After Effects: Ramped Slow-mo
This is the first thing I learned how to do in Adobe After Effects. I found it difficult at first but after some practice and a few tutorials I got it down. Knowing how frustrating it can be I decided to write a tutorial with pictures to help people just learning it. You might need some knowledge of editing programs like Premier or Final Cut.
When you open After Effects, right click in the untitled project and select ‘New Composition’. click
The ‘New Composition’ dialogue box will appear. Select settings for NTSC DV, 720x480. click
Now click ok. The timeline and preview monitor should show up. Now right click in the Untitled Project window and select ‘Import => File’ and select the file that you would like to ramp. click
Drag your clip into the timeline. Double click on the clip and another box will appear so that you can set the Mark In, and Mark Out points. Do this then close the box. click
Drag the work area to just behind the end of your clip.
Drag the time view window bracket to the left until the clip covers the majority of the visible timeline. click
Now click ‘Layer => Enable Time Remapping’. click
Now place keyframes where you would like to start slowing down the clip, for this one I slowed it down just before the rider begins his trick. Do this by positioning your edit line where you would like the key frame and clicking the key frame symbol. click
Now place a keyframe where you would like the motion to become normal again, just as or just before the rider lands. click
Now highlight the keyframe where the rider lands, AND the key frame at the end of the clip by shift clicking on both. Drag them to the right. Doing this will stretch the time in between the first keyframe and the middle keyframe. The line in between them will drop. click
Drag the clip farther to the right so that the out point is at the right point. Now this is where you begin to slow down the slow-mo, if that makes sense. You want to click the circles with the lines and drag them slightly down and towards the center. This should create a smooth curve which is the key to ramped slow mo. Play with them until you get it right, then click 'RAM preview' and see your creation. You will get frame jitters and such right now, but don't worry about those until exporting. click
Now that you have the motion to your satisfaction, it is time to export so that you can use it in your wonderful editing creations. Click ‘Composition => Add to Render Queue’. click
Now comes the fun part. Select Composition settings. In this window select: ‘Best’ quality. ‘Full’ Resolution. ‘On For Checkered Layers’ under Frame Blending. ‘Lower Field First’ under Field Render. ‘Off’ for 3:2 Pulldown. ‘On For Checkered Layers’ under Motion Blur. Check ‘Use Storage Overflow’. And leave the rest how it is. click
Now select Output settings and click 'Format Options' and select Microsoft DV.
Select 'Output To:' and set a destination for your video
Click Render, wait for it to finish, then watch your wonderful creation.click
