Now we could start working on our after effects project here by importing things into the project paint. We could start setting our folders or we could do anything we would like because we have got a blank slate. But, let us start out by opening a project called interface field. Well go up to file pull done menu and select open project command O or control+O on a PC. You should be familiar with this one by now. Here I can see in the project folder there are two different files in the after effects projects. One is interface start which is blank for you to use another is interface field. We will choose the field versions so that we have source materials already in our project.

Here we can see after effects project open with several different compositions in the timeline. On my screen you will see the bright red line running across the bottom of the comp window this is because the caps lock key is on. In anytime when you are using after effects and you see this you will get a prompt telling you in order to refresh that comp window you will need to release the caps lock. Clicking on the caps lock will reveal the image in your comp before we take a look a comps let us check out the project paint. Here in the upper left hand corner you will find your project paint. Will use the tool the key on the keyboard to bring this project paint up to full screen.

Now we can take a look at all the properties just inside this one paint. I want to close up some of these folders so we can take a closer look at this overview. Here you will notice I have got several different folders already created for you in the AE start file you will find all of these folders are empty. It is important to note that after effects sorts the name of the folder after numerically that means its start with the number then sorts it alphabetically. You might want to keep this organize according to what source materials you use the most. In a professional studio you might find a priority list like this where Photoshop illustrator and quick time elements are used for the composition.

The leading numbers will help to sort this name alpha-numerically. Two digits in the number will allow me to use up to 99 different folders without repeating a number. Inside these folders you may want to setup sub-folders if I twirl down the audio I will see that the audio set with the music folder and the sound effects folder. You can simply drag source materials to any folder by clicking and dragging and releasing those on to the new destination. The name comp is very important and probably the most used when working with after effects. Additionally, there is a label column we get into labels a little bit later but after effects allows you to color code each one of these folders and source materials. Simply right clicking on the color jet will bring up a dialogue box allowing you to change the color of this chip.

Here I can choose from the newer ray of color added in after effects CS3. After effects also includes the ability to sort by type because we have setup folders which already do the sorting for us we do not necessarily need to sort by type. We can close any one of these columns by right clicking or control clicking on a Mac and revealing the contextual menu underneath each one of this columns. Here I will right click until after effects to hide this column if at any point and time I want to bring back that column. I can simply do the same, I can right click or control click on any one of these columns. Navigate down to the columns list and turn on the checkpoint for any one of these columns that I want to show.

Alternatively, I can uncheck a column that I do not want to show. Here I have a quick time movie that it is outside its folder so I can see it size and duration by clicking and dragging the small bar in between each of the columns I can change the width of the column. I can see that my movie is three megabytes, it is six seconds in length and it resides here in this file path unlike photo shopper illustrator after effects does not save the source material with the project file. Instead it saves a direct three location here after effects knows to go and search on the hard drive underneath this directory and look into the source materials to find AB is no flakes movie. This is important because after effects will need to link back to this file path the next time this project is opened.