Motion vs. Adobe After Effects

I am starting with Final Cut Pro X and will likely also get effects software.
I heard Motion is more for animated graphics (not my thing at all), and that for effects one has to get After Effects.
Price-wise it would be a no-brainer.
I also know that the Adobe software has a steeper learning curve.
But I think what is most important is that one buys the best software for the job - as one will be spending quite a bit of time for learning it.
So, if one is more interested in movie effects and not at all in graphics effects, what would be the better choice?
Do you have to become very prolific in After Effects to be able to do anything good?
I just saw an ad on craigslist, where someone is selling an unregistered copy of After Effects 5.5 for $140.00 (including box and apprentice book). With the upgrade to CS6 I'd be at around $400 for this.
What's your take on this?
PS: I'm on a retina MBP with 16Gb RAM

I should have said "typographic effects". Title animation is not interesting to me.
I'm trying to make a plan on what to learn - if AE is too complex, or if Motion with its "Behaviors" is easier to learn and more fun to operate, as I have read during my online research.
After all, I don't want to become a special effects guy - just to be able to do a few things to alter video footage.
But, as someone already pointed out, I'd better ask this question in the Motion forum.

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Apple Motion vs Adobe After Effects vs Macromedia Director

Greetings,
1. Is Motion like Adobe After Effects and/or Macromedia Director?
2. What are the similarities and differences between Motion and Adobe After Effects?
3. What are the similarities and differences between Motion and Macromedia Director?
Thanks for the comments!
G5 1.8 GHz Dual Mac OS X (10.3.9)

I have noticed LOTS of people are thinking about, Motion vs After Effects. I personally think it is Apple's intention to eventually exceed AE's abilities. Right now however, I find that 'round trip' thang between FCP and Motion awfully nice, no need for a go-between piece of software like Automatic Duck.
Anyway, in sorting thru my own AE vs Motion quandry I stumbled upon the following overview, which proved insightful - While it's now a bit dated, I found it helpful - Do consider, Motion does some compositing now and I think we'll see it do a lot more in future releases.
Perhaps it may also give you some more to think about - Hope it's helpful either way.
http://www.dvcreators.net/discuss/showthread.php?t=5926

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See this:
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I edited a sequence in Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 with no problems. After I exported it, I checked the movie in Windows media player to make sure everything was okay. In Windows Media Player, the movie played well with audio and video. After that, I imported it into Adobe After Effects. The Movie is 1280x720 60fps. However, after I did a RAM preview of the clip, there was still no audio. I doubled checked the clip outside of After Effects and it played with audio just fine. Is there something wrong with the way I originally exported it or is it a software error? Also, when I imported the movie into After Effects, it played in Slow-motion after RAM preview instead of playing in regular motion. Can someone please help? Thanks.

I think that you're clicking the wrong button and not, in fact, using RAM preview. The Play button in the Preview panel does not start a RAM preview.
See this page for how to do a RAM preview. Pay special attention to the icons that illustrate what buttons to click.

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We are looking for freelance Adobe After Effects Trainers or Broadcast Motion Graphics experts to teach classes in a variety of UK locations. Please get in touch if you're interested. Many thanks, Jon.

Make sure that you have the check box to the left of the comp checked.
Also make sure that you check the render settings. If you inadvertently set the work area in and out points to zero then you won't have anything to render.

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Hello,
I have Just brought a canon 700d and started Shooting HD Movies but now i want to add some effects in my video E.G. Twixtor effect for slow motion but I am facing a problem that i cannot import .MOV file in Adobe AE CS4. Please help me. Also If you can tell me any free converter for .MOV to AF file format.
I am using Windows 8 OS.
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CS4 is much older than Windows 8. CS4 is meant to work on XP or Vista. Getting it to run on Windows 7 was a bit of an issue, so I'm pleasantly surprised to hear that you have CS4 running on Windows 8 at all.
It's also possible that a new camera records in a codec that such an old version of AE doesn't understand.
Make sure you're running the latest update to your version of AE. You're on version 9, so make sure you've run the Adobe After Effects CS4 9.0.3 Update (I would not suggest updating in the middle of a project though, as any changes might break AE). I would like to reiterate: you're running a version that was released six years ago on an operating system that was released much more recently. So, be careful how you tread. However, if you're not running 9.0.3, you're missing some bug fix updates that might solve your problem.
I would suggest upgrading to a newer version of AE.
That being said, as Dave mentions, CS4 and earlier had lots of trouble with MPEG-4 and other codecs that used interframe compression. Can you open the files in your version of Premiere? If so, you can use Premiere or the Adobe Media Encoder to convert to a proper intermediate codec. MOV is just a container format. QuickTime with the PNG codec will work in After Effects CS4 with no problems as will the other codecs Dave mentions.

Adobe After Effects CS6 takes FOREVER to lock existing frames before rendering

My After Effects CS6 locks up for 3 minutes "Locking Existing Frames" before it even begins to start rendering, every time I need to preview anything - even at the lowest possible quality.
The render goes perfectly normal - it is not the rendering that is the problem - it is the "Locking Existing Frames" process BEFORE rendering that freezes up my computer for 3 minutes, and ruining my life.
I am using Adobe After Effects CS6 on a Mac Book Pro with a 2.9 GHz Core i7 processor (2 cores) and 8 GB of RAM.
Please help me understand what is happening when it is "Locking Existing Frames," and what some solutions could be to reduce the amount of time it takes to do this.
ALSO: I have scoured the Web for hours looking for the answer to this problem, and to this point it has never been solved. If you can solve this issue, Adobe should give you a promotion and $1 million.

Hi Rick and Greg,
Thanks for the quick responses. Below are all the details to all your questions. Also - just to emphasize again - my rendering goes super awesomely fast. It is not the rendering. It is the "Locking Existing Frames" process before the rendering that is ruining my life.
FREE MEMORY:
This is brand new Mac Book Pro with hardly anything stored on it.
The 8 GB of RAM is split into 2 memory slots, each with 4GB of RAM
3RD-PARTY CODECS:
I am not aware of any third-party codecs in this system. I imported some fonts (ITC Franklin Gothic) and some video files (see below), but I am not aware of any third-party codec installed on this system.
DISC CACHE:
My Disc Cache is enabled
My maximum disc cache size is 69 GB
I do not have a seperate "fast hard drive" or "SSD" seperate from my main hard drive, where I store my footage.
MPEG SOURCE FILES:
If by source files, you're asking about the video files I imported:
2 MP4s (5 sec. each)
3 QuickTime .mov (3 sec. each)
1 Audio-only FLV. (2 minute background music throughout video; used to be a Premiere working file)
MULTIPROCESSING
Turned off, but still locks up forever before rendering.
ADDITIONAL FUN FACTS:
Here are some additional observations that might help:
It doesn't just take a long time to start rendering; it freezes my entire computer for the duration of the "Locking Existing Frames" process - putting my entire life on hold for 3 minutes, every time I need to preview a minor detail... It's a nightmare.
The video is 1 min. 45 sec. long so far, and has 15 sec. to go.
The video is comprised of 99 percent motion graphics, and 1 percent actual footage (Occupy Wall Street hates my footage)
The complexity in this video is that there are a lot of compositions inside of compositions inside of compositions, but even when I go to the very beginning of the first comp - where the only animation is a line being drawn with the "Stroke" effect - it still takes 3 minutes to "Lock Existing Frames."
Again... The rendering goes super fast after the "Locking Existing Frames" process. The problem is NOT with the rendering. The problem is the "Locking Existing Frames" process BEFORE the rendering starts.
This is my job and I can't do efficiently until I solve this problem, so I will be very responsive until we can identify the issue.
Thanks again for all your helpful responses!

Is there an easier way to work with adobe after effects and final cut pro x

I use adobe after effects and I am thinking about deleting motion and compressor ( I can always install again). If you have a good reason to keep those apps let me know because I don't want to be hasty. If I delete them and stick with after effects and final cut pro... Is there a secret to easy working between FCPX and adobe after effects?
Thanks

You'll go from FCP X to and from Motion a lot easier than AE. Motion does pretty much anything AE does, most of the time faster and easier. Without Motion, you can't do custom templates. You can't customize the encoding of files without Compressor. Why would you want to remove them from your system? Leave them, use AE if you want along side of them. But I'd learn Motion first. Cause AE doesn't read FCPXML, so going back and forth between them is a PITA.
And until Apple releases the round trip between FCP X and Motion fully, we have this gem:
http://www.alexnking.com/2012/02/20/fcpx-send-to-motion-app/

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Hello I represent the graphic artists of the multimedia department at the USPTA (United States Professional Tennis Association). We do a show that airs on the Tennis Channel called, "On Court with USPTA" and "Sweet Spots".
We have just made the switch over to HD and are working on PCs (Dell Precision T3400 Work stations) I am running Adobe After Effects CS3 and I am running into several issues and problems with the software. I am doing full screen HD graphics, Lower thirds in HD, and even HD video overlayed with Graphics. Some or most have motion, and I even do 3D text in some. I am running into problems of the software crashing, locking up or bogging down reletivly quickly. I can barely RAM preview anything longer then 3 seconds and if it has audio you can just forget the RAM preview. I was wondering if those of us who do graphics on PCs if their is a way to speed up the software, or an update or even something in the prefences that could speed up it up and stop all the crash's I am getting.

>and I have tried the multiprocessing and nothing changed.
MP won't do anything on such a system. Simply not enough RAM. Let truth be told, the only real environment that is suitable for MP as AE employs it, are 64bit operating systems (XP64, Vista 64).
As for your other issues - RAM previews can be extended by lowering the comp resolution to Half or Quarter. It's in the nature of the beast - only the frames that fit into RAM can be previewed and the larger the frame, the less of them fit. There is no way to circumvent that. Your only alternative is to enable the disk cache and have AE store rendered frames on your harddrive. this may allow you to use spacebar playback for some segments rather than having to build RAM previews again and again, but it hinges somewhat on the project structure and how working on other segments of the graphics may invalidate cached frames and layers.
Likewise, audio will consume additional memory and further reduce the available duration. It should however not completely screw this functionality, so I can only assume you have a config problem. Therefore check your system's audio settings and the prefs in AE. Ideally, the sample rates and things should match the audio format used in your project and all fancies such as Virtual Surround or acoustic effects be turned off to prevent delay. It also helps to work with uncompressed audio - even though AE has gotten better at handling MP3 et al, it still prefers PCM audio.
Lastly, some similar things do apply to certain compressed video formats - if they use MPEG and its derivatives, AE may need to conform it prior to use and this may cause further hiccups. Using different capture methods and CoDecs may help to prevent that.
Mylenium

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Hi
i'm using Effects CS5 to a create a set of superman esque titles implementing the method found in the link below
www://vimeo.com/6562241
Everything goes smootlhy until i try making additional changes to the animation.
Here's my problem, since this process requires echo to achieve the effect. I try and set an independant camera motion from the text as it extrudes outward. But...once the text begins its animation and the camera starts to move the echo or the extrusion is ALWAYS...ALWAYS altered by the camera. (The path of the echo is follows the path of the camera.) Whether it's in a x, y, or z path it still occurs.
Sure i can change the camera angle and view it from a different perspective stationary, but i can't get them to move independant paths from each other without thecho being altered as well.
IF ANYONE OUT THERE IS A WIZ AT ADOBE AFTER EFFECTS PLEASE PLEASE RESPOND

Pre-compose the layer, then move the camera. Won't give you correct perspective, though. After all, Echo is simply a 2D buffer accumulation, not a 3D extrusion.
Mylenium

Is Live Type Apples version of Adobe After Effects?

Hello i was curious to know if live type is apples version of adobe after effects? now i know they are not the same but i started learning adobe after effects and it seems very similar...I don't want to try and learn another program if i can do the same thing with live type... I was looking into video editing as a career and have been teaching myself a bunch of things but i see that in the video production field that Adobe after effects is used alot and ppl want you to be familiar with it.. So i'm basically asking with the knowledge can the same thing be accomplished in live type as in after effects ?
Thank you

Hi jbonante
Despite its name, LiveType does more than just manipulate text and create title cards.
If you do a search of YouTube, you will many interesting examples of how LT has been used, for example one I did:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt99U9JnQcQ
Do you really need After Effects, Motion etc for what you are trying to create?
Regards
Robert

Using adobe after effects templates in fcpx

Is it possible to use an adobe after effects template in motion 5 or fcpx? If so how do I go about doing this? I am fairly new to this and i found a template that i would really like to use for a football highlight video that i am putting together. Thank you ahead of time for any help that yall can give me.

On more research, I discovered the following link showing a workflow to go between FCP X and After Effects. Please disregard my first post. Adobe After Effects is currently in 64 bit, but their site says it is compatible with Mac OS 10.5.8 and 10.6. Not sure if Lion would therefore be included. Sorry for the wrong info.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzCCfkQKBwE

Can you create the Title effect in Daybreakers, adobe after effects cs4,,please take this one as cha

im currently studying Adobe After Effects CS4, and i found the title of DAYBREAKER(2009)movie a very interesting effect to create, i hope you can give me tutorials on how to do that..please! more power, NOTE: im using adobe after effects cs4

From what I saw on the trailer for this film the titles are a modified version of George Peolvoy's Flowing Title tutorial posted on Creative Cow about 10 years ago. You'll find the tutorial here.
The glass effect on the type can be duplicated using layer effects in Photoshop and / or then applying those layer effects to your type layer directly in AE. You'll find a bunch of those tutorials by doing a simple Google search for Glass Text Photoshop.
There is no one click, one plug-in solution, but if you integrate the layer effects, a displacement map, some compound blur, and a little position keyframing + motion blur you should be able to duplicate the effect exactly. George's tutorial should get you started. If I remember right the project files were for AE 4.1 so they probably won't open in CS4.
Good luck
Daybreaker Trailer

Using Adobe After Effects CS5

Hi guys I need your help with this. I'm using Adobe After Effects CS5 on my iMac 06 and I just wanted to know, how exactly do I edit my movie frame by frame?
I've tried looking up on Youtube how to do this and I can't seem to find out how. Would anyone here know the answer?
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Hi,
I'm using adobe after effects CS5 to create a set of title's re creating Superman.
I' using this method found in the link.
http://vimeo.com/6562241
Heres my problem, since this process requires echo to achieve it. I try and set and independent camera motion from the text while it extrudes outward. But... once the animation starts the echo ALWAYS...ALWAYS is disrupted and altered by the camera movement, whether its in a x, y , or z path. Sure i can move the camera angle and view it from there, but i cannot have the two moving independent from each other.
IF ANY ONE OUT THERE IS A WIZ AT ADOBE AFFTER EFFECTS PLEASE PLEASE RESPOND
this is SUPER ha ha frustrating
Thank you

Besoin de personnes sachant utiliser Adobe After Effects CS4

Hello les gens, j'aimerais savoir si l'un d'entre vous a Skype et si il peut m'apprendre les bases et répondre à mes questions surs Adobe AE
Merci de répondre au plus vite !

Bonjour! ce genre de formations est souvent rétribuée. Quel tarif horaire te conviendrait-il?
Voici des cours video sur les bases de AE:
4heures gratuites en Français: http://www.mattrunks.com/formations-debutant/
2 heures 20 gratuites en Anglais: http://www.videocopilot.net/basic/
Un super formateur: http://www.after-effects.fr/
Un forum sur After Effects, en Français: http://www.repaire.net/forums/adobe-after-effects.html
Un site de tutos: (payants et gratuits) en Français: http://fr.tuto.com/after-effects/
Un site de formations de qualité, payantes, avec des sessions gratuites, en Français: http://www.video2brain.com/fr/search.htm?search_entry=after+effects
Je recommande aussi la version anglaise du site, avec des tutos gratuits: http://www.video2brain.com/en/search.htm?search_entry=after+effects
En Anglais, encore, ce site payant a une foule de vidéos sur AE: http://www.lynda.com/After-Effects-training-tutorials/150-0.html
Une reférence en Anglais est ce livre: Creating Motion Graphics de Chris et Trish Meyer.

Motion vs. Adobe After Effects

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