AE Basics 62: Export 8 - Understanding Pre-render

Andrew Devis

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AE Basics - A Creative COW series for new users of Adobe After Effects. Lesson 62: In this tutorial, Andrew Devis explains what Pre-rendering is and why it would be useful in your projects as well as what to look for when pre-rendering to ensure you don't have problems later in your production.

Comments

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Re: AE Basics 62: Export 8 - Understanding Pre-render
by Camille Katz

Hi Andrew!

Thanks for the great tutorial!!
I always hate waiting milleniums for each thing to render and although i have a very strong computer it always still plays back slow... I'm going to be trying this tomorrow on my next animation.
One Q: when you change things in the BG pre-comp do you have to again pre-render it every time to see changes or does it do that automatically?

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@Camille Katz
by Andrew Devis

Hi Camille

Pre-render is really just a render that is used to replace come pre-composed layers in your comp and speed up your working. So, if you go back and change the layers in the comp you pre-rendered you will need to pre-render it again!

The two things to think about may be, 'what is the heaviest layer that's slowing my project down?' And then just pre-comp and then pre-render that or those layers only which should speed play-back.

And, 'what layers have I finished with and I am close to 100% certain I won't need to change again?' These you can also add into the pre-comp and pre-render.

Hope this helps
Andrew

... because it's all about stories ...

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Re: AE Basics 62: Export 8 - Understanding Pre-render
by Andrew Devis

Hi Patrick

Thanks for the question and sorry if I've not made it very clear in the tutorial.

The 'feature' is that 'pre-render' renders and replaces the usage of the rendered comp in any other comps it is used in your project.

So, if you have some effects heavy layers which are slowing your comps up, you 'pre-render' them to some kind of lostless format (such as an uncompressed AVI) and then every place those layers were used will be replaced by that AVI meaning that everything plays back a lot quicker.

You can do exactly the same thing manually, it's just that 'pre-render' is a more automated way of doing it and flowing the changes down-stream so to speak.

Also, because you've created a comp of those heavy layers and then used the 'pre-render' feature those layers are no longer be the in down-stream comps, just the rendered AVI which means better performace. However, they are still available if you need to get to them again for a change.

Hope this helps/makes sense.
All the best
Andrew

... because it's all about stories ...

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Re: AE Basics 62: Export 8 - Understanding Pre-render
by Patrick Coan

Hi Andrew, much respect to your work.

I have a critical question regarding this technique, mainly because I have been doing what I believe is essentially the same thing, while in a different way.

Will you comment on any significant differences woth rendering an uncompressed avi of a part of the comp, then placing that footage on a layer above the parametric/unlflattened effects layers (which are intended to be 'finished')?

The big reason I ask is that this feature 'pre-render' doesn't seem like much of a feature at all unless I am missing something. It seems to be more of an assistance in a person's perception of how to use the software.

All the same, thanks for the great info!

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