So, you say you love 3D animation?

Maybe for you it was the first time you saw something computer animated….like Toy Story.  Or perhaps all these other 3D movies coming out now?

Don’t laugh, but I absolutely freaked out when I first saw a popular 3D modeling program, AutoCAD. It was like an entire world existed inside the computer!  Through enough bargaining, I convinced my parents to send me to AutoCAD “nerd camp” when I was a teenager to learn some basics….

…and I loved it. (Thanks mom.)

All that being said, it’s cool to know that After Effects has some pretty nifty 3D animation capabilities built right in.  And knowing them can really punch up what you can accomplish in your videos.

So, if you’re interested in taking your 2D MoGraph skills to the next level, check out today’s video tip that introduces the concept of 3D in After Effects.

So, to recap:

Cameras - When the movie is rendered, the viewer’s POV.
X – Horizontal, left to right
Y- Vertical, top to bottom
Z - Depth, Towards to Away

And any of these (X,Y,Z) properties can be animated on any solid, light, or camera layers.  Pretty sweet!

Wanna learn more?

• Layers Magazine has a tutorial on how to animate a soccer ball in 3D space.
• Andrew Kramer shows us how to make a whole room in 3D, and
• Here’s a breakdown from Creative Cow on how to create an entire 3D world from scratch in AE.

Hope that helps…

We hope that launches you off into the world of 3D in After Effects the right way.  Have you done any 3D stuff?  Show us your work, post a link, or talk back in the comments below!