Adobe After Effects

Version2023(as of 1/19/2023)
PlatformsWindows, Mac
LicenseCommercial
CategoryVideo
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Rating:3.0  |  152 Votes

Main Features

  • Provides hundreds of special effects and presets for enhancing video projects
  • Mask tracking to automatically adjust masks on moving objects
  • Advanced puppet tools for mesh sculpting
  • Selective color grading with Lumetri color
  • Shape, graphics, and text creation, editing, and animating tools
  • Video content-aware fill capabilities
  • Integration with Premiere Pro and other Adobe CC programs
  • Support for hundreds of plugins to expand the functionality of the app
  • Includes tutorials and templates for beginners
  • Frame.io support for collaborating with other users

Software Overview

Screenshot of Adobe After Effects 2023
Screenshot of Adobe After Effects 2023

Adobe After Effects is a professional motion graphics application for Windows and macOS used to create special effects and enhance video projects. It enables you to design and insert special effects, choose from hundreds of presets, import and export Adobe Premiere Pro projects, and collaborate with others. The application is available as a standalone app subscription or part of the Adobe Creative Cloud (CC) subscription.

After Effects has many features for creating visual effects in your video. You can combine multiple layers of footage and graphics in the application, then animate the separate layers. After Effects has a great set of tools for creating and animating masks in your project and automatically adjusts masks on moving objects. The application also comes with advanced puppet tools that enable you to bend, curve, twist, and scale animations.

The software includes a vast library of special effect presets to help bring your effects to life. The special effects features include multiple color-keying effects for moving your actor from a green screen to whatever location you can imagine. After Effects also comes with Lumetri Color tools for accurately fine-tuning colors and maintaining color fidelity across your workflow in Premiere Pro and After Effects.

After Effects supports many multimedia formats and integrates well with Premiere Pro, allowing you to import and export .PRPROJ projects. Additionally, After Effects provides Frame.io capabilities to help you collaborate with others across devices in locations around the world.

Summary

Adobe After Effects is a professional editor for creating visual effects to enhance video projects. The application features various advanced tools, support for many multimedia formats, integration with Premiere Pro, and helpful collaboration tools. While Adobe After Effects is overkill if you want to make simple edits to a video, it is an excellent option for enhancing video with visual effects that will give it that "wow" factor.

Primary File Type

aep icon.AEPAfter Effects Project

Supported File Types

ExtensionFile Type
.AEPAfter Effects Project
.AAFAdvanced Authoring Format File
.AECCinema 4D After Effects Composition
.AECACHEAfter Effects Cache File
.AEPXAfter Effects XML Project
.AETAfter Effects Project Template
.AETXAfter Effects XML Project Template
.AOMAfter Effects Output Module
.ARSAfter Effects Render Settings File
.AVIAudio Video Interleave File
.CFAAdobe Conformed Audio File
.FFXAfter Effects Preset File
.GIFGraphical Interchange Format File
.JPGJPEG Image
.MOVApple QuickTime Movie
.MP3MP3 Audio
.MPGMPEG Video
.MPGINDEXAdobe MPEG Index File
.PCTPicture File
.PEKAdobe Peak Waveform File
.PNGPortable Network Graphic
.QTINDEXAdobe QTIndex File
.R3DREDCODE Video File
.RPFRich Pixel Format File
.VPEPhotoshop Vanishing Point Export File
.WAVWAVE Audio
.XFLAnimate Uncompressed Animation

Additional Related File Types

ExtensionFile Type
.EXROpenEXR Image
.JPEGJPEG Image
.JSXExtendScript Script File
.MPEGMPEG Video
.PICTPicture File
.ZDCTAdobe Language File
Updated 1/19/2023