Adobe After Effects Vfx



The best online after effects courses & Tutorials to start learning of Adobe After Effects at beginners level.

Check out my latest upload here!CreatorGalaxy Store - Join The Community - Get. Flair brings eight high-quality effects to Adobe After Effects and Photoshop® compatible programs. Among them are shine, glow, and sparkle effects with 16-bit and multi-CPU support. Curves are a very versatile and precise color-correction tool. The native After Effects version lacks control and accuracy to take full advantage of it. Create titles worthy of blockbuster movies by importing Adobe Illustrator assets to After Effects and manipulating them with Cinema 4D Lite. Export an animated scene or puppet. It’s easy to add visual effects to animated characters. Just drag and drop the asset from the Character Animator Project panel to the After Effects Project panel. A Comprehensive Guide to Compositing for Live-Action Films in Post-Production Visual Effects Using Adobe After Effects If you want to learn how to use After Effects to create realistic visual effects (VFX) shots and not just motion graphics, then you're looking at the right course.

Motion Graphics and Visual Effects are becoming increasingly valuable and important in any video created. Talents to create these kind of animations and effects are more and more in demand. It is also an easy way to earn money as a freelancer or resell your packaged animations on hundreds of sites on the web. Learning how to create these animations using Adobe After Effects has become essential.

After Effects is a robust tool that is capable of creating almost any video effect out there. After Effects CC is used by professionals across the world for every type of production from business & marketing videos, music videos to documentaries, feature films. The top After Effects courses are enlisted for you to kick- start your career in a professional manner.

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Best After Effects Tutorials, Courses List

1.After Effects CC 2019: Complete Course from Novice to Expert

Create stunning Motion Graphics, VFX Visual Effects & VFX Compositing with hands-on tutorials & 50+ practice projects.

⭐ : 4.6 (10,917 ratings)

In this course, you will:

  • Work with the latest 2019 responsive design techniques
  • Create Motion Graphics to enhance your videos using a step by step, easy-to-use method.
  • Boost your creativity by completing 50+ Practice Activities and projects from simple to complex.
  • Practice compositing techniques to achieve stunning video effects.
  • Master visual time effects on videos and motion graphics.
  • How to use specialized visual effects such motion tracking, camera tracking, chromakeying, rotoscoping, stabilizing
  • Work in 3D space with Cameras, Lights and Shadows and practice your new skills with 3D Motion Graphics Projects.
  • How to Import and animate Illustrator Vector Graphics.
  • Create advanced taype nimation in 2D & 3D

You will go through creating useful and practical animations and learn how to use simple and complex animation techniques. You will start with a fast track to get familiar with After Effects and Create a Crash Animation. You will then learn all about the essential transformations using practical animations and useful examples. You will build Projects and Videos from scratch and practically learn more about numerous features and functions of After Effects. You will go through projects where you will learn how to create animation sequences and package a whole video.

After Effects CC 2019: Complete Course from Novice to Expert is one of the best after effects tutorials for beginners on Udemy.

2. Introduction to Adobe After Effects: Getting Started with Motion Graphics

After Effects is the leading professional motion graphics and visual effects software. Never used it before? Interested in getting started?

In this course, you will learn:

  • Importing and laying out assets.
  • Bringing in footage, trim, crop, and color correct.
  • Laying out shapes and text using guidelines.
  • Animating layers.
  • Making your layers move and introduce some basic animations to properties over time.
  • Editing text.
  • Exploring the fundamentals of text layers and animations.
  • Adding embellishments.
  • Blending elements and complete the look of graphics by adding secondary animation and stylistic effects like drop shadows, distortions, and glows.
  • Exporting.
  • Taking your animations out of the program and and explore settings for the next potential steps in your workflow.
  • How to create a lower 3rd to put over existing footage elements.

This course will cover the essential aspects of the software, including how to navigate the interface, understand the tools and windows of the program, and import footage. You will learn how to create assets such as text, shapes, masks, vector objects, and more to create visual interest and solid design. Then, you'll make those assets move. This will include key framing and an introduction to using expressions to automate simple animation properties. Lastly, it will cover exporting your project.

Introduction to Adobe After Effects: Getting Started with Motion Graphics is good after effects animation tutorials to take on Skillshare.

3. After Effects CC Masterclass: Beginner to Advanced

Learn After Effects CC to improve your videos with professional motion graphics and visual effects.

⭐ : 4.5 (2,844 ratings)

With this course, you will:

  • Know how to use After Effects to make your videos better than ever
  • Be comfortable using After Effects - even if you're a beginner
  • Know how to create a video project from start to finish in After Effects
  • Create professional motion graphics that improve your videos
  • Add creative visual effects to your video projects
  • Export high quality videos from After Effects and know how to use it with Premiere Pro efficiently

You'll learn all of the basics, intermediate, and some advanced techniques, from working with shapes, text, and textures to video effects, transitions, and 3d camera. This course will teach you how to start a new composition, using the basic tools, working in the After Effects CC timeline, adding shape and text layers, animating position, scale, rotation, and opacity, working with shape layers and masks, real world projects such as lower thirds and bumpers, motion graphics principles and best practices, using video effects and presets to speed up workflow, green screen and chromakey removal, visual effects and rotoscoping, motion tracking and video stabilization, creating unique transitions, and exporting your projects.

You can take After Effects CC Masterclass: Beginner to Advanced on Udemy.

4. After Effects CC: The Complete Guide to After Effects CC

Updated for CC 2018! Learn After Effects CC to improve your videos with professional motion graphics and visual effects.

Adobe After Effects Free Download

⭐ : 4.4 (265 reviews)

You will learn all of the basics, intermediate, and some advanced techniques, from working with shapes, text, and textures to video effects, transitions, and 3d camera. You will learn about motion graphics in After Effects.

This course will teach you how to shoot, design better presentations, create a great resume, colorize black and white photographs, and edit photos in Lightroom.

In addition, this course includes practice lessons which will get you motivated and moving to your goals. The lessons are meant to teach you how to think like a motion graphics/video effects artist.

Take the best after effects tutorial, After Effects CC: The Complete Guide to After Effects CC on Eduonix.

5. After Effects - Motion Graphics & Data Visualization

Using Adobe After Effects create beautiful VFX Visual Effects, data visualization & VFX Compositing.

⭐ : 4.7 (1,642 ratings)

With this course, you will:

  • Learn to take Excel spread sheets and animate this in After Effects.
  • Learn how to make animated pie charts, line charts & bar graphs.
  • Learn how to create percentage counters.
  • Learn how to animate icons making beautiful infographics.
  • Learn how to create 'voice over' infographics
  • Learn all the animation techniques needed to bring your data to life.
  • Have the finished files so you never fall behind.
  • Get downloadable exercise files & cheat sheet.

You will start with the super basics, taking simple icons breathing life into to them with After Effects. You will get to work through real life projects, connecting Excel into After Effects to transform your boring spreadsheet data into approachable visual information. You will also experiment with lighting & cameras. Then you can do some fun things with masking, looking at how important sound is in your presentation, all the way through to exporting for Youtube, Powerpoint and all sorts of social media including animated GIFS. There are projects for you to complete, so you can practice your VFX visual effects skills and use these for your portfolio.

You can take After Effects - Motion Graphics & Data Visualization on Udemy.

6. Learn Adobe After Effects CC 2017 In 2 Hours

Adobe After Effects: Learn After Effects CC 2017 In 2 Hours

Adobe After Effects Vfx

6,672 1 total enrollments

Adobe After Effects Vfx

In this course, you will learn about:

  • The interface FX console
  • Keeping things neat and tidy
  • Importing assets into After Effects
  • Creating your first composition
  • Working with 2D layers
  • Working with 3D layers
  • Adding Effects to layers
  • Creating text in After Effects
  • Animation basics and keyframes
  • The pivot point layer parenting

You will also learn how to work with solids, null objects, pre composing layers, rotoscoping and masks adjustment layers, green screen and chroma keying, 2D motion tracking, 3D camera tracking, adding motion, and blur rendering from After Effects.

You can take Learn Adobe After Effects CC 2017 In 2 Hours on Skillshare.

7. After Effects CC: The Complete Motion Graphics Course

Create Motion Graphics with Adobe After Effects CC: Best Techniques and Methods to Become a Top Motion Graphics Artist

⭐ : 4.6 (1,693 ratings)

With this course, you will:

  • Create full motion graphics videos in After Effects
  • Learn how to create the 4-Phase walk for any character
  • Create graphics using After Effects tools
  • Use all After Effects motion graphics properties and methods
  • Understand and apply the most useful visual effects for graphics
  • Master the most useful After Effects' motion graphics & visual effects techniques
  • Import and animate illustrator graphics

You will focus on Motion Graphics while learning all about After Effects methods, techniques tips and tricks to create awesome animations. Some practical projects are covered in this course which are the phone animation, the walking character, and angry birds.

Effects

After Effects CC: The Complete Motion Graphics Course is a part of highly rated after effects tutorials for beginners on Udemy.

8. After Effects: The Complete Beginner Course (All Versions)

Learn How to Create Professional Motion Graphics & Animations. Add Exciting Visual Effects to Your Own Video Projects

⭐ : 4.6 (154 ratings)

With this course, you will:

  • Gain the understanding of how to use Adobe after effects
  • Learn how to create professional animations & motion graphics
  • Learn how to add exciting visual effects to your own film projects
  • Progress from beginner to intermediate skill level
  • Learn how to create animated titles, infographics
  • Learn how to export & share your animations & visual effects

In this course, you will learn to create your own motion graphics, animations, titles and VFX for your video projects, and gain a solid understanding of all of the fundamentals of Adobe After Effects.

This course covers all of the basics of Adobe After Effects from how the interface works all the way to creating your own Morph VFX.

After Effects: The Complete Beginner Course (All Versions) on Udemy is a good choice for new students looking for a after effects tutorials for beginners.

9. Adobe After Effects CC - Motion Graphics Design & VFX

Learn the techniques to start your career as a Motion Graphic artist.

⭐ : 4.6 (774 ratings)

With this course, you will be able to:

  • Create beautiful motion graphics
  • Animate compelling infographics
  • Choose the correct video settings.
  • Learn how to exporting your video easily.
  • Create slick type animations.
  • Render your video for Youtube & Vimeo.
  • Create titles for interviews.
  • Add music to your motion graphics.
  • Trim & edit video.
  • Add watermarking to your video.
  • Fix shaky footage.
  • Color correct & fix any bad footage.
  • Add a vignette to your video.
  • Learn how to use your skills from Illustrator & Photoshop
  • Use green screen footage
  • Mask like a pro
  • Animate infographics like bar graphs, line graphs & pie charts.
  • Use camera to make 3D type.
  • Animate static images using parallax

In this course you’ll learn how to create motion graphics in Adobe After Effects. As part of this course you’ll get downloadable exercise files so you can work along exactly with the trainer. You’ll also get completed files with every video so you can download and check your files against the trainers. You’ll create over 15 smaller projects so you can gain experience with the software.

You can take Adobe After Effects CC - Motion Graphics Design & VFX on Udemy. For montion graphics & VFX this tutorial can be considered as the best after effects tutorials.

10. After Effects for Beginners Complete Intro to After Effects

Complete Intro to After Effects - Learn After Effects CC typography and animation

Adobe After Effects Vfx Templates

⭐ : 4.7 (254 ratings)

With this course, you will be able to:

  • Improve the quality of your videos by adding animations
  • Establish a healthy understanding of motion graphics
  • Use After Effects fluently and understand advanced tutorials
  • Transition from a graphic designer to a graphic design & motion artist

This course will teach you all neccesary & most used After Effects tools, a proper workflow, show you real-life examples of animating and various tricks in the program. Some of the things that will be covered during the course are motion graphics basics, After Effects program layout and basics, working with different types of layers, creating your first few animations, simple kinetic typography to use, real-life examples of lower thirds, logo animations, cross-usage between Photoshop / Illustrator, how to add effects to our compositions, precomposing, matting, exporting, rendering, tons of often used tricks, and keyboard shortcuts.

If you are looking for after effects animation tutorials, this tutorial is a great choice to take on Udemy.

11. After Effects CC 2019 Motion Graphics & Animation Principles

Learn how to create awesome motion graphics animations while implementing the animation principles in After Effects CC

⭐ : 4.9 (46 ratings)

In this after effects animation tutorial, you will learn:

  • How to create motion graphics applying the animation principles
  • The motion techniques and graphic effects to implement the animation principles.
  • How to add sound effects and adjust the pitch
  • How to work with time to create flowing animations
  • The option to download all the graphic artworks used in the course and design your own animations
  • How to download free vector artworks (AI), how to organize them in Illustrator ready to animate in After Effects
  • How to create in and out transitions for explainer videos

You will start with the basics, creating simple entry animations. Step by step you will start learning the animation principles and implementing them in your animations. You will create in and out transitions, typical animations for explainer videos. Then you’ll venture into complex animations, pop, wiggle, float, shake and wave. You’ll familiarize yourself with Distortion techniques to create lively micro movements. You will also learn several methods to implement these Animation Principles.

You can take After Effects CC 2019 Motion Graphics & Animation Principles on Udemy for students looking after effects animation tutorials.

12. Adobe After Effects Color Correction And Color Grading

Learn Color Correction & Color Grading with the Adobe After Effects - The Complete Beginner to Intermediate course!

Adobe after effects vfx dinosaur

⭐ : 4.7 (301 reviews)

In this course, you will:

  • Learn the basic Adobe After Effects tools that will help you to understand the color correction and color grading processes.
  • Use the Adobe After Effects to create cinematic looks without using additional plug-in

This course prepares you for the first steps as a colorist and teaches you the basic tools of color correction and color grading with a Adobe After Effects.

You can take Adobe After Effects Color Correction And Color Grading on Eduonix.

13. Adobe After Effects CC For Beginners: Learn After Effects CC

Adobe After Effects CC For Beginners: Create Motion Graphics, Animate Text, Key Framing, Importing, Exporting & More!

⭐ : 4.5 (377 ratings)

With this course, you will be able to:

  • Understand Adobe After Effects windows and controls
  • Create lower third titles
  • Create motion graphic titles
  • Create and save composition and export presets
  • Work with HD 1080p and 4K compositions
  • Export video projects in High Definition
  • Export animations and titles with transparent background to use with other videos
  • Animate text and graphics

This course is an introduction into Adobe After Effects CC. It will get you started with understanding the software to create effects, animations, titles and more for your video projects. This course will take you from the very beginning of opening After Effects and learning the panel windows and settings to creating your first motion graphic title.

You can take Adobe After Effects CC For Beginners: Learn After Effects CC on Udemy.

Thank you for reading this. We hope our course curation would help you to pick the right course to learn Adobe After Effects. In case you want to explore more, you can take the free Adobe After Effects courses.

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Adobe After Effects sits at the pinnacle of 2D-based animation compositing tools with great motion graphics tools and well-supported communities with a plethora of scripting, plugins, templates, and tutorials for creating spectacular outcomes. However, the demand for Adobe After Effects alternatives is growing because of it's high subscription fee ($20.99/month under an annual plan), random crashes, and the steep learning curve. Thus, I pick up the 10 best Adobe After Effects alternatives, range from free open-source software to comparatively expensive programs, fitting your various demand and budgets. Quick navigations:

  1. Adobe After Effects Free Alternative [Natron, Blender, DaVinci Resolve, Cavalry]
  2. Online After Effects Alternative [Clara.io]
  3. Cheap Software that Can Replace Adobe After Effects [Motion 5]
  4. Easy Adobe After Effects Alternative [Hitfilms Pro, Vegas Post]
  5. Advanced After Effects Alternatives [Cinema 4D, Nuke]

Adobe After Effects Free Alternatives

#1. Natron - Best After Effects Open Source Alternative

  • Price: Free
  • Ease of use: ⭐⭐⭐
  • Download Link: https://natrongithub.github.io/

Natron is a free and open-source compositor which is capable of generating unlimited layers of masks, matters, and shapes. It can also be utilized to create simple 2D/2.5D animation VFX, but you won't get particle effects to create smoke flow, clouds, and some special visual effects directly. It supports countless open-source plugins as well as commercial add on. Thanks to the support of the 2D planar tracker, you can quickly and accurately accomplish your tracking jobs.

The nitty interface, as well as the node-based compositing workflow of Natron, is nearly the same with the expensive Nuke (an advanced After Effects alternative that we'll talk about later) which enables you to set expressions on animation curves to create animation move objects. Well, it's no wonder why it is considered as the best After Effects open source alternative by many reddit users.

Natron VS After Effects

  • Natron wins in: Node-based Compositing, Ease-of-Use, Customizable, Cross-platform.
  • After Effects wins in: Title Creation/Generation, Motion Graphics, 3D Compositing, Color Grading, 3D Models Importing, Particle Generators, Simulations, 2D/3D Animation, Render Speed, Rotoscoping, Third-Party Plugins, Audio Editing.

Adobe After Effects Vfx Tutorial

Effects
'Well this is undoubtedly the best and probably the only (with the exception of blender) node based Open Source compositing software out there which is also free for commercial usage.'
- Users review from g2.com

#2. Blender - After Effects Freeware for Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, Windows

  • Price: Free
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐
  • Films that used Fusion for production: Cosmos Laundromat, Agent 327
  • Download Link: https://www.blender.org/download/

Blender is an open-source 3D animation and modeling program with integrated compositors. That's being said the killer feature of Blender is its capability in creating stunning 3D animation graphics. If your work requires lots of 3D effects, Blender can deliver further more possibilities than After Effects does. And Better yet, everything you can do about 2D-based VFX and composition with After Effects can get accomplished in Blender, though very possibly in a more time-consuming and cumbersome way.

Produced by Blender Animation Studio

Blender VS After Effects

  • Blender wins in: 3D compositing, 3D modeling, Editing Capabilities, Cross Platforms.
  • After Effects wins in: 2D animation, Render Speed, 2D Motion Graphic and VFX work, Templates Creation, Title Generation, Rotoscoping, Third-Party Plugins, Text Motion Tracking.
'I am an avid user of Blender. I have utilized this program to create 3D animations for clients and to craft animated characters for game design projects. Since 2013 I have used this program for all of my 3D modeling needs.'
- Users review from Capterra.com

#3. Blackmagic Fusion – Free Alternative to After Effects for Linux, macOS, Windows

  • Price: Free
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Films that used Fusion for production: Deadpool 2
  • Download Link:https://www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/fusion/

Fusion is developed by Blackmagic Design as a standalone application-Fusion 16, and also an integrated utility in Davinci Resolve 16. As a professional compositing software, it's widely used by broadcast companies, TV-series producers, and commercials to create special visual effects, motion graphics, virtual reality video, camera/planar tracking, animate titles, etc. With the advanced stereoscopic 3D tools, it's capable of loading and rendering 3D models and scenes.

What's more? You can add interactive physical effects like wind and gravity with 2D/3D objects in the scene. Suppose you are using the Fusion tab integrated with the free DaVinci Resolve, you can get access to the advanced audio/video editing toolsets, and the strong color-correction utility as well.

Fusion VS After Effects

  • Fusion wins in: Node-based Compositing, Color Grading, Video Editing, Audio Editing, VFX work, Cross-Platform.
  • After Effects wins in Stable, 2D/3D animation, Render Speed, 2D Motion Graphic, Templates Creation, Title Generation, Third-Party Plugins, Simulations.
'The Fusion inside Resolve, is not really ready for productions with a large amount of huge VFX scenes. So this product fits right into my pipeline nicely. Works well with 3D tracking software like SynthEyes, plus has nice trackers that come with it as well.'
- Users review from Adorama.com.

#4. Cavalry - New After Effects Alternative for Windows and macOS

  • Price: Free
  • Ease of Use:⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Download Link: https://cavalry.scenegroup.co/

Cavalry, first released in 2019, focuses on 2D motion graphics, is also good at data visualization, character animations, FUI, and much more. As a nova in animation software, Cavalry is friendly for armature with a nitty interface and straightforward workflow. For instance, you can simply double click on the keyframe node to adjust the properties. With features like deformation, voxelising shapes, - Users review from Reddit.

After Effects Online Alternative

#5. Clara.io - Free After Effects Online Alternative

  • Price: Free (The paid version costs $10/month)
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • The Official Site: https://clara.io/scenes

Clara.io is a full-blown 3D modeling, animation, and rendering program. The paid account charges you $20 per month, but the free account already packs all features required by daily needs. As an online animation maker, Clara.io is easy to use but still offers 3D artists and newbies superb results. It is highly compatible with a wide range of supported 3D formats including OBJ, FBX, STL, 3DS, and many more. Also, it responses extremely fast even on a less powerful machine thanks to the application of the V-Ray cloud engine. Moreover, it is supported by +100,000 free 3D models which give beginners lots of possibilities to quickly create 3D animation and modeling.

Clara.io VS After Effects

  • Clara.io wins in: Ease of Use, Low Requirement in Computer, 3D Modeling Rendering, and Creating.
  • After Effects wins in: 2D Animation Compositing, Motion Graphics, Rich Plugins, Title Generation, Rotoscoping, Motion Tracking, Simulation, VFX/Visual animation effects creation.
'Clara.io is easy to use, powerful 3D modeling and review tool, with comprehensive set of animation functions that does not require any additional on-site software installation.'
- Users review from g2.com

Cheap Alternative to Adobe After Effects

#6. Motion 5 - Cheap After Effects Alternative for Mac

  • Price: $49.9/permanently usage
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Download Link: Apple official site

Motion 5, developed by Apple Inc, is a motion graphic application runs on macOS. It has everything you need for creating 2D/3D animations, smooth transitions, 360° effects/titles, and realistic effects. Besides, the build-in real-time design engine offers you a live view without lagging. Motion is easy to learn and more efficient compared to AE. However, it lacks the support of the raft of plugins and templates that AE has. However, this isn't a deal-breaker for average users as you can use either Apple Motion or After Effects to create or edit simple motion graphics and animation titles as well as composite 2D/3D FOR visual effects.

Motion 5 VS After Effects

  • Motion 5 wins in: Ease of Use, Color Grading.
  • Adobe After Effects wins in: Third-Party Plugins, 2D Animation Compositing.
'I switched from AE CS6 after Adobe went subscription so I use Motion 5 now and I find it a lot easier to use and the integration with FCP X templates makes it a far better choice for video editors that also do motion graphics.'
- User review from creativecow.net.

Easy Alternative to Adobe After Effects

#7. Hitfilm Pro - Easy Alternative to Adobe After Effects for Windows and macOS

  • Price: $299
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Download Link: https://fxhome.com/hitfilm-pro

FXhome Hitfilm is an all-in-one app with great features on 3D facilities modeling, motion graphics, and complex procedural animations, graphics compositing, color correction, and advanced video editing. The many quick 3D presets offered by Hitfilm may limit you your creatively but it enables you to create bonfires, falling debris, Fire Explosion, and other amazing 3D effects with a few clicks of a mouse. In addition, it's fast composition workflow allows you to watch the video without rendering. So, basically, you can use Hitfilm Pro as a quicker and easier replacement of After Effects.

Video Created with FXhome Hitfilm Pro

Hitfilm Pro VS After Effects

  • After Effects wins in: Multi-Cam Editor, Shape Layers, Respond and Render Speed, 2.5D animation creation and Composition, Title Generation.
  • Hitfilm Pro: Simulations, Lens Flares, Color Grading, VFX works, 3D composition, Ease of Use, Customization, Thrid Party Plugins, Video Editing.
'3d object import and compositing. PBR materials are pretty good and get better with each new Hitfilm Pro'
- Users review from g2.com.

#8. Vegas Post - Expensive Alternative for After Effects for Windows

  • Price: $999
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • Download Link: https://www.vegascreativesoftware.com/us/vegas-post/

VEGAS POST is a collection of software including VEGAS PRO 17 (editing videos), Vegas Effects (creating and compositing animations and VFX), and VEGAS Image (processing image). A beginner or hobbyist can purchase Vegas Effects separately at the price of $399. You can get most things that are needed in visual effects and compositing, to name a few, 3D model rendering and effects, environment maps, versatile color-grading kits.

Vegas Effects gives you 800 staggering effects, filters, and presets that help you create eye-catching outcomes without having to install extra plugins. Other than that, you can enjoy a smooth playback even when copping with plenty of VFX works own a good deal to the support of threaded rendering.

Vegas Post VS After Effects

  • Vegas Post Wins in: Color Correction, Video Editing, Quick Visual Effects Creation.
  • After Effects Wins in: Ease of Use, Motion Tracking, 2D/2.5D animations, Title Generation, Third-Party Plugins.
'Most effects on Vegas 16 are very simple ones used to give some more level of detail to the video. If you are looking for real complex effects, maybe Vegas isn't the software for you and After Effects is the one you're looking for for stuff like editing in enhanced reality, coloring and masking.'
- User review from Reddit.

Advanced Alternatives to After Effects

#9. Cinema 4D - App Similar to After Effects for Windows, macOS, Linux (More Advanced)

  • Price: $60-120/Month
  • Ease of Use: ⭐⭐
  • Films that used Hitfilm Pro for production: 2012, Spider-Man
  • Download Link: https://www.maxon.net/en/cinema-4d

Cinema 4D, developed by Maxon, is all about creating 3D graphics for Motion and Visual Graphics. It usually collaborates with Adobe After Effects to build breathtaking 3D animations and models for Hollywood films. Certainly, it can be used stand-alone as an industry-level 3D modeling, painting, rendering, and animation program. Cinema 4D responds extremely fast and boasts robust rendering plugins. If all you need is about 3D-based things, Cinema 4D is more desirable than Adobe After Effects.

Cinema 4D VS After Effects

  • After Effects wins in almost everything but 3D modeling.
'This is an amazing tool for an imaginary person, if you can't think good enough for a scene this application gives you zero help. But on the other hand with Cinema 4D you can make the most good looking scenes for any use you want.'
- User review from g2.com.

#10. Nuke - Node-based Adobe Effects Alternative for Linux, macOS, FreeBSD, Windows

  • Price: $9298
  • Ease of use: ⭐
  • Download Link: https://www.foundry.com/products/nuke

Nuke is an industry-standard composition program before anything else. Being one of the most advanced node-based compositing tools, it can cope with 1023 channels in a single stream. Therefore, it is widely regarded as an advanced substitution of After Effects for the compositing jobs required by high-end films or TV shows. It is considerably more expensive and has a steeper learning curve, higher requirements on the PC built.

Rotoscoping is easier made and more adjustable in Nuke. The support of third-party plugins allows you to realize endless possibilities when creating VFX effects. Be that as it may, After Effects is still unreplaceable if you are working with multiple cameras, and videos with different durations, resolutions, and formats.

Nuke Visual Effects Compositing

Nuke VS After Effects

  • Nuke wins in: Node-based Compositing, 4K Video Compositing, 3D/VFX Compositing, Team Work, Effeciency.
  • After Effects wins in: Motion Graphics, Animation, Templates Creation, Title Generation, Ease of Use.
'Nuke is a solid piece of software, it is reliable, stable (on Linux I rarely if ever experience a crash for example), and more importantly, it is production proven at the highest level.'
- User review from reddit.

FAQ

Is After Effects free or there a free version?

No, in short. After Effects is a paid-for motion graphics, visual effects, and compositing software that offers no free version.

However, you can get a free trial for 7 days with the capability to use all features. To use After Effect for free, come cover to its official site, click on Free trial to download the .exe file, and have it installed on your pc or mac.

Can you buy After Effects permanently?

There is no access to buy Adobe After Effects permanently from Adobe since 2013. Though you can still purchase some older versions of AE from eBay and many commercial sites without having to pay the subscription fee every month ($19.9/month for the first year, and $29.99/month for next years), more bugs and crashes you would experience. And as such, it's worth going to dip your toes in some cheaper alternative before subscribing After Effects.

What is better than Adobe After Effects?

It's up to your target, personal preferences, machines, source files, skill level, and many other factors. For instance, Node-based visual effects and compositing programs like Fusion, Nuke, and Natron are far more efficient than layer-based Adobe After Effects to process complex composites entailing a vast number of layers. Hitfilm Pro and Vegas Effects have numerous ready-made options for creating spectacular VFX effects, they are better substitutes for After Effects if the project you are working on is time-sensitive. As for 3D rendering or modeling, even the free Blender can easily rival AE.

Which version of After Effects is the best?

Adobe After Effects Special Effects

Adobe After Effects 17.5 released on Oct 2020 is currently the best version with lots of bug fixed and new/improvement features including Tapered shape strokes, concentric shape repeaters, support of ProRes RAW files, etc.