After Effects is an Adobe application used to create animation and visual effects. It is popular with professional designers. Researching complementary and related skills is an important factor in deciding to learn a new skill. Doing so will help you make more informed decisions about what you want to learn, and it will help you decide whether or not learning a specific skill is the right decision for you. You will also learn what kind of skills you want to learn to complement your training later on. Read on to learn about related After Effects training options such as video editing, motion graphics, and animation.

What is After Effects?

Adobe After Effects is a motion graphics application used to design and create special effects. This Academy Award-winning program has been a favorite of film, television, and internet creators since its creation in the early 1990s. Whether you are a small business looking to make eye-catching advertisements and commercials or an employee of one of the top animation studios, After Effect offers a way to bring your imagination to life. When combined with the other programs of the Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe After Effects is a great way to make sure a video project stands out from the crowd.

Read more about what After Effects is and why you should learn it.

What Can You Do with After Effects Skills?

After Effects is a motion graphics and special effects software that allows you to animate texts and objects, use greenscreens to add or subtract objects and elements and develop unique transitions to your visual media creations. Users can create their original graphics using Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator or redesign one of the many available templates to create their vision. When users combine the editing power of After Effects with the capacities of Cinema 4D Lite included with every subscription, these artists can add new textures and dimensions to their visual media. Beyond the incredible toolkit offered within the After Effects program, this application is also compatible with many other tools.

Skills Related to After Effects

Designers use After Effects to create special effects. People who want to work with After Effects find that many other skills complement this app. For instance, learning video editing techniques can be beneficial since editing and creating special effects often go hand-in-hand. Motion graphics design is another complementary skill since using After Effects frequently involves working with motion graphics.

Video Editing

Video editing combines video clips, audio, and effects into an entertaining and appealing format. It often involves sorting through raw footage to find good shots to use. Editors also need to rearrange that content and remove footage that isn’t usable. In addition to combining existing footage, video editors often add sound effects, dialogue, and special effects.

Knowing how to edit videos can be helpful for anyone working with animation or motion graphics. Designers who can edit videos can make minor and significant changes to their creations. These changes often involve using After Effects. For example, designers can make changes to color or lighting, or they can speed up or slow down footage. They can even use a green screen to completely change a video's background.

Motion Graphics

Motion graphics involves designing and creating graphics that move. These graphics function in a variety of media, including video games, websites, films, and television. After Effects is a popular design application frequently used within the larger field of motion graphics. This means that for many people, learning motion graphics is a logical next step after mastering After Effects.

In addition to After Effects, Motion Graphics Designers often use other Adobe programs, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premiere Pro. Continuing education and practice are essential in the motion design field because it is constantly evolving, and technology is continually improving.

Animation

In the past, animation was often hand-drawn. However, today most animators use computer programs like After Effects. These programs save time and allow animators to manipulate their animations in ways that would be very difficult if they were drawing by hand. After Effects helps to create and edit animations, so learning more about the subject can be helpful to a designer working with this program.

By learning some of the basic principles of animation, a designer can create more believable animations in After Effects and have an easier time working on these animations. For instance, animators learn to use contrast, lighting, and perspective to create a scene. They also learn about physics and how it affects the movements of animated characters and objects. They draw on all of these principles when they design animations.

Graphic Design

Designers working with After Effects can also benefit from learning about graphic design. Graphic design combines visual elements in a specific way to communicate ideas and messages to an audience. With any design, including a design created with After Effects, the designer's choices have a specific effect on the audience. For instance, some use color to evoke a certain mood.

A designer who understands all the different elements of design and how these elements affect the audience can produce better designs. Understanding design principles makes the design process more manageable because designers can solve design problems by applying their knowledge.

Soft Skills

Soft skills like teamwork and communication are essential to success in any job. In fact, designers involved in creating motion graphics, animation, or special effects frequently work as part of a team. Even Designers who spend most of their time using computer applications like After Effects must know how to interact with fellow employees, employers, or clients.

Learning soft skills like communication can improve interactions with coworkers, employers, and clients. For example, a Special Effects Artist might need to communicate with a film director to understand their needs for a specific project. After that, there will be back-and-forth communication to meet those needs.

Learn After Effects Skills with Noble Desktop

Are you looking for a training program to jump-start your After-Effects adventures? Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, is known for its high-rated full and part-time bootcamps and certificate programs. Expert instructors set students up for long-term success through project-based learning and many opportunities for hands-on learning. Students living in or near New York City can easily commute to regularly offered in-person After Effects classes offered at Noble Desktop’s Manhattan campus. Want to avoid a long commute? Consider enrolling in one of Noble Desktop’s live online After Effects classes, where you can receive dynamic and interactive After Effects training from the comfort of your home or office!

Wondering which class format will help you cultivate your After Effects knowledge and skills? Consider your timetable and ultimate objectives. Students looking to use After Effects more casually or as an additional skill for an existing career may want to enroll in Noble Desktop’s After Effects in a Day or three-day After Effects Bootcamp. These classes save you time and money by balancing lectures with hands-on experience, maximizing retention, and setting you up for success. “Definitely recommend Noble Desktop overtaking a semester-long continuing education class at an expensive art school,” raved one reviewer, “This class practically covers techniques, and you can get started on your own after three days of intensive learning.” Worried that you couldn’t possibly retain everything you learn? Noble Desktop offers a free retake for all of its classes.

Students interested in a more dramatic career change or developing their portfolio and CV may want to enroll in the Motion Graphics Certificate or Video Editing & Motion Graphics Certificate programs. These training programs use hands-on experience and project-based training to teach students how to create original content using After Effects, Premiere Pro, and other Adobe Creative Cloud applications. Students also have several opportunities for one-on-one mentorship and receive a comprehensive step-by-step manual that ensures they have all the tools needed for long-term success.

Key Takeaways

• A number of skills are closely related to After Effects. Designers who plan to work with After Effects may find it beneficial to learn some of these complementary skills.

• Video editing skills can be helpful to anyone working in animation or motion graphics.
• After Effects is often used in the field of motion graphics.
• Designers who learn the principles of animation can create more believable animations in After Effects.
• Designers will be able to create stronger designs with some knowledge of graphic design.
• Soft skills are vital to success in any job.
• Taking a class is one way to learn skills that complement After Effects.
• Noble Desktop offers in-person and live online training options.