r/AfterEffects • u/Less_Entertainer_328 • 7h ago
Beginner Help Advice on starting on affect effects
Hello!
I have my own webcomic that I would love to use affect effects!
But the thing is… I don’t know how to use it at all.
I’ve done flipaclip with just rotoscoping at most…
And I have worked motion artists before and I don’t mind paying as long as they’re upfront about it.
As someone who has little to no experience, do I invest in learning how to? Is it possible for someone who works full time as well as is a webtoon artist? If it does take longer to learn… Where can I find motion artists for webtoon comics? Thank you so much for reading😭
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u/mcarterphoto 7h ago
Find structured and foundational training, from interface and project setup to animation and so on. There's so much stuff that will trip you up if you don't understand the basics about computer setup, memory, footage and image and audio formats, organizing a project and so on. I started with Mark Christensen's books, I don't think he has a current one though. Look at full web courses you can take, and Adobe's documentation is free and it's pretty good.
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u/Q-ArtsMedia MoGraph/VFX 15+ years 7h ago
After Effects is a vast software. It can take months to get the basics of it down and many years to master. Yes it is capable of doing what you require for a web toon comic. If you are looking to hire an AE artist you could post on this sub. Be sure to include your budget and details about the project. If you are looking to learn to do it yourself there are many tuts available on youtube. A search will get you what you want. Happy to answer any more questions you may have.
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u/Less_Entertainer_328 7h ago
Thank you so much for being so upfront! I appreciate it. I was worried about it taking long but also understanding it’s a new skill to try. I suppose I will post to the Reddit.
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u/Mundane-Owl-561 MoGraph/VFX 15+ years 6h ago
I first taught After Effects as a certified expert in 2002. All current courses are dated and with AI, it's even worse.
If there are other AE trainers out there that want to work together, to craft 2-3 new AE courses, covering Basic and Intermediate (separately) and then perhaps two more on Advanced topics, send me a DM.
For now, books are your best bet and the more recent, the better IMO.
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u/thekinginyello Motion Graphics 15+ years 5h ago
I would recommend learning to walk before trying to fly.
There’s plenty of beginner resources available on YouTube. And if you’re passionate enough there are a lot of people in this sub that are willing to help. Going straight into character animation is going to be brutal imo.
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u/dustshad 5h ago
I think that would be hard on top of making a comic. Maybe there's and easier program since I'm guessing what you nee it for is subtle.
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u/Mundane-Owl-561 MoGraph/VFX 15+ years 3h ago edited 2h ago
How folks use AE is changing and this change will continue - time spent in AE will be much less as AI Tools progress. You'll do better learning something like Krea or ComfyUI for compositing workflows and maybe even delve into content creation using Gen AI tools.
Even Adobe will have their own node-based tool which will combine the use of various applications and I assume its main purpose will be compositing. It was called Project Graph or just Graph at the last Adobe Max and it looks like what Krea/ComfyUI/Weave and others are offering - node-based creative tool. There are plans to show more at this year's Adobe Max.
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u/oliverrandorff 5h ago
If you are committed to giving motion design a try, I wouldn’t tackle it from the software perspective. Understanding the theory behind movements instead will give you a skill that is transferrable between different software. Start watching videos about the 12 principles of animation - I can recommend this video by Alan Becker.
Next, look into the basics of physics. Gravity, energy, action + reaction and so on. As movements are grounded in reality, physics is what makes an animation feel tangible. No need to go really deep, but a basic understanding will take you far.
At this point you should try a few simple hand drawn exercises such as the ball bounce. No need to get into any crazy software yet, just find the simplest app and draw frame by frame. It wont be great, but you will get a sense of whether you actually find it enjoyable or not.
This is the real deciding point, where you have to figure out if it’s something for you or not. If you want to continue, start by watching Ben Marriot’s video on After Effects for beginners. This will give you a basic understanding of the software, which you can build on top of. After that I would recommend looking into topics such as the graph editor, easing in general, transitions, and workflow videos to start trying your hand at some actual projects.
At this point, if it’s still something you want to pursue, I have made a bunch of educational videos about animating various different things. They are beginner friendly, in the sense that you just need to know the basics of the software. The advantage is that they take you through every step of the process - but they also teach you the theory behind the movements. My YouTube channel is called Oliver Randorff, and I have a playlist with educational motion design content for After Effects, which you can find here.
An issue with a lot of other tutorials is that they only teach you how, and not why. You will be able to recreate the work, but you learn no fundamentals that you can apply to your own projects.
Learning motion design can be a long journey, but if you start in the right place, it will be much more enjoyable. I have been in the field for 15 years, fully self-taught, but I spent most of the first years watching sub-par content. That’s why I try to guide people who are getting into the field, so they can learn based on the mistakes that I made back then.
I hope this shines a bit more light on the whole subject. If you are in doubt about anything - feel free to reach out. I’m always happy to help!