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Adobe After Effects Adobe After Effects

Get Started with Adobe After Effects 2026 (Beginners)

Learn how to get started with Adobe After Effects 2026 in this complete course for beginners. Whether you look to enhance your YouTube videos, start a career in motion design, or simply add visual flair to your projects, this class is the perfect starting point.

By Jordy Vandeput ★ 4.8 (885 reviews) 22 lessons 3h 13m Project files included
Buy course $129
Save 88% Or take everything Cinecom Complete Bundle 14 courses · 24 video packs · 1 partner deal $197 $1,704.70 total value See the bundle
Trailer Cinecom
What you'll learn
  • Master keyframes, layer properties, and smooth animations to bring static objects to life.
  • Learn to isolate objects with Masking, Rotoscoping, and Luma Keying.
  • Attach graphics to moving video using standard Motion Tracking and advanced 3D Camera Tracking.
  • stabilize shaky video and remove unwanted objects using Content-Aware Fill.
  • Step into the third dimension with 3D Text and 3D Objects.
  • Create professional titles with Advanced Text Animations and Track Mattes.
About this course

This course teaches you Adobe After Effects from the first click. You learn to build compositions, animate with keyframes, cut subjects out of footage, track text into a shot, remove unwanted objects and add 3D text and 3D models, then export the result. It is made for complete beginners and taught by Jordy Vandeput, founder of Cinecom.

What you'll learn in this After Effects course

Layers, keyframes and animation

  • The After Effects interface: panels, workspaces, the Project panel, compositions, layers and blending modes.
  • The transform properties every layer has (anchor point, position, scale, rotation, opacity) and how to animate them with keyframes.
  • Smooth animation with Easy Ease, Easy Ease In and Easy Ease Out, plus motion blur and the Force Motion Blur effect for animated effects.
  • Null objects, the pick whip, layer linking and adjustment layers with Lumetri Color.
  • Time remapping: Stretch Time, Frame Blending, Pixel Motion and speed ramps with several keyframes.

Masking, keying and rotoscoping

  • Drawing masks with the pen tool, feathering and expanding them, and animating a mask path to reveal a second clip.
  • Mask tracking, used to make an eye glow red, with a second mask set to Subtract.
  • Luma keying with the Extract effect, checking the key against a solid, and a full sky replacement.
  • Color correction and color grading: pre-composing layers, matching them with Lumetri Color, and a Linear Wipe reveal.
  • Rotoscoping with the Roto Brush and the Refine Edge hair tool, then freezing the result.

Tracking, stabilizing and cleanup

  • Stabilizing shaky footage with the Warp Stabilizer and with a manual Stabilize Motion track.
  • Motion tracking applied to a null object, so a text layer follows a handheld shot.
  • Track mattes, used to put a drop shadow on a text layer only.
  • Removing a person from a shot with the Content-Aware Fill panel.

Text, graphics, 3D and export

  • Shape layers and title cards with staggered position keyframes and an inverted track matte reveal.
  • Trim Paths and text animators with range selectors for per-character animation.
  • 3D camera tracking to attach text to a moving drone shot.
  • 3D text with extrusion in the Advanced 3D renderer, and an FBX rock model lit with an environment light.
  • The Render Queue, with H.264 for sharing and Apple ProRes 422 for further editing.

How the course is built

There are 22 lessons with a total runtime of about 3 hours and 13 minutes. Jordy works on a set of example clips throughout, so each technique is shown on real footage: a lens flare and an energy ball, a whip pan mask transition, a glowing eye, a night sky replacement, text behind a rotoscoped subject, a title animation, text on a road and a rock floating above a hand.

Project files are included as one zip of 1203.3 MB. Jordy says it holds the project files and the footage used in the lessons, and the lessons also use a 3D rock model from it. The final lesson sets an exercise: make a video with an intro animation using text and graphics, a clip with a mask, roto or key, and a 3D shot.

Who this course is for

It is for beginners. You do not need previous experience with After Effects or motion design. Jordy starts with the welcome screen and saving a project, and explains each tool as it comes up.

It is not a deep course on color grading: Jordy says that is for a different class and only shows the basics. The 3D lessons are also limited by what After Effects can do. Jordy says that for realistic 3D quality you would use a dedicated 3D program such as Blender.

What you need

  • Adobe After Effects.
  • The project files and footage from the course download.
  • Adobe Photoshop, only if you want to follow the optional reference frame step in the Content-Aware Fill lesson.
Lessons
22 lessons 3h 13m 3 free previews
Jordy sets out what the course covers: motion graphics, text animation, tracking, keying and masking, removing objects and 3D. He explains the class is for beginners who want to understand the basics of After Effects.
Start with the welcome screen, saving a project and the panels. Import footage, organize it in folders, create compositions, try the Add blending mode on a lens flare clip and recolor it with Hue/Saturation.
Meet the transform properties every layer has: anchor point, position, scale, rotation and opacity. Reset them, then use the stopwatch to keyframe a clip moving and rotating, including the Shift trick for landing exactly on a keyframe.
Make stiff keyframes feel natural with Easy Ease, Easy Ease In and Easy Ease Out, and switch on motion blur. Then animate CC Flow Motion to build an energy ball, using Force Motion Blur on the effect.
Animate a null object to get a smooth, editable motion path, then link CC Flow Motion and a Lens Flare to it with the pick whip. Ends with an adjustment layer carrying Lumetri Color.
Slow clips down and speed them up with Stretch Time, see why low frame rates look choppy, and compare Frame Blending with Pixel Motion. Then enable Time Remapping and keyframe speed ramps between slow and fast.
Cut out shapes with the pen tool, feather and expand the mask, and blend an AI-generated foreground into a tripod shot. Then animate a mask path frame by frame to reveal a second clip during a whip pan.
Draw an ellipse mask around an eye, let Track Mask animate it, and colorize it red with Hue/Saturation and the Add blend mode. A second mask set to Subtract cuts out the eyelid, and opacity keyframes fade the glow.
Key out a bright sky with the Extract effect, the replacement for the obsolete Luma Key. Check the edge against a pink solid, bring the rocks back with a duplicated masked layer, and drop in a night sky photo.
Pre-compose the cliffs and night sky, then match them with Lumetri Color exposure, shadows and temperature and a Fast Box Blur. Add a Lumetri look on an adjustment layer and finish with a Linear Wipe reveal.
Stabilize a windy handheld clip two ways: the automatic Warp Stabilizer with smooth or no motion, and a manual Stabilize Motion track using two points. Fix the black borders with a second Transform effect.
Cut a subject with flying hair and a cape out of a shot using the Roto Brush and the Refine Edge tool. Correct frames that go wrong, freeze the result, then place text between subject and background.
Track a handheld shot with Track Motion and two points, apply the data to a null object renamed tracking data, and parent the Supergirl text layer to it. Motion blur makes the text sit in the shot.
Add a drop shadow that lands only on the text layer by using a track matte. Covers a shape layer as a matte, the invert option, and duplicating the clip to remove edge artifacts left by the Roto Brush.
Build a title card over a blurred, darkened drone shot: a rounded rectangle and a line on one shape layer, centered text, staggered position keyframes, and an inverted track matte that reveals the animation.
Draw a rectangle outline with Trim Paths, then animate the HUGE CLIFFS title letter by letter using text animators and range selectors. A second animator with per-character 3D adds rotation on its own timing.
Remove a man in a yellow jacket from a shot: roughly mask and invert him, then generate a fill layer in the Content-Aware Fill panel. Also tries Photoshop reference frames, and shows results can vary.
Run Track Camera on a drone shot, pick points in the 3D Camera Tracker, and create text and camera so three words stick to the road. Explains the virtual camera and why moving text along Z makes it float.
Fly the tracked camera through a letter: use the two-view layout to place text on the Z axis, switch the composition to the Advanced 3D renderer, and add extrusion depth, bevel and material options.
Track a shot, create a null at the wrist and swap it for an FBX rock model. Copy the transform properties, animate the rotation, add an environment light with shadows, and pre-compose to apply Force Motion Blur.
Open the Render Queue with Ctrl+M, choose the output location, and pick between H.264 for sharing and Apple ProRes 422 for further editing. Covers best versus draft settings and rule-of-thumb target bitrates.
Jordy wraps up and sets an exercise: one video with an intro using text, graphics and smooth keyframes, a clip using a mask, roto brush or luma key, and a 3D shot made with camera tracking, 3D text or a 3D object.
Your instructor
Jordy Vandeput

Jordy Vandeput

Founder of Cinecom · 2.75M+ subscribers on YouTube

Jordy Vandeput is a Belgian filmmaker who has taught practical filmmaking to millions through Cinecom. He breaks professional techniques down into clear, repeatable steps you can use on your very next project.

Watch on YouTube
From the course
What students say
★ 4.8 · 885 reviews

Very informative your teaching skills are outstanding, and your teaching method is highly engaging. We never get bored in fact, it becomes addictive. Thank you for this tutorial I’ve learned a lot from you. Thanks again!

Akash Jemse

It’s especially great for people who want to jump into After Effects right away, get comfortable with the software quickly, and then refine and hone their skills later on. After going through the lessons up to Section 3, I can confidently say this course continues to deliver. The instructor keeps everything straightforward—no fluff, just essential knowledge explained in a fun and engaging way. I still find myself enjoying the process and learning something new each time. This course is perfect whether you’re a complete beginner or someone like me with a Video Editing experience. If you’re a fast learner or someone with strong cognitive learning ability, you’ll appreciate how clear and efficient the teaching style is. Definitely a must‑take After Effects course!

Kazuya Inoue

As usual Jeordy always makes you understand the basics in a short time.

Vikash Sharma

This guy is very entertaining to listen to

Edward Weltin

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Questions
No. The course is for complete beginners and needs no previous experience with After Effects or motion design. Jordy starts at the welcome screen, saving a project and the panels, and explains each tool as it comes up.
You build a lens flare and energy ball animation, a mask transition, a glowing eye with mask tracking, a night sky replacement, text behind a rotoscoped subject, an animated title, text tracked onto a road and a 3D rock floating above a hand. You also export a finished video.
Yes, the course has a download of project files, a zip of 1203.3 MB. Jordy says it contains the project files and footage he works with. The lessons also use a 3D rock model from it.
There are 22 lessons with a total runtime of about 3 hours and 13 minutes. The lessons build on each other, from the interface and keyframes through masking, tracking and 3D to exporting.
Jordy does not name a version number in the lessons. Everything is done in Adobe After Effects, including the Content-Aware Fill panel, the Roto Brush with Refine Edge and the Advanced 3D renderer, so you need After Effects installed to follow along.
After Effects is the program used in the lessons. Photoshop is needed only for one optional step in the Content-Aware Fill lesson, where Jordy creates reference frames in Photoshop. You can skip that step.
Jordy uses the Windows Ctrl shortcuts and mentions the Mac Command equivalent for several, such as Command S to save, Command Z to undo and Command C to copy.
Sign in to your Cinecom account and every lesson streams right away, on any device. You keep access for life, for as long as the course stays in our catalogue.
One time. You pay once and keep lifetime access. There is no recurring subscription.
No. Lessons stream from your account. When a course comes with project files, you download those from the course page in your account.
No. When a course teaches a program, the course page shows which one, and you need your own copy.
Yes, you can sign in on your phone, tablet or computer. Your account is personal, and signing in on several devices at the same time can end your other sessions.
Yes. Paddle, our reseller, runs the checkout, charges any VAT or sales tax and sends you the invoice.
No. Our courses do not come with a certificate.
Watch the free preview lessons and browse the full lesson list before you buy. Every lesson unlocks the moment you enrol, so purchases are final. This never affects your statutory rights if a course is faulty or not as described: email [email protected] and we will help.
Cinecom Complete Bundle

Every course. Every pack. One price.

  • 14 courses
  • 24 video packs
  • 1 partner deal
  • Every future release
$197 Total value: $1,704.70 Save 88%
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