by Joost |
Last Updated: June 26, 2022 After Effects already has a lot of features, but the best feature is the ability to use external plugins and scripts.
These extensions offer many advanced possibilities to make your productions even more impressive. They often save a lot of time by enabling complicated effects with just the push of a button.
Here are three plugins and motion graphics that should not be missing in your collection!
In this post we'll cover:
Must-have After Effects plugins & scripts
Ease and Wizz – After Effects script
(Ian Haigh) – Ease and Wizz
To create smooth animations in After Effects you have to spend a lot of time in the Graph editor. This gives you much more control than with the standard Bezier curves of a keyframe.
Ease and Wizz is a script that calculates complex animations at the touch of a button, each with its own character.
If you want to create animations that attract attention, Ease and Wizz is the perfect solution, and you can set the price yourself!
Optical Flares – After Effects plugin
(Video Copilot) – Video Copolit – Optical Flares
Lens Flares are caused by the incidence of light in the lens of the camera. Although it is actually a “mistake”, it often gives a nice effect, for example when the sun rises and draws a beautiful Lens Flare over the image.
If you’re like J.J. Abrams (Star Trek, Star Wars) love Lens Flares Optical Flares is the ideal plugin for you.
You can place light sources to your heart’s content, they are dynamic spotlights that also take the edges of the image into account.
At an entry-level price of $125, it’s a must-have for the serious effects editor, and Lens Flare fetishists.
Motion2 – After Effects script
(Mt. Mograph) – Motion2
Creating complex animations takes a lot of time and effort. Motion2 is a plugin that automates many repetitive actions and gives you much more control over keyframing of effects and objects.
Motion2 takes it one step further as its predecessor, adding over twenty new tools to the already impressive offerings of the first version.
The Color Rig, Vignette, Sort and Pin+ functions are also introduced, making this plugin even more versatile. At $35, this is well worth the investment.
What is your favorite plugin? Which script is indispensable in your collection? Share your experience with our community!
