Chapter 3: Learning the Tools: Getting Familiar With After Effects

Hi again! Now that we have expanded our knowledge of 2D animation, gone through classic animation history, learned about its principles, and have our sketches and storyboard ready to go, let's move on. Let's talk about Adobe After Effects (AE).

So, why Adobe AE? Well, as you know by now, Bodymovin was the first plugin ever created to export animations into .json files, and this plugin was made for AE. These days, more and more integrations between Lottie and animation tools are being released, which is a good sign, as it shows how popular Lottie is becoming among animators, designers, and developers. Lottie for Adobe Animate is an example; however, most of them are still at an early stage and not all features are available yet, so we will keep our focus on AE for now.

AE can be as simple or as complex as you want; from creating a small animated icon to a huge post-production cinema movie project, it...