{"id":26481,"date":"2014-04-10T13:40:57","date_gmt":"2014-04-10T17:40:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/?p=26481"},"modified":"2016-09-13T15:15:36","modified_gmt":"2016-09-13T20:15:36","slug":"gradient-maps-and-blend-modes-in-after-effects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.premiumbeat.com\/blog\/gradient-maps-and-blend-modes-in-after-effects\/","title":{"rendered":"Gradient Maps and Blend Modes in After Effects"},"content":{"rendered":"

Combining gradient mapping and blend modes can be used to create fun, unique looks in After Effects.<\/h2>\n

\"Adobe<\/p>\n

In this post, we share a quick way to give your footage unique color grades in Adobe After Effects<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of my favorite ways to add fun looks to photos in Photoshop is to combine gradient maps with blend modes<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

This particular gradient map combination is a favorite of mine that works well on a lot of images (especially outdoor):<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

As you’ll see below, I added a gradient map to the image and changed the blend mode to “Screen”:<\/p>\n

\"Photoshop<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

Gradient Maps in After Effects<\/h2>\n

Technically, gradient map layers don\u2019t exist in After Effects. However, you can mimic the effect with the tinting effects<\/strong>: Tint, Tritone, CC Toner, and Colorama. A gradient map recolors an image by using the gradient you set to replace the grayscale gradient in a black and white image. So, using a gradient like this:<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Results in this:<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Now that we can mimic the effect of a gradient map, put these effects on an adjustment layers<\/strong> and you get the ability to apply blend modes<\/strong>, just like in Photoshop!<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll start out by using the gradient \u00a0above again and applying it to an adjustment layer. You can get a ton of different looks by changing the blend modes; some work better or more often with others depending on the colors you choose. This first gradient map has a lot of options that actually look pretty interesting:<\/p>\n

(Click images for larger view<\/em>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Darken<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n\"Darken\"<\/a><\/td>\n		Multiply<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n\"Multiply<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\nAdd\u00a0<\/strong>Blend Mode
\n\"Add\"<\/a><\/td>\n		Lighten\u00a0<\/strong>Blend Mode
\n\"Lighten\"<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

\nScreen<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n\"Screen\"<\/a><\/td>\n		 <\/p>\n

Color Dodge\u00a0<\/strong>Blend Mode
\n\"Color<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n


\nOverlay<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n\"Overlay\"<\/a><\/td>\n		 <\/p>\n

Overlay<\/strong>\u00a0w\/ Adjustment at 50%
\n\"Overlay<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n


\nSoft Light<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n<\/span>\"Soft<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/td>\n		<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Here\u2019s another gradient:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

This particular combination of colors really only had good results with two of the After Effects blend modes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Screen<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n\"Screen\"<\/td>\n		Soft Light<\/strong>\u00a0Blend Mode
\n\"Soft<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Here\u2019s another gradient combination:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Lighten<\/strong>
\n\"Lighten\"<\/p>\n

And another:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Soft Light
\n<\/strong>\"Soft<\/p>\n

Now here\u2019s one that uses the tritone filter to add a third color to the mix:<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Overlay
\n<\/strong>\"Overlay\"<\/p>\n

With the CC Toner effect<\/strong>, you can fine tune your results even more, leaving the highlights and shadows alone<\/strong> to preserve good black and white points, but still adding a tint in those areas:<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Screen:<\/strong>
\n\"Screen\"<\/p>\n

Using a sepia color scheme gives some good results:<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Screen:
\n<\/strong>\"Screen\"<\/p>\n

Overlay:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Overlay\"<\/p>\n

You can even recreate the popular “Blockbuster” look:<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Overlay:<\/strong>
\n\"Overlay\"<\/p>\n

Soft Light:<\/strong>
\n\"Soft<\/p>\n

Gradients with Colorama in After Effects<\/h2>\n

For ultimate control of the gradient, Colorama is the way to go. It\u2019s a little unweildly to use since its gradient tool is radial instead of linear, but you can really fine tune the results or use multiple colors<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\"a<\/p>\n

Soft Light:<\/strong>
\n\"Soft<\/p>\n

Color dodge<\/strong>\u00a0(with the base image adjusted for exposure to compensate):<\/p>\n

\"Color<\/p>\n

The color dodge effect made the shot too bright, so I dropped a levels filter on the original image to bring down the exposure:<\/p>\n

\"color<\/p>\n

Experiment with exposure and contrast adjustments<\/strong> on the original image underneath the adjustment layer, as well as with different opacities<\/strong> on the adjustment layer to really get it looking the way you want it. After Effects does a great job of live-updating the look as you change your colors, so you can even pick a bland mode and fine-tune your colors live for the desired result!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Combining gradient mapping and blend modes can be used to create fun, unique looks in After Effects.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":38949,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[30,5339,39],"tags":[649,716,5375,120,597,51,43,47,472],"class_list":["post-class-post-26481","post-class-post","post-class-type-post","post-class-status-publish","post-class-format-standard","post-class-has-post-thumbnail","post-class-hentry","post-class-category-after-effects","post-class-category-color-grading","post-class-category-video-editing","post-class-tag-adobe-after-effects","post-class-tag-adobe-creative-suite","post-class-tag-after-effects","post-class-tag-color-correction","post-class-tag-color-grading-2","post-class-tag-post-production","post-class-tag-tips","post-class-tag-tricks","post-class-tag-video-production"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGradient Maps and Blend Modes in After Effects - 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