This is the only book to focus exclusively on the creation of visual effects for After Effects, and is a one-stop resource for students who wants in-depth explanations that demystify the realm of visual effects and how they were created, thanks to veteran author Mark Christiansen's friendly and accessible style. A thoroughly packed, informative read, this masterful guide focuses on explaining the essential concepts, features, and techniques that are key to creating seamless movie-quality visual effects. Students who are comfortable with After Effects will find a helpful review of the fundamentals?managing footage, viewing and editing layers, animating type, and more?so they can learn how to work smarter and more efficiently. Students of all levels will learn core techniques for effects compositing including color matching, keying, rotoscoping, motion tracking, emulating the camera, and concluding with using expressions in After Effects, written by contributor and expert Dan Ebberts. The final section of the book delves into creative explorations, demonstrating professional effects that students might want to re-create. Students will also find comprehensive coverage of all that's new in CS6, including variable mask feathering, Rolling Shutter Repair, Camera Tracker, and the new ray-traced 3D rendering engine which allows users to quickly design in 3D space. Companion DVD includes sample clips and projects with HD footage from Pixel Corps and Artbeats, as well as demos of plug-ins that students can use to experiment with their own effects.