Dissecting Pros and Cons: Why Adobe After Effects is a "Wizard" of Visual Effects

Today, with SaDesign, I will take you on a journey to discover the “trump card” of post-production professionals Adobe After Effects. Through this article, we will “dissect” the core advantages and disadvantages of After Effects, to understand why this software is known as the “magician” of effects. Ready? Let’s get started!

1. What is After Effects?

1.1. Overview of After Effects

Adobe After Effects (AE for short) is a software specializing in visual effects (VFX) and motion graphics, developed by the famous Adobe company. AE allows you to unleash your creativity and "enchant" scenes, create eye-catching visual effects, and turn every idea into a vivid and cinematic one.

1.2. Practical application

Post-production of movies and TVCs: If you watch a blockbuster movie or a spectacular commercial, chances are that during the processing, After Effects has "taken action" with countless sparkling effects.
Motion Graphic, Animation: If you want graphic elements to move and "dance" to the music, After Effects is the top choice.

Title, Intro/Outro: Brilliant intros, professional video ending outros, or even animated subtitles can be "woven" by AE with countless attractive effects.
Marketing videos, music videos: From sparkling lights to explosion effects, AE transforms everything very "smoothly".
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2. Advantages of After Effects

2.1. Ability to create rich effects

· Presets      

Diverse effects store: After Effects "stuffs" dozens of basic effects, from color, blur, glow to transition effects and many other 2D/3D effects.

Enhance your ideas: With advanced effects like Chroma key, Particle and Lens Flare, users can easily create sparkling, captivating scenes.

· Huge plugin library      

If you are bored with the available effects, After Effects still allows you to install third-party plugins to transform images in your own way.

Some featured plugins:

Trapcode Particular: Creates more advanced, shimmering, and vibrant particle effects.
Element 3D: Import 3D models into AE, helping you process and create 3D effects right in the familiar interface.
Optical Flares: Optimize the creation and customization of lens flares, bringing cinematic depth to your projects.
Unleash creativity: Thanks to the rich plugin ecosystem, AE can "carry" many different types of projects, from making movie titles, TVC ads to music videos with complex effects.

2.2. Smooth integration with the Adobe ecosystem

· Link to Premiere Pro      

Seamless workflow: One of the huge pluses is the ability to Dynamic Link between Premiere Pro and After Effects. You can edit a basic video in Premiere Pro, then “embed” the entire sequence into After Effects to “magically” work on the effects.

Save time exporting and importing: There is no need to export intermediate files (e.g. .MOV, .MP4) and then import them into AE; instead, the data will be “hand-transferred” directly, limiting quality errors and saving memory.

· Support Photoshop, Illustrator      

Keep layers intact: PSD (Photoshop) or AI (Illustrator) files when imported into After Effects still retain the layer structure, helping you customize each object and detail as desired.

Suitable for motion graphic design: If you do logo animation or text animation, it becomes easier to "play" with multiple vector layers (AI) or image layers (PSD) in AE, improving work efficiency.

2.3. Intuitive interface and features
·       Timeline Layer

Manage layers by time: All layers (video, text, shape…) are arranged on top of each other, clearly displayed on the time axis. This helps you track and adjust movements and effects between layers intuitively.

Optimize operations: You can group, name or color each layer, convenient for complex projects with many components.

·       Keyframe Animation

The Soul of Motion: Whenever you want to change a parameter (position, scale, rotation, opacity, etc.) over time, you just create keyframes. After Effects will automatically interpolate the states between these keyframes, creating smooth motion.

High precision: You can adjust the speed, curvature, and quality of motion by “tweaking” the graph curve (Graph Editor), making the motion smooth or sharp as desired.

· Flexible preview      

Optimized preview experience: AE uses RAM to cache part or all of the video, allowing you to preview the effect at the highest possible resolution.

Depending on your computer configuration: If your computer is powerful with a large RAM and a strong graphics card, the preview process will be very smooth. But even if your configuration is not too strong, you can still reduce the preview quality (Half, Quarter) to make it smoother.

3. Disadvantages of After Effects

3.1. Requires high computer configuration

CPU, RAM, GPU must be strong enough: To run smoothly and render quickly, After Effects requires a computer with a powerful configuration. Especially when processing many layers, heavy effects, or footage with a resolution of 4K or higher, AE can make the computer "crash" if the hardware is not enough.

Hardware upgrade costs: For individual users, investing in high-speed multi-core CPUs, high-end graphics cards, large RAM capacity, etc. is not cheap. This can become a barrier if you are just starting out or are not financially ready.

Optimize settings: However, you can still “reduce the load” by adjusting some settings such as reducing preview quality, temporarily turning off complex effects. However, this method is only a “firefighting” method and cannot completely solve the hardware problem.

3.2. Complexity

Not a “one-click” tool: With so many panels (Timeline, Effects & Presets, Project, Composition…), control panels and countless features, After Effects can easily overwhelm beginners the first time they use it.

Long learning time: To master AE, you need to understand the “Keyframe Animation” mechanism, layers, blending modes, masks, etc. It is normal to “forget first, remember later”. Newbies often have to watch many tutorials and practice continuously to gradually grasp.

It’s easy to get lost without a roadmap: Many of the advanced features in AE (such as expressions, 3D layers, camera tracking) take time to get used to. If you don’t have a clear goal from the start, learning AE can become disjointed and ineffective.

3.3. Not optimized for long multi-shot editing

AE's strengths: Creating effects, animation, compositing, and detailed motion processing. Basically, AE "shines" when you create short clips, insert unique effects, or design motion graphics.

Limitations when editing long films: If you need a tool to edit the whole film, divide many scenes, arrange coherent cuts, then AE is not the optimal choice. AE's timeline is suitable for working on relatively short segments, instead of managing dozens of seamless scenes.

Alternative: For long-form editing, you should consider dedicated software such as Premiere Pro or DaVinci Resolve. You can then export the sections that need special effects to AE for processing, then transfer them back to Premiere (Dynamic Link) to maintain a continuous, efficient workflow.

3.4. Copyright costs

Adobe Creative Cloud Subscription Model: To legally own After Effects, you must pay a monthly or annual license fee for the Adobe Creative Cloud package. This fee can be prohibitive for some people, especially students or those who are just “doing it.”

Financial pressure for freelancers with few projects: If you don't have many projects to "rotate", the monthly software cost can make you hesitate to decide to stick with AE long term.

Budget Solution: Adobe occasionally offers discounts for students or new customers. You may also consider opting for the “AE only” (Single App) plan instead of the full Creative Cloud suite if your need for other Adobe software is limited.

4. Buy cheap and reputable copyrighted After Effects

You can absolutely register and purchase After Effects license directly on Adobe's official website. However, the monthly or annual fee of Adobe Creative Cloud package may be a worthy investment for beginners or those on a limited budget.

At SaDesign, we always put service quality and customer benefits first. Becoming a partner providing genuine Adobe CC packages not only affirms SaDesign's position, but also demonstrates our commitment to supporting the design - filmmaking community to "touch" international creative standards.

4.1. Ensure genuine and safe copyright

Clear origin: The Adobe CC packages (including After Effects) provided by SaDesign are all genuine, fully complying with Adobe regulations.

Stable and secure operation: You will receive a valid copyright account, regular updates, and do not have to worry about risks such as activation locks, viruses from pirated software...

4.2. Reasonable and transparent prices

Diverse service packages: SaDesign aims to optimize costs for many subjects, from students new to design and filmmaking, to businesses needing the entire Adobe toolkit.

Information disclosure: All information about packages, prices, as well as how to update and renew are clearly provided by SaDesign. You can easily choose the right package, without worrying about "hidden fees" or unreasonable additional costs.

Overall, After Effects is the ideal software for those who want to “upgrade” their video products, insert unique effects, and create impressive motion graphics. In addition, Adobe Creative Cloud also provides a synchronized ecosystem, helping you optimize the entire design and post-production process.

Let SaDesign accompany you, providing a reputable and genuine After Effects copyright purchase solution, along with dedicated guidance and support services. When used properly and fully exploited, After Effects can become a "magic wand" that turns all your ideas into a colorful masterpiece, elevates your brand and conquers the audience spectacularly!