Alex Donne Johnson explains how to use the 3D ray-tracing feature in After Effects CS6
06 You need to add a camera to the scene to see the results of this, so go to Layer>New>Camera. Use the Orbit Camera tool to see the now extruded object.
07 To get more depth you will need a light, so go to Layer>New> Light. Move this around in 3D space and you will see the light changing in real time. If you want to create more intense shadows, select Casts Shadows in the Lights properties.
08 A new feature in CS6 is the ability to add reflections. To test this, create a solid (Layer>New>Solid). Make this a 3D layer as before. Go to its material properties and increase the Reflection Intensity. I have used a value of 50%.
09 Another cool feature is the Transparency option located under the shape layer’s Material Options setting. I’ve set this to a value of 50%. If you have the Sapphire Effects Glow plugin, this can be combined to create some nice neon-sign styles.
10 If you want to animate the logo in 3D space, all you need to do is change the orientation; for instance, set some keyframes in the Y orientation to get the logo to spin. Also the camera gives you the ability to move around the object and add depth of field.
Get the Creative Bloq Newsletter
Daily design news, reviews, how-tos and more, as picked by the editors.
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
