You've learned the basics. Keyframes are in your toolbox. Now it's time to take the next step as an animator and unleash the power of After Effects' graph editor! In this updated and expanded version of one of my most popular classes, I'll teach you everything you need to know about how to take full control of your motion.

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This class is for anyone looking to take control of the look and feel of their motion design. Whether you've been using After Effects for years, or you've only just started learning the program, this class will be easy to follow along. I'll teach you everything you need to know about easing in and out of of every bit of motion you create, and help you develop an aesthetic that will make your work stand apart from others'.

If you've never used After Effects before, I recommend that you take my other quick class, The Beginner's Guide to Animating Custom GIFs, first. Then you'll be prepared for the content of this class.

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Class Outline

Easy Animation. Jake will teach you how and when to use the tools in After Effects to control your animation and create a polished result. Whether you are a professional animator or just beginning to learn animation, Jake’s class will improve your skills and sharpen your work.
Creating your own. After completing this animation course, you’ll be asked to design your own animated house with the tools and shortcuts that Jake has taught you. You’ll be invited to share screenshots of your progress when you post your file, so that Jake can not only evaluate your final animation, but your process and organization skills, too. If you have questions along the way – that’s okay! Jake will monitor his “ask me anything” discussion board so that you have a direct line of communication to him if you ever get stuck.
Learning your toolkit. You’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of speed and value graphs in After Effects and how to use them to your advantage. Plus, Jake will share workflow tips and keyboard shortcuts that will help make your animation work more efficient and fun.
Step-by-step instructions. Jake will explore how to break down complex designs into simple, manageable pieces. You’ll see how to bring a design from Adobe Illustrator to After Effects, and how to approach it as a sum of parts that you can easily animate individually.
Prepping for animation. You’ll learn how separate groups of design objects into layers and then gather multiple layers together to “precompose” better, more controlled animated movements.
Laying out your objects. Jake will explain how to use your original artwork as a reference tool to line up your layers and keep them organized. You’ll also get to know essential keyboard shortcuts that will help you save time – whether you're working on game animation, face animation, or want to create simple animated .gif files at home.
Using The Graph Editor. In a clear, concise demonstration, Jake will demonstrate how he uses the After Effects graph editor to customize, control, and smooth out his animation. By the end of these animation classes, you’ll be able to manipulate keyframes, adjust the speed of their movement, and influence how those frames move over time.
Working with anchor points and graphs. You’ll work with anchor points to animate objects using the scale property. Jake will also touch on how to use graphs to animate complex designs with multiple layers.
Easing motion and looping your design. With Jake’s instructions, you’ll know how to customize the order and timing of your layers’ animations and be able to make an unlimited number of designs, freeing you to be as creative as you like! When you are happy with your work, Jake will talk you through how to create a loop so that your composition is as exciting to watch break down as it was to build up.
Creating a .gif. Jake shares step-by-step instructions for exporting your work from After Effects by saving it as a Quicktime file or photoshopping it into a GIF. He’ll also give you crucial troubleshooting techniques for scrubbing your work to ensure that your animation displays correctly no matter where it ends up.

Michael Lanning

Staying curious

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