Safe grid

Section 3

Importing Layered Files & Adding Easing

Topics

Flattening a layered file or individual layer on import
Importing a layered file with all its layers intact
Isolating the Feature & Presentation text using masks
Creating fade-ins & fade-outs
Adding automatic easing to slow down portions of the animation

Working with Numerous Layers

Topics

Cropping the layout & creating a grid in Photoshop
Scaling up each tile using a null object
Randomizing the order in which the photos animate in
Orchestrating the exit animation so the tiles fall down in diagonal groups

Vector Layouts & the Graph Editor

Topics

Using the Invert effect to swap black & white
Using the Graph Editor to customize easing speed
Animating vector shapes using the Trim Paths feature
More null objects: animating the three pay television content descriptors

Putting It All Together & Adding Audio

Topics

Sequencing multiple compositions
Animating like an editor: overlapping shots & using blending modes
Adding audio to a composition

Section 4

Hard Ease Fashion Reveal

Topics

Setting Keyframe Velocity for fine-tuned ease control
Understanding basic motion paths
Sequencing the “stripes”
Adding a Drop Shadow effect

More Reveals from Different Directions

Topics

The benefits of a composition with modular parts
Creating three more reveals
More keyframe influence, animation sequencing, & drop shadows

Time Remapping to Match Audio

Topics

Best practice: adding audio to a nested composition
Time remapping the video to sync well with the audio
Globally adjusting audio volume to ideal levels

Section 5

3D Lighting & the Wiggler

Topics

3D lighting
Randomizing with “The Wiggler”

More 3D Fun: Lights, Rotation, Motion!

Topics

More 3D rotation
Adjusting lighting settings to stylize light
Creating shadows

Using 3D Cameras

Topics

Adding a camera layer
Viewing text with a 3D Camera

Rendering & Exporting Options

Topics

Rendering uncompressed files
Rendering a video with transparency
Creating a render template
Exporting images

Section 6

Background Lighting & Cropping Square Videos

Topics

Adding 3D lighting to the background
Using the Wiggler panel to make the light fluctuate
Cropping the videos so they become square
Individually preparing the pre-comps so they can be used as cube sides

Constructing a Seamless 3D Object

Topics

Setting up a camera layer & its parent null object
Building a 3D cube made of six videos
Setting a 3D layer’s initial rotation using the Orientation property
The Unified Camera tool

Animating a 3D Object

Topics

Animating the cube as a whole: 3D rotation via null object
Animating a null object’s child layers separately

Casting Light & Shadow on 3D Objects

Topics

Lighting & shadows on 3D objects
Adding music & adjusting keyframe timing
Adding a lens flare effect to a solid & animating it

Learn to animate graphics, text and photos.
Create dynamic transitions and sync to music.
Create a movie title sequence.
Learn how to build 3D objects incorporating video clips.
Animate and edit real-world graphics.

NYC’s Best After Effects Courses

This After Effects course will have you using professional techniques as you create animations, titles, 3D objects, and much more. Learn these skills with hands-on, step-by-step exercises in small classes led by a leading motion graphics instructor.

“This is a great intensive course to get you started with After Effects. I highly recommend it to anyone who is serious about learning this. I would definitely take more classes at Noble Desktop.”

Rose Mattrey

Graphic Designer, AAA Western & Central NY

Rose learned animation and video post-production in the After Effects Level 1 class.
“The demos bring a daunting textbook to life and break everything down to manageable steps.”

Don Jolovich

Sr. Photo Editor, ESPN
“This was a wonderful class and having a live instructor made a huge difference in the class experience. Our instructor, Kalika, was amazing and set the lessons up so that we gradually built towards the final lesson making incredible progress along the way. She also allowed us all to work at our own pace during the lessons so that everyone was able to develop at a pace comfortable to them while still seeing a marked improvement. I highly recommend this class and eagerly look forward to the next.”

Robert Byrnes

Art Director/Animator, Reuters/i24
“After taking the After Effects class at Noble Desktop, I was able to create an animation immediately following completion of the course material - now I have the tools to continue using After Effects in my personal projects and beyond.”

Blake Drummond

Founder, Diagonal Media

Attended the comprehensive After Effects CC Level 1 course
“Kalika was an excellent instructor. Her enthusiasm and passion for After Effects was contagious. She was patient, smart, and funny. She brought a much needed lightness and humor to a difficult subject. When I began to feel overwhelmed, Kalika was hands-on with helping me. She was genuinely interested in teaching us what we wanted to know. We followed the instruction booklet but it was not forced upon us -- we went at our own pace and was able to spend the last class practicing our own project ideas. I left my three-day Noble Desktop experience feeling inspired and excited to continue my After Effects learning journey. I intend on using my new knowledge to make personal art as well as enhance my day-job work as a graphic designer in higher education. I cannot speak highly enough of Kalika. She was truly a pleasure.”

Lisa Festa

Graphic Designer, Princeton University
“I had been trying to learn After Effects on my own for a while, but it wasn’t until I decided to take the course through Noble Desktop that things really started to make sense for me. Now I feel that I have a solid foundation and am more excited than before about learning After Effects.”

Eric Vasquez

Art Director / Graphic Designer / Illustrator

See our 2322 testimonials

Learn Through Real-World Projects

In this After Effects class you’ll learn through projects. First by watching a short demo, then by actually practicing on animations and motion graphics including ads, title sequences, and logos. Our instructor and course developer has created numerous projects specifically for these classes that draw on her many years of experience to teach you practical, professional skills.

After Effects project taught during class

Custom After Effects Workbook

You get a custom workbook with step-by-step exercises that will guide you through creating 9 different projects. These include real-world animations such as a dynamic fashion ad, movie title sequence, and a HBO feature presentation intro. Our After Effects training materials are used by universities and schools worldwide.

Every After Effects class comes with a custom workbook

Industry Expert Instructor

This course is taught by Kalika Kharkar Sharma, an industry-experienced instructor who has produced animations for a wide range of clientele including CNBC, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network. Kalika brings years of experience teaching motion graphics and traditional and digital character animation at renowned art schools including NYU, Pratt Institute and Rhode Island School of Design.

Students learning After Effects from professional instructor

Register for Adobe After Effects CC Level 1

$975 Discounts • Policies

NYC or Live Online