DissolveMaster (After Effects version): Tutorials & Tips
DissolveMaster is applied like any plugin effect in Adobe After Effects (Windows, CS5 or later). (NOTE: We currently have no MAC plugins for After Effects, but may soon! Click here to be notified.) Simply drag-and-drop DissolveMaster onto a timeline layer, from the Pixelan folder of the Effects and Presets panel of After Effects. See below for the basic steps to using this plugin. In a few minutes of seeing the below and then experimenting with the DissolveMaster plugin, you will have much of the creative power of DissolveMaster at hand for your projects. Note that all of this info is also available offline (for users who do not have Internet-connected editing stations) by clicking the FX Help button shown below.
* COOL TIP: To save time positioning section preset keys where two AE layers overlap: Make sure the Layer control in DissolveMaster is set to your overlapping layer (i.e. the other half of the transition), then choose a Progress preset within DissolveMaster. The Progress keys will automatically be placed in just the overlap. Thereafter, you can choose any other section preset and its keys will likewise be correctly placed within the Progress keys. To temporary turn off this feature, Control-click a section preset.
COOL TIP #2: To organically animate/flow any other effect(s) applied to a SINGLE clip -- such as blurs, color changes, tonal changes, or third-party video effects plugins -- set the Layer control to the same layer DissolveMaster is in. That' is how you can easily reveal or fade video effects in a way that relates visually to your scene's content rather than the standard approach of ramping a video effect's strength uniformly over an image.
You’re done! To save the custom DissolveMaster transition you've created for future use, click the Save button. A
standard Save dialog will appear. We recommend saving in the "My effects" subfolder provided.
Optional Visual Enhancements
Add blends, saturation changes, blurs, and glows for creative variety. Note that many useful presets are available in the Presets menu within each section as a starting point. Below are tips for the other controls:
Blending -- to blend the dissolving area differently. Use the Mode 1 control to choose a Photoshop-like blend mode. Use Mode 2 to optionally choose a second blend mode for further visual
creativity. To adjust the mix of Mode 1 and Mode 2, use Blend Mix -- greater values
increase the relative strength of Mode 2. Mid Contrast adjusts the contrast in the dissolve area. Gamma adjusts the brightness in the dissolve area. NOTE: When applying
DissolveMaster onto a single non-overlapped clip, blend modes other
than Normal will produce irregular visual results.
Saturation -- to ramp the clip's color saturation
during the dissolve. To choose whether the saturation change will appear just in the dissolve area or in the entire image, use the Saturation menu. Use the keyframable Strength to adjust the intensity of the saturation change -- positive values increase saturation; negative values desaturate.
Blur -- to add a blur to the dissolve's look. Use the Blur menu to choose whether the blur will appear within the composite image, a specific layer, or only in the dissolve area. NOTE: If None is selected in the Layer menu, Blur Clip 2 only will be
ignored. Use the keyframable Strength to adjust the blur's strength.
Glow -- to add a glow or flash to the dissolve. Select the glow color using the eyedropper or color
controls. With the Mode menu, you can set how the glow mixes into the images. Add tends to
brighten or tint towards the chosen glow color. Overlay replaces
the image with the chosen color. Size controls the glow size; Strength sets the visual strength of the glow. To show lower track visuals
(such as a still-image or video clip) in the glow area instead of a
glow color, turn on the Transparent check box.
DissolveMaster Saved Settings and Presets
Choose from nearly 500 pre-made professional effects in DissolveMaster. There are THREE ways to access presets -- Effect Browser presets, AE Animation presets, and Section presets.
Effects Browser presets
This is the most powerful and visual way to access presets and is where nearly 500 dissolve transition presets are located. Click the Click here to load a preset... button at the top of DissolveMaster (as shown by the smiley in the above image) to open a large Effects Browser window to visually choose/compare pre-made effects. The Effects Browser is shown below. To save your own custom presets in the Effects Browser, use DissolveMaster controls to set up the desired look, then click the Save button.
Time-saving tips to load presets faster:
The Effects Browser is fast, but sometimes you may already know which preset you want to use, such as when you are applying the same preset repeatedly in a project. In that situation, selecting a preset by one of the following methods can be faster... To see recently chosen Effects Browser presets, click the Recent button. For a drop-down menu of Effects Browser presets, click the Menu button. To use a standard Open file dialog box, click the Open button.
Handy tips while working within the Effects Browser:
• To scroll through presets in a folder while keeping your eye on the top preview image for comparison, click in the right panel then use left or right arrow keys.
• To increase/decrease the thumbnail image size, use the Size button at the bottom of the Effects Browser.
• To copy a favorite preset into the My Favorites folder located atop the left column of preset folders, right-click any preset image and choose Copy to My Favorites. To copy the preset into a subfolder within that folder (such as if you want to organize presets per project or per client), right-click the preset and choose Copy to My Favorites >> [new subfolder]. You can then name the subfolder as desired. After the subfolder is created, it will also appear in the right-click menu.
• To rename a preset that is in the My Favorites folder, right-click the preset there and choose Rename this preset. To remove a My Favorites preset, right-click and choose Delete this preset.
• To hide any preset, right-click the preset and choose Hide this preset. To show all hidden presets in a folder, right-click any preset in that folder and choose Restore all hidden presets here. To temporarily view the folder's hidden presets, which can be handy if you just want to momentarily browse them, choose Temporary show hidden presets.
• To toggle between viewing the source file image and the DissolveMaster preset, click the top large preview image in the Effects Browser.
Time-saving tips to load presets faster:
The Effects Browser is fast, but sometimes you may already know which preset you want to use, such as when you are applying the same preset repeatedly in a project. In that situation, selecting a preset by one of the following methods can be faster... To see recently chosen Effects Browser presets, click the Recent button. For a drop-down menu of Effects Browser presets, click the Menu button. To use a standard Open file dialog box, click the Open button.
Handy tips while working within the Effects Browser:
• To scroll through presets in a folder while keeping your eye on the top preview image for comparison, click in the right panel then use left or right arrow keys.
• To increase/decrease the thumbnail image size, use the Size button at the bottom of the Effects Browser.
• To copy a favorite preset into the My Favorites folder located atop the left column of preset folders, right-click any preset image and choose Copy to My Favorites. To copy the preset into a subfolder within that folder (such as if you want to organize presets per project or per client), right-click the preset and choose Copy to My Favorites >> [new subfolder]. You can then name the subfolder as desired. After the subfolder is created, it will also appear in the right-click menu.
• To rename a preset that is in the My Favorites folder, right-click the preset there and choose Rename this preset. To remove a My Favorites preset, right-click and choose Delete this preset.
• To hide any preset, right-click the preset and choose Hide this preset. To show all hidden presets in a folder, right-click any preset in that folder and choose Restore all hidden presets here. To temporarily view the folder's hidden presets, which can be handy if you just want to momentarily browse them, choose Temporary show hidden presets.
• To toggle between viewing the source file image and the DissolveMaster preset, click the top large preview image in the Effects Browser.
Section presets
Our handy Preset menus for each section opens a quick menu of presets that change only the values in that section of DissolveMaster controls. Use this unique feature to quickly and easily make hundreds of new effect variations. For example, try different Glow presets with your dissolve transition without affecting what you have set up in the other controls of DissolveMaster.
AE Animation presets
If you prefer, you can save DissolveMaster presets as animation presets in the usual place within After Effects, by selecting DissolveMaster, then choosing Save Animation Preset from the Animation menu in After Effects or from the Effects & Presets panel menu.
Detailed Help on Each DissolveMaster Control
Dissolve Keying
Set where the dissolve will start/end within the image, what image information will be used to form the dissolve, and edge softness.
Set the Key at... Choose the target for the next two Key controls in this section. For example, when a white "Key Color" is selected, choosing "Start of dissolve in Clip 1" will start the dissolve in the first clip's brightest areas; "End of Clip 1" will end the dissolve in the first clip's brightest areas. Likewise in the second clip if "Start of Clip 2" or "End of dissolve in Clip 2" is chosen. NOTE: When applied to single layer, choose a "Clip 1" options.
Key Type Choose the type of image information that will visually flow the dissolve over time. Click the adjacent Compare button to visually compare options. "Luminance" creates a dissolve based on brightness; a good choice to simulate optical/film dissolves. "Color" uses RGB values to start or end the dissolve in a particular hue within a clip. "Red channel" (or Green or Blue) uses the color intensity in one color channel. "Timing adjusted" options better match the dissolve's visual progress to the transition's actual start/end.
Key Color Use the eyedropper or color controls to set where the dissolve will visually start or end within your images. For example, if white is selected the dissolve will start or end (depending on "Set the Key at..." choice) in the clip's brightest areas; if black, then in the clip's darkest areas. If a color is chosen, the dissolve will start or end in color areas that most closely match. To use the eyedropper, click it, then click in the preview image.
Softness Adjust the edge softness of the dissolve.
Shape Choose a shape from several options. "Inverted" choices reverse the dissolve's direction of flow.
Shape
Use this section to conform the dissolve to a shape, partially or entirely. Create ultra-soft "directional dissolves" with a shape, for example, to subtly radiate a dissolve outward from any subject in a scene.
Shape Choose a shape from several options. "Inverted" choices reverse the dissolve's direction of flow.
Strength Set how strongly the dissolve conforms to the chosen shape.
Position Position the shape within the image by dragging the center point. If "Linear Wipe" is selected, you can adjust its angle by moving the center point. For more precision, enter numerical values, such as to match the shape in two different dissolves.
Blending
Optionally use Photoshop-like blend modes in this section to create new dissolve looks.
Mode 1 To fine-tune the look of the dissolving area within a clip, choose a Photoshop-like blend mode. NOTE: When applying DissolveMaster onto a single non-overlapped clip, blend modes other than "Normal" will produce irregular visual results.
Mode 2 Optionally choose a second blend mode for further visual creativity. NOTE: When applying DissolveMaster onto a single non-overlapped clip, blend modes other than "Normal" will produce irregular visual results.
Blend Mix Adjust the mix of Mode 1 and Mode 2. Greater values increase the relative strength of Mode 2.
Mid Contrast Adjust the contrast in the dissolve area.
Gamma Adjust the brightness in the dissolve area.
Saturation
Optionally ramp the clip's color saturation during the dissolve.
Saturation Choose where the saturated color will appear.
Strength Adjust the intensity of the color saturation during the dissolve.
Blur
Optionally add a blur to the dissolve's look.
Blur Choose where the blur will appear within the image. NOTE: When applied to a single layer "Blur Clip 2 only" will have limited functionality.
Strength Adjust the blur's strength.
Glow
Optionally add a glow to the dissolve.
Color Select the glow color using the eyedropper or color controls. To use the eyedropper, click it, then click in the preview.
Mode Set how the glow mixes into the images. "Add" tends to brighten or tint towards the chosen glow color. "Overlay" replaces the image with the chosen color.
Size Control the glow size.
Strength Set the visual strength of the glow.
Transparent Turn on this checkbox to show lower track visuals (such as a still-image or video clip) in the glow area instead of a glow color.
Progress Control the dissolve's progress over time, typically changing in value from 0 to 100. To ease-in/out the dissolve, adjust its start/end keyframes or add additional keyframes. To hold a dissolve, set two adjacent keyframes to equal value.
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