What styles are lost when importing/converting PS text to editable text?

Question

In CS5.5, when I import a PSD file with one or more text layers (retaining layer styles and editable layer styles) some of the layer styles change upon import.
In addition, after import, in the Comp panel, sometimes there are no visual differences between that display and the display in PS. But in individual style layers in the Timeline panel, things have changed. Most typically, strokes with gradients are changed either to a solid color (gray or red) or to a simple white-to-black gradient. How is it the display can show a gradient when the stroke layer shows a solid color?
When the text layers are converted to editable text, those changed style properties kick in.
I'm guessing some or all of this has to do with AE text not being able to have a gradient for the fill or stroke? That being the case, is there a work-around?
If this goes beyond not being able to use a gradient for fill or stroke, what are the "rules"? What styles are lost/changed upon import and when converting to editable text?
Jeff Sengstack

Answer 1

> In addition, after import, in the Comp panel, sometimes there are no visual differences between that display and the display in PS. But in individual style layers in the Timeline panel, things have changed. Most typically, strokes with gradients are changed either to a solid color (gray or red) or to a simple white-to-black gradient. How is it the display can show a gradient when the stroke layer shows a solid color?
After Effects includes the entire Photoshop rendering engine, so any PSD and its layer styles should render fine (i.e., just like in Photoshop). If it doesn't, please submit a bug report.
But After Effects does not include the entire UI from Photoshop for creating and modifying layer styles.
The layer styles feature in After Effects exists primarily to provide fidelity between what you see in Photoshop and what you see in After Effects---not so that you can add and modify layer styles in After Effects. The UI in the Timeline panel is therefore a barebones implementation that doesn't include many of the features of layer styles in Photoshop. As you observe, there are many cases in which the representation in the Timeline panel is much more simplistic than what is in the Composition panel.
This separation between the UI and the ability to render with good fidelity is most apparent with pattern overlays. See this video for a good demonstration of how to use layer styles in After Effects by tapping into these features in Photoshop:
http://library.creativecow.net/articles/harrington_richard/photoshop_layer_styles_with_ae. php
> In CS5.5, when I import a PSD file with one or more text layers (retaining layer styles and editable layer styles) some of the layer styles change upon import.
How, exactly, do they change? A screenshot would be useful.
If it's what I'm suspecting, then the page that Mylenium points you to has the clue:
"When a layer style is applied to a vector layer—such as a text layer, a shape layer, or a layer based on an Illustrator footage item—visual elements that apply to the edges of the contents of the layer apply to the outlines of the vector objects, such as text characters or shapes. When a layer style is applied to a layer based on a non-vector footage item, the layer style applies to the edges of the layer’s bounds or masks."
When you convert between Photoshop text and editable text, you're changing the render order and also switching between raster images and vectors. This can affect appearance in many ways.