We started by prepping the assets in Illustrator. Using 6-8 layers, to create a scene. Using each layer for a different element, I created a setting that featured some of Huddersfield's claims to fame - namely Castle Hill, and a set of rugby posts to indicate that the town is the birthplace of rugby league. Each of these were placed on top of a different hill to represent some of the physical geography that surrounds the town.
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| Original Artwork |
Due to the processes that we would be using, any of the elements that were to feature in the background, or earlier on in the clip would need to be bigger than the standard HDTV art-boards of 1920 x 1080 pixels, this is due to the movement of the camera on the z-axis, objects would shrink into the background, and perhaps reveal the edges - which if undesired can look unprofessional.
We then began to move into AE, creating a new composition at 1920 x 1080 pixels, with a frame rate of 25 FPS and a duration of 10 seconds.
We then moved back into illustrator to finish prepping the assets, the last stage was to extended the art boards so that it included all artwork, even if this was beyond 1920 x 1080.
When importing the Illustrator file into AE it was important to select the option where the illustrator file retained all the layer sizes, as this would make it easier to maintain shapes proportions.
To begin to work in 3D space, first select all the layers in the timeline window, toggle switches and modes and turn on the boxes that are underneath the cube symbol as this enables the 3D options for these layers. When working in 3D space, a objects/layers position figures are given in 3 values, x - representing the horizontal movement, y - the vertical, and z - the depth enable objects to move backwards and forwards. As a default the z axis is set to 0, increasing the value moves the object further away, decreasing it into negative values move it closer to the foreground.
Sara then introduced us to a feature in AE that allows the composition window to be split into 1,2 or more views and the view of the stage can be changed independently in each of these windows, having one set as the top view and one as the active view gives a good idea as to the position of the elements, and how this well effect the final piece.
We then went about setting up the individual elements/layers, moving the background layer to the back of the shot, and then spacing out the layers to give the best visual effect with the movement of the camera in z-space. My work features a rugby ball, whilst the ball was moving towards the background I wanted it to spin, I did this by altering the Y coordinate in the transform, position options.
The next step was to add this camera, by adding a new camera from the layer menu. We added a two node camera using the 35mm preset. Something to consider may be the use of the depth of field option in this window, if you want to have a variable focus in the video.
We got the speed of the zoom/movement of the camera, by moving the playback head to the start, and moving the camera into the desired start position, and inserting a keyframe in the transform properties, and then moving the playback head to the end of the timeline, and moving the camera position into the desired the end shot. A slower effect can be achieved by increasing the gaps between the layers in z-space, having them closer together means that the camera will pass by them quicker as there is shorter distance to travel.
The next technique we were introduced to was how to alter the path that the camera takes. If you want the camera to move up and down changing the top view to a side view gives the best perspective, however I decided that I wanted my camera path to meander around the hills rather than climb them, so I stayed with a top-down view. The next step was to open out the properties section of the camera in the timeline and insert keyframes, if you want to move it up and down you need to alter the Y coordinate, I wanted mine to move side to side so I altered the X coordinate, using the handles found on the points can alter the curvature of the path. For as smooth effect as possible you want to use as few keyframes as possible.
Once we were happy with the positioning, the movements, and the speed of the piece were began to import the textures. Selecting the desired layer and the the wanted texture, and precomposing by going to the layer menu and selecting Pre-compose. A pop up window will open and select "leave attributes...". Then drag the texture under the shape layer, toggle the switches and modes and select the alpha trackmatte. You can add a colored tint by turning the visibility of the vector shape layer on, and altering the opacity and/or options. This should maintain the desired textured effect whilst adding the coloured tint. I changed the colour of the text by adding a coloured tint on top of the texture.
The final stage was adding the peel effect to the layers. This effect is added by adding the page turn effect which is found in the effects menu under effects > distort > Page Turn. We changed the controls to classic UI and played around with the settings in order to get the desired effect.
