Download
the project files: Mac
PC
Boris 3D text and Boris Sphere required. A custom TT font is included in the Windows package. You'll have to substitute a font if you're on a Mac.
AE 5 3D SPACE. . .
After Effects 5 adds the ability to place the
traditional 2D layers in 3D space. The layers remain 2D. There is no Z depth
in the layers, but you can place them in 3D space and animate their position
and rotation in X., Y., and Z. space. AE5 also adds cameras to the mix.
Let's just jump right into a project.
ORGANIZING THE PROJECT. . .
I want to try and duplicate the Universal Studios movie open for the
Creative Cow. A separate layer will be needed for each of the eleven letters
in "Creative Cow" and a layer for our earth. The goal is to create extruded
text and orbit the layers around the earth. The sketch at the right shows a
top view of the battle plan. AE5 is a little
different than working with a true 3D application. We can't just extrude the
text and march it around our world like you would do in real life. We have
to fake it. This is where the "different way of thinking" begins.
Two
tricks are required. Each layer must stay oriented toward the camera as
shown in the illustration and the extruded text mapped on the 2D planes must
appear to rotate from back to front as they orbit the globe.
Parenting and Expressions will make this an
easy task.
BUILDING BLOCKS. . .
Add a new small
solid to your comp. I'm going to use Boris 3D text to extrude the first "C"
in Creative Cow. This part is simple enough. If you've never used Boris 3D
text it's almost as easy as basic text. There are options for extruding,
spinning, tumbling and rotating your type. Experiment with the settings to
get a nice extruded 'C.'. Spin it around and look at it from all sides. The
'c' looks great. All 3D and everything, but wait, there's a catch. The 'c'
is on a 2D plane. It only looks 3d. Turning on 3D in AE5 won't change that.
AE5's 3D only allows you to manipulate these 2D layers in 3D space. Before
moving to the next step, reset the rotation, tumble and spin values back to
zero.
It's time to turn on 3D by clicking on this little cube in the
time line window. 
To make it easier to animate the position of the letter 'c'
we'll add a null object to the time line.
Null objects are new to AE5 and make animating in 3D space much easier.
You'll find null objects the same way you used to create new solids. You'll
also find cameras and lights. (More on that later.)
Make the null
object a 3D. Your time line should look like this:
Notice the
new "Parent" label in the time line. There's a little squiggly box next to
the word none. You can parent the 'c' layer to the null1 by clicking on the
little arrow to the right of 'none' or you can use the Pick-whip. That's the little
squiggly thingie. Just click on the pick-whip on the 'c' layer and
point it to [Null 1] like
this:
Now, when
you move Null 1 the 'c' layer will move.
Switching to
the top view 
(another new feature) in the comp window
will make it easy to accurately position the 'c' layer relative to
the null object and animate the rotation of Null 1 about the "Y." axis.
I've positioned
layer 'c' behind and to the right of Null 1 and rotated Null 1 -30°.
You can move layer 'c' anywhere you want and it will keep it's
relative position to Null 1. You'll notice that in your composition the "Y."
rotation of layer 'c' changes as you move it around 'Null 1' and in
mine, layer 'c' is oriented squarely with the front, or bottom in
this view, of the composition. This is accomplished by adding an expression.
Another new and power full feature in After Effects
5.
ADDING
EXPRESSIONS...
Expressions are a
powerful feature in AE5. We're going to use the pick-whip and a little
simple arithmetic to create two simple expressions to control the rotation
of layer 'c' and to control the spin of the 3D text on layer
'c'.
To create an expression that counteracts the "Y" rotation of layer
'c' is almost too easy. To add an expression for Y Rotation, select
the 'c' layer in the time line and then press the "r" key to spin
down the rotation properties for the layer. Make sure that you can also see
the "Y." rotation property of the Null 1 layer. (Keyboard shortcut "u".) Now
highlight Y Rotation' and from the menu select Animation>Add Expression . Use the
pick-whip and point to the "Y Rotation" on the Null 1 layer. Just
follow the Illustration and you won't get lost.
You'll get
an expression that looks like this: this_comp.layer("Null 1").rotationY
This
expression will cause the rotation of the "Y" axis on 'c' to
match the "Y" axis rotation of Null 1. The 'c'
layer all ready does this because it is parented to Null 1. Adding a minus
sign (-) to the front of the expression will subtract the "Y" rotational
value of Null 1 from the "Y" rotational value applied to layer
'c' by
parenting. The result will be no rotation for layer 'c'.
That's exactly what we want.
Our final expression should
read: "- this_comp.layer("Null
1").rotationY"
A little more math is required for the expression that will control
the SPIN of the Boris 3D text. When planning this effect I determined that
I wanted the word "creative" fill 120° of arc. That means that each
letter has to be 15° behind the proceeding letter. The expression that
controls the "Y" Rotation of C will work for any duplicates of that layer
placed in any position. The expression we create to control the spin of the
Boris 3D text will have to be modified for each separate layer. To set an
expression for spin you need to spin down to reveal Spin in the Boris 3D
Text parameters in the time line. Highlight "Spin" and add an expression.
You can type in or copy the same expression used for Y Rotation or use the
pick whip to point to the Y Rotation of Null 1. If you type in or copy the
previous expression be sure to remove the minus from the front of the
expression. No we have to add a number to this value to make the 3D text
auto orient to the proper angle. For the first layer the value is -90. I
want the 3D text to be perpendicular to the Null 1. No math involved here.
You just have to think about what you want to happen.
The Spin
expression for layer 'c' looks exactly like this:
You can now duplicate the 'c' layer and
change the letters and names for each layer. You have to go into each
successive layer and subtract15 from the expression. The expression for spin
on the 'r' layer would be: "this_comp.layer("Null 1").rotationY-105" If the rotation
was counter clockwise you would add 15.
ADDING THE KEY
FRAMES...
I'm always trying
to make my life easier. It's time to keyframe this animation. Because of
expressions and parenting only 2 key frames are required. The first is set
to -30° Y Rotation of Null 1 at 00:00 on the time line. The second is set at
03:25 with the rotation at 142.5°. This means every 10 frames Null 1 and all
the other layers parented to it will rotate 15°. This will make positioning
the each successive layer much easier. Drag a horizontal and vertical guide
line to mark the center of layer 'c'. While in the top view, jump forward 10
frames and move layer 'r' to the same position layer 'c' used to be in. A
few minutes later and your composition should look something like this when
viewed from the top.
For the final little bit of house cleaning switch to
the front view and the last key frame. You'll have to adjust the X
and Y position of the each layer to achieve a proper look. Be
careful not to inadvertently change the Z. position. Now add a camera
with the lens of your choice and a movie of the earth. I created my earth
with a rectangular still and Boris Sphere. You can add lights, turn on
shadows, add reflection maps to the letters and all kinds of good stuff. You
can speed up or slow down the animation by adjusting the final keyframe
position in the time line. All of the other elements will follow along
nicely. AE5 is simply amazing! Animating complex motion paths has never been
easier.
I hope you enjoy the movie.
Digg it
