Training course

Adobe After Effects Essentials

This 2 day live course covers all of the basic skills needed to start using Adobe After Effects properly.

During the course you will learn to work with layers in After Effects, understand keyframing, control animations, work transparency, and better understand rendering and output.

By the end of the class you will be able to competently edit your video content using After Effects and applying best practice techniques taught by an Adobe Certified Instructor.

  • 2 Days
  • In person
  • Private courses available
Download outline (PDF)

Course Objectives

  • The After Effects Getting Started course introduces a wide range of skills aimed at those who are completely new to Adobe After Effects, teaching you best practice right from the start. You will learn to:
    Work with the After Effects workspaces
    Create an After Effects composition
    Import and manage assets
    Create and format text content
    Create a wide range of shapes
    Apply and edit effects
    Use masks and track mattes
    Parent one layer from another
    Work with keyframes to animate content
    Understand how to precompose

Prerequisites

  • This course is aimed at people looking to professionally edit and manipulate video files, adding post production effects to a high standard.

    You should be comfortable using a computer for example to copy and paste or open files and applications, and an understanding of common video terminology is an advantage.

Included

  • Lunch and refreshments when training is delivered at our training venues
  • Comprehensive course materials and exercises

Course content Back to top

  1. Preparing your project
    Terminology - Resolution, Frames per second and more
    Storyboarding
    What assets are needed
    What other skills are needed
  2. After Effects user interface and animation
    What is a project file and what is in it?
    Workspaces
    Tools and Panels
    Importing Media into a Project
    Creating a Composition
  3. The Text Tool
    Using the text tool
    Formatting and editing text
    Paragraph and Character panels
    Create shapes from text
  4. Creating shapes
    Rectangle, Elipse, Polygon, Star
    The pen tool
    Editing shapes
  5. The Timeline
    Overview of the timeline
    Switches and modes
    Shy layers
    Soloing
    Reordering
    Labels and Markers
  6. Transform Options
    Opacity
    Rotation
    Scale
    Position
    Anchor Point
  7. Basic Animation
    What is keyframing
    Applying keyframes and adjusting keyframes
    Duplicating keyframes
    Easing
  8. Intermediate Animation
    Motion sketch
    Roving keyframes
    Wiggler
    Motion Blur
    Centering / Moving the anchor point
  9. Masking v Track Mattes
    Creating Masks
    Creating Track Mattes
    Keyframing masks
    Keyframing track mattes
    Using with Effects
  10. Adjusting time
    Time reverse
    Slowing down
    Speeding up
  11. Effects
    Colour Correction
    Basic Keying
    Simulating rainfall / snowfall
    Presets
    Modifying Effects using the Effects Control Panel
    Animating Effects
    Using Adjustment Layers
  12. Rendering and Output
    Dependancies
    Add to Render Queue
    Add to Adobe Media Encoder Queue

Training a team?

Run this course privately, on your dates

  • Public Scheduled Fixed course content, fixed date, fixed location, fixed length, multiple organisations - All you need to do is choose which course you would like to attend and contact us to book!
  • Private Flexible course content, flexible training date(s), flexible location(s), variable course length, private to your organisation - Courses can be held at one of our training venues or at another location convenient to you. Training can be set over a number of days or weeks to allow for practice time between training sessions.
  • Bespoke Bespoke private training can be based on an existing course or a number of lessons taken from several courses, we can also write bespoke courses for you based on your in-house systems or development program.

What delegates say Back to top

Which part of the course did you find particularly valuable

“The visualisations were really helpful and the whole process was very easy to follow”
L., Hmpps, Microsoft Power BI Desktop

Following this training what are you going to do differently

“I now want to take on more challenges and improve the documents I produce.”
A.M., Px Group, Word Working with Advanced Features and Complex Documents
“All of the course was great”
L.T., The Labour Party, Excel Level 3
“Learned a lot from todays course that I can take into my workplace”
C.D., Nissan Nmuk, excel level 2
“Very good useful course. Trainer was brilliant and I wasn’t scared to ask her to show me how to do different parts again.”
A.M., James Jones, Excel Level 2
“I have many new skills within the software that I will use on a daily basis”
B.E., Nordem Ltd, Sage Accounts Level 1
“This will help in our reporting so firstly I am going to have a practice with our own data sets and have no doubt we will use Power BI regularly as the reporting is much more impressive and I am sure the visuals will be very well received by budget managers.”
Z.B., Nhsbsa, Microsoft Power BI Desktop
“Very good and useful course.”
J.O., Northumbria University, Adobe InDesign Level 1

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Please contact us to discuss your Adobe After Effects Essentials course, we have many solutions available to ensure you receive the best training possible.

You can choose your learning path and delivery style. Courses can be delivered at your office or at one of our training venues, it's your choice. Small course sizes. Course materials included. Flexible Adobe After Effects Essentials course content. Expert trainers and tried & tested training methods. Many course materials available online using your personal training account. You can master After Effects, please contact us to book a place or get a quote for your Adobe After Effects Essentials course.

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IT Training Solutions Ltd
Oakville, 14 Durham Road West, Bowburn, Durham, DH6 5AU
0191 377 8377
ittrainingsolutions.co.uk
Printed: 10/20/2026 11:00:54 PM