In this lesson of the After Effects Fundamentals series, you'll learn all about keyframes. Keyframes are the basis of most animation in After Effects. You'll also get an intro into two important animation concepts: timing and spacing.
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You'll get:
- A 16-page guide - Print-friendly notes for every lesson
- Exercise files to practice as you watch
- A cheat sheet of keyboard shortcuts
- The demo project files for the Mattes lesson
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Set Keyframes
To start setting keyframes on a property, click the stopwatch icon next to that property. This will create a keyframe wherever your playhead is.
To set another keyframe, first move your playhead to where you want the next keyframe. Now that the stopwatch is activated, there are a few options to set additional keyframes:
- Manipulate the layer in the Composition Viewer
- Click and drag over the value (blue numbers) next to the property
- Click on the value (blue numbers) and type in a new number
Don't see a motion path?
If you're animating the position property and don't see a motion path, make sure that the "Toggle Mask and Shape Path" button is toggled to blue and that View -> Show Layer Controls is checked.
Don't see handles on the motion path?
Using the Convert Vertex Tooll (find it under the Pen Tool in the top toolbar), click the squares (keyframes) on the motion path to add handles.
Edit Keyframes
First, position your playhead over the keyframe you want to edit. Make sure it's exactly over the keyframe so you don't set a new keyframe. It might help to zoom into the timeline by hitting the + key. Then, you have the same options as you would to set a new keyframe:
- Manipulate the layer in the Composition Viewer
- Click and drag over the value (blue numbers) next to the property
- Click on the value (blue numbers) and type in a new number
To adjust the timing of keyframes, just drag them along the timeline.
Delete Keyframes
To delete keyframes select it and hit the delete/backspace key. You can also click the stopwatch icon to turn it off and delete all keyframes on that property.
Select Multiple Keyframes
There are a few ways to select multiple keyframes:
- Click a keyframe then hold shift while clicking additional keyframes.
- Click in the empty space next to a keyframe and drag across all the keyframes you want to select.
- Click on the property name (like "Position" or "Scale") to select all the keyframes on that property.
Keyframes can be copied and pasted:
Copy
⌘/Ctrl C
Paste
⌘/Ctrl V
Cut
⌘/Ctrl X
Layer Visibility
A layer is only visible where the layer's bar is on the timeline.
To trim or extend a layer, hover over the start or end of the bar on the timeline until your mouse cursor turns into a double arrow. Now you can click and drag to trim or extend the layer.
To move the entire layer, click the bar and drag it to slide it along the timeline.
You can also control when a layer is visible with the opacity property. You can animate a layer fading in or out by setting keyframes on the opacity property.
Keyboard Shortcuts to Move and Trim Layers:
Move layer start to playhead
[
Move layer end to playhead
]
Trim layer start at playhead
option/alt [
Trim layer end at playhead
option/alt ]
Timing
Timing refers to the time between keyframes. Visually, this is the distance between keyframes on the timeline.
Keyframes that are close together will produce a faster animation than if those same keyframes were further apart.
When animating the position property, the dots on the motion path show where the layer will be at each frame between the keyframes. So, dots on the motion path that are close together mean the layer will be moving slowly there. Dots that are more spaced out mean that the layer will move quickly there.
Timeline Appearance
The time increments across the top of the timeline depend on how long your animation is and how zoomed into the timeline your view is. Use the mountain slider on the bottom of the timeline to zoom in and out of the timeline, or try these keyboard shortcuts
Keyboard Shortcuts for the Timeline:
Zoom in on timeline
+
Zoom out on timeline
-
Zoom all the way in/out of timeline
;
Spacing
Spacing is what happens in the space between keyframes. There are two kinds of spacing:
Spacing in Space
This isn't as confusing as it may sound. A layer's motion path shows this kind of spacing. This kind of spacing is easiest to think about with the position property.
Spacing in Time
Spacing can also happen in time. A layer can move at a constant speed between keyframes (called linear keyframes, diamond shaped) or it can change speeds (called bezier keyframes, hourglass shaped).
Easy Ease
The easiest way to change a layer's spacing in time, is to apply easy ease to your keyframes:
- Select keyframes (Click next to and drag over all the keyframes you want to select)
- Right click on any one of the selected keyframes
- Go to Keyframe Assistant -> Easy Ease (or use keyboard shortcut F9)
This will change the shape of your keyframes into an hourglass.
Take a look at the difference between the linear and easy ease animations:
Applying easy ease to your keyframes can help smooth out their motion. Things in real life rarely move at a constant speed, so using easy ease cab be a good idea when you're first starting out.
