Adobe AFTER EFFECTS CS3 PROFESSIONAL User Manual page 31

Render and export
Add one or more compositions to the render queue to render them at the quality settings you choose, and to create
movies in the formats that you specify. In some cases, you will export using the Export or Composition menu, rather
than using the Render Queue panel. For more information, see "Rendering and exporting" on page 582.
Use Adobe Bridge with After Effects
Adobe Bridge is the control center for Adobe Creative Suite software. Use Bridge to browse for project templates and
animation presets; run cross-product workflow automation scripts; view and manage files and folders; organize your
files by assigning keywords, labels, and ratings to them; search for file and folders; and view, edit, and add metadata.
For more information about Adobe Bridge, see Adobe Bridge.
• To open Bridge from After Effects, choose File > Browse.
• To reveal a file in Bridge, select a file in the Project panel and choose File > Reveal In Bridge.
• To use Bridge to open template projects, choose File > Browse Template Projects.
• To use Bridge to browse for animation presets, choose Animation > Browse Presets.
See also
"Work with template projects" on page 21
"About animation presets" on page 346
Planning your project
Correct project settings, preparation of footage, and initial composition settings can help you to avoid errors and
unexpected results when rendering your final output movie. Before you begin, think about what kind of work you'll
be doing in After Effects and what kind of output you intend to create. Once you have planned your project and made
some basic decisions about project settings, you'll be ready to start importing footage and assembling compositions
from layers based on that footage.
The best way to ensure that your movie is suitable for a specific medium is to render a test movie and view it using
the same type of equipment that your audience will use to view it. It's best to do this before you have completed the
difficult and time-consuming parts of your work, to uncover problems early.
For introductions to digital video, digital audio, high-definition video, DVD, compression, and streaming video, visit
the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/go/learn_dv_primers.
To see a video tutorial on creating and organizing projects, visit the Adobe website at www.adobe.com/go/vid0221.
Acquiring, choosing, and preparing footage
Before importing footage, first decide which media and formats you'll use for your finished movies, and then
determine the best settings for your source material. Often, it's best to prepare footage before importing it into After
Effects.
For example, if you want an image to fill your composition frame, configure the image in Adobe® Photoshop® so that
the image size and pixel aspect ratio match the composition size and pixel aspect ratio. If the image is too large when
you import it into After Effects, you'll increase the memory and processor requirements of the compositions that use
it. If the image is too small, you'll lose image quality when you scale it to the desired size. See "Change pixel aspect
ratio" on page 64.
AFTER EFFECTS CS3 25
User Guide