If youre new to After Effects and want to get up to speed quickly, After Effects Apprentice was created just for you. With 11 core lessons plus a fun final project, youll quickly get into the program and learn how to tap its potential whether you want to create motion graphics for a network program, your companys video, or your own independent production.In this book, youll get a professional perspective on the most important features a motion graphics artist needs to learn to use this program effectively. Youll learn to creatively edit and combine layers, animate eye-catching titles, replace a screen on a computer monitor, place a studio shot in anew environment, manipulate 3D space, and use effects to generate excitement or enhance the realism of a scene. Easy to follow step-by-step instructions take you through each technique, including projects that encourage you to express it in your own way. Youll learn more than just the tools; youll learn skills that you can immediately put to work in your own projects.Topics include how to: Animate, layer, and composite images and text. Manipulate keyframes to create more refined animations. Use masks, mattes, stencils and modes to add depth. Manage layers to make them easier to coordinate. Add 3D to your animations. Use tracking and keying to create special effects.* Includes new CS3 features; Shape layers, the Puppet tool, Brainstorm, and Per-Character 3D Text.