Classroom in a book

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Animating the lower third
In this exercise, you will start a new project in After Effects and create the anima-
tion you just saw in the finished example.
1
With After Effects still open, import the lower third.psd file by choosing File > 
Import File and selecting lower third.psd from the Lesson 19 folder. Change the 
Import As parameter from Footage to Composition, and click Open.
2
A dialog will open where 
you can specify the kind of 
composition import. Accept 
the default, as shown here, 
and click OK.
3
Double-click the lower third 
composition icon in the 
Project panel to open the 
composition in the Timeline.
4
Notice the Adobe Photoshop 
CS5 layers are intact and 
in the correct order in the 
Timeline. Scrub the Timeline, 
and you will see this is a static 
graphic. No animation has been applied yet. Return the current-time indicator 
to the beginning of the clip.

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ptg
346
LESSON 19
Using Photoshop and After Effects to Enhance Your Video Projects
5
Locate the Effects & Presets panel on the right, and 
expand the * Animation Presets folder. Within that 
folder, expand the Transitions – Movement folder. 
Drag the “Zoom – 3D tumble” preset to the Lower 
Third bg layer of the Timeline.
6
Do a RAM preview of this effect by pressing the 
0 (zero) key on the numeric keypad.
Next you will animate the logo.
7
Position the current-time indicator at the one-
second mark, just as the lower third background 
animation is finishing.
8
Drag the Slide – Swoop preset (located in the 
Transitions – Movement folder) to the Film Reel 
layer. RAM preview the Timeline.
After Effects has some dazzling animation presets designed especially for text. 
These animations are aware of individual characters, words, or lines of text. 
You’ll use one of these text effects on the text layer. However, because you didn’t 
create the text in Adobe After Effects, After Effects doesn’t know the layer is 
text. You need to tell After Effects that the top layer (Behind the Scenes) is text.
9
Select layer 2 (the Behind the Scenes text layer), and choose Layer > Convert to 
Editable Text. Now Adobe After Effects will treat this layer as text that can be 
edited and animated with special text effects or presets. After Effects indicates 
this is a text layer by showing a T icon to the left of the layer name.