Motion Tools After Effects
These free animation tools for After Effects are essential for becoming a killer animator.
- Motion-3 is an HTML5 Extension for After Effects — CC 2018, 2020. Developed by Matt Jylkka and Koen Schmeets. Www.mtmograph.com —————————.
- We are Motion Boutique. We carefully craft original tools, plugins and scripts for Adobe After Effects. We are also a motion graphics studio.
- We are Motion Boutique. We carefully craft original tools, plugins and scripts for Adobe After Effects. We are also a motion graphics studio.
Top image via Jenny LeClue
In this after effects tutorial, we will take a look at the 60 amazing tools for after-effects that come with Mopack. You can also download the demo version o. Ease and Wizz Ease and Wizz is a plugin for After Effects that gives you more ways to interpolate between values. The obvious use is in motion, but it can be used on animated properties of any kind. They're applied with an After Effects-ish palette that can be docked, so it's very easy to use.
While I would never recommend that working character animators use AfterEffects exclusively, there are a few tools that make animating in After Effects much easier. Let’s take a look at five essential animation tools for After Effects.
1. DuIK
Price: free, but donations are helpful.
If you download only one animationtoolforAfterEffects, it’s imperative that you download DuIK. It’s an animation powerhouse that allows users to have all of the tools they need to create fun animations right at their fingertips.
Most notably, DuIK allows users to easily rig elbow and knee joints with inversekinematics. If you’re not already familiar with the term, inversekinematics is a rigging process where joints behave by bending when two objects are brought near.
Among other things, DuIK also has a neat auto-rigging feature that automatically rigs your entire character with pivot points. All you have to do is label the body parts with the appropriate names and run the script. Other notable features include:
- Bones
- Auto-rig
- Stretchy IK
- Automated Dynamics
Instead of getting into the nitty-gritty of how each feature works, check out this cool demo video from DuIK that features all of its new features.
2. Motion Path
Price: free, included in After Effects.
When working with smaller objects and distant characters, an animationpath can be a great tool for giving your project a customizable look. By using a motionpath, you can essentially have an object follow a predetermined path set by the pen tool.
There’s also a really cool auto-orient feature in AfterEffects that allows your object to stay facing the right direction when on a motionpath. This is perfect if you’re animating a car or ship along a predetermined path.
3. Graph Editor
Price: Free, included in After Effects.
We’ve said it before and we’ll keep saying it forever: the fastest way to make your animation look more organic is to use the graph editor feature in After Effects.
If you’re not already familiar with the grapheditor, it’s essentially a small X and Y graph that can be used to display how position, scale, or any other parameter acts over time. Instead of having jarring movements, you can easily make your object’s motion smoother using the grapheditor.
4. Animation Composer
Price: free, with paid plugins.
If you do a lot of shapeanimations inAfterEffects, one of the newest and most helpful animation plugins to hit the market in the last few years is Animation Composer by Mister Horse. This free plugin makes it easy to quickly animate multiple shape layers with a given effect.
In this tutorial from Creative Dojo’s VihnSon Nguyen, we take a look at how to use this essential plugin. While this plugin is free, it should be noted that there are many more paid presets you can purchase for faster animating in the future.
5. Puppet Tool
Price: free, included in After Effects.
The Puppettool is perfect for adding fluid dynamics to your character. As the name implies, the tool allows users to move various body parts around with a simple mouse click. You can even apply a wiggleexpression to give your character randomized lifelike movement.
What are your go-to After effects animation tools? Let us know in the comments below!
Sign In
Motion Tools After Effects Free
Register
- Access to orders in your account history
- Ability to add projects to a Favorites list
- Fast checkout with saved credit cards
- Personalized order invoices
Motion Tools After Effects Download
Create Account