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3D layers above and below it in the Timeline window cannot interact with one another.
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It can be relocated anywhere in the Timeline window's stacking order.
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It cannot interact with other Comp Camera effects, 3D layers, or shadows.
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The image is rendered on the layer, not the composition. Consequently, apply Comp
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Camera effects to layers that are the same size as the composition and are exactly
centered in the composition.
Using Adobe Photoshop layer styles in After Effects
After Effects supports the following layer styles from Adobe Photoshop: Drop Shadow,
Inner Shadow, Bevel/Emboss, Inner Glow, Outer Glow, and Solid Fill. If you apply layer
styles in Photoshop and then import the file into After Effects, the styles are also imported;
however, not all options in each style are transferred over. You can edit the styles in the
Effect Controls window.
Using keying effects
After Effects includes several different effects that key out, or make transparent, parts of an
image. Each effect is called a key, and the color specified for transparency is called the key
color. A key locates pixels in an image that match the specified key color and makes them
transparent or semitransparent, depending on the type of key. When you place a layer
over another layer using transparency, the result forms a composite, in which the
background is visible wherever the first layer is transparent, making the first layer appear
to be part of the background.
After Effects creates an alpha channel for identifying areas in an image that are partially or
completely transparent. The view of an image in its alpha channel is often called the matte
view. The matte represents opaque, transparent, and partially transparent areas as white,
black, and gray, respectively. For more information on alpha channels and mattes, see
"Importing footage containing an alpha channel" on page 30. For information on using
the keys included with After Effects, see "Keying effects" on page 199.
You often see composites in movies, for example, when an actor appears to dangle from a
helicopter or float in outer space. To create this effect, the actor is filmed in an appropriate
position against a color screen. The color screen is then keyed out and the actor's scene is
composited over the background footage item.
For satisfactory keying results, start with the highest-quality materials you can gather,
such as film that you scan and digitize. Strive for lighting that is constant for the
duration of the color-screen scene. Use footage files with the least amount of
compression. Files with lossy compression, especially DV and Motion JPEG files, discard
subtle differences in blue. These differences may be necessary to create a good matte
from a bluescreen.
Adjusting keying controls on a single frame
For evenly lit bluescreen footage, adjust keying controls on only one frame. Choose the
most intricate frame of the scene, one involving fine detail such as hair and transparent or
semitransparent objects, such as smoke or glass. If the lighting is constant, the same
settings you apply to the first frame are applied to all subsequent frames.
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