Overview
In this tutorial, you'll learn how to create your first composition, familiarize yourself with After Effects’ workspace panels, and understand how to manage assets and layers within your project. These are core skills every beginner animator needs before diving into animations.
Key Takeaways
- Compositions are the “containers” where animations live set icons like 3840×2160, frame rate, and duration.
- Understand AE’s core panels: Project (import assets), Composition (visual preview), Timeline (layer and time control), and Effects & Presets.
- Learn importing your media, dragging assets into your comp, and the layer ordering rules.
- Get a brief intro to pre‑composing—a powerful method for organizing complex animations.
Video Tutorial
Prerequisites (Before Next Lesson)
- Familiarity with moving around workspace panels and basic navigation tools
- A saved AE project with at least one composition created
Up Next in the Series
We’ll build on this foundation by:
- Exploring the Timeline deeply working with keyframes and layer duration
- Animating simple position, scale, and opacity properties
- Learning how to preview your animation efficiently
